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I Shall Seal the Heavens 我欲封天 #1
Patriarch Reliance
Three times, sixteen-year-old orphaned scholar Meng Hao had taken the imperial exams in the State of Zhao. Three times, he had failed. Before he had a chance to try a fourth time, him and his friends were abducted by a beautiful, cold maiden to a new and wonderful place - the Reliance Sect. It was once one of the most powerful cultivation clans of the State, but with the Patriarch having been missing for centuries, the sect was now forced to resort to kidnapping to acquire new recruits.
The path of academia, of riches and fame as an imperial office, was now closed for Meng Hao. A new path had opened up before him - the path of Immortals.
The path of academia, of riches and fame as an imperial office, was now closed for Meng Hao. A new path had opened up before him - the path of Immortals.
719 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 17, 2021
635 people are currently reading
1203 people want to read
About the author
Er Gen
130 books269 followersName: Liu Yong (刘勇)
Pen name: Er Gen (耳根)
Born in Heilongjiang Province, Mudanjiang prefecture city.
Er Gen is a platinum author on Qidian who used his love for classical chinese myths as a foundation on which to build his webnovels. He has become a pillar of the xianxia genre, and his flagship novel, Renegade Immortal, placed within the top ranks of Qidian’s monthly recommendation charts for many months.
Associated Names:
* Er Gen (English)
* 耳根 (Chinese)
* เอ่อร์เกิน (Thai)
Pen name: Er Gen (耳根)
Born in Heilongjiang Province, Mudanjiang prefecture city.
Er Gen is a platinum author on Qidian who used his love for classical chinese myths as a foundation on which to build his webnovels. He has become a pillar of the xianxia genre, and his flagship novel, Renegade Immortal, placed within the top ranks of Qidian’s monthly recommendation charts for many months.
Associated Names:
* Er Gen (English)
* 耳根 (Chinese)
* เอ่อร์เกิน (Thai)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 113 reviews
January 16, 2024
It's getting shit done season for me, 1201 pages done 🥳
We had a shaky start with this one, the MC was acting like an evil asshole, while playing the role of the victim, you need a high level of obliviousness as a writer to make that kind of mistake, so i didn't have high hopes for the novel in it's entirety but i needed to read something solely cultivation.
Luckily this didn't continue for long because 10 or 20% later The MC was always a target by people who were really greedy, or really evil, but i really wonder were they evil?
In the cultivation world, which is like a jungle Strong eats the weak balance, Everyone wasn't related to the MC, they weren't his friends, and they all wanted something from him, on a threat of death, it is evil but relatively not that bad considering the world and that this is just the natural order of things.
Regardless from this point on, he has been playing defensive, killing his opponents ruthlessly but again, this is not the real world, this is the cultivation world and people hold grudges, in the real world you wouldn't attack your opponent when you realize they are beaten, but in that world you better finish the job, or they will come after your ass when they are stronger than you.
(Funny though in cultivation games there is way more to consider than just that, because if you kill someone their father or mother or brother or master who are much stronger than him can come after you seeking revenge! it gets really tricky lol)
This was the closest i have been tempted to give any novel a five stars, because the world building was amazing, the struggles were amazing, the fights were amazing, the characters were amazing, the twists were sick!
I did predict his way out of one struggle by leading everyone to Patriarch Reliance, but we already knew before hand that that was a task that the mc was given several hundred pages ago.
I will not make a cultivation shelf now, but by the 5th book of this series i will definitely make one, i will that world of old Chinese legends, i was expecting to not like it so much since it's not litrpg, but i ended up loving the heaven's out of it.
FYI Heaven's Chosen which was the last nickname i added for me on goodreads, is a title that comes from Cultivation novels, Favored by the heaven, or just choosing the hardest path of cultivation becoming the strongest in each stage, it takes will power to choose the hard path instead of the easy one!
We had a shaky start with this one, the MC was acting like an evil asshole, while playing the role of the victim, you need a high level of obliviousness as a writer to make that kind of mistake, so i didn't have high hopes for the novel in it's entirety but i needed to read something solely cultivation.
Luckily this didn't continue for long because 10 or 20% later The MC was always a target by people who were really greedy, or really evil, but i really wonder were they evil?
In the cultivation world, which is like a jungle Strong eats the weak balance, Everyone wasn't related to the MC, they weren't his friends, and they all wanted something from him, on a threat of death, it is evil but relatively not that bad considering the world and that this is just the natural order of things.
Regardless from this point on, he has been playing defensive, killing his opponents ruthlessly but again, this is not the real world, this is the cultivation world and people hold grudges, in the real world you wouldn't attack your opponent when you realize they are beaten, but in that world you better finish the job, or they will come after your ass when they are stronger than you.
(Funny though in cultivation games there is way more to consider than just that, because if you kill someone their father or mother or brother or master who are much stronger than him can come after you seeking revenge! it gets really tricky lol)
This was the closest i have been tempted to give any novel a five stars, because the world building was amazing, the struggles were amazing, the fights were amazing, the characters were amazing, the twists were sick!
I did predict his way out of one struggle by leading everyone to Patriarch Reliance, but we already knew before hand that that was a task that the mc was given several hundred pages ago.
I will not make a cultivation shelf now, but by the 5th book of this series i will definitely make one, i will that world of old Chinese legends, i was expecting to not like it so much since it's not litrpg, but i ended up loving the heaven's out of it.
FYI Heaven's Chosen which was the last nickname i added for me on goodreads, is a title that comes from Cultivation novels, Favored by the heaven, or just choosing the hardest path of cultivation becoming the strongest in each stage, it takes will power to choose the hard path instead of the easy one!
February 3, 2021
Meng Hao, an ambitious yet ultimately unsuccessful scholar, is kidnapped by a magically powerful woman and catapulted into a world of "cultivators", mortals who grow their spiritual power in a never ending quest to become immortal. It is a dangerous world and Meng decides that the only way to stay alive is to become as powerful as he possibly can, as quickly as he can.
Patriarch Reliance was my first foray into the written world of the fascinating genre known as "wuxia". I say 'written' because I this past summer I watched a show of the same genre on Netflix and thought it might be interesting to read a book. I Shall Seal the Heavens was one of the highest rated wuxia series available that has been translated into English.
What is wuxia? The definition from Google is: "a genre of Chinese fiction or cinema featuring itinerant warriors of ancient China, often depicted as capable of superhuman feats of martial arts."
Patriarch Reliance is an adventure fantasy that uses many components of traditional Chinese medicine in its magic system or spiritual cultivation. Traditional Chinese medicine was a subject I'd never studied until I found myself looking up the topic to understand how the magic works in this book. It seems quite complex to me, but perhaps this is because I'm a newcomer to it.
The cultivators use a dizzying array of magical items with different abilities from a rain of swords to flying fans that turn into rays of light to almost anything imaginable. They are gathered and ordered by ability into sects with different legacies and secret attacks. The higher ups among the different groups fight as viciously as the newbies- perhaps more so because they have their reputations to maintain.
Despite the huge array of items and abilities, this book does become repetitious after two dozen chapters or so as Meng goes from one life threatening situation to another.
A curious aspect of the story was its deviation from my own expectations of what someone of higher spiritual power should act like. When I think of someone 'spiritual', I picture people like Mother Theresa, Dalai Lama, and Buddha.
The cultivators in Patriarch Reliance are nothing like that. They are, for the most part, violent, careless of life, and power-hungry. And they have to be. Or the people studying and meditating beside them will kill them!
I'm not sure what to make of the whole thing except that I'm going to continue on to the next book in the series. Because, despite my bewilderment, it is compulsively readable.
Recommended for fantasy readers who enjoy forays into completely unfamiliar worlds.
Patriarch Reliance was my first foray into the written world of the fascinating genre known as "wuxia". I say 'written' because I this past summer I watched a show of the same genre on Netflix and thought it might be interesting to read a book. I Shall Seal the Heavens was one of the highest rated wuxia series available that has been translated into English.
What is wuxia? The definition from Google is: "a genre of Chinese fiction or cinema featuring itinerant warriors of ancient China, often depicted as capable of superhuman feats of martial arts."
Patriarch Reliance is an adventure fantasy that uses many components of traditional Chinese medicine in its magic system or spiritual cultivation. Traditional Chinese medicine was a subject I'd never studied until I found myself looking up the topic to understand how the magic works in this book. It seems quite complex to me, but perhaps this is because I'm a newcomer to it.
The cultivators use a dizzying array of magical items with different abilities from a rain of swords to flying fans that turn into rays of light to almost anything imaginable. They are gathered and ordered by ability into sects with different legacies and secret attacks. The higher ups among the different groups fight as viciously as the newbies- perhaps more so because they have their reputations to maintain.
Despite the huge array of items and abilities, this book does become repetitious after two dozen chapters or so as Meng goes from one life threatening situation to another.
A curious aspect of the story was its deviation from my own expectations of what someone of higher spiritual power should act like. When I think of someone 'spiritual', I picture people like Mother Theresa, Dalai Lama, and Buddha.
The cultivators in Patriarch Reliance are nothing like that. They are, for the most part, violent, careless of life, and power-hungry. And they have to be. Or the people studying and meditating beside them will kill them!
I'm not sure what to make of the whole thing except that I'm going to continue on to the next book in the series. Because, despite my bewilderment, it is compulsively readable.
Recommended for fantasy readers who enjoy forays into completely unfamiliar worlds.
January 25, 2022
Translator Note:
Chapters often have a WTF moment or two. This chapter is essentially a string of boundless WTF moments that shake Heaven and Earth, cause the sky to dim, and the land to quake. After reading it, my scalp went numb and my eyes were filled with a look of unprecedented disbelief. I coughed up seven or eight mouthfuls of blood as I thought about the chapter that seemingly contained many truths, as if the emanations of countless Daos floated through the void to the ether of another world that exists in my eyes, like the shining of nine suns in a land of shadows and leaves, thoughtless and yet brimming with a life that seems to surge with apparent realism that is in fact false, and yet true.
When even the translator memes like this about the xianxia novel, you can kinda guess at its writing style and quality. I'd say the first 30-40% is worth reading, with some parts even brilliant (not gonna lie, Ke Yunhai arc made me cry), but the rest is just meh. Around the 90% point comes the absolute nadir with brazen copypastas to artificially pad the story. Since it was so near the end though, I paid a costly price to forge on, and coughed up seven or eight mouthfuls of blood, but all I got was a rather disappointing ending. Will not read more Er Gen novels again.
Chapters often have a WTF moment or two. This chapter is essentially a string of boundless WTF moments that shake Heaven and Earth, cause the sky to dim, and the land to quake. After reading it, my scalp went numb and my eyes were filled with a look of unprecedented disbelief. I coughed up seven or eight mouthfuls of blood as I thought about the chapter that seemingly contained many truths, as if the emanations of countless Daos floated through the void to the ether of another world that exists in my eyes, like the shining of nine suns in a land of shadows and leaves, thoughtless and yet brimming with a life that seems to surge with apparent realism that is in fact false, and yet true.
When even the translator memes like this about the xianxia novel, you can kinda guess at its writing style and quality. I'd say the first 30-40% is worth reading, with some parts even brilliant (not gonna lie, Ke Yunhai arc made me cry), but the rest is just meh. Around the 90% point comes the absolute nadir with brazen copypastas to artificially pad the story. Since it was so near the end though, I paid a costly price to forge on, and coughed up seven or eight mouthfuls of blood, but all I got was a rather disappointing ending. Will not read more Er Gen novels again.
September 30, 2016
If I were to say that my experience with the “xianxia” genre (if that is the right way of describing it) is fairly limited and minimal, it would be an understatement. In other words, this is the first one I’ve read and prior to reading, the only thing I knew was that I was going to read something along the lines of “Chinese Fantasy” and there is a lot of content regarding martial arts. I doubt I would have picked up this book, being a translated web novel and very much outside my familiar territory, if it had not been for a recommendation form a friend (who happens to be an avid fan.) That being said, I don’t know how xianxia are supposed to work, so if I have disliked something that is considered as a given norm in the genre, it is because of my inexperience.
The story takes place in what I assume is an ancient China, or a fantasy counterpart. The protagonist, Meng Hao, is an orphan, a failed scholar of barely average talent and of limited means, but is fueled with determination and obstinacy. He has attempted the state exam a few times, but has yet to succeed. A series of fateful events land him in a settlement belonging to a faction (or “Sect”) of “Immortal Cultivators”. The rest of the story is concerned with him on the path of an Immortal Warrior, after failing on the path of a scholar, and the struggles associated with it.
The magic system, Cultivation, revolves around meditating and “cultivating” ones inner energies, using pills or other components to enhance oneself, and further meditation. The world of the Immortal Cultivators is a very violent one, where the strong do not have second thoughts over preying on the weak and each competitor is more than eager to slit another’s throat for their personal gain. (I’ll admit, that does not sound too different from the one we live in.)
Meng Hao’s character is an interesting one. He is initially morally associated with the “good” and derives his values from Confucianism and Daoism. However, he is quick to take lessons from the cruel world and adapt to survive. He learns the rules of survival very quickly and often attempts to devise schemes to increase chances of his own survival, even if that comes at the expense of others. In fact, as he rises in rank and encounters more difficult challenges, his actions become more ruthless as he is quicker in recognising and eliminating threats.
The problem of the story, however, is repetition. And that would have been alright if the author repeated certain things to remind the readers of details mentioned a few dozen chapters ago – little things the reader might have forgotten. Unfortunately, that is not the case. The author makes it a habit to point out obvious and/or insignificant things. Suffice to say, the flow of the story – which is well-crafted, humorous and has quite a good amount of foreshadowing and interesting twists – is hampered.
The protagonist also receives two extremely overpowered artifacts. One at the very beginning, the other almost halfway through the story. These two, while making for interesting twists at first, are overused throughout the story and bring us once again to the problem of endless repetition. The protagonist’s fighting technique, as well, revolves around throwing summoning an absurd amount of flying swords, combined with long drawn out fight sequences which occasionally contain something interesting.
I have yet to decide if I will read the sequel. The story, as I’ve already mentioned, is interesting and it does make me want to know what happens next. But on the other hand, I hardly doubt the problems of endless repetition, unbelievably absurd coincidences and long sequences of the same meditation process will disappear. To put it shortly, I won’t be reading the sequel anytime soon. I do hope I did not bash the story too much, being unaware of how the “xianxia” genre usually is. I am trying to be fair, but in all honesty, I do not think I’ll recommend this to people anytime soon (and I’m unlikely to do that in the future as well.)
The story takes place in what I assume is an ancient China, or a fantasy counterpart. The protagonist, Meng Hao, is an orphan, a failed scholar of barely average talent and of limited means, but is fueled with determination and obstinacy. He has attempted the state exam a few times, but has yet to succeed. A series of fateful events land him in a settlement belonging to a faction (or “Sect”) of “Immortal Cultivators”. The rest of the story is concerned with him on the path of an Immortal Warrior, after failing on the path of a scholar, and the struggles associated with it.
The magic system, Cultivation, revolves around meditating and “cultivating” ones inner energies, using pills or other components to enhance oneself, and further meditation. The world of the Immortal Cultivators is a very violent one, where the strong do not have second thoughts over preying on the weak and each competitor is more than eager to slit another’s throat for their personal gain. (I’ll admit, that does not sound too different from the one we live in.)
Meng Hao’s character is an interesting one. He is initially morally associated with the “good” and derives his values from Confucianism and Daoism. However, he is quick to take lessons from the cruel world and adapt to survive. He learns the rules of survival very quickly and often attempts to devise schemes to increase chances of his own survival, even if that comes at the expense of others. In fact, as he rises in rank and encounters more difficult challenges, his actions become more ruthless as he is quicker in recognising and eliminating threats.
The problem of the story, however, is repetition. And that would have been alright if the author repeated certain things to remind the readers of details mentioned a few dozen chapters ago – little things the reader might have forgotten. Unfortunately, that is not the case. The author makes it a habit to point out obvious and/or insignificant things. Suffice to say, the flow of the story – which is well-crafted, humorous and has quite a good amount of foreshadowing and interesting twists – is hampered.
The protagonist also receives two extremely overpowered artifacts. One at the very beginning, the other almost halfway through the story. These two, while making for interesting twists at first, are overused throughout the story and bring us once again to the problem of endless repetition. The protagonist’s fighting technique, as well, revolves around throwing summoning an absurd amount of flying swords, combined with long drawn out fight sequences which occasionally contain something interesting.
I have yet to decide if I will read the sequel. The story, as I’ve already mentioned, is interesting and it does make me want to know what happens next. But on the other hand, I hardly doubt the problems of endless repetition, unbelievably absurd coincidences and long sequences of the same meditation process will disappear. To put it shortly, I won’t be reading the sequel anytime soon. I do hope I did not bash the story too much, being unaware of how the “xianxia” genre usually is. I am trying to be fair, but in all honesty, I do not think I’ll recommend this to people anytime soon (and I’m unlikely to do that in the future as well.)
February 27, 2021
This is a fun read with a lot of action set in a fantasy genre called "wuxia." Wuxia is a Chinese version of traditional western high fantasy settings.
I came into wuxia through some excellent Chinese television shows on Netflix and hence wanted to read this book, which is considered a classic of the genre. Wuxia revolves around the idea of cultivation of the self to increase ones spiritual power and enlightenment. In the tv shows these ideals were roughly similar to what a westerner would expect.
However, in Patriarch Reliance, our hero and every other cultivator seem only concerned with power, prestige, and lording it over the less powerful. The whole environment is so morally compromised, and the main character so in denial about his own corruption, that I found it put me off. Character development is definitely lacking here.
I imagine the audience for this is primarily people who won't be as concerned about characters becoming morally bankrupt as they "progress" spiritually. For them and anyone else who is interested in non-stop action in a novel setting, this is your book. For those that want to come to wuxia in a more mature way, head to Netflix and watch "The Untamed" or "Handsome Siblings."
Thank you to Heidi the Reader who sent this to me for my birthday. She writes a much better review as well.
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7...
I came into wuxia through some excellent Chinese television shows on Netflix and hence wanted to read this book, which is considered a classic of the genre. Wuxia revolves around the idea of cultivation of the self to increase ones spiritual power and enlightenment. In the tv shows these ideals were roughly similar to what a westerner would expect.
However, in Patriarch Reliance, our hero and every other cultivator seem only concerned with power, prestige, and lording it over the less powerful. The whole environment is so morally compromised, and the main character so in denial about his own corruption, that I found it put me off. Character development is definitely lacking here.
I imagine the audience for this is primarily people who won't be as concerned about characters becoming morally bankrupt as they "progress" spiritually. For them and anyone else who is interested in non-stop action in a novel setting, this is your book. For those that want to come to wuxia in a more mature way, head to Netflix and watch "The Untamed" or "Handsome Siblings."
Thank you to Heidi the Reader who sent this to me for my birthday. She writes a much better review as well.
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/7...
January 27, 2019
I ended up dropping the series half way through book one because of how poorly the main character is written. They have no depth and their sense of values and behaviour switch more or less at random from chapter to chapter. The actual writing is fairly solid for a webnovel. However the plot is formulaic at best and while some of the side characters are entertaining the novel as a whole rests on the main character. Which is why it falls down for me. You can't even like or dislike the main character because in many ways the main character doesn't exist in any kind of coherent sense. Very disappointing but at least I bailed out early.
May 8, 2022
Really enjoying my reread! Mostly nostalgia but I'm just stunned at how the author foreshadows stuff 1200 chapters earlier
December 30, 2021
The internal logic to the story is a disaster, and the established rules only work when it's convenient to the author.
Someone is going to rob, cripple, and/or murder the main character? Too bad they're out of luck. There are no repercussions here. It's a dog eat dog world where the strong rule and there is no justice. He defends himself from such an attack? How dare he! Justice will be served! Now all his stuff will be seized and then he'll be maimed, or murdered in recompense.
Excuse me? Where is the logic here?
As readers, we derive satisfaction through understanding the logic of a world and then experiencing the natural consequences of the actions of the main character. Seeing the hero use the rules of the world to one up and overcome their circumstances is a joy. If you change the rules of your world at a whim, regardless of whether it's to continually ruin the hero's day or deus ex machina a solution, it saps all satisfaction and meaning from the narrative.
To further infuriate the reader, no one in the initial setting has any semblance of rational thought, or motivation behind their actions. It's like the author forgot to make them actual people, and we just get a bunch of cardboard cutouts shadow puppeting as humans.
To paint the picture, the whole sect has been gradually failing over a period of 400 years and instead of the elders doing anything about it, they mindlessly invest uncounted resources into the students before standing idly by while everyone murders each other without supervision, training, or mentoring of any kind.
I'm sorry, but what? Never mind the complete disregard for human life, how is this a smart plan? or a plan at all?
If this was some mega sect with endless wealth and talent then this might be an attitude I could understand, but these guys are literally grabbing randos off the street to replenish their ranks. Who wastes centuries of limited resources without careful cultivation and consideration when their sect's very survival is on the line? It's not just incomprehensible; it's infuriating.
When I read some brain dead quote like, "I guess it's his fate to die." during a training event between the most promising candidates of the sect, my response is, You know what? Maybe it wouldn't be their fate if you'd get up off your butt and be a good teacher. It's worse than psychotic. It's imbecilic because not only does it fail to consider the human perspective, but it fails to consider the personal perspective too. These people are idiots who aren't even looking out for their own welfare. How am I supposed to root for anybody here?
There may be a lot going for the story here for others. Exciting twists, fun action, cool magic systems, and a fairly likable main character. Unfortunately, crisscrossed and mismatched internal logic is a deal breaker for me. Seems to be a recurring pattern in this genre. I may be done with Wuxia after this.
Was pretty much done around 50 chapters but officially quit 70ish chapters in.
Someone is going to rob, cripple, and/or murder the main character? Too bad they're out of luck. There are no repercussions here. It's a dog eat dog world where the strong rule and there is no justice. He defends himself from such an attack? How dare he! Justice will be served! Now all his stuff will be seized and then he'll be maimed, or murdered in recompense.
Excuse me? Where is the logic here?
As readers, we derive satisfaction through understanding the logic of a world and then experiencing the natural consequences of the actions of the main character. Seeing the hero use the rules of the world to one up and overcome their circumstances is a joy. If you change the rules of your world at a whim, regardless of whether it's to continually ruin the hero's day or deus ex machina a solution, it saps all satisfaction and meaning from the narrative.
To further infuriate the reader, no one in the initial setting has any semblance of rational thought, or motivation behind their actions. It's like the author forgot to make them actual people, and we just get a bunch of cardboard cutouts shadow puppeting as humans.
To paint the picture, the whole sect has been gradually failing over a period of 400 years and instead of the elders doing anything about it, they mindlessly invest uncounted resources into the students before standing idly by while everyone murders each other without supervision, training, or mentoring of any kind.
I'm sorry, but what? Never mind the complete disregard for human life, how is this a smart plan? or a plan at all?
If this was some mega sect with endless wealth and talent then this might be an attitude I could understand, but these guys are literally grabbing randos off the street to replenish their ranks. Who wastes centuries of limited resources without careful cultivation and consideration when their sect's very survival is on the line? It's not just incomprehensible; it's infuriating.
When I read some brain dead quote like, "I guess it's his fate to die." during a training event between the most promising candidates of the sect, my response is, You know what? Maybe it wouldn't be their fate if you'd get up off your butt and be a good teacher. It's worse than psychotic. It's imbecilic because not only does it fail to consider the human perspective, but it fails to consider the personal perspective too. These people are idiots who aren't even looking out for their own welfare. How am I supposed to root for anybody here?
There may be a lot going for the story here for others. Exciting twists, fun action, cool magic systems, and a fairly likable main character. Unfortunately, crisscrossed and mismatched internal logic is a deal breaker for me. Seems to be a recurring pattern in this genre. I may be done with Wuxia after this.
Was pretty much done around 50 chapters but officially quit 70ish chapters in.
May 7, 2021
Maybe a bit of a false start
So, I’ll start this off by saying I really enjoy cultivation books, and I’ve heard others in groups recommend this series, so it probably gets better? I liked the premise of the book, and the MC had potential at the beginning. With the whole reliance concept (that he honestly threw in with super fast for no reason other than he read it in a pamphlet), I expected that he would get a couple close friends to stick together with and help each other through the outer sect by the whole ‘strength in numbers’ idea. But he kinda just does his own thing, and tosses out his beliefs when it suits him.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a good antihero, but it’s not that he’s going against the system. He has this part where he killed someone and he’s conflicted because that’s against his religious beliefs and he doesn’t harden his heart or anything, he just decided to ‘not think about it for now’. Also, I didn’t really see much character growth and it seemed like all the other characters were pretty flat and just there to spice everything up.
Also, he’s supposed to be crafty, but there was a good amount of plot armor on this guy. For example, his only low-level protection was an offense item that he can only use on very specific enemies that exclude humans in 99% of cases, and the stereotypical strong cultivator that comes after him does something to make him fall into that 1%, which saves the MC.
Basically, this book does not live up to the hype in my opinion. That being said, I’ll probably check out the next one since there’s gotta be a reason everyone is a fan.
So, I’ll start this off by saying I really enjoy cultivation books, and I’ve heard others in groups recommend this series, so it probably gets better? I liked the premise of the book, and the MC had potential at the beginning. With the whole reliance concept (that he honestly threw in with super fast for no reason other than he read it in a pamphlet), I expected that he would get a couple close friends to stick together with and help each other through the outer sect by the whole ‘strength in numbers’ idea. But he kinda just does his own thing, and tosses out his beliefs when it suits him.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a good antihero, but it’s not that he’s going against the system. He has this part where he killed someone and he’s conflicted because that’s against his religious beliefs and he doesn’t harden his heart or anything, he just decided to ‘not think about it for now’. Also, I didn’t really see much character growth and it seemed like all the other characters were pretty flat and just there to spice everything up.
Also, he’s supposed to be crafty, but there was a good amount of plot armor on this guy. For example, his only low-level protection was an offense item that he can only use on very specific enemies that exclude humans in 99% of cases, and the stereotypical strong cultivator that comes after him does something to make him fall into that 1%, which saves the MC.
Basically, this book does not live up to the hype in my opinion. That being said, I’ll probably check out the next one since there’s gotta be a reason everyone is a fan.
April 15, 2019
2.5 stars. Enjoyable, but not as good as I expected.
PS.#1 In my opinion, when compared with other fantasy Chinese book series with more than 40 books such as "สยบฟ้า พิชิตปฐพี" and "สัประยุทธ์ ทะลุฟ้า", "ผนึกสวรรค์ สยบมาร สะท้านเทพ", the book title in Thai, is much less captivating.
PS.#2 For the Thai edition publisher, the font size is too big. It makes your book look unprofessional.
PS.#1 In my opinion, when compared with other fantasy Chinese book series with more than 40 books such as "สยบฟ้า พิชิตปฐพี" and "สัประยุทธ์ ทะลุฟ้า", "ผนึกสวรรค์ สยบมาร สะท้านเทพ", the book title in Thai, is much less captivating.
PS.#2 For the Thai edition publisher, the font size is too big. It makes your book look unprofessional.
June 30, 2021
Fun as it is to read about a guy who lives in a cave and never washes, whose hobbies are stealing stuff and making people’s bottoms explode, I remembered I had an urgent appointment so I had to leave in rather a hurry. Perhaps another time.
June 11, 2020
Starts slow, just keep going till 100 chapters and you will feel the joy of the genre.
June 16, 2025
The translation got off to a bit of a rough start, but overall I ended up really enjoying the first eight books. I’d rate all of those solidly in the 4-star range. Unfortunately, the last two books didn’t land for me—I’d probably give them 2 stars.
Like many cultivation novels, this series suffers from a few common pitfalls. The main character often learns powerful skills only to abandon them later without explanation. And the concept of “the peak” keeps shifting: he reaches what’s supposedly the pinnacle, only for the story to introduce an even higher level right after.
That was manageable in the first eight books, but books 9 and 10 took it to an extreme. It started to feel really forced. For example:
• Paragon is the ultimate level; there are no others.
• Now there are several Paragons, but they’re only 7s.
• There are no 9s. Wait—here’s a 9. Now there are ten 9s.
• Daosource is the true peak. Except it’s not, because… etc.
Other series have handled these kinds of power escalations in ways that feel more natural. This one just went too far by the end.
Still, despite the weak finish, it was a good ride overall. I just wish the ending had lived up to the rest.
Like many cultivation novels, this series suffers from a few common pitfalls. The main character often learns powerful skills only to abandon them later without explanation. And the concept of “the peak” keeps shifting: he reaches what’s supposedly the pinnacle, only for the story to introduce an even higher level right after.
That was manageable in the first eight books, but books 9 and 10 took it to an extreme. It started to feel really forced. For example:
• Paragon is the ultimate level; there are no others.
• Now there are several Paragons, but they’re only 7s.
• There are no 9s. Wait—here’s a 9. Now there are ten 9s.
• Daosource is the true peak. Except it’s not, because… etc.
Other series have handled these kinds of power escalations in ways that feel more natural. This one just went too far by the end.
Still, despite the weak finish, it was a good ride overall. I just wish the ending had lived up to the rest.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 20, 2021
When I started off, I found it was hard to get over some of the translation and style of the English version, but I ended up getting hooked after reading the first chapter, putting it down for a week, then picking it back up. Since then, I've been really enjoying the series.
While I wouldn't put this up in the stratosphere, it was a fun read, and it feels like I'm a kid watching dubbed "kung fu" movies again.
While I wouldn't put this up in the stratosphere, it was a fun read, and it feels like I'm a kid watching dubbed "kung fu" movies again.
May 2, 2020
SHORT VERSION: I liked it, but tastes may very. Some parts were too long. Some things were unrealistic (laws of physics broken and not in a way that can be explained by, "But it's magic!"). There are some Chinese cultural elements that non-Chinese people might have a problem wrapping their heads around.
I just finished reading the entire series. Here are some pros and cons.
1: It's EXTREMELY long! That's a pro for me, but probably a con for most people.
2: It's basically an online serial novel from the internet compiled into books. Unlike many such books, it actually does have an overall plot. It doesn't randomly meander all over the place like many such books. So that's a plus. And it has an actual ending that wraps most things up with a hint of future adventures that MIGHT indicate a new series or more likely just indicates hope for the future for our protagonist. It's one of the best serial novels of this type that I've ever read. It actually has an ending, which most serial novels don't.
3: Although it does have a problem with power bloat (main character just keeps getting more and more powerful), the author handles it fairly well by by dividing the character's power development up into what I will call "levels" (not a term used by the author). So let's say he's somewhere from level 1 to 10. His enemies fall in approximately that range. He might even fight a level 15 while he's a level 8, but he's not going to fight a level 47. This pattern persists so that all his real opposition is about his level or a little bit higher the vast majority of the time. It's a reasonably good system.
4: The author seems to have a fixation with extremely large objects, creatures, etc. and nice round numbers. So to give some examples: Maybe the character goes from level 14 to level 15. His power doubles. He doesn't becomes 1.378 times more powerful. No, he becomes exactly 2.000000 . . . . times more powerful. Or, he has to travel from point A to point B along a progressively more difficult path. Something special happens 30,000 meters into his path, then something more special happens at exactly 60,000 meters and again at 90,000 meters, etc. The science nerd in me objects to such nice numbers governing what is supposedly the natural world. On several occasions, "boulders" 30,000 meters in diameter get thrown around. That's three times the height of Mount Everest. That's not a boulder. It's a mountain - a really big one. The word "continent" gets thrown around a lot in a manner that doesn't make sense. Someone on one continent yells threats at someone on the next continent over like it's right next door and they step outside their house and deal with it. Picture someone in South America yelling out a challenge to duel someone in North America. "Hey, you! Yeah, the guy in Arkansas with the beard! It's me, Julio, down here in Ecuador! Let's fight!" Planet size seems to have no relation to the force of gravity. Planets thousands of times the size of Earth have normal gravity.
5: Minor religious objection: The author is Chinese (I assume) and so the word "demon" doesn't mean the same thing to him as it would to a typical Christian, but it gets thrown around a lot and the main character does a lot of "demon" stuff. Just substitute "supernatural monster that isn't human" for demon in your mind and you'll have an easier time with it. Also the translator makes the error of using the name "God" (with a capital G) where he should be using a lower case "g" which is kind of disconcerting when he talks about killing "a God". It should be "a god" or just "God" as a proper name, but not "a God".
6: The Chinese trope of coughing up blood when you're severely embarrassed, or seriously injured occurs over and over and over again. There's also the trope where someone who doesn't know how incredibly awesome the main character is speaks with ridiculously extreme scorn about him only to shortly be proven wrong in a humiliating fashion and of course he/she then ends up coughing up blood from embarrassment.
7: The English translation is pretty good. The grammar isn't awkward like when it usually is when it's translated via automatic translating software. You won't encounter weird sentences like, "Entering the room Bob was doing." instead of "Bob entered the room."
8: The very ending is good, but some of the fight scenes that precede it drag on way longer than they should.
I just finished reading the entire series. Here are some pros and cons.
1: It's EXTREMELY long! That's a pro for me, but probably a con for most people.
2: It's basically an online serial novel from the internet compiled into books. Unlike many such books, it actually does have an overall plot. It doesn't randomly meander all over the place like many such books. So that's a plus. And it has an actual ending that wraps most things up with a hint of future adventures that MIGHT indicate a new series or more likely just indicates hope for the future for our protagonist. It's one of the best serial novels of this type that I've ever read. It actually has an ending, which most serial novels don't.
3: Although it does have a problem with power bloat (main character just keeps getting more and more powerful), the author handles it fairly well by by dividing the character's power development up into what I will call "levels" (not a term used by the author). So let's say he's somewhere from level 1 to 10. His enemies fall in approximately that range. He might even fight a level 15 while he's a level 8, but he's not going to fight a level 47. This pattern persists so that all his real opposition is about his level or a little bit higher the vast majority of the time. It's a reasonably good system.
4: The author seems to have a fixation with extremely large objects, creatures, etc. and nice round numbers. So to give some examples: Maybe the character goes from level 14 to level 15. His power doubles. He doesn't becomes 1.378 times more powerful. No, he becomes exactly 2.000000 . . . . times more powerful. Or, he has to travel from point A to point B along a progressively more difficult path. Something special happens 30,000 meters into his path, then something more special happens at exactly 60,000 meters and again at 90,000 meters, etc. The science nerd in me objects to such nice numbers governing what is supposedly the natural world. On several occasions, "boulders" 30,000 meters in diameter get thrown around. That's three times the height of Mount Everest. That's not a boulder. It's a mountain - a really big one. The word "continent" gets thrown around a lot in a manner that doesn't make sense. Someone on one continent yells threats at someone on the next continent over like it's right next door and they step outside their house and deal with it. Picture someone in South America yelling out a challenge to duel someone in North America. "Hey, you! Yeah, the guy in Arkansas with the beard! It's me, Julio, down here in Ecuador! Let's fight!" Planet size seems to have no relation to the force of gravity. Planets thousands of times the size of Earth have normal gravity.
5: Minor religious objection: The author is Chinese (I assume) and so the word "demon" doesn't mean the same thing to him as it would to a typical Christian, but it gets thrown around a lot and the main character does a lot of "demon" stuff. Just substitute "supernatural monster that isn't human" for demon in your mind and you'll have an easier time with it. Also the translator makes the error of using the name "God" (with a capital G) where he should be using a lower case "g" which is kind of disconcerting when he talks about killing "a God". It should be "a god" or just "God" as a proper name, but not "a God".
6: The Chinese trope of coughing up blood when you're severely embarrassed, or seriously injured occurs over and over and over again. There's also the trope where someone who doesn't know how incredibly awesome the main character is speaks with ridiculously extreme scorn about him only to shortly be proven wrong in a humiliating fashion and of course he/she then ends up coughing up blood from embarrassment.
7: The English translation is pretty good. The grammar isn't awkward like when it usually is when it's translated via automatic translating software. You won't encounter weird sentences like, "Entering the room Bob was doing." instead of "Bob entered the room."
8: The very ending is good, but some of the fight scenes that precede it drag on way longer than they should.
June 15, 2024
Start was somewhat slow but sucked me right in, Meng Hao is shaping up to be an awesome character who scratches my overpowered itch
August 30, 2019
Great series if you want to experience a Chinese mytholgy based fantasy. Really loved the world-building, magic system and characters.
June 4, 2017
Simply put, this is without a doubt one of the best in the genre. If you don't appreciate or understand the depth of the story (though that is to be expected if you only read the first 100 chapters/first book) then xianxia is really not for you.
ISSTH does a lot of things right that many others in the genre get wrong.
Many thanks to Er Gen for writing this and Deathblade for his amazing translations!
ISSTH does a lot of things right that many others in the genre get wrong.
Many thanks to Er Gen for writing this and Deathblade for his amazing translations!
August 13, 2022
[Our MC]
Meng Hao is a thrice failed scholar, pondering his life atop a mountain outside of his village. Ever since his parents vanished under mysterious circumstances 10 years ago, life has not been kind. He had to sell his family home some time back just to survive and thus its left this 16-year-old boy rather skinny. There also appears to be some stigma around the color of his skin, as the author makes a point of calling out when his skin lightens during cultivation. After hearing a scream on the side of the mountain and being kidnapped to a distant cult, he somehow finds the silver lining of kidnapping and decides to pursue the path of cultivation.
[Supporting Cast]
Among the kidnapped kids is one that Meng Hao bonds with called Li Fugui – affectionately nicknamed Fatty. The two of them start off as servants to the sect, with only Meng Hao able to raise his cultivation level high enough to join the Outer Sect. Though not advancing as fast as Meng Hao in terms of Qi Condensation, he seems to have found his own path. The boy’s teeth are growing so long that he must find ways to file them down, yet his cultivation base remained incredibly weak. Meng Hao makes sure to visit him frequently and assist with his cultivation, seeking to embrace the tenants of his sect – the Reliance Sect.
Among the Reliant Sect are two Inner Sect members – Chen Fan and Xu Qing. They also happen to be the ONLY two inner sect disciples, as the Reliance Sect has fallen into a dark age and is near collapse. They frequently abduct children to pad out their numbers, though most don’t live long enough to make a different. Though Chen Fan remains distant from Meng Hao for the bulk of the book, he provides vital insight into cultivation and Dao as he too fancies himself a Daoist scholar. Xu Qing however is an enigmatic and cold beauty who Meng Hao finds himself interested in.
[Plot]
As mentioned above, a LIGHT kidnapping occurs that leads to Meng Hao joining the Sect. At first earning his place in the Outer Sect by practicing his cultivation diligently and working with Fatty for success, he begins to experience something like divine luck as he proceeds through the sect. In the Treasure Hall he is scammed by an elder who gives him a copper mirror. Through a clever play on Pill Distribution Day, he’s able to earn the ire of his fellow sect members by giving an extremely valuable pill he won by chance back to Xu Qing… earning him an Immortal’s Cave in which to advance his cultivation. From this point on, Meng Hao continuously discovers new means of aggressively advancing his cultivation.
That same luck leads him to use the Copper Mirror against demonic beasts, giving him a rare opportunity to harvest their powerful cores. It turns out the mirror can force foreign qi into a furred beast and, with no clear direction on where to go, immediately fires out of their asshole in a visceral display of gore. Not only that but the Mirror can absorb the medicinal pills he receives and duplicate them perfectly after consuming enough spirit stones (currency/cultivation item for early stages). This duplication allows him to mass produce recovery pills not only for his consumption but for other sect members, targeting them on the battle grounds when they are near death to exploit them for additional spirit stones and thus, more duplicate materials and supplies.
Now that he has the means of launching himself beyond his peers, he begins attracting the attention of the Elders of the Reliance Sect. Including their Patriarch.
[System]
I Shall Seal the Heavens has multiple stages with levels beneath each. They include the Qi Condensation stage, where you begin to amass qi within your dantian region to establish a powerful core in later stages. After passing all 10 levels (traditionally), the cultivator will rise to the Foundation Establishment Stage and begin the process again with some minor tweaks – they can now live naturally to 150 years and have shed their mortal body, making them effectively immortal to everyone but other cultivators. During this stage your Foundations are pillars of Dao, reinforcing the base of your future Core. Only these two levels are widely explored in this first book but there are 7 stages in total, with an unknown number of levels to each. It is unknown if there are further stages beyond the goal of this planet which is simply Immortal Ascension.
Within the Qi Condensation stage, each level provides a significant change to your qi and the amount of power coursing through your body, along with how efficiently it moved. At Level 1, you can move a simple strand of qi throughout your body to empower it and begin forging your qi channels. By level 2 that strand has become a stream and mortal filth is excreted from the body, along with earning the cultivator their first technique. At level 3 you learn how to flash step, essentially. From here the major level are 5, where the cultivator learns wind walking which provides them a method of improvised flight by using different weapons and divine treasures (think flying swords and fans, hats). With each stage that body of water within the cultivator also advances, some capable of becoming as deep and vast as an ocean.
At the 9th stage of Qi Condensation, cultivators will ascend to the Foundation Establishment stage and develop their spiritual senses along with raising their first Pillar of Dao, the beliefs that define a cultivator. Depending on the number of cracks on the pillars raised during these 9 stages, they receive one of the following designations: Perfect (no flaws), Flawless (1 crack per pillar), Fractured (2 cracks per pillar), and Shattered (anything more). That is about the depth of what’s revealed in the first novel. There are also ancient rumors of Qi Condensation stages beyond 9…
[Final Thoughts]
This book has the same problems as Ave Rem where it loses overall cohesiveness after the initial structure of the story. Again this story turns luck and finding macguffins into divine providence, deeming Meng Hao the chosen one. The sheer amount of shit that falls into his lap is excruciating and becomes difficult to ignore when the author begins making things up on the fly to facilitate Meng Hao’s advancement. The specific point I didn’t like is the
If the first 50% was an 8, the next 20% was a 7 and the final 30% is a...
5/10
Will I continue to read?: Yes
Meng Hao is a thrice failed scholar, pondering his life atop a mountain outside of his village. Ever since his parents vanished under mysterious circumstances 10 years ago, life has not been kind. He had to sell his family home some time back just to survive and thus its left this 16-year-old boy rather skinny. There also appears to be some stigma around the color of his skin, as the author makes a point of calling out when his skin lightens during cultivation. After hearing a scream on the side of the mountain and being kidnapped to a distant cult, he somehow finds the silver lining of kidnapping and decides to pursue the path of cultivation.
[Supporting Cast]
Among the kidnapped kids is one that Meng Hao bonds with called Li Fugui – affectionately nicknamed Fatty. The two of them start off as servants to the sect, with only Meng Hao able to raise his cultivation level high enough to join the Outer Sect. Though not advancing as fast as Meng Hao in terms of Qi Condensation, he seems to have found his own path. The boy’s teeth are growing so long that he must find ways to file them down, yet his cultivation base remained incredibly weak. Meng Hao makes sure to visit him frequently and assist with his cultivation, seeking to embrace the tenants of his sect – the Reliance Sect.
Among the Reliant Sect are two Inner Sect members – Chen Fan and Xu Qing. They also happen to be the ONLY two inner sect disciples, as the Reliance Sect has fallen into a dark age and is near collapse. They frequently abduct children to pad out their numbers, though most don’t live long enough to make a different. Though Chen Fan remains distant from Meng Hao for the bulk of the book, he provides vital insight into cultivation and Dao as he too fancies himself a Daoist scholar. Xu Qing however is an enigmatic and cold beauty who Meng Hao finds himself interested in.
[Plot]
As mentioned above, a LIGHT kidnapping occurs that leads to Meng Hao joining the Sect. At first earning his place in the Outer Sect by practicing his cultivation diligently and working with Fatty for success, he begins to experience something like divine luck as he proceeds through the sect. In the Treasure Hall he is scammed by an elder who gives him a copper mirror. Through a clever play on Pill Distribution Day, he’s able to earn the ire of his fellow sect members by giving an extremely valuable pill he won by chance back to Xu Qing… earning him an Immortal’s Cave in which to advance his cultivation. From this point on, Meng Hao continuously discovers new means of aggressively advancing his cultivation.
That same luck leads him to use the Copper Mirror against demonic beasts, giving him a rare opportunity to harvest their powerful cores. It turns out the mirror can force foreign qi into a furred beast and, with no clear direction on where to go, immediately fires out of their asshole in a visceral display of gore. Not only that but the Mirror can absorb the medicinal pills he receives and duplicate them perfectly after consuming enough spirit stones (currency/cultivation item for early stages). This duplication allows him to mass produce recovery pills not only for his consumption but for other sect members, targeting them on the battle grounds when they are near death to exploit them for additional spirit stones and thus, more duplicate materials and supplies.
Now that he has the means of launching himself beyond his peers, he begins attracting the attention of the Elders of the Reliance Sect. Including their Patriarch.
[System]
I Shall Seal the Heavens has multiple stages with levels beneath each. They include the Qi Condensation stage, where you begin to amass qi within your dantian region to establish a powerful core in later stages. After passing all 10 levels (traditionally), the cultivator will rise to the Foundation Establishment Stage and begin the process again with some minor tweaks – they can now live naturally to 150 years and have shed their mortal body, making them effectively immortal to everyone but other cultivators. During this stage your Foundations are pillars of Dao, reinforcing the base of your future Core. Only these two levels are widely explored in this first book but there are 7 stages in total, with an unknown number of levels to each. It is unknown if there are further stages beyond the goal of this planet which is simply Immortal Ascension.
Within the Qi Condensation stage, each level provides a significant change to your qi and the amount of power coursing through your body, along with how efficiently it moved. At Level 1, you can move a simple strand of qi throughout your body to empower it and begin forging your qi channels. By level 2 that strand has become a stream and mortal filth is excreted from the body, along with earning the cultivator their first technique. At level 3 you learn how to flash step, essentially. From here the major level are 5, where the cultivator learns wind walking which provides them a method of improvised flight by using different weapons and divine treasures (think flying swords and fans, hats). With each stage that body of water within the cultivator also advances, some capable of becoming as deep and vast as an ocean.
At the 9th stage of Qi Condensation, cultivators will ascend to the Foundation Establishment stage and develop their spiritual senses along with raising their first Pillar of Dao, the beliefs that define a cultivator. Depending on the number of cracks on the pillars raised during these 9 stages, they receive one of the following designations: Perfect (no flaws), Flawless (1 crack per pillar), Fractured (2 cracks per pillar), and Shattered (anything more). That is about the depth of what’s revealed in the first novel. There are also ancient rumors of Qi Condensation stages beyond 9…
[Final Thoughts]
This book has the same problems as Ave Rem where it loses overall cohesiveness after the initial structure of the story. Again this story turns luck and finding macguffins into divine providence, deeming Meng Hao the chosen one. The sheer amount of shit that falls into his lap is excruciating and becomes difficult to ignore when the author begins making things up on the fly to facilitate Meng Hao’s advancement. The specific point I didn’t like is the
If the first 50% was an 8, the next 20% was a 7 and the final 30% is a...
5/10
Will I continue to read?: Yes
July 9, 2021
I hope this works out, so many people are hype about it.
This is leagues better written than Desolate Era, there are no unnecessary repetition of words, phrases, or sentences. It is also quite funny when the mirror started to do its' thing.
This book started great, I was already saying I would give it four stars, but something happened somewhere after the halfway point, and I don't think I can give it four stars any longer.
This always gets my goat. Someone wants to rob you or kill you, and you escape in such a way that they (the robber/killer) wronged or insulted someone more powerful. These individuals then have a personal grudge against you because you didn't lay down and take it. They then go their more powerful family and feed a crap story about you attacking them.
That was an entertaining story. I don't know if I want to continue down the rabbit hole that is this series. How this book ended gave me closure. There are a few questions left unanswered, but I'm in no hurry to find out.
3/5 Stars
This is leagues better written than Desolate Era, there are no unnecessary repetition of words, phrases, or sentences. It is also quite funny when the mirror started to do its' thing.
This book started great, I was already saying I would give it four stars, but something happened somewhere after the halfway point, and I don't think I can give it four stars any longer.
This always gets my goat. Someone wants to rob you or kill you, and you escape in such a way that they (the robber/killer) wronged or insulted someone more powerful. These individuals then have a personal grudge against you because you didn't lay down and take it. They then go their more powerful family and feed a crap story about you attacking them.
That was an entertaining story. I don't know if I want to continue down the rabbit hole that is this series. How this book ended gave me closure. There are a few questions left unanswered, but I'm in no hurry to find out.
3/5 Stars
March 13, 2021
It was fun, before it got cryptic
Xianxia stories are usually easy to follow, with clear tropes and plot structures. This one defied the three indicators. While it started out simple and easy, after the plot thickened, everything went almost chaotic. The main character changed his affable personality into one that is almost detestable, the supporting characters entered and exited the stage almost randomly, and if there’s a plot anywhere in the story, it’s hidden behind all the fuss.
Definitely not something you can read on your daily commuting. One blink, one wrong focus, and you might need to reread from the beginning of a chapter
Xianxia stories are usually easy to follow, with clear tropes and plot structures. This one defied the three indicators. While it started out simple and easy, after the plot thickened, everything went almost chaotic. The main character changed his affable personality into one that is almost detestable, the supporting characters entered and exited the stage almost randomly, and if there’s a plot anywhere in the story, it’s hidden behind all the fuss.
Definitely not something you can read on your daily commuting. One blink, one wrong focus, and you might need to reread from the beginning of a chapter
February 24, 2017
This is the first Xianxai I have read, so I have no idea where it stacks up inside the genre. By western literary standards, this feels more like an old myth than a modern tale. By that I mean there are no prolonged decisions or deep emotional thoughts, but an emphasis on the character's actions in a "And this happened and this happened" way. I actually found it really refreshing and easy to read as a consequence. The plot is strong, with some excellent set-piece moments. Well worth a look for anyone looking for something different.
January 6, 2021
This is one of the better Wuxia cultivation books. The central character is weak on motivation but eventually settles on the "I must be powerful to survive" mantra. He's likeable and reasonably moral, so I'm happy.
It does wear on one's soul when every stranger that Meng Hao meets, tries to rob and/or kill him. This culture is the epitome of the philosophy might-makes-right. It's a little simplistic but at least it works to keep the action coming.
If you like the Wuxia genre, I can recommend this book.
It does wear on one's soul when every stranger that Meng Hao meets, tries to rob and/or kill him. This culture is the epitome of the philosophy might-makes-right. It's a little simplistic but at least it works to keep the action coming.
If you like the Wuxia genre, I can recommend this book.
May 12, 2021
English words not enough
Translating Asian works into English is difficult. There are cultural concepts that have deep complexity that cannot be as simply stated.
Then there are the characters. Not even the MC is decent or good. Greed drives them, might makes right forms them, they are all awful. The motivations may be clear to someone who speaks the language and knows the myths, but the seem simply terrible to me.
If I were publishing this as a transcription, I would want an additional rewrite. Translating sentences or paragraphs is not enough.
DNF
Translating Asian works into English is difficult. There are cultural concepts that have deep complexity that cannot be as simply stated.
Then there are the characters. Not even the MC is decent or good. Greed drives them, might makes right forms them, they are all awful. The motivations may be clear to someone who speaks the language and knows the myths, but the seem simply terrible to me.
If I were publishing this as a transcription, I would want an additional rewrite. Translating sentences or paragraphs is not enough.
DNF
May 13, 2022
I’d have liked to give this a 5 stars, but out of all characters, I could easily count on one hand how many of them were actually likeable, unfortunately. Our guy isn’t so bad, but almost everyone is out to get him for a reason or another. Still an enjoyable read nonetheless, but personally I’d have liked to have more characters on his side.
February 17, 2021
Hard book to finish
This book wasn’t the worst but it lacked depth. Needs a lot of work in terms of character building, world building and cultivation. Many parts of the book feel really contrived. Things just kind of happen that make no sense.
This book wasn’t the worst but it lacked depth. Needs a lot of work in terms of character building, world building and cultivation. Many parts of the book feel really contrived. Things just kind of happen that make no sense.
August 19, 2016
Well written.
January 21, 2025
Oh I am so back on my bullshit i love rereading Chinese webnovel slop
Edit 12/29/24: Currently done with book 2 but won't be putting the other books on this acc coz honestly i think the covers are ugly so all my other thoughts are going below :D
Edit 1/3/25: Halfway through book 6 rn and I have to say books 2-5 are probably some of the strongest books in the series, especially with book 3 having a personal favorite arc in and book 5 having ...but the fact that I don't remember much past book 6 despite this being a reread is probably foreshadowing on how its gna fall off lol
Edit 1/21/25: Honestly I finished my reread a few days ago but got busy so update til now oops! Anyways spoilers for the rest of the series I guess:
ANYWAYS for all the bashing I've done I still fucking love this novel and it was an absolute staple from my formative years - I can't believe I followed this novel's translation from start to finish. Nothing but respect and appreciation to Er Gen for writing this absolute monster of a series, and to Jeremy Bai (Deathblade) for translating this on Wuxiaworld and bringing this into the light of an English-speaking audience. I still remember waiting anxiously for those good ol twice a day updates, and still have my map of the Mountain and Sea Realm from the series finale contest :'D
Overall peak cultivation slop/10 probably won't reread for another few years but maybe when nostalgia bites again I'll be back
Edit 12/29/24: Currently done with book 2 but won't be putting the other books on this acc coz honestly i think the covers are ugly so all my other thoughts are going below :D
Edit 1/3/25: Halfway through book 6 rn and I have to say books 2-5 are probably some of the strongest books in the series, especially with book 3 having a personal favorite arc in and book 5 having ...but the fact that I don't remember much past book 6 despite this being a reread is probably foreshadowing on how its gna fall off lol
Edit 1/21/25: Honestly I finished my reread a few days ago but got busy so update til now oops! Anyways spoilers for the rest of the series I guess:
ANYWAYS for all the bashing I've done I still fucking love this novel and it was an absolute staple from my formative years - I can't believe I followed this novel's translation from start to finish. Nothing but respect and appreciation to Er Gen for writing this absolute monster of a series, and to Jeremy Bai (Deathblade) for translating this on Wuxiaworld and bringing this into the light of an English-speaking audience. I still remember waiting anxiously for those good ol twice a day updates, and still have my map of the Mountain and Sea Realm from the series finale contest :'D
Overall peak cultivation slop/10 probably won't reread for another few years but maybe when nostalgia bites again I'll be back
December 11, 2025
Rating: 9/10 (Would rate it an 8.5 critically, but I enjoyed it so much it gets bumped up to a 9)
Great first volume. Solid, genuinely entertaining introduction to one of the most iconic xianxia/cultivation novels out there. Will definitely read the series to completion after I catch up with Shadow Slave.
✅Pros:
- Executes all the the classic xianxia tropes extremely well (revenge arcs, figurative face-slapping, arrogant young masters/elders getting humbled, cheat items, etc)
- THE SCALE. The world is gigantic, filled with a ton of different locales and factions, with areas spanning hundreds and thousands of miles, which really complements the massive scale of its power scaling. Author drives this home really well when he describes in detail the sheer amount of destruction that happens whenever top tier mfs start fighting. Lowkey gives me Asura's Wrath vibes, in that sense.
- Meng Hao's a great MC. Develops quite a lot as a character even just on this first volume alone. Surprising amount of solemn, moving moments of introspection and self-actualization from him. I also just fw his energy, the mf never hesitates to dish out what he's given
- Lots of hype moments, especially when Meng Hao gets a breakthrough in his cultivation and aura farms (yes i love aura merchants stfu)
- Satisfying power progression. The Cultivation system just hits, even if its a little simple and linear.
- While the plot isn't as focused as I'd like it to be, some of the twists and turns in the story were genuinely gripping and engaging (spoilers: Meng Hao vs Wang Tengfei, the disbandment of the Reliance Sect, the North Sea revealing the Dao, Meng Hao unlocking the 10th level of Qi Condensation, and the patriarch reliance turtle reveal were all pretty hype moments)
- the translation is really good and helped me stay engaged with the story more. i wish Reverend Insanity's translation was as good as this.
❌Cons:
- Author tends to forget a lot of the details he sets up. He deadass be pissing me off sometimes with this.
- Fights could be handled better. Most of the fights consists mostly of summoning and throwing magic items at each other-- was hoping to read more interesting fight choreography utilizing martial arts in conjunction with spells and abilities more.
- The side characters could be more developed.
Great first volume. Solid, genuinely entertaining introduction to one of the most iconic xianxia/cultivation novels out there. Will definitely read the series to completion after I catch up with Shadow Slave.
✅Pros:
- Executes all the the classic xianxia tropes extremely well (revenge arcs, figurative face-slapping, arrogant young masters/elders getting humbled, cheat items, etc)
- THE SCALE. The world is gigantic, filled with a ton of different locales and factions, with areas spanning hundreds and thousands of miles, which really complements the massive scale of its power scaling. Author drives this home really well when he describes in detail the sheer amount of destruction that happens whenever top tier mfs start fighting. Lowkey gives me Asura's Wrath vibes, in that sense.
- Meng Hao's a great MC. Develops quite a lot as a character even just on this first volume alone. Surprising amount of solemn, moving moments of introspection and self-actualization from him. I also just fw his energy, the mf never hesitates to dish out what he's given
- Lots of hype moments, especially when Meng Hao gets a breakthrough in his cultivation and aura farms (yes i love aura merchants stfu)
- Satisfying power progression. The Cultivation system just hits, even if its a little simple and linear.
- While the plot isn't as focused as I'd like it to be, some of the twists and turns in the story were genuinely gripping and engaging (spoilers: Meng Hao vs Wang Tengfei, the disbandment of the Reliance Sect, the North Sea revealing the Dao, Meng Hao unlocking the 10th level of Qi Condensation, and the patriarch reliance turtle reveal were all pretty hype moments)
- the translation is really good and helped me stay engaged with the story more. i wish Reverend Insanity's translation was as good as this.
❌Cons:
- Author tends to forget a lot of the details he sets up. He deadass be pissing me off sometimes with this.
- Fights could be handled better. Most of the fights consists mostly of summoning and throwing magic items at each other-- was hoping to read more interesting fight choreography utilizing martial arts in conjunction with spells and abilities more.
- The side characters could be more developed.
April 18, 2024
Spoilers ahead !
I can not with this book. It's a slow paced 1200 pages book that ends in a huge ass twist in the last what, 20 pages or so. I did not see that coming. I did not see Patriarch Reliance being a god damn immortal giant turtle.
As for our main character, in the beginning I found him quite unlikable and sort of difficult to categorize. However, I realized somewhere along the way why that is. We are so used to, in fantasy especially, to leading characters that are heroes or villains. Yes, some are gray-ish, but mostly you can see the 'greater good' they are leaning towards. Mang Hao however is, refreshingly realistic. He's not a hero, he's not trying to save the world, he is a young man out for himself, doing what he feels is right for him. He's quite power hungry but he is not a bad person. If we discount a few of those later instances, he really is trying to not hurt people unless it is absolutely necessary. When he kills, he becomes a ruthless and cold killing machine.
Even with this being quite a long book, I found it an easy read. The writing is simple, it feels like old fables or anecdotes strung together, with no unnecessary embellishing and side tangents. It all works towards the main story, providing enough world building for the reader to understand the story, but not so much as to completely confuse as some fantasy books do.
In conclusion, I will read on, but I do need a break after that insane ending.
I can not with this book. It's a slow paced 1200 pages book that ends in a huge ass twist in the last what, 20 pages or so. I did not see that coming. I did not see Patriarch Reliance being a god damn immortal giant turtle.
As for our main character, in the beginning I found him quite unlikable and sort of difficult to categorize. However, I realized somewhere along the way why that is. We are so used to, in fantasy especially, to leading characters that are heroes or villains. Yes, some are gray-ish, but mostly you can see the 'greater good' they are leaning towards. Mang Hao however is, refreshingly realistic. He's not a hero, he's not trying to save the world, he is a young man out for himself, doing what he feels is right for him. He's quite power hungry but he is not a bad person. If we discount a few of those later instances, he really is trying to not hurt people unless it is absolutely necessary. When he kills, he becomes a ruthless and cold killing machine.
Even with this being quite a long book, I found it an easy read. The writing is simple, it feels like old fables or anecdotes strung together, with no unnecessary embellishing and side tangents. It all works towards the main story, providing enough world building for the reader to understand the story, but not so much as to completely confuse as some fantasy books do.
In conclusion, I will read on, but I do need a break after that insane ending.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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