".... provides excellent source materials to mythologists and historians of science, geography, and society. Specialists in fiction find it important as the earliest record of such key story-cycles as sailing to the Milky Way and the capture of Sichuan women by monkey gods and as evidence of the development of ancient stories like those of the Buzhou Mountain and the diety Kuafu. It influenced the Soushen ji among other later fictional works.--Cf. Indiana Companion to Traditional Chinese Literature, p. 215-216.

Xinbian lianxiang Soushen guangji 新編連相搜神廣記 : An example of the literary genre known as zhiguai 志怪, this work is a continuation of the popular work Soushenji. Written by Qin Zijin 秦子晉 (13/14th cent.), this edition continues its historical exploration of fantastic tales and supernatural incidents. The genre describes immortals, gods, Daoist adepts, dreams, infallible swordsmen, and omens. The style was later adapted to Buddhist and Daoist hagiography. The original work, ascribed to Gan Bao 干寶 (fl. 317-322), defended the recording of events pertaining to the spirit world as historically important.