【BTS】Excellent production brings you a new experience!😍💞 | The Immortal Ascension | YOUKU
Everything in this world holds meaning of its own. They say the Great Path has no form, meaning there’s never just one answer. What path one walks in life is theirs alone to define. The Immortal Ascension originally comes from a well-known web novel that ran for over a decade. Many of us on the team were die-hard fans following it in real time. Around 2017 or 2018, we began working with the author, Wang Yu, to fully develop this IP. From novel to animation to live action, it’s been a full-scale adaptation journey. And it all started with love for the original. Fans of the novel will feel like, “This is exactly how I imagined it!” Like the Five Phases Reversing Array. We often call it a “realist xianxia.” It splits into two parts: the mortal world and the cultivation world. The mortal part tells his humble origin, his struggles and growth, and later, how he faces hardship and danger with a simple but solid set of values. Whether it’s about leveling up his skills or pursuing personal freedom, he reflects something deeply Chinese. Walking in tune with Heaven and Earth, mastering the flows of the six qi. We never expected it to be turned into live action so soon, given how vast the story is and how hard it is to visualize on screen. Our first adaptation was actually an animation. It started in 2020 and took five years to complete. We produced over 150 episodes, with nearly 4 billion views. It’s now a major player in Chinese animation. Everyone felt the time was right to bring an authentic xianxia story to life in live action. I’ve worked on the script for The Immortal Ascension for over five or six years now. The biggest challenge is how to truly capture the essence of xianxia through live action. Our version of The Immortal Ascension explores how cultivators actually live, covering every little detail. And Han Li serves as the perfect witness to it all. Our team has worked together for over a decade. From planning to filming to completion, this project took nearly a year. It’s been a tough ride for the crew. For the shooting locations, we tried to use as much real scenery as possible, to channel that feeling of roaming the natural world freely. That’s the physical side of things. Then there’s the virtual side. Like special effects: the Five Phases Reversing Array, the battle with the Blackflood Drake, the palace war, and the fight against White Jade Spider, all born from animated designs. We clocked about 1,100 minutes of VFX, with over 22,000 shots. We also poured a lot of effort into music and sound design. Not only did we compose new tracks, we also brought back familiar melodies from the animation that fans know and love. Including subtle sounds of artifacts, spells and nature. Every element this time, whether in sound, music, or overall design, has been taken to a whole new level. We placed great importance on that. We focused on blending the CG with live action: its texture, fluidity, and 3D fidelity. It’s all about creating a real connection with the audience. We hope to deliver a truly immersive cultivation experience. Throughout the development of The Immortal Ascension IP, our goal has always been to share this treasure of Chinese fantasy with a wider audience. Through a live-action lens, we want more people to discover Han Li’s world, and this cultivation culture that is humble yet deeply Chinese. Each of us is a mortal walking our path through life. The idea of “cultivation” carries many layers of meaning. Every struggle we face, every moment we live, and every essential encounter and farewell, these are all part of our own path to “immortality.”