DistantDream

Sure, there is nothing wrong with what you are saying. I have been in your shoes. Watching a show like Veil of Shadows while focusing on logic read into all the finer detail and try to make sense of what was shown to you.

I have said this before, the time loop and time travel in VoS are not the best, as many C-dramas have tried similar ideas with varying degrees of success.

But a story is always there to convey a message. Often, that message is more important than perfect logical consistency. At time you should think about what they trying to conveyed rather then what happen.

Ji Ling being one of the few characters who comes up with plans, stays one or two steps ahead of others, or can be a bit manipulative does not inherently make him the most clever character.

Those traits can also come from caution, secrecy, survival instinct, or emotional self protection. Someone who has lived under pressure for a long time often learns to anticipate danger and control situations. That is different from being naturally brilliant.

In Ji Ling’s case, many of those behaviors seem less like genius and more like adaptation. He had to hide who he was, maintain a false identity, and survive loneliness for years. Of course, he became guarded and strategic.

So I would say those traits show that he became skilled at surviving, not necessarily that he was the smartest person in the story.

Now, back to your original point about why he made the decision to give his Lonescale to Lu Wu Yi.

Because that is who he is as a character. He was saving the person who always saw him as simply Ji Ling, not Long Shen, not a false deity, just himself. She was the one person who eased his loneliness.

As much as LWY would do anything to save JL, Ji Ling would do the same for her. He is not a purely rational character who always thinks logically. He is driven by emotion.

When he became Long Shen, that was largely him trying to cope with everything. You can literally see it in the flashback when he leaves A’Wu behind and tells himself it is time to grow up. That moment shows the stoic persona was something he forced onto himself, not who he truly was inside.

as for the time loop I written a more detail explanation

https://kisskh.at/761731-the-resurrection-painted-skin/discussions/150530-detail-timeline-of-time-loops?page=last&p=3502622#p3502622

“First of all, Ji Ling is the most clever character in the whole series, on a par with Bai Zhe.”

I don’t think this is an accurate characterization of Ji Ling. We see this from the moment he transforms into a human, and in the flashbacks to Ji Ling and Puppet Ji Ling, whom Ji Ling (Long Shen) describes as a younger version of himself.

He was innocent, bright, and curious. We see this through his interactions with LWH and Chi Wen. He comes across as childish, and that was most likely intentional. We do not see the shift into a more stoic person until the loneliness and the weight of immortality truly set in.

Even then, he was still the same person inside. We see this in the moments when Li Jie and Lu Wu Yi break through Long Shen's stoic persona.

As for the plans, they were never really his ideas. He was largely following what Chi Wen had set in motion. In one of the flashbacks during the drought, he was crying to LWY and told her, “This was good enough for me,” and for once, a fox acted like the Dragon Deity.

That does not sound like someone who is highly calculating or exceptionally smart. It sounds more like someone struggling with deep insecurity and impostor syndrome.

O I meant can't

That why I mostly only comment on people who have issues with plot and story.

I know I can't convince people when it comes to their favorite actors or actresses.

I just want to know what actual plot or story issues they have with it ! they almost always fail to mention 😭

👀 I'm still waiting for those people who have issues about the plot or the story.... they never respond to me when I give them details 😭

Yes the core theme is about Love and Obsession !

Keep that in mind when watching it explain ALOT about each characters

I can help clarify some of the confusion if you want to talk about it.

But as for Shi Guang and Ji Ling, I think some people are still confused about the message behind it.

In the show, the Dragon Deity is used as a title.

You have WSG, the rightful dragon who, due to his birth, is destined to achieve greatness.

Then you have Ji Ling, a nameless fox who was, by chance, saved by Chi Wen and, by circumstance, ate the Dragon Scale out of love for YWH, his “adopted brother.”

Throughout the story, you have a variety of characters trying to defy fate, whether because of love or obsession. Xiaowei, Wu Zhi Qi, Hanba, and ultimately Ji Ling and Lu Wu Yi are the most obvious examples.

The flashbacks, the slow motion, and the rewinding of time showcase the helplessness of trying to do the impossible and truly defy fate.

For Xiaowei, Wu Zhi Qi, and Hanba we see how their story end

As you can see, most of them actually fail. Even for LWY, though, she gets a happy yet bittersweet ending because of Ji Ling’s actions.

But the LWY who went through all the countless time loops and endless sacrifices never actually made it out. She died along with all those memories when Ji Ling when back in time and kill the queen and remove her from the timeline.

Even Ji Ling gets to reconnect with LWY in maybe another life or another timeline. But is she really his A’Wu if the time loop never existed and LWY never went through all the events of the original timeline?

The show and the story were never disconnected, if you look at it through this lens.

It very unique compare to other drama in the same genre

The reality is that we cannot tell for sure; all we know is that he does not appear at the end in WSG timeline.

So we can assume he is not there. Does it truly matter what happened to him?

Not really, because without LWY, he would have died at some point.

and be consumed by Ji Can. But at the same time, we know it's serious enough that Ji Can send LWY back in time; we don't know how many times. to save him, so could he have died in that cave? sure. Could he have lived too? sure.

Even then, the timeloop still persists

You care to elaborate ?

The OST for episode 3 of LWY and WWY 9 tail fox transformation

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smyjEePxg7A&list=OLAK5uy_kGCOlMt7nHyBID3iVONAMn5etetPptzso&index=25

For those that ever wonder what that "dubstep" ost play in those fight scene and stuff.... lol

here it is , after listing to the whole song it so GJM it kinda funny

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU5ZBiom1Cw&list=RDlU5ZBiom1Cw&start_radio=1

I think for LJ, which ending would you prefer:

him coming to the realization of what it means to be himself, but not being able to wait long enough for Ji Ling to be reborn,

or

not knowing what it means to be himself, but Ji Ling is alive?

Both are bittersweet

Read the above, stop pretending.

Don't act like the victim now. You know what you were doing when you wrote what you wrote.

"The core issues they have with the drama are storyline and plot."

Their original post was filled with sarcastic, dismissive, and personalized attacks toward the creator.

So I match that energy with all my replies, as this person had no intention to actually talk about the storyline or plot.

As per our back-and-forth, they have not and do not care to actually talk about the plot or storyline.

They are being in bad faith, trying to hide their opinion, saying they like the show, but at the same time, a backhanded attack on the show.

And I call them out on it

read what they originally wrote and tell me what your take away from it

Just another person making a claim about the show under the guise of that is their opinion.

and got called out on it, and now acting defensive about it

I ask for specific about the plot or storyline, and they continue to not say anything about say plot or storyline