ADAPTED FROM BAI LU CHENG SHUANG'S LOVE IN THE CLOUDS
What about that child?
You mean
my child?
He is dead.
Back then, I ordered Bo Yulan to take him somewhere safe
and protect him well.
But who could have known?
He died
on the way.
Retribution.
All of it is retribution.
He died?
That is the whole truth.
I have told you everything you wanted to know.
You are not the real Ming Xian. You are not my child.
The strict training, the harshness,
and the obsession with victory and defeat
were all because
you were merely a tool to secure my position.
From the very beginning, I never once saw you as my own child,
so I will not leave with you.
Go.
The fact that you are still alive now
means you have found a way to suppress the Heavenly Grief.
Find a place and live in peace.
Ming Xin will soon be officially named Crown Prince.
Everything is set in stone.
To me,
and to Yaoguang Mountain,
you are no longer of use.
Mother…
Someone's coming.
Master She has gone to hold them off.
We must leave at once.
Let's go.
Ming Xian?
Ming Xian!
Let's go.
-Find the intruders in Yaoguang Palace! -There's an ambush.
They've taken Xin!
Don't let them leave Yaoguang Palace alive!
It's Madam Meng.
Could we please leave now?
You little rascal! How many times have I told you
not to go back on impulse?
Why can't you ever listen?
No matter what happens, you just shake that useless Messenger Bell!
Do you know how busy I am?
I've been running back and forth because of you!
-Master She. -What now?
I'm scolding my disciple. Why are you stopping me?
Let go. If you don't, I'll hit you too!
What are you doing?
Looking all pitiful won't stop me from punishing you.
I…
Oh my, I stewed a hen for you, and now it's almost burned!
I know everything now.
Stop running, Old Man She.
Whenever you sneaked me scallion pancakes,
Mother would punish me.
I thought she only feared I'd grow spoiled.
But now I know she was afraid
that if I got too close to you, I'd see
that the way you treated me
was how real parents would treat their child.
You…
You're my real…
My… My real…
Come.
I'll take you somewhere.
The Bo clan's ancestral home? Zhangwei Mountain?
Isn't it said that only descendants of the Bo clan can enter?
I built this place.
Master,
you… you built an exact replica of the Bo clan's ancestral home?
I couldn't enter the real one,
so this was the only way
I could have a residence that belonged to her.
Here,
I can preserve
the most precious memories of your mother and me.
Come on.
Here, my child.
Years ago, your mother Bo Yucen
and her sister Bo Yulan
escaped from Zhangwei Mountain.
By chance, I saved them.
Then your mother and I grew close,
and in time,
we had you.
But misfortune struck. The Empress discovered our relationship.
For a warrior to consort with a fairy from another realm was a grave offense.
I was thrown into prison.
By the time I was released,
it'd become far too late to change anything.
You
had been recognized by the Emperor as his eldest son,
and there was no turning back.
I could only promise the Empress
that I would never reveal the truth to you
in exchange for a chance to stay by your side.
So,
I trained tirelessly,
rising from an ordinary warrior
to the Venerable of the warrior ranks
and eventually, your master.
I remember
you once said you knew nothing of forging artifacts.
And since Yaoguang Mountain despised such craft,
there was no skilled Forger who could teach me.
But I loved forging.
So, you studied it on your own,
just so I could learn more.
You gave me all the best things.
How could I not have known?
Father.
Daughter.
My daughter.
Father.
Yucen, did you hear that?
This is our daughter.
Daughter.
My daughter!
Do you know
what I've been through all these years?
Do you have any idea?
Old Man She, this is the first time I've seen you cry like this.
Don't cry, Father.
This is so embarrassing. I must not cry. It's too embarrassing.
A father shouldn't cry like this.
It's not embarrassing.
I feel like I forgot something important.
Right.
You wrote in your message
that Ming Xin had been colluding with Zhushui Spiritual State.
Is that true?
I sensed the spiritual power
of Zhushui Spiritual State within his spiritual veins.
He also admitted it himself
that the Emperor of Zhushui told him about my identity.
Then… Isn't this bad?
If the Emperor of Zhushui knows who you are,
he will surely take action.
And there's something even worse.
Ming Xin and the Emperor of Zhushui are working together.
If Ming Xin truly becomes Crown Prince,
Yaoguang Mountain will be doomed.
And two days from now,
Father will hold Ming Xin's investiture ceremony.
Yes, he has fallen into our hands,
but I am not Ming Xian.
Even if we bring him down,
what will become of Yaoguang Mountain?
The Emperor of Zhushui had Mu Qibai raise netherbeasts
and has already gained immense power.
Why is he still going to such lengths to make
the Heavenly Grief and the Golden Millet Dream?
What else do you know?
I've told you everything I know!
Ji Bozai, you animal!
Is the Soul-seizing Technique the only thing you can use?
Not necessarily.
There are plenty more ways to make you suffer.
I came from the Sunken Abyss.
That place has no shortage of torture methods.
The most unique one
is burning someone with Phantom Fire.
Your skin will be peeled away bit by bit,
rotting and scabbing
over and over again,
until a scar that can never heal is formed.
Here it is.
Want to try it?
No…
I'll talk!
I think they have another plan anyway.
The Heavenly Grief and the Golden Millet Dream
aren't just for winning the Qingyun Tournament.
Right.
I once overheard them talking
about something inside the Zhuojin Tower.
Something called the Sky-Swallowing Array, I think.
That's all I know.
Would they really share their secrets with an outsider like me?
You should've said that sooner.
Come to think of it,
since I am not the real Ming Xian,
I have no ties to Yaoguang Mountain anymore,
which means
its future has nothing to do with me now.
None of this concerns me now.
If even the Warrior Goddess who brought it seven consecutive victories
has no say in its future,
then who has?
Ming Yi and Ming Xian.
Those are just names.
You grew up as Ming Xian, didn't you?
True, you are not the Empress's son,
but wasn't it you who fought
for Yaoguang Mountain and protected its people?
You wish to fight for peace among the Six Realms
and make the Qingyun Tournament fair again.
Are you going to give up just because you're not Ming Xian?
Whether you are a foolish girl
or a reckless boy,
a wise fairy or a stubborn fool,
what difference does it make?
As long as you can face heaven and earth with no shame in your heart,
you are who you are.
Ming Yi.
Remember this.
You are my disciple,
the best child your mother and I could've hoped for,
and someone with an unyielding spirit.
Do you understand?
I took the portrait of Fairy Bo and visited the places she had once been.
To my surprise, someone at the border of Yaoguang recognized her.
They said that when Fairy Bo was alive,
she often came there to gather herbs
and would ask about a child with a mark between his brows.
So,
when Master saved me from the Sunken Abyss,
it wasn't by chance.
Perhaps Fairy Bo always knew
who you truly were.
Then maybe
when Master said she owed me,
it wasn't just because she kept secrets from me,
but also because…
After Fairy Bo gave me the recipe,
I begged her to meet with you.
But she said she owed you
and that she'd hidden the truth right before your eyes,
somewhere within your reach.
But the truth was unbearable.
She feared that once you learned it,
you would lose faith in people and in the world.
Somewhere within my reach?
Father, did you say
this place held the most precious memories of you and Mother?
The portraits left behind by the Bo clan after death
carry the memories of their owners.
The memories of how your mother and I met
are within this painting.
Master said the truth
was somewhere within my reach.
If not for you,
the Empress would never have plotted to take my sister's child.
Father, do you know
if the child Fairy Bo Yulan sent away,
the Empress's own son,
really died?
When Yulan returned, she told the Empress herself
that the child did not survive the journey.
I escorted the young prince away as ordered,
but he was too frail.
He died
on the way.
I failed in my duty.
Punish me as you will.
Retribution.
It is retribution indeed.
Retribution!
But Mother and I
were her last remaining family in the world.
Mother died giving birth,
and the Empress took me in as her own.
Did she really accept that task willingly,
without a single word of complaint?
The Empress used you as leverage. She had no choice but to obey.
After learning the child had died,
the Empress once searched for a child with a mark between the brows,
but she found none that bore her son's presence.
You once said you had a mark on your forehead.
I think
my mother planted it there when I was still an infant.
It holds some vague memories of her.
I can't see her face clearly,
but she told me
this mark
was formed from her blood and mine.
I, too, once suspected
that Yulan might have killed that child.
The Empress had her doubts as well.
But
since you were the Empress's only hope,
they each had something to lose
and could no longer turn against each other.
What is that mark between the brows?
The Empress wished to reunite with her own son one day,
so she left a Tracing Mark between his brows.
Then, could Fairy Bo
have temporarily sealed that mark,
causing the Empress to believe her child had died?
With the Bo clan's arts,
it could be done for a short while.
Your Lordship, you are actually the son of the Empress of Yaoguang.
Fairy Bo risked her life to save you,
yet it was she herself who abandoned you back then,
leaving you to grow up in the Sunken Abyss
as a prisoner.
Yesterday, my husband went to the Sunken Abyss to deliver food.
He said he saw a poor child down there.
He looked barely ten years old.
Right.
I heard he'd been there since he was little.
He must've been taken there.
When they beat him,
didn't a mark appear on his forehead?
Yes.
But it didn't seem like the overseers left it there.
Maybe his family did.
That makes sense.
-Come on. Let's gather herbs over there. -All right.
I must find him and atone for my sin.
The portrait caught fire on its own.
Your Lordship.
Your Lordship, your heart imprint resonated with Ming Yi's.
You're doing this so she wouldn't see this, right?
Your Lordship.
There have been signs that the Heavenly Grief in you
might stir again.
You must take care of yourself.
I'm fine.
Wait!
You came after all.
I never thought
I would see you again.
Why are you turning away?
What I came to confirm
has already been confirmed.
It was my fault.
I truly believed
that you were gone.
I heard
you had fallen into the Sunken Abyss.
Do you not want to see me
because you still resent me?
I hold no resentment.
I lived 20 years without my parents around.
Meeting you today
was unexpected for me as well.
But right now, you are just
a stranger in my eyes.
I know
I have failed as a mother.
But tell me, is there anything I can still do for you?
Ming…
My child…
Your Lordship,
as you instructed,
I turned a blind eye
and let Madam Meng rescue Ming Xin.
The investiture ceremony is approaching.
Letting him escape
is necessary for my next move.
Your Lordship already has a plan in mind. It is not my place to say more.
But please remember this.
No matter what happens,
you must not open the Spirit Well
until your spiritual power is fully restored.
Otherwise,
you might really suffer a relapse.
Everyone,
today is the Sunlight Festival.
We give thanks to the gods for blessing Yaoguang Mountain with the gift of light.
Today also marks the investiture ceremony of Ming Xin.
From this day forth,
Lord Chengyun will be formally named Crown Prince of Yaoguang Mountain
and assume the post of Honorary Warrior of the warrior ranks.
This decision is final.
Wait!
-Who is that? -No idea.
What's going on?
-That mask… -That's Ming Xian's mask.
-That's strange. -But this is a fairy.
Right. Is she…?
Why is she wearing Ming Xian's mask?
Is she Ming Xian?
-I don't know. -Ming Xian?
-Who is she really? -Is she Ming Xian?
-I don't think so. -She… She…
-Isn't that a fairy? -Yeah.
That's a fairy.
-But why is she wearing Ming Xian's mask? -Ming Xian?
-She really is Ming Xian! -She's Ming Xian?
-Yes. -Yes.
-How can Ming Xian be female? -Exactly.
Sinner Ming Xian!
You defected from Yaoguang Mountain,
and yet you still have the audacity to interrupt my investiture?
Very well.
Today, before everyone,
I will expose your true identity!
Father,
the evidence is undeniable.
Even if the Empress refuses to admit it,
the truth is already before us.
Back then, the Empress, Jing Shu,
used an infant girl to impersonate the Crown Prince!
-What? -She did?
-What? -How dare she?
-That's reckless. -Is this true?
-Unbelievable! -How could that be?
Lord Chengyun is right.
I am indeed a fairy.
Years ago, the Empress defied the laws and practiced immortal arts,
disguising me as a male immortal to take the real Crown Prince's place.
-She actually did that? -How could this happen?
You deceived His Majesty. What audacity.
Your Majesty,
if it became known that this jinx impersonated
the Crown Prince of Yaoguang Mountain
and fought in the Qingyun Tournament
for eight consecutive years, wouldn't it make
Yaoguang Mountain a laughingstock?
Naming Ming Xin Crown Prince today will be
what truly makes Yaoguang Mountain a laughingstock.
In my hand is the Recording Mirror.
It holds proof of Ming Xin's collusion with other realms.
He took the Heavenly Grief from Mu Qibai
and poisoned me before the Qingyun Tournament,
causing Yaoguang Mountain's defeat.
Here's the Heavenly Grief you need.
Thank you, Lord Hanfeng.
With this Heavenly Grief,
Ming Xian
will no longer be the Warrior God of Yaoguang Mountain.
Now, he has become a pawn of Zhushui Spiritual State
and even schemes to have the Emperor of Zhushui help him
secure the Crown Prince's seat.
If we allow Ming Xin to show a wolf into the house,
who is to say the Emperor of Zhushui will not divide
and devour Yaoguang Mountain piece by piece?
Your Majesty,
Ming Xin did everything for you and for Yaoguang Mountain.
Please don't be swayed by the one-sided words of this jinx
and leave Yaoguang Mountain without a Crown Prince.
Besides,
whose blood runs in this fairy's veins
remains to be verified, doesn't it?
Who I am no longer matters.
I came here today
to help Yaoguang Mountain
welcome back its true Crown Prince.
What do you mean?
Lord Chengyun,
what you said earlier was only half true.
Back then, after the Empress gave birth to her son,
she discovered that he had no spiritual veins.
So, she found another child
born on the same day within the Yaoguang Palace
and secretly switched them.
The real Crown Prince
was kidnapped by bandits on his way to the border
of Yaoguang Mountain
and ended up in the Sunken Abyss of Jixing.
There, he suffered endless torment
and was afflicted with the Heavenly Grief,
which later awakened spiritual veins within him.
His spiritual veins were formed after birth?
Then that man is the real Crown Prince!
-Right! -True!
Then, who is that child?
Ji Bozai?
-Right, he is. -What is he doing here?
-Ji Bozai? -He's here too?
Why is he here?
What is his relation to Ming Xian?
Your Majesty.
Your Majesty!
Are you truly…?
Before sending the child away,
the Empress left a mark
between his brows with her own blood.
-How can that be proven? -Yes.
Is it really him?
Is it true?
-Is he really…? -It really is him!
It's him!
Right, he is!
Nonsense!
You two conspired to deceive His Majesty
just to stop me
from becoming Yaoguang Mountain's Crown Prince!
-Xin… -On the basis of a single mark,
you claim Ji Bozai is the true Crown Prince?
How utterly ridiculous!
If my father, She Tianlin, testifies,
might that prove it?
Before Your Majesty, I would not dare lie.
Ji Bozai is indeed the Empress's son,
while Ming Xian is the child of me and a physician.
All right.
Everything is clear now.
Yaoguang Mountain has at last seen its true Crown Prince.
Shall we proceed with the investiture ceremony?
Ming Xian!
Xin!
Xin.
Your Majesty.
Your Majesty,
for the sake of the years you've shared with Xin,
please spare him this once.
Ming Xin and his mother colluded with Zhushui Spiritual State.
The evidence is conclusive. They shall face the Ultimate Punishment!
Your Majesty, this has nothing to do with Xin.
It was all my fault.
He knew nothing.
Let me take the punishment instead.
He is your flesh and blood.
I beg you, spare him this once.
As his mother,
were you truly unaware of your son's deeds?
How dare you plead for him before me?
That Recording Mirror
holds solid evidence of Ming Xin's involvement.
Wretch!
-Seize them both! -Yes!
As for the Empress of Yaoguang,
strip her of rank at once.
Since she is the Crown Prince's birth mother,
she shall not be executed.
Confine her to the palace for now.
I will decide her fate later.
As for She Tianlin and Ming Yi,
they deceived all of Yaoguang Mountain.
Their crimes are unforgivable.
She Tianlin shall face the Thunder Punishment,
and Ming Yi shall be stripped of her spiritual veins
and banished from the realm.
-Guards! -Yes!
Seize them!
Wait.
Why not let the two of them go?
Now that I have returned, punishing them seems pointless.
No.
If we let them go, how can we command respect?
We cannot show mercy just because she once
stood as Crown Prince.
Besides, Ming Yi has immense spiritual power.
We cannot risk her fleeing to the enemy.
For the welfare of Yaoguang Mountain and its people,
I have no choice but to make such decisions.
Seize them both!
Yes!
Stop!
How dare you resist? to make such decisions.