Tales of Herding Gods

LV 5

Ninetales

Hi everyone, Ninetales here I'm glad everyone is loving Tales of Herding Gods so far, I will be releasing more chapters over the next week but this will only last for the starting week. After next week the rate will be back to 10 a week since I'm a sole translator and I'm doing the best I can. I'm doing my best with the translation quality but sometimes there are certain quotes, phrases and skill names that are really complicated (since they are from ancient china poems) so I'll try. Hope you guys enjoy ToHG as much as I do and continue to support it! Thank you once again!

LV 11

thestatsguy

Website : qidian china Views : 7.93 million Rating : 8.3(1253) Chapters : 472 Status : ongoing Word count : 1.40 million Rank : 7 Right now it's really popular in qidian.

LV 6

Plutonium

Anti Hero novel is really interesting. Really hope his is not like those hero who is said to walk the path of demon but still have a heart to forgive the opponent where as there opponent want to kill Mc for a small reason. Let's hope this Novel is a Full Blown Badaas MC and not a loser with Hero mentality.

LV 5

Evil2shar

Finally.... What I want is not an anti hero but an cold blooded psychopath who is epitome of evil. Hope this novel is same and MC needs to be OP..... Hope translation picks up fast

LV 6

Nishad

MC is gonna become a Villain...........Truly gonna be a epic story, can't wait :_: ..................Another OP MC. I Am really gonna love this story I a sure of it....................

LV 14

DarkImmortal_Intel

I think I've figured out why some LN's that are between 30-100 chapters are at the top 20 listing. (Normally it wouldn't make sense) However I'm pretty sure QI is artificially inflating ratings of LN's that are currently/historically popular in china. - To help increase revenue for those authors. If so, then I have mixed emotions. As in, why not just create a top 20 list for China, then have another separate top 30 listing that's accurate currently. Then we can compare different cultural trends between other nations.

LV 13

PlotArmour

avatar: airbender > avatar: legend of korra im curious about this novel but it’ll probably take a while to get released. i also hope the mc isn’t a beta and is a true anti-hero.

LV 4

Loonybaloney

An absolute must read for those who feel a need to read something worthwhile. This beauty here is a compelling read which is graced by a really well woven plot. The most refreshing part about it is the fact that there are little to none of previous tropes and clichés we have become acclimatised to with the generic run of the mill xianxia which QI has been spoonfeeding us for a while. The world development is ******, yet detailed. Very well presented and visualised. Author is a pro. The side characters are so well fleshed that it pains me to even call them side characters. There is lot of depth to the word 'villain'. Both from a social and daoistic perspective, which makes the novel really layered and immersive. Real good food for thought. If you thought it is WMW's "nothing shall stand in my way" kind of neutral evil, then unfortunately, you will be sorely disappointed. Last but definitely not the least, ninetales, the damnable sweetheart has done a supremely stellar job. Kudos. I feel this is a well condensed, non revealing, meaningful review. So like it and bring it to the top peeps. Peace

LV 5

theteapotiscoming

Can Zhai Zu do wrong? This is the second time I'm writing a review for this novel, and it deserves those five star ratings absolutely. It's just hit chapter 300 a while back, and I feel the plot has progressed enough for me to give you a detailed analysis as to why you should read this novel. World Building Magnificent. Simply magnificent. The world that has been created is absolutely beautiful. It's insanely large but isn't just limited by sizes. Unlike IET novels, world-building here isn't just about those millions and billions of miles. Because in most Xianxia novels, you really only see the same world, with the same characters again and again. A big fish in a bigger pond. But that just isn't the case with ToHG. Each place feels singularly unique, in culture, tradition, and I dare even say language. Everybody isn't chinese as well. Which is saying a lot, since most popular Xianxia tend to have China copied and pasted across zillions of planets. And ToHG isn't limited by what it isn't. It's not just a case of a novel not fucking it up for once. It's a case of a novel getting it right. It's ridiculously beautiful, how well the novel is made. The world exists to be explored, and our MC Qin Mu explores this world Oh so well. The shattered civilization of Great Ruins isn't just there for our MC to power up and then destroy. It's there for our MC to explore. Qin Mu actually wanders the ruins and sees strange inexplicable things. And that inexplicability, creates that sense of magnificence, and wonder that continues throughout the novel. But it isn't just about a random kid exploring a weird place. Eventually he does begin to find some explanations as to what actually caused great ruins. What happened to this wondrous civilization that made it collapse. But it isn't grandly revelatory, and isn't shoved into our faces in an instant. At constant chapter intervals, we get new facts, that change our opinions, and beliefs, and our characters opinions and beliefs. Frankly put, I would've been satisfied if this story had been about a monk exploring this world. Thats just how satisfying the world is. If any webnovel needs to get converted into a manhwa, or anime or movie. It better be this one. Writing And this is the only real failure of the novel. The plot is amazing, and I'll be getting to that in a minute, but let's go with this first. Despite an amazing plot, amazing life-like characters, and a beautiful world, the novel clearly isn't perfect yet. While it manages to avoid standard web novel cliches like "you're courting death mother****er" or "he puked out 300 liters of blood and looked up with a grimace, before saying DIEEE MOTHERFUCKER" the novel does fall short of what it can really achieve. And that's a problem with web novels in general. That no matter how fucking good they are, in order to keep up with the release rat they've set, and the expectations of readers, authors often forgo the entire process of proofreading, editing, and the real need of rewriting sections that are underdone. ToHG can really feel like a bit of a rough draft of what really could be made. It feels like Go Set a Watchman, rather than To Kill a Mockingbird. There are underdone portions, where the emotions could've been brought out better, had the author written better. And while I would like to blame this on the translater, I really can't do that either. The translations are near scot-free, and have a good amount of effort put into them. No, it's really more of the author's fault, and an unavoidable part of the webnovel process. Now don't misunderstand me here, I'm not talking about bad grammar or anything. I'm talking instead about the problem of way you write. To convey a ****** message such as a character called Danny watching the sun set, you could set about things in two different ways. You might say "Danny basked underneath the glorious red and orange hues of the setting sun. It blinded him, but he did not care. He felt free. Finally." (ignore the added cheez) Anyway, I think you get the point. Or you could say, "Danny watched the sun come down. It was truly beautiful, and he felt emotional." While I won't get into the technical differences here, you can easily see that the first one felt better, felt truer, and closer to the actual emotions a character might feel. You are conveying emotion through words. However ToHG often has to give up on that, instead literally telling us that a character feels sad or happy, or mad or piteous or dead or whatever. And while that's understandable, it's rather a major flaw in the novel. A flaw that can and should be fixed. Plot Oh dear god, this novel is one of the best on this website, because of the plot. The pacing is absolutely perfect, though there are occasional flaws, which could've been corrected. The story-arcs are nice, relatively short, and while they don't stun with some insayyne twists at the end like reverend insanity, they are very satisfying conclusions to each arc. Filler chapters are certainly unavoidable, and you have to deal with them, but that does't detract much. It makes for some entertainment while the author planned out the next few arcs. Now coming to the story itself, ToHG took some time to find it's footing. The first novel was frankly a bit of an oddball, though it had some beautiful world-building. The second novel was a bit 'iffy' as well, but by the third novel, things have really begun to pick up, and hit high gear. And now it truly feels like it should be. The problem in the first novel, was often a sort of contradiction in the characterization. At first the Imperial Preceptor, is portrayed as a sort of hated figure, a dictator of sorts and the emperor is but a dummy emperor. Yet this changes a little ways in, and Qin Mu begins to admire the Preceptor. This change in attitude is not the problem, its understandable. Yet it is the problem of the way its written. The first novel really had Zhai Zu trying to find a direction for the novel. I'm glad he chose the direction the novel is currently taking, because it makes for some hilarious moments, accompanied by some darker, and often more badass moments. The novel starts with the disabled elderly of disabled elderly village wanting to stop an invasion of great ruins by imperial preceptor. Which is fine, since this makes for a good portion of the first novel, and thus you would also assume that Preceptor is the real bad guy. <<super minor spoilers ahead. Skip if you have not read novel>> But it turns out thats not the case. Imperial Preceptor is a nice guy, and Qin Mu even recruits him later on. Which again feels weird because its a complete 360 right there. And the elderly's plan doesn't work out, and instead a sun guardian girl turns up to diss everybody and kick ass. And for a second, we have Qin Mu going ahead and saying he'll save her <<super minor spoiler bits over>>, and you can feel the plot wavering for a second, because that feels like it's going to become like a Shonen Er Gen novel, with wang lin, or Meng Hao or whatever basically powering up just for the sake of pulling some woman out of the reincarnation cycle. But it doesn't. But there are numerous moments like these in the plot, where you can really feel the plot waver, especially in the first book. It improves in the second book, and by the third book, we finaly have a clear idea of where we're going, with the gods becoming our major enemies now. But if you get what I mean, don't let that detract from your experience. You won't notice it particularly, unless you're as done with shonen cliches as I am. But don't worry, work your way through the first book, and you will be rewarded. Of course all that being said, this doesn't at all mean that the first book is ****. I've reemphasized again and again, that the first book has the best world-building so far. And seeing Qin Mu as a ***** and innocent child is really fun. It's also a great introduction to a new and somewhat interesting cultivation system, which is often innovative enough to keep you interested, but no so complex as to drown you in terminology and technicality. The cultivation system is fun, but it doesn get crowded at times, and it could've been pulled off more cleanly. (Like reverend Insanity, where you have levels from 1-9 and then you've also got a **** load of gu, which have different purposes and straightforward names such as vertical crash, which makes you crash forward vertically, or horizontal crash, which makes you crash horizontally, or eat **** gu, which is relatively self explanatory) At any rate names like Nine Dragons transformations technique, and Rulai's Mahayana Sutra, and Heaven Pilfering legs, and Pig slaughtering knife skills and Venomous insect cultivation technique, or the three thousand and fucking one techniques within Heavenly devil/saint scriptures are rather extravagantly, and unneccessarily names which makes it fucking annoying to remember them all. Charaters Absolutely believable characters. They are a 100% believable, and our MC is not a Gary Sue, and is not perfect at all. While he has incredible cultivation, that makes him stronger than most people, there are an equal amount of people equally matched with him, who occasionally kick his ass. Especially his teachers. The disabled elderly appear less frequently in the later books, these characters are very near normal people, not cold calculating machines who have lost all human feelings. Even pangong tso, some badass overgod dude who's been fucking everybody over for 11000 years has human feelings. He gets trigerred when Qin Mu drags him down with thim. None of the characters feel like cardboard cutouts at all. The emperor behaves like an emperor. He is extremely pissed off when Qin Mu disguises him as a ****** monk. Imperial Preceptor is really the sheltered genius he is. He is occasionally *****, though his talent for battle is unsurpassed. Qin Mu does not understand romance at all, and is seriously humble, due to how much his elders kick his fucking ass. Daozi Lin Xuan is a super nice guy, who gets easily swayed, and respects his master a little too much. Fozi Fo Xin is easily swayed, arrogant, and hates being surpassed, becoming very very jealous of our boy Qin. None of them feel flat at all you see. And they all have their own ideologies, but are open to change(except the super orthodox fellows.) And even amongst the orthodox, there are people who act like people. All of them are humans, and in the end, they act human. The monks of Great thunderclap monastery treat buddhism like the religion it is. They will convert people, and they will protect the monastery at all costs. No matter what. Conclusion I would say this is simply put, one of the straight up best works on Qidian. Why it wasn't translated earlier I don't know. Would I reccomend it? absolutely. it deserve about 4 stars, but I think if many of those minor mistakes were to be corrected, this could easily be a 4.5 or 4.6 Because it is one of the best novels on this website. While I havn't really covered the plot, I didn't want to, because that would really spoil the novel after all. I think most of the comments in this are very case specific scenarios, that shouldn't be a problem to readers. You can read the review, and still read the book, and still be surprised. Either my verdict:: THIS NOVEL PASSES. ITS AWESOME btw did i hit the 140 character minimum?

LV 6

human101

Sounds nice :D Finally a main character that's evil (mabye?) I'll give it a five star for now. It sounds pretty good from the synopsis :) still not 140 characters yet... y qidian

LV 5

Kyo2112

If this mc turns out to be cold ruthless and calculating then we might have a similarity to warlock of magus world. Which would be a good thing cuz that was a good novel. Long story short if he goes bad with good reason miggt be good Goes bad with stupid reason and the author screws a good plot Goes bad properly turns good. Half-asses it and it turns crappy Well cheerio Ps. I haven't actually read the book yet but looking forward to it

LV 10

FOXFIRE92

I don't know about story development or the translating quality or the stability of this novel yet. But, I really like this kind story when MC not that kind of 'saintly' but the 'evil'... And I just kinda think if the MC wanna be villain but act as if he was a hero (save people along his way/save every beauty in his way/tell every person and acting silly about his destiny to be villain), I WILL really REALLY DROP IT.. Well, I hope not... So I think I will waiting for update ^_^

LV 4

Daoist_Cheesecake

No update in 17 days. Why does this site keep adding new novels before they even complete one novel that is well recieved? I’ve seen rumours (though probably not credible) that this has been dropped for more popular novels. I am concerned as Way Of the Devil has stopped updating for months as well. So many brilliant novels discontinued for mediocre novels being voted in for the sake of it. If they really have discontinued such a well established and wonderfully written novel, my disappointment would be immeasurable and my day ruined. Seriously, it’d be a disgrace to those who have invested money and more importabtly, precious time, following this amazing story for the last couple years. Hope they continue to update. Thanks you to the translators for dealing with this site. P.s. Writing a review is cumbersome on the mobile app due to it attempting to capitilize every single letter. I have to keep backspacing to fix every single attempt at capitilization. I may have missed some grammatical errors due to my frustration. Hope they fix this too.

LV 6

AweXeem

The only anti-hero novel I love the most and follow is Dungeon Defense. Let's see if the MC in this novel can beat Dantalion :v I love anti-hero novel but there are too many anti-hero novel where the MC is cool af in the beginning arcs and gets boring and normal later. I hope this doesn't disappoint me from the anti-hero tagged novels. Can't wait for it.

NOTICE: Tales of Herding Gods is no longer on a hiatus! Hello everyone! I am the new translator for TOHG! It seems like no one wants to pick up this novel so I guess I'll take over the job. Safe to say, I will be fully translating this novel down to the final word unless something extremely urgent happens (for example, I die of natural or unnatural causes!). I will be uploading 2-3 chapters daily on isotls.com so if you want to support me, please go check out the website and read it there! I'll also make a patreon page for those that wish to have 5 unreleased chapters in advance for 1 dollar (I'll link it once I've made it). I may increase the tiers and advance chapters depending on the demand. Anyhow, come check out my work at isotls.com, I will be uploading every day at 5PM EST. By the time you're reading this, I have already completed 3 chapters. Just waiting for 5PM to hit :-). Chwan signing out. 02/08/2022

LV 5

Lonahora

(301) Very underrated! The beginning is rather underwhelming, with a setting of a world full of the common Eastern Fantasy. The Martial cultivation is so spread that it is used in what seems like boring everyday life and is presented much less majestically than in renowned fighting series. Pacing also feel slow for a long time. That being said, the story and everything in it constantly improve, exhibiting a broader picture that is carefully thought of. It's still not just about fighting, but the rest is just as fascinating and the comedy on point. I can keep saying a lot of how I bit by bit starting viewing this light novel as the hidden gem of Chinese fantasy light novels, but I think I said enough and from here can only recommend others to give it a patient chance.

LV 5

theteapotiscoming

Can Zhai Zu go wrong? I started reading this particular novel due to an interesting title. I had never heard of Zhai Zu before. I've read Er gen, IET, and loads of other light novels, of which I barely remember a few. However ToHG stands out alongside titles like Dungeon Defense, and Circus of Oubeniel. Story Ah man, I love the pacing of this story! It's got ups and downs, but the pacing is beautiful. The Mc doesn't get sudden powerups, nor does he suddenly hit rage mode. He works hard, and is taught well. Our MC isn't some insignificant punk who 'struggles' his way up the ladder through the thickest plot armour you will ever see. No, this is a well thought out plot with a well thought out MC, in an incredibly unique situation. Having practically every single Legendary figure of the older generation teaching you the greatest skills of all time, doesn't lead to an overpowered MC to the extent that he starts becoming Meng Hao's second cousing. No, instead the ride is fair, and while our MC doesn't lose, he is cunning enough not to fight against overpowered enemies straightforwardly. Every encounter with any enemy is meaningful, and sets up the story progression, albeit at a steady pace. All in all, the story is really fun, at times thriller/cliffhanger while at other times its a slice of life tale. World Building I feel that ToHG is possibly the greatest masterpiece in the art of world building. A magnificent and inviting world, possibly filled with incredibly mysterious secrets, and dark truths. There seems to be a little bit of cliche when you think about the fallen world of gods and devils, Zhai Zu has pulled it off so incredibly well. There's something really inviting about the world. For starters, the world isn't just there as a stage on which the main character can just screw around. Instead, there's actual focus on the world. An ancient buddha statue being more than what it seems, a trapped noble dragon that turns out to be for more sinister, strange evils that haunt the land, and so much more. And for once, the main character actually thinks about the world, explores it, and enjoys its beauty. I personally just wish I could live in such a magnificent place. After all, with so much to explore, just as the story starts, its nearly irresistable Characters Every single character is enthralling. They have depth, and the MC doesn't just go around threatening the young masters of various random sects. Instead, the Mc spends much of his time with his demonic companions, or the elderly of the village. The interactions between them are to an extent humorous(not particularly), but certainly heartwarming. Every character serves a purpose, and isn't just some stepping stone for the lone wold MC to kill before becoming a god. I end up caring what happens to Granny Si, Blind, Deaf and Old Ma, even though we're only 70 chapters through the novel(as of this review). And for once, people aren't shallow. They have motivations, and flaws, and every character is very unique. Translations The translations, while not particularly great like that of the grandmaster strategist, is still good. Occasional spelling errors exist, but there are no significant mistakes, and the story reads with most of the original tone and style of the author carried over. I just wish the speed was faster.(NEED MORE CHAPTERS!!!) All in all, this is probably one of my favourite novels Qi, alongside Reverend Insanity, TKA, TSS and other such dark horse favourites. My reccomendation to anybody- read it. This is hella good.

LV 13

Ainsbark

since the change of translators, i think you guys need an editor and a proof reader with prior experience of reading this novel. cause the translation is inconsistent and many of the terms are not the same as the previous translator, thus resulting in confusion. some of the names of the characters are translated too litterally like celestial venerable yu, yue, huo, etc turned into royal, moon, and fire. even though sometimes they are correctly translated. there is also the celestial emperor or emperor tai or something is actually just 1 character but the naming /title usage changes back and forth a lot making me confusing him for another character. i dont want to ask too much cause i know translating is hard so i dont scrutinize the poems and quotes from this novel that are too hard to translate without understanding of chinese literature. but please atleast use the right titles and names for each characters. cause it confuses me so much on who is who. especially when the number of characters are already so large. added with inconsistent naming and titles, it makes it much more confusing for me to read.

LV 11

brockarot_falcon

Hello, translator, a fan here. I tried to go into Telegram and leave a comment, but it didn't work. So I got rid of it, because I dont like clustery things on my phone... Anyways, I wanted to say something anyways. I really, really like this book. I can list a lot of good books I could not read because the translators stopped translating. I just ask for you guys to be devoted when you pick something up. Who know how many times I had to give up on a great book just because I dont know chinese. Now, I know you will say that I am saying nonsense, and that I should just learn chinese if I'm so unhappy, (I can't do that - it's too hard!) but I will name a bunch of books right now that are as unfinished. (Tales of a Reincarnated Lord. World of Immortals. Dragon Blooded War-God. Tales of Demons and Gods. War Sovereign Soaring the Heavens. Realms in the Firmament. Monster Paradise. Transcending the Nine Heavens. Bank of the Universe. Dragon Emperor, Martial God. A World Worth Protecting. Mythical Tyrant. Eternal Reverence. Emperor of the Cosmos. Martial God. Zombie Evolution. Murdering Heaven Edge. Eight Desolate Sword God. Atypical Reincarnation. The God of Sky and Earth. Dominating Sword Immortal.) Have these 20 books that I picked out told you anything? Look them up, I am absolutely telling the truth. All of these cultivation novels, good ones too and not randomly picked ones, have been abandoned by their translators. All of these, which I really wanted to read, I can't read now. Please, translator, PLEASE, don't be like those other translators. Don't give up on this book. Please finish it. And the fact is, I really like how you translate. You aren't like some other translators, who just blindly translate. Those translators are no better than MTL. To me, a translator is special. To be a translator, I believe you need to be a good author, too. Because different countries have different languages, just like some sentences in spanish translate awkwardly into english. Even more so for chinese, I bet. So you cannot just blindly translate the words, you have to think about the story, and the plot, too. Instead of putting, "it put on the lamp," put "He turned on the light." And you are just such a translator. So please, PLEASE, finish this book. Don't make me have to go back in sadness again. Give me a chance to happily read this wonderful and interesting book. I believe in you. I also think that, although not many people are saying anything, that many are thinking the same thing as me. Hope this convinces you to think it over, or at least stay committed to the next book that you translate, so I don't have to be so unbearably sad again! 😫😫😫😫😫😫😫😫😫😫😫😫😫

LV 14

Fat_Goat

This novel is severely underrated, it’s not generic or cliche but it is completely unpredictable. I’ve found myself surprised with the developments a number times and unlike with other novels, I can’t often predict what will happen next. Little details which you originally thought were pretty irrelevant end up weaving together with other plot devices to blow your mind away. The story keeps on getting deeper and deeper, when you think you’ve finally got an idea of what’s happening the author manages to throw a spanner in the works as he dives to another level. Great main character and all side characters have their own backstories and depth. Enemies aren’t stupid and although a lot of characters in chinese novels tend to be small minded, in this novel it’s different. Their opinions can change, they grow as people. The world building is amazing, it evolves with the story and you learn with the main character. The author does a great job of leading you on, when you think you know you just don’t. I’ve stopped at 900 chapters and will be coming back when it’s fully translated. If this novel keeps up the quality and has a good ending it will without a doubt be top 5 novels ever. Only reason I won’t give it first is because other novels shine differently. This is number one for unpredictability, it may be a dull word to describe it with but creating a good story that doesn’t coincide with other stories is a much larger feat than you’d think