Forging Immortals

Forging Immortals is a xianxia novel by the web novelist Xinbing Kanglaoqiang, serialized on Qidian Chinese Network since 2012 and completed in October 2015, totaling about 6.04 million characters and more than 1,800 chapters. The story begins when a man whose soul was lost in another world and who should have been annihilated is drawn by a strange heart and attaches to a new spirit body, setting out on the path of cultivation. The protagonist comes from a lonely and poor background, is quick-witted and good at calculation, and starting from a small border town, goes through the disputes of the War Alliance, the demon realm beyond the stockade, and training at the Dao Academy, growing step by step amid magical duels, battles of wits, and the clashes of human hearts. "Cleaving peaks, splitting layered barriers, a graceful youth aspires to immortality"—the "forging" in the title points to the main line of seeking the Dao by tempering oneself and forging one's state of mind; the so-called "road of mending Heaven" hints that the protagonist will ultimately take a path of seeking proof different from the prevailing orthodoxy. The work's tone is traditional xianxia, with attention to characterization and pacing, mixed with a little humor; the plot emphasizes intellectual duels and suspense, and also includes elements such as collecting spirit beasts and refining artifacts. The author once stated his creative orientation with "Immortals and chivalry—if there is no chivalrous thought, where is the idea of immortality?", seeking to preserve the consideration of "chivalry" within the framework of leveling up and cultivating immortality.