Considering getting started on watching the Chinese donghua Wan Jie Xian Zong (aka Wonderland or Fairy Legends), but are a little intimidated by the more than 460 episodes currently released?
Don’t be.
After all, not only is the Ruo Hong Culture-animated donghua both entertaining and engrossing right from the opening scenes of Episode 1, its episodes are actually only around 5 minutes each in length.
That means, they are an easy watch as you can watch one or two a day in between whatever else you are doing.
For instance, I started watching Wan Jie Xian Zong last week after having had it on my ‘Must Watch Donghua‘ list for over a year.
Yes, possibly like you, I was a little intimidated at the enormous number of episodes.
But, surprisingly, within just five days of starting, I had already seen the first 170-odd episodes of Seasons 1-4 and was ready to head into the big one — Season 5 with its over 280 episodes. So far.
Now, 10 days into my binge, I watched Wan Jie Xian Zong, Episode 301 today and, can honestly say, I have loved every minute of the donghua so far.
Here then is the Wan Jie Xian Zong plot, so you can decide if you want to make the same time commitment I have made to watch one of the longest and most popular Chinese donghua currently ongoing.
What is the Wan Jie Xian Zong plot about?
The ongoing martial arts-themed donghua follows protagonist Ye Xing Yun, grand nephew of the former leader of the major martial arts sect Tianyuan Shenzong, and now leader of the organization himself after his uncle “ascends”.
Not long after being named leader, Ye Xing Yun heads off to the Qingyu family where he persuades the dying Jiang Yi, the ninth and currently ostracized son of King Jiang Shang, to change places with him.
The two young men look exactly alike, with Ye Xing Yun telling Jiang Yi, if he agrees to trade places, he will save his life.
Once the agreement is in place, Jiang Yi is spirited away by Ye Xing Yun’s disciples Yu Yin and Ying Sha who take him into hiding.
Ye Xing Yun stays behind, living in Jiang Yi’s house, and pretending to be him.
Interestingly, however, while Ye Xing Yun has incredibly powerful martial arts skills, Jiang Yi’s are quite weak. Hence, he has grown up bullied and abused by those around him.
This quickly changes when Ye Xing Yun, now pretending to be Jiang Yi, not only beats one of his bullies — Ye Cheng Yu — but also tells him, if he has to fight him again, his defeat will be a lot worse.
In response, Ye Cheng Yu goes crying to Ye Xing Zhou, the brother of Ye Xue Yun, a former martial arts cultivator who is now crippled due to an illness, and asks him to fight Ye Xing Yun.
But, when Ye Xing Zhou attacks Ye Xing Yun, not only does he easily beat him, he then asks Ye Xing Zhou to become one of his subordinates and swear loyalty to him.
In return, he promises he will cure Ye Xue Yun of her illness, and make sure she can walk again.
From then on, the stage is set for Ye Xing Yun to infiltrate the Zhou Dynasty and begin exacting revenge on the people he believes were the ones who destroyed his own Dashang Sect years before, leaving him and a handful of other people the only survivors.
Wan Jie Xian Zong is rooted in Chinese history
While Wan Jie Xian Zong does not tell the story of a real person in history, it does take place in the Zhou Dynasty, an actual Chinese royal dynasty, and features many of the real-life main families who are known to have been part of it.
The donghua itself has been well-researched so that, even though you know you are watching a short-episode animated fantasy project, you also know some of the events are rooted in Chinese history and fact.
This gives the donghua more depth, and makes its characters seem even more real.
Especially as the Wan Jie Xian Zong plot is extremely well-written, and the characters experience significant character development as the donghua progresses.
You can start watching Season 1 of Wan Jie Xian Zong, also known as Fairy Legends, via iQIYI for free.
I promise, when you do, you will be as quickly engrossed in the donghua’s plot as I currently find myself.