Trilogy signals arrival of golden age for Chinese sci-fi

"It says that Liu Cixin incorporates his understanding of the world's sci-fi history into The Three-Body Problem trilogy so that readers can see the influence of sci-fi writers of different ages from around the world …which is a very important reason why it has been able to win so many international readers," Wu says.

"The second reason is that it represents a series of China's responses to modernization. The response to current advancements is a global phenomenon. Countries around the world are responding to modernization in their own ways," he says.

"The third is that it reveals an idea that we need to transcend our narcissism, which takes humanity as the center of the universe … The Three-Body Problem teaches us to break this view, showing that humans are just one part of a larger cosmos with various forms of life, like the Trisolarans. These themes are universal and resonate globally, making the work impactful worldwide," he says.

For him, one of the most important influences of the trilogy's popularity around the world is that it allows Chinese sci-fi to enter world science-fiction history, an idea echoed by Yang Feng, founder of sci-fi publisher Eight Light Minutes Culture, based in Chengdu in Southwest China.

Since The Three-Body Problem won the Hugo Award in 2015, China has seen companies being established that specialize in sci-fi publishing or filmmaking consultancy. Eight Light Minutes Culture is one of them.

Speaking at the roundtable discussion, Yang said that the award and Liu's works have inspired many science-fiction enthusiasts and readers in China, marking a pivotal change in many people's lives.

"China's sci-fi scene, propelled by ongoing efforts, is transitioning from niche to mainstream and also from local to global, signaling the arrival of a golden age for Chinese science fiction," she says.

Shi Futian and Tu Jiayi contributed to this story.