Xianxia donghua: cultivation and the quest for immortality

Xianxia (仙侠, "immortal heroes") is donghua's leading genre. Its heroes cultivate their inner energy to break through power levels, from Golden Core to Nascent Soul, in the hope of becoming immortal. The world is full of rival sects, heavenly treasures and tribulations that strike down the reckless.

Most of these series adapt web novels with more than a thousand chapters, hence their long-running format. To start, A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality and Renegade Immortal are the benchmarks; for something lighter, A Will Eternal and The Daily Life of the Immortal King twist the conventions with humour.