At 4.22 pm today, "Blades Of The Guardians" grossed 1 billion RMB (https://m.sohu.com/a/990715014_116237),…
Heyi Xuan watches Ayuya emotionally crumble and agonise, screaming in pain at holding the decapitated head of her father.
Yes, he is laughing. But his laughter is not the laughter of someone who completely rejoices in her pain. Reluctance and regret is present.
Heyi Xuan murdered his own father to take the position of clan leader. He also felt pain at losing a father, even if he is cunning and evil enough to ensure the sons of the patriarchs of the other three clans were killed.
I believe he knew to an extent the measure of pain Ayuya was suffering, plus he also mourned for himself and for her knowing the pain of losing a father. At the same time, he finally realised the extent of miscalculation and consequences of burning a bridge of no return with Ayuya, for killing Lao Mo. Lao Mo walked through the desert barefoot to return to the Mo clan's village to honour age-old traditions he believed as necessary, for breaking the engagement between Ayuya and Heyi Xuan. Blood debts must be paid with blood as per age-old traditions, and Ayuya insists on honouring that tradition as necessary.
When Heyi Xuan attempted to strangle Ayuya to death after she kept rejecting him and wanting to kill him, he was openly crying and exclaimed her name once with such a strong mixture of emotions to reveal incredible anguish. He was in utmost agony at the thought of having to kill her whom he deemed the light in his life, he also realises he gave up everything else and lost everything just to have her... But in doing so, had only lost her forever. And he doesn't want to share her with anyone else, so she has to die. On top of that, he knows Dao Ma is determined to kill him to avenge Lao Mo.
Like Li Yunxiao as Yanzi-niang, Ci Sha ensured every scene he appeared in has been imbued with multiple layers and meanings. Heyi Xuan was charming, attractive, buffoonish, cowardly, vicious, pathetic, and pitiful. Ci Sha outdid himself in this movie, moreso than "The Shadow's Edge" where he first captured my attention.
I'm impressed with many of the younger cast members, but that's for other posts :D
At 4.22 pm today, "Blades Of The Guardians" grossed 1 billion RMB (https://m.sohu.com/a/990715014_116237), having soundly smashed all records pertaining to wuxia films in China within the first six days of its screening. Congratulations to Yuen Woo-ping who wanted to make this film approximately 10 years ago, made key decisions such as insisting on Wu Jing as Dao Ma plus Jet Li as Chang Guiren, and first asked Wu Jing to be his key man in making this happen!
Wu Jing ploughed in at least 100 million RMB out of his own pocket to ensure this movie would be finished, in order to repay his benefactor Yuen Woo-ping. Wu Jing was prepared to lose money to make this film happen. He also cut down his screen time to be given to younger actors and actresses, he trained with the team for six months and put everything else to one side- This movie would never have happened without Yuen Woo-ping insisting on choosing Wu Jing to be the main key man. When they invited actors and actresses to join this movie, everyone came. Everyone is determined to run this marathon at the box office together.
"Blades Of The Guardians" is the only movie of the Lunar New Year box office to reverse a "decline", while defying and surpassing expectations. Pegasus 3 made a large chunk of their first day and subsequent day earnings with maximum screen schedules at prime-time slots every day, while also able to utilise a majority of IMAX screens. The first movie of Pegasus earned 1.7 + billion RMB. Pegasus 2 earned 3.4+ billion RMB. Since Pegasus 2 earned twice the amount compared to the first movie of Pegasus, Pegasus 3 has gigantic expectations on its shoulders and is expected to do significantly well (I would like "Pegasus 3" to exceed 4+ billion RMB). "Pegasus 3" also has a great cast, including actors such as Yin Zheng alongside well-known comedian Shen Teng.
Other movies such as "Scare Out" started losing screen availability, as theatres began to adjust to the market of demand. Starting out with a major handicap for several days in screen-timings plus film schedules and screen availability, what has been achieved for "Blades Of The Guardians" as a wuxia film is akin to a miracle.
Almost nobody would have thought this achievement possible, given the majority of wuxia films do not exceed grossing 100 million RMB at the box office. The previous wuxia film champion of China's box office is the 2025 Tsui Hark film reaching 689 million RMB after 89 days, which Blades of The Guardians exceeded within 6 days.
Much sharing and joy on social media! So happy for the cast and crew! They deserve all the accolades possible for putting in at least 200%, after more than 6 months of sweat and tears and teamwork PLUS also working through -10 degrees to 55 degrees in the desert for 185 days! 😃🥹😍💪🤜🤛
Of the viewers interested in watching this movie but have not yet done so, more than 50% are females. One tiny change from the manhwa for the movie has been beneficial to emphasise the sisterhood and independence of characters, such as Ayuya.
Celebrating grossing more than 1 billion RMB includes sharing by->
Ps. In the spoiler tag below, there's one scene in the movie which looks so simple, but it really touched me among many other moments of being touched. Why was Ci Sha laughing and yet tears fell down his cheeks?
Great to see this film is doing so well. Reading through the comments and extra info, it seems clear everyone…
Working on my review :D It's amazing to connect with others who feel the same way. And yes, I also spoke to a fair number of much-older folks and told them to watch this, because it will bring them back to what they knew growing up with wuxia.
The audience can see and feel how authentic everything is. Shooting on-site for 185 days, where temperatures fluctuate between -10 degrees to 55 degrees really puts everybody in the cast in the right moods for night or day scenes, while wearing three to five layers of clothing plus special shoes. Four special giant blowers were used to create the sandstorms, especially the suffocating feeling of being buffeted and almost losing control at times. Yuen Woo-ping and Wu Jing believe you wouldn't be able to reach the same level of authenticity in emoting if filming inside a studio and with green screens. I believe that too. And they are correct. All this is after 6 months of very-gruelling equestrian training, wirework training and action training. Jet Li has the advantage of starting at the age of 8.
Nicholas Tse is wielding actual double bamboo-section whips at a certain juncture, and the sounds you hear of weapons colliding is real when Wu Jing or him are fighting. Wu Jing switches between at least 7 types of weapons, while more than 30 types of weapons were utilised for this film. Yuen Woo-ping has an iron-clad rule when it comes to authenticity. His weapons aren't always assumed pseudo-props. Once you see how various actors and actresses are incredibly exhausted during action training and weapons training, in the BTS- Yuen Woo-ping's typical style.
Amazing to watch their final efforts on-screen in air-conditioned comfort.
As of 3.07 pm today, Maoyan released an official poster noting more than 20 million viewers having seen "Blades Of The Guardians" within 10 days of screening: https://m.sohu.com/a/990250895_313745
Here's a video of more than 6 minutes about the equestrian training which numerous younger cast members went through (very illuminating):
For this movie based on the manhua, a lot of horsing around meant needing solid equestrian skills to also handle potentially dangerous situations. Wu Jing and Yuen Woo-ping wanted special focus on equestrian training, since scenes are shot with no stand-ins. Wu Jing, Sean Sun Yizhou and Yu Shi clearly had fun riding their horses. Wang Yupo is the Equestrian Director, and soundly praised Yu Shi's equestrian skills for being excellent.
Liu Yaowen (as Pei Xingyan) is more apprehensive and found it more difficult, when it came to horses. He and Li Yunxiao both needed more coaching. At one point, Li Yunxiao (as Yanzi-niang) was wondering if it was sweat or tears on her face, as she practised horse-riding with a face covering. At times when she could not grasp the necessary, she felt very anxious.
During equestrian training, Chen Lijun also received encouragement from Wu Jing. Even little Charles Ju (as Xiao Qi) also learned to ride a horse with a certain degree of familiarity. Sean Sun Yizhou had previously ridden a horse but this time, he had to figure out how to do it wearing a mask and seeing with that mask. All lines recited by actors and actresses on horseback was a new experience for many of the cast.
Wen Junhui (as Yu Ji Niu Luo) found it challenging, having to ride a horse eventually without using any hands for the reins. Win Win (as Da Lai) had a sense of achievement in being able to reach the ease of riding a horse single-handed and also without using any hands for the reins.
After that, training progressed to using a bow and arrows on horseback with a galloping horse. Bai Narisu (as A Luo Han) can shoot arrows with his left hand but for this film, he found himself learning to be able to shoot arrows with any hand, and it was awesome.
Xiong Jinyi (as A-Ni) had one additional difficult challenge: Learning to drive a carriage and control a group of horses. But as group practise continued, everyone became comfortable and confident on horseback, whether the horses were cantering or galloping. They managed to maintain the same pace on horses as a group in order to accommodate certain shots.
While the equestrian training was already quite challenging and exhausting, action training and wire training was another level of WOW (as seen in released BTS clips).
Nice! How was Nick Tse’s fights and acting? … Only interested to watch him, Ringo Yu and Zhang Yi😆😆
"Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon" is a more-recent wuxia movie directed by Lee Ang in 2000. Lovely cinematography, great camerawork etc but I'm not keen on the fighting choreography approach for that movie (being necessary to accommodate a majority with no martial arts backgrounds), except when Michelle Yeoh duelled with Zhang Ziyi. Yuen Woo-ping is the martial arts choreographer who did very well there, to accommodate everyone. The movie was a bigger hit internationally than in China. That movie is instrumental to opening the doors and introducing many non-mandarin-speaking individuals to the concepts of wuxia.
For me, I prefer early 1990s or older movies where Jet Li's best primary fighting styles were utilised against fellow martial arts actors. "Fist Of Legend" in 1994 had Jet Li fighting Chin Siu-ho to showcase 单手撑地后旋踢 alongside 戳腳 (Chuojiao) and his primary style of 翻子拳 (Fanzi quan): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JypP_UY0VgM
1986 "Martial Arts of Shaolin" is a classic by Lau Kar-leung, where Jet Li, Yu Cheng-hui and Yu Hai showcase different fighting styles. Jet Li is a master of 螳螂拳 (Northern Praying Mantis) and 八卦掌 (Baguazhang) which is shown in this segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5zNsbTQtis
These are examples of Jet Li's moves revealing his background as a wushu prodigy due to having mastered so many styles that are woefully under-utilised in Western productions, also because different directors have their own ideas of what works and they may not be sufficiently familiar with his amazing martial arts background.
Nice! How was Nick Tse’s fights and acting? … Only interested to watch him, Ringo Yu and Zhang Yi😆😆
Nick Tse is 200% invested with his attitude and 双鞭 (double bamboo-section whip, where the real ones weigh 7 to 8 kg). There's this perfect juxtaposition of how his intentions are introduced via a certain non-combat interaction, once he enters the film. At one point, he spent 18 hours filming certain desert scenes (not including sandstorm scenes). Filming with Yuen Woo-ping in typical oldschool HK-style where the director can correct your movements and demonstrate certain moves works wonders for every actor and actress. Ringo Yu is a Right Valiant Cavalry Guard.
When Jet Li and Wu Jing each do 单手撑地后旋踢, it's quite impressive as part of their fight choreography, especially when it becomes a three-way fight. You want to know about everything else... You'll have to watch in the cinema! :p
And here's multiple actors and actresses in this video showing our 八爷 Yuen Woo-ping interacting and directing them (watch to the end, because you'll see a very familiar face which is nostalgic): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5268337375839650
"Blades Of The Guardians" has grossed 922000+ million RMB as of 7 pm Beijing-time today, easily making it the highest-grossing wuxia film in China's box office history and breaking every possible record for the genre in a very-short span of time. It should hit 1 billion RMB tomorrow night or the morning after. This is an astounding feat!
If you want to see the detailed stats, you can head over to the movie page for box office statistics of the 9 days ushering in an astounding record for a wuxia film in China!
4 months aft. its release, Whispers of Fate remains a cultural phenomenon. Winning 🥭TV 2025 and the highest…
WoF won't go down in history, and can only go up! Maybe we should compile a series of FMVs, because some of them are stunning. If they were shared in future on a giant screen, for public viewing overhead- The impact would be amazing.
As mentioned 2 days ago in my summary for the first seven days of Lunar New Year, the strategy for movies such as "Creation of the Gods" and "Blades of The Guardians" is a marathon. Considering how disadvantaged BoTG started out ie majority of schedules as non-primetime screenings and only 16.8% for film schedules- Happy to see Lao Mo's poster.
900,000+ million RMB within 9 days for a wuxia film in China is an astounding feat. Having broken all records possible as a wuxia film for the genre in China within the first six days in such a short span of time, to become the highest-grossing wuxia film in China's box office history in this Lunar New Year: The mood of sharing the wuxia dream and spirit on chinese social media such as weibo is vibrant!
44% of viewers are female, and the attendance age demographics demonstrates different generations coming together for this unique movie :D
ETA: As of 7 pm today, BoTG grossed 922000+ million RMB and on the way to 1 billion RMB! (https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5270290347328610.html) Some people had to start work yesterday ie 24 February is 正月初八 #马年第一个工作日# and Ci Sha made a post on his weibo account asking everyone about their first day of work. But people are still going to the cinemas, when they can ;)
Liu Yan isn't comfortable with beating around the bush and not understanding something, when he is being addressed.…
I digressed into a psychological discussion with another viewer, and then tried to find your comments. These are thoughts about Tang Lici, A-Shui, Liu Yan, and Shui Duopo utilising novel and drama (Gui Mudan is also mentioned):
Thank you! Those of us celebrating CNY vanished for several days. May you enjoy Tang Lici and more here, in this…
The drama parallels certain aspects of the novel, and improves upon other aspects. Here is my second comment also superficially involving the ideas of Mourning and Melancholia by Freud, about novel-Tang Lici and why novel-A-Shui never met the criteria Tang Lici needed:
Thank you for the mention of the Freud article contrasting Mourning and Melancholia. Before I get to that pertaining to Tang Lici, an overview of the novel versus drama for a certain trio is necessary.
What is novel-Tang Lici? He is from the future as the lead singer of Bronze Flute and one night, his own father Tang Yingdi declared Fu Zhumei to be worthy as lead singer and better than Tang Lici, taking Tang Lici’s place. Tang Lici himself is a perfected embryo of science, before he was born as a baby to the very-rich people whom he knows as parents. Liu Yan’s education was sponsored by Tang Lici’s parents, and he grew up with Tang Lici. He became a bodyguard to Tang Lici. Liu Yan and Tang Lici are from the future. The Celestial Realm did not exist, except in the drama.
Novel-Liu Yan was never a leader, always needing someone around him to have a sense of direction if he was not being directed to do something. WoF preserves these character traits, such as when Gui Mudan reveals to Liu Yan about the extent of Liu Yan being manipulated by Gui Mudan and how easily Liu Yan can be controlled by Gui Mudan.
For 38 chapters of the novel, A-Shui is aware that Tang Lici doesn’t love her, and this is what aids her self-preservation. Anybody who has properly read the entire novel can see that Tang Lici doesn’t love A-Shui, and this is especially true after 46 chapters. Within 26 chapters, Tang Lici told Liu Yan that because Liu Yan loves A-Shui, Liu Yan wants to protect her but because Tang Lici loves A-Shui, he wants to break her.
In their own ways for at least 38 chapters, Liu Yan and Tang Lici don’t respect A-Shui as someone who wants to be seen and understood. You would question what they understand about love. They have only projected their own visions onto her. But where Liu Yan despicably raped her and got her pregnant and she suffered a miscarriage after he fell into Xifang Tao’s trap and could not protect her from the consequences from other jealous female followers of Fengliu Dian, Tang Lici was very visible about his boundaries and barriers with A-Shui.
With civil careful cruel grace across more than 46 chapters, novel-Tang Lici made it clear what he thought of A-Shui relative to his usual considerations. He has been gallant in his actions. He did not physically harm her or violate her, and extended to her more kindnesses and protections than the other men who made her suffer. He also made it verbally clear what she had to give him if she wanted to be valued by him as more than what she had been getting from him, which primarily requires her giving him complete sexual domination over her and breaking her. He didn’t go as far as classifying her as a definite friend, and it was cruel to label her a courtesan with specific context. He doesn't press her to give in. He was frank and let her choose. His attitude was gracious and charming and uncompromising (take it or leave it is the impression you get).
As self-protection at one point, she mentioned loving Fu Zhumei to Tang Lici (which is true up to a certain point, because Fu Zhumei did touch her heart). She didn't know how Fu Zhumei is an emotional barb to Tang Lici. In Chapter 42, A-Shui is telling herself she must not fall for Tang Lici or it will only lead to her ruin. She also argued with Liu Yan after chapter 44, being verbally forceful that she doesn’t want to fall in love with Tang Lici after hearing Liu Yan's views.
Novel-Tang Lici’s bearing is gentle, refined, elegant. He is not verbose. His words are carefully calibrated. He is careful in how and when he utilises his presence. He does not like to be threatened, and he does not allow the old, the weak, the helpless to be killed for his sake. He made this punishingly clear to Bai Suche in the novel. To live is by his grace, to die necessitates his consent. He is an accomplished martial arts warrior, ruthless and precise. He is incredibly rich. Many women want him. And yes, a part of Fang Zhou is preserved in his abdomen.
Novel A-Shui is a character made interesting by circumstances. Novel A-Shui is not an interesting character. What I mean by this distinction is that due to having to continuously respond to the circumstances, A-Shui becomes interesting because by herself and with Fengfeng, she would be a normal single mother of zero notable skills not unique to the jianghu. But because of being made to suffer hardships due to two idiotic men (Yes, I am labelling Lord Haowen and Liu Yan here because in the novel they are horrible idiots IMO), and being forced to endure, plus share observations of Tang Lici or others plus interactions with other interesting characters and situations, she learns lessons while knowing enough about Fengliu Dian. Teng Ping thus makes A-Shui interesting.
Novel-Shen Langhun notes A-Shui’s lack of timidity at putting herself in danger to help others and is surprised, but he doesn’t know A-Shui feels soul-weary at not being truly seen by anyone while always having to be calm and resourceful with no one to lean on. I wonder if Novel-A-Shui’s ideas for herself at least once involved being willing to get herself killed for the sake of helping another person, so she wouldn’t have that burden anymore.
Novel-Liu Yan is a character made interesting by circumstances, but not an interesting character in himself. Novel-Liu Yan also tries to be someone he isn’t when emulating what he thinks is the worst of Tang Lici and in doing so, he fails at being truly bad (and this is emulated in the drama, where Tang Lici rubs in the fact to Liu Yan of Liu Yan not being able to truly scale to any height, be it good or bad). Novel A-Shui and Liu Yan are reactionary. Drama-Liu Yan is more interesting than novel-Liu Yan for me, but they both have the same flaws of being unable to plumb the depths of good and evil.
Tang Lici is an interesting character who drives and creates changes and circumstances. Yu Tuan’er is also an interesting character with those traits, just like Wanyu Yuedan and Fang Pingzhai. Novel-Xifang Tao is a VERY interesting character but would never be allowed into a drama, so they preserved Xifang Tao’s key traits which Chen Yao brought out wonderfully.
There’s one group known as Seven Cloud-Walking Blossoms in the novel which doesn’t exist in the drama. It is the dynamics of this brotherhood which also contributes to a fascinating novel, but I can also see why it was removed for the screenplay of WoF to make this drama Tang-Lici-centric. Yique Yinyang-Gui Mudan, Fang Pingzhai, Kuanglan Wuxing, Mei Hua Yi Shu and Xifang Tao as Yu Konghou belonged to this brotherhood. The novel has several more characters, all of which are interesting.
Wanyu Yuedan understands Tang Lici and Wanyu Yuedan is best-suited to enable Tang Lici to improve emotionally, but alas, between the two of them? All I can say is Wanyu Yuedan is someone I lament as only being a friend to Tang Lici.
Now, as to mourning and melancholia, for Tang Lici -> Novel-Tang Lici does not know what is mourning or melancholia. He would rather die than ask for help. His self-recklessness is balanced by wanting to keep Fang Zhou alive inside him, even if doing so is killing him. Tang Lici clearly rejects the idea and process of mourning. If Tang Lici was sat down and told about mourning versus melancholia, he’d still reject both processes also because his ego is buried in a state of suspension along with his deepest emotions which enable true transformation and grieving. He doesn’t see himself as worthless or inferior. He sees himself as capable enough, only sometimes he wants help and doesn't want to feel as if he carries the world. He does not seem to be aware he seeks a mother who would truly die for him. It's the parts of himself that he refuses to define which tips the balance of his decisions. The worth of his life is arbitrary to him, because that worth depends on the moment and circumstances and what he measures. He doesn't have melancholia. He's not interested in mourning nor melancholia. He'd vanish from a psychiatric couch the moment he realises he is on one.
This man-child is versed and primed in defences against all the wiles and cynicisms and exploitations of the world. What would truly touch him is someone noble of self and does not want or expect anything from him, male or female. And stubborn enough to make him realise. In the novel, the only female who meets this criteria is Yu Tuan’er, Liu Yan’s redemption. Shui Duopo is male in the novel.
What would make him open up? Someone who can see him as an equal and he can see as an equal, who can touch him emotionally. And he must want them to stay. Someone similar yet different enough. Someone emotionally strong and whole. If that is the entire classification… Only Wanyu Yuedan meets this difficult threshold, for drama and novel. For the drama, Shui Duopo meets this as well. But drama-Tang Lici, despite not being as emotionally volatile and psychologically cantankerous as novel-Tang Lici, has barriers somewhat similar and as tough as novel-Tang Lici. Being willing to die for Fang Zhou but not willing to share his plans in that aspect with anyone else (except Shui Duopo) is that example.
Novel-Tang Lici has had girlfriends and is experienced in pleasures of the flesh. He wants to have someone he can confide in, but he doesn’t want to be seen. He wants an equal. A mirror. An opening. If anyone is to see through him and wants to be able to stay with him, they would either have to abide by his verbalised rules or defy those rules in such a manner that Tang Lici wants them to stay. A-Shui abides by his words also because she is herself, character-wise. She can create surprises, but she will never go beyond a certain estimate of herself. She understandably cannot be the difference Tang Lici needs, and that results in her failure with Tang Lici not willing to recognise her as a specific individual and who she truly is beyond the verbal boundaries he has instituted.
Novel-Wanyu Yuedan telling or not telling her about Tang Lici would not have made a difference to the outcome between Tang Lici and A-Shui. They are completely incompatible.
Be it the drama or novel, Wanyu Yuedan is capable of defying Tang Lici and making himself a true friend of equals with Tang Lici, but Wanyu Yuedan has no intention and no interest in occupying such a position. Drama-Shui Duopo can also do this, because she decides where she wants to be and what she wants to do.
Tang Lici in the novel is condemned to eternal loneliness. If A-Shui had stayed with him instead of her being given money by him to leave him (which she does not take a cent of), would he be happy? No. People age. People change.
It is the only ending novel-Tang Lici could have had, because psychologically and emotionally he is frozen in an ice coffin that he cannot dig himself out of. In his case, two hands must clasp.
A-Shui was never his equal and never perceived as an equal. She was never suitable for him. She has good qualities that normal men prize, but this is Tang Lici whose psychological issues make him unsuitable for anyone, unless they can heal him. That seems to be only possible with Wanyu Yuedan. I'm sure Wanyu Yuedan can sense the details of a healthy love that could help Tang Lici change in a healthy manner and doesn't involve a specific motherly love craved by Tang Lici, but that would require getting completely consumed and burned. I wonder if Teng Ping realised this, and possibly she did. Novel-Tang Lici is a fascinating compelling character, but not a character I would recommend someone loving unless they know how to handle him. A force of nature is something I can appreciate from a distance, because I can gauge how tiring and exhausting and possibly destructive it would be up-close. I would have wanted to see Wanyu Yuedan having more of a friendship with Tang Lici, in the novel. Wanyu Yuedan can definitely handle him.
A-Shui can give Tang Lici peaceful nights for a short period of time, but for the long-term? No. This reality is not her flaw. It is ultimately due to his flaws, flaws shaped very cruelly in the modern era before he came to the time period of the novel. He also cannot give her what she truly needs and deserves. Can A-Shui truly and fully relax with Tang Lici for several days in a row, seeing him everyday and spending at least half of every day with him? No. Reading objectively will lead anyone to these conclusions.
When Tang Lici chooses in a much-later chapter to hurl A-Shui into harm's way to shield Liu Yan and protect Liu Yan, it is a cruelty lacking certain intentions that irreversibly breaks something he had preserved with her up until then. It doesn't make him different from the other men who have savaged her. I would say his choice of doing so is in a way, even more cruel than the two men who repeatedly raped her at different parts of her life, because she loves Tang Lici. But he never asked her to love him. He never asked her to promise him anything or give him anything. He has been clear about his priorities. What has he promised her, until that point? Nothing.
Do we fault someone for falling in love with us, when we never ask for it? Do we fault them for being shocked or losing something in their feelings for us, when we do something not outside of context relative to what we have previously told them ie how we view them relative to us in terms of dearness and position? What should A-Shui fault Tang Lici for, given all of this? What is your answer?
This is the novel, as I see it.
Teng Ping wrote herself into a corner with Tang Lici before that much-later fiasco happened, abandoning the novel until it was adapted for a drama, and then resumed writing. That is the sorrow and beauty of the Tang Lici who must understand "Enduring A Thousand Tribulations" to find himself in a place of being truly willing to see himself and come to terms with himself by coming out of his inner prison, instead of remaining buried. He finally achieves that, with no one else to bury. And when Teng Ping resumed writing, it is unavoidable that she took Tang Lici on this unchangeable path to his inevitable finish of loneliness.
I’m sure others will disagree with me about the ending, such as RBF. From what I can see, novel-Tang Lici would never be truly fully happy. Drama-Tang Lici lived a fulfilling life, and he broke the cycle of Samsara for himself to fulfill second chances for everyone else, believing in what Fang Zhou taught about everyone being inherently good as his body dissipates. The drama was much kinder to Tang Lici than the novel, but the unfinished novel is what paved the way for all these changes to drama-Tang Lici.
Due to a mother he needed but never had, Novel-Tang Lici never truly fathomed compassion, could not birth a different path for himself, and was doomed to loneliness. Due to meeting and understanding his mother who is kind and compassionate and sees the big picture, Drama-Tang Lici realised and embodied compassion as unconditional love, and was glad to sacrifice himself for everyone and give birth to second chances without feeling lonely, because he felt fulfilled.
Does this satisfy part of your interest in Tang Lici's psychology?
Ci Sha is fantastic in the movie! He brought out the angles of Heyi Xuan compellingly. His interview about how he prepared for his role is very interesting.
Please put your comments as spoiler alerts ⚠️. Some of us are still relishing this master piece.
That account doesn't appear to have read the novel. The rambling about Blood River is also very confusing. Teng Ping abandoned this novel and left it unfinished for at least 10 years, until it was loosely adapted into the drama known as WoF. The drama gives Tang Lici the finish and focus and fulfilment of being Tang Lici, unlike the novel.
Also, 46 chapters into the novel, it's clearly one-sided while Tang Lici also institutes very clear boundaries between himself and A-Shui. He is very much about his personal boundaries on his terms, and never gives A-Shui what she yearns from him in all those chapters, but he treats her much better than the other males who had been in her life before A-Shui meets him. Within those 46 chapters, novel-Tang Lici kisses Zhong Chunji because- Anyway, that kiss never happens in this drama.
There is no romance tag applicable to this drama for substantial reasons. Some viewers need to accept the reality that there is no romance between their favourite actress and ML because the drama is heroism-focused, as per the producers making it clear in an interview way before the drama aired.
The account you are replying to clearly cannot accept the drama and the novel. They have posted comments as chunks when the drama was airing, and also when certain accounts were throwing fits over their preferred actress not winding up with Luo Yunxi.
I was initially worry about the actor ability to portray CY, never heard of his name and my general dislike for…
He definitely made novel-Chi Yun more adorable and less cantankerous! Maybe his drama 花间酒人间月 will finally be released (interesting premise and synopsis).
There are definitely many good ideas that the drama instituted versus the unfinished novel, because being in a boyband from the future instead of the Celestial Realm would have been a wee bit hard for me to reconcile XD
Who cares? Hollywood has its own people getting bitten by spider, turn into massive green giant, fly to the sun…
You are welcome. It's not difficult for me. Movies such as "Creation of The Gods" and "Blades of the Guardians" run marathons. The first movie for Creation of The Gods needed the entire summer season to see the final takings.
I've shared more details uptop about "Blades Of The Guardians". For me, the wuxia movies I primarily enjoy are from the 1990s and before. I spoke to older people who themselves didn't want to watch a wuxia film in cinemas because they felt left out. I promised them the younger and older actors and actresses can fight in this movie. No green screens, hardly any slow-motion, and no fancy gadgets or CGI to camouflage a lack of ability. If you watch Shaw Brother movies, you'd know what I mean.
BoTG already broke everything it could break record-wise, so now it is primarily about recouping its expenditure.
WoF was attacked on Douban and also on the MDL page, twice via ratings and continuously throughout the airing of the drama by multiple troll accounts.
The most vicious troll account on the MDL "Whispers of Fate" drama page pretended to be a Luo Yunxi fan while also attacking the drama in different ways (such as purposely misleading others about statistics), and that user is now persona non grata amongst all Luo Yunxi fans internationally and domestically. That one also was dishonest about the novel that WoF is based on, so I started explaining very-specific-parallels of the unfinished novel with the drama to specific viewers, after the drama finished airing.
WoF page in November 2025 saw claims at one point about the donghua Renegade Immortal resembling Whispers of Fate romance-wise between two specific characters. Multiple viewers rebutted at least three accounts for clearly not knowing anything about "Renegade Immortal". Plus nobody starts watching "Renegade Immortal" for romance. Wang Lin and Tang Lici are as different as day and night, but Wang Lin and Tang Lici literally exert all of themselves for someone uniquely precious to them.
They deserve all the praise and recognition! 185 days.. That is 6 whole months in the desert!
They tried to summarise 15 episodes of the donghua in 126 minutes, understandably given what could be considered for a sequel. There are several changes I agree with, and one change I haven't made a decision about. I believe the movie would have benefitted from an additional four minutes taken from the manhua.
Yanzi-niang's specific scenes conveyed her character, her wit and her uniqueness very well. The team dynamics was endearing and hilarious, and quite dangerous at one point. Because of one small change different from the manhua during the sandstorm, Ani and Ayuya's relationship sisterhood-wise was enhanced and Ayuya's character also improved.
I would have wanted to see a bit more of Di Ting and Dao Ma's backstory. Yuen Woo-ping was very concise. As the man who wanted this movie made, and wanted certain actors and actresses in the casting, just watching the way he films is so oldschool and familiar, and brought tears to my eyes.
Here is manhua author Xue Xianzhe sharing a post about Yuen Woo-ping, with a video compiling several stars speaking about our beloved Director:
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Yes, he is laughing. But his laughter is not the laughter of someone who completely rejoices in her pain. Reluctance and regret is present.
Heyi Xuan murdered his own father to take the position of clan leader. He also felt pain at losing a father, even if he is cunning and evil enough to ensure the sons of the patriarchs of the other three clans were killed.
I believe he knew to an extent the measure of pain Ayuya was suffering, plus he also mourned for himself and for her knowing the pain of losing a father. At the same time, he finally realised the extent of miscalculation and consequences of burning a bridge of no return with Ayuya, for killing Lao Mo. Lao Mo walked through the desert barefoot to return to the Mo clan's village to honour age-old traditions he believed as necessary, for breaking the engagement between Ayuya and Heyi Xuan. Blood debts must be paid with blood as per age-old traditions, and Ayuya insists on honouring that tradition as necessary.
When Heyi Xuan attempted to strangle Ayuya to death after she kept rejecting him and wanting to kill him, he was openly crying and exclaimed her name once with such a strong mixture of emotions to reveal incredible anguish. He was in utmost agony at the thought of having to kill her whom he deemed the light in his life, he also realises he gave up everything else and lost everything just to have her... But in doing so, had only lost her forever. And he doesn't want to share her with anyone else, so she has to die. On top of that, he knows Dao Ma is determined to kill him to avenge Lao Mo.
Like Li Yunxiao as Yanzi-niang, Ci Sha ensured every scene he appeared in has been imbued with multiple layers and meanings. Heyi Xuan was charming, attractive, buffoonish, cowardly, vicious, pathetic, and pitiful. Ci Sha outdid himself in this movie, moreso than "The Shadow's Edge" where he first captured my attention.
I'm impressed with many of the younger cast members, but that's for other posts :D
I made a quick summative update above!
Wu Jing ploughed in at least 100 million RMB out of his own pocket to ensure this movie would be finished, in order to repay his benefactor Yuen Woo-ping. Wu Jing was prepared to lose money to make this film happen. He also cut down his screen time to be given to younger actors and actresses, he trained with the team for six months and put everything else to one side- This movie would never have happened without Yuen Woo-ping insisting on choosing Wu Jing to be the main key man. When they invited actors and actresses to join this movie, everyone came. Everyone is determined to run this marathon at the box office together.
"Blades Of The Guardians" is the only movie of the Lunar New Year box office to reverse a "decline", while defying and surpassing expectations. Pegasus 3 made a large chunk of their first day and subsequent day earnings with maximum screen schedules at prime-time slots every day, while also able to utilise a majority of IMAX screens. The first movie of Pegasus earned 1.7 + billion RMB. Pegasus 2 earned 3.4+ billion RMB. Since Pegasus 2 earned twice the amount compared to the first movie of Pegasus, Pegasus 3 has gigantic expectations on its shoulders and is expected to do significantly well (I would like "Pegasus 3" to exceed 4+ billion RMB). "Pegasus 3" also has a great cast, including actors such as Yin Zheng alongside well-known comedian Shen Teng.
Other movies such as "Scare Out" started losing screen availability, as theatres began to adjust to the market of demand. Starting out with a major handicap for several days in screen-timings plus film schedules and screen availability, what has been achieved for "Blades Of The Guardians" as a wuxia film is akin to a miracle.
Almost nobody would have thought this achievement possible, given the majority of wuxia films do not exceed grossing 100 million RMB at the box office. The previous wuxia film champion of China's box office is the 2025 Tsui Hark film reaching 689 million RMB after 89 days, which Blades of The Guardians exceeded within 6 days.
Much sharing and joy on social media! So happy for the cast and crew! They deserve all the accolades possible for putting in at least 200%, after more than 6 months of sweat and tears and teamwork PLUS also working through -10 degrees to 55 degrees in the desert for 185 days! 😃🥹😍💪🤜🤛
Of the viewers interested in watching this movie but have not yet done so, more than 50% are females. One tiny change from the manhwa for the movie has been beneficial to emphasise the sisterhood and independence of characters, such as Ayuya.
Celebrating grossing more than 1 billion RMB includes sharing by->
Sean Sun Yizhou (Zhishilang): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5270992146661544
Nicholas Tse Ting Fung (Di Ting): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5270991362064847
Yu Shi (Jade-Faced Ghost Shu): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5270971181434047
Ci Sha (Heyi Xuan): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5270995684559321
Lin Qiu Nan (Xiao Lai): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5271020353359159
Chen Lijun (Ayuya): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5270986440311633
Wen Junhui ie Jun (Yu Ji Niu Luo): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5270987241164692
Here's the theme song for "Blades Of The Guardians" by Jackson Wang with mandarin, hanyu pinyin and English subs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf6F9GKX0pg
Ps. In the spoiler tag below, there's one scene in the movie which looks so simple, but it really touched me among many other moments of being touched. Why was Ci Sha laughing and yet tears fell down his cheeks?
The audience can see and feel how authentic everything is. Shooting on-site for 185 days, where temperatures fluctuate between -10 degrees to 55 degrees really puts everybody in the cast in the right moods for night or day scenes, while wearing three to five layers of clothing plus special shoes. Four special giant blowers were used to create the sandstorms, especially the suffocating feeling of being buffeted and almost losing control at times. Yuen Woo-ping and Wu Jing believe you wouldn't be able to reach the same level of authenticity in emoting if filming inside a studio and with green screens. I believe that too. And they are correct. All this is after 6 months of very-gruelling equestrian training, wirework training and action training. Jet Li has the advantage of starting at the age of 8.
Nicholas Tse is wielding actual double bamboo-section whips at a certain juncture, and the sounds you hear of weapons colliding is real when Wu Jing or him are fighting. Wu Jing switches between at least 7 types of weapons, while more than 30 types of weapons were utilised for this film. Yuen Woo-ping has an iron-clad rule when it comes to authenticity. His weapons aren't always assumed pseudo-props. Once you see how various actors and actresses are incredibly exhausted during action training and weapons training, in the BTS- Yuen Woo-ping's typical style.
Amazing to watch their final efforts on-screen in air-conditioned comfort.
Here's a video of more than 6 minutes about the equestrian training which numerous younger cast members went through (very illuminating):
https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5270178955793391
For this movie based on the manhua, a lot of horsing around meant needing solid equestrian skills to also handle potentially dangerous situations. Wu Jing and Yuen Woo-ping wanted special focus on equestrian training, since scenes are shot with no stand-ins. Wu Jing, Sean Sun Yizhou and Yu Shi clearly had fun riding their horses. Wang Yupo is the Equestrian Director, and soundly praised Yu Shi's equestrian skills for being excellent.
Liu Yaowen (as Pei Xingyan) is more apprehensive and found it more difficult, when it came to horses. He and Li Yunxiao both needed more coaching. At one point, Li Yunxiao (as Yanzi-niang) was wondering if it was sweat or tears on her face, as she practised horse-riding with a face covering. At times when she could not grasp the necessary, she felt very anxious.
During equestrian training, Chen Lijun also received encouragement from Wu Jing. Even little Charles Ju (as Xiao Qi) also learned to ride a horse with a certain degree of familiarity. Sean Sun Yizhou had previously ridden a horse but this time, he had to figure out how to do it wearing a mask and seeing with that mask. All lines recited by actors and actresses on horseback was a new experience for many of the cast.
Wen Junhui (as Yu Ji Niu Luo) found it challenging, having to ride a horse eventually without using any hands for the reins. Win Win (as Da Lai) had a sense of achievement in being able to reach the ease of riding a horse single-handed and also without using any hands for the reins.
After that, training progressed to using a bow and arrows on horseback with a galloping horse. Bai Narisu (as A Luo Han) can shoot arrows with his left hand but for this film, he found himself learning to be able to shoot arrows with any hand, and it was awesome.
Xiong Jinyi (as A-Ni) had one additional difficult challenge: Learning to drive a carriage and control a group of horses. But as group practise continued, everyone became comfortable and confident on horseback, whether the horses were cantering or galloping. They managed to maintain the same pace on horses as a group in order to accommodate certain shots.
While the equestrian training was already quite challenging and exhausting, action training and wire training was another level of WOW (as seen in released BTS clips).
For me, I prefer early 1990s or older movies where Jet Li's best primary fighting styles were utilised against fellow martial arts actors. "Fist Of Legend" in 1994 had Jet Li fighting Chin Siu-ho to showcase 单手撑地后旋踢 alongside 戳腳 (Chuojiao) and his primary style of 翻子拳 (Fanzi quan): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JypP_UY0VgM
1986 "Martial Arts of Shaolin" is a classic by Lau Kar-leung, where Jet Li, Yu Cheng-hui and Yu Hai showcase different fighting styles. Jet Li is a master of 螳螂拳 (Northern Praying Mantis) and 八卦掌 (Baguazhang) which is shown in this segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5zNsbTQtis
These are examples of Jet Li's moves revealing his background as a wushu prodigy due to having mastered so many styles that are woefully under-utilised in Western productions, also because different directors have their own ideas of what works and they may not be sufficiently familiar with his amazing martial arts background.
When Jet Li and Wu Jing each do 单手撑地后旋踢, it's quite impressive as part of their fight choreography, especially when it becomes a three-way fight. You want to know about everything else... You'll have to watch in the cinema! :p
And here's multiple actors and actresses in this video showing our 八爷 Yuen Woo-ping interacting and directing them (watch to the end, because you'll see a very familiar face which is nostalgic): https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5268337375839650
If you want to see the detailed statistics for the box office over the 9 days and other trivia, here's an example of several posts on the movie page: https://kisskh.at/767811-blades-of-the-guardians#comment-25225916|
If you want to see the detailed stats, you can head over to the movie page for box office statistics of the 9 days ushering in an astounding record for a wuxia film in China!
This short FMV shared by 病毒妹儿 is spellbinding: https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5223188491144443
900,000 million RMB was reached early this afternoon (Beijing-time 2:34 pm)- https://www.jiemian.com/article/14034955.html
900,000+ million RMB within 9 days for a wuxia film in China is an astounding feat. Having broken all records possible as a wuxia film for the genre in China within the first six days in such a short span of time, to become the highest-grossing wuxia film in China's box office history in this Lunar New Year: The mood of sharing the wuxia dream and spirit on chinese social media such as weibo is vibrant!
Ci Sha shared this in honour of reaching that milestone, less than 3 hours ago: https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5270229861011852
A certain fight between Dao Ma (WuJing) and Shu (Yu Shi) erupts at the Dark Ox Flats: https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5269786259882957
Here is actress Jing Ci in action rehearsal, before she morphs into Peiwu Mi'er: https://weibo.com/tv/show/1034:5270260899577876
44% of viewers are female, and the attendance age demographics demonstrates different generations coming together for this unique movie :D
ETA: As of 7 pm today, BoTG grossed 922000+ million RMB and on the way to 1 billion RMB! (https://www.sina.cn/news/detail/5270290347328610.html)
Some people had to start work yesterday ie 24 February is 正月初八 #马年第一个工作日# and Ci Sha made a post on his weibo account asking everyone about their first day of work.
But people are still going to the cinemas, when they can ;)
https://kisskh.at/755725-shui-long-yin#comment-25019466
https://kisskh.at/755725-shui-long-yin#comment-25043194
https://kisskh.at/755725-shui-long-yin#comment-25225708
I believe Liu Yan didn't realise the extent of mockery and contempt from Gui Mudan, only an inkling at most of mockery as a threat.
https://kisskh.at/755725-shui-long-yin#comment-25225708
What is novel-Tang Lici? He is from the future as the lead singer of Bronze Flute and one night, his own father Tang Yingdi declared Fu Zhumei to be worthy as lead singer and better than Tang Lici, taking Tang Lici’s place. Tang Lici himself is a perfected embryo of science, before he was born as a baby to the very-rich people whom he knows as parents. Liu Yan’s education was sponsored by Tang Lici’s parents, and he grew up with Tang Lici. He became a bodyguard to Tang Lici. Liu Yan and Tang Lici are from the future. The Celestial Realm did not exist, except in the drama.
Novel-Liu Yan was never a leader, always needing someone around him to have a sense of direction if he was not being directed to do something. WoF preserves these character traits, such as when Gui Mudan reveals to Liu Yan about the extent of Liu Yan being manipulated by Gui Mudan and how easily Liu Yan can be controlled by Gui Mudan.
For 38 chapters of the novel, A-Shui is aware that Tang Lici doesn’t love her, and this is what aids her self-preservation. Anybody who has properly read the entire novel can see that Tang Lici doesn’t love A-Shui, and this is especially true after 46 chapters. Within 26 chapters, Tang Lici told Liu Yan that because Liu Yan loves A-Shui, Liu Yan wants to protect her but because Tang Lici loves A-Shui, he wants to break her.
In their own ways for at least 38 chapters, Liu Yan and Tang Lici don’t respect A-Shui as someone who wants to be seen and understood. You would question what they understand about love. They have only projected their own visions onto her. But where Liu Yan despicably raped her and got her pregnant and she suffered a miscarriage after he fell into Xifang Tao’s trap and could not protect her from the consequences from other jealous female followers of Fengliu Dian, Tang Lici was very visible about his boundaries and barriers with A-Shui.
With civil careful cruel grace across more than 46 chapters, novel-Tang Lici made it clear what he thought of A-Shui relative to his usual considerations. He has been gallant in his actions. He did not physically harm her or violate her, and extended to her more kindnesses and protections than the other men who made her suffer. He also made it verbally clear what she had to give him if she wanted to be valued by him as more than what she had been getting from him, which primarily requires her giving him complete sexual domination over her and breaking her. He didn’t go as far as classifying her as a definite friend, and it was cruel to label her a courtesan with specific context. He doesn't press her to give in. He was frank and let her choose. His attitude was gracious and charming and uncompromising (take it or leave it is the impression you get).
As self-protection at one point, she mentioned loving Fu Zhumei to Tang Lici (which is true up to a certain point, because Fu Zhumei did touch her heart). She didn't know how Fu Zhumei is an emotional barb to Tang Lici. In Chapter 42, A-Shui is telling herself she must not fall for Tang Lici or it will only lead to her ruin. She also argued with Liu Yan after chapter 44, being verbally forceful that she doesn’t want to fall in love with Tang Lici after hearing Liu Yan's views.
Novel-Tang Lici’s bearing is gentle, refined, elegant. He is not verbose. His words are carefully calibrated. He is careful in how and when he utilises his presence. He does not like to be threatened, and he does not allow the old, the weak, the helpless to be killed for his sake. He made this punishingly clear to Bai Suche in the novel. To live is by his grace, to die necessitates his consent. He is an accomplished martial arts warrior, ruthless and precise. He is incredibly rich. Many women want him. And yes, a part of Fang Zhou is preserved in his abdomen.
Novel A-Shui is a character made interesting by circumstances. Novel A-Shui is not an interesting character. What I mean by this distinction is that due to having to continuously respond to the circumstances, A-Shui becomes interesting because by herself and with Fengfeng, she would be a normal single mother of zero notable skills not unique to the jianghu. But because of being made to suffer hardships due to two idiotic men (Yes, I am labelling Lord Haowen and Liu Yan here because in the novel they are horrible idiots IMO), and being forced to endure, plus share observations of Tang Lici or others plus interactions with other interesting characters and situations, she learns lessons while knowing enough about Fengliu Dian. Teng Ping thus makes A-Shui interesting.
Novel-Shen Langhun notes A-Shui’s lack of timidity at putting herself in danger to help others and is surprised, but he doesn’t know A-Shui feels soul-weary at not being truly seen by anyone while always having to be calm and resourceful with no one to lean on. I wonder if Novel-A-Shui’s ideas for herself at least once involved being willing to get herself killed for the sake of helping another person, so she wouldn’t have that burden anymore.
Novel-Liu Yan is a character made interesting by circumstances, but not an interesting character in himself. Novel-Liu Yan also tries to be someone he isn’t when emulating what he thinks is the worst of Tang Lici and in doing so, he fails at being truly bad (and this is emulated in the drama, where Tang Lici rubs in the fact to Liu Yan of Liu Yan not being able to truly scale to any height, be it good or bad). Novel A-Shui and Liu Yan are reactionary. Drama-Liu Yan is more interesting than novel-Liu Yan for me, but they both have the same flaws of being unable to plumb the depths of good and evil.
Tang Lici is an interesting character who drives and creates changes and circumstances. Yu Tuan’er is also an interesting character with those traits, just like Wanyu Yuedan and Fang Pingzhai. Novel-Xifang Tao is a VERY interesting character but would never be allowed into a drama, so they preserved Xifang Tao’s key traits which Chen Yao brought out wonderfully.
There’s one group known as Seven Cloud-Walking Blossoms in the novel which doesn’t exist in the drama. It is the dynamics of this brotherhood which also contributes to a fascinating novel, but I can also see why it was removed for the screenplay of WoF to make this drama Tang-Lici-centric. Yique Yinyang-Gui Mudan, Fang Pingzhai, Kuanglan Wuxing, Mei Hua Yi Shu and Xifang Tao as Yu Konghou belonged to this brotherhood. The novel has several more characters, all of which are interesting.
Wanyu Yuedan understands Tang Lici and Wanyu Yuedan is best-suited to enable Tang Lici to improve emotionally, but alas, between the two of them? All I can say is Wanyu Yuedan is someone I lament as only being a friend to Tang Lici.
Now, as to mourning and melancholia, for Tang Lici -> Novel-Tang Lici does not know what is mourning or melancholia. He would rather die than ask for help. His self-recklessness is balanced by wanting to keep Fang Zhou alive inside him, even if doing so is killing him. Tang Lici clearly rejects the idea and process of mourning. If Tang Lici was sat down and told about mourning versus melancholia, he’d still reject both processes also because his ego is buried in a state of suspension along with his deepest emotions which enable true transformation and grieving. He doesn’t see himself as worthless or inferior. He sees himself as capable enough, only sometimes he wants help and doesn't want to feel as if he carries the world. He does not seem to be aware he seeks a mother who would truly die for him. It's the parts of himself that he refuses to define which tips the balance of his decisions. The worth of his life is arbitrary to him, because that worth depends on the moment and circumstances and what he measures. He doesn't have melancholia. He's not interested in mourning nor melancholia. He'd vanish from a psychiatric couch the moment he realises he is on one.
This man-child is versed and primed in defences against all the wiles and cynicisms and exploitations of the world. What would truly touch him is someone noble of self and does not want or expect anything from him, male or female. And stubborn enough to make him realise. In the novel, the only female who meets this criteria is Yu Tuan’er, Liu Yan’s redemption. Shui Duopo is male in the novel.
What would make him open up? Someone who can see him as an equal and he can see as an equal, who can touch him emotionally. And he must want them to stay. Someone similar yet different enough. Someone emotionally strong and whole. If that is the entire classification… Only Wanyu Yuedan meets this difficult threshold, for drama and novel. For the drama, Shui Duopo meets this as well. But drama-Tang Lici, despite not being as emotionally volatile and psychologically cantankerous as novel-Tang Lici, has barriers somewhat similar and as tough as novel-Tang Lici. Being willing to die for Fang Zhou but not willing to share his plans in that aspect with anyone else (except Shui Duopo) is that example.
Novel-Tang Lici has had girlfriends and is experienced in pleasures of the flesh. He wants to have someone he can confide in, but he doesn’t want to be seen. He wants an equal. A mirror. An opening. If anyone is to see through him and wants to be able to stay with him, they would either have to abide by his verbalised rules or defy those rules in such a manner that Tang Lici wants them to stay. A-Shui abides by his words also because she is herself, character-wise. She can create surprises, but she will never go beyond a certain estimate of herself. She understandably cannot be the difference Tang Lici needs, and that results in her failure with Tang Lici not willing to recognise her as a specific individual and who she truly is beyond the verbal boundaries he has instituted.
Novel-Wanyu Yuedan telling or not telling her about Tang Lici would not have made a difference to the outcome between Tang Lici and A-Shui. They are completely incompatible.
Be it the drama or novel, Wanyu Yuedan is capable of defying Tang Lici and making himself a true friend of equals with Tang Lici, but Wanyu Yuedan has no intention and no interest in occupying such a position. Drama-Shui Duopo can also do this, because she decides where she wants to be and what she wants to do.
Tang Lici in the novel is condemned to eternal loneliness. If A-Shui had stayed with him instead of her being given money by him to leave him (which she does not take a cent of), would he be happy? No. People age. People change.
It is the only ending novel-Tang Lici could have had, because psychologically and emotionally he is frozen in an ice coffin that he cannot dig himself out of. In his case, two hands must clasp.
A-Shui was never his equal and never perceived as an equal. She was never suitable for him. She has good qualities that normal men prize, but this is Tang Lici whose psychological issues make him unsuitable for anyone, unless they can heal him. That seems to be only possible with Wanyu Yuedan. I'm sure Wanyu Yuedan can sense the details of a healthy love that could help Tang Lici change in a healthy manner and doesn't involve a specific motherly love craved by Tang Lici, but that would require getting completely consumed and burned. I wonder if Teng Ping realised this, and possibly she did. Novel-Tang Lici is a fascinating compelling character, but not a character I would recommend someone loving unless they know how to handle him. A force of nature is something I can appreciate from a distance, because I can gauge how tiring and exhausting and possibly destructive it would be up-close. I would have wanted to see Wanyu Yuedan having more of a friendship with Tang Lici, in the novel. Wanyu Yuedan can definitely handle him.
A-Shui can give Tang Lici peaceful nights for a short period of time, but for the long-term? No. This reality is not her flaw. It is ultimately due to his flaws, flaws shaped very cruelly in the modern era before he came to the time period of the novel. He also cannot give her what she truly needs and deserves. Can A-Shui truly and fully relax with Tang Lici for several days in a row, seeing him everyday and spending at least half of every day with him? No. Reading objectively will lead anyone to these conclusions.
When Tang Lici chooses in a much-later chapter to hurl A-Shui into harm's way to shield Liu Yan and protect Liu Yan, it is a cruelty lacking certain intentions that irreversibly breaks something he had preserved with her up until then. It doesn't make him different from the other men who have savaged her. I would say his choice of doing so is in a way, even more cruel than the two men who repeatedly raped her at different parts of her life, because she loves Tang Lici. But he never asked her to love him. He never asked her to promise him anything or give him anything. He has been clear about his priorities. What has he promised her, until that point? Nothing.
Do we fault someone for falling in love with us, when we never ask for it? Do we fault them for being shocked or losing something in their feelings for us, when we do something not outside of context relative to what we have previously told them ie how we view them relative to us in terms of dearness and position? What should A-Shui fault Tang Lici for, given all of this? What is your answer?
This is the novel, as I see it.
Teng Ping wrote herself into a corner with Tang Lici before that much-later fiasco happened, abandoning the novel until it was adapted for a drama, and then resumed writing. That is the sorrow and beauty of the Tang Lici who must understand "Enduring A Thousand Tribulations" to find himself in a place of being truly willing to see himself and come to terms with himself by coming out of his inner prison, instead of remaining buried. He finally achieves that, with no one else to bury. And when Teng Ping resumed writing, it is unavoidable that she took Tang Lici on this unchangeable path to his inevitable finish of loneliness.
I’m sure others will disagree with me about the ending, such as RBF. From what I can see, novel-Tang Lici would never be truly fully happy. Drama-Tang Lici lived a fulfilling life, and he broke the cycle of Samsara for himself to fulfill second chances for everyone else, believing in what Fang Zhou taught about everyone being inherently good as his body dissipates. The drama was much kinder to Tang Lici than the novel, but the unfinished novel is what paved the way for all these changes to drama-Tang Lici.
Due to a mother he needed but never had, Novel-Tang Lici never truly fathomed compassion, could not birth a different path for himself, and was doomed to loneliness. Due to meeting and understanding his mother who is kind and compassionate and sees the big picture, Drama-Tang Lici realised and embodied compassion as unconditional love, and was glad to sacrifice himself for everyone and give birth to second chances without feeling lonely, because he felt fulfilled.
Does this satisfy part of your interest in Tang Lici's psychology?
Also, 46 chapters into the novel, it's clearly one-sided while Tang Lici also institutes very clear boundaries between himself and A-Shui. He is very much about his personal boundaries on his terms, and never gives A-Shui what she yearns from him in all those chapters, but he treats her much better than the other males who had been in her life before A-Shui meets him. Within those 46 chapters, novel-Tang Lici kisses Zhong Chunji because- Anyway, that kiss never happens in this drama.
There is no romance tag applicable to this drama for substantial reasons. Some viewers need to accept the reality that there is no romance between their favourite actress and ML because the drama is heroism-focused, as per the producers making it clear in an interview way before the drama aired.
The account you are replying to clearly cannot accept the drama and the novel. They have posted comments as chunks when the drama was airing, and also when certain accounts were throwing fits over their preferred actress not winding up with Luo Yunxi.
There are definitely many good ideas that the drama instituted versus the unfinished novel, because being in a boyband from the future instead of the Celestial Realm would have been a wee bit hard for me to reconcile XD
I've shared more details uptop about "Blades Of The Guardians". For me, the wuxia movies I primarily enjoy are from the 1990s and before. I spoke to older people who themselves didn't want to watch a wuxia film in cinemas because they felt left out. I promised them the younger and older actors and actresses can fight in this movie. No green screens, hardly any slow-motion, and no fancy gadgets or CGI to camouflage a lack of ability. If you watch Shaw Brother movies, you'd know what I mean.
BoTG already broke everything it could break record-wise, so now it is primarily about recouping its expenditure.
WoF is the most successful C-drama of 2025 if you look at all the achievements, details being so plentiful that our data masters summarised as best as they could in two posts (but still lacks quite a few details): https://kisskh.at/discussions/755725-shui-long-yin/146888-shui-long-yin-whispers-of-fate-3weeks-post-svip-finale-achievements
WoF was attacked on Douban and also on the MDL page, twice via ratings and continuously throughout the airing of the drama by multiple troll accounts.
The most vicious troll account on the MDL "Whispers of Fate" drama page pretended to be a Luo Yunxi fan while also attacking the drama in different ways (such as purposely misleading others about statistics), and that user is now persona non grata amongst all Luo Yunxi fans internationally and domestically. That one also was dishonest about the novel that WoF is based on, so I started explaining very-specific-parallels of the unfinished novel with the drama to specific viewers, after the drama finished airing.
WoF page in November 2025 saw claims at one point about the donghua Renegade Immortal resembling Whispers of Fate romance-wise between two specific characters. Multiple viewers rebutted at least three accounts for clearly not knowing anything about "Renegade Immortal". Plus nobody starts watching "Renegade Immortal" for romance. Wang Lin and Tang Lici are as different as day and night, but Wang Lin and Tang Lici literally exert all of themselves for someone uniquely precious to them.
Hunter2022 hasn't replied to the user Azure, despite spamming this "Blades Of The Guardians" movie page. More than 10 days ago, Azure rebutted their claims about "Renegade Immortal" because the original forum post clearly shows someone hasn't watched Renegade Immortal while making ludicrous claims: https://kisskh.at/discussions/755725-shui-long-yin/146464-whispers-of-fate-is-too-similar-to-renegade-immortal
Yanzi-niang's specific scenes conveyed her character, her wit and her uniqueness very well. The team dynamics was endearing and hilarious, and quite dangerous at one point. Because of one small change different from the manhua during the sandstorm, Ani and Ayuya's relationship sisterhood-wise was enhanced and Ayuya's character also improved.
I would have wanted to see a bit more of Di Ting and Dao Ma's backstory. Yuen Woo-ping was very concise. As the man who wanted this movie made, and wanted certain actors and actresses in the casting, just watching the way he films is so oldschool and familiar, and brought tears to my eyes.
Here is manhua author Xue Xianzhe sharing a post about Yuen Woo-ping, with a video compiling several stars speaking about our beloved Director:
https://m.weibo.cn/detail/5268337375839650