Whispers of Fate

The glory fades away but not in a vain.

There are dramas that do not just tell a story. They change your pace, quiet your mind, and leave you with silence rather than words. And Whispers Of Fate is one of those dramas to me.

In these many years of drama watching, there have been just three dramas that truly managed to touched the essence of my soul.

Arthdal Chronicles — South korea
Whispers Of Fate — Mainland China
Someday or One Day — Taiwan

~*~*~*~

I describe, Whispers Of Fate as in a little poem I wrote for it—
It is a coincidence and also the will of fate,
It is vicissitudes of life and the feeling of returning inward,
It is the belt that becomes loose but you will never regret it, and the way of seasons repeating outside and inside of us.

~*~*~*~

In my heart, Whispers Of Fate is a timeless classic that has no predecessor and no successor and will not be surpassed by anything from C-ent.

The drama is a very ambitious and dream-like project, deeply infused with Buddhism and Taoism and other themes such as heroism, brotherhood, time-travel/loop, redemption, with stunning action and deep character growth, in a visually spectacular xuanhuan-wuxia blend. It starts off seemingly so simple that you wonder what is so great about it—but you will know soon. Then you will feel like you get hit by a truck. Complications will pile up and go on for loops on end. Until you simultaneously know and don't know what’s actually going on. It triggers brainstorming and many viewpoints are worthy of careful discussion to savour every detail.

The narrative explores, the cause and effects (Karma), Illusion vs. Reality, Impermanence, Emptiness (Śūnyatā), Cycle of Rebirth (Saṃsāra)—harmony with the Dao and returning to the origin through letting go.

The drama centers on the enigmatic protagonist, Ajibaner Tangjia (阿吉班尔 唐伽), originating from a mystical realm called Tianrenjing (Tianren realm or Celestial realm) who later fled from there, travelled and grew up in the vast land of Shenzhou (Mortal realm) as Tang Lici (唐俪辞) and focuses on his initial understanding of himself, and the relationship between him and the world.

He is a divine creation trapped in an eternal prison, a hope for the world and the victim of fate. A pair of eyes that are detached from the world; a soul which cannot be bound by the ethics of this world.

He is a disciple of Zhou Dilou and the master of Wanqiaozhai, possessing The Rebirth Sutra and enduring the excruciating pain of co-existing with two hearts.

In the eyes of the world, he is a traitor who killed his sworn brother and betrayed the sect. A chess player who indifferently controls the world for his own desires.

In his eyes, he is haunted by cause-and-effect (Karma), identity crises, and obsessions (e.g., reviving Fang Zhou).

In the end, he shoulders the responsibility to protect the world, allies with various martial heroes, reshapes the martial arts pattern in a world full of devastation eroded by evil desires, and grapples with his own identity and fate. To resign before merciless fate, or to become the fate of himself and others.

The drama is like a Tang Lici’s life train, which stops and starts along the way. People who are traveling with him come and go, get off the train one after another, and move on with their own lives, at last, Tang Lici is the only one left on the train with himself, others were merely an appearance; from beginning to end, this is Tang Lici’s dialogue with himself.

The best thing about this drama is that it explored the duality between light and dark, chaos and stability, good and evil, within every character (not just the protagonist and antagonist). The 'good characters' are not always 'good' and the 'evil characters' are not always 'evil'. The line separating 'good' and 'evil' passes through every heart —and through all hearts, this line shifts. Inside us, it oscillates through our perception and our perception are always based on our knowledge and experiences.

However, the truth we see is part of the ultimate truth—like waves (conventional) arising from water (ultimate). Therefore, our knowledge and experience are limited, putting constraints on our perception. As we explore this world further, we will see more and more things that go beyond the good and evil, transcending duality, ultimately letting go of attachments, recognizing their impermanence, and embracing Emptiness (Śūnyatā) to end the Cycle of Rebirth (Saṃsāra) and attain Liberation (Nirvana).

What truly heals you is never time but understanding; nothing can be taken away or retained, only Karma stays with us. Causality seldom forgives. Regardless of whether others love him or not, whether someone is right or wrong, Tang Lici loves everyone, simply loving everything, needing nothing in return, in this way, he becomes the compassion (Karuṇā) himself, the most primitive power in the universe.

I have noticed some users bringing 'Renegade Immortal' to compare it with 'Whispers Of Fate', I would like to use a line from RI to describe the ending for Tang Lici.

This rain is born from the clouds and dies upon the land; the process in between is life. This rain was born in the clouds but doesn’t die when it hits the land. On the land, it gains a new life; by helping the plants to grow.
Just like that, Tang Lici, who came from the Celestial realm to Mortal realm, gave a new life to everyone. He, who initially wanted to see the light of the world, became the light of the world, in the end.

Luo Yunxi was absolutely phenomenal in this drama without a single doubt, it is so difficult and takes immense courage to pull off the character like Tang Lici (and the version of Yique Yin Yang) with such perfection, he does not only use his face to enact a role but even his body language is different in every act. His eyes speak thousand words. His face is literally a book you can read. He is no longer Luo Yunxi whenever he is onscreen. He walks the character, he talks the character and he lives the character.

The Zhou Diluo scenes are the great example of how much thought he had put into portraying this character. It’s not that A Li doesn’t have emotions, he feels many emotions but does not know how to express them or does not have a means to express them, and when he cannot hold them in anymore, he expresses it like the way a child does, in a vulnerable and uninhibited way. I was very moved by his performance in Zhou Diluo scenes.

Other notable performance that won me over are by; Jeremy Xu as Gui Mudan and Ye Mo, Ai Mi as Shui Duopo, Bao Shangen as Zhong Chunji, Jiang Zhenyu as Hong Guniang, and Qiu Xinshi as Shao Yanping.

Needless to say, I absolutely fell in love with characters; Tang Lici, Xiao Shi, Long Nv and Ye Mo. The Celestial realm arc is the most visually stunning and precious part of the drama and so admired by me, I really need more of it.

The scene that left an impact on me was the scene between Tang Lici and his mother.

In the cold and solemn hall, one stands, one sits. A sense of boundless loneliness hangs in the air. Yet, she could still ask him with a smile: "Do you want to see the stars today?" Such a casual remark carries a faint, inescapable sorrow. As if she knew everything her child had been through.
She could observe the fate of others by looking at stars, Tang Lici asked if she could observe the fate of her unborn child. She replied she doesn’t want to because, in this way, she wouldn’t be so heartbroken knowing the suffering this child would endure in the future, and to obsessively try to change his fate, which she couldn’t.
Tang Lici was born out of his mother’s love and expectations. She was his salvation. He was a child his mother loved so unconditionally, and exchanged her life for him; in the same way Tang Lici exchanged his life for others to have another chance at life.
His final words were: "Mother, you are right. Once you see, obsession will grow; once you see, you will be reluctant to let go. A mother’s words clearly left a profound impact on her child.

Last but not least, I would like to give a shout out to Kwanto, Xiang, TaraVerde, Mizuhira, Levi, Suzuko, HwaBinturong, RBF and underthestars for their continuous support and contribution on this page. Whispers Of Fate is indeed meaningful but we together have made it much more meaningful through our insights on various aspects of the drama. Thank you everyone!

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I would love Season 2

Luo Yunxi is definitely born for costume Xianxia drama. He's acting and elegance is top notch. The whole cast is doing the wonderful job as well as the CGI, the best I've seen so far. The only minus is the ending is too abrupt, I wish they extend it for another 2 or 6 eps 🤣🤣🤣 Yeah, I'm greedy of Tang Li Ci. And as usual, the main lead died sacrificing himself to safe the world 😭😭😭 Please, don't always kill my Luo Yun Xi's role, I'm so heartbroken. For me this drama is really2 good. If compared to TTEOTM, I prefer WOF more since the storyline is so smooth and enjoyable. Tang Li Ci, why you dieeeeeeddddd???? 😭😭😭😭😭

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Are you going to watch because of reviews or because you're curious?

When you start watching this drama, you'll understand my title lol
I knew as soon as I saw the cast that this is an absolute must watch for me. The main cast, the guest roles, a majority of actors and actresses I really like. And so far, I am not disappointed by anything in this drama.
The story. Mysteries and truths of multiple cases connected to the main characters are unraveled slowly throughout the episodes. I always love a good mystery solving plot and good guys Vs bad guys. I'd like to emphasize the comedy inserts in this drama, especially on Chi Yun's part.
I love characters like Tang Lici - cunning, calculating, always one step ahead, non chalant (they are almost always at the verge of dying though), morally grey characters like Shen Langhun and clumsy characters who are always broke and they are good fighters like Xue Xianzi (Bai Shu is almost a default cast for such characters but I love it)
The casting. I am literally glued to the screen with each episode. This absolutely gorgeous looking cast is emphasized by the director's camera work. We all know that Luo Yunxi is fabulous but he along with Xiao Shunyao especially look x100 more handsome in every single frame of the drama. Aside from all eye candies, I think everyone is doing a great job for their character.
The costumes. THE BUDGET FOR THIS DRAMA HELLO??? I saw a fair share of wonderful art already but the work in this drama is supreme. Especially the pastels on Luo Yunxi. And I personally am a sucker for all the jewelry and hairpins and such, so this drama is a visual in every aspect.
The music. Honestly, I'm not registering it much 😅
A special mention belongs to the CGI in this drama, it is the best I've seen in a while.
Rewatch value. I think this is very worth rewatching, because as I already mentioned - visuals are absolutely stunning.
Overall, do not waste time reading reviews, you know that you want to watch this and you're surely not going to regret.
Edit after finishing the drama: all my points still stand, I just have a very personal opinion on endings and I realized that I'm quite picky about them lol. In my personal opinion, I would have ended the plot about halfway through ep 35, the episodes following past this one are like an epilogue to me. Maybe it was because I was spoiled about the ending on social media and I knew how it is going to end, that the last 5 episodes felt like I had to push myself to watch them. But again, I am picky about endings and I like a very certain outcome ( not going to say what it is as to keep this review without spoilers) and I almost always had trouble finishing the last episodes of any series because I didn't want it to end (anyone else? Lol).
Anyways, I didn't change anything about the rating of this drama, I still think it's absolutely worth your time.

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11/10 Absolute Masterpiece with Luo Yunxi once again

I just finished this drama, and honestly… I’m heartbroken. I actually paused it back at episode 35 because my gut told me he was going to end up as a sacrificial lamb yet again. I finally pushed myself to finish it today. Even though the rewatch value is a 10/10 for me, I don’t think I can ever bring myself to watch Luo Yunxi go through all that pain and trauma again.

If TTEOM was its own kind of emotional trauma, this drama feels like an upgraded version of that heartbreak. I did love the touch at the end with his friends having those tiny fox tails, even though they’ll never truly know the loss and sacrifice that made it possible. The subtitles I had were pretty terrible for the last episode, but I’m pretty sure I saw a silver/white fox, so I’m assuming that was Foxy Tang or more like a spirit to keep his presence.

The costumes, the acting, everything was amazing. Luo Yunxi’s micro-expressions and intensity? Absolutely 1000/10. Strangely, it gave me the same bittersweet feeling I had after watching Mysterious Lotus Casebook with Chengyi.

But now I’m in that empty, post-drama void where nothing else feels good enough to watch next. Maybe I’ll rewatch Love is sweet with Luo Yunxi, but right now I’m honestly too heartbroken, and I already knew this coming in the first episode.

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Gorgeous wigs, costumes, CGI and drama!

There is the plot...
And then there are Luo Yunxi's aka Tang Lici beautiful black and white wig, the gorgeous costumes, the CGI and his eyes and expressions.
I'm sooo in love with Luo Yunxi in this drama! How can someone look so beautiful and have such a gentle voice while being arrogantlol how?? His Holy Son costume and makeup was sooo fab! I think I'm gonna end up watching all his other dramas just cause of this infatuation lmao!
Every single one of Tang Lici costumes are sooo freaking beautiful! The colors, the makeup, the hairdo, the accessories! Everything is so pretty!
The white/grey hair wig and the black and white hair wig, both are just so gorgeous and look sooo good on Luo! I just can't get over it!

Just like 'Till The End of The Moon' drama and its character Tantai Jin, who was complicated, this drama and its character Tang Lici has so so many layers, and Luo Yunxi has mastered it all!

It felt like Tang Lici was the character specially crafted for Luo Yunxi! I can't imagine anybody else playing A'Li but this guy! His acting is on a whole another level with Tang Lici! He truly became one with character!
And all the side characters bring in their own flavors to the mix, and go along well with Tang Lici character.

I haven't read the novel yet, but I'm hoping the stay true to it.

If you're looking for high end fantasy, handsome faces, anime-like CGI and fighting scenes and Luo Yuxi fantastic acting, you gotta watch it!

Rewatch: 10/10

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When Love and Power Collide

Episode 15 of Water Dragon Chant feels like a flame long hidden beneath the ashes — suddenly blazing to life. The clash between emotion and duty hits its peak, and every move from the characters carries the scent of either betrayal or sacrifice.
This episode finally peels back the layers of hidden tension; every glance is charged with secrets. Luo Yunxi once again delivers a masterful performance — calm and composed on the surface, yet a storm of pain and doubt brews inside him.
The director keeps the pacing sharp and deliberate, weaving poetic visuals with mounting tension, like a sweet poison that seeps into the viewer’s heart.
Episode 15 isn’t just a dramatic high point — it’s the moment we realize that in Water Dragon Chant, nothing is accidental. Every choice comes with a price.

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