We will be the first ones to admit that there are not a lot of animated BL projects with strong plots; it’s usually just the two main characters feeling attracted to each other and spending time under the covers. So it feels weird when we’re presented with a piece that not only depicts the love between men but also has a story to tell. Tian Bao Fuyao Lu - Legend Of Exorcism - is an interesting donghua that will definitely gain recognition among the Yaoi loving crows.

No matter how you look at it, Legend Of Exorcism is not your typical story. While Kong Hongjun is a little bit naive because of his sheltered upbringing, he knows how to defend himself if he’s faced with trouble. He’s kind but not a pushover, standing by his decisions and carrying out his mission. Li Jinglong, the seme in this story, is the complete opposite. Stern and often perceived as an angry person, Li Jinglong likes to boss people around, even the exorcists who are more powerful than him. However, this is not his true personality… His previous self used to be a coward and a really selfish person, something that makes Li Jinglong feel really embarrassed.

Yes, Tian Bao Fuyao Lu is fully animated in 3D, which may lead you to think that it’s not worth giving it a try. We can’t blame you! We’ve seen it happen with other animated projects, failing to come up with a decent 3D animation, with weird looking characters and awful action scenes. With this donghua, however, you don’t have anything to be worried about. If you take a look at the design of the characters, they look like they belong in a modern video game, with a similar style in drawing and animation.

Since Legend Of Exorcism has a lot of fighting scenes and characters jumping around performing complicated stunts, it’s easy to think that it’ll look cheap or awful on the screen. But the animators managed to give us fully animated action scenes, with the characters’ movements flowing easily. It’s pleasant to the eye and it adds to the charm of this donghua. Since 3D animation is not that common, Legend Of Exorcism stands out, attracting all kinds of viewers. While some may come for the BL plot, others may stay for the amazing effects and compelling narrative.

Tian Bao Fuyao Lu is adapted from a novel that then became a manhua (the Chinese version of manga), so it had a pretty loyal fanbase before it became a donghua. Of course, the producers wanted to charm the audience in order to get more viewers. Something like that is tricky when you’re offering a BL story since people tend to ignore these kinds of projects unless they’re fujoshis. Luckily for this donghua, the story balances romance and action pretty well, giving everyone what they want.

The relationship between Li Jinglong and Kong Hongjun is not as explicit in the donghua as it is in the novel or the manhua. The show relies on longing stares and dialogues to show that these two are interested in one another and, later on, romantically involved. We can overlook the fact that we don’t get to see any action between these two or steamy encounters because their relationship is wholesome. Li Jinglong starts as a really cool, distant guy, but it doesn’t take long for him to show his soft side towards Kong Hongjun. We’re not gonna lie: we wish there was some action other than on the battlefield… If you know what we mean.