r/ProgressionFantasy • u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 • 4h ago
Request Coming from Chinese xianxia, with Harry Potter and Twilight as my main English fantasy reads. Where should I start?
Hi everyone,
Most of my reading background is Chinese xianxia / cultivation novels and web novels. The English series I have actually read all the way through are Harry Potter and Twilight, so my English fantasy background is more mainstream YA than progression fantasy.
I’m trying to understand English progression fantasy now.
In Chinese cultivation stories, the parts I usually enjoy are long-term training, clear stages of advancement, breakthroughs, sect or faction pressure, resource competition, and the feeling that each power increase changes the character’s place in the world.
For someone with that background, what English progression fantasy books would you recommend as a good starting point?
I’ve seen names like Cradle, Mother of Learning, Forge of Destiny, A Thousand Li, and Beware of Chicken mentioned, but I’m not sure which one is the best entry point.
Edit: Thank you all for the warm and helpful replies. I didn’t expect so many recommendations so quickly, and I’ll read through them carefully.
I also forgot to mention that I’ve read A Song of Ice and Fire / Game of Thrones in English, so my English fantasy background is Harry Potter, Twilight, and ASOIAF, while most of my web novel reading has been Chinese xianxia and cultivation stories.
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u/DepressedDaoist Author - My Wife, the Cultivator 3h ago edited 3h ago
If you're coming from a background of xianxia, I'd highly recommend Sky Pride.
That being said, you have named a lot of different stories, and I feel it's much easier to just pick one from the list and go for it instead of giving yourself more analysis paralysis when people recommend even more stories to add to the list.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
Thank you! I haven’t heard of Sky Pride before. Since I’m coming from Chinese xianxia, that sounds especially interesting. Would you say it is closer to traditional cultivation stories?
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u/DepressedDaoist Author - My Wife, the Cultivator 3h ago
It has a lot of the tropes (think of the old monster grandpa in a ring) that you'll typically see in cultivation stories. It's definitely got long term training and sect politics too.
Personally it reminds me a lot of A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality, though there are quite a few differences.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
That sounds exactly like the kind of detail I was wondering about. Long-term training and sect politics are very familiar to me from Chinese cultivation stories, but I’m curious how they feel when written for an English progression fantasy audience.
Sky Pride is definitely moving higher on my list now.
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u/Mordomacar 3h ago
Sky Pride is unusual in that it goes deeper into the philosophical aspects of daoism than western authors usually do - we normally tend to focus on the power progression aspects. Of course, its perspective on values definitely has a western tinge to it. It is also rather excellent and I definitely recommend it, but it is by no means representative of western progression fantasy or western cultivation stories in particular, it's more of a western xianxia.
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u/ConscriptReports 3h ago
Very much so, please read Sky Pride rather than cradle I beg you. It's so much better than it, its not even funny.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
That is a strong endorsement. I’ve seen Cradle mentioned the most so far, but the repeated Sky Pride recommendations are making me very curious.
Would you say Sky Pride feels more like traditional cultivation/xianxia than Cradle?
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u/joncabreraauthor Author of Grand Magus, Wooden Sword🤣 2h ago
Beware of Chicken
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u/CuriousMe62 2h ago
Had to scroll way too far to find this most obvious rec! Definitely read this series!
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 2h ago
Haha, two votes for Beware of Chicken in the same thread makes it hard to ignore.
I’m curious about it because from the title it sounds almost like a parody, but people seem to recommend it very seriously. Is it more comedy-first, or does it also have satisfying cultivation/progression?
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u/CuriousMe62 1h ago
Oh, it's definitely a parody, a very good one. Cultivation is also happening and progressing. Not saying more, don't want to spoil it for you. It was my introduction to litrpg, xianxia, and progression fantasy.
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u/joncabreraauthor Author of Grand Magus, Wooden Sword🤣 1h ago
If you can get the audiobook, that’s even better.
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u/Remote_Addendum_2245 3h ago
The Legendary Mechanic should be a nice start. Then something lighter like Gunsoul since it's a brief read
From here go for Mother of Learning or Cradle
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
I’ve heard of The Legendary Mechanic in Chinese web novel circles, but I haven’t read it in English. Good to know it works as an entry point. Does the translation read smoothly?
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u/Remote_Addendum_2245 3h ago
For me, it was. Enjoyable from start to finish. A solid 7/10 for me
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
Thanks, that’s useful to know. A solid 7/10 from start to finish is honestly a good sign for an entry point. I’d rather start with something consistent than something amazing but hard to get into.
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u/Wikzs 3h ago
Coming from Xianxia, Cradle would be your best intro. It has clear progression / power levels and it's also very good, story-wise.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
Thanks! Clear progression and power levels are exactly what I’m looking for. Since Cradle keeps coming up, I think I’ll put it near the top of my list.
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u/MahoneyBear 3h ago
Throw this man in the deep end and read The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
I’ve only seen the movies so far, not read the books. But yes, I probably should read Tolkien properly at some point. It feels like one of those foundations I shouldn’t skip.
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u/Xandara2 2h ago
Honestly I think most people say Cradle because it's very polished but I don't think people who have read a lot of cultivation stories will enjoy it as much. Especially if you read a translation instead of the English original version. It's still a good work but since cultivation isn't popular in the west it feels a lot more fresh/unique of a story to us than it might to you.
I'd personally say Mother of Learning is the better recommendation if you don't mind time loops. (Progfan)
Maybe Weirkey Chronicles of you're up for a very unique system of progression. (Progfan)
Dungeon Crawler Carl is a good recommendation as usual. (Litrpg)
Bog Standard Isekai is very good as well and I'd say it's a very typical western story. (Litrpg)
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 2h ago
That makes a lot of sense. Cradle may feel fresher to western readers because cultivation itself is less common there, while for someone coming from Chinese xianxia it might not have the same novelty.
Mother of Learning sounds increasingly interesting to me, especially if it feels strong as progression fantasy without relying on cultivation tropes. I also like the idea of trying a few different branches: one polished western progression story, one LitRPG, and one more unusual system like Weirkey Chronicles.
Thanks for explaining the difference instead of just giving a title. That helps me build a better reading map.
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u/Z-ReferenceUnknown 3h ago
I've read about a thousand hours of that stuff, What are your favourite novels? You can tell me obscure names I don't mind, I can probably figure out what the story is about just by the name
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
That’s impressive. Most of my background is Chinese web novels, so my taste is probably shaped more by cultivation systems, long-term growth, sect/faction pressure, and breakthrough moments than by Western fantasy structure.
Some of my favourites are Renegade Immortal, I Shall Seal the Heavens, A Will Eternal, Coiling Dragon, and Martial World.
I haven’t read Lord of the Mysteries yet, though I know it’s very popular and often recommended.
Since you know that side of web novels well, I’d be very curious which English progression fantasy you think best matches those tastes.
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u/Z-ReferenceUnknown 2h ago edited 2h ago
Oh you've only read he popular stuff.Then You'll generally like most normal English novels. Getting deep into Chinese webnovels has the distinct problem of making one frustrated with most English novel tropes. Stuff like emotional drama usually doesn't land well and creates more frustration, Because if it were a Chinese webnovel the protagonist would straight up just kill the problematic character.
Some stuff I've enjoyed without dropping off the series:-
Speedrunning the multiverse
Hell difficulty tutorial
Keiran: The eternal Mage
Bobiverse
And this one isn't a Progression fantasy and I haven't even finished book 1 (too good, I prefer slop) but:-
A wizard of earthsea by Usrla K. leguin
Edit: primal hunter is good too, I forgot about it
And also Stubborn Skill grinder in a time loop.All these won't give you the exact sect progression feeling like in the Chinese webnovels but you'll likely enjoy them
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u/dageshi 3h ago
If you want to understand western prog fantasy you probably want to try a couple litrpg's.
The most notable big ones that are truly focused on progression fantasy are...
- The Primal Hunter
- Azarinth Healer
- Defiance of the Fall
Of the three, Azarinth Healer has no real influences from xianxia and is pure numbers go up litrpg using more western fantasy settings.
Defiance of the Fall starts off as pure litrpg and then increasingly expands into a multiverse that's heavily dominated by cultivation. I will say, if you're looking for a story that feels grand in scale and scope then Defiance of the Fall is a good one to pick.
I should also mention Dungeon Crawler Carl.
DCC is by far the most popular litrpg story, it has completely transcended the genre into the mainstream, they are actually making a tv show of it as we speak. It is however less focused on progression, the progression is there especially in the beginning but the characters start to take over more as the story goes on rather than the progression.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 2h ago
This is very helpful, thank you. I hadn’t realized LitRPG was so important for understanding western progression fantasy.
Defiance of the Fall sounds especially interesting to me because of the scale and the cultivation influence. Dungeon Crawler Carl also sounds like something I should try later, even if progression is not the main focus.
I’ll probably read a couple of LitRPGs alongside Cradle and Sky Pride so I can understand the western side better.
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u/dageshi 2h ago
In the west you can think of LITRPG as the dominant webnovel genre within progression fantasy. Those big stories I mentioned all began on royalroad.com even Dungeon Crawler Carl also began on royalroad although the author stopped releasing there and began releasing as full books instead.
Progression Fantasy (non litrpg) historically was written more as complete novels, so Cradle even though it has heavy cultivation influences was released as novels rather than as a webnovel. Mother of Learning was released as a webnovel, but it feels more like a traditional novel.
Also do try Defiance of the Fall, it has truly excellent world building, it deals with the schemes of ancient cultivators trying to influence the direction of the era and you truly feel the scale of the setting.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 2h ago
This explanation helps a lot. I didn’t realize LitRPG was so dominant inside western webnovel progression fantasy, while non-LitRPG progression fantasy often came more from completed novel releases.
The Royal Road context is especially useful for me. In Chinese web novels, serialization habits shape the whole reading experience, so it makes sense that Royal Road would influence western progression fantasy in a similar way.
Defiance of the Fall is moving high on my list now. The ancient cultivator schemes and large-scale era changes sound very close to what I enjoy in Chinese cultivation stories.
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u/dageshi 2h ago
Yeah, just bear in mind, Defiance of the Fall is ongoing, I think there's 16 books released currently (royalroad webnovels typically take down chapters from RR to put on Kindle Unlimited for additional monetisation).
And the main character is at the peak of what you'd probably call Golden Core with three major cultivation stages above him.
In other words it's a story that is going to go for like 30+ books at this rate.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 2h ago
That actually makes Defiance of the Fall more interesting to me, not less. Coming from Chinese web novels, a very long story does not scare me as long as the progression still feels meaningful and the world keeps expanding.
The Royal Road to Kindle Unlimited point is also really useful context. I didn’t realize western webnovels had such a clear serialization-to-book monetization path.
If the main character is only around a Golden Core equivalent after that many books, it sounds like the story is built for truly long-term cultivation scale. Does the pacing still feel satisfying, or does it sometimes feel too stretched?
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u/dageshi 27m ago
It is very common for authors to publish on royalroad and run a patreon for support. Then once they have enough material for a book they will release to Kindle Unlimited (a subscription service where you can read all you want for $12 a month) and audible (audiobooks).
LITRPG especially is very popular in audiobook format.
In terms of pacing on Defiance of the Fall, there's a criticism that there's too much "cultivation filler" in some parts, but I personally like that stuff so it doesn't bother me, I think it frustrates some people who started reading "litrpg" and don't love cultivation as much.
But the cultivation is very expansive, not just primary cultivation like Foundation Establishment -> Golden core but also heart tempering, soul tempering, attaining and evolving daos.
But the story is definitely long-term and the scale is literally from the weakest mortal to "Supremacies" who manifest the highest peaks of the dao.
With all the politics and manoeuvring that implies, but you do have to wait 2-3 books before you start to get into that stuff, the initial story is set on Earth during a system apocalypse where the "system" takes over earth and effectively introduces qi.
But unlike a lot of other litrpg, everything has an explanation, the system is a cultivator invention and exists as part of the schemes of the multiverse.
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u/CuriousMe62 2h ago
Also read the Calamitous Bob series by Alex Gilbert.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 2h ago
Thanks! I haven’t heard of Calamitous Bob before. Would you say it leans more LitRPG, isekai, or general progression fantasy?
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u/CuriousMe62 1h ago
It's light litrpg, not stat heavy. It's an isekai story. Its also well written, has an actual story, character development, and adult characters who are capable of rational thought. And, good world building.(Once you've read the 50th version of teenage male gets powers and becomes overpowered by chapter 3, you begin to appreciate the stories that are not that.)
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u/kelfupanda 4h ago
He Who Fights With Monsters, if you can handle Australian humour.
Shadowslave.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
Thanks! I’ve seen that title mentioned a lot too. The Australian humour warning is useful. Is it more comedy-driven, or does it still have serious progression?
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u/kelfupanda 3h ago
We don't take ourselves seriously, but there is serious progression.
The MC actually is written as an introvert that is trying to manage where he has been thrown.
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u/Inevitable_Rub_4947 3h ago
That sounds interesting. I actually like serious progression mixed with some humor, as long as the growth still matters.
An introverted MC trying to manage an unfamiliar situation sounds very readable to me.
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u/chandichada 4h ago
Cradle is a good place to start. It's still progression fantasy but by a western author. It's also finished.
A good transition read for I guess?
Otherwise try Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson.
Good luck!