The Legend of the Taiyi Sword Immortal

Everyone's already given up on Dongfang Hao — he's got no spiritual roots, no talent, and a father who vanished after being branded a traitor to the Immortal Sects. The thing is, his father Mu Xun was actually a Sword Immortal who got framed by demons infiltrating the sects from cracks in the boundary wall. Before disappearing, Mu Xun sent his son to live with his wife's clan, which means Dongfang Hao is basically the outcast relative everyone looks down on. This 20-episode ONA set on the Jiuzhou Continent follows him as he starts piecing together what really happened to his father while trying to cultivate power in a world that wrote him off. The setup has that classic underdog-to-hero arc, but the demon conspiracy layered underneath gives it real stakes early on. There's an intricate power system that blends traditional martial arts with immortal cultivation, and the historical backdrop feels more fleshed out than you'd expect from a shorter series. The tone is action-packed but leans into political intrigue within the sects, so it's not just fight scenes strung together. If you liked the sect politics and betrayal threads in Noble Aspirations, or the cultivation world vibes of Chinese Paladin, this hits a similar nerve. Fans of Qijian Xia Tianshan will also find familiar ground with the martial arts elements. It's a compact watch at 20 episodes, and the early episodes do a solid job building out both the world and the mystery.