AuzuLa

Yeah definitely. They have too many things between them and 2 episodes aren't going to be enough to process those feelings. At this point it would be better to just leave their relationship ambiguous, like they aren't together in the end, but in time they may get together. Either way, the romance in this drama just isn't it lol.

I usually try not to bash dramas, but the only redeeming quality of this drama is Seo Hyun Jin's acting.
Nothing more, nothing less.

What was episode 14? What was the purpose of waiting a whole 13 episodes reveal something, which most viewers figured out anyway, only to destroy it the next episode. It feels like a very cheap way to motivate Oh Soo Jae to take revenge and further the plot. Completely unnecessary.
This dramas tries to do so much random stuff at the same time, yet the main story has barely even progressed in 14 episodes. The core of the story that should have been developed further cannot be fixed or concluded properly in 2 more episodes. For example, the romance between the main leads, the second male lead, the mother daughter relationship, the revenge arc/revealing the truth. It feels like none of these will leave the viewers feeling satisfied in the end.

However, on a positive note, I think this performance cements Seo Hyun Jin as one of the best, if not the best, South Korean actresses for me. The other contender would be Shin Hye Sun who is also amazing.

No, not really. The main character has someone he loves/loved, but barely any of the drama is spent on this.
If you're here for romance, I wouldn't watch.
This is a historical drama involving politics and strategies. But, it is hands down one of the best dramas if you're interested in the genres I mentioned.

You're right, and it only takes some quick logical thinking to come to that conclusion too.
This sort of thing is in almost every drama though. I guess you could just call it 'lazy' writing? I do find it annoying at times when blatant things aren't addressed, and the plot just keeps moving forward. When everyone makes dumb decisions, it kinda takes some of the realism out of it.
But, in order to enjoy these dramas I've learnt to just look past these things. I just accept the fact that this is a drama and that it may depict things in a manor that wouldn't actually occur in real life. As long as it isn't something absurd it doesn't bother me much anymore.
The only time it becomes a real problem is when the writer has completely illogical things happening 24/7. It's like dude... I don't have 5 IQ so watching any more of this would be mental torture.
If I had Nirvana in Fire level plot expectations for everything, I would probably dislike 99% of the things I've watched lol.

Seo Hyun Jin's acting is incredible.
Oh Soo Jae's facial expression, in the scene where she recognises who jumped off the building, just felt so real.
She really is amazing in every drama I've watched.

I'm just going to list a bunch of things that I can remember that bothered me in the end.

Fan Xian always mentions throughout the novel that he doesn't feel like he belongs in this world and he doesn't know his purpose. I can understand why he would feel this way. This is mentioned countless times but in the end there is no definitive moment where he figures out the answer to this question and just accepts his life.

Fan Xian has conflicted emotions about his mom and dad throughout the novel. He says he feels very close with his mother, Ye Qingmei, since they both are very similar as they both have memories from the previous civilisation. Then, he eventually accepts her as a mother too. His father, the Emperor of Qing, treats him fairly well at first so Fan Xian doesn't really dislike him, despite him not looking after him as a father should. When he finds out that the Emperor killed his mother, his reaction doesn't really make sense to me. He knows from history that his mother was genuinely a very good person, and he knows that the Emperor is a cold, ruthless person capable of killing his own woman while she was giving birth to his own child. He also knows that the reason for this was simply that Ye Qingmei had too much power and as an Emperor he felt threatened so he plotted to kill her. Despite knowing all this, he still doesn't fully prepare break of ties with him. Even if he doesn't want revenge, I don't understand given his personality, and his memories of the previous world, how he can just continue with his life like nothing happened until the incident with Chen Pingping.

One of the biggest issues was the fact that Fan Xian doesn't reach the grandmaster level even at the end of the novel. It doesn't make any sense. Firstly, he is the main lead. Secondly, he has spent majority of his life cultivating. Thirdly, a lot of the novel spent time on showing how Fan Xian was trying to cultivate the second portion of the tyrannical cultivating method (the way of the emperor). Fourthly, he spent time discussing how to reach the grandmaster level with Sigu Jian. Fifth, Ku He gave him a mysterious western cultivation, which in the end just disappeared. Sixth, he had the cultivation methods of all the grandmasters and Wu Zhu. Seventh, a portion of the novel discusses how he has to find his own way/method to break through the limits of the mortal body and become a grandmaster. But, in the end, all this is forgotten and he remains an above level 9 ace. I dunno, it just felt like a waste. All that time spent cultivating and discussing cultivating in the grandmaster level yet he still doesn't break through. It was very disappointing for me.

Another big problem was the fact that he had 4.5k black knights and he focused on creating his own palace treasury, but in the end this was just forgotten. It didn't make sense. This was all planning for the situation that he turns against the Emperor because the Emperor killed his mother. But in the end this is just ignored? It felt really dumb.

One of the dumbest things was after Chen Pingping was killed, Fan Xian simply reveals that he knows everything to the Emperors face. He throws all of Chen Pingping's and Fan Jian's planning into the ground. He doesn't use any of the resources available to him and just throws away everything. He doesn't start using the palace treasury to start generating his own massive income. He doesn't find a way to get himself and his family/friends out of Qing to be safe. He loses the Overwatch council and majority of his power in Qing. The only reason he didn't die was because he was the main lead. This probably the dumbest point in the novel. I expected Chen Pingping's death to be the point where Fan Xian starts using his own palace treasury to start generating a massive income to build his own army/nation, or he could start using it to support Northern Qi. In the end the Emperor of Northern Qi is his own woman. And, he isn't actually a person of Qing. He has memories from his previous life so he isn't like others and therefore he shouldn't be crazy like others thinking that everything should be for Qing. He knows that his mother was trying to use the palace treasury to help the world, he himself wants the world to be peaceful, what does that have to be with being in Qing? I really didn't understand this point. I really expected this to be the point where he leaves Qing to create his own area or join Northern Qi with his family/close friends. Then, he would find a way a to fight the Emperor of Qing, but instead his actions get himself and all those around him locked in QIng. The only reason he survives is due to the mercy of the Emperor or because he is he main lead. For a novel that spent most of the time around political manoeuvres, and showing the Fan Xian is a good schemer, the ending 60ish completely destroy this image.

Another thing which was incredibly stupid was Fan Xian entering the palace to kill the Emperor of Qing. He does this twice and both times were incredibly dumb and he literally shouldn't even survive. No matter the cards in his hands, he was never going to win because the Emperor was a grandmaster. He better than anyone else knows the strength of a grandmaster because he spent most of his life with a grandmaster teaching him. How could someone as smart as Fan Xian make such a stupid decision. He only survives because of his sister, Fan Ruoruo using the sniper rifle to injure the Emperor and help him escape, but we have to remember that this wasn't a part of his plan at all. And, lets not forget he enters the palace again in the ending few episodes to attack the Emperor, but this time he does it alone. He wasn't even expecting Wu Zhu to be there since he had lost his memories. That just happened by chance. But, what was he planning to do? Did he think he had a chance to fight one vs one against a grandmaster.

I actually have a question too. How did the Emperor die? Do Wu Zhu's eyes shoot out some kind of fire or lazer beams? I still really understand that part of the story. Did he burn the Emperor to death with his eyes?

The biggest question is what was the author thinking in the last 60ish episodes? After Chen Pingping's death the story just took a big dip in quality. Instead of characters making smart decisions it just turned into a bit of a joke. The author spend almost 700 chapters showing Fan Xian and the Emperor of Qing to be incredibly smart, just to turn them into idiots in the end.

Also, the ending wasn't that satisfying. Fan Xian isn't even shown meeting his daughter Hong Duofan, or shown being in a relationship with Zhan Doudou, Haitang Duoduo, Li Sisi.

Anyway, the ending just left a lot to be desired. I had hoped the novel would give me some closure so I wouldn't end up waiting endlessly for the drama, but now it seems that I will still be looking forward to the drama because it's clear that the drama is changing many things. For example, I'm almost certain that Fan Xian will become a grandmaster in the drama before it finishes, and I'm sure they'll change the ending in some way too. This would just make it far more enjoyable.

This is probably the biggest rant I've ever been on lol. But, to be honest most of the novel was actually very good. As I said, it was just the ending that kinda ruined it for me.

I really loved season 1. I could probably put this in my top 5 most enjoyable dramas.
I've desperately been waiting for season 2/3. It's quite disappointing and sad that something this good still hasn't got another season.
I just got tired of waiting and decided to read the novel to satisfy my curiosity for what happens next and put an end to the torturous wait.

I loved majority of the novel, but the ending 60ish chapters were really disappointing.
It just left me feeling even worse lmao. I should have just kept waiting for new seasons. It's one of those situations where something was really good and you were really enjoying it, but the ending just does its best to destroy the story and it just leaves you feeling very empty in the end.
I'm sure that many of these issues will be changed in the drama anyway.

Anyone who has read the novel or doesn't care about spoilers, and would like to discuss about what happened, read the comment below.

Alright. This had a lots of faults for sure, but the romance got me through it.
This is probably the most affectionate, hands on couple I've seen in a Chinese drama.
Usually in a historical romance drama it feels like 80% of the drama consists of one pursuing another's affection or misunderstandings, and in the end you only get like one kiss between a couple who claim to love each other to death.
This was a really nice change of pace. For once we had a couple that actually looked like a couple.
However, this did have its faults. The plot isn't anything amazing. Both leads have their moments where they annoy the viewers, especially the female lead, but I don't think it was as bad as some people in the comments seem to think. Anyways, the relationship of the main leads was enough for me to enjoy this drama.
If you're a fan of romance dramas, and the this seems like your cup of tea, I would recommend giving this at least 8 episodes before dropping.

True, he bears a striking resemblance to Xiao Zhan. Wang Yan Yang is bigger and more muscular, but their faces look so similar, which leaves me even more confused tbh. How does a person who has good acting skills and a face attractive enough to be compared to Xiao Zhan, not get more roles? He at least deserves more second lead roles.

I really wish the actor Wang Yan Yang, who portrays the character Zhao Wo Huan, would have more main roles.
He's a good actor, who sure has a lot of room for improvements, but he is much better than a lot of actors you see with their wooden acting. He's very handsome and has a very likeable aura. Also, he's fairly unique in terms of his physique. He has a bigger build than your usual Chinese actors, which makes him look more manly.
His character and his brotherhood with Jian Bu Zhi was one of my favourite aspects of this drama.
Anyway, I really think he deserves more opportunities after what he has shown so far.

Yes and Yes.
I would really recommend watching this.
It's only 24 episodes long, with each episode being roughly 33 minutes long. It doesn't drag. The plot is interesting and unique. There is romance and bromance. Give it a try.

I'll try and say what I can without any spoilers.
Male lead is actually very strong, but he has to hide his identity, and therefore his strength for like 1/3 of the drama or something. Also, he has a high status too which we find out towards the end.
Anyway, the male lead isn't some weakling or dummy who doesn't have the strength to do what he wants.
To say anymore I'd have to give away important parts of the plot.

If you're a big fan of romance dramas, then I would recommend sticking with this and not skipping any scenes, at least not any involving Si Feng and Xuan Ji.
In my opinion, this drama is one of the best xianxia out there. This one really hit the feels for me and I had a hard time moving on lol.

Yeah, I'd watch that.
By the way, great profile picture. Glad to see someone else who watches and likes the donghua 'Soul Land'.

Personally, I prefer this version to the 2008 'Royal Tramp'.
They're both very similar, but there are some things that were altered in this drama that really made the drama more likeable for me. Firstly, I would argue that the Wei Xiao Bao in this version is far more likeable and overall a better person. He is shown to be more loyal and a bit less of a lecher. I mean at least in this version he didn't rape multiple women together while they were drugged.
Secondly, I feel like Zhang Yi Shan was much more suited to this role than Huang Xiao Ming. I don't really know how to explain it, but to me, he was a perfect fit for Wei Xiao Bao. You can call his acting exaggerated or whatever, but it still felt quite natural to me, at least more so than Huang Xiao Ming. Maybe it was just his face/body frame that matched the character or the acting itself. Idk. It just worked imo.
Anyway, overall this version is more likeable imo. But, it does seem like their was a lot of editing done to cut this down to 45 episodes. There are missing pieces/scenes it seems, but it wasn't too bad since most of them would have been boring/filler scenes anyway. In a way it was better this way because it was more fast paced which kinda suited the fun theme of the drama.

Haha glad it made you laugh.

Yeah true. I ended up watching episode 30 anyway. The ending is pretty much left up to the viewer's interpretation. It's a somewhat happy ending to be honest, but it still didn't really satisfy me. I personally just really wanted to see them living a happy normal life together. Si Teng especially, really deserved to be happy after everything she's been through. Anyway, imo the ending (episode 30) wasn't perfect, but not terrible either.

Never watching that episode lol. Heard that there's two ending episodes, 30 and 31. Apparently episode 30 is a sad ending and 31 is a happy ending, so I'm definitely gonna watch 31.

Is there anywhere you can watch all 30 episodes with english subtitles yet?

YoYo English Channel has 25 episodes released with english subtitles, which is more than all the other websites I've checked. I'm really addicted to this drama so it's quite a torture having to wait for episodes to be subbed.
Thanks in advance.

The ending is a hot mess. I've re-watched this drama many times, but I always skip almost all of the last 3 episodes, so I can't fully remember the exact details, but if I recall correctly, it shows like 3 different endings. One of them is a happy ending where the main couple are together.
This drama does actually have one of the worst endings I've seen. It doesn't really feel like a conclusion because it really is just a jumbled up mess. Although I don't remember the full ending, I do remember the moments leading up to it. Read on if you don't care about the spoilers.
The male lead, Chen Lan, can't control the demon inside of him any longer. At his full potential, when the demon takes over, he is way more powerful than anybody around him, and the demon would simply slaughter anyone. He can't even kill himself because the demon doesn't allow him. In the end, Chen Lan is fighting with Zhao Yao, the woman he loves. Not a fight either of them wants though since they love each other. Zhao Yao is simply trying to get him back in control. Chen Lan realises that the only way to get rid of the demon is him dying with it. He drops his sword during the fight and allows Zhao Yao's sword to pierce throw his chest. She wasn't trying to kill him. She didn't expect him to drop his sword, and it was too late for her to stop her attack.

Anyway, that's basically the last part of the drama that made sense to me. What happened later was a mess, but it didn't ruin the drama for me because in the end the couple still loved each other, and were only trying to do what was best for each other. I honestly love this drama. I'm a big fan of romance dramas and this was one of the most enjoyable romances I've seen. If you're a big romance fan like me and also like action/wuxia + historical, then definitely give this a go.
Sorry, this explanation was a little long lol. Hope it helps though.