Read the manhua till chapter 150s then novel till chapter 700.
Let me tell you, this is one of the single best series out there. its very well thought out, similar along the lines of emperors domination or grasping evil, (approaching them but not necessarily better)
The manhua side steps this problem to a large degree because the space on the page is limited thus the artist probably just removed all the empty chaff, but the novel, while much more descriptive, is simply chock full with filler text. Characters and the peanut gallery constantly make surface level observations whenever anything of not or even irrelevant happens. They pull the MC down and then lift him up right afterwards.
Which kind of leads us to the other part of what makes this novel/ manhua good.
Its mentioned in the reviews for the novel on novelupdates but this comment kind of sums it up. This story has righteous sects that are actually righteous. The world isn't out to get the MC's sect (who he has a special connection to, its revealed much later on)
I am now going to spoil exactly who and what the MC is and his connection to the sect, this will explain a very key part of the early story, his main love interest, why the sect is in dire straits at the start, everything,
Personally i recommend you don't read it because this whole thing is explained in an absolutely heart wrenching flashback sequence which puts every single puzzle piece in place. (but this does happen basically a few hundred chapters in)
So yes the mc has lived multiple lives in multiple different universes, the last one happens to be earth after which he got sent back into the cultivation world. He does have a destiny with that sect which is the whole reason why he's going back there. A long time ago (reminds me of Return of mount hua sect manhwa) the sect disciples and its seniors everyone went into another dimension kinda thing as a test for the disciples, but things took a bad turn and monsters basically interfered with this test, The sect's elders and teachers ALL died, and the disciples survived by the sacrifice of their most talented eldest brother, that guy, was the first life of the MC. Thats the reason the entire sect is without any ancestor or elders to rely upon, the disciples learnt everything themselves via the records left behind. The MC vows to return... and he does, this time in another life, as a disciple. This is why the female lead has been single this whole time, and why she hasn't progressed. She was the senior brother's love interest way back and has essentially been waiting for his return, which he does now as her disciple.
Anyways back to the rest of the story, The characters arent detestable. Peoples actions make sense, the righteous sects are righteous. They don't truly abandon the MC's sect but instead help it recover
(unlike what happens in return of mount hua sect)
This is also the novel that hit me with the one line i still haven't forgotten.
The MC says this to the love interest, basically confirming to her that she's the main one. he tells her "Harem management is the job of the empress."
Also, its not some random fall in love at first sight as it usually is the case with generic manhua. The characters here are way lifelike. Theres lots of scenes of them just doing stuff together, teasing each other, practicing, fighting, etc etc.
I suppose yes, unlike some other cultivation stories where there's high stakes right from the start, such a thing does not happen here.
(do not confuse this with 'high stakes never happen', they certainly do but they are spaced out properly and in an engaging way, almost like how a story should be paced, a period of calm followed by buildup till sharply the stakes rise super high, then the fight happens, the victor is decided and the aftermath of the fight where concessions are made etc etc, post which there is another period of calm before the storm as the MC settles with the new status quo and it goes on slowly till right at the opportune moment another storm starts brewing in the distance.)
TLDR, just read it. It's a slow burn start but all of it has meaning, it hits you with tides, the classic calm before the storm and then the storm, then the storm passes and the new status quo is settled till it happens all over again.
I rate it a 10 out of 10, which i rarely do because no story is perfect but sometimes some are just worth pointing out because of how exceptional they are in certain aspects.