Duel on Mount Hua: Nine Yin True Sutra

A Villain’s Tragic Love Story

I started this mini-series mainly because both lead actors are set to star together in another upcoming drama called ‘Blossoms of Power’.

This series is actually part of a larger, somewhat confusing storyline and serves as a prequel. It focuses on Mei Chaofeng, a young woman whose parents were brutally murdered by a so-called “friend”, Qiu Yunhai, who betrayed them purely for power. After their deaths, she is sent to live in a brothel, where she is mistreated along with other women and children.

Years later, on a fateful night, she is ordered to “entertain” a man who turns out to be none other than Qiu Yunhai himself. After he leaves her in the hands of one of his men, Mei kills her captor and escapes. During her escape, she encounters Huang Yaoshi, the most skilled martial artist in the world, who helps her briefly and teaches her three powerful techniques. From then on, she repeatedly attempts (and fails) to take her revenge, eventually crossing paths again with Huang Yaoshi and his wife, Feng Heng, who take her in and bring her to their island to train (and heal her pain).

There, Mei Chaofeng meets Chen Xuanfeng, her senior, and the two fall in love gradually.

Because the series is only 8 episodes long, their romance is fast-paced and compressed by necessity. While it doesn’t have the time to fully develop naturally, it still works within the story’s context. What we essentially witness here is the making of a ‘villain’. Mei Chaofeng and Chen Xuanfeng’s love is tested as they become consumed by care for each other, obsession and this leads to misunderstandings, where they will make irreparable choices that will have devastating consequences for those around them, all in the name of Mei Chaofeng’s pursuit of revenge.

They fight against true villains but, in the process, allow themselves to be corrupted by evil and forbidden martial arts techniques. Despite this, their love remains, and they ultimately achieve their goals. But, as is often the case in stories like this, turning to the “dark” side brings no happy ending. We end the series as Chen Xuanfeng is killed by misguided martial artists who believe they are eradicating evil, leaving Mei Chaofeng alone, consumed by hatred and grief. Stripped of all love and care, she is transformed into a true villain.

This is the kind of story I wish could be expanded into a full-length drama with more episodes, as it has incredible potential for deeper character development.

On a brighter note, I want to highlight He Yu’s performance. His acting is exceptionally smooth and natural, free of the stilted line delivery and overly dramatic pauses that plague many recent costume dramas. He was truly great here.

Overall, I watched this primarily to gauge how promising ‘Blossoms of Power’ will be, and after this, I’m definitely looking forward to it. This mini-series, though short, was genuinely engaging and worth the watch.

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Not As Bad As You Think

I watched this purely for Meng Zi Yi, and honestly? No regrets. It was short and fast-paced. Seeing her back in a role where she actually fights brought back some nostalgia from her fighting character days. She has that cool, commanding presence and I really hope she gets cast in more physically capable, female roles again.

That said, her acting wasn’t top-tier. She did carry the show for me, but that’s probably my bias talking. There were definitely moments where her emotional range felt limited. Her go-to move for both anger and sadness seemed to be just… making her eyes bigger. It got repetitive, and a bit distracting at times. Still, I wasn’t exactly expecting award-winning performances here, so I let it slide. Her screen presence and fight scenes made up for a lot.

But the drama itself could’ve been so much better if they stuck to the original novel. Mei Chaofeng was supposed to be ruthless and ambitious, stealing the Nine Yin Sutra with her lover in a power move that betrayed her master and sect. That would’ve been a bold, complex arc. But nope, they went with the same recycled revenge story. It flattened her character and made her more tragic than fierce.

Even so, the route they went did make you pity her. Losing everyone she cared about, being constantly hunted down, falling deeper into madness, it was sad. I just think it would’ve hit harder if her motivations were driven by ambition rather than just pain.

Also, the way they handled her love story was frustrating. Xuanfeng's death, i felt, was unfair, but that could've been his karma for sticking along with Chaofeng. His death was brought upon by some self-righteous group out for revenge because Chaofeng killed their guy, who I personally think, literally brought it on himself. If he didn’t provoke her, he’d still be alive. That part left a bad taste.

And Huang Yaoshi? Definitely a downgrade. He's literally the Eastern Heretic, one of the greats, powerful, ambitious, unpredictable. Here, they turned him into a half-dead background character. No flair, no fire. Just sad and sickly the entire time. Why?

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