The Demon Hunter's Romance | Review

A demon hunter and a demon sighter capture daemons...and more.

Notable Actors/Actresses

Ren Jia Lun: Jiu Xuan Ye

Song Zu Er: Duan Ban Xia

Director

Lin Yu Fen, Liang Sheng Quan

Screenwriter

Zhao Na

Chinese Title

無憂渡

Crossing Without Worries

Genres: Costume Qihuan, Romance

Network: iQIYI

Year: 2025
Episodes: 36

Jump to Remarks | Recs | Comments

Cast

Ren Jia Lun: Jiu Xuan Ye	Song Zu Er: Duan Ban Xia
Xuan Yan: Chu You Huang	Fan Shuai Qi: Sima Ling Ying
Cao Jun: Zi Kong	Chen Jia Le: Chi Wang Chuan
Hani Kyzy (Hanikezi): Ji Li	Hei Zi: Feng Tian
Zhang Zhi Xin: Lady Feng Wu (Wu niang)	Wu Chong Xuan: Chi Lian

Romcom/Romance Checklist

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How much of the plot is angst/romance?

0 / 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5

The ML:

Cold–Lukewarm–Warm / Timid / Tsundere / Falls in Love First / Noble Idiot / CEO / General

The FL:

Bold / Cute / Cool & Independent / Falls in Love First / Better than ML / Noble Idiot / Business-woman

Describe the Relationship (the tropes):

Annoying Love (F/M) Rivals +++ / Bickering Start / Childhood Connection / Cohabitation / Contract Marriage or Fake Couple / Enemies to Lovers / Hidden Identity / Harem / Love Triangle / Married Couple (Real) / Rebirth / Secretly in Love (F/ML) / School to Adulthood / Star-Crossed Lovers

Relationship Progress (officially together; first (official) kiss; breakup*):

Ep 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 / 19 / 20 / 21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25 / 26 / 27 / 28 / 29 / 30* / 31 / 32 / 33 / 34 / 35 / 36*

# of CPs (including main CP):
0 / 1? / 2 / 3

Ending: 

Happy / Sad / Open Happy / Open Sad / Bad / Rushed+++

Remarks

[Drama Info]

Airdropped! Reason: Song Zu Er’s tax evasion case. It’s believed she only received a preliminary warning from Chinese authorities rather than a formal penalty, which explains why her dramas are constantly rumoured to air rather than being permanently blacklisted (e.g. Deng Lun's). As of now, Song Zu Er has not issued any public statement regarding the allegations.

Helmed by veteran directors Lin Yu Fen and Liang Sheng Quan who have either collaborated or worked separately on several popular dramas that dominated early 2000s and 2010s, including Chinese Paladin, Ten Miles of Peach Blossom,  Love O2O, The Journey of Flower, Love and Destiny, The Mystic Nine, and The Vigilantes in Masks. Most recently, Liang Sheng Quan directed Snowy Night Timeless Love, though both directors have had relatively limited involvement in recent years.

The screenplay is adapted by Zhao Na, who previously collaborated with the directors on Love and Destiny. She is also known for Princess Agents, Arsenal Military Academy, and the recent A Moment but Forever (all quite different!)

Wrapped on November 07, 2022.

[Ending] Sad ending. There is a promise to grow old together, and they're technically not permanently separated.

Drama Overview & Review

Note: There are spoilers in my green comments.

The best part of the drama is its cases/mini-stories. However, the mystery element is a letdown when the ML solves everything offscreen like a solo act. There exists a team, but no teamwork is to be found. Conceptually, my favourite case is Chi Lian and Xing Xian, though the puppet story easily had the best action sequences. That said, many cases run longer than they need to, which waters down the suspense.  Still, the core ideas are consistently compelling. A case of good writing, bad directing. [Skip »]

#0: Man niang and Duan Yan Qiu

(Wang Yi Yao & He Lei)

#1: Chi Wang Chuang and Ji Li

(Chen Jia Le & Hanikezi)

#2: Feng Tian and Wu niangzi

(Hei Zi & Zhang Zhi Xin)

#3: Shen Yao and Sha Man

(Li Zi Rui & Li Yu)

#4: Xing Xian and Chi Lian

(Wu Chong Xuan & Li Jia Qi)

#5: Shen Tu Nan and Lv Chun Mian

(Zhang Lei & Guo Jia Nuo)

#2 Puppet & Cat Case:

The romance starts on the quiet currents of friendship, slowing unfolding into something heavier. I was glad the heartbreak stirred something in me – since the romance didn't land at all, at least the ending gave me a pulse check. [Skip »]

There are some fun dynamics among the supporting cast: the bickering 2CP who really shouldn't be romantic, the twist of fate between Ban Xia and her fiancé, the dumb rabbit and the dumber maid, and so on. [Skip »]

[Review & Rating] By cynlynn.

⚠️ Full Ending Discussion ⚠️

All signs pointed to me dropping this one – the mystery lacked suspense and the romance lacked spark, but curiosity won, especially with this being Song Zu Er's re-debut. I was destined to be disappointed. And it's not even a good hate-watch, because parts of the drama are genuinely solid (the underlying logic behind each case, for one). I just wasn't feeling it. So yes, the problem was me – for sticking with it.

But the ending is not a me problem. That’s just bad. Not because it’s sad, but because it’s bad.

The Demon Hunter’s Romance ends more like the demon hunter's anti-romance. The show thinks it’s serving a high-end tragedy, but:

1. It's not even a real tragedy. Their separation isn’t permanent. The portal between worlds opens every 12 years. Given everything they've been through – time resets, forgotten but still loves, even IPV – 12 years just doesn’t feel like a gut-wrenching separation. Yet the show slams on the brakes like it’s the end of the world. (They also throw in a snow scene, promising to grow old together... because they can’t commit to either outcome.)
2. The storytelling is cheap. In the final minutes, a magical pass that allowed him to world-hop for the past 12 years is introduced – completely out of nowhere – and then of course, it breaks. Worse, this revelation comes after all the emotional goodbyes, so you’re watching the leads get all tearful before you even know what they’re crying about. *Slow clap*
3. His reason for leaving doesn’t hold up. He has a perfectly capable brother who can run the Carefree Land. And what’s his big responsibility anyway – sprinkling spirit dust on grass? Dude, if your brother can’t handle that, let me do it. I'll even bring my own plot armour to find another pass.

The ML’s character arc is a letdown too. It’s not that he chooses duty over love – it’s that he never grows. The FL tells him repeatedly that she loves him unconditionally – human, daemon, forgotten, remembered. And still, he leaves. Nothing he learns, nothing he experiences shifts that instinct. That kind of stagnation in a romantic ML from beginning to end makes it hard to root for the romance. (Glad I wasn’t that into the romance anyway ~ *whistles*). 

If this was a romance, then I’m the heroine of a tragedy – one where I wasted 36 episodes waiting for a payoff that never came.

Rating: 2/5

Recommendations

Genre List:

Costume Qihuan

Daemon-	Hunting-	Dramas
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