Xianxia (traditional Chinese:仙俠;simplified Chinese:仙侠;pinyin:xiānxiá;lit. 'immortal heroes') is a genre of Chinesefantasy heavily inspired byChinese mythology and influenced by philosophies ofTaoism,Chan Buddhism,Chinese martial arts,traditional Chinese medicine,Chinese folk religion,Chinese alchemy, other traditional elements ofChinese culture,[1] and thewuxia genre.
Protagonists ofxianxia stories are often practitioners/cultivators ofimmortality andsupernatural powers, or else are transcendent beingsxiān (仙) already possessing such powers to varying degrees. Antagonists have similar powers, and often belong to either theyao (妖) tribe (i.e. fae tribe) ormo (魔) (i.e. demon tribe) or similar category of inhuman sentient beings. Persons in thexianxia genre manifestsuperhuman talents or physics-defyingsuperpowers such asflight/levitation,teleportation,telekinesis,divination/soul flight,shapeshifting,materializing objects andforce fields, manipulation ofenergy andthe elements, etc., akin to otherhigh fantasy genres such as thesword and sorceryWestern literatures.
Concepts from traditionalChinese philosophies such asinternal alchemy andexternal alchemy feature in this genre —deities,immortals,yaoguai,demons andghosts all engage in meditative practices and the consumption of rare substances or creatures to improve their skills or to augment their power. Action tends to take place across multiple realms, the number of which depends on the author or the world in question, but this usually includes the immortal plane, the mortal realm, and in the underworld. The xianxia genre also tends to feature the existence of magical creatures who do not belong to either theyao (妖) ormo (魔) category, as well as supernatural artefacts capable of upending the status quo.
The characters formingxianxia arexiān (仙) andxiá (侠). Axian is a being fromChinese mythology, particularly fromTaoist legends, that can be one or more of these things: a powerful spirit, agod, azhenren (真人), and/or someone who has obtainedimmortality or extraordinarylongevity throughself-cultivation to become a transcendent being.
Xiá is usually translated as 'hero' or 'vigilante', but specifically implies a person who is brave, chivalrous, righteous and defiant.[1] The character was originally used as one of the characters in the wordwuxia and was transferred to the wordxianxia to make it apparent that the modernxianxia genre was inspired by the popularity and several other elements, including powers gained fromqi manipulation, ofwuxia.
The stories usually revolve around the adventure/growth of a magical practitioner or a mortal person who gets entangled insupernatural affairs, and include elements such asgods and immortals,spirits,demons,ghosts andmythical creatures. These stories are usually "Chinese fantasy rooted in...Taoism,Buddhism", other Chinese mythological elements and tropes,[2] andshenmo fiction.
Thexianxia genre also includes the popular subgenre known as "cultivation" or "training" (Chinese:修炼/修煉;pinyin:xiūliàn;修真;xiūzhēn; 'training to reach the"True" state';修行;xiūxíng; 'training as anascetic monk';修仙;xiūxiān; 'training to become axian (immortal)'. In the 21st century, this subgenre became popular with the advent ofonline publishing, with sites such asQidian.com,[3] Zongheng.com, and 17k.com giving a platform for authors to reach wide audiences with high-volume, serialized content. It was popularized outside of China primarily by fan translations in the early 2000s. Novels such asStellar Transformations,Coiling Dragon,Martial God Asura, andI Shall Seal the Heavens led to a boom in such fan translations.[4] This genre is also a staple of Chinese television shows, films,manhua (comics),donghua (animation), and games.
In these stories protagonists are usually "cultivators" or "practitioners" (修心者;xiūxīnzhě;修士;xiūshì; or修仙者;xiūxiānzhě) who seek to become immortal beings calledxian. Along the way, they attain eternal life, supernatural powers, and incredible levels of strength. The fictional theme of cultivation or immortal arts practice inxianxia is heavily based on the real-life meditation practice ofqigong.
Chinesexianxiaweb novels of the often contain action themes[5] and are one of the most popular genres among male readers[citation needed]. Such as the Web Novel then adapted toDonghua"A Record of Mortal's Journey to Immortality" by Wang Yu.[6][7] There are novels with stories featuring female cultivators gaining popularity that could be popular with female readers.[8]
There are many ancient Chinese texts that could be classified asxianxia, such as theClassic of Mountains and Seas from theWarring States period.[9]Xianxia novels were popularized during theRepublic of China period, but it was the 1932 novelLegend of the Swordsmen of the Mountains of Shu that sparked the modern popularity of the genre.[10]
In the 2010s and 2020s, manywuxia andxianxia novels have discussed topics such asneoliberalism and alternatives to what is seen as a stagnant world order brought about by magic and/or religious organizations.[3]
Perhaps one of the earliest successfulxianxia films was the 1983 Hong Kong filmZu Warriors from the Magic Mountain, which was followed up by the 2001 filmThe Legend of Zu.[11]
Overall, television shows are more numerous than films when it comes toxianxia adaptations.[12]
Some of the most popular and successful Chinese TV series in recent times are of thexianxia genre, such asAshes of Love,The Journey of Flower,Eternal Love,The Untamed,Love Between Fairy and Devil andTill The End Of The Moon.[13][14] It is worth noting these notable dramas are adapted from popular novels published on the websiteJinjiang Literature City (晋江文学城). In addition, there are also dramas adapted from popular video games such asChinese Paladin,Chinese Paladin 3 andSwords of Legends.[15] The already existing fandom ofxianxia source material has led to increased exposure and anticipation.
Xianxia is often compared to thewuxia (武侠; 'martial hero') genre, and the two share many similarities – both being set in a quasi-historical ancient China, featuring larger-than-life human protagonists, and struggles betweengood and evil. The main difference is thatxianxia generally has much more metaphysical themes. The genre has a heavier focus on spiritual growth and mastery ofsuperpowers, pursuit foreternal existence,fates andreincarnations,multiple realms of reality, and interaction withlegendary creatures andspirits.Wuxia, by contrast, is grounded in the human world with few supernatural elements and mainly emphasizes martial arts,personal vendetta,treasure hunting,social justice,[3]radical politics,[3] andpower struggles.
Other variants of similar Chinese high fantasy exist as well, such asshenmo (神魔), which generally refers high fantasy works that focuses more ondeities,demons and other supernatural beings rather than humans;xuanhuan (玄幻; 'mysterious fantasy') generally refers to high-magic fantasy works that dispense with Taoist elements and have a less realistic setting; andqihuan (奇幻; 'strange fantasy' or 'exotic fantasy') are Chinese works set in a more explicitly Western-style fantasy setting, although generally keeping a Chinese mythological influence.[16]
Asxianxia novels have become more popular worldwide, other genres have been influenced by it, such asProgression Fantasy andLitRPG, including authors such asWill Wight andAndrew Rowe who have written Cradle andArcane Ascension, which draw on common themes found inxianxia.[better source needed][17][18]