Renegade Immortal
A xianxia novel of cultivation, loss, and transcendence.
Renegade Immortal (Chinese: 仙逆, romanized: Xiān Nì) is a Chinese xianxia web novel by Er Gen, serialized on Qidian from June 2009 to 2012. It follows Wang Lin, a young man of ordinary aptitude who enters the cultivation world and gradually becomes a powerful cultivator, shaped by sect conflicts, personal loss, revenge, and encounters with supernatural beings. The novel became one of Er Gen's most widely read works, accumulating over 800 million legitimate views by 2016 and spawning adaptations into manhua, animation, and video games.
- author
- Er Gen
- genre
- Xianxia web novel
- serialization_start
- June 2009
- serialization_end
- January 8, 2012
- total_chapters
- 2088
- total_characters
- more than 6.5 million Chinese characters
- platform
- Qidian
Lore & Background
Renegade Immortal was written by Chinese web novelist Er Gen, who began serialization on Qidian in June 2009. Er Gen, formerly an English teacher in Mudanjiang, initially placed greater hopes on his earlier novel Tian Ni, but Renegade Immortal quickly attracted more attention, leading him to focus on it. He maintained a regular writing routine, typically producing about 6,000 Chinese characters daily, and wrote the novel over approximately 31 months. He considered ending the story earlier but continued after readers asked for more, eventually concluding it when he felt extending it further would compromise the story. The novel draws on traditional Chinese mythology, zhiguai tales, Tang-period legends, and later classical fiction, with Er Gen citing Romance of the Three Kingdoms and Investiture of the Gods as influences.
Reader's Guide
Renegade Immortal is significant as a foundational work in the xianxia genre and a landmark in Chinese web fiction. Its commercial success—over 800 million legitimate views by 2016, more than 40 million clicks and 300,000 collections on Qidian by 2015—demonstrated the massive audience for cultivation novels. The novel's influence extended beyond serialization into print editions, a long-running manhua, animated adaptations, and video games. In 2025, it was selected for the 2024 Web Literature 'Masterpiece List' and included among Yuewen's '20 Glorious IPs' for its tenth anniversary. The story's exploration of persistence, loss, and the cost of power, combined with its expansive worldbuilding, has resonated with readers, earning a 4.1 out of 5 rating on Novel Updates and a 7.1 out of 10 on Douban. Its adaptations, including the 2023 animated television series and the 2025 animated feature Renegade Immortal: God's Arrival Battle, continue to expand its reach.
Did You Know?
- The novel was completed on January 8, 2012, after more than 2,000 chapters and over 6.5 million Chinese characters.
- Er Gen wrote the novel over about 31 months, typically producing 6,000 Chinese characters per day.
- By 2016, Renegade Immortal had surpassed 800 million legitimate views.
- The animated feature Renegade Immortal: God's Arrival Battle was released in May 2025.
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