Ze Tian Ji

Description

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To pick is to choose. This is a story about choices. Three thousand worlds full of gods and demons, with a daoist scroll in your hand, you are able to control the entire universe…

At the beginning of time, a mystical meteor came crashing down from outer space and scattered all over the world. A piece of it landed in the Eastern Continent. There were mysterious totems carved upon the meteor. Through viewing these totems, mankind comprehended the Dao and established the Orthodoxy.

Several thousand years later, the fourteen years old orphan Chen Changsheng left his master to cure his illness and change his fate. He brought a part of a marriage vow with him to the capital, thus beginning the journey of a rising hero…

Associated Names
One entry per line
Fighter of the Destiny (TV series)
Trạch Thiên Ký
Way of Choices
ZTJ
择天记
Related Series
N/A
Recommendations
World of Cultivation (9)
A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality (8)
Transcending the Nine Heavens (5)
Nightfall (4)
Joy of Life (4)
Pivot of the Sky (4)
Recommendation Lists
  1. Novels That I Have Read Over The Years
  2. Novels I have read
  3. The Mt. Tai of Chinese Novels
  4. Light Novel list
  5. Timeless Masterpieces - the Best Novels Ever

Latest Release

Date Group Release
07/17/16 Novel Saga c196
07/10/16 Novel Saga c195
07/06/16 Novel Saga c194
07/02/16 Novel Saga c193
06/29/16 Novel Saga c192
11/27/15 Ze Tian Ji Translation c107
11/27/15 Ze Tian Ji Translation c106 part2
11/26/15 Ze Tian Ji Translation c106 part1
11/26/15 Ze Tian Ji Translation c105 part2
11/26/15 Ze Tian Ji Translation c105 part1
Write a Review
205 Reviews sorted by


kingtape
kingtape rated it
July 29, 2017
Status: c187
This novel is very good for a wuxia novel.

It's got a protagonist who thinks properly and antagonists who are not 1-dimensional. This in itself surpasses 99% of all web novels.

It has the con of being somewhat slow-paced. Also, a lot of the politics don't make much sense if you think about it too much and in general, some things just don't add up.

... more>>
Spoiler

For instance, the whole thing about the marriage vows. He in the beginning wants to return it, but upon being given the cold shoulder, he feels butthurt and doesn't. This despite his 'mature' disposition. Later, inexplicably, he changes his mind and instead of simply giving himself the best chance of succeeding at his goal, he stubbornly refuses to hand of the contract. Eventually he even uses the contract to force the girl to marry him despite it not helping him in the slightest (in fact, it really just hinders him.)

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In any case, it's a worthwhile read. <<less
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summers
summers rated it
July 5, 2017
Status: c15
MC is likable, he keeps his calm at all time though he is silently stubborn. The story is super chill not slice of life but just patient. If the anime/manga gets translated I will read/watch that; otherwise I could not connect with it. I skipped ahead a dozens of chapters and read it and I felt the same as I was reading and earlier chapter. If I can't tell that I am missing something between c13 and c77 then that's a problem.
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Minoru
Minoru rated it
June 28, 2017
Status: c1133
This book has major plots. It's beautiful how everything was setup and how it unfolds. An arc would be 80-90% setup and resolved in maybe 3 chapters. The anxiety I had sitting through that buildup of desperation is something else. All of this would be attributed to the writing style... Love hate relationship there.

The writing style is quite wordy and very descriptive. Half of the first chapter was basically "adjectives" which I skimmed. It does get way better once you get used to the pacing though, then catches you off... more>> guard when you're up-to-date.

Great character developments and the way it explores certain themes is so well done. It makes you think.

Relationship dynamics, man... The author had you comparing the "Bai Di" couple with the "Bie YangHong & WuQiong Bi" couple. Which would you rather? Then there was Moyu's Vs the OTP relationship. Demon logic in general.

The overarching theme of this is YOUTH. Trying even when you don't have a chance

My first time reading this type of novel. I picked it up for the romance, great ratings and amount of English chapters released (around 300 to 400 at the time) since I'm a marathon reader. It wasn't even enough since I caught up within maybe 2 weeks. I had to switch over to the Viet translation. I don't even read Viet. Downloaded an app so it can read to me. The amount of effort I used to "read" thisprobably tells you I really like it. Been slowing down though since it's ending. ?

My fav parts so far

Spoiler

The big reveal on the ChuSa pellets.

The young demon king plot to kill his father (So EPIC!! Can't stop thinking about it.) and their F'ed up relationship.

Queen BaiDi's view on being a woman and BaiDi's... cunning?

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Tenku_kun
Tenku_kun rated it
June 24, 2017
Status: c521
Absolutely amazing!

I am one of those people who mostly hates/has bad impression of everything I don't see. This was one of them but I compelled myself to read it after looking at the reviews (what gave the final push was reading Jiang Ye's Manhua though). And I have to say I don't regret it one bit! The story is amazing with all the character developments and story pacing (Though it's rather on the slow side). The MC is basically a cripple who has no chance of cultivating, and can't... more>> live past the age of 20 (Knowing this doesn't spoil anything as you'll get to know this pretty early). And no he doesn't gain any ancient artifact or some old geezer to help him start cultivate he does it by himself using his knowledge and a little good fortune. The romance is introduced very very late into the series and the relationship between MC and his romance interest isn't your stereotypical cliche of how he saves her and she instantly falls for him or something. Each and every characters have their own sentiments, goals and thoughts (including the villains) unlike the "I don't like your face so I'm gonna kill you" or " You dare touch/flirt with my woman (misunderstandings and while the girl being single) " or like " How dare you interfere with my matters!!" cannon fodders. And the MC himself isn't the common Arrogant guy who looks down on the world, he instead is a very calm and calculative guy who would take a step back to jump instead of blatantly moving ahead and ignoring all the warnings. Though the start may be a little confusing since a lot of the characters are introduced in a few chapters (when they are that is...). The novel becomes good after he gets into an academy though.

Mild Spoilers: (Well just the outline of the story which covers a few of the starting chapters... Around 10 I guess)

Spoiler

The MC is the junior disciple of a Recluse called Daoist Ji who makes them imprint the 3000 books of the Way into their mind (which helps him a loooot in the future). He actually goes to the capital of Zhou (name of a country) to annul his engagement with a girl that was decided by her (the bride's) grandfather and try to change his fate.

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All in all it's a Novel worth putting your time into... (As of chapter 521 atleast) <<less
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lordenglish
lordenglish rated it
June 24, 2017
Status: c526
This is a story meant to be savored, not blitzed through. Two things are done particularly well. First, the characters are vibrant --- you can get a very clear sense of each major character's unique personality, to the point where characters behaving a certain way is completely natural, and you think "oh, as expected of him". The characters feel like people, with all their idiosyncrasies and habits. You get to know them as you read, and it never seems like characters are there simply to play a certain role (love... more>> interest, antagonist, friend, etc). In other words, the flow is very natural. In literary novels this is standard, but in this class of work (light and web novels) it's rare for even one or two characters to be so fleshed out.

Second, the world is well-crafted, in the sense that the world exists independently of the characters. In ZTJ this takes the form of a great political question (the confluence of North and South) that only gradually comes into view (literally hundreds of chapters pass before you can clearly identify the key conflict and the key players, along with the history --- and hundreds more before the protagonist becomes one of them, and finally understands why he matters). In other words, the characters both cause events to happen and are blown around by grand forces beyond their control. This is, I think, the true essence of worldbuilding: that there is a world out there, of which the protagonist's story is a mere part. This world is largely left to our imagination, since the story is after all about the protagonist, but the skilled author leaves no doubt in our minds that there is indeed a there there. That it is, in some sense, real. And this is extremely difficult to do, and thus rare to find. Because the easy setup is to start from a static state, and then to have action and change in the world come from the protagonist's story. To give the feeling that if there had been no protagonist, everything would have stayed the same. And so authors that can make the world itself dynamic, who can make it clear that action is happening all the time, just out of focus, are rare and valuable. <<less
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Sherrynity
Sherrynity rated it
May 30, 2017
Status: c291
It was slow-paced; and by slow-paced, I mean trivial things happened a lot before chapter 200++. I won't say it's the best CN novel I've ever read, but it's definitely one on my top list.

Contrary to many CN novels in my reading list, there's actually a real character's growth in this one. Although the MC sometimes pissed me off with his.... *coughs* lack of balls, but when I reviewed back after I read the chapter, it truly felt humane; which means the author had done a... more>> good job at making the characters seemed real.

Spoiler

btw, I really hate his fiancee ffs that "I'm so cool"-girl....

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Asakim
Asakim rated it
May 28, 2017
Status: c1251
Here I am, after finishing reading the novel... yes, all 1251 chapters which I have been following since 3 years ago when it first came out due to the author being one of my favorite, writing a review for this flawed masterpiece. Yes, it isn't flawless, there are some few issues here and there but overall it is a great story and I do not regret following it for 3 years.

The characters are very well designed, some are simple-minded, many got multiple layers over their personalities. MC is a calm,... more>> kindhearted to the point of being stoic but it doesn't mean he is a big M, doing nothing while being harassed. Instead he got the biggest character development in all the novels I have read. From being a young boy who wants nothing but to defy his destiny to being a principal taking care of his friends and students to being a leader trying to make his world a better place for all races. Accompanied him are his best friend who just wants to be able to live freely despite being a heir to a rich family, MC's fiance whom everyone thinks of as a role model but is actually extremely childish and jealousy at time but also caring and decisive. In the world where most of the heroines/love interest serves as a mean to MC, she being not only strong, understanding MC but also know how to plan, be tactical and even willing to be evil in the eyes of others for MC's sake... makes this novel a worth read.

The world itself isn't big, the setting is quite normal and easy to understand. 3 races at war with each other, one race being too strong make the other 2 teamup to defeat. Years later, that race raise again and it is up to MC's generation to save humanity. It sounds simple but there are many hidden things underneath that setting and you will only discover it until the very end.

But the biggest hit of this novel is how the author planned for the story. Many tiny little things were mentioned, not many readers remember it but when it is revealed to be a big influence much later in the story, I just went "holy shit". Everything was planned, from the fact that MC's origin serves as a big plot for the first half of the story, and when it is resolved but comes up again as the big plot twist at the end or how some minor history actually being a hint for the identity of big villain or their's motive/plan...I like how it is all orchestrated, not just being an info dump but sneaking clues here and there to make the readers think about it, trying to figure it out... that is how a novel should be.

But as great as it is, there are still some flaws there. Like some others have mentioned it, it is slow pacing. Especially in the early part, many have dropped it because they found it boring, the pace got picked up later but there are also some random parts which is also kind of slow pacing as well (a fight that last for more than 6 chapters while the actual fight only consists of 4-5 hits). Another flaw is the not-too-satisfied end (it is an open end) but it is a great end for the long saga of MC and to open a new one for him and his friends.

In my opinion, don't let the slow pacing at early stop you from reading this. The characters, the hidden plots, the clash of beliefs... got combined together by the author to make a masterpiece for the readers. <<less
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Cheesetakery
Jayk rated it
March 26, 2017
Status: c793
Ze Tian Ji:

Pros

  1. The MC is the first male MC I've read about that has the dual qualities of being naive and mature. These seem like contradicting traits, but the MC somehow manages to get away with both of them and that makes him interesting to read.

    He seems perpetually calm and intelligent, but he doesn't know much about the world and this often leaves him at what looks to be a disadvantage.

    Yet he always manages to get to the heart of every issue through his special nature.

    As he grows through the story, he learns about the darker side of human nature, but he cuts through all of the conspiracies surrounding him with his heart.
  2. Romance is fluffy. Its slow to start and it only appears for a select number of chapters but the fluffiness more than makes up for it. Also, it appears he is attractive to a number of women but it looks like he'll end up only picking one.

  3. The world is intricately crafted and everything, even the filler talk, helps to understand the culture of the story world. This means that the complex relationships between characters can be understood and enjoyed more over time as new information opens up.
Cons

  1. Although everything does help in the worldbuilding process, there are some points where the story seems to just stagnate and the number of chapters could definitely be reduced without much harm to the world.
Kindof Con

  1. Translation speed is pretty slow, although if you're just starting out that shouldn't matter as almost 800 chapters are out so far.
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PNG_pyro
PNG_pyro
February 10, 2017
Status: c350
The one's a bit different. It focuses more on character and world-building than a lot of stories, and it still manages to get in some good fights. It has a particularly wonderful flair for backstory, fitting interesting things together as the narrative develops to show new and captivating facets of elements that were previously introduced. It has great narrative depth. But, it's also very slow to build up. While I think the pacing is excellent - strong and intentional - it's also something that won't be for everyone.

I happen to... more>> think it's wonderful. If you want something that's a bit more complicated than average, and don't mind it taking it's time to make a point, you won't be dissatisfied; there's some really good stuff in here, and although it's slow, it's totally devoid of fluff. <<less
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Sai47s
Sai47s rated it
February 6, 2017
Status: c348
Very light, quiet affair, if not smooth, because the history of the narrative is slow and there are no distortions and sharp turns in history. This allows you to fall in love with history and many of the characters in ney. Geroy clever and unusual his temper and character reliability. The characters are very bright and almost alive and I want to turn the page and find out what's next. But there are also disadvantages, which without them: it is the style of the author of the narrative, and long,... more>> almost blurred leisurely plot. Although it adds smoothness in history and is one of the highlights of the novel, but it is also a minus. With all the cons, it turned out a work worthy of the reader's attention. It can be likened to a deep calm lake, (but we know that still waters run deep, otherwise it would not be interesting, not pravdali?) Is monotonically small waves on the rocks. It can be described as this novel. <<less
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obsoletefactor
obsoletefactor rated it
February 4, 2017
Status: c215
Well this story was a big supprise for me, it's probably the best written novel i've ever read, it's filled with incredibly philosophical views, very well thought out characters with actual personalities, a really engaging world building, an interesting cultivation system, and decently described fights. But I have to agree with some of the other reviews, it's very slowpaced, not in the way of storyline or repeated sentences (like in a lot of xianxia/wuxia), but in the way it's told. As of chapter 215 the cultivation has progressed like 5%... more>> compared to all the expositions and world building, we learn pretty early that there's a legendary cultivation realm, where you literally become able to change your fate and become the equivalent of a deity. But with the pace this is going, this novel would hit like 3k chapters before we'll come anywhere close to that. Of course it's the journey and not the ending that is a thrill, but I feel that the author really needs to pick up the pace.

I've checked the next chapter titles, and it'll be atleast 15+ chapters before they even leave where they currently are at this point in the story, which I feel is WAY to many chapters than necessary. Like somebody said in negative review, earlier in the story we literally have to read 7 chapters just to finish 1 fight. Which is imo overwhelmingly boring no matter how well written it is.

tl:dr - very well written, fleshed out characters, amazing philosophical views, and engaging story/MC, but gets drawn out way more than necessary, almost on a dbz scale. <<less
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HahaLol
HahaLol rated it
January 30, 2017
Status: c333
Of all the web novels I've read, this is my favorite. Things about their world aren't spoon-fed and you have to wait and think in order to get the picture, there are still a lot of mysteries and it keeps me curious as to what the answers to the questions I have are and most of all, I love the characters. They feel so real. They are portrayed in detail, especially their personalities. This makes them more endearing and you get attached. I love the MC because of his awkwardness... more>> and intelligence.

At first, I wasn't fond of his fiance, but then...
Spoiler

I discovered how they would make a cute couple when they were together in the Garden of Zhou

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This is just my opinion and I just want people to know why I love this web novel. I feel very uncomfortable whenever I see reviews that say the writer is just aiming for more money. It might be true, but the details are exactly what make ZTJ different.

Overall, reading this makes me feel relaxed until something awesome suddenly happens xD <<less
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Amaury1514
Amaury1514 rated it
December 12, 2016
Status: 269
this is literally the slowest paced wuxia novel out. It has so much Potential that's just destroyed by the way it's so agonizingly painful to read. There's so much bs between the good stuff that it's just not enjoyable. There's about sixty chapters of nothing but meaningless info of about how tr*sh the MC is or how something that doesn't matter at all is described down to the finest detail. With only like five chapter intervals of great content. I have read so many novels that binge reading 200/300 chapters... more>> is nothing to me, but there's no way you can do that with this without wanting to fall asleep and cry from tears of Bordom. An example of this is when he goes to visit loulou in her new home only for it to take him 5 chapters just to walk though the academy before even meeting her. Did any thing of note happen during those chapters you ask? Of course not! Nothing but people talking about how garbage the MC is the whole way "toad want to eat Phoenix meat" over and over again. *spoiler* some more examples of the garbage pacing is how it took over 120 chapters just to begin cultivating. Not to mention how there supposed to be a romance, but almost 300 chapter in and there literally nothing AT ALL. Which would be fine if there was some actual interesting plot going on, but of course there isn't. Its pretty ingenius how the author gives the illusion of a great novel to so many ppl though, I'll give him credit for that. It's very easy to mistake the endless descriptions, and random thoughts as something is substance, but unfortunately if fails to work on me.

There is some interesting parts here and there, that barely make it readable. Exp: talking to the dragon, or lighting up the stars. But the painful journey it takes to even get there doesn't make up for the BS that is the chapters leading up to them points.

It end up being a novel with way more questions than aswsers, which is really great if the novel naturally answers them instead of a random info dump that happens in most wuxia novels, but there so much random stuff that the important questions are just never really answered and if they are it took so long to even get the aswer that I don't even care anymore. <<less
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sleib
sleib rated it
February 15, 2016
Status: --
what can I say... I really like this one. even though story translation didn’t get to the point when MC is strongest among his peers I still like it (even though I really like action and OP MCs). anyways I only read 30 chapters, because pace is a bit slower than other xianxias, so I’m waiting for more chapters to be translated till I start reading, but still I think it has great potential to be great xianxia... maybe no less than issth.
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conspible
conspible rated it
October 7, 2015
Status: --
Really slow in the beginning, still keeping my eye on it to see if it grows enough to read intently.
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zaoh
zaoh rated it
October 7, 2015
Status: --
it starts off very slow and I dont think he gets any major powers till around reaching chapter 100. But is a great read with the smart protagonist and the way he thinks.
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onethought
onethought rated it
September 18, 2023
Status: c995
The place where I read it had very low quality translations (probably MTL) up to chapter ~300, IIRC. The story is interesting at times. The description is extremely verbose and exhaustingly repetitive. The author sometimes even seems to shamelessly copy paste contents of earlier chapters as a means of reminiscence (or maybe some depth is lost in translation). The story is serious - usually and thankfully, because, attempts at romance/tension are absolutely childish, neckbeardy and cringeworthy. Fellow Daoists have usually good, honorable relationships, unless one of them is a woman... more>> and the other is the MC; in which case the relationship is distastefully weird.

The story so far also has an undeniable, pervading tone of misogyny.

Spoiler

Even though she was the Holy Maiden, she was still a woman with far too many things to keep in mind.

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Spoiler

Tianhai possesses the best blood and talent, possesses the best position, but she is a woman—her vision and structure have a limit, there is a problem with her personality.

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Spoiler

In the view of many people, such fickle conduct was more appropriate for a child or a woman.

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Spoiler

Madam Mu ruefully sighed, "I have never encountered a single obstruction on my path of cultivation, but I truly do tend to waver when doing something. Perhaps this is an innate deficiency of women?"

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CrispyCritter
CrispyCritter rated it
August 16, 2021
Status: Completed
At this point, I've finished some 55 webnovels and have read some of at least twice as many (abandoned or still reading). Ze Tian Ji remains one of my top 5 novels and one of only 3 that I have re-read. The writing and translation are excellent throughout. What puts it on top of other novels for me is the characterization; they are well-developed characters with their own personal motivations and they act accordingly. I certainly understand the complaints that it is slow - it is not a novel I... more>> recommend for action oriented folks. But there are very few fantasy novels with this depth and thought put into them, and I cherish this one. <<less
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bassa
bassa rated it
April 16, 2021
Status: Completed
It had a good beginning and there were really interesting side characters but as it continues it gets worse and worse and when you read the finale you get this rating.
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morrrie
morrrie rated it
February 17, 2021
Status: Completed
The start might seem slow, but if you have read other Mao Ni novels, then it should not really pose a problem. I think, just like the rest of the novel, the start here was written too realistically compared to other CN web novels, so it might have made some readers uncomfortable, but if you really continue to read it and think about it all for a while, then you will find the real meaning hidden within, and maybe find all of it to be extremely logical.

The writing was beautiful... more>> at times and I really have to appreciate the translators for their efforts. This novel was a good example of a "translation well done".

Now the first half of the novel was great, and the latter half was not so great, but as a whole, the novel was still good. Some characters in this novel did feel like a cheap rip-off of characters from Mao Ni's other novels, and that was a bit upsetting. Looking back, the characters I really enjoyed were already dead by the halfway point in the novel, and I did not like the rest of the characters that much. Probably this novel had the weakest cast of main and side characters that I have read about in a Mao Ni novel.

There was an overarching philosophy in the plot and there was politics. The world-building was done rather well. The cultivation system was simple enough to understand. Honestly, I would have really appreciated the novel more if there had been lesser politics in the story. The politics really took the life out of the novel in the latter half of the story. The different aspects of politics were written rather well, it's just that the characters who were in the middle of all of it were not up to standards, and this effectively made all of the bleak and dark twists seem too jarring and took much of the intended impact out of them.

The open ending of the novel has been a controversial topic among those who have managed to finish reading this story. For me, the ending was fine. Actually, it was better than the arc that led to the end. The ending felt somewhat refreshing.

There were faults with this novel, but even after considering them, I thought that this was still much better than most of the CN web novels that I have read.

Worth a read. <<less
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