Swallowed Stars^[1] is a long online science fiction novel serialized by Chinese online writer “I eat tomatoes” on Qidian.com from July 2010 to July 2012. It has 1,544 chapters and 4,784,300 words. ^[2] In May 2012, Hubei Juvenile and Children's Publishing House published a series of physical books of Swallowed Stars.^[3]

After the official launch of "Swallowed Star" on Qidian Chinese website, it has been active on various lists of the website and has been widely loved by online novel readers.^[4]The work has a unique and broad system architecture and rich imagination, expressing the author's profound thoughts on human civilization and the future. [4] In May 2018, the action mobile game "Swallowed Star" authorized by the work of the same name by I Eat Tomatoes was officially launched by Yuewen Games. ^[5] In 2020, the online animation "Swallowed Star" adapted from the novel of the same name was broadcast on Tencent Video. ^[6] On April 7, 2023, Yuewen Games released the Dawn of Swallowed Star, which was widely welcomed by players. ^[7]

The novel is set on Earth after it was invaded by the mutant RR virus in 2015. At the beginning of the story, the global population dropped sharply by nearly 2 billion. The 5 billion survivors produced antibodies and became stronger, but at the same time, the birds and beasts that survived the natural selection of the virus evolved more obviously and had great attack power. The human world and the monster world competed for survival resources at the same time and fell into a fierce battle. At this time, the protagonist Luo Feng, who shouldered a historical mission, appeared.He first emerged in the "Fire Hammer Brigade" and then showed his prowess in the Iron Dragon War. He passed the rigorous selection of the "Elite Training Camp" and withstood the test of the death mission of the "No. 9 Ancient Civilization Ruins". After experiencing hardships and tortures that ordinary people could hardly imagine, Luo Feng eventually became the Lord of the Earth and a hero who saved mankind and the Earth.^[8]

The background of the work is set on Earth after the end of the world. 30 years ago, the "RR virus" broke out on Earth. This virus spreads through liquids and gases, has a very high mortality rate, and quickly infected almost all life on the entire Earth. After the human population dropped sharply from 7 billion to 5 billion, the survivors found that their bodies began to evolve, becoming faster, taller, and stronger. But tragically, animals also began to evolve. They are stronger than humans. Bullets cannot penetrate their scales, and even nuclear bombs cannot threaten high-level monsters.When modern technology is almost useless, warriors rise up. They have mastered powerful forces through practice, which allows them to compete with those monsters that are tens or hundreds of feet long. In the end, humans lost all oceans and islands, including Australia, and only five countries remained. This world has a complete practice system and various schools. Through continuous practice and exploration, warriors gradually discovered the truth hidden behind the virus and the secrets of the universe. At the same time, humans are constantly adapting to the impact of the virus and developing various new technologies and civilizations.^[2]

The world setting of the work is mainly divided into the human world and the monster world. After the outbreak of the "RR virus", due to the law of natural survival selection, conflicts and wars between the human world and the monster world continued. Through continuous exploration and development of their own potential, humans gradually developed various powerful powers and technologies to cope with the threats of the monster world.^[9]

The human world is a universe with highly developed scientific and technological civilization, with various advanced scientific and technological means and powerful military forces. People generally have an ability called "mental power", which can control objects, perceive the surrounding environment and predict future changes through thoughts.In addition, humans also have various advanced scientific and technological means, such as spacecraft, laser weapons, intelligent robots, etc., which enable them to explore and develop various resources in the universe and establish a powerful civilization system.^[2]

The Monster World is a savage and powerful world. Monsters have powerful bodies and abilities, and are one of the main threats to the human world. Monsters have various powerful bodies and abilities, such as giant bodies, hard shells, sharp claws and powerful strength. They wander in the universe, looking for prey and resources, and at the same time pose a huge threat to the human world.^[2]

The world setting of Swallowed Star also involves concepts such as the cosmic sea, the reincarnation era, and the small universe. The cosmic sea refers to a vast ocean composed of countless universes. Each universe is an independent space with its own physical rules and time flow. The reincarnation era refers to the cyclical process from conception to destruction experienced by each universe in the cosmic sea,which is generally divided into multiple stages, such as the original universe, the stellar universe, and the planetary universe. The small universe refers to an independent universe created by a True God Realm powerhouse, which can be out of the control of the original universe to a certain extent.^[2]

The world setting of Swallowed Star is very complex and huge, involving multiple aspects such as technology, military force, and mysterious power, forming a universe full of imagination and creativity.^[2]

The character level setting of "Swallowed Star" is very rich, from low to high, each level has its own unique strength and characteristics, forming a complete and rigorous level system. The character level setting from low to high is: Apprentice, Planetary, Star, Universe, Domain Lord, Realm Lord, Immortal, Universe Lord, Universe Lord, Universe Strongest, Void True God, Eternal True God, Chaos Lord, God King. The identity of the protagonist Luo Feng is a warrior who protects the human world, and his level classification involves the first nine levels. ^[10]

In the human world, the higher the level of the character, the stronger the strength. Planetary strongmen can already fly freely in the universe, while star-level strongmen can use telekinesis to manipulate objects and have powerful energy attack capabilities. Universe-level strongmen can already control the power of space and can use various powerful skills.Domain Lord and Realm Lord strongmen can already influence the fate of a planet or a world, and Immortal strongmen are beyond the existence of mortals and have almost unlimited life and power. In the monster world, there are also various levels of monsters, from low-level beasts to high-level beast kings, each level has its own unique body and abilities.^[2]

The protagonist of the novel, he is smart, brave and strong. He was originally one of the three senior students in the third high school of Yian District. When the mutant RR virus spread and the world fell into chaos and disaster, Luo Feng appeared. He worked hard to learn the essentials of upgrading. After arduous efforts and life-threatening adventures,he became a hero of the times from an ordinary high school student and finally saved the fate of mankind from danger. He first emerged in the "Fire Hammer Brigade" and showed his power in the Iron Dragon War. After that, he persevered and passed the strict selection of the "Elite Training Camp". He also withstood the difficulties and tests of the "No. 9 Ancient Civilization Ruins" death mission. Luo Feng finally became the Lord of the Earth, the pinnacle of the universe's human beings.^[11]

Luo Feng's classmate and wife, one of the heroines in "Swallowed Star", is a kind, gentle, smart and brave girl, and has a deep relationship with Luo Feng. Xu Xin was born in an ordinary family, but has extremely high talent and wisdom. During Luo Feng's training and learning process, Xu Xin is also Luo Feng's closest partner and comrade-in-arms, and she makes plans with him and faces crises and challenges together.^[11]

Thor's name and power come from his mastery of the power of thunder. He can control lightning and use this power to attack and defend. His power is so strong that almost no one can defeat him. Thor is also one of the strongest people on Earth in the novel. He has the strength of the seventh level of the planetary rank and is the second-ranked master of the Extreme Martial Arts Hall.He and Luo Feng and Hong are sworn brothers on Earth. He is a hero who rose in the Great Nirvana period. Through his own efforts and talents, he created the unique Thunder Blade and founded the Thunder God Martial Arts Hall, which is feared by the world. His existence has made a great contribution to the peace and prosperity of the earth.^[12]

Hong is one of the three brothers on Earth, and the eldest brother of Luo Feng and Lei Shen. He has reached the third level of mind cultivation, is good at using guns, and the World-Destroying Gun Technique is his main skill. Hong was originally the strongest person on Earth,with a planetary-level domain, and almost became a core member of the Virtual Universe Company with Luo Feng. Later, he was accepted as a disciple by Luo, the Lord of the Time Realm, and cultivated to the third level of mind. He was absorbed by the Giant Axe Fighting Arena and became a core disciple, breaking through 20 layers of the Illusion Sea at one time.The founder of the Giant Axe accepted Hong as a registered disciple, and arranged for the Lord of Void Gold to instruct Hong first. When Hong became a king-level immortal, he was considered a true disciple of the founder of the Giant Axe. At the end of the novel, Hong finally became a true god, called the Illusionary Heart True God^[13]

Luo Feng's younger brother, originally a disabled person, miraculously recovered with the help of his brother Luo Feng, and showed his talent in stock trading, becoming a financial genius, which is comparable to masters such as Warren Buffett according to the book. After Luo Feng became a warrior and entered the universe, Luo Hua's investment often received financial support from his brother.When Luo Hua first entered the universe virtual network, he quickly understood the universe financial market and quickly accumulated wealth. Later, he established the Earth Universe Financial Company and became the richest businessman in the universe. During Luo Feng's promotion process, he provided Luo Feng with stable financial support.^[2]

Luo Feng's mother, gentle and loving, takes great care of Luo Feng and his family. As a mother and housewife, Gong Xinlan provides endless support and care for Luo Feng, always worried about Luo Feng's safety and happiness in the universe, and often prays and blesses him.Although the novel does not focus much on mother Gong Xinlan, her care and companionship have become one of the important supports and motivations for Luo Feng's growth.^[14]

Swallowed Starry Sky was officially launched on Qidian Chinese website on July 21, 2010. Since the serialization of the novel, it has been active on the front of the monthly ticket list, collection list, and book review activity list of Qidian Chinese website, and has been recommended on the hot cover of Qidian homepage many times.As of December 2011, Swallowed Starry Sky has accumulated more than 58 million hits, overwhelming other similar novels with its extremely superior popularity and clicks,and has been firmly at the top of Baidu's novel search rankings for a while.^[15] At the same time, due to the rigorous and unique "upgrade and change map" system architecture created by the author I Eat Tomatoes,it has aroused a trend of online fantasy novels and immortal cultivation novels tending to have rigorous structures and ups and downs in the plot, resulting in a large number of "novelty novels" that focus on upgrading and changing maps.^[16]

On September 16, 2021, "Devouring the Starry Sky" was included in the Chinese Online Literature Influence List: IP Adaptation Influence List.^[17]

The characters are vivid and their growth trajectories are clear: "The protagonist Luo Feng gradually grows from an ordinary high school student to the strongest person in the universe. His perseverance and courage deeply touched me. Moreover, the characterization in the novel is extremely rich and diverse. Each character has a unique personality and experience, which adds a lot of color to the story."^[18]

The ending was rushed: "The ending felt a bit rushed, the battle force was too exaggerated, and in the end it seemed that the author couldn't control it. Many plots were simply explained with results, without going into details, which made people feel a little unsatisfied."^[19]