Book excerpt: Red Sonja, heroine for hire, is drawn to the jade kingdom of Khitai with the promise of riches beyond belief. A land of rigid honor codes and fanatical warriors loyal to a god-emperor, Khitai is the perfect place for a master swordswoman to ply her trade. But when honor demands she aids the fabled land's most revered warrior in conflict against an ancient creature of limitless power, can Sonja save this jade kingdom from running red with blood?