In 12th Century Japan, Lady Orin pines for her warrior lover, Nanko, who has been away in battle. Jealous of her beautiful sister, Lady Akane savagely mutilates Orin's face, beginning a spiral of despair that ends in the suicides of both lovers at Lake Amada. The evil Akane, as fickle fate would have it, becomes the mystical caretaker of the lake, now brimming with a strange power.

Thus begins a complicated web of revenge and redemption that spans two centuries. Jung's lush, expressive artwork, action-filled sequences, and expert sense of timing brings to life this suspense-filled tale, packed with ghostly encounters, samurai swordplay, undead armies, beautiful landscapes, and strange demons.

The lost spirits of these two unlucky lovers may still find freedom, but their hope now rests on the supernatural birth of a granddaughter ... and her ability to unravel the secrets of the restless ghosts that haunt her, the Kwaïdan .