Chapter Summaries

Shen Yangge learned why Chu Xuanzhen was delaying his ascension and discovered that officials were pressuring him to decide. He chose to push the matter forward himself, hoping to uncover what awaited them beyond the throne.

• Shen Yangge tried to reach Chu Xuanzhen but met Xue Pingyuan and discussed why Chu Xuanzhen might be reluctant to take the throne.
• Xue Pingyuan told Shen Yangge that court officials had been threatening to die in remonstrance and planned to use Shen Yangge to pressure Chu Xuanzhen.
• Three days later, Shen Yangge attended court in a crimson robe, where the Eighth Prince stopped him from kneeling before Chu Xuanzhen.
• Shen Yangge resolved to help Chu Xuanzhen ascend the throne so he could investigate the truth and discover what came next.

Shen Yangge urged Chu Xuanzhen to make a decision about ascending the throne, then discovered the ministers were also demanding that he take an empress and expand his harem. The ministers staged increasingly dramatic protests in court, while Chu Xuanzhen ordered Shen Yangge to stay after the session to speak with him.

• Several ministers knelt and pressured Chu Xuanzhen to decide about ascending the throne, and Shen Yangge joined them after someone tugged his clothes.
• Chu Xuanzhen told Shen Yangge to stand and threatened to break his legs if he knelt again, while Shen Yangge read a memorial urging Chu Xuanzhen to take an empress and consorts.
• Shen Yangge threw down the memorial and promised to obey Chu Xuanzhen, who ordered him to remain after court for a lengthy discussion.
• A minister collapsed and pretended to be gravely ill while praising Chu Xuanzhen, and other ministers staged further dramatic protests.
• The Eighth Prince calmly tripped ministers who rushed toward the steps, while Shen Yangge watched and wondered whether the throne should go to him instead.

Shen Yangge helped persuade Chu Xuanzhen to ascend the throne, then reassured him of his support. The next day, Shen Yangge was dressed in ceremonial robes as the Capital City celebrated Chu Xuanzhen’s ascension.

• Chu Xuanzhen silenced the ministers who were protesting, and Shen Yangge told him he would support whatever decision he made for Great Chu.
• Shen Yangge proposed that Chu Xuanzhen decide soon but delay taking an empress and expanding the harem, and Chu Xuanzhen agreed to ascend the throne immediately.
• The Eighth Prince recognized Liang Wenjin and dragged him away by the collar, while Shen Yangge went to the new Imperial Study.
• Chu Xuanzhen asked whether Shen Yangge wanted him to become emperor, and Shen Yangge affirmed his wishes and promised to stay by his side.
• The next day, the Capital City celebrated Chu Xuanzhen’s ascension as servants dressed Shen Yangge in vivid red ceremonial robes.

As Chu Xuanzhen began his ascension ceremony, Shen Yangge’s mission failed and System 615 sacrificed itself to destroy the Virus System. Shen Yangge recovered his memories as a god who oversaw the small worlds, and the chapter ended with him seeing Chu Xuanzhen’s familiar face in his memories.

• Shen Yangge joined the officials at court, aching from the previous night and wearing festive clothes that made them think he was dressed for a wedding.
• Chu Xuanzhen arrived in an imperial palanquin and ascended the dragon steps as the officials watched.
• The system warned Shen Yangge that he had failed his mission to be executed before Chu Xuanzhen ascended the throne.
• System 615 urged Shen Yangge to act, then sacrificed itself to destroy the Virus System.
• Shen Yangge recovered his memories and realized he was a god who had entered the small worlds to repair Bugs after a data collapse.
• Shen Yangge’s memories settled on Chu Xuanzhen’s familiar face.

Shen Yangge recovered memories of his true identity as the God-Emperor Flame’s Golden Dragon companion and learned how he had entered the small worlds to repair Bugs. His memories ended with the emperor appearing in human form and watching him, leaving Shen Yangge wondering why the emperor had pretended not to know him.

• Shen Yangge remembered that he and Ruthis had been assigned to repair Bugs in the small worlds, and realized Ruthis had been his fellow god rather than a mission target.
• Shen Yangge recovered memories of being the Golden Dragon beneath the emperor’s seat and of the emperor’s flames awakening his awareness.
• Shen Yangge remembered promising to help the emperor take human form and becoming a Main God Hall administrator to gather the rare materials needed.
• After a major incident disrupted the Main God Hall, Shen Yangge entered the worlds to repair Bugs, where an unknown force stole much of his memory and replaced his system.
• Shen Yangge watched his past self look toward the sky and recognized the emperor, who had taken human form and seemed to smile at him.

Shen Yangge recovered his sealed memories and learned how the Great Emperor and the Virus System had manipulated him, then prepared to make them pay. In the imperial palace, he collapsed just after Chu Xuanzhen ascended the throne, and the Imperial Physicians declared him dead.

• Shen Yangge watched his memories and recalled growing up with the Great Emperor, eventually ending their friendship and forgetting him.
• Shen Yangge learned that the Virus System had infiltrated System 615, used fake punishments to hide its control, and blamed the Database for its actions.
• Shen Yangge realized Little Dragon Baby was a vessel for his memories and decided to retaliate against the Great Emperor and the virus.
• Chu Xuanzhen spotted Shen Yangge collapsed among the ministers and rushed to hold him, but found that he was not breathing.
• The Imperial Physicians repeatedly checked Shen Yangge and declared him dead, while Chu Xuanzhen rejected their verdict and pleaded for him to wake.

Chu Xuanzhen fell into despair when Shen Yangge appeared to die, and his illness and gu poison flared as he fought off anyone who tried to take Shen Yangge from him. Shen Yangge remained trapped outside his body, unable to reach Chu Xuanzhen or restore the dead System 615.

• Chu Xuanzhen coughed up blood and clung to Shen Yangge, repeatedly checking for signs of life and refusing to believe he was dead.
• The Imperial Physicians and court officials tried to separate Chu Xuanzhen from Shen Yangge, but Chu Xuanzhen kicked away everyone who came near.
• Chu Xuanzhen's illness flared, and he continued to cough blood while struggling to keep it off Shen Yangge.
• Shen Yangge watched Chu Xuanzhen's breakdown but could not return to his body or make himself heard.
• Shen Yangge searched his memories for a way back, knowing that reviving System 615 required reconstructing its deleted data.

Shen Yangge found a way to retrieve System 615, but two months passed before he could return to Chu Xuanzhen. He came back to find Great Chu transformed into an unprecedented empire, and Chu Xuanzhen recognized him as he returned to his body.

• Shen Yangge failed to extract System 615 at first because he had not created it himself.
• Chu Xuanzhen fainted while holding Shen Yangge's corpse, then kept it with him for months as he ruled Great Chu and rejected anyone who urged him to let go.
• Shen Yangge heard Chu Xuanzhen call for System 615 and realized he knew about the system, so he brought its data to the Divine Temple and activated it.
• Shen Yangge returned to the Small World six months later and found Great Chu had unified the Central Plains while Chu Xuanzhen still held his corpse.
• Shen Yangge transformed into light and entered his body, and Chu Xuanzhen smiled and welcomed his Little Liar back.

Shen Yangge returned from the dead and reunited with Chu Xuanzhen, then was formally invested as Empress. Their marriage left them arguing at court as Shen Yangge continued pushing to travel and teach.

• Shen Yangge returned to Great Chu, completed the Prayer Sacrifice ritual, and shocked the ministers by attending court alive.
• Shen Yangge reunited with Shen Mother and Younger Sister, and he arranged for Shen Mother to raise the He children as his adopted son and daughter.
• On the day of his wedding, Shen Yangge tried to escape but Su Shang carried him back to the palace.
• Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Yangge completed the Empress-investiture ceremony and took their seats on the dragon throne.
• Shen Yangge argued with Chu Xuanzhen at court and repeatedly asked to travel south or take leave, while ministers remarked that Great Chu was finally stable.

After Shen Yangge died, Chu Xuanzhen struggled to maintain his sanity while ruling Great Chu and waiting for his beloved to return. Months later, Shen Yangge finally appeared alive before the court, leaving the terrified ministers relieved.

• Chu Xuanzhen continued governing while keeping Shen Yangge's corpse in his arms and caring for it himself.
• As grief drove Chu Xuanzhen toward madness, he fought to remain in control and resumed eating after he fainted from neglecting meals.
• Chu Xuanzhen waited through several months and the first snowfall without Shen Yangge returning.
• After Chu Xuanzhen fell gravely ill from spending a day and night outdoors with Shen Yangge's corpse, the Eighth Prince cursed him in distress.
• Chu Xuanzhen recovered but began carrying Shen Yangge's corpse into court only occasionally.
• Shen Yangge appeared alive before the court, and the ministers fainted with relief.

After regaining his memories, Chu Xuanzhen tried to resume his relationship with Shen Yangge, but his commanding behavior drove Shen away. He later brought Shen back to the Divine Temple as his Dao Companion, shocking the Deities.

• Chu Xuanzhen regained his memories while washing Shen Yangge’s feet and ordered him to come to the bedroom, but Shen Yangge rejected his authority as Emperor Venerable.
• Shen Yangge argued that he had married Chu Xuanzhen, not the Emperor Venerable, and left before Chu Xuanzhen could respond.
• Chu Xuanzhen returned to the Divine Temple to deal with its troubles, then found Shen Yangge had gone to Ruthis’s domain and brought him home.
• Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Yangge lived out their lives in that world before Chu Xuanzhen brought Shen back to the Divine Temple and announced they were Dao Companions.
• The Deities were stunned by the announcement and recalled that Chu Xuanzhen had once rejected suitors by claiming he did not like men.

In the Heavenly Prison, Chu Xuanzhi told the Eighth Prince that Chu Xuanzhen had killed their mother and that she had been poisoned for years. After learning Chu Tianyin had died, Chu Xuanzhi lost the will to live and died in his cell.

• The Eighth Prince visited the chained Chu Xuanzhi to ask about their mother's death and revealed that Chu Xuanzhen had crushed Chu Xuanzhi's Gu Worms.
• Chu Xuanzhi said Chu Xuanzhen had killed their mother and that she had suffered from slow-acting poison for over ten years.
• The Eighth Prince told Chu Xuanzhi that the Imperial Secret Guards had sworn allegiance to the emperor of Great Chu, and Chu Xuanzhi asked about Fourth Brother.
• The Eighth Prince recognized that Chu Xuanzhi loved Chu Tianyin and left without offering to help him escape.
• Chu Xuanzhi learned that Chu Tianyin had died, regretted his pursuit of the throne, and died in the Heavenly Prison one winter night.

In the Heavenly Prison, Chu Tianyin fell gravely ill and died while waiting for Chu Xuanzhi, dreaming of their childhood and the tangled history that turned them into enemies. His final thought was that he would never tell Chu Xuanzhi he loved him.

• Chu Tianyin tried and failed to be imprisoned near Chu Xuanzhi, then grew gravely ill without treatment in the Heavenly Prison.
• As his body failed, Chu Tianyin realized he had been waiting for Chu Xuanzhi and closed his eyes at dawn.
• In a dream, Chu Tianyin remembered how he and Chu Xuanzhi had been close as children, despite their family troubles and growing distance.
• Chu Tianyin recalled learning that Chu Xuanzhi had plotted against his mother, their later feud, and Chu Xuanzhi's disappearance.
• After seeing Chu Xuanzhi again, Chu Tianyin resolved that he hated him and wanted him dead, then admitted to himself that he loved him but would never say so.

After escaping a tsunami and recovering in a village, Nan Jiaxi and Ruthis fled bandits together, but Nan Jiaxi suffered a head injury and lost his memory. Ruthis told him he was his Queen Consort, and after they returned to the Western Regions, he married Nan Jiaxi and brought him to the Royal Palace.

• Nan Jiaxi cared for Ruthis as he recovered in a coastal village, and Ruthis grew possessive when villagers tried to introduce Nan Jiaxi to a young woman.
• Bandits attacked the village, and Nan Jiaxi escaped with Ruthis and several children; Ruthis killed more than a dozen bandits while protecting them.
• After the bandits caught up again, Nan Jiaxi fought alongside Ruthis but was struck on the head and lost consciousness.
• When Nan Jiaxi woke with amnesia, Ruthis told him his name and said he was Ruthis's Queen Consort; Nan Jiaxi called Ruthis "Husband," and Ruthis embraced him.
• Ruthis returned to the Western Regions and married Nan Jiaxi despite his ministers' objections, bringing him to the Royal Palace in a grand bridal sedan.

Nan Jiaxi confronted a pregnant woman who claimed Ruthis had fathered her child and demanded to become his lawful wife. Ruthis carried Nan Jiaxi away, affirmed that the consort’s position would always be his, and threatened the woman and her lover.

• At a royal welcoming banquet, a pregnant woman knelt outside the palace gates and accused Ruthis of abandoning her and their unborn son.
• Nan Jiaxi confronted the woman, challenged her claims, and insulted her when she insisted she carried Ruthis’s child.
• Nan Jiaxi offered to give up his position as Ruthis’s consort if the woman could prove herself worthy.
• Ruthis carried Nan Jiaxi away and told him the consort’s position would always be his.
• Ruthis threatened to send the woman and her lover to hell, and later worried Nan Jiaxi would leave him after regaining his memories.

System 615 regained consciousness long after sacrificing itself to save its host and discovered it had become a human child. After reuniting with Shen Yangge, it named itself Shen Tuantuan, then met System 614, who knew its embarrassing original name.

• System 615 merged with the Virus System to shield its host from the Heavenly Dao contract, then vanished while wishing it could return as a human.
• After many years, System 615 regained its self-awareness and remembered its special host, but learned it could not leave the Main Hall.
• System 615 discovered it had become a physical being, grew rapidly into a boy, and nearly damaged the Main Hall before the Great Emperor stopped him.
• System 615 asked Shen Yangge to give him a name, rejected the name Shen Yangge suggested, and chose Shen Tuantuan for himself.
• System 614 met Shen Tuantuan, called him by his embarrassing name, and introduced himself as Fu Xuzhi.

During the New Year, Crown Prince Chu Jinghong waited for Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Yangge to return, reflecting on his origins and his ambitions. He later became a capable emperor, and after a long life he died as Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Yangge came to bid him farewell.

• Chu Jinghong asked the Old Eunuch whether Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Yangge would return, then resolved to uncover his origins and protect the realm.
• Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Yangge returned on the second day of the new year, and Chu Jinghong reunited with them.
• Chu Jinghong remembered that he was an adopted child rescued from an island and planned to become emperor to discover the truth about his birth.
• Chu Jinghong ruled well and intended to choose a successor from the Chu family's bloodline rather than pass the throne to his own children.
• In his final year, Chu Jinghong saw the unchanged Chu Xuanzhen and Shen Yangge, then died as they came to bid him farewell.

The Eighth Prince slipped away to Jiangnan with Liang Jinwen and Liang Yu, while their companions built lives of their own across Great Chu. The story ended with the empire's golden age continuing and the author thanking readers and introducing a new book.

• The Eighth Prince, bored with state affairs, secretly went to Jiangnan, accompanied by Liang Jinwen and Liang Yu, while Su Shang remained with them.
• Xue Pingyuan and Xue Qian became celebrated military role models for Great Chu's younger generation.
• Shen Mother lived comfortably into her seventies or eighties with her two adopted sons caring for her.
• Capable emperors kept Great Chu prosperous despite continued threats to its lands.
• The author thanked readers for following the story and presented the synopsis for the next book.