Original subtitles

[Fate Chooses You]

[Episode 5]

Primordial spirit stabilize the soul.

A thousand lanterns, guided by blood.

Rise!

Immortal spells?

What are they doing?

I don't know.

But for Xin Mei,

this is not a good thing.

Chengying.

Go.

It's the War Demon! Run!

Don't eat me! Please!

This way.

You're cornered.

If you are willing to repent,

and there may be a way out for you.

Go, now.

This is...

Are you a disciple of the Tianyuan Sect?

No.

Then do you know Senior Bai Zongying?

Are we fighting or not?

If not, I'm leaving.

You're asking for it.

Come here.

Hurry up!

Here. Hide inside.

-Mei. -Mei.

I can't protect all of you.

Don't make a sound.

Stay hidden.

Mei.

You are in such a hurry—

where are you going?

Go find her.

Have fun.

A mere Qi Refining cultivator

really worth all this trouble?

I suggest you surrender.

My time is limited.

My master is expecting me back.

You always talk about your master.

Nangong Guhong.

How old are you exactly?

Haven't you been weaned yet?

Or has your moral sense gone astray,

that you've developed

such a despicable feeling for your master?

Are you planning to marry her?

Don't be afraid, Immortal Lady.

I don't want to make things difficult.

But you killed one of my sect members

and destroyed this magical artifact.

I have no choice but to take you back with me

to give my people an explanation.

You and that Mr. Gui

are from the same sect?

Yes.

But I'm not here for revenge.

I'm simply just following the orders

to fight against you.

Why don't you come with me quietly?

I promise to leave your body intact.

Birds of a feather.

Since you refuse to listen to reason,

then I'll have to use force.

Sir you certainly

have made quite a scene—

breaking my formation,

humiliating the immortal sects,

and now you're trying to save that woman?

It seems like you're deliberately

making things difficult for me.

This is the Dragon Prison Formation,

a masterpiece I've devoted my life to.

The twenty-four Gates of Life

have been sealed,

and the thirty-six Paths of Death have been blocked as well.

As they say, "There's neither road to heaven

nor door into the earth."

Even a Golden Core cultivator

would struggle to break it.

Now then,

can we have a proper conversation?

Has anyone ever told you

you talk too much?

You...

What exactly is your cultivation level?

I've never bothered to count.

But it's more than enough

to break your formation.

Flute player,

what are you waiting for?

Useless.

You can't even land a hit.

Without you,

I'd have taken her down long ago.

The Chengying Sword does not strike the nameless.

Tell me your name.

You talk too much.

You betrayed your Dao heart

by interfering in mortal affairs.

That alone condemns you to death.

Dragging us into this—

that sin is beyond forgiveness.

Still won't admit defeat?

As long as I'm not dead,

I have not lost.

♪ Being haunted by the spell, even if it's cruel ♪

♪ It's better than being trapped by fate ♪

♪ Between gain and loss ♪

♪ Lies a thousand years of grace ♪

The book says,

once you replaced the body, you'll be able to see color.

It should be soon, right?

♪ Soul consumed, bones remade— I accept it all ♪

♪ Embracing pain as home, reborn like a phoenix ♪

♪ Just to trade the rest of my days for one true life as a human ♪

♪ Let strong wine carry me into drunken nights till midnight ♪

♪ Let my soul blaze in brilliant colors ♪

♪ Let the agony of a thousand cuts ♪

♪ Stand as proof that I have lived ♪

♪ Let me taste a life of flesh and blood in full ♪

♪ Let me savor the many flavors of the mortal world ♪

♪ Let me face the world's warmth and cold alike ♪

♪ To live and perish with it, daring to go mad, daring to dream ♪

♪ Don't live in vain, have a pleasant journey of life ♪

♪ Being haunted by the spell, even if it's cruel ♪

♪ It's better than being trapped by fate ♪

♪ Between gain and loss ♪

♪ Lies a thousand years of grace ♪

Give a dog a bad name

♪ Soul consumed, bones remade— I accept it all ♪

and hang him.

Though we haven't interacted much,

♪ Embracing pain as home, reborn like a phoenix ♪

I feel that you're not the same as

what's being said about you out there.

♪ Just to trade the rest of my days for one true life as a human ♪

If you were truly

greedy and cowardly,

you'd have come asking me for help, right?

After all, in the eyes of the world,

I'm also a cultivator.

♪ Let me taste a life of flesh and blood in full ♪

You...

♪ Let me savor the many flavors of the mortal world ♪

you don't want to live anymore?

♪ Let me face the world's warmth and cold alike ♪

♪ To live and perish with it, daring to go mad, daring to dream ♪

♪ Don't live in vain, have a pleasant journey of life ♪

Is it heavy?

No.

Quickly.

What is this?

It looks like medicine.

Medicine?

Is it to treat Mei's wounds?

Who gave it to her?

I don't know.

We can't just use it.

We don't even know where it came from.

What if it's poison?

Lu.

How is Immortal Xin?

Find a way

to make her take it.

Isn't this your own life-saving elixir?

Haven't you already given her

the Hidden-heart Orchid to restore her Qihai?

Why give her this too?

Just give it to her.

First a magical artifact, then flowers,

and now even your life-saving elixir.

Lu,

you're feeling bad for her, aren't you?

Right.

If it were me, I'd feel the same.

What Immortal Xin did

was truly righteous.

She has only met you a few times,

yet she risked her life for you

and ended up severely injured.

Tell me, what is she after?

Could it be that she's fallen for you?

If you end up like her one day,

I would feel sorry for you too.

That doesn't sound

like a good thing.

But I'm in a good mood today.

Let me take you somewhere

to broaden your horizons.

Broaden my horizons?

Let's go.

You'll see when you get there.

[Liang Residence]

My senior has left?

Yes.

Young Sect Leader Lin left a letter,

saying he had an epiphany at Lingtai,

and feared an impending tribulation,

so he returned to his sect for secluded meditation.

Senior Jin, you just arrived in the city.

Have you discovered anything?

I came too late.

By the time I got here,

the fight was already over.

Immortals,

did Immortal Lin

flee the battle

because he was frightened by that enchantress?

Do you really think that female cultivator

is some powerful figure?

She's just a cultivator at the Qi Refining stage.

What is there to fear?

Qi Refining stage?

And yet, with all of you surrounding her,

she still managed to escape, right?

I know

that your abilities are exceptional.

But the longer this drags on, the more dangerous it becomes.

That enchantress is still out there,

which is quite unsettling.

Why not

write a letter to your sect elders

and ask for their help?

So we can put an end to this mess

as soon as possible.

Does she deserve my master's intervention?

Whether she does or not isn't the point.

The real deal is—

how do we catch that enchantress?

Back then, the Imperial Court

made a pact

with the Twelve Immortal Sects.

The Court permitted them to exist,

to take in disciples, to preach their ways,

and to establish their own sects.

But the immortal sects are also obligated to help the Court

to maintain order—

strictly forbidding any cultivator from entering the mortal world

to interfere with the empire's affairs.

But later, unaffiliated cultivators emerged,

ignoring the rules.

Then we have the evil sect, which is also uncontrollable.

They entered the path without establishing a Dao heart,

doing whatever they want.

They are utterly lawless!

Even so, it would have been manageable—

as long as the Twelve Immortal Sects

kept them in check.

But look at the state of things now!

Even a mere Qi Refining cultivator

can walk through the capital as if she owns it.

What kind of rule is this?

And what kind of world is this?

I am speaking!

Can you play that flute later?

What's your problem?

My Lord, please sit tight.

Well...

Immortal Masters,

do you have any other solutions?

Wait.

Just wait?

Yes.

Wait for her to kill you.

You are her target.

Until she kills you,

she will not leave the capital.

So,

as long as you are here,

she will come.

A weak woman like her—

knowing so many people are after her—

you think she'd still dare to show up?

Still won't admit defeat?

As long as I'm not dead,

I have not lost.

She will.

Just wait and see.

You don't need to put on a long face.

With us here,

that head of yours

will stay safely

right on your neck.

Brother.

Hurry up!

Coming!

Be careful—don't spill it.

Okay.

Immortal Lady.

You're awake.

Immortal Lady,

please eat.

My brother and I

just picked these from the tree.

They're not dirty.

So,

you are Lu Huai's children?

We are his foster children.

Lord Lu was kind to us.

When he died,

no one burned offerings for him, or swept his tomb.

So we kowtowed on our own,

and saw him as our foster father.

Father was very good to us.

When he was alive,

he often brought us food.

Later, he was locked up.

Then those people came and smashed the house.

My brother and I stayed there

to watch over the house for Father.

We thought

he'd come back one day.

But...

So you saved me

because of him?

You gave Father a proper burial.

You are a good person.

Wei County is so far from the capital.

Why did you two come all the way here?

Because you can avenge him.

Only you would,

and only you could avenge him.

You are an immortal.

Immortals protect good people.

I'm not an immortal.

I'm just a cultivator.

It's all the same.

Last time, when I fought

that black-robed elder,

were you the ones who saved me?

You were injured

and passed out.

So we dragged you back to the house.

But this time was different.

The soldiers were everywhere—

arresting people across the city.

It was terrifying.

So we didn't dare stay anymore.

Then this time...

where did you find me?

At the ruined house.

That night,

you hid us in the haystack.

We didn't dare come out.

We stayed until dawn, then went back to the house.

The moment we opened the door,

we found you unconscious inside.

Then we

brought you here.

The ruined house?

But I remember

I passed out on the street.

Someone must have saved me.

Did you see anyone?

No.

Me neither.

You haven't eaten?

We're not hungry.

I'll take Jiujiu out to eat later.

Here, have one first.

Thank you, Immortal Lady.

Didn't you call me Mei before?

Just call me that.

We heard

you were our foster father's wife.

But we followed him for so long,

we never once saw him get married.

Back in Wei County,

many beautiful young women

liked our foster father.

They even sent matchmakers to propose,

but he turned them all down.

What exactly

was your relationship with him?

Were you two

really husband and wife?

Lu,

don't just drink.

Come here.

So this is the horizon-broadening experience

you insisted on bringing me to see instead of delivering my medicine?

Yeah.

I've reserved

the entire Zuixian Restaurant today.

Bridges like starlight, trees like fire.

Ten thousand red lotuses in full bloom.

The dancers are enchanting,

the music lingers in the air.

With fine wine to drink

and paintings to admire—

what more

could one possibly ask of life?

Only if you can actually get it.

To me, a place like this

is nothing

but a headache

and an eyesore.

Everything in this world

has to stay in balance.

Just like Tai Chi—

yin and yang opposing each other.

One must give up something to gain something else.

You War Demons

are born with powerful physiques,

and lightning cultivation speed.

Even your blood has healing power.

If you were just like mortals

in every other way,

wouldn't you be having

all the advantages in the world?

That's a punishment from the gods.

I know it's a punishment.

I'm just trying to give you a new way to look at it.

Think of it this way.

Mortals must endure great trials and tribulations

if they want to become gods.

For you to become human,

you must go through the same.

Does that

make you feel a bit better?

Not at all.

I know.

War Demons are brutal and bloodthirsty.

Your bodies are powerful,

yet you feel no pain.

You don't feel pain yourselves,

and you don't care whether others bleed—

then you become mad.

Everything you taste is foul and rotten,

but for survival,

you must swallow it day after day.

What others call delicacies,

to War Demons,

are nothing but filthy swill—

then you become envious.

You know the turn of day and night

and the changing of seasons,

yet you can never sleep, not for a single night.

A lifetime spent

without ever knowing a dream—

then you become anxious.

They say the world is a tapestry of a thousand colors,

bright and dazzling,

yet you can't see them,

so it's just boring and lifeless.

To you, a beauty is no different from a shura-demon;

a prosperous world

is no different from the Avici Hell—

then you become cold-blooded.

A life like this

may seem

completely meaningless to you.

But now,

you've found a way.

If you can endure these five trials:

the replacing of the flesh,

the bone, the blood, and the heart.

As long as you pass these five trials,

you will be reborn

as a human!

Lu,

you can already sleep peacefully,

And soon you will be able to see color.

You are not like the other War Demons.

Your Avici Hell

already has a ray of light!

Come.

Today, let me teach you ahead of time,

and see what colors

truly look like in this world.

Distant mountains wear a misty grey, soft and stretching far.

Cool strings of the lute chase the sunset glow in a wine cup.

Lu,

this is the Mountain-Mist Grey.

Thank you for the compliment, Sir.

Mild husks of grain, tender as rice water;

golden cups sway as the wind ripens the paddy.

This is

the Rice-Cream Yellow.

And this is the Golden Yellow.

In April, green plums are small as beans,

while loquats in the forest are ripe and plump.

But this isn't a loquat,

nor is it a green plum.

This...

is the true Plum Green.

I can't distinguish

any of what you were saying.

I just want to ask you,

what color is your collar?

Red.

Red?

Lu,

you can see red?

Yes.

I can...

see red now.

Lu,

you can see red!

You can see color now!

You can see red!

You can recognize color now!

Lu!

It's red!

I thought

you'd never see color in your life.

What if this method

doesn't work?

Lu.

We may be the same age,

and equally strong in cultivation—

but to be honest,

all these years,

I've always treated you like my own son.

Right.

[The Order of King Ding]

[Emperor Zongding]

Sir, you are here.

After all these years,

you still look exactly the same.

You haven't changed at all.

And this palace hasn't changed either.

Not even a single tile has cracked.

They say time spares no one—

yet it seems I'm the only one

being carried away by it.

Time flies,

and the body ages.

It's inevitable, isn't it?

You are right, Sir.

Come.

Please sit.

Knowing you were coming to the capital,

I specially had someone

fetch cold wine from Wuquan Mountain.

It was placed in the ice cellar

for four hours.

Sir, back then,

this wine was your favorite.

Try it.

See if it tastes the same.

All these years traveling the world,

have you heard

any rumors about me?

Rumors?

What kind of rumors?

About my talent.

You haven't heard, Sir?

They say I excel in calligraphy and painting.

Inscriptions, calligraphy,

and poetry, I excel in all.

My brushstrokes are powerful and ethereal,

as if guided by the immortals.

I even have a title

in the literary world—

the Immortal of the Four Masteries.

It means

my calligraphy and painting

can stir the winds and rain,

and suppress both ghosts and gods.

Have you heard of it, Sir?

Sir,

why are you laughing?

I don't mean anything else.

It's just that over these years,

I've barely picked up a brush.

So I wouldn't know much

about these things.

Really?

I see.

After we parted,

I assumed you must've changed your name.

But your talent was unparalleled—

your calligraphy and paintings were the best in the world.

If you released a new work,

it would surely shake the world.

So I threw myself into it as well.

I had people collect works of calligraphy and painting.

But there has been no word of you.

People come and go in this life.

It's like

lonely geese drifting by the clouds,

or duckweed floating upon the water.

You shouldn't be too attached.

Right.

I thought so too.

But you, Sir, have always been a man of your word—

your promises are as solid as gold.

But Sir...

This time,

why did you come back?

Why do you remain silent?

What do you want to hear?

Anything is fine.

We, teacher and disciple, haven't met for so many years.

Shouldn't we reminisce about the past,

or speak of the longing since our parting?

Shouldn't we talk of old friends,

or the world as it is today?

Could it be...

that you

simply have nothing left

to say to me?

Are you afraid?

Afraid?

What would I have to fear?

Indeed.

What could you possibly fear?

Now you have

everything you ever wanted—

a beautiful empire,

and millions of citizens.

Seated upon that throne,

what could you possibly fear?

I helped you to the throne back then,

but it was a mere coincidence.

I happened to enter the palace,

and we happened to be master and student.

It just so happened that at the time,

you were someone agreeable to the eyes.

It just so happened that at the time,

the palace, from top to bottom,

was a complete mess.

Then I helped you along the way.

I ask for nothing in return.

I told you this a long time ago.

Once you secured the throne,

you wanted to kill me.

But you know

I am not a mortal,

and you could never truly kill me.

I had no intention of taking revenge.

I always keep my word.

So no matter how many years pass,

you have nothing to fear from me.

This time,

I came for private matters.

Does it involve those cultivators from the immortal sects?

It has nothing to do with you.

You don't need to worry about it.

In five days at most,

I will leave the capital.

Sir.

Sir.

Sir.

Have you been to Beixiang?

Back then,

you painted a picture—

Lonely mountains, ten thousand feet high,

cloaked in endless snow.

You said the sun in Beixiang was wonderful,

bright and fierce.

When it rises,

it's like gold paving the earth.

You said that one day,

you would see it for yourself.

You said you would go there too.

Yes.

Did you ever go there?

I'm not afraid of you laughing at me, Sir.

When I was a kid reading my lessons,

I believed our empire was boundless,

possessing all within the four seas.

I thought if one day

I ascended the throne

I'd look out toward the frontier,

and see the magnificent scenery by myself.

But now

that I truly sit upon this throne,

all I see

are these square courtyards,

and the ministers coming and going.

I've longed to go out to see the world.

But I am afraid of losing this throne.

This throne—

you carried me

on your back,

trudging through wind and snow,

through dark alleys,

through countless schemes,

blood, and filth to seize it for me.

If I lose it,

there will never be anyone else

to carry me

and win it back again.

Ding.

You've already won.

Relax.

Get a good night's sleep.