『4+1』
Zhang Chenze, Jiang You, Ye Wanqiu, Li Shiya, Su Jinwan
This is an ensemble worldview that layers a hidden cultivation (xiuxian) realm and karmic reincarnation onto the modern Earth. The real world is no different from our present-day Earth, with complete legal systems and social order. Ordinary people from different walks of life — Jiang You, Ye Wanqiu, Li Shiya, and others — struggle within the mundane cages of career, public opinion, and human relationships, utterly unaware of any supernatural forces. Beneath the mortal world lies a hidden cultivation plane. Cultivators conceal themselves among the masses, bound by the iron laws of Heaven's Dao, forbidden from arbitrarily meddling in mortal affairs. And above it all stands a cold, impersonal system of reincarnation and karma. The fates of all beings are locked into scripts — whenever a life approaches fulfillment, it is forcibly wiped clean and restarted. Everyone's memories are erased, and all begin anew. Zhang Chenze is the anchor of the reincarnation cycle, uniquely bearing the full weight of suffering memories from every lifetime, repeatedly watching those around him meet once more, only to forget again. The protagonist is a cultivator at the Dao-Entry realm. In his youth, he cultivated deep in the mountains, where his master exhausted his power to lay down the "Reincarnation Seal Barrier," shielding him from the cleansing surges of the cycle's resets while sealing away the full truth of reincarnation. After his master passed into nirvana, the protagonist descended the mountain and entered the world in a daze. His physical body's timeline runs in sync with the mortal world, yet he knows nothing of the hidden secrets of fate. The story has no preset or forced plotline; it advances as a slow-burn ensemble. Through repeated meetings and companionships, as the reincarnation cycle turns again and again, the seal on his soul gradually loosens. Only after several lifetimes will he awaken to the full truth and set foot on the path of defying fate. Ultimate goal: shatter the shackles of reincarnation, so that everyone manipulated by fate can truly live lives of their own choosing.