History’s Strongest Senior Brother

Description

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It was Yan Zhaoge’s first time transmigrated into another world. He landed in a martial warrior civilization that was at the peak of prosperity. He ended up in the Divine Palace’s library, which collected and preserved the classics of the entire world from all fields of knowledge. However, a world-class calamity struck soon after, and even the Divine Palace was destroyed.

Yan Zhaoge’s soul once again transmigrated into another world. The twist was he arrived in the same world, except countless years have passed.

With his brain full of rare books and classics from the era of peak prosperity, Yan Zhaoge’s second transmigration to the present era was like a gamer who was used to playing hell mode suddenly finding himself playing the game on easy mode.

That was just way too awesome.

But before that, he would need to fix a problem.

“I’m not the main character? In fact, I’m actually the main character’s love rival and the antagonistic Mr. Perfect senior brother? This script is wrong!”

Associated Names
One entry per line
History's Strongest Martial Brother
HSSB
Rebirth Of The Top Villain (Manhua)
Shi Shang Zui Qiang Shi Xiong
ตำนานศิษย์พี่เจ้าปฐพี
史上最强师兄
Related Series
History’s Number 1 Founder (Same Franchise)
I’ve Possessed the Demon Sovereign’s Body (Same Franchise)
Recommendations
History’s Number 1 Founder (10)
Library of Heaven’s Path (8)
My Disciple Died Yet Again (5)
I Shall Seal the Heavens (2)
Return of The 8th Class Mage (2)
I Am the Fated Villain (2)
Recommendation Lists
  1. Best Novels I Read in years (Must read for you)
  2. Wow there's a manhua version (ML)
  3. Novels that I have read
  4. Op Mc / simulation systems
  5. Novels I have read

Latest Release

Date Group Release
10/25/22 Steambun c1836
10/24/22 Steambun c1835
10/21/22 Steambun c1834
10/20/22 Steambun c1833
10/19/22 Steambun c1832
10/18/22 Steambun c1831
10/17/22 Steambun c1830
10/14/22 Steambun c1829
10/13/22 Steambun c1828
10/12/22 Steambun c1827
10/11/22 Steambun c1826
10/10/22 Steambun c1825
10/07/22 Steambun c1824
10/06/22 Steambun c1823
10/05/22 Steambun c1822
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147 Reviews sorted by


Slashs
Slashs rated it
October 25, 2017
Status: c547
This is an exemple of a novel that starts great but forgets very fast what's special about it and ends up as a generic LN.

The MC is cast in the role of the vilain, the body he takes control of did some unsavoury things, has a few ennemies, and one of his opponents has experienced (because of the previous owner of his body) very much what a hero would experience in a generic novel, and the MC will try to go against his fate of getting destroyed by that... more>> hero's vengeance.

The novel does go against most tropes (... at the begining), it's a fresh take as this time you view things from the other side, meaning you will experience a lot of new situations and humor with this different setting. It's, at the begining, as much fresh air as the author's other novel (History's Number one founder).

An exemple of a funny moment, (this one is at the very very begining of the novel so there is minor spoilers here) is when the MC's ennemy (aka Hero) gets a little too agressive against the MC (they are in the same sect), the MC's sidekick offers to send people to kick the hero's ass. Pretty much what you would get in a standard novel with the bad guys sending increasingly more powerful people to kick the Hero's ass, which only pisses him off more and makes him stronger. But our MC was reincarnated in this body and he is familiar with the usual LN plots from our world and thinks "And get our people's ass kicked by him? And be the stepping stone for his rise in strength?"

The novel has other strengths:

- The author managed to make very clear the power balance in the MC's world, the different sect, what are the alliances, this is one of the best setup I have seen so far. There are multiple alliances, power levels, and strength of each side isn't just about the number and level of fighters. Geographic locations, and other factors are important.
- There is some decent (but not too present) clan building as well.

Unfortunately the novel forgets much of itsstrengths very fast:

-The first one to go is the novel's setup. The MC being in the bad guy's shoes thing gets resolved very quickly and is completly forgoten. Most of the humor also goes away with it. Meaning, after the first act, you get a generic unfunny LN where the MC keeps having lucky encounters, powers up like crazy each time, fights people stronger than him thanks to his cultivation that's so special it's stronger than others of the same cultivation (pretty much standard over used stuff) , and never EVER loose anything.

- All fights follow this pattern "Over bearing ennemy attacks MC with awesome attack -> Author makes sure to tell us that the MC's expression didn't change one bit because he is so awesome he does not panick -> MC wins in an over the top fashion without having been challenged at all -> Everyone is awed. Every. Single. Time.

- Very soon it feels like many arcs are there to "pad" the chapter numbers and you don't understand why the author would bother with that at all. At first the author will send the MC in seemingly boring and useless tasks around the world. Each time you can't help asking yourself... Why? Other than pading the chapter number why would the MC want to do this in that situation when he has much much more important things to do? But then every time the answer is "because there is an insanely huge lucky encounter waiting the MC there".

Eventually the author will start to send the MC in other dimensions/world, again to pad the chapter number as anything the MC does there doesn't affect the main world. It's a good way to make 50 chapters where the MC wreck everything in a world without having it affect the main story at all. Those are completly useless arcs that can be skipped, unfortunately the MC goes to those places more and more often as the author seems to want him to eventually leave his clan and go to "higher realms".

Frankly there is not much point in reading the novel for too long as even arc starts to repeat themselves eventually and you end up thinking "Didn't I already read that 50 chapters ago?".

The begining is worth at least 4.5 starts for a LN. After that? I'd say it's worth a standard 3.0. Easy to read, no frustration, nothing much to remember, a good way to pass time you will forget soon. <<less
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lingarko
lingarko rated it
May 31, 2016
Status: v1c6
Great you are the best. Making a mockery of god knows all the xianxia, wuxia novels which follow the same script. I can see PMG, MW and many more from this
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randomperson
randomperson
July 31, 2016
Status: c468
After reading all of the current chapters, I want to say something.

Like the description says, the MC is the senior brother which if he was in a traditional xianxia novel, he would be the antagonist. Like in HN1F, we once again see xianxia main character tropes, like once tr*sh, but obtained a priceless treasure and becomes a genius; taking the body of an insignificant noble/royalty child and beats up all the people that once belittled the body's previous owner; and going back to the past with the knowledge of the... more>> future; but this time, all of them are Yanzhaoge's enemy.

For the first 200 chapters, you could say that the story is about Yanzhaoge dealing with the xianxia protagonists, but afterwards, it stops focusing on them and the xianxia protagonist just become insignificant. Not that the story isn't good, it still is, but the description put up isn't accurate anymore. There isn't much romance in the story, since the MC is focused on training (yes training, not cultivation. He can almost rank up when ever he wants, so he's just training his techniques), but he does have encounters with beautiful woman. Some of them he has a very close relationship with, and hilarity ensues when he talks without thinking.

Overall, I really like this novel and will continue to follow it. I recommend reading this when it has more chapters translated, or read the raws if you can read Chinese. <<less
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Novelupdatesaccount1
Novelupdatesaccount1 rated it
March 12, 2017
Status: c116
This story started out pretty funny but it quickly turned into a fairly generic battle story with a very generic battle system pretty quickly. New characters are introduced all the time and forgotten fairly quickly, everything remains fairly shallow, the MC makes cunning plans, but the author hides them from the reader so the MC appears to just keep making s*upid decisions until the Asspull "this was all according to my secret plan" card is used.

The biggest sins, however, are that
1. Enemies who pose very little threat just keep... more>> coming back again and again. Each time 10 or so chapters are wasted in dealing with these useless enemies.

2. The battle system is boring and overly drawn out. <<less
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Jeebus
Jeebus rated it
June 22, 2017
Status: c125
Reading this web novel is like watching a your best friend sink into quicksand and die, in slow-motion. It slowly sinks into a muck of mediocrity, finally devolving into what it originally parodied.

The intent behind for this web novel is great. For the first couple dozen chapters, the author delivers on the vision he proffered in the synopsis. It focuses on the stereotypical antagonist who steals the MC's childhood sweetheart and delves into the ridiculous tropes surrounding MC armor. It does a fair job of this while sometimes managing to... more>> be genuinely funny on occasion.

The issue with this web novel is that all the humor and parody that were promised in the synopsis slowly evaporate starting around chapter 30, and things continue to unravel until the end of the first arc. Immediately in the second arc, the antagonist has become the protagonist, ending up with the same MC armor that the author previously derided. After this, it's just your typical Xuanhuan story, but with even more filler, clan politics, and useless banter than its peers.

I could expound on theories about why the plot takes a 180, like maybe the author found that writing a comedic parody is a hell of a lot harder and more time consuming than employing the cookie-cutter tropes of its web novel contemporaries. After all, greater efficiency in releasing chapters is more cash for the author, regardless of the quality and content of those chapters.

Bottom line: Read the first arc. Then, decide for yourself if it's worth reading an also-ran web novel that's as insipid as the plethora of other web novels with MCs who are functionally invincible. <<less
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Lunnear
Lunnear rated it
August 13, 2016
Status: c11
Okay, so he wanted to avoid being the last boss and also avoid becoming the main character. That's good. Is understandable. He's a prince but didn't want to be too arrogant, that is another plus. He can see schemes from the dark is another plus.

The only thing that I don't know is will he turn corrupted in the end? Or will he continue to be the strongest Senior Brother.

In fact, this story is so good that I place it in my Top 20 Must Read Folder. The only downfall is... more>> that there is no updates since June 25 of 2016.

Someone please, translate this novel and update it please. <<less
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hexfirwe
hexfirwe rated it
April 8, 2017
Status: c160
You would guess that this novel would be a parody. I dont know if the author intended it to be one but it isnt. The main character follows all the common tropes without even a hint of parodying them.

The MC fails at being a character. His goals and motivations are incredibly vague. He wants to help out his sect? Why? He has pretty much no reason for 80% of his actions to be helping the sect but he does it anyway. The guy has no unique character traits at all... more>> aside from having a pre-existing reputation in his sect which has 0 impact on the story as he still gets underestimated just like every other MC in existence.

This novel would benefit from having a system like the authors previous novel as it would forcibly give the incredibly bland and uninteresting MC interesting goals. <<less
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GabeZhul
GabeZhul rated it
March 12, 2017
Status: c144
Not bad. An enjoyable read, though it very quickly falls prey of the same tropes it sets out to satirize.

The protagonist is supposed to be the stereotypical "arrogant young master" the "main character" was supposed to go up against? Sounds like a nice subversion, until you realize the protagonist also faces two such "arrogant young masters" in just the first couple of chapters.

There are antagonistic "clichéd xianxia MCs" who were originally weak but plot-devices made them OP? Once again sounds like a nice subversion, until you consider that the protagonist... more>> is actually a double-reincarnator and is even more broken than them.

The "clichéd xianxia MCs" are very lucky and stumble upon very powerful artifacts and techniques left and right? So does the protagonist, not to mention technically he had already stumbled upon on ALL the techniques in his previous life, and he doesn't even have to do most of the legwork, as he has retainers who collect materials and artifacts for him.

The first "clichéd xianxia MC" is a chick magnet who keeps improbably bumping into gorgeous female cultivators and have "perfect meetings" with them where he helps them out and earns their trust and love? Could have been a nice bit of satire, except the protagonist does the exact same thing beat for beat just a couple of chapters later.

So yeah, I don't know if it's intentional, but directly hanging a lampshade on xianxia clichés and then following them to the letter anyway is a little weird in my opinion. There are also some weird inconsistencies in the story, like characters seemingly teleporting around, and the pacing and time-scale is all over the place too.

Those nagging issues aside it is a pretty good read. Not as biting in terms of satire as History's Number One Founder or as hilarious as Library of Heaven's Path, but it is a pretty nice, tongue-in-cheek xianxia series all the same.

Edit: After reading all the currently TLd chapters, I have to say this story completely lost the satirical bend it had at the beginning and turned into a fairly bog-standard xianxia story. The "clichéd xianxia MCs" are still there, and they still cause some interesting situations, but other than that the protagonist completely fell into the role of a "clichéd xianxia MC" himself. It's still worth a read, but if you came here expecting a solid deconstruction of xianxia tropes, look elsewhere and read this one for what it is: a pretty good, entertaining xianxia story with a few lampshades hanging around the place. <<less
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Hisagi
Hisagi rated it
July 16, 2017
Status: c519
The main character, Yan Zhaoge, is a godlike prodigy. He wins every fight, there is no tension whatsoever.

Whatever he does, he does it perfectly, and gets some additional benefit along the way - ancient legacy, legendary artifact,... you name it. Unsurprisingly, his Mary Sue halo extends to those around him, and damnation awaits anyone with competing interest.

I can't even recall the last time he received a mere injury. (And I have read up to chapter 500.)

This novel had so much potential. Cultivation is interesting and well-described.... more>> The characters are actually intelligent, and there is no mindless harem. Lin Zhou, Fang Zhun, Feng Yunshen, Huang Jie - in fact, most of the characters - are awesome; they deserve their own novels.

Alas, the plot armor luck and the sickening talent of the main protagonist spoils everything.

His enemies and rivals are always portrayed as despicable, petty, or insufferably jealous. Hence, when he proceeds to beat them up, he can do it with a righteous smile. I can't stand his "righteousness".

Truly, this story would be perfect without Yan Zhaoge.

I am cheering for the Heavenly Thunder hall and the Sacred Sun clan; let them kick his ass all the way up to the ninth heaven. <<less
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Queen of Sheba
Queen of Sheba rated it
September 6, 2017
Status: c450
Fairly good. This story has several positive qualities. The protagonist is excellent, and his conduct is without question. The conflicts are also designed as to leave the audience without an opportunity to take a deep calming breath. The enemies in this story aren't Just for an arc, they have existed since the very beginning of the story, scheming, striking, and manipulating. Furthermore, there are tiers of mysteries at every layer. Hundreds of humans all physically similar, a few in each world, whatever for?

The protagonist also has a wide breadth of... more>> knowledge, and expertise. Subtle in his power at first, but it all accumulates over time, until he's a virtual hegemon at the age of twenty. The external foes, whom are added into the equation every then, and again make the entire crafted world all the richer. The 'us' and 'them' mentality exudes out of this story.

Truly, what keeps one still interested in this story, other than being vested interest in the protagonist has to be the fact that there's still so much questions left unanswered.

A recommended story. <<less
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Ardavix
Ardavix rated it
March 18, 2017
Status: c154
If you read the description and the comments and thought to yourself that this was going to be a satirical comedy novel along the lines of My Disciple Died Yet Again then I'm afraid that you'll be disappointed. Simply put this is a Xuanhuan; that's it. If you know the genre then you've read this novel before. The first few chapters seem to be in the satirical comedy spirit; however, it very very quickly becomes just another Xuanhuan.

Meet Yan Zhaoge, once an earthling, he was brought into a martial... more>> world during its martial golden age and died... only to be reincarnated again many years later. With his superior knowledge and otherworldly wit he works his way up to become the strongest blah blah blah...... Honestly, it's not a bad read; just that, at this point, I'm tired of this genre. The first 60 chapters do kinda feel like it's going in the comedy route; however, after about 10 chapters (or so) you start to question this preface... by chapters 30 or 40 you retain some hope that it'll satisfy the description... by chapter 100, you've given up.

This feels a lot more like Sovereign of the Three Realms or Emperor's Domination than it does My Disciple Died Yet Again. Accordingly, if you're still into those novels, then give this one a read ~ you'll likely enjoy it. In short, the description is a lie; it's not a satirical comedy (or a comedy for that matter), it's a Xuanhuan pure and simple.

[Edit: April 15, 2017]: There are two things that I forgot to mention in my earlier post; 1) events in this novel will drag on to an insane degree; I'm not kidding when I say that HSSB is one of the worst [insert useless text here] offenders (accordingly, make sure to binge read this novel or you'll hate it) ; and, 2) the early parts of the novel (first 70 chapters or so) do in fact satire other novels to a lesser extent (than otherwise expected) ; however, I should point out that for every treasure or good fortune found by people the novel tries to satire, our MC gets his own even more impressive [insert here: plot armor]. It's to the point where I have half a mind to think that the author initially intended it to be a satirical comedy; however, he wasn't able to write one well so he gave up and joined the dark side.

After taking a break from this novel, I've picked it up again with the mindset that it's not a comedy and I'm somehow enjoying it more. That said, this novel is nothing out of the ordinary: 3.5/5 stars as of chapter 154 (not caught up yet). I stand by what I said earlier, if you like novels like SotTR and ED then you'll probably like this. <<less
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NovelsJapan
NovelsJapan rated it
June 4, 2016
Status: c5
Good story with a nice twist to the normal xianxia novels, If you ever read xianxia before then you can understand the story more and gets the comedy behind it. Everyone should definitely read it.

Main character has the knowledge of the xianxia novels and has the best cultivation methods. Really smart and cunning MC, very relatable story
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pocketbear
pocketbear rated it
July 15, 2016
Status: c11
I have read my share of wuxia and xianxia, and have become oversaturated with the auctions and Mt Tai and arrogant young masters and senseless killing. This novel is like a breath of fresh air, in a different way than History's Strongest Founder is. To see someone given the villainous role and have to pull through and destroy the death flags, but in a chinese xianxia instead of a japanese otome, is very fun and truly great. This novel has not been translated far as of the writing of this... more>> review, but I have great expectations for the future chapters, and am eagerly awaiting to devour the next one~ The MC's sense of humor and his directness, and the fact that he isn't a total idiot like some others is just so great, it gives me hope~ <<less
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clowred
clowred rated it
April 26, 2017
Status: c58
If I were to rate the first ten chapters, not even five stars would have been enough. The fresh comedy and protagonist made me feel a sense of attachment towards the author who, in my opinion, was at the time even better than all the other xianxia author by a few levels. Only, there seemed to be a problem.

That specific problem was the way the parody became too serious for its own good. The antagonist? Who was more or less the usual xianxia protagonist that is blessed with fateful encounters... more>> and plot armor had too many misunderstandings. His hatred towards the protagonist, while it was partially explainable, reached new heights quite fast. After that, most of this novel becomes the narration of a reader that is fed up with the usual xianxia cliches, and wants to delve deeper in sect matters, politics and the usual things that most author leave behind because they know how much would a story lose once all these details hits our screen.

Yes, this story is an avalanche of details. The author would tell you everything you wanted or not to know. Each little prick has some fateful encounter and tries to act against the protagonist, only to be taught a lesson.

As someone already said, this novel moves in a completely different direction from what the synopsis presented. The comedy and the general fresh feeling disappears and is replaced by a stale narration of side quests in a xianxia world. The protagonist cultivation work is no longer described as his powers is always enough to be able to slap the face of anyone going against him, so we are ultimately seeing the daily life of a sect member caught in the sect's political conflict.

The biggest plot armor of this story is the "plan". If someone has a plan against him, our protagonist has a plan for that plan. If his enemies have a plan for his plan, the he has a plan for the plans his enemies have for his former plans. Keep this up and you could see how bored a person can become.

Most of the high rated reviews around here are for the first few chapters, only a few other found themselves attracted to the shitload of details about everything else beside what a true xianxia represents. If it is to your taste, read it, but don't rely too much on the synopsis or the first ten chapters. Expect a drastic change on the plot line. <<less
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Davr
Davr rated it
March 13, 2017
Status: c59
It started out pretty good

But as the story progressed, the side character plot became more and more annoying.

Problems the main character could have dealt with immediately, were dragged out for many chapters.

The main character's decisions are very irrational, but then are made to seem as they were all part of his secret plan.

So, I'm going to drop it.
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Soma
Soma rated it
June 4, 2016
Status: c11
Good xianxia story, and it made people addicted, too bad the update is too slow. Oh, my heart is in pain.

The MC is interesting, cunning, and badass. MC is not the usual as crippled, useless, untalented, or poor usual cliche MC. On the contrary, he had everything a cultivator needed and longed for from the beginning. Power, Women, Backing, Respect, it's a story about how he protect his interest and twart the scheme of the other cunning bastard that dare to stand against him.
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Zackarotto
Zackarotto rated it
October 9, 2017
Status: c100
This series is kind of misleading; it starts out with an extremely funny first couple chapters that poke fun at tropes. It's not entirely clear from the description, but there's basically a twisted sense of authorial "destiny" in play that the protagonist Yan Zhaoge is wary of getting in the way of, lest he and his whole family become a stepping stone in the stock-hero-character's rise to power.

So while Yan Zhaoge is hilariously mocking the stock-hero's "portable grandpa ring" (see: Coiling Dragon), it's also kind of a scary-seeming force to... more>> be caught on the wrong side of. And there's a lot of things you can do with that idea: I sort of thought it might continue with a comic tone, with Yan Zhaoge trying to resolve the misunderstandings between him and the stock-hero and trying to survive as a kind of cliche support-character next to the ticking bomb that is a xianxia hero (who, if he's like many of them, would be constantly slaughtering people for small crimes, and regularly endangering entire planets).

And maybe that was the original idea, before the author decided that the premise didn't really have legs. For example, if the powerful legacies Yan Zhaoge wanted kept ending up in the stock-hero's hands, it would be like a form of artifact-cuckholdry, and people don't read power-fantasy genres to see that. As a comedy though it might have been quite good if it toed that line well and creatively kept our real hero quietly in a position of advantage.

Instead, though, we see a complete shift in the story into more of a traditional power fantasy. And I'm not necessarily against that in theory; it's a genre I love, tropes included, as long as it's written well and creative. Unfortunately, I just don't think this author is great at it: I found it to be a bit clumsy with massive dumps of exposition all at once and battle after boring battle. Why am I being asked to care if someone trains in the Chaotic Elements Uniting Blade or the Eight Sceneries Spirit Blade? What bearing does it have on the story?

I tried; I wrote down names to tell Elder Xu from Elder Qin from Elder Kong from Elder He, and to know the difference between the East Elder and the East Disciplinary Elder, and who's subordinate to whom, but few of these characters show any personality and it just wasn't paying off. Series like True Martial World, Against the Gods, Tales of Demons and Gods and so on are pretty straightforward and occasionally maligned, but they're far, far better about these things.

I did like the protagonist, as well as the schemes and gambits in the less common parts of the story where that was the focus instead of the battles between various elders. And the story does have a few good ideas and seedlings for future development, but getting to chapter 100 has at least resolved a few plot points, and I think I'm at a good spot to set this one aside and look for something more interesting. Thanks as always to the translators who have given me the opportunity to try something new. <<less
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beddedOtaku
beddedOtaku rated it
August 26, 2017
Status: c288
First things first: don't let that summary fool you, this novel isn't much different than your standard xianxia fair. It's just that MC's 'rivals' are replaced with bare-bone copies of generic xianxia MCs (heavenly luck, reincarnation, going back in time, etc.). Although it's a gimmick, from time to time author uses it well as bu*t of some jokes, but, all in all, it has absolutely no impact on the overall narrative.

However, this reads a lot, A LOT, slower than your average xianxia, and that's mainly because author dedicates a lot... more>> of time to EVERYTHING. From side characters, overly drawn descriptions to bolster word count, to completely pointless chapters, to oddest attempts at epic storytelling I've seen in xianxia. Unless you are extremely comfortable with skipping paragraphs and chapters, I recommend you don't bother with this novel. However, that's not to say that there's nothing good about it, else I wouldn't have rated it 3. Author is good at build-up. He can set up scenes and battles properly, and weave in multitude of factions into conflict without seemingly any issues. He also writes some pretty decent and competent characters that aren't our beloved MC, and has okay skills in terms of dialogue as long as he doesn't turn it into massive monologues or pointless pandering.

All in all, HSSB doesn't read like your average xianxia, but at the same time it's exactly that. If you're interested in more, and don't mind some spoilers, read below:

Spoiler

While I praised author's ability for build-up and creating suspense, in this novel at least, it's a double-edged sword. When he does it well, he does it really well. However, when he doesn't, everything, from pace to enjoyment, just collapses faster than you could imagine. While things that happen seemed to have been pre-planned, it appears to me more that the author simply jotted down a few main points (k this char meets MC here, they battle for this, this faction reacts this way, etc.), and then decided to write around those points without actually having planned how to properly write about them.

Building tension is a hallmark of horror stories; they live and thrive on it. However, when writing action stories - especially ones involving supernatural elements - tension becomes a tool to use with great care. Again, author has pretty decent grasp on how to build it, but has absolutely no clue as to how to pace it. The only way I s**ked some enjoyment out of this novel was by practically skipping more than quarter of it. While that may seem dishonest and makes my review seem a bit skewed, I do have my reasons.

First, pointless chapters where MC upgrades or whatever. If you've ever read xianxia, you'll obviously be skipping them because it's basically the same thing. Anyway, even if you skip it, you'll be constantly reminded what each and exact realm does, so you don't have to worry about being in the dark. These chapters are more frequent than you think, and I don't even mention paragraphs weaved in nearly every 5-6 chapters that refer to the realms and just repeat the same sh*t author already described before.

Second, chapters featuring nothing. And I don't mean no plot progression where characters talk with each other. I mean nothing. It's just bunch of words, referencing some history (again), with absolutely no tie-in to what is going on at the present time. While these chapters aren't as commonplace as cultivation ones, they are marked as some of the most blatant page count attempts I've seen.

As an example, at one point of the story, we're told of the history behind MC's sect. Great, some backstory never hurts. We learn of these major two figures that propped his sect up, and how they did it, and why they are so renowned. But wait. Then we hear the exact same story, again, with author trying to vaguely connect it with present times. But wait. Here it is again. This time, you're slightly annoyed, so you just skip it because it's the same shit. Oho but wait, what do we have here? An entire chapter dedicated to the backstory we've heard before, again?

I know that xianxia, as a genre, thrives on repetition, as authors have to drill some details into reader's minds. Much of it has to do with cultivation, but also with endless stream of side characters, and sometimes backstory. But, author here goes far beyond repetition, as he clearly just takes a chapter to bait readers into expecting the main story to actually restart.

The author is a competent writer. As I've stated before, characters in HSSB are much better developed than in majority of other xianxia. Even if there are your generic spoiled princes and whatnot, of those characters that stay, most are written well enough. In addition, he's really good at building up tension, but has absolutely no clue as to how to pace it and properly release it. This isn't a horror story. No reader will enter this world expecting 12 chapters of build-up that could have been done in about 2. By the time the release of tension comes, you don't go "wow, that was epic!", but rather "oh for f*cks sake, finally!". So, again, and I STRONGLY IMPLORE THIS, unless you can comfortably skip literal chapters and countless paragraphs, HSSB will be absolute chore to read.

One more knack against the author is how he purposefully conceals information from the viewer than the MC already knows. Although the type of narration is omnipotent, we spend most of our time with MC, and author simply hides things from us that should be easily explained mostly to just bolster that 'look how smart my non-MC who's totally MC character is'. It's cheap, because we can't operate on the same level as MC as we don't have the same information he has, so when he suddenly reveals something that should shock us and make us go "wow, that's really clever! I never would have thought of that!", we don't because we never stood a chance in the first place. Also, weaving mysteries in the background isn't author's strong suite either. He just presents a mystery and then leaves it blank for readers, while making MC's thoughts and dialogue extremely vague making it so we can't even infer anything that would help us decipher whatever the f*ck MC would.

All in all, HSSB has some really great moments, and when it's at it best, it eclipses majority of other novels. However, it's so rarely at its best that it's simply not worth mentioning. In addition, besides the gimmick of 'totally not MC' character, author can't pace out tension, dragging on things for far too long whereas the climax of the story arc simply isn't as satisfying as it could have been.

Thanks for reading.

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Grosstoad
Grosstoad
March 2, 2017
Status: c107
Hmm, I would say that at the point of chapter 107, the title is no longer apt. I am not sure if there would be other Junior Brothers to be sacrificed to keep the title appropriate on the future though.

... more>>
Spoiler

Still, for a xianxia (double) reincarnation plot, it is still well-written, though if I might say, the Senior Brother thing actually makes it kind of odd. Odd that was interesting at first, but as the story progresses that plot hook just becomes an oddity.

I like the fact that the MC involves the cast in his problem-solving.

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Spoiler

Mooks bothering juniors? No problem, my henchmen will handle it. Slightly above cultivation antagonist? No problem, my higher level right hand will handle it. One step higher cultivation antagonist? No problem, I will break through the level gap in a second! High above cultivation antagonists and multiple factions ganging on me? No problem, I can humbly lower my head and request help from my own faction!

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It's the last part of the spoiler that makes it great for me. <<less
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dweenator
dweenator rated it
July 3, 2020
Status: c1168
Let me preface by saying that it has been quite a long time since I have read this novel.

Which is pretty understandable since this novel has been on hiatus/dropped and picked up twice.

And since it has been recently picked up again, i'll give out my review just to help it gain new readers.

... more>> The novel started out as a parody as many reviewers before me stated but how many times can you really repeat the same joke over and over again until it's no longer funny?

A conundrum the author probably thought of and rightfully so.

So in my opinion, it is justifiable and warranted that the story transitioned from being just a parody to a story of its own.

The basic/general outline of the plot is more or less the same with countless other cultivation novels but how can it not be when they're all of the same specific genre?

This novel isn't anything new nor does it offer something fresh. Just like how most houses look similar, this novel differs from the rest because of its overall quality structure.

So give this novel a read and judge for yourself.

P.S. The most efficient method of knowing whether or not a novel deserves a read is to look at the bad reviews instead of the good reviews. Compare the bad reviews of this novel to the bad reviews of Martial God Asura and you will see a stark difference.

By virtue of that alone, this novel deserves atleast a try. <<less
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