The Immortal Ascension (凡人修仙传) has Yang Yang as the main lead and with his popularity, one can already guess that this drama will get talked about. I think the anticipation is pretty high for his appearance as it has been quite some time since his last drama. Furthermore, the web novel has a large fan base. Hence, it isn’t surprising that this production will attract attention. Below is The Immortal Ascension review for my take on this latest Yang Yang’s drama.
My rating: 8/10
Episodes: 30
Type: Xianxia
Aired: July 2025
Images credit: Douban Movie
The Cast Of The Immortal Ascension
- Yang Yang as Han Li
- Wang Duo as Wang Chan
- Zhao Qing as Mo Cai Huan
- Gina Jin as Nangong Wan
- Zhao Xiao Tang as Chen Qiao Qian
- Ada Liu as Hong Fu
- Li Nai Wen as Li Hua Yuan
- Jin Jia Yue as Dong Xuan Er
- Liu Ke Jun as Yan Ru Yan
- Ying Er as Ni Chang
- Qu Gao Wei as Ye Fei
- Sun Bo Yang as Elder Han
- Yan Feng as Fu Yun Zhi
- Xu Hai Qiao as Yun Lu
- Chin Shih Chieh as Mo Ju Ren / Physician Mo
- Hu Yu Xuan as Zhang Tie
Main Character
Han Li
Han Li is a mortal with weak spirit roots. He comes from a poor family but has a determination to succeed as a cultivator. Han Li is smart and resourceful with self-awareness. Hence, he is strategic and knows how to keep a low profile.
Supporting Characters
Wang Chan
Wang Chan is the heir of the demonic Ghost Spirit Sect. However, he still needs to fight with his aunt, Hong Fen, and her husband, Skull, to get his father’s approval as the next leader. Wang Chan is ambitious and cruel.
Mo Cai Huan
Cai Huan is the youngest daughter of Han Li’s first master. She has talent in medicine and healing like her father. Cai Huan is softspoken and compassionate.
Nangong Wan
Nangong Wan is a member of the Moon Shadow Sect. She is a cultivator at the Core Formation stage which is a mid-level cultivating stage in the mortal realm. Nangong Wan is regarded as a powerful veteran cultivator. She is pro-justice but has her pride when it comes to romantic feelings.
Chen Qiao Qian
Qiao Qian comes from an established family and joins the Yellow Maple Valley Sect as a disciple. She is betrothed to Lu Ming Yuan whom she has no feelings for. Qiao Qian longs to be free but allows herself to be bound by family duty.
Hong Fu
Hong Fu is one of the grandmasters of the Yellow Maple Valley Sect. She is a senior and has a favorite disciple whom she adores.
Li Hua Yuan
Hua Yuan is Han Li’s second master. He is one of the grandmasters of the Yellow Maple Valley Sect. His other disciples include Liu Jing, Zhong Wei Niang, Song Meng, and Wu Xuan. Hua Yuan also has feelings for Hong Fu.
Dong Xuan Er
Xuan Er is Hong Fu’s favorite disciple. She is a pretty young lady with an inherent ability to enchant others.
Yan Ru Yan
Ru Yan is the only child of the Yan Yun Shan who is the leader of the Yan Stronghold. The clan is an ally of the 7 Sects. Ru Yan has strong spirit roots and hence, has great potential to be a powerful cultivator but is afflicted with a rare ailment.
Ni Chang
Ni Chang is the leader of the Moon Shadow Sect.
Ye Fei
Ye Fei is one of the mentors of Yellow Maple Valley Sect. He has the ability to infuse live into his wood carvings and control them as weapons.
Elder Han
Elder Han is the grandmaster of the Spirit Beast Mountain Sect which is one of the 7 Sects. He is a friend of Hong Fu, Hua Yuan, and Fu Yun Zhi.
Fu Yun Zhi
Fu Yun Zhi is the grandmaster of the Clear Void Set which is one of the 7 Sects. He is a good friend of Hua Yuan and likes to make bets with him.
Yun Lu
Yun Lu is the grandmaster of Joyful Union Sect. He is a very powerful cultivator at the Nascent Soul stage of cultivation.
Mo Ju Ren / Physician Mo
Physician Mo is Han Li’s first master. He is an expert in herbs and alchemy. But he hides a sinister motive and is a selfish man.
Zhang Tie
Zhang Tie is Han Li’s best friend. They come from the same village and has the same dreams. He is a stocky young man who is not afraid of sufferings and hardwork. He also has total trust in Physician Mo as his disciple.
Synopsis
Han Li comes from a humble background and yearns for a chance to study cultivation. An eccentric physician takes him in as his disciple and Han Li’s journey as a cultivator begins. With his intelligence and astuteness, he learns fast that cultivation is not just about having strong spiritual roots but also the right elixirs, manuals, and, artifacts.
As Han Li has a weak spiritual root, he is looked down upon and even bullied by some of his fellow cultivators. Through determination and a bit of luck, he gradually progresses through the ranks. Each victory and discovery enable him to become stronger as he expands on his collection of manuals and artifacts.
As a disciple of a cultivating sect, Han Li is also drawn into the war with the demonic sects. Betrayals and selfishness of the leaders also mean Han Li has to look out for his own interests to survive.
The Immortal Ascension Ending & Recap (Spoilers Alert!)
The Immortal Ascension has an open ending. You can view this as an end to an arc of a long saga. Han Li successfully activated the teleport array just in time to escape from Wang Chan’s pursuit. He steps into it together with Qu Hun and the array teleports them to the skies above. The drama ends with Han Li in another realm that is peaceful and beautiful.
Prior to that, the Yellow Maple Valley Sect has fallen to the demonic sects with the betrayals from the Yan Stronghold clan, Elder Han, and the Sky Castle Sect. In Episode 28, Great Grandmaster Ling Hu of the Yellow Maple Valley Sect has made a deal with Yun Lu to spare the sect’s elite disciples in exchange for Hong Fu.
Hence, Hong Fu and her entourage are sacrificed by Great Grandmaster Ling Hu to preserve what is left of the sect. As a result, their location is exposed to the opposing camp and they are ambushed. But Hua Yuan would rather Hong Fu be free from Yun Lu’s control. So, he sacrifices himself in a fight with Yun Lu to earn Hong Fu’s freedom.
Who Did Han Li End Up With?
Han Li ends up with no one. In Episode 29, Nangong Wan is worried about Han Li after the fall of the Yellow Maple Valley Sect. So, she goes to look for him and is injured due to clashes with Wang Chan and his minions. Han Li sees her fighting for her life when he is sneaking into the quarry controlled by Wang Chan to reach the teleport array.
Han Li helps her to escape but she unknowingly ends up sucking his spiritual energy to recover from her injuries in Episode 30. This causes him to fall back to the Qi Refining stage of his cultivation. Her pride prevents her from admitting that she was looking for him. Hence, she pretends that she is Nangong Wan’s sister to deceive him before they go their separate ways.
Xuan Er still has a crush on Han Li. She willingly becomes his hostage in Episode 29 to allow him and Nangong Wan to escape from Wang Chan. But she is Yun Lu’s daughter and has become his disciple. Han Li advises her to be herself and she vows to chart her own path and not to be swayed by others.
Qiao Qian tells Han Li that her family is marrying her off in an alliance with another prominent family in Episode 26. She asks if Han Li can take her away but he didn’t reply. She knows he is not into her and they part as friends.
Han Li writes Cai Huan a letter to ask her to forget him in Episode 25 after a brief reunion during his mission as they may never meet again. She knows they can never be together as she is a mere mortal.
Other Key Events
- Mentor Wu is killed by Master Ye in Episode 14 after discovering that the latter is a demonic spy. Master Ye is then killed by Hong Fu.
- Wang Chan marries Ru Yan in Episode 16 in a deal with her father. He will save Ru Yan from her ailment in exchange for the Yan Stronghold clan’s alliance with the Ghost Spirit Sect.
- Wang Chan kidnaps Xuan Er and brings her to Yun Lu in Episode 22. Xuan Er learns Yun Lu is her father while Hong Fu is her mother then.
- Wu Xuan is killed and his powers absorbed by the Yue Emperor who is also the Black Fiend Cult leader in Episode 23.
- Liu Jing dies in Episode 24. He sacrifices himself to defeat the Yue Emperor who has metamorphed into a powerful demonic beast through black practices.
- Han Li goes back to look for Qu Hun and re-takes possession of his friend’s body in Episode 26.
- Hong Fen and Skull confirm that they have killed Fu Yun Zhi in Episode 28 during the war.
- A weak Ru Yin dies of faitgue after working on the repair for the teleport array in Episode 29. In exchange, she wants Han Li to avenge her husband’s death. Yun Xiao was killed by the Fu clan.
The Immortal Ascension Review – No Romance
One thing that strikes me about The Immortal Ascension is that the story is akin to a video game. The protagonist is a low-ranked cultivator who gradually progresses through the ranks as he collects more artifacts, herbs, and manuals for the different spells. Therefore, it is very much like an online game as he battles mortal and immortal enemies as well as demonic beasts and gains some useful items after each victory. Other items are obtained through trades and purchases. That is why some viewers have also likened The Immortal Asecnsion to Harry Potter.
While this may sound like a superficial story, I find that the way the story is presented is different from the usual. This makes it fresh and original compared to past xianxia and fantasy C-dramas. At its core, the tale is about a mortal’s life from a naive young man to a strong and cunning cultivator. It doesn’t have the usual revenge like Feud nor a sealed up demon waiting to be freed like Love In Pavilion.
Instead, The Immortal Ascension simply follows the protagonist’s journey from the time he is taken in as a disciple by his first master. Be forewarned that the story doesn’t end at Episode 30 although it is an acceptable cut-off point. There are different arcs to the whole saga in the long web novel. Hence, you would have to wait for another season for the story to continue; that is if the producers and investors decide it is worth a Season 2.
Characters Come & Go
Imagine a story whereby the protagoist becomes stronger and stronger step by step through meeting different people and encountering various incidences. The advantage of this type of storytelling is the plot keeps moving forward and doesn’t get bogged down by the usual issues such as love, revenge or duty.
In fact, the protagonist in The Immortal Ascension has a single-minded goal of achieving immortality. The scriptwriter doesn’t allow room for him to get attached to people, place or things. He simply moves on after he is done with a particular experience or setting. The enjoyment comes from watching him climb the cultivation ranks and nothing else.
The disadvantge to this is that the appearance of the supporting characters becomes fleeting. There is no anchor to tie them down. Most are written off after a very short appearance while others come and go in very brief moments. Without sufficient build up and screen time, it is hard to feel attached to any of these characters. As a result, this drama lacks emotional pull. There is little joy or sorrow as you watch the fate that befalls each of the character and/or their relationship with the male lead. This includes the romance, or the lack of it.
Forget About Romance
If you are coming onboard because you are keen to watch some romance, then it is better if you give The Immortal Ascension a pass. Romance is practically nonexistent in this drama. While the male protagonist did get himself entangled with a higher ranked cultivator, their relationship is a very brief one. Her screen time is minimal and she is not seen in most episodes. You can hardly catch the feels between them.
While there are also other girls who have a crush on our hero in the drama, none of them matters enough for him to stay and fall in love with them. Their characters are also reduced to supporting roles that appear in brief moments here and there. One of them do show promising signs that romance could blossom between them but alas, nothing comes out of it with the story written to be a cultivating journey rather than romance.
On the positive side, there is a consistency in the protagonist’s non-attachment and rational behavior from start to finish. He is not a sentimental person and may even appear cold. But on the negative side, the drama can feel a bit dry without some emotional weight.
Acting
The last drama with Yang Yang as the lead was back in 2023 in Fireworks Of My Heart. Critics tend to see him as merely having a handsome face but can’t really act. But I think he did well in The Immortal Ascension and the role fits him. To me, this is his best role to date after having watched him in quite a number of dramas including Who Rules The World and You Are My Glory.
His passiveness and micro expressions here are ideal as Han Li who must always tread with caution and keep a low profile as a low ranked cultivator. The non-attachment of the character also fits well with Yang Yang’s acting as he doesn’t overdramatized what is needed to be portrayed. It is the nuances and small details that Yang Yang incorporated into his acting such as the cautious movements and flicker in his eyes that make the character interesting to watch throughout the drama.
At the same time, his aura and handsome face also give off a vibe of unattainability and the look of potential greatness which is what Han Li is destined to be. So, I did enjoy watching Yang Yang in The Immortal Ascension, more so than in his previous dramas.
My Verdict – Watch!
The Immortal Ascension isn’t like any other immortal dramas. It feels like a video game but inspiring and sobering at the same time. The drama doesn’t try to hook you with emotions but a journey on how to become extraordinary when you start off poor and weak. It is indeed amazing how the producers managed to pull this off and keep viewers interested when the protagonist is written to be so rational and single-minded and emotions are flippantly cast aside in favor of pragmatism.
Another factor that stands out is the fights. They are beautifully choreographed with a few fights being incredibly long with wuxia undertones. Thus, this drama would not disappoint if you like the thrill of fighting scenes. On the flip side though, some parts of the story seem disjointed and the cuts are noticeable. I think they have edited out quite a lot of scenes to reduce the number of episodes.
Overall, I would rate 8/10 for this review of The Immortal Ascension. I believe it deserves a watch especially if you are a Yang Yang fan. This drama’s focus is solely on him and everyone else is reduced to a supporting role even for the actresses. So, bear in mind that if you don’t particularly like him, there is no one else in the drama to hold the fort. Conversely, if you are a fan, this drama is just part of a long saga of a web novel. Thus, be prepared to wait for news of a second season to come.
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