Xinghe Zhizun

Following the annexation of his Ye family's star clan and the disappearance his father - the Ye family patriarch, Ye Xinghe begins his cultivation journey with the last piece of hope his father left in his hands - the Star Map. Rumored to map the entire galaxy and boost the potential of ordinary cultivators the Star Map is a relic that is coveted by the same enemies that brought the Ye family's downfall. Initially, Ye Xinghe hides its existence by acting like a useless practitioner until the day Ye Xinghe moves to the City where his family's Soul Bar is located. In the Soul Baris an arena for cultivators to duke it out with their martial spirits; it is also the place where Ye Xinghe exposes his abilities and reveals that he has the Star Map relic. Now realizing his existence has been compromised, Ye Xinghe sets on his journey to the Star territory to find the whereabouts of his father. Story: 4/10 The beginning of the story is uninspiring and bland with Ye Xinghe getting kicked out of his family's own property and leaving the city to cultivate. We are introduced to the main characters who will be going on a journey with Ye Xinghe to find his father. The overall plot and goals are pretty interesting but the way the first season handles plot progression is really slow and wasteful. The first 30 episodes are all training arc at the Soul Bar battle arena against all sorts of enemies - the worst part is that these enemies aren't killed or crippled and come back to the battle arena repetitively to fight Ye Xinghe or halt his progress. This leads to the initial story's beginning being delayed till episode 35 when they set off on their journey. A kind of progression where MC keeps fighting the same enemies and gains in strength is normal but the way they keep meddling in the progress is kind of unbearable to watch and delays the main series. Art & Sound: 5/10 Ruong Hong Culture are well known in the Chinese animation industry, they are undoubtedly unmatched in terms of donghua. The art and animation are actually pretty decent quality but I can't stand the overexaggerated smiles MC does and his character rigged flexibility. It's a comedy gimmick that doesn't really suit the CGI art style because it looks so glitchy. This series is full of color and spirit beast auras like Soul Land. The sound is average, nothing too notable. Character: 5/10 The characters are pretty average. I don't really understand the motive near the end where Ye Xinghe lets Mu take his so called wife on the trip because his sister getting caught just drags the series in the end 5 episodes. Not even a cliffhanger, it's just a minor event that somehow has become the first main event on Ye Xinghe's journey. The characters all have this aura where they exist to stall Ye Xinghe even the main characters - it just adds to the negatives of this series. Enjoyment and Overall: 4/10 and 5/10 I enjoyed some parts of the series, like some of the final battle arena scenes at the Soul Bar, the dragon turtle spirit beast and the beast fire tree in the ending apart from that everything else was subpar establishment and development.