Mark Popplewell

Into the Sea of Qi Mark Popplewell

Publisher Marketing: BEN WAKEFIELD is the most bullied boy at Scarr Hill High; MR LI is the most accident prone person in Hong Kong. When their paths cross it is the beginning of Ben's journey into another world - a parallel universe of Taoist martial arts, Chinese philosophy and terrifying demons. While Mr Li trains Ben in the Chinese arts of Tai Chi and meditation Ben is unaware of the journey which lies ahead - a journey which he must complete or die. But, before the journey to a strange world has even begun, shadowy figures from the spheres of business and politics, and the demonic creatures they command, are already trying to stop Ben. Barren rocky desert, snowstorms, soaring mountains, bamboo thickets and ancient temples provide the backdrop to the journey. Taoist and Buddhist scholars provide Ben with encouragement and some of China's rarest teas. A succession of supernatural adversaries stalks and confronts him at every opportunity. But, although this strange land has many dangers, the most threatening of all may be the beautiful but cold killer who has followed him from police state Britain. The action shifts between modern Hong Kong and ancient Chinese landscapes but Ben is in both places at the same time.