Based on analysing the rare earth elements and geochemical characteristics of Devonian cherts from Qingzhou-Fangchen ocean trough and Hechi-Nandan platformal basin in Guangxi and Linshan-Hengyang platformal basin in Guangxi-Hunan, it is considered that the sedimentary environment of these cherts is a deep-water basin, and that sedimentary cherts constitute two genetic types, namely normally deposited cherts and hot-water deposited cherts. Furthermore, all these phenomena prove that Hechi-Nandan and Linshan-Hengyang platformal basins were formed by linear strike-slipping tectonic movement in Devonian.