The Fifth Judgment Sequence

This book is an online fantasy novel by the author Le Sima Li, part of "The Alarest Epic" series. Its predecessor is The Sword Scholar. It was serialized on Qidian Chinese Network starting in August 2012 and completed in April 2013, running about 760,000 characters in more than 250 sections. The story takes place on the continent of Alarest, upheld by the Twelve Gods of Tokshir and the Five Arcane Orders, with the narrative centered on the Kingdom of Nitara: order and regulation are guarded by the Four Judgment Sequences, yet demons invade once more, and five young people of different backgrounds therefore form the "Fifth Judgment Sequence," setting out to follow the clues of the demons' return. The author lays out a fairly dense geography and racial setting for this world—the frozen mountain range of Soraya where dragons sleep, the elven World Tree Aurelio guarded by a seven-colored rainbow, the lake castle of Helo, the floating sanctuary of the Spirit Communication Academy, and numerous peoples including Light Elves, Night Elves, the Moon Clan, the Mage Clan, the undead, faerie dragons, and demons. An ancient undead prince seeking a thousand-year revenge, a saint who wields divine power on behalf of the gods, a bard accompanied by butterflies and sprites, and a Dreyl traveler versed in Eastern secret arts appear one after another. The party consists of a knight, a guard, an artist, a physician, and an Eastern traveler; along the way they come to see whether "judgment" is the adjudication of crimes or power misused by a rigid order, and they draw step by step closer to the source of the demons' revival.