One of the most messy stories I've read, it started fine but it just became a mess after he went to the battlefield.

I usually recommended for people to try even stories I don't like because the might like it, but this story is just to messy to be recommended to anybody.

Just to tell you how messy it is, I have not made another review on novel updates in about 4-5 years, this made me review it just because of how bad it is.

This is a more modern and realistic take on cultivation and its interesting to read. For tens of chapters, years of in world time, the MC gains nothing and achieves nothing yet so much happens to them. There isnt even a proper villian for most of the time, events keep happening simply because of the mc's lack of ability and connections. Cultivators are ruthless and two faced, yet the MC still tries to maintain an optimistic facade much like the average person trying to make their way through our... more>> real world.

Spoiler

This is a story where the MC struggles to survive as a powerless ant in a world where mortals are nothing in the eyes of the powerful. Every time you think things are going their way, reality smacks you in the face. The MC isnt even allowed to kill themselves due to a plot twist that happens halfway through the book. This story really is a tragedy, a true demonic cultivation story

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Please observe the tags carefully, because they are very honest. <<less

Man, this is a pretty unique cultivation story - one that really shows how nasty the cultivation society can be, especially to the average person. At first you think it's just some casual comedy, slice-of-life of a wandering singer just trying to live his life, but as the story goes on, you can see how MC is slowly starting to take a mental toll from the way the cultivators treat him - it's so tragic seeing him treat others so sincerely, yet not getting that same sincerity back in return.

I've... more>> re-written and erased my review so many times at this point, because 1) its just hard to put into words what kind of experience this novel is, and 2) I kind of want to omit my opinions in case I end up giving false expectations that'll leave you dissatisfied with the novel. Plus, I feel like zhanxian has done a better job than I could've done, so better to read their review instead.

Edit: I feel the need to mention this but this novel is still pretty much a comedy as much as it is a tragedy. So while tragic things do happen, it is not completely hardcore like some edgy teenager's fantasy. Just one thing to keep in mind before starting this. <<less

(Edit at the end.)

Chapter 11 Review:

Very rarely do I feel the need to leave a review before finishing the novel. This is one of those times.

... more>> I absolutely love this book. It is a book set in a cultivation world yet with a massive divide from all things cultivation-related. Despite the setting of immortals, monsters, and demons, the main character is a mere storyteller in a tea house and a deejay in a brothel.

I feel myself getting hyped for his songs more than a breakthrough in other novels. I'm praying that this novel continues in this manner, it will be one of my favorite books ever if so. The 3.3 stars is scaring me though.

When I catch up to the translation, I will add to this review and format it properly.

Chapter 31 Review:

There have been multiple problems introduced since I first reviewed.

First of all, translation. This is very clearly an MTL translation and there is minimal, if any, editing happening. The main character's gender keeps getting swapped, which is a telltale sign.

This is a problem for two reasons.

Of course, it impacts the reading experience because it is harder to immerse yourself, as is the case with every novel. However, it is a deeper and more fundamental problem in this book.

The largest appeal that this novel has is the spreading of Chinese songs and poetry to this otherworld. Given that the MTL gives a direct translation, we lose all of the good parts of the songs. There is no longer any flow or rhythm, the lyrics are generally garbled and make little sense.

It directly downgrades this novel from a 5 to a 3.

Second of all, there is no longer such a large divide between the main character and cultivators. I was hoping that this would be a mundane book with rare encounters with cultivation, and even then not changing the course of the book. That is not at all the case anymore.

It seems like every single person in the main character's life is a cultivator at this point. Genuinely, the only person he knew that he thought wasn't a cultivator was a cultivator in disguise. This has entirely tr*shed one of the only things that made this book unique.

Third of all, heavy nationalism. I could bear with all of the other problems in this novel, and was doing so gleefully. I don't know why but I was so drawn into this novel regardless of knowing its flaws. Thankfully, I snapped out of it when the nationalism came into play.

The main character finished some performance at a cultivation sect (because his "mundane" life revolves around them) and he gets a conscription notice from the county he is in. Apparently it is in the middle of a war. Pretty weird and abrupt considering it was never mentioned before but whatever.

So the main character has two options. He can ask any one of the dozens of cultivators in his life to make a move and stop him from getting drafted, or not do that. He chooses to not do that. He states that he would have no life if not for the country and his duty and responsibility is to sacrifice his life for the country! Absolutely f*cking ridiculous considering this is a transmigration novel and he has been in this world for approximately 3 months. Also, he was homeless for like 2 of those months.

The country never did jack sh*t for him, so this is an obvious attempt for nationalistic propaganda.

I feel so overwhelmingly disappointed honestly. There were so many good points about this novel.

At this point, I can't recommend this novel to anyone. So unfortunate. <<less