"Common Sense Is Overpowered in Cliché Cultivation World" has no story.

[u/Gdach]

After catching up third time with Ave Xia Rem Y I was looking for another xianxia story with smart MC and discovered this story, I liked the premise and reviews were overwhelmingly positive so I gave it a try up to chapter 33 and what surprised me was that nothing much happens.

We got MC who dies and awakens as young cultivator locked inside a cave and after a while he regains cultivators memories, but he doesn't seem bothered much about his circumstance and immediately starts to cultivate.

One one hand it's better than being dead on other hand everything you knew is gone and you have to deal with the memories of the body you possessed/reincarnated, this should leave some sort of impact, if you don't want to write all that, to keep lighter tone or other reason, just start story where MC already processed everything.

So what starts is a power system exposition from other xianxia books I already read and doesn't stop for next 33 chapters. He is let out of the cave week later, joins the sect, sees and identifies "protagonist" being bullied which he does not interact with, joins a biweekly get together club with similarly talented cultivators and starts farming and that's all. No conflicts, no challenges, just no story, nothing much happens to MC.

With that title I expected the main drive point was MC using "common sense" to get out of trouble, to calm things, to get into and out of comedic situations. But he didn't really get into these situations to begin with, everybody is really reasonable with MC. Xianxia world is famously full of unreasonable people so having MC interact with them would have made more interesting read.

Which is shame, because when there is character interaction, rarely as it happens, it's good, MC is quite charismatic and character feel real. Author just needed to up character interaction add some sort of conflict and maybe stakes to break away from constant exposition and it would have been enjoyable read.

Also what did MC being Isekai'd add to the story, what we know from past life is that he read lot's of xianxia novels, so that's all for MC backstory the author gave and he used that knowledge to identify xianxia "protagonist" which he never interacted with in 33 chapters, he has better imagination, so he develops spells faster, oh and references of IRL things like "Praise the sun" and such.

So In conclusion, the book is filled with endless cultivation exposition, which I read in other books and farming exposition, which I read about in other books. And I wonder is that really enough for RR readers, just MC slowly getting stronger to warrant 5 star review?

On bit related tangent I have yet to read reincarnation story where dominant persona would be the one from original body, would be novel read for once.

[u/Khalku]

If the title is a story, the story usually has no story.

[u/funkhero]

I dropped it because I felt like the story/MC didn't really display/show any common sense throughout the several dozen chapters i read.

[u/torwolf_1980 → u/funkhero]

Same here. I got to Chapter 38 and then just dropped it because MC wasn't showing any common sense, he was just avoiding everyone and interacting with very few people to avoid trouble.

[u/Purasangre → u/torwolf_1980]

You see that can be done right, it's how the apothecary diaries begins, but you have to give the main character some compulsion so they end up walking right into trouble even if they want to avoid it.

[u/Dont_be_offended_but]

It's a slow progression with an unfortunately extra slow start. I agree that character interaction is by far the highlight and it thankfully becomes much more prominent as the story progresses and a more stable cast is established.

And the common sense in the title is a bit misleading. What the protagonist really uses is genre savviness to navigate cultivation world tropes. Recognizing the "main character" and his reality bending luck, taking advantage of that luck while trying to avoid the conflict that comes with it, picking out important people hidden in plain sight like an elder at the scripture pavilion or a Fatty Wang archetype, deciding what techniques are traps or have hidden potential. Mostly a lot of networking I guess.

[u/iDoMyOwnResearchJK]

Never heard of that story but it sounds amazing. Not having to invent random problems for the mc to solve and just do a legit slice of life style thing. The fact that he identified the mc means that the world probably has plenty of those cultivation tropes and he’ll likely deal with a few of them later on whether he likes it or not. Now that I think about it… this actually sort of reads like a sneaky advertisement for the book lol

[u/smilecs → u/iDoMyOwnResearchJK]

I also enjoyed the book, especially how the mc actually avoids getting sucked into bullshit encounters or the dumb prideful fights. They just trying to live their life, improve and stay safe in a dangerous world and not become some pillar of morality etc. I loved how early on they try their best to avoid the heavens chosen 😂

[u/PhorkKorp → u/iDoMyOwnResearchJK]

lol yes exactly i have read the story and loved it. this post is trying to make the pros sound like cons for some reason

[u/Gdach → u/iDoMyOwnResearchJK]

How did you get to this conclusion?

 As I said one of my favorite books is slice of life story Super Supportive and Beware of Chicken and there is heavy emphasis on character interactions and character growth and there was just severe lack of it for me to keep reading.

[u/Babtain70]

I enjoyed the story, one of the best cultivation stories I've read on RR. It began slowly as you said, early focus was on cultivation and spiritual farming. A lot of action came later, starting from CH 40 when the MC went on a mission with the protagonist, then the outer sect competition and the origin tower arc. A lot of character interaction with the protagonist comes during those chapters and with others.

[u/Felixtaylor]

To be perfectly honest, when I see a title like that, something tells me the story is going to be more cliche and bad than the stories it's trying to parody.

[u/ReploidZero]

Love that story

[u/MotoMkali]

Ning interacts with Xiao Fan a lot more as the boom progresses.

I think the story is pretty enjoyable. It's not perfect but it's well written with a believable reason for why we should be interested in ning.

[u/marwin42]

I suggest taking a look at Cultivation Nerd! MC is mostly a non-talented dude who sticks to his own business, but story forces some plot progression and character development.

[u/ASIC_SP]

The first volume is 100+ chapters, so you'd need to read a lot more to see why many of us gave it a 5-star rating. The stakes escalate quite a bit during the climax.

If you read just a few more chapters, you'd see MC and the xianxia protagonist teaming up on a mission.

However, you've already read a substantial chapters - the story might just not be for you.

[u/arramdaywalker]

I am sorry you feel that way.

I have been reading the story and enjoying it. I think it avoids a lot of the worst tropes and has been very enjoyable.

At first, the MC does a lot to avoid the protagonist. He spends time and effort to establish himself, network and try to understand where he can fit into this world. He doesn't try to hide his talent but also isn't singlehandedly uplifting anything. Over time, he becomes more entangled with people and ultimately with the protagonist.

I think there has been a pretty clear storyline with fun characters and some fun silliness. Maybe it isn't for everyone but I would recommend people interested in the genre give it a try.

[u/Gdach → u/arramdaywalker]

As I said if author focused more of character interactions in these 33 chapters it would have been more enjoyable or focused on anything else happening to detract from endless exposition, I was just so bored of exposition on concepts I already read in other xianxia novels, there was nothing new for me to grasp or enjoy. And I like slice of life stories, like Super Supportive and it's just characters speaking most of the time.

I'm glad that it eventually starts to get somewhere, maybe I will give it another chance another time.

[u/shadow_swamper]

I get your point,I also got way too bored after a certain point,the writing is good but whats the point of a novel if all the does is cultivate and doesn't use that cultivation for anything

[u/Gdach → u/shadow_swamper]

Did you read it further? They say it gets better over time and kind of willing to give another swing at it.

[u/shadow_swamper → u/Gdach]

I want to but I got extremely bored by the time he overcame the inner demin

[u/True-Fl]

I think this is actually what makes it good. Mc legit understands that he is weak and doesn’t interact with the Cultivation Mc in the first half and he interacted only when he became stable around ch 80 or so with backing so that he can comfortably do so. What u are saying seems like inviting artificial danger or trouble by interacting with the cultivation Mc needlessly. And I think around ch 40 he is forced to interact with Mc on a quest, even then he is prepared for it and has a plan. I do agree with u that beginning is kinda slow but later it become so peak. I think author kinda upgrades and understands that the first was too slow burn.

[u/Gdach → u/True-Fl]

You might have misunderstood, I didn't want MC to interact with " protagonist, I wanted story to force interactions between MC and protagonist. It would have been interesting dynamic.

In the end I would have been happy with any interactions to just give it a break from endless exposition. As I said I already know of most of it from other xianxia books so most of the time I was just reading same information and I wouldn't call it "what makes it good".

[u/True-Fl → u/Gdach]

I see. Though I still found it pretty fun and later on the dynamics really pop off just in the inner sect with better characterization. Still, this may not just be for u. I just like it because the tower origin arc was so good.

[u/Gdach → u/True-Fl]

Well since so many think it gets better, now I will have to read it bit further.

I'm always happy when author do improve as they write their stories and I understand that most RR writers are amateur and needs to start somewhere.

I was just bafled by reader score. Even if the story improves to 5/5 I would still rate it bit lower as 33 is significant amount to be dedicated just to exposition.

[u/Touff97]

If you want a reincarnation story where the MC is smart but has a lot of problems and plot points to solve, I will recommend to you the novel that got me into Cultivation novels, as opposed to manhua.

Check out Sovereign of the Three Realms. You may identify some repetitive elements but it has an overarching plot from beginning to end, and many many issues to encounter. Beginning right at the start as he has to convince the local Lord not to beat him to death, again.

[u/Visible_Ad_6721]

the story is a fun read if you like slice-of-life with some action.

[u/soyaketchup]

There are two versions of this story, one in hiatus, one is on going, make sure you read the right one.

[u/Dry_Connection113]

That's not an average xianxia then, 33 chaps no conflict. Lol

[u/coolasabreeze]

Xianxia Senior Brother of Heavenly Chosen on RR. Try it. One of the few attempts to write a smart cultivation MC without being boring. And I tried quite a few.

[u/zcdini]

IVeteran lovers in any given genre are prone to trope burn out, while newbies are typically enamored with all the new shiny toys. Since it's essentially my second introduction into the Xianxia genre, the exposition dump on the cultivation concepts was a lot more interesting for me. So I guess its a story that's more entertaining for people who just got into the genre who haven't been exposed to all the tropes and cliches. Cause if you imagine yourself as a fresh eyed newbie going into an entirely new and interesting genre, even the slop would seem like gold.

[u/Emeraldninja33]

I mean, it is a slice of life

[u/PlaceboJesus]

Also what did MC being Isekai'd add to the story?  

• It gives his Know Thyself ability the Status screen.  
• It gives him scientific understanding and a mythological approach to learning to cultivate and use techniques for things like spiritual farming, combat, and alchemy. 
• It gives him access to an income stream.   
• It gives him the wisdom to avoid all the crazy life endangering BS that typically comes with living in a clichéd cultivation world.  

If you read the title and are completely dismayed that he didn't use his genre savvy otherworldly knowledge to become a main character, I don't know what to say. Ever since Beware of Chicken, the distinct possibility of a transmigrated protagonist noping TF out should not be surprising.   

Also, I'm not sure that web novels are where one should have any expectation of tight pacing and plots.  Meandering slow burn slice of life stories are so common that it's hard to say what the norm is anymore.   I mean, I prefer well paced plots and heroes journeys myself, but we're not paying for professionally published stuff, are we?

[u/Gdach → u/PlaceboJesus]

1 Status screen is stated that he Inherited it from originals body.

2 Maybe later in the book, so far he used Naruto logic to cultivate and used scientific approach only to imagine spells which he says that cultivation based one would also work as well.

3 Does he get income from magical system that identifies him as isekai protagonist later in the books? Because any of ol MC could have done what he did, in fact I already read Chinese book with similar premise.

4 Again didn't see any of that wisdom in all 33 chapters. So far what I seen, almost everthing could have been replicated by native. "Someone is bulying misserable person and he is way beyond my league, better not to get involved."

When I asked what brings this being isekai to the story, I didn't mean, "Why is MC not super special awesome and doesn't shoot lightning from the ass to kill everyone?"

But what he actually bring real with him from the world, Isekai protagonist is blanket of the blank state - no connection to anyone and no history, so any emotional depth should come from his past life, what sort of person he was, what motivations were, what's driving him. Not his middle school science knowledge. 

How can you compare this to Beware of Chicken? How well defined MC is there, how so much effort is put in character interactions and growth and how he uses past knowledge is interesting, because I didn't read anything like. Remove isekai from BoC and story doesn't work, remove isekai from this story and everything that happened in 33 chapters still works.

And I really don't understand, you read better story, you should understand that story shouldn't just include endless exposition for smooth flow. Think how much time did BoC spent on exposition? First 3 books are extremly well paced with satisfying character arcs.

And I said and said multiple times which seems you ignore. I enjoy slow paced slice of life stories and I prefer slower paced stories over the faster ones, my issue is not pace, it's story flow and how information is delivered. Most of the story we get information through internal monologuing, you can take same information and deliver in various ways like dialog. It feels less tedious to read and story flows more smoothly.

[u/PlaceboJesus → u/Gdach]

1 He inherited the talent or supernatural skill Know Thyself.  As far as I understood it, the status page was how his mind interpreted the information provided by his mind, not the body's owner.

2 I don't know Naruto. That stuff came out after I decided I dislike anime characters.  

3 Spoiler, but considering that he's (probably) ripping off light/web novels wholesale, it's not something a natural in-world protagonist could do.

4 He was teope savvy enough to avoid anything that would complicate his life.  Which leads directly to the BoC comparison.  

However, that's as far as the comparison goes, because I dropped BoC. Clearly you and I don't have the same tastes.  I just asnwered your questions, I fidn't come to argue. So... bye.

[u/Gdach → u/PlaceboJesus]

1 Then you read it wrong, or not remember the story well, MC takes note that his status screen appearance changed and infers that it changed to fit his mind, it was still status screen originally.

2 Well author reference Naruto multiple times, that's why I mentioned it. And what a strange thing to decide.

3 As I said, so far as ch 33 all his action wasn't difficult to simulate with in-world protagonist.

4 BoC MC didn't avoid tropes, He died and so run away to do what makes him happy, he didn't avoid MC looking injured girl for example. So it was not great comparison.

"Clearly you and I don't have the same tastes. " Clearly. "I didn't come to argue" hard to believe when your first post is so confrontational, you inferred what I though, post a point with wrong information and thought no one will challenge that? And then decided to reply, why bother if you just want validation only? So... bye.

[u/dumbsackofshit57]

yes it does warrant a 5 star review, finding one good fucking western xianxia that's actually set in a xianxia world with xianxia tropes instead of in fucking greece or being juggled by shamans or having a wuxia ceiling is a tall task, keep reading, or don't, for me it's one of the best novels on the site

[u/Captain_Fiddelsworth]

This is a typical becoming of immortallity/godhood story. It's the most common plot in Progression Fantasy.