Tales of Demons and Gods Review - Review4reader

This used to be one of my favorite novels. A hundred chapters ago I would have given it a 4 out of 5. In the first two hundred chapters I would have given it a 5 out of 5. I would absolutely recommend this to anybody who likes xianxia though. It isn't high-quality, but the beginning world-building is great and original. This is a standard xianxia with a setting that feels different from the usual sects or isolated mountain village that most xianxia start with. The author does a great job of making a new world for his run-of-the-mill cultivator reincarnation story. Plus, the pacing is consistently good. Even later, when the story starts to get weak, the author avoids lingering on any particular event or battle for too long, and always keeps a clear short-term motivation for the MC.

TDG start is engaging for me. The main character (MC) - Nie Li - is reincarnated as his teenage self (his consciousness travels back in time). The MC realizes he now gets a second chance in life. He knows there is an impending doom arriving in few years, that killed all his people and loved ones in his first life. A strong motivation for a do-over.

Nie Li is mostly a likable guy, he actively supports his friends and some others to cultivate better. Nie Li has an obvious over power (OP), that his soul belongs to a 300-year-old-top-martial-artist. In addition to massive knowledge about cultivation, he knows all sorts of handy stuff about future events.

However.. Even though the MC is supposed to be a weakling with superior knowledge, he has a very prideful personality. He tends to carry himself in an overly confident and somewhat overbearing manner, not only with his privileged snotty peers, but also with some much stronger cultivators. I think this behavior repeats on many occasions and it is hard to believe he always gets away with it. If it just is part of the MC's personality, I guess he was lucky when he made it to 300 year old in his first life.

I kinda wish the author Mad Snail could have used some other ways to build tensions and action around the MC. But this is not a major critique, because tr*sh talking and face slapping is a tried and tested way to keep many xianxia stories going. It at least delivers some humor. Another reviewer described these mini paybacks as "delicious", so I guess these moments are worth it. In fact, I never did consider this, but TDG is a type of a revenge story, a mission right the wrongs of the future past. For that backdrop some slapping is more than welcome.

If my memory serves, one major positive about TDG is that it is a very easy and fast read. Almost too easy. The cultivation and world building is quick and simple. Cultivation occupies a large part of the work count. Even if it is easy to follow, it's hard to remember. The fights are similarly only few moves and boom, victory. According to Fandom there are 19 arcs until now (ch.480), so that is only about 25 chapters per arc. That fast pace also has a negative that TDG has lots of minor characters. Because of this reason alone, I feel it is almost impossible for me the pick this up again. I would have to start from the beginning and I think I am not able to do so. Luckily the manhua is here to help with that.

Unfortunately, the writing isn't good enough to last so many chapters. The author should have wrapped this up long ago. Instead, we have fallen into the old xianxia trope of new areas with stronger people, and an over-reliance on cheat items that only the MC has. The original setting that I was praising earlier is even swapped out for a new area filled with the usual sects that other stories have. The author still manages to add his own flair to the cliche sect life, but I have yet to read a xianxia that actually gets better when a new land with stronger people is added.

Basically, if you are looking for a fun story with cultivators and an OP MC, give this a shot. It has lots of action, a fresh feeling, and moves at a constant pace without stumbling over the problems that slow down other xianxia. On the downside, this is ultimately only medium quality. After a certain point, the author's flaws start to become apparent. If you've read good quality xianxia like ISSTH, you know it is possible for a story to stay good for hundreds of chapters. Sadly, this doesn't quite manage. But I loved the beginning so much that I am still interested in seeing how things turned out.

Ya and one part I particularly didn't liked was

he is a f**king stalker. He stalks the girl he likes constantly. Literally. He sneaks into her house without even her permission and starts sexually harassing her. He “claims” she is his, like a piece of property, and even though he says he “gives” her freedom, and is trying to help her, but he is just chaining her down more and more, and doing everything out of selfishness. Because its not that he “likes her”, but that “she is already his”. F**k this guy. And she, mind you, is 12. Yeah, they got together when they were 20. But now, they are 12, and he, who has a 100 year old’s mindset, just comes out as a freaking pedophile.

Rest is all good 👍

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