凡人修仙传
A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality
From a talentless young farmer to one of the most cautious cultivators in the immortal world
Synopsis
Han Li, a young man with no particular talent from a modest village, joins the Qixuan Gate sect to escape poverty. Thanks to his extreme caution and a mysterious bottle found by chance, he begins a treacherous path of cultivation toward immortality.
Adapted from the cult novel by Wang Yu, one of the founding pillars of the modern xianxia genre, A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality stands out for its calculating, pragmatic hero, far from the genre's usual overpowered prodigies.
Airing since 2020 on Bilibili, the animated series has run for several seasons produced by Original Force and Wan Wei Mao Donghua, praised for its faithfulness to the source material and its pacing close to the original novel.
World
The world of immortal cultivation gathers a multitude of rival sects, from the humblest mortal clans to powers capable of manipulating the laws of Qi. Han Li starts out as a mere outer disciple of the Qixuan Gate, a world where talent and resources determine everyone's fate.
Power system
Cultivators advance through the genre's classic power stages (Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation...), relying on techniques, artifacts and alchemical pills. Han Li compensates for his weak talent with methodical caution and patient accumulation of resources.
Reception & popularity
From its 2020 release on Bilibili, the series was praised for its faithfulness to Wang Yu's novel and its measured pacing, rare in a genre used to rapid power escalation, earning it several additional seasons.
My take
This is one of my favourite xianxia. Han Li has no special talent: he survives through caution, cunning and constant suspicion, where other heroes charge in headfirst.
That realism in a fantasy world changes everything: every fight matters, every alliance can go wrong. The adaptation is careful and respects the measured tone of Wang Yu's novel.
Who is it for?Watch it if you are tired of invincible protagonists and self-proclaimed geniuses.
Main characters
More character profiles are coming.
Adaptations
This franchise also exists in other formats — each with its own pacing and audience.
Trivia
- Wang Yu's novel, published between 2008 and 2013, is considered one of the founding texts of the modern xianxia genre on Chinese platforms.
- Unlike most cultivation heroes, Han Li advances through caution and cunning rather than extraordinary talent, a trait that became the character's trademark.
- The series airs on Bilibili rather than Tencent Video, a different platform from most other major xianxia franchises adapted into donghua.
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