#poor changheng!

[winepresswrath]

lbfad gets increasingly handwavey on the exact mechanics of things and braincells are sometimes tossed out for scenes with Feelings(fair), and you can tell that lbfad rewrote the script some as it was filming(like the cut xunfeng/danyin plotline), and some things get kind of janky as a result but i DID enjoy the overall tasty meal!

I was so charmed, especially by Ronghao (Rong Hao?) and his very specific deal- his instincts are to be very decent! He loves changheng very sincerely! and yet. Also he's just very funny, truly a character of all time. Love it when it's revealed his evil schemes are "cash in a favour I earned by not being a dickbag several millennia ago." Also love his beatific expression when he realizes he'll probably be executed. Exuding "worth it" from every pore. My frustrations are really an outgrowth of my affections- it's so delightful! It could be just a tiny bit better! I would have been very into a danyin/xunfeng plotline, especially if it brought danyin and xiao lanhua back in contact- I really enjoyed their early interactions and thought they were pretty shippable in their own right. ps. Ronghao's minion should have been Danyin's mom.

Aside from the general continuity mess/ rushed pacing of the last few episodes, I wish they'd made xiao lanhua's perspective and goals a little clearer in the second arc so it doesn't just look like she's desperate to go home and finish being tortured to death, and in general that the moon kingdom conflicts were a bit tighter (Jie Li are you a literal kleptomaniac? why are you stealing from the most powerful man in the universe? is this an expression of your death wish and self loathing). I thought Dongfang Qingcang's personality shift at the very end was a bit too extreme, but my #1 petty irritation is definitely with the way they handled Changheng/Lanhua. I can believe that her feelings changed, but they sold me way too hard on it in the first act for me to believe she didn't have romantic feelings for him at all, and they didn't even bother to come up with something faintly plausible to explain why he left Dongfang Qingcang alone with her soul-seed. He'd never! His whole arc is about how he's actually if anything more willing to ditch his job for her than Dongfang Qingcang (incidentally I love them very much for giving the main ship the real duty vs. love problems. yes!!! thank you for the food). Anyway "the other war god is back I've got to go" is the worst line in the whole show and I can't believe they had a whole thing where she got her memories back but it's never made clear if she remembers him falling in love with her (which is presumably her falling in love with him too!!! Like I really thought at some point they'd address that she has a feelings hangover from something she can't remember and how that ties in with her original magical amnesia but NO! I was denied).

[amedetoiles]

THE UNPARALLELED JOY OF WATCHING A HOMICIDAL VILLAIN FALL IN LOVE WITH A PLANT AND BE MILDLY INCONVENIENCED BY THIS FACT IS HYSTERICAL

[heylookgiraffes]

FIFTY PERCENT INTEREST?!?!

[trippedandmissed]

When Qingcang said that Xiao Run was his best friend to SHANGQUE’S FACE

[uhhhhmanda]

Chapters: 6/6 Fandom: 苍兰诀 | Love Between Fairy and Devil (TV) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Dongfang Qingcang/Xiao Lanhua, Changheng/Dongfang Qingcang, Dongfang Qingcang/Xiao Run, Dongfang Qingcang/Xiao Lanhua/Xiao Run, Changheng/Xiao Lanhua (Love Between Fairy and Devil), Changheng/Dongfang Qingcang/Xiao Lanhua Characters: Dongfang Qingcang, Changheng (Love Between Fairy and Devil), Xiao Run (Love Between Fairy and Devil) Additional Tags: Wet Dream, Public Sex, Non-Consensual Voyeurism, Vaginal Sex, episode 13, Blow Jobs, Threesome - F/M/M, Lucid Dreaming, Episode 23, Cunnilingus, Anal Sex, (Perceived) Sibling Incest, Voyeurism, Bodyswap, Consent Issues, Double Vaginal Penetration, Exhibitionism, Post-Canon, Unrequited Love, Masturbation Summary:

Five sex dreams Changheng wishes he could forget, and one after he's gotten used to them.

Or: Changheng has a horny crisis about Canglan. So does Xiao Run.

[jzixuans]

cang lan jue more like god i want to be wang hedi so bad that looks so fun

[harocat]

This scene is funny when you think about it, because Danyin is younger than Changheng, so she's seemingly implying here that she's been thinking about taking Changheng's job since she was a child.

Like 'yeah I have a crush on you, but what I really want... is your job.'

Also that she's like 'I always admired Chidi, the late god of war', and she says that right to Changheng, the actual last god of war. Poor Changheng.

[glorious-sunset]

LBFAD Closing Artwork – Hidden Meanings, Part 2

The amount of thought that went into the artwork of LBFAD (Love between Fairy and Devil) is astounding! Parallel to the opening artwork, the closing artwork has 12 images, with the last showing events after the close of the series :D The images are grouped into themes and have many hidden meanings. Images 5-12 are discussed here (see Closing Artwork Part 1 for my discussion of images 1-4).

Image 5: Oblivion River bordering Cangyan Sea (image above)

Images 5-8 as a group show important locations within the series.

The Oblivion River itself is very significant as the warfront between Shuiyuntian and Cangyan Sea, and the resting place of spirits. Xiao Lanhua’s (XLH) simple wish at the Lantern Festival is for Oblivion River to be free of war. Besides war, Ronghao’s (RH) actions have added to the tragedy here, as the tortured spirits of both Moon Tribe and Fairy Tribe members are unable to rest. The first step toward peace is achieved here as DongFang QingCang (DFQC) and Changheng (CH) work together to bring relief to these poor spirits.

The hunters’ camp that DFQC and XLH visit in ep. 15 is located not far from the banks of the Oblivion River. The people of Cangyan Sea work hard for their sustenance and rely on hunting and fishing. The hunting aspect of their culture is represented by the injured deer in image 5.

The deer is also a good metaphor for CH. From ep. 26 until the series end, he wears antler-like headgear. Where a finger of Cangyan Sea stretches into the Oblivion River, on two occasions he receives profound psychological hurts. In ep. 27, he first learns from DFQC and XLH that RH is not the man he thought he was. RH was his only friend, and someone that he had trusted completely! But he didn’t know RH’s true nature at all. This shock is followed by a heart-breaking conversation with XLH. They had just married each other in the mortal realm and he tells her that he meant every marriage vow they made to each other. He finally reveals his feelings. But she rejects him all the same. As he tells Yunzhong (YZ) later in this episode, she was the only colour in his grey world and he now has no reason to live. He practically forces YZ to sentence him to execution. Like the dying deer in the image, at this point he is on the cusp of death.

In ep. 30, CH returns to this area to confront Xunfeng prior to the war. He learns that XLH’s life will be sacrificed when the war begins. Against his strongest instincts, CH had entrusted XLH to DFQC, and now it seems that DFQC is throwing XLH’s life away! D: CH hadn’t wanted any part of this war, but he is forced to lead the army to protect his love.

Also in ep. 30, Jieli confronts Dieyi by the Oblivion River, tricks her with an illusion of XLH, and bluffs her way into getting the antidote for Shangque. A great final act for Jieli, as she now expects to die from her own poison. Her only thought had been of protecting her friends, knowing the price she would have to pay would be her life.

Image 6: Tree of Emotions

During their hunters’ camp visit, XLH and DFQC discover that his metaphysical Tree of Emotions has started to sprout leaves! XLH walking beneath the Tree is a reference to DFQC telling Taisui in ep. 36 that “she has left traces all over the sea of my emotions.” From the very beginning to the very end, XLH has been the focus of DFQC’s emotions. She has triggered all seven emotions in him to intense degrees: joy, worry, sadness, pity, love, hate, jealousy (hate towards her enemies and jealousy towards CH, all because of his love for her).

Image 7: Lucheng

What’s not to love about the charming city of Lucheng? :D 500 copies of XLH’s likeness are posted all over town! DFQC and XLH spend a lot of time being jealous of each other’s engagements :D They spend months living together in Mr DongFang’s compound. A flower is bought with one gold bar. And wishes are made during their beautiful Lantern Festival date.

The wishes that XLH made come true! She wishes that DFQC “will always be safe and happy, surrounded by friends, brothers, loyalty and love, and never lonely again.” The effect is seen as early as ep. 26 as DFQC bonds with Xunfeng (XLH says “I think my wish seems to have come true.”) Later, his three “brothers” Xunfeng, Shangque and Changheng, and the Kings of Northern and Southern Youxin counties band together to save him when he is comatose. Finally, they loyally follow his orders to aid Shuiyuntian in the last episode! XLH’s wish that the Oblivion River be free of war also comes true.

DFQC’s wish, “XLH, I want you to stay by my side forever,” is partially fulfilled when XLH proposes to him a few episodes later. And by the end of the series it has come true :D

Image 8: Haishi

Haishi, the seaport city hiding a big bad den of evil, doesn’t have a lot of screentime. It appears in eps. 2-15 but not after that. The image shows the terraces of Haishi next to the central bridge. This view is seen only once in the series very briefly in ep. 3. (I discuss Haishi in more detail here).

Image 9: XLH against Shuiyuntian

Images 9-12 as a group show important events that occur after Lucheng.

The scene in ep. 26 where XLH faces off against the Shuiyuntian army is a pivotal moment for her. She is given the option of returning home to Arbiter Hall or Fountain Palace, which is exactly what she has been dreaming of since ep. 1. All she has to do is sacrifice DFQC. Easy choice, right? And so it is; she doesn’t need to think twice to realise that her idea of home is now wherever DFQC is. As DFQC says in ep. 35, she made an enemy of the world just to follow him. (This is repeated in the OST song Amnesia, “I once made the world my enemy.”)

This is the second time she has faced the might of Shuiyuntian. In ep. 9, she is accused of being a Moon tribe spy and would have done anything (except endanger Da Qiang) to protect her right to be accepted in Shuiyuntian. Now, she will do anything to protect DFQC.

Image 10: War

War between Cangyan Sea and Shuiyuntian strikes again. Unlike the images of the war 30,000 years ago seen in the opening artwork, this war has key differences. DFQC and CH are unwilling adversaries of each other. The Moon Tribe have very few soldiers, and their women and children are on the battlefield. YZ fabricated a blatant lie in order to attack and annihilate the Moon Tribe :(

Image 11: Our hero returns

This is the very last scene of the series (this artwork is my favourite!) After a long, cruel, 500 years of absence, DFQC has finally found his way back! He emerges as the ultimate hero, after his long journey from the heartless villain who tried to kill an innocent fairy. This ‘fairy’ now means everything to him.

His lovable mannerisms are shown in the image. One hand is behind his back (regal) and one cradles XLH’s head as he pulls her in for a kiss (dominating). The robes he wears are the same as in the last scene. Both have their eyes closed to savour this long, long, long-awaited moment :D

Image 12: The Rest of Eternity

As in the opening artwork, the twelfth and final image of the closing art is of the OTP’s life after the series end! They might be sitting on a boat on the Oblivion River. Then again, it could be a location we haven’t seen in the series - travelling on their honeymoon! DFQC has removed his crown, and hence his responsibilities at least for the moment, which supports the idea that they are on holiday. The lavender dress that XLH wears is of very special significance (covered in my ep. 5 review). And finally, they can watch the sunrise together every day for the rest of eternity :D

Here is a link to my article: LBFAD Closing Artwork – Hidden Meanings, Part 1

All of my LBFAD articles can be viewed with the tag #lbfad reflections (hyperlinked) and the table of contents to these is here.

[moonsorchid]

Rewatching ep. 27 of Love Between Fairy and Devil:

(spoilers ahead)

I still can't believe DFQC gave Xiao Lanhua permission to talk with Changheng privately. If that doesn't show growth, I don't know what does

Of course he was burning inside but still

"My affection for you is gratitude and appreciation." I am sorry, Changheng, but you got friendzoned

I like Changheng a lot, but I won't lie, I was so happy when I heard her say these words. She finally admits her feelings

DFQC is so worried, but no he'll play it cool

Oh wait

Awe and now they are being cute

Shangque, don't answer him! It is a trap. Jieli is right, you are silly *facepalm* Why on earth did you trust him with that piece of information?

Omg, not the locks. They are buying the locks. Uff, all I can think of is that bridge scene. They are being cute and I am thinking heartbreak

Yeah, Dongfang Qingcang, keep telling yourself this

Jieli and Sangque are so cute

All Shangque wants to do is see the moon with Jieli, but she is busy girlbossing

DFQC had to go to the loudest vendor in the Cangyan Sea

How does Xiao Lanhua have money? Is DFQC giving her an allowance or what?

Omg, the locks, the locks *taking deep breaths, trying not to cry*

And now he is carving her name with a silly smile on his face. Awe baby is so in love

Xunfeng, WHY DO YOU HAVE TO RUIN EVERYTHING? Leave the man alone! He is busy carving her name on the lock and he is happy

Well, he does have a point though about the hellfire

Oh no, did he just ask him to kill her?

Tell him, Dongfang Qingcang

Xunfeng, can you please shush?

I love Ronghao playing the flute with no effort or facial movement whatsoever

Btw, Ronghao is so delulu, but so handsome. I can't stop staring at him

Poor baby Ronghao. I feel so bad for his past. But it still does not excuse all the evil he's done and the hurt he's caused

"I just want my master back. Even if she kills me, I'll feel no regrets." *sigh*

Oh good, the emperor *insert sarcasm*

"I really don't know how to spend my days." Changheng needs desperately a new hobby

Oh now the emperor is like "look, bro, I didn't mean I'll kill you, just admit your mistake and punishment and all is well. I kinda need you to kill DFQC for me, because I may be the emperor but you are stroooonger"

Tell him, Changheng!

Is there a magical medical device indicating the percentage of recovery for DFQC and in earlier episodes for Xiao Lanhua?

DFQC is so worried for his people, but Xiao Lanhua is there for him

Jieli, I trusted you, I really did

[drottni]

LBFAD Rewatch Part 11:

1. The way he can't even LOOK at her as he tells her "I knew this was a dream from the beginning " 😭😭😭😭

2. XLH's master reeling in her two boyfriends with bait. Like "come here you poor miserable little fishies. I got some juicy worms for you."

3. idc how epic of an intro you get Lady Arbiter and her little pet dragon, YOU DONT JUST HIT MY BOY DFQC LIKE THAT. NO. *angry glares* Also my poor baby just closing his eyes and bracing for it like "ah shit here we go again". Him thinking he just deserves it 😭🥺 Can he just have a break plz.

4. "So she has been saving me since we first met. And I have been hurting her." 🥺🥺🥺

5. Changheng: The splitting process is very painful. No matter what you must persevere.

DFQC who has been through every torture life could throw at him: -_- Bro. I got this.

6. DFQC as soon as Changheng leaves: *cue music* I am in my plant parent, cottage core, countryside girlie era. I am gonna be so full of love you will have to come back to me.

7. If he doesn't plant you like a seed, carry you around in a pot like a baby, water you with freshly collected dew with gentle drops, take you for morning sunrise walks, talk to you continuously, and watch over you even while sleeping, he ain't it. WHY WAS THIS SO ROMANTIC. SHE IS LITERALLY IN A POT OF DIRT AND I AM GUSHING OVER THE ROMANCE. No one is doing it like them.

8. XLH having to create straight up physical barriers between her and DFQC so that he can't come close enough to see that emotionally she's barely holding on. How his pleading eyes and sweet apologies are two seconds away from making her cry. She can barely even muster anger towards him.

9. The bridge scene: *exists*

Me:

10. I knowwww its stupid and breaks her entire plan of keeping him in the dark and is a totally senseless move on her part BUT I LOVE THAT SHE CANT RESIST AT THE END. THAT LITTLE GESTURE SHE DOES TO MAKE HIM SMILE. THE WAY SHE CANNOT PHYSICALLY STOP HERSELF FROM SAYING "PLEASE SMILE PLEASE BE OKAY I AM DOING THIS FOR YOU I NEED YOU TO BE OKAY"

11. DFQC: For her, I will alter fate.

Me:

12. THAT KISS. SPOKE A BOOKS WORTH OF WORDS. THE WAY IT CONVEYED ALL OF THEIR PENT UP EMOTIONS AND APOLOGIES AND I LOVE YOUS AND GOODBYES! I WILL DIE FROM JUST THE POWER OF THAT KISS ALONE. HOW IN THE HECK!

13. DFQC: There is nothing in this world that can shake me.

Taisui: *grasping at straws, panicking* What if the love of your life forgot about you? What then?

DFQC:

14. The fact that its DFQC who reminds XLH aka "Goddess who says she will only care about the 3 realms now and not personal desires", that she has to kill him to save the three realms. The fact that her love for him is and always will be stronger than anything else. The fact that he knows this is what must be done and is the one to convince her to do it! AHHHHH KILL ME.

[xiaohuayaos]

poor Changheng really had the worst week after coming back from being Xiao Run, like okay so the girl I've loved for 500 years told me she chooses the evil moon guy and then my bestie Ronghao admitted to doing the crimes against nature and all that is ethical and moral and my brother is still being a bitch.

[well-dressedwords]

Still screaming to myself over LBFaD

Siming tells Xiao Lanhua only love is not fate. And she tells Dongfang Qingcang that only he can defy Xiao Lanhua’s fate... BECAUSE HE’S THE ONLY ONE WHO LOVES HER MORE THAN HIS OWN LIFE! 

I knew that subconsciously he was the one willing to make the sacrifice to keep her from sacrificing herself, but the whole “defying destiny” piece doesn’t just happen because you want to change things. Changheng clearly wants to change it, but as usual fails to be bull-headed enough, or capable of thinking outside the box enough to do something to make it happen (poor guy, just hasn’t learned how to deal with things the way Dongfang Qingcang does). 

Changing fate requires the action to come from a place of deep, self-sacrificing love. (And honestly, being a little insane about the person you’re doing it for.)

That is also why Xiao Lanhua could interfere with Changheng’s fate in the beginning, even though her love was not of the romantic kind (as it turns out). And possibly why Danyin had influence to make their “second” wedding come true? Because her love for Changheng and her desire to save him at the cost of her own chance with him was, in a roundabout way, also love that required her sacrifice - though in her case, it wasn’t her life she laid down. 

Anyway, the consistency of the world-building continues to amaze me.

[silverloreley]

Part 2 of the outline of my LBFAD x TTEOTM crossover idea (which I need now more than ever given how the series ended).

Part 1 here. We were left at the Nehter River. Now, I think the reason the disaster demonic duo couldn’t find the Devil Fetus for 500 years is because TTJ was in the river while the Evil Bone was with Susu, who timeskipped to her own time so, in those 500 years, there were no Evil Bone nor Devil Fetus to find.

[Which means that having TTJ dive in the Nether River was actually a good idea to prevent/delay the end of the world, or at least to spare him five centuries of tortures from the demons who’d try to awaken their master (not that he didn’t suffer plenty in the Nether River, but that was his choice, you see)]

That said, the 500 years disappeareance could happen, in this fic, also if the very worried immortal family decides to take a risk and bring TTJ with them in the immortal realm, preferably Xishan or Cangyanhai. In fact, in Xishan he could recover from the wound of the Nails in his heart and cultivate better his new immortal soul. They’d also explain him the nature of Susu’s sacrifice, once given the chance, and XLH would beg him to be patient and wait for LSS to be back in a new life, like she waited for DFQC.

But we know TTJ is a stubborn freak (who we love) and I think more likely he dived in the Nether River anyway, “bye family, come pick me up in 500 years” sort of.

This got even longer than the other part.

Shangque basically adopts Nian Baiyu. Aka: Nian Baiyu doesn’t fall prey of the demons and gains immortality thanks to his new dad shifu. They were close before too, since Shangque saw the poor lieutenant interact with TTJ and had flashbacks of himself with DFQC. Jieli insists on taking in Nian Baiyu’s sister too when their mother dies in the demon attack (this isn’t plot-relevant, I just liked this idea). The Yiyue tribe passes under Shangque’s protection and of the Moon Tribe by proxy, therefore no one is taken hostage or stuff.

Qingyu and Pian Ran get married and rule the empire together, although they make to history as they created a new tradition about the emperor wearing the mask and the empress must never be seen, the latter only to let Pian Ran be free to do whatever she pleases. After 300 years or so, they plan to find a good-hearted, strong, righteous and smart kid to adopt as their heir for when they plan to retire and travel around the world.

That said!

When the Nether River spits out TTJ, he does end up near the immortal sect, while his family was waiting for him near the Yiyue tribe’s settlement. It causes a bit of a delay in them meeting again.

No one remembers he had been a disciple over 500 years before just like no one remembered Xiao Lin, which is curious but true because most people forgot, have died, or just are too young to have met him in those 3 years so long before.

Master Zhaoyou still puts TTJ to test because “a disciple who had not cultivated any art in five centuries is as good as a newbie” or something (he dissipated most his cultivation in the Nether River so Zhaoyou is pretty much right). That’s when Zhaoyou finds out a few things that he keeps for himself about TTJ, including the fact he’s the Devil Fetus but without the Evil Bone, that he was raised by actual immortals, and there’s something else he can’t quite figure out and breaks his head over.

The first thing XLH does upon finding TTJ again is slap his arm and chastize him for making her worry for other 500 years, as if she had not suffered enough being parted for so long from someone she loved before. He apologizes and she cries and obvsy forgives him. DFQC gives him the cold shoulder for the grand total of a day, then he caves in too. Changheng and Shangque can’t even do that and hug him right away. Once they arrive, Danyin and Jieli are much worse, they go on a tag-team two-hours long tirade while Xunfeng is just, like, there watching and gloating with this judgmental face that ends up being worse than everything else put together.

Nian Baiyu and Changheng offer to stay in the sect with him if what he wants is to stay, everyone else will come back from time to time, like they used to do in his childhood.

None of them had the chance to meet Susu yet or even hear of her name, at least until the competition comes and, whoops, there she is! The Lady of Spirituality, who would have guessed? And she saved TTJ again, just in case someone had doubts it was her.

Before that, though, the immortal fam offer their help containing the demons during the competition, since that’s not an interference with mortal fates. It changes everything and nothing: they manage to trap the two big demons for a while, but those two are very strong and manage to escape.

XLH is very happy to meet Susu again, although Susu tries to pretend she doesn’t know any of them, XLH laughs and tells her she tried the trick too and it never works in the long run.

(TTJ knew that part of the story and he pulls a DFQC and kisses Susu instead of only tricking her into revealing herself. Yes, that’s a scene I loved in LBFAD and I expected one like that in TTEOTM, damn it!)

He still ends up following her to Jing and being baited by Si Ying and Jing Mie, use the Crossbow, find out Susu has the Evil Bone and so forth because that bit was solid.

Since TTJ told his parent(s) a through recollection of Bo’re life (save for some, ehm, more private bits), they all know that Di Mian is a lying liar who lies, who did not kill the (D)evil God - the previous Goddess of Xishan did - and that he was the real cause of his beloved wife’s death. It discredits him a lot, especially during the trial (Changheng basically moved in the Xiaoyao sect at this point and was already there to help, DFQC and XLH arrive later for reasons).

Although, it’s undeniable that TTJ is the Devil Fetus and used to have the Evil Bone and still has the Crossbow so it only helps so much.

DFQC crushes the Pillar to interrupt the punishment (and gets real scary) while XLH starts to chastize the sects for being unable to see past their prejudice. Susu adds to it with her retelling (and the lie about the Evil Bone being gone) just like in canon because that scene is epic and almost made me cry so it must stay as it is.

Incidentally, the trial is also when TTJ finds out his family adopted him to prevent the end of the world, which is pretty devastating interms of trust, but the love they have for him is genuine and so is his for them, so everything is later resolved with a shoutfest and lots of tears.

Zhaoyou is unofficially dragged in the loop of the immortal family after that. He admits he had perceived/noted the Devil Fetus’ nature from the start but wanted to give his student a chance. They’re all very touched by that, and grateful (and Changheng developed a bit of a crush on him, no I accept no criticism here).

They end up sharing all they know: in the 500 years, they made researches on the Devil Fetus and how to separate its destiny from that of Tai Sui, but aside from removing the Evil Bone and keeping the artifacts far from each other since none can be destroyed, it seems like there’s nothing more to do, not without killing TTJ and make him regenerate in Xishan’s soil. The only problem is that without a soul vessel (like XLH’s seed or the moon bone orchid) the new life would be completely new, so not TTJ, and that’s not a viable solution, so TTJ needs to cultivate enough to create a soul vessel for his primordial spirit to be preserved if he wants to get rid of Tai Sui’s influence for good. It’s a lenghty procedure and the demons, along with Tai Sui, give them no time for this to happen.

There is, nevertheless, a moment of respite, while they start to plan the wedding. The immortal family almost goes overboard with the engagement gifts.

TTJ asks LSS’s fathers to let some of the immortal family assist in the removal of the Evil Bone (he doesn’t trust Di Mian. in. the. slightest). Di Mian wouldn’t want to, but has to cave in to avoid suspicions.

During the procedure, Di Mian manages to near-fatally wound Qu Xuanzi and DFQC with the Sky-Slashing Sword to the point of rendering them comatose and manages to put the blame on TTJ, he also plans to completely kill them but he’s stopped by LSS figuring out what happened. Qu Xuanzi very nearly dies (maybe he doesn’t. I just decided this can be an everybody lives au, all things considered, with XLH being there it can be).

Di Mian still flees with the Evil Bone, followed by Zhaoyou and Changheng.

TTJ is lured out by Si Ying and Jing Mie who kidnapped Susu thinking she still has the Evil Bone or at least can bait TTJ. She manages to escape mostly on her own because she’s more badass than the show allowed her to be.

Danyin and Xunfeng fight against Si Ying and Jing Mie because I say so to cover Susu’s escape and her start looking for the entrance of the Devil Palace.

(Eh, that means the Spider Demon won’t appear here, nor there will be her fight with Nian Baiyu. Whoops)

After the fight with Di Mian, Zhaoyou is about to devilize but Changheng uses half his immortal soul and near so of his cultivation to stop the process and save him. Unfortunately, this also means they’re both out of commission and seem to be dead on the outside eye.

The All-in-Distress-Way is opened, cue the sect people being stupid (the red master whatshisname tries to use the Crossbow which backfires and kills him LOL), Susu facing her shit dad once more, and so forth.

TTJ saves Susu from Di Mian, but he’s forced to devilize. Of course, he surrendered only on surface, because he 100% intends to weaponize the chance he’s given to destroy Tai Sui from the inside, a true suicide mission (it’s nice that I started to write this outline days before I saw the final 5 eps and I still got it right, that part of the plot makes perfect sense, if you ask me).

This starts an internal power struggle between TTJ and TS to control the body, the whole speech about all things sad and evil feeding the Devil God and all that drill.

After GYJW calls back all the sect people, including LSS, he finds out Zhaoyou isn’t dead and Changheng tries to make him see reason. Idk where this may lead until this dialogue is written though, but I feel this must happen because GYJW is a bad cheap copy of Changheng (and XL wasn’t that bad) he could have been a much better character, so perhaps he’s salvageable here.

The sects still have to intervene to stop the All-in-Distress Way because stopping the end of the world is the right thing to do.

Susu will have none of it, of course, and goes to speak with her (almost) husband, consequences be damned. So do XLH and DFQC, although he’s still wounded by the Sky-Slashing Sword.

Changheng stays behind in the sect to help the planning, Danyin and Xunfeng decide to return to the Immortal realms to mobilize Shuiyuntian and Changyanhai to try block the All-in-Distress Way from above.

TTJ ends up having to fool not only LSS but also XLH and DFQC, and actually manages to get the upper hand on all three because Tai Sui started to gloat about how he tricked the Goddess of Xishan and the great Yuezun by taking the primordial spirit of their future child and turning him into his vessel. Basically, in the river of reincarnation, he swiped their future child’s soul and forced the Evil Bone onto him, and then made sure he’d be born in a mortal’s life of suffering to break him down to his will for good. He planned to reveal it near the end of the world to make DFQC and, most importantly, Xi Yun unable to kill him (whether this is the truth or not, it’s debatable, it all depends on the message we want to pass thorugh with this rewriting).

Unfortunately, it works, and TTJ is left to apply his initial plan of having himself killed by Susu after the Celestial Punishment Array will hit.

During the Bo’re life, though, Susu sees through his lies, three lifetimes gave her a good enough grasp of his tellings. The fact she figured out most the plan does little to stop it, at first, since both play their parts till the end.

XLH is conflicted for a while, but eventually agrees to the plan, although for her it’s another heartbreak and repeating history. She says this much to TTJ who falters for a moment, revealing his true feelings but he has to push trough.

The Celestial Punishment Array is made by the sects and supported by Shuiyuntian and Cangyanhai, which once again joined forces to defeat Tai Sui. It’s a pretty big thing because it’s the first time in 30000 years the Immortals descend among mortals to help them (and will mark a new alliance for the future).

LSS ascends because that’s what she has to do and, in the “godly council” there’s also Xi Yun, who promises to be by her side. Chu Huang thanks her.

Tai Sui is ultimately erased for good by the combined efforts of TTJ, ascended!Susu and Xi Yun, but this effort claims TTJ’s life, as he expected, and Susu’s, who sacrificed her godhood to turn the Scale into a soul vessel for him to come back when she realized he intended to die for good.

XLH is left to pick up the pieces: given her phoenix nature, LSS is back as an egg, which her adoptive father (if he survived, otherwise Ye Qingyu and Pian Ran) will take care of until she’s back. As for TTJ, the Scale-turned soul vessel will allow, with time, to fix and restore in full his primordial spirit, so XLH and DFQC take it to Xishan and wait.

Qingyu and Pian Ran had been using their combined energies to protect the kingdom, but since they had each only half her original demonic energy/life, they end up consuming most of it, at which point they agree they had had enough of being rulers, and retire to the countryside.

Time skip to a few centuries later, when the taizi dianxia (crown prince) of Cangyanhai meets the Lady of Spirituality of the immortal sect. Neither remembers each other, again, until they touch by accident while bickering and then it all comes back to them.

And, for fuck’s sake, this time they get married decently and are happy with their daughter and extended family and all is well.

THE END and holy shit, if the outline is that long, this could become a monster fic.

[eldritch-bisexual]

Aaaaand we start episode 24 with Dongfang Qingcang calling Xiao Lanhua a slut (not really)

-> Freaking Jieli. I want to push her into a pond.

-> When everything you see reminds you him... Lost cause, sister.

-> See, that's what I like about him. DFQC stops and thinks about stuff. Look at him being emotionally intelligent. I'm so proud.

-> Why are you doing this to yourself my good sir? Don't punish yourself. Like, your logic isn't WRONG, you're just looking at one single angle.

-> Poor Danyin. She deserves better.

-> WHO taught him to be his smooootthh

-> stop tooting, you have no tooting rights, gimme the xiao

-> oh my god that was a bad way to end a smooching scene

-> I REALLY hope that Xunfeng is being honest. Truly. He can still be a little shit but his character will be so much more interesting if he is being loyal.

-> these two are SO SAPPY

-> FOR FUCKS SAKE TUNE THE GODDAMN QIN

-> Just smooch him and he'll feel better. Particularly if you smooch in front of Changheng

-> I love seeing the people from the Moon Tribe just doing their thing. Really.

[beatrixacs]

So am I reading too much into this or not?

We all know that Orchid remembers everything, even things she is not supposed to remember as she demonstrates with Changheng when she repeats his words to her from before he wiped out her memory, allowing him to hope for a second (poor guy) that she might actually be in love with him. That means that by resurrecting, all her previous memories have been restored.

Now, if we all agree that the dream sequence was actually REAL and that dream Orchid was the ray of her primordial spirit in DFQC's primordial spirit, does it mean that she also remembers THAT?

Because she could easily tell him to go away and stop bothering her or just ignore him as she’s been doing, anyway. But no, she actually goes to him to persuade him to leave on his own because she knows that he doesn't want to watch as she marries someone else. Her last words to him in that exchange is "I'm marrying Changheng in three days." as if it was some kind of a warning that he should leave and protect his heart.

This show is just... M.A.S.T.E.R.P.I.E.C.E.

[theseasasleep]

Love Between Fairy and Devil (ep 3, part 3)

So he's landed on savant, 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

I am in love with this gesture. I can't recall the last time I loved a male lead as archdramatic as Dongfang. Honestly, he's magical.

Watching Changheng, God of War, miss every "We've been taken hostage and require rescue," message one of the dumb plant babies desperately throws in his face because he is desperately wedded to his avoid-Orchid plan makes me realize, ah! So he's an idiot, a minor incompetent.

Orchid has just been suspended in midair and yanked like a yoyo by Dongfang, who also threatens to burn down her garden. Yet none of that compares to him ruining her chance to spend alone time with Changheng. And thanks to the Heart curse, Dongfang knows it too! Look at his face!!!

I totally understand why he ditches the imposing armor, soft clothing is so much better for wiping away tears.

An Evil Overlord who can be persuaded by reasonable arguments? Who da thunk it? Lol Orchid's so smug having won her argument until she realizes she's only convinced him to stay at her home. Well, Dongfang is an Evil Overlord after all, he can be persuaded to tweak his direction, not be pulled wholesale off course, lol

Oooh, she casually pushes his shoulder in that comfortable are-you-nuts way and Dongfang has the exact same reaction as when she pokes him in the shoulder in the Tower. While there is a level of You-Dare in his reaction, I now realize most of it is him being blankly stunned at being touched. Casually. Read: intimately. Calm down, fellow kitties, we're staying g-rated. This kind of contact eschews all barriers for a level of comfort that is fresh to Dongfang. I love it!

Who you like is not my concern. You belo- *Orchid slams the door in his face. With an eye roll.*.

Me, takes a deep breath:

Again!!!!: she's pissed he's in her room; he asks, if she's threatening him; she replies, it's not as if I haven't done it before; Evil Overlord, feared across the realms, mentally concedes the point and downshifts from raised-hackles to calmly intractable. Like, have any of these fairy idiots ever tried holding an honest to God conversation with him?! Sure, he'd probably immolate the first impertinent moron to cross the line but until that point he'd listen.

Dongfang regains vulnerability; now he needs to practice restraint. He can bully Orchid. Of course, he can bully her. But bullying or bulldozing her comes with an assortment of emotional and physical landmines that he cannot sidestep. Restraint. Hahaha, his course on how to live as a feeling being is so wide-ranging! 😁

Orchid continuing to mistake Dongfang's imperious commands to maintain her well being for love confessions is just so damn adorable. I should find that level of dumb annoying but I don't because it is rooted in how little so many in Fairyland seem to care about her. She's not a distrustful sort, she embraces those around her given half the chance. She won't throw away a stranger (see: Dongfang) who could be a friend unless he shows himself to be godawful. She's not a moron; she understands enough of the danger he presents to urge him on his way. But does she really try? There are no desperate, furtive plans to attract the notice of the Fairy Guard. Instead she tries to ride the balance of the situation. Poor, sweet Orchid! You're too good for that place!!!

And in the end, she gets her way! Lol