In the shadow of the success of blockbuster of “Ne Zha 2”, a silent revolution rehabits the landscape of entertainment in China.
While attention focuses on how local titles are increasingly exceeding Western films through cultural pride and technological progress, another formidable force motivates this change: web novels and their extraordinarily successful authors. Historically, the most emblematic works of cinema, from classics like “as much with the wind” to franchises such as “Harry Potter”, come from traditional edition. But the approach of digital China has rewritten this game book, with companies like Yuewen Transforming what was formerly the content of niche into world entertainment powerhouses.
“The strong rhythm, the imaginative concepts of online literature and universal emotional nuclei make it very suitable for cinematographic and televised adaptation,” explains Hou Xiaonan, CEO and president of Yuewen, whose platform is home to more than 10 million online authors and more than 16 million literary works. The figures say a lot. In the classification of the television series of the Chinese television series of 2024, the three best programs were all adapted from online literature: “Joy of Life 2”, “The Legend of Shenli” and “The Double”.
According to Hou, for the next list of 2025 through the three largest streaming platforms in China, adaptations of web novels will represent more than 30% of the new series. Among these digital literary stars, little shine brighter than the cuttlefish that loves diving, author of “Lord of Mysteries”. The series has accumulated more than 1.45 billion views, including its audio version, the author amassing more than 39 million followers worldwide. Currently adapted to an animation series provided for the summer release, the pre-records on Tencent Video for the series have already exceeded 830,000.
“I believe that there should be expressions of the most fundamental and universal human emotions,” said the section, according to an interrogation on the themes that work internationally. “Family affection, friendship, love, compassion for miserables, perseverance in the maintenance of justice and resistance against oppressors are the key to global resonance.”
The international impact is undeniable. “Lord of Mysteries” holds the World Subscription Dossier on Web novels with more than 50 million views on Webnovel only outside China. He generated communities of spontaneous fans, his basic Facebook group exceeding 20,000 members and retaining a remarkable note of 4.8 out of 5.
Beyond the English markets, the novel was translated into French, Korean, Japanese and Thai, with editions printed in Russian. In November 2024, the British Library added it to its collection and organized an exhibition on the theme of the IP.
JKS Manga, a former music teacher in the United Kingdom, represents another success. Its “My Vampire System” collected more than 400 million views and sold 15 million copies. The work won the webnovel Spirity 2022 prices and have been adapted to an audio book with 243 million pieces, with an adaptation of comics currently in development.
“Two weeks before the WSA hold, I resigned from my teaching position,” said the manga JKS during the 3rd week of Shanghai online literature in December 2024. “I came to Shanghai and then won the Golden Prize after winning the Prize.”
The growth of new web adaptations creates a virtuous cycle. “When these novels are adapted, we have greater development opportunities,” explains the manga JKS. “Recently, I noticed that more and more works are suitable for audio books, comics and even short dramas.
Behind these global successes is another crucial element: translators that fill cultural gaps. CKTALON, a Singaporean with a master’s degree in physics that works in scientific research and engineering, played a decisive role in the translation of the “Lord of Mysteries”. CKTALON has created a database of specialized terms which now exceeds 1,000 admissions. His meticulous approach includes the search for university documents to grasp complex connotations of traditional Chinese concepts.
“A book that could have been translated in a year could end up taking three years,” notes Cktalon on the challenges of maintaining quality between different translators. His work illustrates how the professional translation infrastructure supports the global expansion of Chinese web novels. Yuewen’s strategy focuses on web novels as the cornerstone of the development of holistic intellectual property.
Successful works are followed by publishing, audio books, animation, cinema, games and goods thanks to both internal development and partnerships with industry leaders. International expansion has been methodical. Yuewen has established partnerships with 75 international publishers and platforms, including Naver, Kakao, Disney +, Netflix and Wetv. In November 2024, their International Webnvel platform had aggregated 680,000 original web novels abroad with 449,000 international authors.
Notable successes include Paperboy, whose “Guardians of the Dafeng” novel was adapted in a television drama with Dylan Wang. The author has raised more than 42 million followers worldwide, while the drama has exceeded the rankings on the platforms in North America, Singapore and Taiwan. The series illustrates the way web novels can cause multimedia franchises. The audio book of “Guardians of the Dafeng” was launched on Ximalaya with more than 8.2 billion readings. Its comic adaptation was marked by more than 700,000 users, while the mobile game has experienced pre-recording over 7 million before the drama.
What makes these works resonate on a global scale? The authors constantly point to universal themes anchored in fresh cultural contexts. “Detective reasoning!” Explains Paperboy when asked questions about the themes that transcend geography. “Logical reasoning is not limited by culture or the region.
This mixture of universal themes with cultural specificity creates a unique attraction. Like Heng Sao Tian Ya, author of “Library of Heaven’s Path”, explains: “His nucleus is the Chinese concept of” respect for teachers and the principles of education “, but through an imaginary world and systematic parameters, it is transformed into the theme of” knowledge is power “which can be understood by world readers.”
With the success of adaptation to the creation of original content, the ecosystem of the Chinese web novel continues to evolve. As traditional publishing models are confronted with disturbances around the world, this digital approach first of all entertainment franchises could not only represent the future of China, but the world’s media.