General · EdgepediaOctober 3, 20264 min read

Wuxiang Zhi Cheng

Wuxiang Zhi Cheng (无相之城, English title The Formless City) is a 2025 Chinese costume suspense web drama of 24 episodes, broadcast exclusively on Tencent Video from 31 July to 11 August 2025¹^•². It was adapted from the novel of the same name by Liu Xiao Kuang (刘小哐) on iQIYI Literature and follows a young female coroner, Xu Linlang, who is drawn into the jianghu (the martial-arts underworld of wanderers, sects, and honor codes) underworld by a bloody massacre and joins Lu Jiu and Sima Kong to solve cases amid the schemes of factions such as Wuxiang City³^•⁴.

Key fact	Detail
Original title / English title	无相之城 / The Formless City³
Episodes / platform	24 episodes, Tencent Video, exclusive web broadcast¹
Run	Premiered 31 July 2025; final episode 11 August 2025¹^•²
Genre	Costume (古装), suspense, sweet romance (甜宠)¹
Directors	Yang Xiaobo as chief director, Cao Zhenyu as director; Yu Weiguo as executive producer¹
Main cast	Li Junchen (Lu Jiu), Fiona Dai (Xu Linlang), Hugo Wong / Huang Yibin (Sima Kong)³
Distribution license	(沪)网剧审字(2024)第021号, issued for 24 episodes to Shanghai Qicai Ewan Film & TV Media Co., Ltd.⁵
Commercial result	Cumulative revenue-sharing income passed 1 million yuan by 19 August 2025⁶

Spoilers

Premise

The story centers on Xu Linlang (许琳琅), a young coroner (仵作) whose life changes after a bloody massacre pulls her into the jianghu. She teams up with Lu Jiu (鹿九), the second young master of the Lu family who has a dual personality, and Sima Kong (司马箜), a youth of the Tang Sect, and the three solve layered mysteries while traveling together³^•⁷. The plot weaves together strange cases, a power-struggle scheme, and a jianghu treasure hunt, set against a world of intertwined factions described in promotion as a "jianghu dark web" centered on Wuxiang City¹^•⁸.

Cast

Three young leads. Li Junchen plays Lu Jiu, described in official promotion as a "two-faced" character; Fiona Dai, a 2021 Miss Hong Kong pageant contestant, plays Xu Linlang; and Hugo Wong (Huang Yibin), a member of TVB's boy group Loong 9, plays Sima Kong³^•⁶^•⁹.

Experienced supporting actors. Edwin Siu (萧正楠) plays the imperial guard Geng Zhao (耿昭), and Huang Zhixian (黄智贤) plays Dugu Wuwo (独孤无我), the lord of Wuxiang City³^•¹⁰. Hong Kong entertainment coverage noted that both are established TVB leading actors appearing in supporting roles behind three much younger leads, a casting arrangement that drew comment from viewers¹⁰^•¹¹. Other cast members include Shi Nan as Ye Mei³.

Production and release history

The drama was a co-production between TVB and mainland Chinese companies, with Eric Tsang (曾志伟) attached as chief supervisor when the project was announced, and Yang Xiaobo and Cao Zhenyu directing¹². Filming took place at Hengdian in Zhejiang¹³. According to Baidu Baike, filming began in November 2021 and wrapped in June 2022, the series passed censorship review in October 2024, and it aired from 31 July 2025¹, roughly three years after completion of shooting¹¹.

The National Radio and Television Administration's licensing list for July to September 2024 records the series under license number (沪)网剧审字(2024)第021号 as a 24-episode web drama filed by Shanghai Qicai Ewan Film & TV Media Co., Ltd.⁵.

Reception and performance

The official Weibo account announced on 19 August 2025 that the drama's cumulative revenue-sharing income (分账) had exceeded 1 million yuan⁶. Baidu Baike records that on 8 September 2025 the series ranked 23rd in the TOP30 of effective long-drama play volume market share¹. Critical commentary on mainland portals was mixed: a Sohu review credited the drama with tying its cases closely to the protagonists, so that the mysteries feel connected to the story, while judging its detective sequences simple and its romance plot conventional¹⁴.

The ending theme song, Zhi Shang Chang'an (纸上常安), is performed by Yao Xiaotang¹⁵.

References

Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026