Chapter Summaries

The Antarctic Immortal urged Ji Chang to return to Xiqi and begin the campaign against Yin Shang, promising support from the gods and buddhas. After a sleepless night and a long journey, Ji Chang reached Xiqi and reunited with Ji Fa and his ministers.

• The Antarctic Immortal told Ji Chang to seek the sage by the Wei River, choose an auspicious day to found a state, and send troops against Yin Shang; he also gave Ji Chang Fire Jujubes to clear the taint from his body.
• Ji Chang resented the Antarctic Immortal’s insults but concealed his anger, vowing that Xiqi and the Heavenly Dao would bring Yin Shang down.
• Ji Chang spent the night awake before falling asleep as the escort from Mount Qi Pass carried him toward Xiqi.
• Ji Chang’s procession passed the Wei River and reached Xiqi City after two more days of travel.
• Ji Fa and Xiqi’s ministers met Ji Chang outside the city, and Ji Fa knelt before his father as the assembled people followed.

Ji Chang returned to Xiqi after seven years in Chaoge, where memories of Bo Yikao’s death made him lash out at Ji Fa before he accepted his son’s public show of filial devotion. At the welcoming banquet, Ji Chang found that he could not stomach the meat, leaving his ministers puzzled.

• Ji Chang remembered Bo Yikao’s sacrifice and kicked Ji Fa, then entered Xiqi with him after declaring that his imprisonment had not harmed him.
• Ji Fa carried Ji Chang into the city, proudly presenting himself to the officials and people as a devoted son while the crowd celebrated Ji Chang’s return.
• Ji Chang compared Ji Fa favorably with Bo Yikao and considered him a possible heir as he greeted the people of Xiqi.
• At a lavish banquet in the marquis’s residence, Ji Chang tried a piece of meat but spat it out, unable to bear its taste and fishy smell.
• The ministers asked Ji Chang whether the meat did not suit his taste.

After returning to Xiqi, Ji Chang could not eat and withdrew from his welcoming banquet, while San Yisheng worried about his health. San Yisheng called for a maidservant named Ruhua, apparently intending to try something to help the marquis.

• Ji Chang rejected the feast because memories of eating corpses in Youli City left him unable to stomach the food.
• San Yisheng silenced officials who speculated about Ji Chang and dismissed them from the hall.
• Ji Fa worried about his father, and San Yisheng promised to check on the marquis.
• San Yisheng decided to try a plan, summoned a maidservant, and learned that her name was Ruhua.

San Yisheng killed Ruhua and prepared her flesh as soup for Ji Chang, who had developed a craving for human meat. Ji Chang ate the soup, believing San Yisheng was a loyal confidant, while San Yisheng left in revulsion.

• San Yisheng told Ruhua that she could help Ji Chang overcome his calamity, then stabbed her and explained that Ji Chang needed to eat her flesh.
• San Yisheng cooked Ruhua’s meat into soup and brought it to Ji Chang, who refused to eat at first.
• San Yisheng dragged Ji Chang into the outer room, where Ji Chang recognized the soup’s irresistible scent and feared San Yisheng had discovered his secret.
• San Yisheng ate a piece of the meat and promised to manage Ji Chang’s meals, reassuring Ji Chang that he would keep the secret.
• Ji Chang thanked San Yisheng and ate the soup, while San Yisheng left and struggled not to vomit.

Ji Chang indulged his craving for meat soup, then dreamed of his son Bo Yikao dying before waking and renewing his resolve to avenge him. He publicized Bo Yikao’s death across Xiqi and issued a proclamation condemning Di Xin, stoking anger against Chaoge.

• Ji Chang ate the entire pot of meat soup and fell asleep, pleased to be home and full.
• Ji Chang dreamed that Bo Yikao collapsed and died during a banquet, then woke in grief and vowed to avenge his son.
• Ji Chang announced Bo Yikao’s death at a grand meeting, and Xiqi’s people mourned and grew furious at Chaoge.
• Ji Chang allowed news of Bo Yikao’s death to spread, stirring public anger and support for revenge.
• Ji Chang issued a proclamation accusing Di Xin of cruelty, debauchery, greed, imprisoning Ji Chang, and murdering Bo Yikao.

Ji Chang issued a proclamation accusing Ye Xuan of thirty-three crimes and called Xiqi to overthrow Yin Shang, setting off a furious battle of public opinion across the realm. Ye Xuan welcomed the brewing rebellion as a way to accelerate the Investiture of the Gods tribulation, while Su Daji worried that the realm was nearing war.

• Ji Chang’s proclamation accused the Human Emperor of grave crimes and declared that Xiqi would either force him to abdicate or overthrow Yin Shang.
• The people of Xiqi supported the call to arms, while the people of Yin Shang denounced Xiqi and rushed to enlist in Chaoge’s army.
• Scholars across Yin Shang condemned Xiqi, and the feudal lords of the North and South showed signs of supporting Ji Chang while the Marquis of the East leaned toward Chaoge.
• Ye Xuan continued cultivating, judged his strength inadequate after encountering powerful beings, and decided to hasten Xiqi’s rebellion to advance the Great Tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods.
• Su Daji grew anxious as the realm moved toward conflict, while Ye Xuan remained excited and unconcerned about Xiqi’s growing support.

With Xiqi openly calling for rebellion, Ye Xuan convened court to decide how Chaoge should respond. His ministers urged caution and confidence as they prepared to meet Ji Chang’s challenge.

• Ye Xuan dismissed Su Daji’s worries about the feudal lords and ordered court to convene the next morning.
• Chaoge’s ministers gathered after hearing the court drums, and Ye Xuan asked them how to respond to Xiqi’s proclamation and accusations.
• Huang Feihu urged Ye Xuan to send troops against Ji Chang at once, while Zhang Kui revealed that Ji Chang had secretly sent slaves and singing girls to Chaoge for years.
• Shang Rong advised Chaoge to hold steady and counterattack, and Bi Gan predicted that few feudal lords would join Xiqi.
• Wen Zhong agreed that Chaoge should wait for Xiqi’s forces and then crush its rebellion with a decisive strike.

Ye Xuan learned that Shang would fight Xiqi according to formal rules of warfare, first defending at Sishui Pass before counterattacking. In Xiqi, the Marquis of the West went to honor Bo Yikao at the newly built spirit terrace, while Jiang Ziya continued waiting by the Wei River for the person he expected.

• Bi Gan explained that Shang had to face Xiqi openly because it was a rightful power of the realm, and Huang Feihu described the rules of a war of propriety.
• The ministers urged Ye Xuan to stop Xiqi’s first attack at Sishui Pass, then counterattack so Shang’s cause would win the realm’s approval.
• Ye Xuan doubted the formal rules of warfare and worried that Xiqi’s divine support made the ministers underestimate the threat.
• At San Yisheng’s proposal, Xiqi built a spirit terrace for Bo Yikao, and the Marquis of the West set out to pay his respects and divine the uprising’s prospects.
• Jiang Ziya continued living simply by the Wei River, missing Lady Ma and wondering when the person he awaited would arrive.

Jiang Ziya reflected on his life while fishing with a straight silver needle, then met the woodcutter Wu Ji, who mocked his unusual method. Jiang Ziya explained that he sought a king rather than an ordinary fish, and Wu Ji sat down to watch him fish.

• Jiang Ziya reminisced about his difficult youth and his path to becoming a True Immortal as he fished beside the river.
• Wu Ji approached while singing, introduced himself, and laughed at Jiang Ziya’s name and secluded way of life.
• Wu Ji snatched Jiang Ziya’s fishing rod, saw the straight silver needle, and offered to teach him how to make a proper hook.
• Jiang Ziya said his straight hook sought kings and marquises, not ordinary fish, and declared that Wu Ji could not understand his realm.
• Wu Ji called Jiang Ziya arrogant and sat beside him to see whether his straight-hook fishing would succeed.

Wu Ji accidentally killed a man when his firewood fell in a crowded street during Marquis Ji Chang’s procession. Ji Fa urged his father to let Wu Ji return home and arrange care for his elderly mother before paying for the life he took.

• Jiang Ziya caught a carp with a straight silver needle and warned Wu Ji that calamity would soon befall him.
• Wu Ji left Jiang Ziya and went home to greet his elderly mother before carrying firewood to Xiqi City to sell.
• In the crowded street, Wu Ji’s firewood pole was knocked off balance, and the falling load struck a man dead.
• Marquis Ji Chang questioned Wu Ji, who pleaded that the killing was accidental and begged for his life because his mother depended on him.
• Ji Fa urged Ji Chang to let Wu Ji return home to make arrangements for his mother before facing punishment.

After accidentally killing a man, Wu Ji returned home to tell his elderly mother and faced being made to pay for the life with his own. At Jiang Ziya’s riverside home, he begged for help and became Jiang Ziya’s disciple, leaving Jiang Ziya with a potential protector for the coming Great Tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods.

• Ji Chang agreed to let Wu Ji return home to care for his mother but ordered that he be kept under strict watch.
• Wu Ji told his mother that he had accidentally killed a man and was expected to pay for that life with his own.
• His mother urged Wu Ji to seek help from the old man who had predicted his bloody calamity, and Wu Ji hurried back to the Wei River.
• Wu Ji begged Jiang Ziya to save him, explaining that his elderly mother depended on him.
• Jiang Ziya discovered Wu Ji had spiritual meridians and was suited to cultivation, then offered to take him as a disciple in exchange for saving his life.
• Wu Ji accepted Jiang Ziya as his master, and Jiang Ziya considered him a possible ally in the coming Great Tribulation of the Investiture of the Gods.

Jiang Ziya protected Wu Ji from punishment by having him sleep in a grave-like pit for three days, making Ji Chang’s divination declare him dead. When Wu Ji later revealed that Jiang Ziya was the sage fishing by the Wei River, Ji Chang hurried to seek him out, believing his aid was vital to Xiqi’s future.

• Jiang Ziya gave Wu Ji Fire Jujubes and instructed him to sleep in a pit beneath lamps, millet, and grass for three days to evade his fate.
• Wu Ji followed Jiang Ziya’s instructions and began studying military strategy, cultivation, and martial arts while earning a living for his mother and master.
• Ji Chang’s divination led him to believe Wu Ji had died, but Ji Fa later found Wu Ji alive in Xiqi and brought him before Ji Chang.
• Wu Ji explained how he had met Jiang Ziya and become his disciple, prompting Ji Chang to remember the Antarctic Immortal’s warning to seek the sage by the Wei River.
• Ji Chang rushed to bathe and dress before setting out to meet Jiang Ziya, though he sensed a strange smell on himself.

Ji Chang and Ji Fa traveled to Hidden Stream to recruit Jiang Ziya, fearing both Yin Shang’s growing power and the risk of relying on immortals to defeat it. Jiang Ziya released a golden carp that was nearing dragonhood and took its arrival as a sign that Ji Chang and a king would soon come to him.

• Ji Chang perfumed himself and led his ministers toward Hidden Stream, following Wu Ji’s directions to find Daoist Flying Bear.
• Ji Fa questioned whether Jiang Ziya’s unusual fishing story was true, while Ji Chang said they needed his help but feared the immortals might become impossible to control after Yin Shang fell.
• Ji Chang worried that Yin Shang’s rapid growth and his own failing health left Xiqi little time to act.
• Jiang Ziya caught a huge golden carp that was close to transforming into a dragon, removed his silver needle, and released it back into the river.
• Jiang Ziya took the carp’s appearance as an auspicious sign that worldly wealth and glory were near, then cast his line back into the river.

Marquis Ji Chang of the West met Jiang Ziya, who had waited years by Hidden Stream, and asked for his counsel on Xiqi’s future. Jiang Ziya warned that Yin Shang had regained its strength despite heaven’s opposition and said Xiqi appeared destined to replace it.

• Marquis Ji Chang of the West arrived at Hidden Stream with Ji Fa and his procession, where he found Jiang Ziya fishing with a straight silver hook.
• Jiang Ziya explained his unusual fishing method, and a nearby fisherman confirmed that he regularly caught and released two koi, including a huge golden-red one.
• Ji Chang took Jiang Ziya’s words about fish willingly taking the hook as a possible hint, but endured his displeasure and praised Jiang Ziya’s talent.
• Ji Chang asked Jiang Ziya what Xiqi should do after its call for the feudal lords to join a punitive campaign received little response.
• Jiang Ziya described Yin Shang’s renewed fortune and its ruler’s powerful deeds, then said Xiqi’s fortune and signs from heaven pointed toward replacing Yin Shang.

Jiang Ziya explained how Yin Shang's renewed fortune had made Xiqi's claim to rule uncertain, then listened as Ji Chang invited him to aid Xiqi. Ji Chang offered gifts and endured Jiang Ziya's repeated refusals, while Jiang Ziya privately believed the big fish had taken the bait.

• Jiang Ziya told Ji Chang that Yin Shang's fortune had revived and Xiqi's cause had lost its clear justification.
• Ji Chang and Jiang Ziya questioned each other for hours and grew engrossed in their conversation.
• Ji Chang praised Jiang Ziya and invited him to leave the mountains and help Xiqi.
• Jiang Ziya dismissed his own abilities, turned away to drink tea, and ignored Ji Chang's invitation.
• Ji Chang's ministers brought more than a dozen chests of gifts, and Ji Chang pleaded for Jiang Ziya to accept them.
• Jiang Ziya asked Ji Chang to return to Xiqi, and Ji Chang suppressed his anger and continued urging him.

Marquis Ji Chang of the West tried to recruit Jiang Ziya, who repeatedly refused until Ji Chang carried him to the carriage. Just as they were about to return to Xiqi, Jiang Ziya stopped Ji Chang and asked him to show how sincere he was.

• Marquis Ji Chang of the West invited Jiang Ziya to leave the mountain, but Jiang Ziya claimed his aching legs made the journey impossible.
• Ji Chang prepared to leave, then offered to carry Jiang Ziya himself when Jiang Ziya continued to refuse.
• Ji Chang carried Jiang Ziya to the main road while thinking about how Jiang Ziya would behave before the Human Emperor of Chaoge.
• Ji Chang set Jiang Ziya in the carriage and invited him to return to Xiqi for a feast.
• Jiang Ziya stopped Ji Chang from entering the carriage and said he wanted to see how sincere Ji Chang truly was.

Ji Chang struggled with whether to preserve his dignity or submit to Jiang Ziya to secure heavenly support for Xiqi. He chose to lead Jiang Ziya’s carriage himself, leaving Ji Fa and the ministers watching as he began to falter from exhaustion.

• Ji Chang reflected on the gods’ schemes and the Human Emperor’s strength as he weighed whether to refuse Jiang Ziya or become his servant.
• Ji Chang told Jiang Ziya he would lead the horse and attend his stirrups if Jiang Ziya would leave the mountains and help Xiqi.
• Ji Fa and the ministers protested, but Ji Chang ordered Ji Fa not to interfere and told him to watch.
• Ji Chang took the reins and struggled to pull the stubborn horse forward while Ji Fa and the ministers followed in tears.
• After a short distance, Ji Chang’s legs began to tremble as exhaustion and anguish overwhelmed him.

Marquis Ji Chang of the West collapsed after enduring Jiang Ziya’s humiliating trials, then threatened to stop pursuing his help and let Xiqi remain at peace. Jiang Ziya agreed to aid him and declared that Xiqi would rule for eighteen hundred years, leaving Ji Chang to realize the gods and buddhas had already planned Xiqi’s future.

• Marquis Ji Chang of the West collapsed in the mud after leading Jiang Ziya’s horse and holding its stirrup, and the ministers helped him up.
• Ji Chang told Jiang Ziya he would no longer force him to help and that Xiqi could abandon rebellion and settle for peace.
• Jiang Ziya left his carriage and agreed to help Ji Chang achieve his kingly ambitions, while Ji Chang regarded him with contempt.
• Jiang Ziya claimed that Ji Chang’s earlier acts of carrying him and leading his horse totaled eighteen hundred steps, meaning Xiqi would possess the realm for eighteen hundred years.
• Ji Chang realized Jiang Ziya’s prediction meant the gods and buddhas had privately planned Xiqi’s future and treated it as a chess piece.

Jiang Ziya entered Xiqi, gained command of its military, and learned that its forces numbered more than six million. He divided the troops around Mount Qi and began having them farm instead of training for war, leaving Xiqi’s people baffled.

• Jiang Ziya submitted to Marquis Ji Chang of the West and returned with him to Xiqi, where the people welcomed them.
• Marquis Ji Chang appointed Jiang Ziya Right Prime Minister of the Spirit Terrace, and Jiang Ziya made Wu Ji General of Martial Virtue.
• Xiqi prepared for war against Yin Shang, built military supplies and fortifications, and Jiang Ziya became known as Grand Duke Jiang.
• Jiang Ziya took control of Xiqi’s military and discovered that it had more than six million soldiers, with enough allied forces to raise an army of ten million.
• Jiang Ziya sent two million troops each to the northern and southern parts of Mount Qi and led the remaining troops to farm near the mountain.

Nangong Shi complained to Ji Chang that Jiang Ziya had taken Xiqi’s six million soldiers away from military training to farm. Ji Chang defended the decision despite sharing doubts about Jiang Ziya, and Nangong Shi left after being promised that Jiang Ziya would be held accountable if he failed.

• Nangong Shi went to Ji Chang’s chambers and condemned Jiang Ziya for making Xiqi’s soldiers farm while Yin Shang’s troops trained.
• Ji Chang said Jiang Ziya had claimed the reason was a secret of heaven, though Ji Chang admitted he could not replace him and had little power.
• Nangong Shi called Jiang Ziya a swindler, and Ji Chang sharply ordered him to stop speaking so vulgarly.
• Ji Chang promised to judge Jiang Ziya’s abilities and give Xiqi an accounting if he proved incompetent.
• Nangong Shi accepted the promise and left, while Ji Chang remained troubled by the ministers’ growing hostility toward Jiang Ziya.