#ch ling yao

[themtmiseryproject]

Santiago Ortega located Lucy Warren and Bandit Leonne early this morning towards the east side base of Mount Misery. It seems as if Krampus kept his word. The party is set to begin tonight or tomorrow thanks to the locals.

We are closing in on Ling Yao - whom should be captured shortly.

[layzeal]

Hi! I have a mdzs question and I figure you are most likely to know the answer. In the scene where wwx and lwj are interrogating nhs about the stone castles, wwx mentions that the Nie's method of cultivation seems to deviate from the standard cultivation path. In the 7seas English edition, he says that it's "hitting a bit close to the demonic cultivation path." My question is, does he actually refer to it as "demonic cultivation"? It does make more sense in this context, but I know 7seas has a habit of mistranslating ghostly cultivation to demonic cultivation. Thank you very much for your time reading this!

Hi!! Sorry for the delay in replying. So, short answer is YES, he does refer to "demonic cultivation" (魔歪道 as written in the text), but he is not comparing it to his own cultivation (ghost cultivation, 鬼道).

Now, every xianxia novel will have its own worldbuilding and set of rules, even if they're all taking inspiration from existing tropes. Guidao, for example, while in MDZS is considered immoral by some, it still does not harm or make use of living human souls and lives, and so in MDZS's setting it is not considered actual modao (though whether or not one thinks it's moral or ethical or whatever it doesn't matter here!! we're just talking semantics), meanwhile in Liu Yao by Priest, ghost cultivation (as written there) is not only considered a branch of modao, but is seen as THE most evil and immoral type you could possibly use, because not only you're using human souls, you're imprisoning and enslaving them even after death.

@qourmet actually mentioned on twt a while ago that one close example of real demonic cultivation you can think of in MDZS are the mind-controlling nails they put into Song Land and Wen Ning, though even that's questionable considering they weren't actual alive. Xue Yang and JGY's human experiments (ie. living corpses) also come close. So in A GENERAL SENSE demonic cultivation refers to anything that makes use of and harms living humans in order to empower the cultivator, either by stealing the victim's cultivation/spiritual power, controlling them, forcing them to do things against their will, etc etc etccccccc

This is all just context to understand why WWX makes the little accusation that he did

(ch 6, 7seas)

so you can see there's nothing actually wrong with the translation in this part itself, because in this instance, "demonic cultivation" (or demonic crooked path, as directly translated) is actually being said (as it was in many other instances, like the prologue chapter where ppl talk abt wwx's death, or when jc finds the leaf doll on jin ling's back)

the only problem is that in later parts of the story, 鬼道, which is an entirely different term, is given the same translation as the former, which may cause confusion, and was a mistake also present in the original ExR translation that we all hoped would be fixed in an official one (but didn't </3). whether or not guidao counts as demonic cultivation or is evil or whatever doesn't matter here, but i only wish that the different terms had been translated as different words, so the reader could come to their own conclusion on the matter by themselves

so yeah! hope that was helpful

[jungkookswife07613]

Hi! I'm searching for wangxian fanfic where Wei ying and lan zhan are married at the cold pond but they don't acknowledge their marriage until the cliff scene. Where lan zhan follows after wei ying and fall down ready to die but they are saved by lan yi and baoshan sanren. The elders also saved the wen family(all wens are alive). They don't return to cultivation world and stay hidden for 16 yrs and wangxian have 3 kids. 1st is ayuan,2nd is girl(half blind) and 3rd is a son who doesn't speak much. They are all living peacefully. Wei ying and lan zhan are immortal. Wei ying can transform into a crow which he uses to keep an eye on this children. Ayuan goes outside and gets into trouble and since it was getting late and he didn't come back. Wangxian goes to find him. Ayuan is with other sect leaders (nie brothers, Jiang siblings, jin zixuan, jin Ling,lan Huan and qiren) fighting when Wangxian appears to save him. The sect leaders are cursed and Ayuan begs Wangxian to save them and so they bring them to their home to find a solution. Jiang siblings are a b##ch. They are cursed by meng Yao. Lans tries to reconcile with lan zhan and his children. Wen Ning is married and sometimes take care of their children. Wen Qing also helps. Jiang yanli tries to reconcile with wei wuxian but he refuses. She is also jealous of wangxian relationship because hers and jin zixuan are not that closer. Wen Qing catches her when wangxian is having sex and she was watching shamelessly. Jin Ling is still a brat.

Also, jin zixuan does not die and same with Jiang yanli but they lie to wangxian and have war and blame it on wei ying. After 16 yrs all sect leaders are threatened by meng Yao and to save themselves they stay with wangxian.

Somebody pls help me find this fic. It has been on my mind since months. And I forget to bookmark it.

[wangxianficfinder]

Hi! I'm searching for wangxian fanfic where Wei ying and lan zhan are married at the cold pond but they don't acknowledge their marriage until the cliff scene. Where lan zhan follows after wei ying and fall down ready to die but they are saved by lan yi and baoshan sanren. The elders also saved the wen family(all wens are alive). They don't return to cultivation world and stay hidden for 16 yrs and wangxian have 3 kids. 1st is ayuan,2nd is girl(half blind) and 3rd is a son who doesn't speak much. They are all living peacefully. Wei ying and lan zhan are immortal. Wei ying can transform into a crow which he uses to keep an eye on this children. Ayuan goes outside and gets into trouble and since it was getting late and he didn't come back. Wangxian goes to find him. Ayuan is with other sect leaders (nie brothers, Jiang siblings, jin zixuan, jin Ling,lan Huan and qiren) fighting when Wangxian appears to save him. The sect leaders are cursed and Ayuan begs Wangxian to save them and so they bring them to their home to find a solution. Jiang siblings are a b##ch. They are cursed by meng Yao. Lans tries to reconcile with lan zhan and his children. Wen Ning is married and sometimes take care of their children. Wen Qing also helps. Jiang yanli tries to reconcile with wei wuxian but he refuses. She is also jealous of wangxian relationship because hers and jin zixuan are not that closer. Wen Qing catches her when wangxian is having sex and she was watching shamelessly. Jin Ling is still a brat. Also, jin zixuan does not die and same with Jiang yanli but they lie to wangxian and have war and blame wei ying. After 16 yrs all sect leaders are threatened by meng Yao and to save themselves they stay with wangxian.

Hello, this is #10 in this post, if anyone has any suggestions for it, please leave a comment either on this post or the one linked, thank you 😊

(also, please do not censor bitch next time, it is easier for people to filter out words if you write them in full)

- Mod C

--

FOUND! If It's Too Hard To Forgive by Machevalli (M, 94k, WIP, WangXian, XuanLi, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, Fluff and Angst, Bittersweet Ending, Yunmeng Jiang Sect Bashing, WWX Leaves the Yunmeng Jiang Sect, Top LWJ/Bottom WWX, Mpreg)

[shookethdev]

a o e i i er ai ei ao ou an en ang eng ong i ia iao ie iu ian in iang ing iong u ua uo uai ui uan un uang ueng ü üe üan ün a o e er ai ao ou an en ang eng yi ya yao ye you yan yin yang ying yong wu wa wo wai wei wan wen wang weng yu yue yuan yun b ba bo bai bei bao ban ben bang beng bi biao bie bian bin bing bu p pa po pai pei pao pou pan pen pang peng pi piao pie pian pin ping pu m ma mo me mai mei mao mou man men mang meng mi miao mie miu mian min ming mu f fa fo fei fou fan fen fang feng fu d da de dai dei dao dou dan den dang deng dong di diao die diu dian ding du duo dui duan dun t ta te tai tei tao tou tan tang teng tong ti tiao tie tian ting tu tuo tui tuan tun n na ne nai nei nao nou nan nen nang neng nong ni niao nie niu nian nin niang ning nu nuo nuan nü nüe l la le lai lei lao lou lan lang leng long li lia liao lie liu lian lin liang ling lu luo luan lun lü lüe g ga ge gai gei gao gou gan gen gang geng gong gu gua guo guai gui guan gun guang k ka ke kai kei kao kou kan ken kang keng kong ku kua kuo kuai kui kuan kun kuang h ha he hai hei hao hou han hen hang heng hong hu hua huo huai hui huan hun huang z za ze zi zai zei zao zou zan zen zang zeng zong zu zuo zui zuan zun c ca ce ci cai cao cou can cen cang ceng cong cu cuo cui cuan cun s sa se si sai sao sou san sen sang seng song su suo sui suan sun zh zha zhe zhi zhai zhei zhao zhou zhan zhen zhang zheng zhong zhu zhua zhuo zhuai zhui zhuan zhun zhuang ch cha che chi chai chao chou chan chen chang cheng chong chu chua chuo chuai chui chuan chun chuang sh sha she shi shai shei shao shou shan shen shang sheng shu shua shuo shuai shui shuan shun shuang r re ri rao rou ran ren rang reng rong ru rua ruo rui ruan run j ji jia jiao jie jiu jian jin jiang jing jiong ju jue juan jun q qi qia qiao qie qiu qian qin qiang qing qiong qu que quan qun x xi xia xiao xie xiu xian xin xiang xing xiong xu xue xuan xun

NAKU 🫵

[eyenaku]

Ji ji fu ji ji

a o e i i er ai ei ao ou an en ang eng ong i ia iao ie iu ian in iang ing iong u ua uo uai ui uan un uang ueng ü üe üan ün a o e er ai ao ou an en ang eng yi ya yao ye you yan yin yang ying yong wu wa wo wai wei wan wen wang weng yu yue yuan yun b ba bo bai bei bao ban ben bang beng bi biao bie bian bin bing bu p pa po pai pei pao pou pan pen pang peng pi piao pie pian pin ping pu m ma mo me mai mei mao mou man men mang meng mi miao mie miu mian min ming mu f fa fo fei fou fan fen fang feng fu d da de dai dei dao dou dan den dang deng dong di diao die diu dian ding du duo dui duan dun t ta te tai tei tao tou tan tang teng tong ti tiao tie tian ting tu tuo tui tuan tun n na ne nai nei nao nou nan nen nang neng nong ni niao nie niu nian nin niang ning nu nuo nuan nü nüe l la le lai lei lao lou lan lang leng long li lia liao lie liu lian lin liang ling lu luo luan lun lü lüe g ga ge gai gei gao gou gan gen gang geng gong gu gua guo guai gui guan gun guang k ka ke kai kei kao kou kan ken kang keng kong ku kua kuo kuai kui kuan kun kuang h ha he hai hei hao hou han hen hang heng hong hu hua huo huai hui huan hun huang z za ze zi zai zei zao zou zan zen zang zeng zong zu zuo zui zuan zun c ca ce ci cai cao cou can cen cang ceng cong cu cuo cui cuan cun s sa se si sai sao sou san sen sang seng song su suo sui suan sun zh zha zhe zhi zhai zhei zhao zhou zhan zhen zhang zheng zhong zhu zhua zhuo zhuai zhui zhuan zhun zhuang ch cha che chi chai chao chou chan chen chang cheng chong chu chua chuo chuai chui chuan chun chuang sh sha she shi shai shei shao shou shan shen shang sheng shu shua shuo shuai shui shuan shun shuang r re ri rao rou ran ren rang reng rong ru rua ruo rui ruan run j ji jia jiao jie jiu jian jin jiang jing jiong ju jue juan jun q qi qia qiao qie qiu qian qin qiang qing qiong qu que quan qun x xi xia xiao xie xiu xian xin xiang xing xiong xu xue xuan xun

[guqin-and-flute]

WIP TAG GAME

RULES: post the names of all the files in your WIP folder regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet of it or tell them something about it.

Tagged by @treemaidengeek (THANK!! 😃)

This was difficult, I kept not wanting to put a thing down because they were just a one line concept or title but it's in the rules, so I do the thing!! THIS GOT SO LONG HOLY SHIT I'M PUTTING IT UNDER READ MORE

TAGGING: @january-summers @madtomedgar @little-smartass & anyone who wants to because my brain is melted 🫠

One Offs

Xiyao (When Silk Flowers Bloom)

After the Temple

Taste of Luxury (MBMSAM)

Texts (MBMSAM)

No Evil

Ace Mingjue

Wen Qing/Qin Su

Xichen having FUN painting something silly /not like normal

Time Loop

Teach Him a Lesson (Ch. 5)

Mingjue Meets Baxia

3chen (ChenChenChen)

XXC/SL/JC

As All Things Do (Ch. 2)

Meng Yao Dancer AU

Calamity Ghost Jgy Post Canon

Meng Shi lives, sheltering Lan Xichen

Beyond Control (Ch. 2)

NMJ protect jgy from jins au

Wangxian let the world spin madly on

Wuxian is a ghost during 16 years, realizes feelings, sees A-Yuan grow up, sees Jiang Cheng, max angst --forgets the second he's resurrected [Seriously that's the title]

Parent Trap--Jin Ling makes Wwx and Jc hug DAMMIT

WWX and the only vaguely annoying haunting

Traveling with Xiao Xingchen

Peony To Lotus

How did Jiang Cheng react to Golden Core stuff?

Jin Zixuan comes to deliver invitation

Are You Here To Stop Me (Ch. 7)

ChengQing

WEN NING AND HUAISANG???

100 Days (Chapter of All the Things?)

Night Hunting at Jins >:)

Retaliation

Drunk and bitching about JZX as brother-in-law's

Wwx and Jgy both brought about end of Sunshot

JGY BIRTHDAY HAPPY AND SADS?? Everyone

Soup Bonding!!

First errand

Dancing with Yixin

Yanxiyao get together

Yanxiyao Fluff

Yanxiyao finding out

PHILANTHROPISTS/BURY MENG SHI

Yanxiyao Sick/Teamwork

Jgy decides he wants to fix WWX’s core

Swimming

Showing off Jgy

Mo Xuanyu

3zun Raise Jingyi AU

Holding Me Holding You (Ch. 7)

And A-Fu Makes 4 (Ch. 6)

THE BIG SWITCH/confronting daddy/6 month break down (it's not joy)

Competence Kink

NieYao Reconciliation

WEI WUXIAN

First Time Yanli decides Jgy is family dammit

Pre-reconciled NieLan Dueling with Thirsty JGY

Conference Night hunt with juniors

HOSTAGE??

AFTER FREAK OUT

Ask about grandparents

How did you get together?

Xichen Drunk

Nielan Snuggle (lxc pov)

JGY pushing boundaries/Mingjue’s buttons to test 

Early morning full family goofy jokey

JGY doesn’t know games and it’s SAD

JGY skin hungry, feel safe (later)

Bonding Over Kids

3am Jin Bro Bonding

Mingjue frankly talking to Xichen about him dying/Talking with Jiang Yanli 

how do 3zun deal with tantrums?

Stairs

NIEYAO MUST SNUGGLE

Jingyi's first hard night hunt

Visit Yunmeng with Yellow Father!

3zun cockblock LJY in later relationships?

Mo Xuanyu Coming Out

Weird Eating

‘Trust me’ RUN

KID #2

NHS POV

Lxc realizes he's been unhappy. He thought he was happy

Playful Xiyao seduction of nmj

HUSBANDS

Snowed In (Ch. 2)

Sword Shenanigans

Early 3zun Notes/getting together fic

Modern 3zun

When You No Longer Need To Endure (Ch. 2 & 3)

I Can Explain! (Ch. 3)

The Dadliest Chat (Ch. 2)

What do daddies do?

Jin Sibs Introduction to THE BABY

Dad Issues Confrontation

I wanna be a Stay At Home Dad, and I’m aware that makes me the worst person in the world

Sexy Times

Game Night

Mother's day is officially dubbed Yanli s day as only mother

Huaisang babysitting

Mo Xuanyu

Tarzan

Jin Papa's Road trip

[cantalooprat]

Transmigrated as the Villain President's Lover

What I Liked

hngggh yes lin ang si's couples r always so sweet

reading this feels almost like an alternate ver of toolman which is lovely for when one wants to read sth to scratch that itch. the couple dynamics r similar enough that it satisfies my aching romantic heart that yearns for sth like han cheng and shen qingshu but also being just different enough that they're still fresh to read

i like the side ships too! yao xiuyuan and ying nian, ling jingxian and yu anyi, even sheng wenxi and su lian, all of them are sweet in their own ways

i rly rly love this sort of fated love scenarios and like... the way it became xianxia at the end lmao it was kind of silly and out of left field but it lowkey reminded me of after marrying an evil god which is also a v v v sweet story. i'd actually love to read a QT written by lin ang si, i love the way the "overbearing president" character trope is subverted and portrayed and just how this authornim just rly sticks to the eternal, fated love trope

the yao xiuyuan/ying nian extra!! they got a whole 30 ch!!!! tbh they couldve had their own series but it was such a good sweet change the gong plot. ying nian is also like... a quintessential lin ang si shou lmao encounters a lot of hardships but doesn't get blackened and doesn't lose hope and eventually encounters the one person who will make him happy (but ofc he will also make his gong happy! another feature of lin ang si shou, they r affectionate n sweet n is sure to make their lover happy). i like that it was pointed out how the ex-bf rly truly loves ying nian but took him for granted and ying nian just wouldn't let his dignity be stained like that, and he does eventually meet yao xiuyuan who can respect him fully!

What I Disliked

the... the random af dogblood elements in the middle that eventually didn't rly amount to anything in the long run. fang yaoxuan assaulting ji qingzhou?? ji qingzhou stabbing him???? fang yaoxuan and luo yuxin's toxic relationship?????? authornim pls sweetness is ur forte, this kind of dogblood plot is quite... i remember reading it at like 1am n going absolutely wtf

i feel like the variety shows do tend to get a bit draggy lmao it's v slice-of-life in that sense

Notes

its not "reborn" its "transmigrated" 😭

[grand-line-shenanigans]

Ed's bisexual awakening

[kaizokucujoh]

Ling Yao/Greed icons

Like/reblog if you save or use

Made by me @kaizokucujoh

[pack-the-pack]

Eu lendo os capítulos 88 e 89 (Lealdade 7 e 8) como alguém que gosta do personagem do Jin Guangyao:

Eng Translation:

Me reading chapter 88 and 89 (Loyalty 7 and 8) as someone that likes the character of Jin Guangyao.

[video]

Lu: Andressa, let's go home, man. I CAN'T DEFEND YOU, GIRL! I CAN'T TAKE YOUR SIDE LIKE THIS!

Andressa in the pool: I don't want to do it, leave me alone 😠

Lu: Girl I adore you, I adore you, don't do that! Don't do that to us! 😭😭😭

Other girls: Lu, don't cry.

Lu: It makes me sad, dude. It makes me sad 😭😭.

[themtmiseryproject]

It has become a code crimson situation. The protection sigils have failed; an unknown monster has entered the resort. The Monster attacked Mr. Yao -whom ran off shortly after. It is unknown if his talisman is still intact. We must locate him asap.

Ms. Warren and Mr. Leonnè cannot be located at this time. A search has been issued.

[braveryhearted]

Tag dump; Full Metal Alchemist edition.

[ ch. LING YAO ] [ vis. LING YAO ] [ mus. LING YAO ] [ hc. LING YAO ] [ ans. LING YAO ] [ ch. EDWARD ELRIC ] [ vis. EDWARD ELRIC ] [ mus. EDWARD ELRIC ] [ hc. EDWARD ELRIC ] [ ans. EDWARD ELRIC ]  [ ch. ROY MUSTANG ] [ vis. ROY MUSTANG ] [ mus. ROY MUSTANG ] [ hc. ROY MUSTANG ] [ ans. ROY MUSTANG ] 

[xiyao-feels]

Also I have to say, in terms of the way information about JGY is presented over time, I love this quote from ch 11 vs this one from ch 48:

LianFang-Zun was the current leader of the LanlingJin Sect—Jin GuangYao, the only illegitimate son whom Jin GuangShan approved of. He was Jin Ling’s youngest uncle, being half-blooded brothers with both Jin Ling’s father, Jin ZiXuan, and Mo XuanYu. However, although they were both illegitimate sons, they were extremely different. While Mo XuanYu was in Mo Village, sleeping on the ground and eating leftovers, Jin GuangYao was sitting in the highest seat of the cultivation world, summoning the winds and controlling the rain.

(Exiled Rebels, ch 11)

vs

In comparison, Mo XuanYu and his mother were rather favored. At least Jin GuangShan still remembered that he had such a son and brought him back to Koi Tower. Meng Yao, on the other hand, wasn’t as lucky. The son of a prostitute was far from that of a good family. Just like Lady Mo, after she had given birth to one child for Jin GuangShan, she waited with much devotion for the cultivator to take her and her child back. She taught Meng Yao with care, preparing for his future entrance to the cultivation world. Yet, even when he grew past the age of ten, there was still no news of his father, while the Meng woman was already dangerously ill.

(Exiled Rebels, ch 48)

[songofclarity]

The theory that Nie HuaiSang pushed Mo XuanYu to suicide, especially the theory that he killed Mo XuanYu as some kind of eye-for-an-eye revenge against Jin GuangYao for killing Nie MingJue, doesn't make any sense to me because Jin GuangYao never wanted Mo XuanYu alive to begin with. Jin GuangYao was afraid of Mo XuanYu before they even met. In fact, he was likely more afraid of Mo XuanYu than he had ever been afraid of Nie MingJue!

[Jin GuangYao,] “Do you think that I’m in a steady position, here at the LanlingJin Sect? Do you think that I can rise into power the moment Jin ZiXuan dies? Jin GuangShan would rather bring another illegitimate child back than want me to succeed him! You think that I should be afraid of nothing? Well I’m afraid of everything, even other people!” (Ch. 49, ERS)

So Nie HuaiSang getting rid of Mo XuanYu would have done Jin GuangYao a favor. I just can't fathom Nie HuaiSang doing Jin GuangYao's dirty work for him at any point in time after Nie MingJue’s death. After all, Jin GuangYao had done a fine job getting started destroying Mo XuanYu’s life without anyone else’s help.

However, before Mo XuanYu [could] achieve success in cultivation and inherit his father’s position, he was driven back.

On top of that, he was driven back shamefully.

Like adding frost to snow, aside from the event itself, when Mo XuanYu returned, he often behaved in a crazy manner, almost as if his life was scared out of him. (Ch. 2, ERS)

Jin GuangYao was already playing with the dangers of incest, but now he’s going to make it work for his benefit. Claiming Mo XuanYu was toying with incest was possibly the one and only thing Jin GuangShan could not have tolerated. Mo XuanYu could have had anyone he wanted! Jin GuangShan knows it best! But his own half-brother? Absolutely not. Mo XuanYu was so psychologically damaged by whatever happened to him that he can’t defend himself. And to the rest of the family, Jin GuangYao is nothing but the victim of Mo XuanYu’s perversion. Jin GuangYao becomes someone they defend from Mo XuanYu.

[Jin Chan, Jin Ling’s cousin], “Mo XuanYu, you still have the face to return?” (Ch. 47, ERS)

It’s a win-win for innocent A-Yao. But Mo XuanYu could always come back if he’s alive. Reputations can be repaired, especially if they were falsely damaged. Mo XuanYu dead? That would be much better, but it’s not a pressing matter once Jin GuangShan is dead and Jin GuangYao is Chief Cultivator.

But to Nie HuaiSang, Mo XuanYu is far more valuable alive. We only get a few hints of what Nie HuaiSang is thinking, and here’s one of them:

[Sisi,] “But after my savior heard about what happened to me, he decided not to let that pretentious, immoral man continue to fool the world.” (Ch. 85)

Mo XuanYu was just another one of Jin GuangYao’s victims. He was a witness to Jin GuangYao's crimes just like Sisi and Bicao. If Nie HuaiSang went to talk to Mo XuanYu as is commonly believed, the evidence points to him trying to get the dirt on Jin GuangYao. Sisi told Nie HuaiSang about the rape-murder of Jin GuangShan. Bicao revealed Jin GuangYao’s incestual relationship with Qin Su. Mo XuanYu, as well, can reveal Jin GuangYao's ties to practicing demonic cultivation.

This is important because the lack of this information drives part of the story. No one knew Jin GuangYao had a hand in demonic cultivation or the Stygian Tiger Seal until the end at Guanyin Temple. Because no one knew this, there were no other suspects except the Yiling Patriarch wrecking havoc at the Burial Mounds before the second siege, and the cultivation world moved just as Jin GaungYao wanted it to move. Jin GuangYao was able to continue pulling strings from the shadows with Su She.

Xue Yang might have been a slim follow-up after Mo XuanYu to pin Jin GuangYao’s connections down, but even Nie HuaiSang’s role with Yi City is tenuous at best. And then Lan WangJi both killed that evidence and Su She whisked it away via teleportation. Jin GuangYao had many crimes, but the malicious use of demonic cultivation he neatly evaded, just as he evaded having to admit to murdering Nie MingJue.

Again, Mo XuanYu was more more valuable to Nie HuaiSang alive than dead.

Let’s still go ahead with the idea that Nie HuaiSang went to Mo XuanYu to ask questions. What happened to Mo XuanYu at Koi Tower? What did Jin GuangYao do that drove Mo XuanYu insane? What demonic cultivation did Mo XuanYu learn from Jin GuangYao? Where is the entrance to Jin GuangYao's treasure room? How does one get into the treasure room?

Don’t forget that Nie HuaiSang is still looking for the rest of Nie MingJue's body at this point. All he has is an arm. Might Jin GuangYao be keeping Nie MingJue's body close to home? Is that why Nie HuaiSang can’t find him? And he’ll find out not much later that yes, he was partially correct. Nie HuaiSang’s reaction in the treasure room could very well be half and half. Half of him suspected as much, but it doesn't change how shocking or disgusting the reality of it is to the other half. The best lies are based on truth, and Nie HuaiSang showing a weak constitution when faced with horrible news and frightening encounters might not have been completely fake.

(Nie HuaiSang was afraid but he didn’t let fear stop him. It’s the one trait he shares with Jin GuangYao, although their means and ends are quite different.)

Nie MingJue’s head was likely in the treasure room when Mo XuanYu was reading Jin GuangYao’s demonic cultivation collection all those years ago. Mo XuanYu could have told Nie HuaiSang of this, except Mo XuanYu might not have been in his right mind to be telling anyone anything of value.

Worse case scenario here is that Nie HuaiSang, as a willing conversationalist about demonic cultivation, stirred Mo XuanYu up from whatever abused docility he'd succumbed to for years. Mo XuanYu was kept locked up and abused and treated like an animal. Now here is someone willing to talk to him like a real person. Just as Nie HuaiSang saved Sisi from her imprisonment, he could have very well have saved Mo XuanYu from his, but the results were wildly different.

Any hints or reveals that Nie HuaiSang is out for vengeance could stir such wishes in Mo XuanYu in turn, his own trauma provoked, his own need for justice inspired. Mo XuanYu moves forward with his revenge just as Nie HuaiSang is trying to move forward with his.

Perhaps Nie HuaiSang name drops Wei WuXian or perhaps he doesn’t, it doesn’t really matter. Mo XuanYu would already have known who is the Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation. Mo XuanYu already knows what evil spirit he needs to call upon for help. Demonic cultivation was likely the only thing he had left to make him feel empowered, and so Wei WuXian is the one who will take care to right all wrongs when no one else will.

Sadly, Jin GuangYao is not on the list of people Mo XuanYu wants revenge on -- because Jin GuangYao is already experienced at making himself look innocent. Mo XuanYu would have had no idea how wronged he was by his half-brother. So Mo XuanYu only wants the death of his immediate family. His immediate abusers.

But Mo XuanYu is missing something: knowing he needs to convey his wishes to Wei WuXian. Without it, Mo XuanYu’s sacrifice is in vain and the both of them die. Or that would have been their fate if Wei WuXian had not figured it out for himself in time.

We already know Jin GuangYao can put an extra piece into a cultivation technique, such as the Collection of Turmoil into Cleansing. It stands to reason that he is just as able to take a piece out of a cultivation technique.

After all, Mo XuanYu got the technique from him. The gap of this knowledge is thus a ticking time bomb just waiting for Mo XuanYu to give it a try and cut the wrong wire. Jin GuangYao also immediately knows and is quite happy to tell everyone the details of what Mo XuanYu did, despite finding out this is Wei WuXian in front of him barely thirty minutes ago and Mo XuanYu was banished years ago:

Jin GuangYao continued, “I’m sure that none of you know this, but back when XuanYu was still at Koi Tower, he had seen a copy of the YiLing Patriarch’s manuscript at my place. The manuscript recorded a dark technique that ‘sacrificed’ one’s body. With the price being the soul and the body, one could summon a powerful spirit to seek revenge in place of themself. Sect Leader Jiang wouldn’t be able to test it even if he hit him with a hundred more strikes. It’s because the person who used the technique sacrificed their body willingly. It doesn’t count as a possession at all!” [Ch. 50, ERS]

“I’m sure that none of you know this,” Jin GuangYao says, because this was all a plot of his own secret design. It benefits him now to reveal the truth of Mo XuanYu’s demise just as it doesn’t benefit him to ever reveal the truth of Nie MingJue.

But Mo XuanYu was as much a victim of Jin GuangYao as Nie MingJue. Jin GuangYao made sure they destroyed themselves on their own time rather than holding the blade himself.

Nie HuaiSang might not have been a holy avenger and mistakes were very likely made, but there is a lack of motive and evidence here that he ever wanted or sought Mo XuanYu’s death. Too much damage had already happened by the time Nie HuaiSang arrived on the scene. I can picture him throwing up his arms in despair and letting Nie MingJue’s arm go free onto this already crazy crime scene. Imagine the struggle the whole Lan Sect had had with the arm and now imagine Nie HuaiSang trying to manage it all on his own. He was not having a good time!

Mo Village was already a crime scene and now here was one more piece of evidence. The Lans knew inquiry whereas Nie HuaiSang did not. Let the Lans take the arm and find the rest of Nie MingJue for him. Let Nie HuaiSang continue to play innocent in front of Jin GuangYao. Let the arm claim more of Lan XiChen’s attention than Jin GuangYao.

But then Wei WuXian survived his resurrection trial and was taken in by Lan WangJi.

The next time Nie HuaiSang sees Mo XuanYu is at the Stone Castles, and by seeing Mo XuanYu, he knows immediately that the sacrifice worked.

But just because he knows and he saw doesn’t mean it was Nie HuaiSang’s doing, especially when Jin GuangYao’s bloody fingerprints were already encircling Mo XuanYu’s neck.

[kolachess]

Ghostman’s Backstory

 Who is Ghostman?

First, you very likely have no idea who I’m talking about. Ghostman, as Wu Xie dubs him ‘鬼影’, is a character that shows up in Volume 8 (the last volume, and in drama-speak it means the events right after Ultimate Note) briefly to impart a lot of insightful explanations on Wu Xie (and we the audience). 

This does mean this will be a lot of spoilers then and quite lengthy. I’ll usually tag these with posts spoilers, but I’m using a cut this time too.

When does he first appear?

So technically, he’s made an ‘appearance’ earlier, as the mysterious figure stalking them around Banai, and the person who tried to steal the box containing the iron block from Xiaoge when they first visited his former residence.

Although described as ‘collapsed’ or ‘sloped’ shoulders, this should not be confused with the ‘collapsed shouldered’ figure standing behind a screen Wu Xie saw in the old photograph that led them to Banai in the first place (that was later unveiled to be an iron figurine (Vol 6, Ch. 35)). (However, there does seem to be another mention of the photo that may contradict this... so idk. It’s all Wu Xie hypothesizing anyway.) 

What does he look like?

From Wu Xie’s description in the novel:

His whole body was like a mass of wax that had quickly melted at first. All the skin was mottled with holes, but the melting process seemed to have stopped abruptly. His shoulders were practically nonexistent, his hands hung on both sides of his body, and all the flesh and skin on his shoulders were wrapped around his body. I could even see the joints through the thin skin covering his shoulder bones. His whole face had been melted and his hair was so long and unkempt that it was practically knotted together.

When and why does he approach Wu Xie?

He approaches Wu Xie (and Pangzi technically) as they are about to enter the mountain to find Zhang Family Ancestral Manor and save Xiaoge. 

Recap: A long-range authentication system was set up for the manor in Sichuan, which is where Wu Xie’s team operated. After they messed up a password though, they lost contact with Xiaoge and Pangzi’s team in Banai. Wu Xie then rushed over to perform a rescue operation, and for reasons, had to utilize his Sanshu’s identity to do so (so he’s posing as his Sanshu). Pangzi managed to make it out somehow, and now they’re both trying to get back in.

Ghostman approaches Wu Xie because he recognized Wu Sanxing and was curious what he was doing back here. Hence, he finally shows up and asks Wu Xie to follow him (Vol 8, Ch. 31).

Who is he really and what is his story?

It turns out his name is ‘Zhang Qiling’ (though presumably no meaningful connection to THE Zhang family). Thirty years prior, he was part of the  ‘archaeology team’ of Chen Wenjin that came to Banai. 

He joined the team because he was part of the result of a nation-wide search for people named ‘Zhang Qiling’, and was the only one who remained by some qualifications (Vol 8, Ch. 36). He doesn’t know the significance of the name, however.

Although an archaeology team nominally, their real task was to bring a coffin into the mountain (Vol 8, Ch.35-6). What this is, he has no idea. But he says they were all deceived, and only three people probably knew the real situation.

When they went into the mountain and finally reached the building, the miluotuos (rock beings that preyed on humans and were attracted to their warmth) had been hot on their heels, even if they couldn’t immediately breach the alkali barrier. This concentration of Miluotuos triggered the Manor’s defense mechanism - a spray of alkali mist that kills / scares them off, but also liquefied the team. Those in the building were instantly liquefied, and Ghostman was fortunately in the tunnel and only got lightly exposed, and he still became the way he is today (Vol 8, Ch. 35)

He only survived all these years thanks to the help of Panma. And since then, he’s been raising lynxes and keeping people from approaching all these years. If they did get too close, he’d kill them, because it was better they died by his hands than inside that terrible place and feed more miluotuos.

He asks ‘Sanshu’ what he’s doing back here and if he knew things would happen the way they did back then, and if that was why Sanshu did not join their group. He also wants to know who is ‘in charge’ now and if Sanshu agrees now that the ‘secret’ should never be revealed.

What all did they learn from him?

Since Wu Xie was posing as Sanshu and didn’t have his actual memories, he had to tread very carefully on how to answer / ask follow-up questions.

The origin of the qilin tattoo

The Yao people in the area would tattoo a qilin tattoo on their best hunters when they come of age. It turns out the reason it took the shape of the qilin it is today was because a Han tattoo master had come through around Ming or Qing dynasties (1300s - 1900s) to teach here and decided to modify / improve it. 

Now as to where the original tattoo came from... it was deemed a necessary thing for hunters who hunted deep in Yangjiao Mountain, which to the people was a very unique place. They’d forgotten the reason though, and only carried it out of tradition.

Eventually, Ghostman’s team chased down enough clues to realize it was a very precise topographical map of the mountain. It mapped the route to the Yao ancient road. The Yao people spent a lot of time trying to figure out what special thing was at the end of the route, and Ghostman’s team similarly presumed this special thing must be the Manor. But then they realized it was a closed loop. (Vol 8, Ch. 34)

Miluotuos and secrets of the mountain

The path that wound around complicatedly was in fact more of a ‘fence’ to keep the miluotuos at bay. Miluotuo actually means ‘old grandmother’ and refers to the whole mountain. Technically the rock people are the miluotuo’s shadows.

The miluotuos eat people by trapping them inside the rock they secrete, which is why when Wu Xie and co. got stuck in the cave from the siphon, they couldn’t find any entrance. And since the miluotuos are everywhere in the mountain, it’s like the entire mountain is jelly with shifting passages.

And as I mentioned above, miluotuos are attracted to heat and while trapped in the walls, could break through if attracted enough. Hence, the Manor has a defense mechanism of misting alkali, which would force them to retreat. (Vol 8, Ch. 34)

Thousand year plan

The Zhang family had actually planned to move the Manor to this area nearly a thousand years ago. Two points - 1) the vegetation around this mountain was of especially good wood for construction. And there was a great fire in Ming dynasty (1300s-1600s) that conveniently wiped out the original vegetation. 2) To transport this lumber down, they formed a deep vertical hole all the way to the bottom of the underground cave. They did this simply by placing a copper ball at the entrance of the cave, and let thousands of years of rain slowly wash away the stone since water would pool at the bottom of the ball. (Vol 8, Ch. 33)

Others

There was a ‘Chen Qing’ group that was Sanshu’s faction, presumably led by a ‘Lao Yu’.

There’s a secret in the mountain that should not be revealed to the outside world. And they’re very close to losing the ‘key to all the secrets’ presumably because Xiaoge got trapped inside.

Notable questions / implications:

What is the significance of the five pointed star that he tosses ‘Sanshu’? (Vol 8, Ch. 32)

Whose coffin was carried into the Manor? (Vol 8, Ch. 35-6) 

Some netizens have hypothesized this to be Wang Canghai, but who knows.

What is the ‘secret’ that must not be known by the outside world? (Vol 8, Ch. 35) 

I want to say that while this might be related to the Zhang family secret / gate, it’s not quite it. Otherwise Ghostman would probably know what Zhang Qiling meant?

What’s the ‘only key’ that will soon be lost? (Vol 8, Ch. 36)

Again, maybe he’s referring to Xiaoge, but then why would he not know the importance of Zhang Qiling?

Why does Wu Xie feel like he recognizes Ghostman? What’s his relation to Wu Xie? “As he spoke, he regained his composure. Although his whole face was melted, I suddenly had a thought—I seemed to recognize him.He wasn’t in that photo and didn’t have the kind of relationship I thought he did with Uncle Three. As I was thinking this, I immediately broke out in a cold sweat. I had met him before, but where? Who was he?” (Vol 8, Ch. 35) 

Only ‘three’ people probably knew the full truth of the situation. Assuming Chen Wenjin and Huo Ling were two, who was the third? And was this before or after the ‘replacement’, so were these even the real Chen Wenjin and Huo Ling?

Why did they conduct a nation-wide search for Zhang Qiling? (Did they actually care to find their patriarch for once?)