I was tired of these novels in which the protagonist lived for over 1000 years, and reincarnates, and when reincarnated, does not act as if he were 1000 years old, but as a young 15 year old in the heat. Always making strong people as enemies, never acting discreet and cautious, most of the struggles are because of the women who walk with the MC, and worse, always all your enemies are stupid who only know how to think with your dick. In Reverend Insanity we can read about Fang Yuan, an old demon who lived for 500 years. He acts according to his age, he is a cunning old fox, his plans are always deep and sinister, even the reader can not guess what he will do next, and so leaving the novel always unpredictable. Here you will not find random and stupid people trying to kill the MC for some casual reason. All people are intelligent and shrewd, they know when to move forward, and when they step back, for you to survive in this world, you have to be a smart person, so the stronger the person, the smarter they are. The cultivation method in romance is something good and unique, here for you to advance, you will need Gus, adorable little insects (some are not r.) That are terrible to get, evolve, and create them. And worst of all, you need to feed them. Some insects need strange foods like the heart of a vicious woman, and others need something more rare, and difficult to obtain. If I had to say something I did not like, and it made me a little uneasy while I was reading, it was at the beginning of Volume 4, but then I got used to it. Apart from that fact, the novel was incredible for me! If you're tired of the same romances, come read Reverend Insanity. Can come with high expectations, you will not be disappointed!

Gu Daoist Master, formerly Reverend Insanity, is a webnovel about Fang Yuan, a person who is a part of the Devil Path. The MC reincarnates due to a mysterious 'Gu' for which he makes enemies with the whole world. Follow Fang Yuan as he blasts away all plots against him, revealing the cold reality of fake righteousness. The MC is a ruthless antihero, and doesn't have one whit of compassion, and is smart and cunning. Overall, it's a good read. Also, the former translator is back so quality will be excellent too.

Reveal spoiler

Highly recommended. The MC is the most righteous character ever written. The tag “Evil Protagonist” is either purely a slander, or the MC was misunderstood by the mass.

Website : qidian china Views : 4.29 million Rating : 8.6(1334) Chapters : 1920 Status : ongoing Word count : 5.92 million author rank : lv5

I haven't read the translation on Qidian yet... But the synopsis sucks comparing with the one done by others. and from this translation of the synopsis, I am deducting 4 stars for Translation quality, P.S. TO those who are new to this novel, the MC is on the devil path, he will stop at nothing to achieve his breakthrough in cultivation, and he goes back in time multiple times. He don't have famial love, he don't have a libido of a 15 year old. He is a old demon who came back to his young body and he acts like an old demon not a fucking brat from TDG. This story is worth reading, but the fucking synopsis just killed my drive to read it for now.

The single best Chinese fantasy novel I have ever read hands down. And I have read a lot of them but never have I been interested in reviewing them, simply because they could never compare to any of the great western fantasy writers like Martin or Abercrombie etc. This so far is they only Chinese novel that had managed to kindle that sense of awe and immersion that comes when you get lost in the author's world. The best part is the world building and the plot development. At the time of writing this review a total of 1798 chapters are available (raws) and the entire novel is still set in the same "world". There is no "but wait.... There's a more powerful world with stronger cultivators, better treasures" and so on and so forth. The magic here is harnessed by using "Gu" insects which have a single purpose like increase strength, shoot blades etc. They are then combined in interesting ways and one cannot simply pile on a bunch of them together because they need to be fed and can have opposing properties. The plot is absolutely amazing with no lucky "I just found the greatest treasure in the universe, in the trash bin." Everything the MC gets is truly earned. It's not all perfect though. The unavoidable issue with the stereotypical "dog eat dog" cultivation world does not allow for deeply flawed characters, all of them inevitably are a bit too realistic and many a time can seem a bit mechanical. Most of them are still well written though. The biggest concern though is the main character who has a psychopathic attachment to increasing his strength, where it is the entire point of the novel. While there is a reason why he gets this way it's a problem with all xanxia.

Fang yuan is the most righteous mc I’ve ever seen. He never (doesn’t) asks for anything in return after doing a good deed. He treats women with respect and equality (by feeding them to bears and then eating the bear). And he shows boundless tolerance towards those who inconvenience him (obliterates their whole clan and spares not even the children). I’ve never respected anyone more in my entire life. *behind the scenes with fang yuan pointing a gun to my head* good job but did you think I didn’t notice those hidden messages? Me: no please spare me! I’ll do anythi- *bang* *crunch as fang yuan proceeds to not even let my soul escape as he eats it and uses it for nourishment* Fang yuan: “read this novel or you’ll end up like this guy”

Oh boy, where do I even start. Reverend Insanity is an absolute masterpiece, an example of just about everything good in xianxia, taken to its peak. If you have even a vague interest in the genre, RI is a must read by all means - even if you do dislike some aspects of it. What makes RI so outstanding is primarily the plot, structured into distinct 'volumes'. (Though the ones marked as "1" and "2" here on Webnovel are actually the same volume) The novel starts off somewhat slow, but over the course of each volume slowly builds up to an absolutely massive climax in the last 30-40 chapters of a volume, the likes of which I have not found in ANY other webnovel out there - and very few print book series for that matter! That may sound like an exaggeration, but the first couple of turning points are amazing beyond words - unbelievably intense and unpredictable - yet so incredibly well set up and foreshadowed, with surprisingly few plot holes considering the sheer scale. And that, in a regular-release piece of ambitious action fantasy is a very impressive achievement. At its core, RI is a classic xianxia novel, with a 'relatively' traditional cultivation system, clad in the cover of 'gu' - magic insects that form the basis of not just the power system, but society on the whole, from street lights, to letters, to houses. While certainly a unique take on cultivation, with some other interesting twists I won't spoil, it's still very much a xianxia, the internal cultivation remains much the same, and many traditional elements, such as dao paths, pill refining, heavenly tribulations, inheritances, blessed lands, and so forth do appear, though often with different names. Our main character, Fang Yuan, is not only a reincarnator, but originally a transmigrator as well. Don't put too much focus on the latter, but fact is, this is his third rodeo, and he certainly acts like it. He is mature, driven, and logical. Unlike many reincarnation novels, our hundreds-of-years-old MC does not act like a naive teenager with plot-convenient 'past knowledge' that is only used as deus ex machina, no, Fang Yuan is very much an experienced *****, callous, scarred, hardened and cynical after his past life. And while I certainly consider this a good thing, its also one of the key points that will turn some people off RI. Because Fang Yuan is not a hero. He is not an anti-hero. He is not neutral. He is EVIL, to the core. Not your prideful, arrogant villain, your crazed maniacal slaughterer-for-fun, or your edgy brooding git, thank god. But he is cold, cruel, calculating, and utterly amoral. He is a manipulative double-crosser who knows when to act nice for his own benefit. There is no wholesomeness to be found, and very little comedy, this story is DARK and cruel, with virtually no exception. And don't expect this to change much. For while Fang Yuan is a fairly interesting character, he's already a grown man with hundreds of years of experience - there is not much character growth to be found. Most side characters are fleshed out enough to seem like realistic, grounded people, with their own ideals, beliefs and motivations, even quite minor characters. There are some characters which receive significantly more characterisation, and remain relevant throughout the story, and very few are entirely forgotten. But ultimately, this is not a story with more than one main protagonist. The author does not do what oh so many other authors do, in trying to write an intelligent MC by making all other characters utter morons. No, not only is our main character well and truly intelligent, so is just about everyone else. There are extremely few incompetent characters, even throw-away villains, minor characters, and lunatics are generally intelligent and rational, with very little of the clichéd blind arrogance or utter stupidity so common in xianxia works. Of course, while characters are generally intelligent, they are still limited by perspective, circumstance, pride and rules/standards, and certainly make many errors and poor decisions from an omniscient point of view. What sets our MC apart is not that he is all that more intelligent, but that he is experienced, amoral, and shameless - without the slightest care for pride, rules, or reputation. And another thing which sets RI apart from many other novels, be they xianxia or not, is that there is absolutely no romance. Zero. Zilch. We have one, perhaps two minor characters with an adoration towards Fang Yuan, but, as one would expect of intelligent characters when faced with a cold, loveless killer, they don't ever bring it up, and merely keep at a distance. One of the central recurring themes in RI is the idea of individuals versus organised groups. While with a fair bit of bias, seeing as our MC very much stands for the former, this is portrayed in a rather grey sense, with deceit, abuse and corruption, contra caring, love, and fairness being portrayed on both sides. For the most part, the author seems to write from a fairly open-minded perspective, which can very much be a breath of fresh air. And another praiseworthy aspect is that our MC, while certainly evil, and a complete psychopath, is by no means a hypocrite. He knows full well that he is evil, and makes no attempt to seek a moral high ground - if it gets him to his goal, he has no qualms with being in the 'wrong', and does not attempt to justify his actions. There are no rose-tinted glasses here. The world itself has a very strong foundation, with clear and distinct world building, history, rules, and organizational structures - everything 'makes sense', and this is something that really sets RI up for greatness. There is in-universe mythology that permeates through the story, often founding the basis for not just cultivation, but beliefs, ideals, and ways of thought as well. I do, however believe that it is important to see it as such, as much like real-world mythology, it is simplified, over-exaggerated, and metaphorical - which makes perfect sense for abstract stories passed down over countless years. While I praise it to high heavens, and it is one of extremely few novels I will ever give a perfect score, there is still no such thing as a perfect novel. It can absolutely be polarizing to a lot of people, Fang Yuan is definitely not everyone's type of MC, the serious tone doesn't ever really go away, and it is still ultimately a xianxia - which some people will like and others not. And while basically unavoidable, the lulls between climaxes can feel unbelievably slow. They are undeniably important, as they are dense to the point of bursting with foreshadowing and set-up, but by god can it be slow. The fourth (fifth on Webnovel) volume in particular really drags on, and while the pay-offs may be worth it, getting there can be a slog, especially once caught up and reading chapters as they are translated. Besides the novel itself, the translation is excellent, with the occasional slip-up here and there, but a reasonable pace and consistently good quality. There is very little to complain about here. Ultimately, I believe that beyond the plot, what makes RI so bloody good is the incredible consistency. Characters are consistent in their actions and beliefs, the power system is well founded, with the vast majority of power-ups making perfect sense - in fact, just about everything in the story just makes sense. Very little feels shoehorned in, little is left out, ignored or unexplained, and there is an incredible amount of foreshadowing and build-up. And this is why I believe that while it may not be a perfect novel, RI achieves what it sets out to achieve. There is no such thing as a flawless or universally appealing novel, but for what it is, RI is downright fantastic. Even if you do dislike aspects of it, even if the genre does not interest you, at least the first 400 chapters or so are absolutely worth a read for the quality alone. Said quality does not decay beyond that, but the story does slow down quite significantly, and if you already weren't interested it may be hard to tough it out between the climaxes.