Cultivation Novels

[Discount_Blade]

I see. This one was different in the aspect that the "ranks" as you call them weren't dependent on body tempering or enhancement. Those were just steps you could do at any time, and they also helped the amount of energy you could contain safely in your body.

So for example, once the person reaches the first rank, they can then begin to store excess lightning in their body provided they have tempered their body enough to do so. This extra energy can then be used instantly rather than needing to pull it from the atmosphere for example.

Ranks acted more of a growth spurt after having a break through . This story described breakthroughs more like, anyone could have them provided they fulfilled the requirements before hand. The most easy way to do it was to have a mass of energy too big for one's body, then acclimate to it.

For certain reasons I won't spoil, the MC didn't have to worry about the gathering pure energy part.

Sounds too vague to me. I don't like it. One of my biggest complaints with xianxia's is the lack of proper explanations to their cultivation systems. This one just seems like a simpler but still ultimately vague system. The act of storing energy, while different I admit, doesn't seem like something fit for a cultivation novel unless its directly related to using a specific skill/technique/style based off of it. Can't say I'm liking this one.

 

[jabathehut]

So, I'll be honest and say I'm normally one of those in the front lines ready and willing to talk a lot of shit about the xianxia genre. I used to do the same about Wuxia and Xuanhuan before I realized the subtle differences....though I still find Xuanhuan practically the same as Xianxia and think it absurd it's even considered its own thing. (I mean come on, adding a little western aesthetic and then justifying it getting a brand new genre is just....stupid. It's still Xianxia...just with a little western-ism.)

Anyway, I have two questions, one is, while I've come to understand how Wuxia differs, being less magic-y and more "realistic" in whatever ways, can someone give me a decent description in their own words, what Wuxia is. Also...don't just drop links. If I wanted to look up links explaining the differences, I could do that myself. I wanted someone to say it in their own words.

Also, my next question is about Xianxia. If someone, for example: me but not neccessarily me, wanted to write one, what are THE BIGGEST NO-NO'S in your opinions, for the genre as a whole? I have a few ideas, but what are yours?

Just a few of mine for example, is the piss-poor worldbuilding that usually goes into it. The pitiful antangonists. Oh man I've gotten to where I drop manga if I see "Courting death" in the dialogue even once. That and some of the obnoxious metaphors that seems to be used in pracically every xianxia I've noticed. Apparently a lot of those guys have a sort of metaphor database they all pick and choose lines from. I'd love to peruse such a thing myself. Like "Does the frog know how big the well is?" is a common one I used to see alot. I mean...just stop...

i love the half translated chinese colloquialisms and ill actually drop stories that localize them too much like turning "courting death" into go to hell or "spirit fetus" into nascent something

 

[jabathehut]

Sounds too vague to me. I don't like it. One of my biggest complaints with xianxia's is the lack of proper explanations to their cultivation systems. This one just seems like a simpler but still ultimately vague system. The act of storing energy, while different I admit, doesn't seem like something fit for a cultivation novel unless its directly related to using a specific skill/technique/style based off of it. Can't say I'm liking this one.

part of this is that their cultivation systems are based on actual taoist cultivation and you're just supposed to already know. Its like expecting every single litrpg to give longwinded explanations on how games work and monsters dropping loot and etc

 

[Discount_Blade]

part of this is that their cultivation systems are based on actual taoist cultivation and you're just supposed to already know. Its like expecting every single litrpg to give longwinded explanations on how games work and monsters dropping loot and etc

Fair enough. I could understand it as a cultural break then. Just like I prefer "Go to hell!" more than "Are you courting death!!?". I'm not even Christian but I still prefer it. But like you said, cultural differences.

That said, I don't understand the nascent thing you mentioned. Also, I actually understand most of the colloquialisms. One of my bachelor's degrees involves a lot of Eastern history and knowledge so I've picked up quite a bit. I understand most of the random lines like those. My favorite for a long time was, " Speak of Cao Cao and he will arrive", which was basically "speak of the devil....." In the west. I also liked the historical story/origins that gave rise to the saying the first place.

My gripe was that most xianxia novels reuse the same ones over and over across countless authors.

 

[NotaNuffian]

Fair enough. I could understand it as a cultural break then. Just like I prefer "Go to hell!" more than "Are you courting death!!?". I'm not even Christian but I still prefer it. But like you said, cultural differences.

That said, I don't understand the nascent thing you mentioned. Also, I actually understand most of the colloquialisms. One of my bachelor's degrees involves a lot of Eastern history and knowledge so I've picked up quite a bit. I understand most of the random lines like those. My favorite for a long time was, " Speak of Cao Cao and he will arrive", which was basically "speak of the devil....." In the west. I also liked the historical story/origins that gave rise to the saying the first place.

My gripe was that most xianxia novels reuse the same ones over and over across countless authors.

The nascent thing is Male preg. After growing a golden tumor in your stomach, it turns into a baby, a second pilotable body that is ethereal

 

[Discount_Blade]

The nascent thing is Male preg. After growing a golden tumor in your stomach, it turns into a baby, a second pilotable body that is ethereal

That sounds disgusting. I could do without that one. Dudes having babies.

 

[NotaNuffian]

That sounds disgusting. I could do without that one.

I mean, if you want to become a god, you need to shed your mortal form, the baby is your new start, take it or leave it.

 

[Discount_Blade]

I mean, if you want to become a god, you need to shed your mortal form, the baby is your new start, take it or leave it.

Immortality never felt more troublesome

 

[NotaNuffian]

Immortality never felt more troublesome

Why the hell you think that the higher the level, the more greedy and monstrous people become?

 

[Assurbanipal_II]

To be honest, I always found the premise itself of cultivation novels quite intriguing. The idea of cultivation and the different tiers has potential. It is just the execution that is piss poor, and I blame the Chinese authors for that.

 

[NotaNuffian]

To be honest, I always found the premise itself of cultivation novels quite intriguing. The idea of cultivation and the different tiers has potential. It is just the execution that is piss poor, and I blame the Chinese authors for that.

It is called copy-and-paste. And it does make them money, so...

Also, Tencent is currently buttfucking them with no pay, forced releases and fines for unable to comply.

 

[DreamOfRen]

Sounds too vague to me. I don't like it. One of my biggest complaints with xianxia's is the lack of proper explanations to their cultivation systems. This one just seems like a simpler but still ultimately vague system. The act of storing energy, while different I admit, doesn't seem like something fit for a cultivation novel unless its directly related to using a specific skill/technique/style based off of it. Can't say I'm liking this one.

Fair enough. I could also be failing to explain properly.
There's a great deal more to it, I just didn't feel like referencing the fiction to provide it since it is also a mesh of litrpg and system genre.

 

[Assurbanipal_II]

It is called copy-and-paste. And it does make them money, so...

Also, Tencent is currently buttfucking them with no pay, forced releases and fines for unable to comply.

Do you want an order now?

 

[pyrak]

Honestly when you look at it, you realize most of them (the ones that get into immortality and throwing around energy and arrays and special techniques that don't even involve actual martial arts) are just crappy wannabe wizards.

 

[Ruriha]

Sprinkle in a little bit of dog blood and season it with a good amount of cannon fodders. Make sure to boil it around for a good amount of 20 chapters, then finish it with a bang all in one chapter. Oh, and be sure to do it mindlessly. It's gotta have that uninspired, mechanical feel to it. Part of what makes a good cultivation novel is the forced development due to time constraints imposed by chinese overlords. Other than that, just pad it until it reaches more than a thousand chapters.

 

[NotaNuffian]

Sprinkle in a little bit of dog blood and season it with a good amount of cannon fodders. Make sure to boil it around for a good amount of 20 chapters, then finish it with a bang all in one chapter. Oh, and be sure to do it mindlessly. It's gotta have that uninspired, mechanical feel to it. Part of what makes a good cultivation novel is the forced development due to time constraints imposed by chinese overlords. Other than that, just pad it until it reaches more than a thousand chapters.

They are paid by the fucking word count, and they always say that quantity is its own quality.

I say "motherfucker with the fucking textwall!"

 

[tiaf]

My gripe was that most xianxia novels reuse the same ones over and over across countless authors.

Another cultural thing. Chinese idioms/chengyu are just part of Chinese literature, not knowing or not using one make you an idiot. Most of them go back to a historical event or story and often have another literal meaning. Like the “wearing a green hat” stands for getting cheated on. Sometimes even those have a translation that are westernized.
Last time I came across the idiom “to understand, but not to understand either” I was surprised the literal translation contains dates and pears

Rather than being pissed about “courting death” and other catch phrases, I think of it as part of the culture. Sure, you could change it to a more westernized version, but a translator isn’t an author, so I see no need for them to do so.

It ain’t authentic.

 

[minacia]

Btw those phrases are common in Mandarin language. They are like expressions of "wassup" and "wtf?" to americans. In other words it's part of the genre I believe. It's like kawaii, tsundere to japanese culture in fact.

Yup, they’re idioms.

It’s analogous to “curiosity killed the cat” or “better late than never”.

 

[Kldran]

pad it until it reaches more than a thousand chapters.

I must be bad at cultivation novels. I can't even reach 100 chapters!

 

[DreamOfRen]

I must be bad at cultivation novels. I can't even reach 100 chapters!

lol that's a reference to the sweat shop known as Web Novel.
They lock people into contracts which steal away their rights for pennies and force them to write at least 1,500 words a day for 3-5 years at a time.

You can't make this stuff up.