")Though not chronologically, the novel follows the life of Xie Lian, a once-human crown prince of the Kingdom of Xianle in the east who ascends to godhood at seventeen after dedicating himself to cultivation and martial training.

During the inaugural years of his divinity, his kingdom experiences upheaval and war, due in part to drought and a terrifying new disease.

Going against the edicts of both the heavenly realm and of fate, Xie Lian involves himself in the affairs of the mortals who have always loved and supported him, hoping to achieve peace and relieve suffering in his kingdom.

The people destroy his temples, statues, and shrines, abandoning him as their most respected religious figure and earning him the reputation of a God of Misfortune.

Now known as a peculiar, peripatetic scrap-collector with perennially bad luck, Xie Lian is ridiculed or ignored by most other heavenly officials.

For Xie Lian's first assignment of his third ascension, he is tasked with solving the mystery of a number of brides who have disappeared during their wedding processions through Mount Yujun in the mortal world.

[7] The seventh volume of the translation reached #5 on The New York Times Best Seller list for the week of October 1, 2023,[8] which was the highest ranking of any novel written by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu up to that point.

[9] Regarding her conception of the story, Mo Xiang Tong Xiu has said: ...In a broken and defeated temple with a soon-to-be forgotten god and a young devout follower was the first image that floated into my mind for this novel, and was also what gave me the impulse to write it.

I'm the kind that would write up an entire book just for a scene.The term "Heaven Official's Blessing" (Chinese: 天官赐福, pinyin: Tiān Guān Cì Fú) traditionally referred to the Shangyuan Festival of the Daoism.