Battle Through the Heavens — Tian Can Tu Dou's novel
At a glanceover 1,600 chapters · completed
Battle Through the Heavens adapts Doupo Cangqiong (斗破苍穹), the novel by Tian Can Tu Dou (天蚕土豆) serialized on Qidian from 14 April 2009 to 20 July 2011. Across 1,623 chapters it tells how Xiao Yan, a prodigy who suddenly loses the ability to cultivate, starts over thanks to Yao Lao, the soul of an alchemist hiding in his ring. It is one of the most influential novels in the history of Chinese web fiction.
Origins and publication
Tian Can Tu Dou, "the silkworm potato", was barely in his twenties when he started the novel. He came up with a formula that would become a model: a humiliated hero, a fiancée who breaks off the engagement in front of the whole family, a hidden master and a promise of revenge. Xiao Yan's line, "thirty years east of the river, thirty years west, do not look down on a poor young man" (莫欺少年穷), has become proverbial in China.
The novel was published in 30 volumes by several Chinese publishers from 2010. Tian Can Tu Dou then racked up hits with Martial Universe, Great Ruler, Yuan Zun and Wan Xiang Zhi Wang, and made Xiao Yan a recurring figure across his universes.
How it differs from the donghua
The donghua, launched in January 2017, has gone through several seasons, specials and a long catch-up arc before becoming one of Tencent Video's pillars. It stays faithful to the main milestones but tones down some dated aspects of the novel, such as the "harem" dimension and the sometimes insistent descriptions of female characters. The novel goes into far more detail on alchemy, the hierarchy of heavenly flames and the fighter ranks, from Dou Zhi Qi to Dou Di.
Reception and success
Doupo Cangqiong dominated Qidian's rankings on release and popularised what Chinese readers call "tuihun liu", the broken-engagement story, as well as the old master hidden inside an object. Hundreds of novels followed its lead. It is still among the works cited to explain the rise of web novels in China.
Trivia
- The scene where Nalan Yanran comes to break off her engagement to Xiao Yan is one of the most parodied in Chinese online fiction.
- The novel got a prequel about Xiao Yan's master: Yao Lao Chuan Qi (药老传奇), the legend of Yao Lao.
- Xiao Yan reappears in Great Ruler, another Tian Can Tu Dou novel, under the name Yan Di (炎帝).
- The novel has been adapted into donghua, manhua, drama, film and video games, making it one of Qidian's most exploited franchises.
My take
You can blame Battle Through the Heavens for plenty: clichés galore, a repetitive style and poorly served female characters. But when Xiao Yan gets back on his feet, it is hard not to cheer with him. To me it is a historic novel in the literal sense: reading it means understanding where half of all cultivation donghua come from. I recommend it, flaws and all.
Who is it for?Readers curious about a founding classic, and Xiao Yan fans who want the whole story, alchemy included.
— Spidermas, for Donghua Fan
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The authorTian Can Tu Dou 天蚕土豆The prodigy of Battle Through the Heavens