The only way she regains her full strength is if the main lead kills himself and return the energy to her
Both plan to sacrifice themselves for each other. If she kills herself, the black saintess dies, too. If he gives her back the energy core but dies, she will be strong enough to imprison the black saintess again. It's the gift of the magi.
Last episode, 3:00 in the carriage, I guess Yue Liu Ying traded the second half of the map to kick the false princess out. That's why she's getting married at the end.
I finally started this, and in the middle of episode 2 and I am just not getting into it. There are parts that…
I prefer to think of her as an assertive lady. I think that she is a woman that men gravitate towards. You want to be around her. For some, to help or protect her. It's an aura or charisma that she projects. In ep. 2, 24:19, she sits down to eat with Lu Yan and Xin. She allows her servant (she says he is her apprentice) Da Hai to sit with her. Everyone is equal in Qingquan Stronghold. I like that she takes care of those under her.
I dropped it a while ago after just 5 eps, is it worth picking up again?
May I ask why you dropped it? The stories for me didn't go in the way that I had expected. There would be a twist. For example the bride wasn't about finding a groom, but she had to let her comatose groom go. I'm up to ep. 12. I peeked at the end and read the comments. Will proceed to the end. Some unexpected things did happen that made me sad. I wish that there were better closure, but I think that's the way the writers intended.