LayarHijau – China’s Donghua market remained firmly dominated by Renegade Immortal (仙逆) during the first half of 2026. According to Yunhe Data’s January–June 2026 report, the Tencent Video production once again claimed the No. 1 spot in cumulative effective views with 1.89 billion, making it the only title to surpass the 1.8 billion mark and leaving its competitors far behind.
Meanwhile, Sword of Coming Season 2 (剑来第2季) emerged as the standout performer on the daily charts. Since premiering on December 25, 2025, the second season—adapted from the novel by Fenghuo Xizhu Hou (烽火戏诸侯)—has held the No. 1 position on the daily new animation rankings for 155 consecutive days through June 30, 2026, setting the longest streak in the category during the first half of the year.
According to Yunhe Data, when combined with the first season’s 67-day run at the top, Sword of Coming has now dominated the daily rankings for a total of 222 days. The milestone further cements the franchise as one of the strongest intellectual properties in China’s Donghua industry. In addition, four upcoming projects—including a third season, the feature film Thirteen Disputes, the film Wensheng Lineage, and a live-action drama adaptation—have attracted more than 3.5 million pre-registrations in total.
Overall, the Top 20 animated titles generated 12.3 billion effective views during the first half of 2026, down 12% year over year from 14 billion in the same period of 2025 and down 6% compared with the second half of 2025. Of that total, Chinese Donghua accounted for 11 billion views, down 9% year over year, while Japanese anime reached 1.2 billion views, a much steeper 32% decline.
Renegade Immortal further strengthened its position as the undisputed king of the market. Since debuting on September 25, 2023, the series has finished No. 1 in the annual rankings for two consecutive years (2025 and H1 2026). It has also claimed the weekly championship for 67 weeks on the overall streaming chart and 15 weeks on the new animation chart. The franchise continues to expand with the release of the film Battle of God Descent, the upcoming sequel film War of Immortal Slaying, which has already surpassed 1.2 million pre-registrations, and the mobile game Renegade Immortal: Battle of Heaven (仙逆：战天), which officially launched on June 30, 2026, after attracting more than 500,000 pre-registrations.
Second place went to Battle Through the Heavens Year-round (斗破苍穹年番), which also surpassed 1 billion effective views. The long-running series has remained in the annual top two for three consecutive years, ranking No. 1 in 2024 and No. 2 in both 2025 and H1 2026. Its multimedia expansion continues with the film Battle of Two Emperors (双帝之战) and the special episode Yao Lao (药老), which together have amassed more than 1.7 million pre-registrations.
Sword of Coming Season 2 (剑来第2季) rounded out the top three with more than 1 billion effective views. Perfect World (完美世界) and Swallowed Star (吞噬星空) ranked fourth and fifth, respectively. Notably, Swallowed Star has maintained a place in the annual top five for three consecutive years, thanks to its distinctive blend of science fiction and action that sets it apart from the genre’s dominant cultivation and fantasy themes.
Meanwhile, A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality (凡人修仙传) held onto ninth place overall. The success of its live-action adaptation, which premiered in July 2025, created a significant long-tail effect, doubling the Donghua’s monthly viewership and helping it remain in the annual top 10 for a second straight year.
The Top 10 Donghua by cumulative effective views for January–June 2026 are:
- Renegade Immortal (仙逆) – 1.89 billion views
- Battle Through the Heavens Year-round (斗破苍穹年番) – Over 1 billion views
- Sword of Coming Season 2 (剑来第2季) – Over 1 billion views
- Perfect World (完美世界)
- Swallowed Star (吞噬星空)
- Soul Land II: The Unrivaled Tang Sect (斗罗大陆Ⅱ绝世唐门)
- Throne of Seal (神印王座)
- Hitori no Shita: The Outcast Season 6 (一人之下第6季)
- A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality (凡人修仙传)
- Tales of Herding Gods (牧神记)
The report also highlights that year-round release strategies continue to drive the Donghua market. Tencent Video dominated the industry with 12 titles in the overall Top 20 and nine titles in the Top 20 new animation rankings, reinforcing its long-term content strategy. Meanwhile, iQIYI and Youku have accelerated their shift from seasonal releases to year-round productions, while Bilibili continues investing in new IPs such as Deep Space Beyond (深空彼岸), Stealing Demon Chronicles (盗妖行), and Ever Night (将夜).
On the commercial side, more than 30% of the top-ranked animated series secured brand partnerships, with snack brands accounting for the largest share of sponsorships. Huawei was the most active advertiser, appearing in 27 episodes, followed by brands including Yuanbao, Stride, and Extra, each advertising across at least four different titles. The findings underscore the growing commercial value of China’s Donghua industry as fan communities expand and cross-media IP development becomes increasingly mature.
