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Theme
Genre

Xuanhuan

Speculative and Fantastic Fiction

Xuanhuan is a Chinese fantasy genre rooted in, but not limited to, Chinese culture and mythology. Especially in current web novels it often incorporates foreign influence, is typically set in an imagined fantasy world, and frequently draws on Western fantasy elements alongside its Chinese roots.

Facts
Place of Origin
China (contemporary Chinese-language web fiction), rooted in Chinese culture and mythology 1
Notable Example
The Journey of Flower and Ashes of Love, Chinese television adaptations of xuanhuan webnovels. 1
Defining Trait
Chinese fantasy blending a coming-of-age narrative, martial arts and romance with self-cultivation through a sect or master, distinguished from wuxia by drawing more freely on supernatural mysticism and non-human true forms. 1
Connections

Form Of Genre

Fantasy, Genres
Sources
1. Xuanhuan (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Introduction, opening sentence (after the Chinese-character gloss)
    typically translated as Eastern fantasy) is a Chinese fantasy genre that is rooted in but not limited to Chinese culture and mythology, often including foreign influence in current webnovels and often set in a fantasy world, with the story including many Western fantasy elements.
  • Genre section, paragraph on major characteristics
    The coming-of-age story is a major characteristic of the genre. Other characteristics include martial arts and romance.
  • Genre section, paragraph on the Heaven Realm and Demon Realm duality
    Stories such as The Journey of Flower and Ashes of Love depict the boundaries of the realms as unstable and blurred.
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