Donghua That Every Anime Fan Should Watch

The one that started it all for me. Soul Land follows Tang San, a genius martial artist who is reborn into a world built entirely around spirit beasts and cultivation. He arrives carrying knowledge and techniques from his previous life and uses them to build something entirely new in this one. Tang San stands out as one of the most complete protagonists in donghua, consistently proving himself to be exceptionally smart, disciplined, and always several steps ahead of his rivals. If you are looking for a starter donghua with an easy-to-understand power system, a great story, and a beautiful romantic core, this series is the perfect choice.

Battle Through the Heavens follows Xiao Yan, a young prodigy who mysteriously loses his immense cultivation talent overnight, plummeting from his clan's brightest hope to a target of public mockery. His fate dramatically changes when he uncovers an ancient ring containing the sealed spirit of Yao Chen, one of the continent's most legendary masters and alchemists. With Yao Chen assuming the role of his secret mentor, Xiao Yan embarks on a grueling journey of redemption. BTTH is incredibly intense, balancing Xiao Yan's rise to power with his desperate quest to restore his master's physical body. It remains one of the greatest donghua ever made for a reason.

Easily the darkest and most brutal entry on this list, Renegade Immortal follows Wang Lin, a humble boy whose loving parents dream of a bright future for him. Instead, he enters a ruthless cultivation world only to learn he has almost zero natural talent. What follows is not a standard story of a gifted protagonist easily finding his footing, but rather the chronicle of a man who refuses to accept the ceiling the world placed on him. This act forces him to endure a lifetime of pain, devastating loss, and desperate survival in a cultivation universe that shows zero mercy to the weak. The more powerful he becomes, the more isolated he feels, and the show never lets you forget what was sacrificed to get there.

The Demon Hunter centers on Meng Chuan, a young swordsman who witnessed his mother’s death at the hands of demons and has trained with burning intensity ever since. This world is trapped in a brutal war for survival against a demon race that operates as a highly organized, intelligent empire rather than mindless monsters. Every city, sect, and power system exists purely to fight this threat, and Meng Chuan’s personal revenge quest quickly evolves into a war for the fate of civilization itself. Boasting some of the most fluid CGI animation in the entire medium, this is easily one of those shows you will look forward to watching every single week.

A Record of a Mortal's Journey to Immortality centers on Han Li, a poor village boy who enters a minor cultivation sect with zero special talent, no divine bloodline, and no cheat codes handed to him at birth. What makes Han Li one of the most beloved protagonists in all of Chinese animation is precisely how he subverts typical main character tropes. He keeps a low profile, never takes action without calculating the benefits, and possesses zero interest in playing the hero. He survives a world that kills talented people regularly not through raw power but through pure, calculating intelligence and knowing exactly when to retreat.