Heaven Official’s Blessing / Heavenly Blessing (Eternal Faith) 天官赐福 (吉星高照) by 墨香铜臭 Mo Xiang Tong Xiu (HE)

Those who are familiar with the "Boys Love" genre will, in general, not be unfamiliar with the author 墨香铜臭 (Mo Xiang Tong Xiu), who is immensely well known for producing one of the hallmarks of the Boys Love genre, The Founder of Diabolism, which has spawned a manhua adaptation, donghua adaptation, and even a drama adaptation (known as The Untamed). Now, although Heaven Official's Blessing is not as well-received / popular as The Founder of Diabolism, it still stands as a pretty good novel in its own right, with a really interesting premise to boot.

Our main character, Xie Lian, is first introduced to us as the crown price of Xian Le nation (in the mortal realm), who had the good fortune (and sufficient cultivation) who ascended to the Heavens and became an immortal at the young age of 17. However, calamity soon befell Xian Le and, unable to turn himself away from the suffering and inevitable downfall of his people and the Xian Le nation at large, he struggled valiantly to save his people and his nation, but to no avail. Disillusioned, Xie Lian was eventually banished from the Heavens and returned to Earth, only to ascend (again) and suffer banishment (again). We then begin the novel proper at the time of Xie Lian's third ascension, 800 years after his second ascension, as he reunites with his fellow colleagues (?) in the Heavens. He is then dispatch to complete various missions for and on behalf of Jun Wu, the Martial God Heavenly Emperor. As a character, Xie Lian often falls flat for many people, with his never-ending goodness / kindness, compassion and gentleness (arguably, the typical "Mary-Sue" character), and one may find some difficulty in accepting Xie Lian's constant strive for goodness even after all the trials and tribulations he's been through.

Our second main character, the "male lead", is Hua Cheng, one of the most powerful and dangerous demons (as opposed to immortals) on Earth. Although he is a Demon Lord, he is not evil (obviously) and is often unconcerned (and does not utilize his powers to interfere) with the happenings of the world around him, unless they concern Xie Lian. This has let to some argument that Hua Cheng can sometimes come across as a flat, one-dimensional character - after all, it is relatively unrealistic to expect one's life to revolve around one's partner (but I've discovered from Mo Xiang Tong Xiu's novels that her characterization of the "male leads" tend, in general, to fall flatter than the first main character). It does, however, make for a relatively satisfying and smooth-sailing romance (as it is really! sweet!)

Ultimately, what I found really interesting about Heaven Official's Blessing isn't really the characterization of the main leads; rather, I felt that the entire premise, conceptualization of the "world" in which our characters live in, and "arcs" / "events" in the novel are really the highlights of the novel. And, ultimately, the lovely (albeit somewhat bland) characters do contribute, and add to the mix.