I think you were a bit unfair Krazeguy. Like Silver said, it's very slow but every chapter the plot progresses, slowly but surely. I've looked a little bit into the story and I won't say spoilers.
The story is basically divided in 3 plots, beginning, middle and end. Right now we're in the beginning, where everything is being introduced. The middle part is the training ,character growth, and secrets revealed part. The end part is the climax, lots of back and forth and higher stakes, fate of the world high.
I've gotta say I love the adventure feel of the novel. There is not much angst, just two dudes (eventual lovers) going on treasure hunts, spending obscene amounts of money, capturing rare "pokemon" and giving them silly names and baffling/infuriating the people around them with their nonchalant and carefree attitude. Very laid back even in the climax, but still very enjoyable.
The main characters have a nice chemistry- one's a laid back bully, one's a bit of a pushover. XiaoMo develops a lot through the story. He goes from being shy and reserved, a little cowardly, gullible and not wanting to stand out to kicking ass-literally. He has a very adaptive personality and is a genuinely calm, thoughtful person but he's no goody two shoes. If you want a teaser spoiler...
After being ambushed by some enemies he is humorously told by Ling that he has to get used to people being brutally killed. He is naturally hesitant to accept that reality. But he quickly gets over that when he sees how much money he can get from looting the corpses and selling their stuff! Yay!
As for Ling Xiao- perfect seme, that is all. If you wanna know why he's perfect read it to find out, you know you want to.
Basically read it if you haven't started already. It's long and flawed but worth it.