The Divine Cauldron

Xiao XuanMotie Publishing

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Word count: 782.5K words
Chapters: 41

Summary

The Divine Cauldron is an Eastern fantasy novel by Xiao Xuan, serialized on Motie Chinese Network from August 7, 2011; according to Motie Chinese Network, the book runs to about 780,000 characters. The story begins in Wulong Town, a remote town under Jiuyang City in Longzhou, Xuandi Empire. The legend of the black dragon and the annual “Dragon Worship Ceremony” deeply influence everyone in the town, and the true purpose of the ceremony is to welcome envoys from the Jiuyang Hall of the Tianyuan Sect, who come to select young disciples of exceptional talent. From such a small town, the protagonist Feng Wuyang sets out on the path of martial contest. The book builds a clearly tiered cultivation system: from the Martial Realm, which tempers the body and martial skills, to the Mystic Realm, which values both spiritual energy and the soul, then to the Void Realm, where the soul becomes independent and one first glimpses space, up to the Saint Realm that ranges across the starry river, and finally to the Divine Realm of the Netherworld, Asura, and the divine realms. Between these realms are checkpoints such as Great Perfection and the seven-color elixir tiers, together forming the main measure of a character's growth. The worldview comprises many arcs—the continent, the sea, the starry sky, the Netherworld, Asura, and the divine realms: on the vast continent empires stand and sects carve out territory; the East Sea Shrine stretches misty and vast; the starry world is boundless; and the Netherworld hell cycles without end. One of the story's core threads centers on the ancient artifact, the Medicine King Divine Cauldron, as various factions maneuver in secret to seize it; it also includes the plot in which Mo Fenyou sacrifices himself to complete the cauldron spirit and fight powerful enemies. Factions such as the Tian Du Sect and the Gu Shen also appear, expanding the story's scope from a single town and prefecture toward the many realms.

Editor's review

《神鼎》是磨铁中文网早期玄幻作品中的一个标志性存在。作者萧玄从2011年开始连载，作品被磨铁官方形容为“开站以来最坚韧、最具穿透力的玄幻作品”。它最吸引人的地方，在于“世界够大、层级够清楚”。全书先由玄帝国八十一州铺开，再由龙州一路推向外面的沧海、星空、幽冥、修罗与神界。武境、玄境、虚境、圣境、神境五重阶梯又各自细分：武境九级、玄境七级的赤橙黄绿蓝靛紫丹阶、虚境幻虚、元虚、圣虚三阶，读起来像在逐层打开地图，升级节奏十分明确。人物方面，主角风无央出身乌龙镇这样一个小地方，起点很低，却一路走进刺客联盟、血龙山庄、北敖王宫等更复杂的势力纠葛。既有“问天一剑”式的快意，也有尔虞我诈、情义取舍的沉重。书中围绕“药王神鼎”的争夺贯穿始终，鼎器的来历与鼎灵的补全，为整部书提供了不同于寻常打怪的悬念。对喜欢传统异界大陆、宗门争锋、完整力量体系的老读者来说，这是一部口气不小、格局不小的“老派玄幻”，值得在书荒时翻出来补一遍。

Who it's for

A good fit for

喜欢异界大陆、宗门争锋与传统升级流玄幻的老读者
偏好完整清晰修炼体系与境界设定的读者
能接受近百万字长篇、愿意长时间追读的人
对“上古神器”“鼎灵”“诸界并立”等东方玄幻元素感兴趣的读者

Not a good fit for

偏爱短篇、单本完结、节奏紧凑作品的读者
对玄幻常见套路（打怪升级、家族危情、宗门试炼）兴趣不大的读者
只读现实题材、文学性严肃小说的读者

Reading tips

先看第一卷“龙城卷”前二十章，确认能接受作者的叙述节奏与升级速度，再决定是否长线追读
读时可随手记下武境、玄境、虚境、圣境、神境各层级的对应关系，后续情节会频繁以境界差制造张力
不必逐字死磕，遇大段战斗与势力铺陈可略读，重点看与“药王神鼎”相关的线索
建议配合书友整理的章节目录或人物关系表一起读，避免中后期人物与势力过多造成混淆

About the publisher

Motie Publishing

Motie Publishing, whose English name is Motie Publishing, currently has limited publicly available information. With only one book recorded in the database, its publishing direction can still be seen to focus on male-oriented fiction and Eastern fantasy. Its representative book, The Divine Cauldron, is written by author Xiao Xuan and is a typical Eastern fantasy title centered on cultivation systems, factional conflicts, and the protagonist's growth, aimed at male readers who enjoy passionate adventure and imagined-world settings. Through such original full-length works, Motie Publishing shows a publishing character built around genre fiction, accumulating author resources and content in the field of fantasy literature. Because details such as founding background and scale have not been confirmed, this introduction is based only on the books and categories in the database and may be further supplemented as the catalogue expands.

Dragon City Volume
Chapter 1 A Son Named Wuyang
Chapter 2 Family Crisis
Chapter 3 Reincarnation Mountains
Chapter 4 Martial Realm, Ninth Level
Chapter 5 Talent and Aptitude
Chapter 6 True Axe, First Form
Chapter 7 Return in Defeat
Chapter 8 The Realm of My Own Heart
Chapter 9 He Who Conquers Himself Is King
Chapter 10 First Signs of Brilliance
Chapter 11 The Doctrine of Ruthlessness
Chapter 12 The Fortunes of Heaven's Way
Chapter 13 Dark Clouds Gather
Chapter 14 Wuyang Tests His Blade
Chapter 15 The Edge of the Blood Sword
Chapter 16 Duel at the Mountain Peak
Chapter 17 Blood Dragon Manor
Chapter 18 A Sword That Questions Heaven
Chapter 19 Fight and Win
Chapter 20 The Five Hall Masters
Chapter 21 The Assassins' Alliance
Chapter 22 Warm Heart on an Old Road
Chapter 23 The Secret Scroll of the Phantom God
Chapter 24 A Star-Ranked Assassin
Chapter 25 In the Same Boat
Chapter 26 The Might of Crimson Blood
Chapter 27 Treacherous Winds and Waves
Chapter 28 Return to the Manor
Chapter 29 Debts Repaid
Chapter 30 Another Storm Rises
Chapter 31 Just in Time
Chapter 32 The Clouds Part and the Rain Clears
Chapter 33 Plans That Do Not Align
Chapter 34 Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy
Chapter 35 Life and Death, One Heart
Chapter 36 A World-Shaking Momentum
Chapter 37 The Peak That Questions Heaven
Chapter 38 Critical Situation
Chapter 39 The Northern Ao Kingdom
Chapter 40 The Bridge That Bewitches the Mind

FAQ

《神鼎》的作者是谁？在哪里连载？

作者是萧玄，2011年8月7日起在磨铁中文网连载。据磨铁中文网资料，作品已列入磨铁出版书目，被官方称为“磨铁中文网开站以来最坚韧、最具穿透力的玄幻作品”。

这本书大概多少字？完结了吗？

磨铁中文网页面标注字数为782541字，约七十八万字，当时状态显示为连载中。网络上流传的精校全本字数统计约为一百万字上下，因校对与统计口径不同会有差异，具体以官方页面为准。

《神鼎》的修炼境界怎么划分？

由低到高依次为武境（九级＋大圆满）、玄境（九级＋赤橙黄绿蓝靛紫七重丹阶）、虚境（幻虚、元虚、圣虚三阶）、圣境（九级＋巅峰）、神境（虚神、真神、主神）。境界设定是全书推进主线的重要依据。

主角是谁？故事从哪里开始？

主角是风无央，故事从玄帝国龙州九阳城下辖的偏远小镇乌龙镇开始。那里每年举行“拜龙大典”，天元宗九阳殿使者会前来挑选天赋少年，主线由此展开。

想读的话，买哪个版本比较好？

目前流传较广的是网络连载文本及民间精校全本，ISBN、定价、具体出版年份等信息未能核实到可靠的通行版本。若购买实体书，建议先核对封面、出版社与ISBN，以免与同名书籍混淆。

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Xiao Xuan Author

Xiao Xuan is an author about whom limited public information is available. The records currently held show only one work by this author, the representative title The Divine Cauldron (Shen Ding). Judging from its classification, The Divine Cauldron belongs to the categories of male-oriented fiction and Eastern fantasy, suggesting that Xiao Xuan writes primarily for a male readership and draws on Eastern fantasy, a fairly common direction in Chinese web literature. Eastern fantasy usually builds on an invented Eastern world and develops its narrative through elements such as cultivation, arcane arts, sects, or artifacts; the title The Divine Cauldron itself hints that an artifact may play a certain role in the story. Because basic details such as dates of birth and death and nationality are unrecorded, the author's writing career and the influence of the work are difficult to describe in detail, and only a brief note on the genre of the surviving work can be given. Readers who wish to understand Xiao Xuan's style may begin with The Divine Cauldron and observe how the author handles the framework of Eastern fantasy.