Chapter Summaries

Su Daji tried to persuade Su Hu to let her enter the palace, hoping to fulfill Empress Nuwa’s mission, but he refused out of loyalty to his daughter and faith in The King. After Su Hu ordered her to stay in the rear courtyard until they returned to Jizhou, Su Daji decided she would find another way into the palace.

• Su Daji pretended to worry about Su Hu and learned that he had sent Fei Zhong and You Hun away after they urged him to send her into the palace.
• Su Hu vowed that he would never sacrifice his daughter for the family’s advancement, and Su Daji pretended to offer herself to protect the Su family and Jizhou.
• Su Hu rejected her offer, insisting that Fei Zhong and You Hun had acted on their own and that The King was wise and would never demand such a thing.
• Su Hu told Su Daji to remain in the rear courtyard until the court audience ended and they could return to Jizhou.
• Alone in her room, Su Daji cursed Su Hu and resolved to enter the palace by other means.

Su Daji subtly pressured Su Hu to agree to send her into the palace, while pretending to be a devoted daughter. Su Hu refused again but revealed that Grand Tutor Wen’s absence left him feeling powerless, and Su Daji prepared to make one final push.

• Feudal lords visited Su Hu and urged him to accept The King's demand, while Su Daji quietly undermined his resolve.
• Su Daji tearfully argued that entering the palace would protect the Su family and Jizhou, but Su Hu refused to sacrifice his daughter.
• Su Hu lamented that Grand Tutor Wen was away leading a campaign against Yuan Futong in the North Sea, leaving Fei Zhong and You Hun unchecked.
• Su Daji welcomed Wen Zhong's absence and resolved to keep pressuring Su Hu until he agreed.
• Su Daji left to prepare for her eventual palace entrance and planned how to make the Human Emperor remember her.

Jiang Huanchu investigated rumors that Di Xin had ordered Su Hu to offer up his daughter and concluded that Fei Zhong and You Hun had acted without the King's command. Queen Jiang agreed the King was innocent, and she prepared to visit him with ginseng soup so she could warn him indirectly.

• Jiang Huanchu heard that marquises were pressuring Su Hu in the King's name and suspected Fei Zhong and You Hun had abused their influence.
• Jiang Huanchu went to the palace and asked Queen Jiang whether Di Xin had truly ordered Su Hu to offer up his daughter.
• Queen Jiang insisted Di Xin would never issue such an order and blamed Fei Zhong and You Hun for borrowing the King's authority.
• Jiang Huanchu advised Queen Jiang to raise the matter indirectly so she would not appear to interfere in state affairs or undermine the King's authority.
• Queen Jiang resolved to warn the King about the ministers and ordered a carriage to Nine Chamber Hall, saying she would bring him ginseng soup.

Queen Jiang brought Di Xin ginseng soup and urged him to select consorts, ostensibly for Great Shang’s sake but because she had heard rumors about Su Hu. Di Xin challenged her assumptions about his motives, leaving her embarrassed and speechless before he began explaining what he knew of Fei Zhong and You Hun’s actions.

• Queen Jiang visited Di Xin in the Nine Chamber Hall with ginseng soup, and they discussed their sons Jiao'er and Hong'er spending time with Nezha.
• Queen Jiang suggested that Di Xin select virtuous consorts to fill the harem and strengthen Great Shang.
• Di Xin asked whether Queen Jiang had heard about Su Hu’s matter, and she admitted that rumors had reached her.
• Queen Jiang offered to oversee a consort selection and questioned why Di Xin had made such a fuss over a minister’s daughter.
• Di Xin asked whether Queen Jiang thought he was lustful, then pointed out the contradiction in her urging him to take consorts.
• Di Xin said that although he had not instructed Fei Zhong and You Hun, he had known about their actions.

Di Xin reassured Queen Jiang that he had reasons for allowing Fei Zhong and You Hun to pressure Su Hu, then dismissed her concerns. After she left, he revealed that he knew Su Daji was a Nine-tailed Fox and decided to keep her in the palace while investigating how Sage methods had bypassed Chaoge’s Human Dao array.

• Queen Jiang warned Di Xin that Fei Zhong and You Hun’s actions against Su Hu would damage the king’s reputation and discourage loyal ministers.
• Di Xin told Queen Jiang that the matter had nothing to do with him publicly and dismissed her without revealing his reasons.
• After Queen Jiang left the Nine Chamber Hall, Di Xin revealed that Su Daji was a Nine-tailed Fox who had entered Chaoge disguised as a human.
• Di Xin realized that Sage methods had bypassed the Human Dao Destiny array and decided to inspect Chaoge more closely.
• Di Xin decided to keep Su Daji in the palace under his watch rather than kill her, and warned her not to disappoint him.

On the day the marquises paid court, Di Xin confronted Ji Chang over rumors that Heaven’s Mandate belonged to Zhou, then let him go with a warning. Su Hu arrived with a memorial to present, while the disguised Su Daji hoped his confrontation with Fei Zhong and You Hun would force her father to send her to the palace.

• Su Daji urged Su Hu to avoid clashing with Fei Zhong and You Hun, but her concern vanished after he left and she privately hoped he would provoke them.
• The Four Great Marquises reported on their territories, and Di Xin questioned Ji Chang about the rumor that Heaven’s Mandate was with Zhou.
• Ji Chang denied treason, and Jiang Huanchu, E Chongyu, Chong Houhu, Bi Gan, Shang Rong, and Huang Feihu pleaded for him.
• Di Xin dismissed the accusation as a warning, ordered Ji Chang to govern Xiqi and suppress further rumors, and allowed him to withdraw.
• Su Hu announced that he had a memorial to present, and Di Xin ordered him summoned into the court.

Su Hu accused Fei Zhong and You Hun of falsely invoking Di Xin’s authority to pressure him into sending Su Daji to the palace, but the two ministers claimed they had only made a suggestion. Di Xin publicly denied wanting more consorts, fined them one year’s salary, and left Su Hu dissatisfied as he ordered them to apologize.

• Su Hu entered the Nine Chamber Hall and impeached Fei Zhong and You Hun for allegedly forging the King’s will and forcing him to offer Su Daji to the palace.
• Di Xin asked Fei Zhong and You Hun whether he had ever ordered Su Daji to be brought to the palace, and they denied forging an edict.
• Fei Zhong and You Hun claimed they had merely suggested Su Daji enter the palace, while Su Hu accused them of using feudal lords to threaten him.
• Di Xin told the court he did not want more consorts and warned ministers not to presume to interpret his intentions.
• Di Xin fined Fei Zhong and You Hun one year’s salary, dismissed Su Hu’s plea for harsher punishment, and told the two ministers to apologize to him.

Di Xin asked Su Hu to send his daughter Su Daji to the palace as a companion for the Queen, insisting the request did not violate his promise not to take a consort. He dismissed court while threatening to question Su Hu’s loyalty if he refused, leaving Su Hu furious and trapped by the demand.

• Jiang Huanchu urged Su Hu to accept Di Xin’s explanation and stop pursuing Fei Zhong and You Hun.
• Di Xin told Su Hu the Queen was lonely and asked him to send Su Daji to the palace to keep her company.
• Su Hu protested that Su Daji was unsuited to palace life, but Fei Zhong and You Hun vouched for her talents and accused Su Hu of having ulterior motives.
• Di Xin challenged Su Hu to trust his promise and warned that refusing the request could cast doubt on his loyalty to Great Shang.
• Di Xin dismissed court, and Fei Zhong and You Hun mocked Su Hu as they left him standing alone in the hall.

Su Daji persuaded Su Hu to accept the king’s order for her to enter the palace, arguing that refusing would endanger their family and Jizhou. She hid her satisfaction over the decision and planned to manipulate Di Xin once she was inside.

• Su Daji greeted Su Hu and learned that the king had ordered her to enter the palace to accompany Empress.
• Su Hu erupted in anger, accusing the king of using a false excuse to bring Su Daji into his harem.
• Su Daji warned Su Hu that refusing the order could bring ruin upon the Su family and Jizhou.
• Su Daji urged Su Hu to send her into the palace to preserve the family’s dignity and safety.
• Su Hu reluctantly agreed to send Su Daji to the palace, while she secretly resolved to ensnare Di Xin and bring down Great Shang.

Di Xin exposed the Nine-tailed Fox possessing Su Daji, seized and suppressed the jade talisman, and spared the demon by making her the Queen’s pet. After Su Daji awoke, she refused Di Xin’s offer to send her back to Jizhou and chose to remain in the palace with the fox.

• Di Xin saw through the Nine-tailed Fox’s disguise and identified the jade talisman she wore.
• Di Xin forcibly took and sealed the talisman, causing the Nine-tailed Fox to reveal her true form and beg for mercy.
• Di Xin spared the Nine-tailed Fox but ordered her to become a pet for the Queen.
• Su Daji awoke after the fox left her body, and Di Xin offered to seal her memories and return her to Jizhou.
• Su Daji chose to stay in the palace, and Di Xin sent her to the Queen with the little white fox.

Jiang Ziya received Sect Master Tongtian’s order to return to Chaoge and lead the Interception Sect’s disciples through the Investiture of the Gods Calamity. Shen Gongbao was sent to Xiqi to urge Ji Chang to attack the Great Shang Dynasty, and he left the mountain intent on using his nominal authority to his advantage.

• Sect Master Tongtian ordered Jiang Ziya to enter Chaoge and command the Interception Sect’s disciples during the Tribulation.
• Sect Master Tongtian explained that Jiang Ziya’s role was to protect the disciples from needless deaths and said the Human Emperor would support him.
• Jiang Ziya accepted the task and departed Jinao Island for Chaoge.
• Venerable Lord Yuanshi ordered Shen Gongbao to go to Xiqi and persuade Ji Chang to raise an army against the Great Shang Dynasty.
• Shen Gongbao asked when the Twelve Golden Immortals would descend, but Venerable Lord Yuanshi told him to focus on Ji Chang’s rebellion.
• Shen Gongbao left Jade Void Palace, planning to use his status as the campaign’s leader to mobilize the Chan Sect’s forces.

Jiang Ziya arrived in Chaoge and met Di Xin, who appointed him acting Grand Tutor until Wen Zhong returned. Jiang Ziya accepted the post as a subject of the Great Shang Dynasty and set out for the Grand Tutor's Mansion.

• Di Xin sensed Jiang Ziya entering Chaoge and ordered palace guards to bring him to the Nine Chamber Hall.
• Jiang Ziya told Di Xin that his master had sent him to assist the Human Emperor during the Investiture of the Gods Calamity.
• Di Xin appointed Jiang Ziya acting Grand Tutor, granting him authority over the Grand Tutor's Mansion and court affairs until Wen Zhong returned.
• Di Xin assured Jiang Ziya that court officials would cooperate and that he could return to Jinao Island after the Tribulation.
• Jiang Ziya accepted the appointment as Jiang Shang, pledged his loyalty to Di Xin, and headed to the Grand Tutor's Mansion.

Shen Gongbao arrived in Xiqi on Venerable Lord Yuanshi’s orders and urged Ji Chang to fulfill Heaven’s Mandate by helping Zhou rise against Shang. Ji Chang concealed his ambition behind professions of loyalty to the Human Emperor, then accepted Shen Gongbao as Xiqi’s Grand Counselor while postponing any action.

• Shen Gongbao introduced himself to the guards at the Marquis of Xibo’s residence as a Chan Sect disciple, and Ji Chang and Bo Yikao welcomed him inside.
• Shen Gongbao reassured Ji Chang that Ji Shudan and Nangong Shi’s sons were thriving under the Chan Sect’s Golden Immortals.
• Shen Gongbao declared that Heaven’s Mandate favored Zhou and that Venerable Lord Yuanshi had sent him to assist Ji Chang.
• Ji Chang briefly rejoiced at the prophecy, then remembered the Human Emperor’s power and publicly insisted that Xiqi remained loyal to Shang.
• Shen Gongbao pressed Ji Chang to accept Heaven’s Will, and Ji Chang said the time was not right for action but appointed him Grand Counselor.
• Ji Chang ordered Bo Yikao to arrange a banquet to welcome Shen Gongbao.

After fifteen years of stalemate in the North Sea, Di Xin decided to accelerate the conflict by issuing an Edict of Recommendation that would dismantle the feudal lords’ power and provoke rebellion. Jiang Ziya agreed to prepare to lead Great Shang’s forces, and Di Xin planned to announce the edict at the next court assembly.

• Queen Jiang, Consort Huang, Su Daji, the Nine-tailed Fox, and the Nine-headed Pheasant Spirit left the garden when Jiang Ziya arrived to meet Di Xin.
• Di Xin noted that Jiang Ziya had served in Chaoge for over fifteen years and that Wen Zhong had been stalled in the North Sea for the same length of time.
• Di Xin showed Jiang Ziya the Edict of Recommendation, which would force the feudal lords to surrender their power or face charges of rebellion.
• Jiang Ziya predicted that Ji Chang would rebel to prevent Xiqi from being divided among his hundred sons, while the other feudal lords might also turn against Great Shang.
• Jiang Ziya pledged to handle the mortal war and promised to pacify any rebellious lords with Great Shang’s forces.
• Di Xin ordered Jiang Ziya to prepare as he announced that he would formally reveal the edict at the next court assembly in Nine Chamber Hall.

At court, Di Xin announced the Edict of Recommendation, ordering the sons of the regional lords to divide their fathers’ fiefs and establish separate states. Jiang Ziya defended the decree as benevolent, Di Xin made it effective immediately, and Shang Rong feared the policy would drive the lords to rebel.

• Di Xin announced that all sons of regional lords except the legitimate eldest could divide their fathers’ fiefs under the Edict of Recommendation.
• Shang Rong, Bi Gan, and the assembled officials begged Di Xin to withdraw the decree, warning it would undermine Great Shang and provoke rebellion.
• Di Xin refused to reconsider and declared that the matter was settled.
• Jiang Ziya argued that the decree was a royal favor and implied that only disloyal regional lords would oppose it.
• Di Xin ordered the decree announced to the eight hundred feudal lords and put into effect immediately.
• Jiang Ziya told Shang Rong that the times had changed and left, while Shang Rong feared Great Shang was driving the lords into rebellion.

Ji Chang learned that Di Xin’s Edict of Recommendation threatened to divide Xiqi and resolved to rebel, but first sought to unite the feudal lords. Shen Gongbao reassured him that Heaven’s Mandate favored Zhou and promised Chan Sect support.

• Ji Chang denounced Di Xin’s edict as a scheme to divide Xiqi and destroy the Ji clan.
• Shen Gongbao urged Ji Chang to rebel, and Ji Fa supported the plan while Bo Yikao warned against acting rashly.
• Ji Chang agreed that Xiqi must rebel but ordered San Yisheng to sound out the feudal lords and Ji Fa to unite the two hundred minor lords nearby.
• Ji Chang asked Shen Gongbao whether Heaven’s Mandate truly favored Zhou, and Shen Gongbao pointed to the divinations suggesting Great Shang’s decline and Xiqi’s rising fortune.
• Ji Chang committed Xiqi to following Heaven’s will, and Shen Gongbao promised that the Chan Sect would assist him.

After the southern and northern marquises agreed to support Xiqi and Jiang Huanchu stayed neutral, Ji Chang declared war on Shang and, at Shen Gongbao’s urging, founded Great Zhou and proclaimed himself its king. He appointed Shen Gongbao prime minister and Ji Fa commander of the campaign, then the southern, northern, and western armies advanced toward Chaoge.

• San Yisheng reported that E Chongyu and Chong Houhu would join Xiqi against Shang, while Jiang Huanchu would focus on unrest in the east and not intervene.
• Ji Chang ordered Xiqi to raise troops against Shang, and Shen Gongbao urged him to establish a state and proclaim himself king; Ji Fa supported the proposal while Bo Yikao objected.
• Ji Chang held a Heaven-offering ceremony, founded Great Zhou, and proclaimed himself King of Zhou.
• Ji Chang appointed Shen Gongbao prime minister and Ji Fa grand marshal of the campaign against Shang, then assigned titles to Bo Yikao, San Yisheng, and other ministers.
• E Chongyu and Chong Houhu led four hundred feudal lords in answering Great Zhou’s call, while Jiang Huanchu suppressed unrest in the east; armies from the south, north, and west marched toward Chaoge.

After Ji Chang founded his kingdom, Venerable Lord Yuanshi gave Shen Gongbao the Investiture of the Gods and God-Beating Whip and tasked him with building the platform at Mount Qi. Shen Gongbao recruited Bai Jian to oversee its construction and Dragon Beard Tiger to join the campaign against Shang, while Venerable Lord Yuanshi prepared to send Guang Chengzi and his fellow disciples into the mortal world.

• Venerable Lord Yuanshi summoned Shen Gongbao from Xiqi and entrusted him with the Investiture of the Gods and God-Beating Whip, ordering him to build a platform on Mount Qi.
• Venerable Lord Yuanshi directed Shen Gongbao to recruit Bai Jian from the North Sea to supervise construction and promised him a leading position among the righteous gods of pure blessings.
• Venerable Lord Yuanshi bestowed Four Unlike on Shen Gongbao, who rode the mount to the North Sea and persuaded Bai Jian to serve him.
• Dragon Beard Tiger ambushed Shen Gongbao to steal Four Unlike, but Shen Gongbao defeated him with Yuqing Divine Thunder and accepted him as a disciple.
• Venerable Lord Yuanshi sensed that Shen Gongbao had recruited Bai Jian and Dragon Beard Tiger, then decided to send Guang Chengzi and the other disciples into the mortal world.

Shen Gongbao began building the Platform of Investiture of the Gods as the vassal lords launched a three-sided rebellion against Great Shang. Di Xin revealed that he had deliberately provoked the revolt and placed Jiang Ziya in command to crush the rebels and eliminate the vassal lords.

• Shen Gongbao ordered Bai Jian to oversee construction of the Platform of Investiture of the Gods and sent Dragon Beard Tiger to gather building materials.
• Ji Fa led Xiqi’s army toward Chaoge, while E Chongyu and Chong Houhu raised armies in the south and north; six hundred vassal territories rebelled.
• Jiang Ziya reported the rebellion to Di Xin in the Nine Chamber Hall, prompting Shang Rong and Bi Gan to urge the King to withdraw the Edict of Recommendation and appease the vassal lords.
• Di Xin declared that he had wanted the vassal lords to rebel so he could uproot them, and ordered Jiang Ziya to command all Great Shang troops and pacify the realm.
• Jiang Ziya accepted the command and promised to quell the rebellion and restore Great Shang’s unity.

As the Great Shang army prepared to march, Di Xin summoned Jiang Ziya and assigned Nezha to serve as the western expedition’s vanguard. He then recommended Kong Xuan, leaving Jiang Ziya puzzled about why the seemingly ordinary general mattered.

• Di Xin summoned Jiang Ziya to the palace and introduced Nezha as a soldier who would serve under Jiang Ziya’s command.
• Di Xin agreed that Nezha would be subject to military discipline, and Nezha pledged to obey Jiang Ziya’s orders.
• Jiang Ziya appointed Nezha commander of the vanguard for the western expedition, which was set to depart the next day.
• Di Xin recommended Kong Xuan as a second person for the expedition, despite Jiang Ziya’s view that Kong Xuan had no remarkable record.
• Jiang Ziya asked Di Xin to explain what made Kong Xuan special.