Fire_Immortal

Same! They really made him a sympathetic character. I’m guessing Shangjue will get injured in later episodes (or possibly die) protecting Yuanzhi and it’s going to hurt so bad.

A drop of blood in a woman’s room could be explained away easily, no? Shangguan already noted she was sick …

I’m not sure if this has been answered yet but did deceased Sword Wielder have another wife before Lady Lan (Ziyu’s mother)? Or was elder brother Gong Huanyu not a half-brother but adopted into the family?

It’s Yuanzhi who says “good tea” and it’s certainly a pointed statement about SGQ in the context of that conversation! As we know, both brothers are wary of her and know she’s sus.

Love this analysis, and you’re spot on with FL having the capabilities to be more than a Chi, but she chooses not to level up because that involves killing people and going against her ethics. Yu Shuxin in her character analysis notes wrote something to that effect. Also remember when Shangguan hints that to level up from Chi to Mei she had to endure and perform unspeakably horrific things.

Yeah I’m bracing myself… no way they could do a happy ending given the story we have so far and given this drama is taking itself seriously.

Also I agree the Gong sister is too over the top with her antics and quirks, it’s almost like she’s part of a different drama that is a comedy and didn’t get the memo that this drama is dark and gritty and people are supposed to act accordingly and naturally like real people on earth. Plus it just defies the narrative that someone raised in the Gong family who is part of the weaponry line could be so silly and unserious and boycrazy, unless she’s just putting on an act and secretly some evil mastermind.

Shangguan and Shangjue are the most interesting characters to me so far given how complex and morally grey they seem and how unpredictable they are, plus I’m very much looking forward to their chemistry. Ryan Cheng and Lu Yu Xiao almost outshine the main leads in every interaction with their dramatic presence and exquisite acting.

That actor (Edward Zhang) really elevated a flatly written villain with no compelling motives. He managed to impart some depth and conflict even though the script gave him nothing to work with. Really wish there was more to the brotherly conflict which could have been epic.

Just learned that the actress for the Goddess of Fate, Yang Li, is a viral feminist stand-up comedian who’s actually hilarious in her videos! So glad she was cast and is getting this exposure through the show.

This show is so meta, it’s as if the script writers anticipated the criticisms of the plot and addressed them in a self-mocking *wink wink* way. Truly a parody at times.

Xiu Ming is genuinely concerned about the depletion of Xiang Yun’s primordial spirit and is doing all he can to preserve her. In his view, Chu Kong is just using her. After all, Chu Kong’s stated goal is to get through these mortal trials as quickly as possible to regain his primordial powers and in that sense he is using Xiang Yun for a selfish end. As the sect leader in this third life, he is not yet in love with Xiang Yun and is likewise using her to prolong his life given his heart condition and her special heart condition. It’s reasonable for Xiu Ming to be wary of Chu Kong’s ulterior motives, even though we know that Chu Kong does have feelings buried deep and would do everything to save Xiang Yun if he knew she was being harmed. Chu Kong seems unaware that Xiang Yun’s primordial spirit is being depleted in every mortal trial, every time she sacrifices for him.

In defense of Xiu Ming as he’s getting so much hate (and I do understand how this SML does come across as an annoying interloper):

Does season 1 end on a major cliffhanger? If so I’m not sure my heart will be able to take it and I may have to wait until season 2 airing date is announced until I start this drama as I can already tell it will suck me in with all the feels and intensity…

So it's heavily implied that Xiang Yun is Cang Hai and that the first love loop happened between Chu Kong and Cang Hai 30,000 years ago ending with a bloody wedding of sorts. In those flashbacks, they are dressed in red wedding garb and exchange parts of their immortal souls bound with a magic red thread. That red thread eventually binds them again. Somehow 30,000 years ago on that fateful wedding day Cang Hai falls off the cliff of immortality and her primordial spirit dissipates, and Chu Kong loses his memory. It is heavily implied that she sacrificed herself to save Chu Kong, mirroring Xiang Yun's bloody wedding sacrifice in the mortal trial. It's unclear whether she actually turned into a demon or whether she was framed and banished or whether she absorbed demonic essence for whatever reason. Also unclear why SML Xiu Ming has the demonic red eyes and what role he played, although it's heavily implied he was involved in trying to separate Chu Kong from Cang Hai, his undying obsession. I'm sure all will be explained in due course, but I'm so impatient on the edge of my seat for this seven lifetime ride!

I really loved how in episode 14 it becomes clear Chu Kong knows with certainty that Xiang Yun retained her immortal memories in their mortal trial and that he's quite moved, particularly as he sheds a tear recalling how she pointed to the "God of War" star in the sky knowing his immortal identity. Despite how cruel and cold Chu Kong had been to immortal Xiang Yun, as a mortal she still deeply cared and willingly sacrificed for his mortal self while fearing his immortal self. He's touched that she did all that for him in spite of remembering how he had treated her previously. He knows that her underlying character is fundamentally good, and that Xiang Yun in the mortal realm was indeed Xiang Yun the immortal fairy with that underlying big heart that bleeds for him.

Now caught up to the latest episode 14 and somehow I've caught feels ... I didn't have high hopes for DYX and YCY but they've really got me invested in their characters and pleasantly surprised by their chemistry.

Thank you for providing this background and explanation! I knew there must be something I’m missing, something lost in cultural translation. This touching bit of history rescues what otherwise seemed like a banal scene for me.

Does anyone know if there is some romantic symbolism or subtext to couples drawing each other’s eyebrows or doing each other’s makeup? Is there another meaning to this? Just seems so random and trivial at the end. Why not end with something more passionate, like a kiss…