I, Ziyan, Confer Godhood by the Will of Heaven

This book is divided into four volumes.

Volume One: The Investiture of the Gods War

As the Shang dynasty nears its fall, the historian Zi Yan awakens the will of Pangu. Nuwa gives him the Map of Mountains and Rivers, Fuxi gifts him the Eight Trigrams, Hongjun passes on the Jade Disc of Creation, and Pangu entrusts him with the Divine Dragon Order. He is no longer the one holding the brush, but the eyes of Heaven’s Dao. He drafts the Investiture of the Gods himself, watching as the Three Teachings’ tribulation begins, the mortal world changes hands, and the gods take their places.

Volume Two: The Sages’ Tribulation

Wu Geng’s rebellion tears apart the barrier between heaven and earth. Demons, monsters, ghosts, and witches pour into the world, and the Sages’ Tribulation begins. Of the Twelve Golden Immortals of the Chan School, eight die in battle, their souls scattered, while four convert to the Western religion. Master Tongtian’s soul is annihilated. Using four primordial treasures, Zi Yan severs the connection between heaven and earth, sealing the Lord of Chaos in the void forever. With the gods and Buddhas fallen, he alone holds up the heavens.

Volume Three: The Eight Immortals Attain the Dao

A thousand years later, Heaven’s Dao has grown rigid, and its laws leak like a sieve. Zi Yan walks among mortals, guiding the Eight Immortals through their tribulations to attain the Dao, and gathering a wisp of Master Tongtian’s true spirit so he can return. He understands: Heaven’s Dao can no longer be cultivated. It must be shattered.

Volume Four: The Legend of Journey to the West

The pilgrimage is beset by eighty-one trials, and with every step, Tang Sanzang and his disciples mend the gaps in heaven. Their journey west is not a pilgrimage to worship Buddha, but an effort to patch the final cracks in the old Heavenly Dao. The gods and Buddhas of the heavens use it to cling to life, but the Lord of Dao Destruction has arrived.

Epilogue

The sages are reincarnated to undergo tribulations, and the Lord of Dao Destruction descends. The immortals and Buddhas across the heavens blow themselves up in battle; not one retreats. Zi Yan faces the Ruins alone and perishes alongside the Lord of Dao Destruction.

The old Heavenly Dao crumbles.

The new Heavenly Dao is born on the final page of Zi Yan’s Record of the Investiture of the Gods.

The brush falls on the Investiture of the Gods. The Dao begins anew.