A review by sebean
Dinghai Fusheng Records (Novel) Vol. 1 by Fei Tian Ye Xiang

adventurous funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

The setup with one of the main characters being imprisoned made me think of FTYX’s other book To Rule in a Turbulent World, which I didn’t like at all, but fortunately this book has none of the uneven power dynamic or insta-love present in that one. It’s more similar to Legend of Exorcism (which it shares a universe with) in that there are some mysteries but the tone is mostly light. There’s also a mostly silly but sometimes angsty enemies to lovers dynamic here; the romance definitely isn’t as cute as Legend of Exorcism’s, but I’m looking forward to seeing how it develops! 

The only character I didn’t really like, as in most danmei, was the emperor. He’s not only entitled like all the others, but also blatantly misogynistic and doesn’t get the comeuppance he should for it.

The princess seemed like a victim of his based off of the information we have so far, and the way he wants to make marriage between men legal but do nothing for the women already had me side-eyeing him.