More than a decade after first discovering an idyllic, ancient, walled town deep in the mountains of southwest China, Matt, a former guidebook writer, returns to find his modern-day vision of Shangrila threatened by a brash outsider intent on putting the town on the party circuit. Matt falls for the newcomer's fiery girlfriend and becomes entangled in a power struggle that pits the drug-addled Westerners against increasingly hostile locals. A dark exploration of the disrupting effects of outsiders, this dynamic narrative is a unique look at an alternative culture in China.