Original subtitles

[Shadow Punisher]

[Divine Constable Tally]

[Episode 28]

Father.

There is something

I must report to you.

Speak.

I have been poisoned by

Liluo's deadly Chiying Bug Venom,

and my days are numbered.

At any moment, I could become

Liluo's puppet, controlled by their strings.

There is no cure

has no cure.

[Where Virtue Abides, Grace Abounds]

Yan!

It's all my fault.

It's all my fault.

Yan...

Guo Anbang!

Yes, Your Majesty.

Summon Grand Secretary

and Xuanyuan Shan at once!

Yes, Your Majesty.

Greetings, Your Holiness.

Everything on this earth

will eventually decay.

Only the glory of Liluo and Your Holiness

shall endure for all eternity.

I have confirmed

that the Emperor's health

is failing indeed.

It seems tonight

will be his last.

Li San spent 17 years

plotting this scheme.

What a pity

he couldn't live to see it.

Do you mean, Your Holiness,

that once Li Si ascends the throne,

we can activate

the Ten Thousand Gu Devouring Heart of the Chiying bugs

to make him serve our purposes?

The real show is about to begin!

His Majesty's verbal decree:

Bai Qi and Xuanyuan Shan, please enter the palace for an audience!

-I, Bai Qi... -I, Xuanyuan Shan...

This is the new final edict I've drafted.

Take a look.

Your Majesty is still with us.

How could we presume to read your final edict?

We dare not.

I said read it.

So read it.

Your Majesty.

Xuanyuan.

Yes, Your Majesty.

Grand Secretary.

Yes, Your Majesty.

I'm counting on you.

Please take care, Your Majesty.

Please take care, Your Majesty.

[Taiji Hall]

Please forgive me

and let me be Crown Prince.

Father.

I was wrong.

Let me be Crown Prince.

Father.

let me be Crown Prince.

Let me be Crown Prince.

Father.

[Taiji Hall]

I was wrong.

Let me be Crown Prince.

Father.

You're afflicted with the Chiying Bug Venom.

The people of Liluo

will surely use you to sow chaos in our Great Shi.

I cannot risk the entire realm just for your sake.

This throne—

I cannot pass it on to you.

Yan?

Yan!

Father, have you ever considered

how the people of Liluo will treat me,

a discarded pawn, once they learn

I have no chance of inheriting the throne of Great Shi?

In your eyes, Father,

I've already become a discarded pawn.

As for the people of Liluo,

though they see me as a pawn too,

at least see me as one worth using.

The distinction between the two

is hard to explain clearly.

Yan,

you must not think this way.

I've thought of you every day

for the past 17 years.

That's exactly what you said

17 years ago, Father.

You once swore

you'd never let me suffer any injustice.

But back then,

for the sake of political stability,

you broke your promise.

And today,

you're doing it again.

Yan.

Yan!

What are you doing?

With this bow,

I thank Your Majesty

for the boundless grace of giving me life and raising me.

From this day forth,

Zhou Yan, bound by royal ties,

shall cease to exist in this world.

There will be only Li Si, a commoner of jianghu.

Yan.

It was all my fault.

Can you forgive me?

Yan!

With this bow,

I pay my respects to the imperial ancestors.

Ancestors above,

♪ Capture my heart ♪

I, Li Si, shall forever remember

♪ Unravel my longing ♪

the vast realm of Great Shi

entrusted to us.

♪ Can we relive the mark you once carved deep? ♪

♪ Turns out every soul ♪

Yan.

I've been watering that little tree

♪ Fears deep devotion ♪

outside the study every day.

♪ In a moment, I fell, a lifetime left to heal ♪

Did you know that?

Did you know that?

♪ Tossing and turning through endless nights ♪

Yan...

♪ Breaking free from a labyrinth ♪

I was wrong.

Please forgive me.

♪ Will we meet again, those I dare not face? ♪

Forgive me...

♪ One thought to ferry me across the sea of suffering ♪

♪ One thought to burn me to ash ♪

♪ A thousand schemes can never be enough, till all turn to dust ♪

♪ Dare not forget ♪

♪ No regret, no blame ♪

With this third bow, I pay my respects to the people of Great Shi.

♪ In love, I fear neither life nor death ♪

The common folk toil to feed the realm,

sustaining the imperial household

and the royal clan,

♪ Dare not think ♪

yet we have done nothing to repay them.

♪ Who was it that cast the spell? ♪

It's just that

from this day forth, I, Li Si, am no longer of the imperial family.

♪ Let my heart abide ♪

Thus,

I need no longer concern myself with the people's welfare.

♪ Hidden in your shadow, I'll follow you forever ♪

♪ Hidden in your shadow, I'll follow you forever ♪

♪ Who lies in the abyss? ♪

♪ This chapter of the past ♪

♪ Who is the ferryman, ferrying others and himself for half a lifetime? ♪

Having no other way to repay them,

I can only offer my very life in return.

♪ Where lies the other shore? ♪

♪ A silent reflection ♪

♪ I see through truth and lies, yet cannot see through love and hate ♪

♪ Dare not forget ♪

♪ No regret, no blame ♪

♪ In love, I fear neither life nor death ♪

♪ Dare not think ♪

♪ Who was it that cast the spell? ♪

♪ Let my heart abide ♪

♪ Dare not speak too soon ♪

♪ Torn apart inside ♪

♪ Only in love can we escape withering away ♪

[Gentle Breeze and Auspicious Clouds]

♪ I turn a blind eye ♪

♪ Who was it that cast the spell? ♪

Yan!

♪ Let my heart abide ♪

♪ Forever within your shadow by your side ♪

♪ Forever within your shadow by your side ♪

[Gentle Breeze and Auspicious Clouds]

[Taiji Hall]

[Taiji Hall]

[Yu'an Hall]

His Majesty...

Has passed away!

[Taiji Hall]

[Taiji Hall]

[Chief Constable's Hall]

Exactly 9 tolls.

That was the national mourning bell.

His Majesty

has passed away.

[Taiji Hall]

His Majesty has passed away.

Prince Xian, why are you here at the Fengbo Hall

instead of keeping vigil at the imperial residence?

Grand Secretary, I just saw your carriage

leaving the imperial palace.

How is it that

you have appeared here?

If I'm not mistaken,

you'll be hiding out

in this Fengbo Hall

until the new Emperor ascends the throne.

After all, only you know

where the late Emperor's final edict is kept.

Since it determines who will inherit the throne,

it must be kept safe.

And what place

in this entire realm

could be safer than

the imperial palace?

If even Your Highness can come here,

then this Fengbo Hall

is hardly safe.

What do you mean by that, Grand Secretary?

I was the only prince

summoned by the late Emperor

before his death.

Who else could be the new Emperor

but me?

Wherever I am,

I have the protection of Heaven and Earth, of spirits and gods.

Surely, that makes it the safest place

under the heavens.

Could it be

that I've guessed wrong—

that the choice for the new Emperor

is not me?

Your Highness was also present

when the late Emperor wrote his final edict.

Why ask a question you already know the answer to?

Let me take a guess.

Xuanyuan Shan must have told the late Emperor

that I'm afflicted with the Chiying Bug Venom

and wouldn't live much longer,

so I could not possibly

inherit the throne,

right?

Let me guess again.

If the new Emperor

is not me,

then who else could it be?

[Zhou Zhu, the Third Prince]

Pass the throne to the Third Prince?

My eldest and second brothers are already out of the running,

and Zhou Yan is also on the brink of death

because of the Chiying Bug Venom.

For the sake of the realm,

even if the late Emperor was unwilling,

he had only one choice left:

the Third Prince, Prince Ping, Zhou Zhu.

May I ask

which member of Liluo you are, exactly?

It's here.

No wonder it looked familiar.

I'd seen this flower before

when I visited

the Crown Prince's residence.

I think

I've seen this flower somewhere before.

This is called Gelsemium vine,

a rare find.

It's an exotic kind of flower that

naturally grows deep in the mountains,

bearing a striking resemblance to the trumpet vine.

It blooms once every 10 years,

and once it blooms, it never withers.

If the sap from its petals

enters the human body,

it'll cause imperceptible physical weakness,

leading to gradual decline and death.

It's poisonous.

It really is the Gelsemium vine.

So the Grand Heir Apparent's chronic illness

was caused by someone

poisoning his food

with this Gelsemium vine.

After years of exposure,

his body finally gave out.

I never expected to find Gelsemium vine

in the Crown Prince's residence.

It seems the culprit behind Grand Heir Apparent's death...

Was someone within the Crown Prince's residence.

A little late to be guessing now,

don't you think?

Grand Secretary,

pardon my offense.

The Heaven-Measuring Ruler?

Eunuch Zhao?

It's you.

Li Si.

You ruined my face.

I was furious,

but you were the future Emperor,

so I had no choice but to swallow my anger.

What a predicament.

So that's how it is.

No ordinary person could break into

the Crown Prince's residence.

And with a eunuch like you

tasting Grand Heir Apparent's

food first,

how could he possibly have been poisoned?

Unless

you were the one who poisoned him.

And

what if I was?

Now that I think about it,

you were also the one who helped Lou Tianming

escape from the Divine Constable Bureau,

weren't you?

We did suspect

there was a mole within the Bureau,

but we never imagined

it would be you.

You always disguised yourself as incompetent,

and Lou Tianming nearly

bit one of your ears off.

We truly

would never

have suspected you.

So you're the Holy Lord of Liluo?

Why ask so many questions

when death is upon you?

Eunuch Zhao,

you seem awfully confident

in your martial arts.

If you still had your Heaven-Measuring Ruler,

I'd be somewhat wary of you.

But now,

apart from

Xuanyuan Shan,

there's no one

in the entire Divine Constable Bureau I consider a threat.

There're imperial guards all over the place.

All I have to do is shout,

and we'll see

how many of them you can take on.

Even if the place were surrounded by a million soldiers,

they could take my life,

but they still couldn't save Bai Qi's.

You misidentified Grand Secretary

in the black chest case.

And today, you've made the same mistake again.

Who are you?

How could it be you?

Where's Bai Qi?

In the safest place

under heavens, of course.

Zhao Shanlei.

You have no way out today.

Just surrender.

Li Si.

Have you forgotten that

you're still afflicted with the Chiying Bug Venom?

You know what will happen

once I shake this.

Ten Thousand Gu Devouring Heart—

making your life worse than death.

Xuanyuan Shan.

Even if you have immense power,

you still can't cure this Chiying Bug Venom.

There are only 5 steps

between you and me.

Have you ever heard of a kill within 5 steps?

I may not be able to cure the Chiying Bug Venom,

but I'm certain

that I can take your life

within 5 steps.

Yan...

Yan...

Why?

Seventeen years ago,

Father knew my eldest and second brothers had set me up,

yet he still buried the truth.

Seventeen years later,

just when we had finally been reunited,

he learned that

I was afflicted with the Chiying Bug Venom,

and handed the throne to Third Brother

without a moment's hesitation.

Though I'd seen it coming,

it still broke my heart.

Did Father never consider

how the people of Liluo would treat me,

a discarded pawn,

if I could no longer inherit the throne?

Li Qingyang.

I know how cunning you are.

Don't try to play tricks on me.

Yan.

It's not too late for you

to turn back.

Turn back?

If turning back was an option,

why didn't Father turn back

17 years ago?

Why didn't any of you?

Chief Xuanyuan.

You just said

Grand Secretary Bai had already been

taken into the Divine Constable Bureau.

But there's one thing you don't know.

Liluo still has

a hidden piece in play

within the Divine Constable Bureau.

Grand Secretary.

Worrying now is useless.

You'd better sit down and rest.

That's right, Grand Secretary.

I brought you some warm water.

Please wash your face,

and you'll feel better.

Careful...

Be careful.

M-Mr. Yan.

Let me do it.

Grand Secretary.

Here.

Wash your hands.

Grand Secretary!

Grand Secretary!

Grand Secretary!

Why?

Why did you do that?

Mr. Yan.

You don't understand.

Holy Queen hasn't forgotten me.

Three years in the shadows,

all for this one moment of triumph.

It was worth it.

It was worth it.

You're from Liluo?

How is that possible?

Tell me,

who else is with you?

Who else!

Say it!

Our people

are everywhere.

Everywhere...

Everywhere...

Who else?

Who else!

Bai Qi is already dead.

You want to forge the posthumous edict

and make Yan

your puppet emperor?

You're wrong again.

We don't need to

forge the edict at all.

I just need to kill you

and Bai Qi.

With the edict left hanging,

the only one

to inherit the throne

will be the Fourth Prince.

Zhao Shanlei.

I'll kill you today

to uphold the honor of Great Shi!

Fourth Prince.

You're indeed ruthless.

That's cold-blooded.

See to it that Xuanyuan Shan's body is properly disposed of.

Once I ascend the throne,

I'll use her corpse

to avenge this grudge.

As expected.

As expected, you're a fine disciple

trained by Li San.

Come with me.

Someone wants to see you.

Greetings, Your Holiness.

Envoy Zhao said

Li Si killed Xuanyuan Shan with his own hands

to show his loyalty to Liluo.

Exactly.

I saw it with my own eyes

and have verified it thoroughly.

Xuanyuan Shan

is dead.

With Bai Qi and Xuanyuan Shan dead,

our great plan is half accomplished.

Bring Li Si in.

You may leave now.

-Yes. -Yes.

The Holy Queen summons you.

Second Brother?

My beloved...

It's you,

Crown Princess.

Your Highness Prince Xian.

Why is it that you haven't paid your respects

to me, your sister-in-law?

Tianmoluo.

The fruit of immortality.

So

the fruit of immortality may not

truly grant immortality,

but it can preserve

one's youthful appearance

and reverse the signs of aging.

Chief.

This wound pierced straight through your heart.

How did you manage to hide it from Zhao Shanlei?

Prince Xian avoided my vitals,

and I held my breath to feign death.

Did His Highness Prince Xian

send you here to assist me?

Yes.

The enemy was in the dark while we were in the clear.

Prince Xian and I devised a plan

for him to feign an attempt on my life,

all to gain the trust

of Liluo's Dark Night.

In that case,

His Highness Prince Xian

should have met

the Holy Queen of Liluo by now.

Now that you've seen me,

and there're only

the two of us...

and that dog here,

now is your best chance.

Why haven't you made your move?

I've already killed Xuanyuan Shan

to show my allegiance.

Do you still not trust me, Holy Queen?

I can't care less whether Xuanyuan Shan

is truly dead or not,

nor do I care

if your intentions are genuine.

I simply dare not bet

on the unpredictability of the human heart.

What concerns me is that

once the Liluo people see through this,

His Highness's life will be in grave danger.

Or,

if the Holy Queen

insists on activating the Ten Thousand Gu Devouring Heart,

His Highness Prince Xian

will likely meet a tragic end.

This plan is far too perilous.

At this point, all we can do

is leave it to fate.

The human heart is indeed difficult to fathom.

For the sake of restoring Liluo's great cause,

Holy Queen, you were even willing to sacrifice

your own son,

Zhou Ye.

With such ruthlessness,

even my father

would have to concede defeat.

No wonder

the Great Shi

will ultimately perish by your hand.

Do you really think

I would bear a child for this stupid dog?

Zhou Ye

is nothing but a bastard

I had someone find

off the streets.

A bastard,

understand?

You people of Great Shi

only deserve bastards

as your descendants.

I'm not a dog.

I'm the dignified Crown Prince of Great Shi,

Zhou Tiao!

Fourth Brother,

we must never...

We must never let the Great Shi's empire

fall into the hands of these Liluo bandits!

Second Brother.

The Holy Queen has absolutely no interest

in that throne you've coveted for so long.

The one who will claim it

is me.

Second Brother,

just rest in peace.

Now that

the Crown Prince is also dead,

do you still doubt

my sincerity, Holy Queen?

Then what if

I were to destroy the Four-Dimensional Eight-Direction

Guili Formation?

You know

where the Four-Dimensional Eight-Direction Guili Formation

is?

Please look, Holy Queen,

In the 10th year of Zhengwu,

7 years had passed since the extermination

[Gentle Breeze and Auspicious Clouds]

of the Kingdom of Liluo.

The late emperor still shuddered

at the memory of the Liluo people's

various miraculous and extraordinary sorcery.

It was in the spring of that very year

that the late Emperor secretly summoned

a powerful sorcerer of profound spiritual attainment.

In a secret underground palace,

they set up

the Four-Dimensional Eight-Direction Guili Formation,

sealing the vortex of the earth veins

beneath Tianhuang City,

which is the legendary

Star Gate.

I see.

Once the Star Gate was sealed, the earth veins were obstructed

and spiritual energy dissipated.

As a result, with no spiritual energy

left in the city,

all manner of spells and arts in this world

would naturally cease to be effective.

It was precisely because of

the influence of this formation

that the Liluo demon-men were unable to

enter Tianhuang City in large numbers and wreak havoc.

So this is the origin of the Absolute Prohibition.

Its key

lies in the Guili Formation.

Do you believe me now?

Then I ask

that Your Majesty-to-be

visit the underground palace in person.

Yes.

Stay close to Li Si.

Once you see

the Four-Dimensional Eight-Direction Guili Formation,

destroy its core

at all costs.

Make sure the earth veins are reconnected

so our demon army can enter the city.

If he makes any suspicious moves,

use the Ten Thousand Gu Devouring Heart to control him.

Yes, Your Holiness.

Yes, Your Holiness.