This manhua deserves a -10 for me. I am currently enraged and partially with a headache. I am very lenient with my graphic novels and rarely to almost never would actually not only give a low rating to something I do not like, but even comment on it. I am of the opinion, if I do not like something, just ignore it and leave it for people that enjoy it. I really have also low requirements when it comes to liking a story. Even if it feels like it is a copy paste of another story or when the plot is simple and the characters two dimensional, I can still easily enjoy it.
But this. This is just horrible. The main reason I probably even bother being angry with something I do not like, is because I can tell I would enjoy the concept if it was not for just one thing. I can't tell what is even going on with this horrible nonsensical pace!
The pace around chapter 40 just becomes.. heck I can't even find a word about what I want to express here. I would say way too fast, but that is NOT even the main problem. It is that events and scenes can start and randomly cut off, as if they never started. Even worse, randomly they can pop up out of nowhere, to the point I would look backwards to see what I missed reading, but nope, they never "started" to begin with. Everything happens so fast, as in seemingly big plot events start, only to get either interrupted or concluded instantly, making you wonder if they were as important as they seem to be. Characters that seem like they are meant to be important to both the story and the main character, are given such little attention, that you end up not caring who they are or what they even mean. Every single solitary relationship is flimsier that a thin sheet of glass, where the pace and confusion act like a huge sledgehammer.
I reached chapter 90, but honestly after 70 something, I just started skipping dialogue, trying to find anything that would make me relax and just keep following it.
Rare as it is for me, I definitely do not suggest people to not try it. There are numerous better graphical novels out there, that even if they are simple and even uninspiring, at least the reader can make sense of what is going on. If you want to actually find out about the story of Panlong, I fully suggest to ignore the graphic novel and go read the light novel!