Along with Japan and Korea, China also produces animated series called Donghua, which are successful worldwide. If you are looking for a new Anime after Solo Leveling, Lord of Mysteries might be something for you.
What is the Chinese anime about? Lord of Mysteries is based on a Chinese web novel that was published from 2018 to 2020. The series is basically an Isekai, as a Chinese programmer named Zhou Mingrui suddenly awakens in the body of another person from an alternate universe.
- Zhou awakens as Klein Moretti, a poverty-stricken history graduate, in the city of Tingen. The city resembles London from the 19th century, with some steampunk and Cthulhu elements.
- Klein finds himself caught up in a murder investigation that is linked to his life as a programmer. His death is tied to consuming a Beyonder potion.
- Klein joins the Nighthawks, a secret organization under the Church of Eternal Night. They are responsible for supernatural threats.
The unique aspect of the series is the Beyonder power system. Through potions, people gain supernatural abilities and essentially embark on a path. Klein Moretti, for instance, is a seer and learns divination and mental perception.
The potions are divided into sequences, with sequence 9 being the weakest and 0 the strongest variant. They also come with a certain risk: people may experience a loss of control after consumption if they fail to master the abilities or violate the rules of the path.
The power system, with its different paths, is reminiscent of other animes like Solo Leveling, where there are classes like the Shadow Monarch. However, there is one area where Lord of Mysteries could surpass the anime from Korea.
Lord of Mysteries focuses on high frame rates
What makes the anime better than Solo Leveling? In a Q&A session on Reddit, animation producer Atsushi Kaneko revealed that between 8,000 and 10,000 frames are used for an episode of Solo Leveling. In elaborate episodes like Episode 24, even 17,000 frames were used.
As Solo Leveling is praised for its animations, this serves as a good benchmark for particularly impressive episodes. Fans have voted it the anime of the year. However, as a Reddit user claims to have learned from a private event, Lord of Mysteries might top that: reportedly, 30,000 frames are used per episode.
A tweet on X shows how cool the final result looks. Many fans write in the comments that the animations are absolutely the best in the anime industry.
When will it be released? The broadcast is planned for summer 2025. According to the programming schedule from Tencent Video (via CBR), the specific release date is set for July 7, 2025. Unfortunately, it is still unclear whether the series will run in Germany and on which streaming service it will be available. For now, it’s just a matter of waiting and having tea.
Several Donghuas from China are currently airing with us. One of them allows viewers to determine how the battles in season 2 will turn out. Fans can even win voice roles: In a new series, you can decide how strong the characters will be for season 2
