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WEB-NOVEL REVIEW: “SHA PO LANG”
Written by: Polaris_Tae
Title – Sha Po Lang (杀破狼)
Genre – Shounen Ai, Fantasy, Mecha, Steampunk
Format – Web novel
Author – Priest
Release – 2015
Chapters – 128 + 15 Extras
Publisher – JJWXC
Rating – 15+
‘Sha Po Lang’ is a Chinese web-novel written by Priest, who, along with MoXiangTongXiu is probably one of the most prolific and well known BL web-novel authors today! Her previous work ‘Guardian’ brought her immense popularity following the airing of the drama, with ‘Legend of Fei’, also set to receive a drama adaptation in late 2020. ‘Sha Po Lang’ is set within an alternate world where the steampunk aesthetic of Industrial England has been combined with that of ancient Chinese dynasties. It revolves around Chang Geng, the adopted son of a local mayor who, unbeknownst to him at the time, is the fourth prince of Great Liang and his love interest and mentor Gu Yun.
We first meet Chang Geng as a young teenager in a small village greeting a pair of young children at the bottom of a hill, Cao Niangzi and Ge Pangxiao. We find out that he is the stepson of the local mayor, Xu Baihu, who is away on business, and that he and his mother do not get along, so much so that they do not even eat in the same room unless his stepfather is at home. His mother is known to mercilessly torment the boy with petty acts such as putting her hair in his food knowing that he refuses to eat anything that his mother had touched. Then, we meet Shen Shiliu, who, following Chang Geng’s failed attempt to run away from home, saved the young man from being mauled by wolves and later took him on as his disciple, who Chang Geng affectionately refers to as his ‘Yifu’.
The pair are awaiting the return of Chang Geng's foster father, however, several days later -- just as his father is due to return on the giant kite* -- the village is attacked by bandits. Chang Geng discovers that his father has perished in the attack and that his mother, Hu Ge Er, who both abused and cared for him throughout his childhood, was, in fact, not his mother, but his aunt. She was allied with the bandits that attacked the village. Following this the child is then made known that Hu Ge Er poisoned him as a young baby with 'Bone of Impurity', that will cause him to one day have outbursts of rage and eventually lead to the loss of his sanity, where he will finally deviate into a madman, confusing nightmare from reality, thus placing a final curse on Chang Geng before departing entirely from life. Following the suicide of his 'mother' Chang Geng further discovers that he is the long lost prince of Great Liang (大梁). His 'Yifu', Shen Shiliu on the other hand, was discovered by Chang Geng to actually be the great warrior Gu Yun of the Black Iron Camp,* the strongest military battalion within the Great Liang dynasty, who was sent to the Northern Frontier to find and care for the missing prince (i.e. Chang Geng). Gu Yun (courtesy name Zixi) is the only child of the Grand Princess, the daughter of an Emperor from a previous dynasty, Liang Wu (possibly based on the founder of the Liang Dynasty and a real historical figure) and the former Marquis of Order, the highest military office in Great Liang. Following the death of both of his parents, Gu Yun was then taken in by the current Emperor of Great Liang (大梁) and raised within the imperial palace only to become the commander of the Black Iron Camp and Marquis of Order once he came of age.
Following the defeat of the bandits -- who have now ransacked his village and both his and his friend's family -- the pair then travel to the imperial city in an effort to claim his royal title. Chang Geng and Gu Yun then meet with the ailing Emperor, who, after searching for his son for thirteen years, has finally found him only for the Emperor to be on his deathbed. As Chang Geng has no one to look after him, the Emperor requests Gu Yun to become his guardian until the boy comes of age, thus officially becoming his 'Yifu' (adoptive father). Following this, Chang Geng, along with his friends Cao Niangzi and Ge Pengxiao, moves into Gu Yun's small estate. However, less than a year into living together Gu Yun is summoned by the newly crowned Emperor back to the Northern Frontier to deal with a number of instabilities, thus leaving Chang Geng, who is currently at his wits end dealing with a number of night terrors due to the 'Bone of Impurity' poison with his 'Yifu' leaving him all alone again.
Following a years separation, Gu Yun receives news from one of his servants that Chang Geng and his friends have run away from home with a mute Monk Liao Ran, which is especially critical, as Gu Yun despises Monks and running away with a Monk -- in the eyes of Gu Yun -- would be worse than if Chang Geng had actually killed someone. As a result, he takes a trip across the country -- while forgetting to take his medication for his eyes and ears -- across the country to find the boy and his two friends. After finding him, the pair ends their meetup on a sour note, as when Gu Yun invites Chang Geng back to the frontier with him, the boy declines (due to his complicated feelings for the older man) and the two do not meet again for four years.
I found that one of the greatest aspects within 'Sha Po Lang' is the overarching world building and it's attention to detail. The author absolutely excels at creating a fusion of steampunk blended with a grounded historical setting of Great Liang (大梁), creating a realistic setting for its characters that reside within the novel. This can be seen in how as the story progresses, Great Liang (大梁), goes from being a well-off and prosperous nation to a country that is struggling following the crowning of a new emperor. It is placed further at risk by the following conflicts with a threat of & western forces ever-present threat of invasion. As well as the after-effects of war and conflict forcefully dragging down the economy, that is heavily reliant on ziliujin -- the canon stand-in for crude oil -- being imported from abroad due to the minimal reserves of the product within Great Liang (大梁).
I also enjoyed the relationship between the main couple, especially when compared to previous web-novels of the same genre. It does not fall into the common trope of the protagonist confessing their feelings only for the story to conclude and the pair to ride off into the sunset and spend the rest of their lives together. Instead, Gu Yun discovers Chang Geng's feelings by happenstance just over halfway through the novel. This is where we spend almost an entire arc with the pair trying to understand each other's feelings for the other. Finally, after travelling and working together for some time, they come to terms with their feelings and eventually become a couple without even the reader noticing the change in dynamics until the last moment.
I also greatly enjoyed the realistic portrayal of disabilities within the novel, which both of the novel's main characters have. Gu Yun is both half-deaf and half-blind and relies on medicine that acts as a poison, which, if he continues to use, will slowly deteriorate his body and possibly kill him. However, the man continues to rely on the drug due to the nature of his work as a general of the largest armed forces within Great Liang (大梁), which requires him to have control of all of his senses. On the other hand, Chang Geng was found to have been poisoned with "Bone of Impurity" as a baby by his aunt Hu Ge Er. This causes him to have attacks of nightmares and develop violent tendencies at odds with his everyday personality.
In conclusion, 'Sha Po Lang' is an extremely detailed story full of political intrigue and suspense-filled with a fantastic love story that doesn't take anything away from the main body of the story, but adds to it instead. It substantiates Priest's position as one of the most versatile web-novel authors within not just the Shounen Ai genre, but also the larger fantasy genre.
__________________________________________________
Story: 9/10
Setting: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
Themes: 8/10
Writing Style: 9/10
9.2/10
__________________________________________________
PROOFREAD BY: @Dragon of the West
GRAPHICS BY: @Aerith
Written by: Polaris_Tae
Title – Sha Po Lang (杀破狼)
Genre – Shounen Ai, Fantasy, Mecha, Steampunk
Format – Web novel
Author – Priest
Release – 2015
Chapters – 128 + 15 Extras
Publisher – JJWXC
Rating – 15+
‘Sha Po Lang’ is a Chinese web-novel written by Priest, who, along with MoXiangTongXiu is probably one of the most prolific and well known BL web-novel authors today! Her previous work ‘Guardian’ brought her immense popularity following the airing of the drama, with ‘Legend of Fei’, also set to receive a drama adaptation in late 2020. ‘Sha Po Lang’ is set within an alternate world where the steampunk aesthetic of Industrial England has been combined with that of ancient Chinese dynasties. It revolves around Chang Geng, the adopted son of a local mayor who, unbeknownst to him at the time, is the fourth prince of Great Liang and his love interest and mentor Gu Yun.
We first meet Chang Geng as a young teenager in a small village greeting a pair of young children at the bottom of a hill, Cao Niangzi and Ge Pangxiao. We find out that he is the stepson of the local mayor, Xu Baihu, who is away on business, and that he and his mother do not get along, so much so that they do not even eat in the same room unless his stepfather is at home. His mother is known to mercilessly torment the boy with petty acts such as putting her hair in his food knowing that he refuses to eat anything that his mother had touched. Then, we meet Shen Shiliu, who, following Chang Geng’s failed attempt to run away from home, saved the young man from being mauled by wolves and later took him on as his disciple, who Chang Geng affectionately refers to as his ‘Yifu’.
The pair are awaiting the return of Chang Geng's foster father, however, several days later -- just as his father is due to return on the giant kite* -- the village is attacked by bandits. Chang Geng discovers that his father has perished in the attack and that his mother, Hu Ge Er, who both abused and cared for him throughout his childhood, was, in fact, not his mother, but his aunt. She was allied with the bandits that attacked the village. Following this the child is then made known that Hu Ge Er poisoned him as a young baby with 'Bone of Impurity', that will cause him to one day have outbursts of rage and eventually lead to the loss of his sanity, where he will finally deviate into a madman, confusing nightmare from reality, thus placing a final curse on Chang Geng before departing entirely from life. Following the suicide of his 'mother' Chang Geng further discovers that he is the long lost prince of Great Liang (大梁). His 'Yifu', Shen Shiliu on the other hand, was discovered by Chang Geng to actually be the great warrior Gu Yun of the Black Iron Camp,* the strongest military battalion within the Great Liang dynasty, who was sent to the Northern Frontier to find and care for the missing prince (i.e. Chang Geng). Gu Yun (courtesy name Zixi) is the only child of the Grand Princess, the daughter of an Emperor from a previous dynasty, Liang Wu (possibly based on the founder of the Liang Dynasty and a real historical figure) and the former Marquis of Order, the highest military office in Great Liang. Following the death of both of his parents, Gu Yun was then taken in by the current Emperor of Great Liang (大梁) and raised within the imperial palace only to become the commander of the Black Iron Camp and Marquis of Order once he came of age.
Following the defeat of the bandits -- who have now ransacked his village and both his and his friend's family -- the pair then travel to the imperial city in an effort to claim his royal title. Chang Geng and Gu Yun then meet with the ailing Emperor, who, after searching for his son for thirteen years, has finally found him only for the Emperor to be on his deathbed. As Chang Geng has no one to look after him, the Emperor requests Gu Yun to become his guardian until the boy comes of age, thus officially becoming his 'Yifu' (adoptive father). Following this, Chang Geng, along with his friends Cao Niangzi and Ge Pengxiao, moves into Gu Yun's small estate. However, less than a year into living together Gu Yun is summoned by the newly crowned Emperor back to the Northern Frontier to deal with a number of instabilities, thus leaving Chang Geng, who is currently at his wits end dealing with a number of night terrors due to the 'Bone of Impurity' poison with his 'Yifu' leaving him all alone again.
Following a years separation, Gu Yun receives news from one of his servants that Chang Geng and his friends have run away from home with a mute Monk Liao Ran, which is especially critical, as Gu Yun despises Monks and running away with a Monk -- in the eyes of Gu Yun -- would be worse than if Chang Geng had actually killed someone. As a result, he takes a trip across the country -- while forgetting to take his medication for his eyes and ears -- across the country to find the boy and his two friends. After finding him, the pair ends their meetup on a sour note, as when Gu Yun invites Chang Geng back to the frontier with him, the boy declines (due to his complicated feelings for the older man) and the two do not meet again for four years.
I found that one of the greatest aspects within 'Sha Po Lang' is the overarching world building and it's attention to detail. The author absolutely excels at creating a fusion of steampunk blended with a grounded historical setting of Great Liang (大梁), creating a realistic setting for its characters that reside within the novel. This can be seen in how as the story progresses, Great Liang (大梁), goes from being a well-off and prosperous nation to a country that is struggling following the crowning of a new emperor. It is placed further at risk by the following conflicts with a threat of & western forces ever-present threat of invasion. As well as the after-effects of war and conflict forcefully dragging down the economy, that is heavily reliant on ziliujin -- the canon stand-in for crude oil -- being imported from abroad due to the minimal reserves of the product within Great Liang (大梁).
I also enjoyed the relationship between the main couple, especially when compared to previous web-novels of the same genre. It does not fall into the common trope of the protagonist confessing their feelings only for the story to conclude and the pair to ride off into the sunset and spend the rest of their lives together. Instead, Gu Yun discovers Chang Geng's feelings by happenstance just over halfway through the novel. This is where we spend almost an entire arc with the pair trying to understand each other's feelings for the other. Finally, after travelling and working together for some time, they come to terms with their feelings and eventually become a couple without even the reader noticing the change in dynamics until the last moment.
I also greatly enjoyed the realistic portrayal of disabilities within the novel, which both of the novel's main characters have. Gu Yun is both half-deaf and half-blind and relies on medicine that acts as a poison, which, if he continues to use, will slowly deteriorate his body and possibly kill him. However, the man continues to rely on the drug due to the nature of his work as a general of the largest armed forces within Great Liang (大梁), which requires him to have control of all of his senses. On the other hand, Chang Geng was found to have been poisoned with "Bone of Impurity" as a baby by his aunt Hu Ge Er. This causes him to have attacks of nightmares and develop violent tendencies at odds with his everyday personality.
In conclusion, 'Sha Po Lang' is an extremely detailed story full of political intrigue and suspense-filled with a fantastic love story that doesn't take anything away from the main body of the story, but adds to it instead. It substantiates Priest's position as one of the most versatile web-novel authors within not just the Shounen Ai genre, but also the larger fantasy genre.
__________________________________________________
Story: 9/10
Setting: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
Themes: 8/10
Writing Style: 9/10
9.2/10
__________________________________________________
PROOFREAD BY: @Dragon of the West
GRAPHICS BY: @Aerith
Last edited:
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Sounds really interesting! Thanks for the review!
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This is on my reading list 