snow_flake24

Man, I loved dark Yan Hui. When Tian Yao died after the life-swapping spell, we really got to see the sheer desperation a woman in love could have. My favorite part. I was literally jaw-dropped when Yan Hui first jumped into the Obsidian River. Someone like Yanhui, who cherishes her life so much, to take that risk to have just one shot at saving her husband. Girl did not think twice. Cuz like she said in the last episode, a world without the warm sun and rain wasn't worth living in. So for her, even back then, if she couldn't save Tian Yao, that life wasn't worth living.

So when I say they were both equals, it's in the way that Tian Yao sacrificed himself for Yan Hui and how Yan Hui literally turned into the Lady of Dark Aura to bring him back. Gahh, I love them so muchhh

As for Bai XiaoSheng, he was really adorable and helpful in the beginning and end, but really annoying in the mid-way part, when Yan Hui was scared of Tian Yao since BXS was trying to sabotage Tian Yao, who really just wanted to ensure safety for Yan Hui. Yan Hui being scared of Tian Yao, it tbh made sense. Cuz picture yourself in her shoes--the guy you like stabs you in the heart and leaves you to die. Ofc she got to know why a few days later, but she still didn't know that Tian Yao had already made sure she wouldn't die in any way. So I liked that, it was realistic of her to be scared for a while cuz I would be too. We know Tian Yao from seeing him on screen, but it's hard for her to know him that way. Yet, she still continued to love him during that period, despite not wanting to be with him.

And gosh, Tian Yao really has a big, innocent heart, cuz wdym you were trying to help another man become a couple with the woman you love?! It was hilarious to see BXS fail with Tian Yao's genuine advice. The bath-peeking advice lolol. Tian Yao really is so naive and innocent. Also, while BXS and YH might have a good chaotic vibe match, the middle episodes really showed how someone like Yan Hui needed someone like Tian Yao.

Personally, I feel the ending was kinda necessary with the plot in order to defeat the Dark Phantom and also explain how the dragon flame and dark aura can co-exist. My complaint is not giving 5-10 minutes more to explain how she came back and not giving the two of them a little more cute moments of reunion, like her commenting on his hair, them catching up, and please, I'd like to know Yan Hui's status: is she a normal mortal or what? Also, anybody who is saying that Tian Yao was weak during the final battle, it was mentioned that Tian Yao has already been fighting the dark phantom's formless shape for days non-stop and has been winning every time, but eventually, obviously, his powers had been exhausted. And he was in the process of being healed by others when the others also got turned into dirt stones, so he didn't get to have his energy back. Plus, I like the symbolism that Tian Yao destroyed Dark Phantom's physical body while Yan Hui destroyed his formless soul

Ngl I was honestly thrown off by the CGI and cinematography of Back from the Brink at the beginning. But I'm so glad that I continued. Cuz once I got through the first episode, everything felt natural again. I got hooked from the 2nd episode, and it was so easy to keep watching. The plot felt light-hearted, but when you really think about it, it's really horrific as to what happened to Tian Yao. No wonder why he had such trust issues, and I really appreciated that he didn't give in so easily. It made sense for his character. And I loved that he gradually learned how to communicate better.

Regardless of everything, I freaking loved the relationship between Yan Hui and Tian Yao. Literally such an adorable coupleeee. I loved how equally devoted they were to each other. Plus, it's so rare to see female leads these days actually show open adoration for the male lead, so it was definitely heartwarming to see that. I absolutely adored the way she used to call his name; it just sounded different and so darn cute

Yesss, I watched those too. A clip of Neo crying after singing this OST in the bday concert resurfaced on my youtube shorts, and I just knew it was my calling to watch FoF. So worth it 💞💞

Yassss, would love any stories related to ZYZ cuz I miss him sm already 😭 I'm playing "Yuanzhou's Youth" on repeat; it hurts my soul, but in a good way

Ahh, that'd make sense. IKRRR I wish we had somebody who could actually provide more background knowledge from the FoF world 😭

Yeah, but it's like how he managed to tether LiLun's soul to that pagoda tree branch as well. To give him enough time to cultivate enough. Then again, that's because that was LiLun's OG form and LiLun wasn't exactly on deathbed like Ying Lei. Maybe that's why that worked, and they were definitely prepared to save that part of LL's soul, as it was a request from ZYZ. But overall, it probably isn't an easy thing to do just for anyone. In that way, nobody would die ever, as long as any great demon was around to pull this stunt.

Either way, demon cultivation and lifespans are hard to understand for us mortals. We're also just staring at the sea like Wen Xiao, praying and hoping that ZYZ once again appears with those flowers in front of us. Meanwhile, YiChen goes on a world tour, galloping on a horse to find his soulmate. I can picture that if he came across a monkey during his search through any jungle, he would laugh to himself

WX left him, so he fly to ZYC XDDDD so funny. I do however have a thought about this. I thikn it took ZYZ a few months to be able to fly to ZYC after WX puts him on the mantle is because he was recuperating enough strength through cultivation to be able to move around to get to ZYC, who is the only one who can feel his soul presence. Literal soulmates y'all ✨✨

Yeah, true. But ZYZ does know a lot of tricks, like how he managed to preserve a part of Pei Siheng's soul into the puppet. But Heng mentioned that it must have taken at least 1000 years' worth of cultivation power of ZYZ to do this. So, it makes sense even if ZYZ was there during YL's death, he couldn't have done much, rather would have felt sadder at being helpless.

Yes, definitely ZYC learned that particular technique from Bingyi. It was so sweet when that last shred of his soul was discovered to be in his promise to Wen Xiao, that too from 8 years ago. He definitely remembers the promises he makes, even though sometimes he has no choice but to break them.

You're right. Only ray in this dark ending is the possibility of ZYZ at least coming back, after having suffered most of his very long life

OMGG, the sundial cultivation theoryy. Wow, that really washed my soul with so much relief. Yayy, they can be all together. I'm so happyyyyyy, yayyyy. ZYZ can have his sweet dream come true in that case. And yes, no matter what, ZYZ wouldn't be alone. Cuz YiChen is also a demon. It's sad that all the others who died don't have the same chance as ZYZ. But I guess that's just life. As many mistakes as Bai Jiu did, it's sad that a child had to die in the end. Also, why did nobody try to save YingLei's soul? If ZYZ were at the scene, I feel like parts of his soul could've been preserved as well so that he could cultivate himself again. But then again, ZYZ had no demonic powers at the time. And ZYC might not have known the technique he used with ZYZ's soul back at that time. Or does that not apply to Ying Lei due to being a half mountain-god?

Omggg, yesss. Neo was absolutely stellar throughout the whole drama! ZYZ was such a complex character with so many layers that we kept peeling through, and Neo delivered all of them so perfectly. Then again, he always does a great job at everything. Our boy is such a hard worker 😭

I kept delaying watching FoF (I'm on a Neo-binge at the moment) cuz of its sad ending, but it was totally worth ittttt. I can now definitely see why he cherishes the character of ZYZ so much. I just wish we got to see more of ZY's past. Saw the behind-the-scenes stories of this drama in this comment section, and it makes me so mad to know of the scene cuts. Oh, well, I don't want to engage in negativity right now *generates calmness*

Anyway, while the emotional moments are so good, the humorous moments were so good too. The cute expressions he made whenever he got scolded by YiChen or when he tried to scare Bai Jiu--all were so great. ZYZ just wanted to live like an innocent child or carefree like a monk-I mean, ape- But fate did him so dirty. Hope he gets reunite with WX and ZYC in WX's lifetime at least, as I'm not sure how much time it would take for his last shred of his soul and demon cultivation to give him human form

I feel as though not all Goddesses split the Baize Token or shared it with the great demon of their times. After Cheng Huang, I think all Goddesses kept the two halves to themselves, like how they kept talking about merging the two halves to give it to Wen Xiao alone, as Zhu Yan doesn't want to keep such a big responsibility. The only reason I feel Wan'er split the Baize Token while sending it to Wen Xiao was because she wanted the other half to reach ZY to snap him back into the right mind before he committed more murders. Because ZY does mention he snapped out of the bloody trance sooner than he should have (thanks to the Baize token in him taking effect) and reached the white emperor tower, where we see him break down and cry.

Also, there's a big time gap between Cheng Huang and first goddess (100,000 years ago), and between the time Zhu Yan was born (34/37,000 years ago). But I do think there are other great demons, other than ZY. We just weren't shown, as Wilderness is very vast. So they could have played some part, in case the Baize Token was split. But ZY personally doesn't feel like someone who had the Baize Token before Wen Xiao's era, as he mentioned he doesn't want to carry such a big responsibility, since he's already burdened as the vessel of malicious energy. But I defo agree on him not sharing what he knows will hurt others.

Again, I do like your theory and respect it. I'm just sharing my own opinion😭 I'm loving the discussion btw

SAMEEE. I also thought that ZhuYan must have always been sad internally about being a vessel for malicious energy, but as we know, he was great at hiding his worries and sorrows and could effortlessly put on a cheerful persona. I think ZY must have gotten the strength to keep moving forward by constantly visiting the human world and seeing the goodness in them, in order to ease the pain of carrying everyone's malicious energy. Even when he was upset, he probably only shared these things with the mountain god grandpa until Wan'er came along; I don't think he shared those things with LiLun as LiLun seemed to have been under the assumption that everything in ZY's life was always perfect (maybe he did know during their early years, but maybe after getting affected by ZY's ebwf, his vision of ZY must have gotten twisted).

Strong agree on ZY understanding the complexity of humans better than anyone else. He really was a GREAT demon, who had so much knowledge on everything.

Yes yes, 4 definitely is what I believe too. LiLun leaving really did leave a big hole in his heart. Because he did believe them both to be the protectors of the wilderness. Not to mention, he was his best friend!

Ughhhh, it still makes me feel so sad how ZY's biggest fear came true. Neo did such a great job at that scene when ZY gains consciousness after the massacre. He carried so much self-loathing because ZY always hated demons who killed innocent ppl and he became that himself 😭😭 I'm just rambling at this point cuz I'm still overstimulated from finishing this

Anyway, thank youuuuu for your responsee

5 makes so much sense, thanks so much! At that time when that flashback was first shown, I thought we would be shown of that later, explaining. So I missed how subtly they showed LiLun's forever dislike of humans.

I agree with 3-4.

As for 2... as ZY has been living for 30,000+ years, he must have seen at least 300+ Goddesses during his time. But Wan'er seemed special to him. He never mentioned being in contact with other goddesses (ofc he must have known them in some way; ZY was actually renowned in the wilderness). Plus, both halves of the Baize Token seemed to have come from Wan'er alone. So, it didn't seem like she had a partner, at least during her demise. But of course, I don't doubt that ever since they became friends, ZY must have helped her with the balance, even without being her official partner. Nevertheless, your theory is great too!

1. In the flashback from the clinic cellar, where LiLun and ZhuYan fall apart, it was 8 years ago, right? Why does ZY have his full gray hair in that flashback?

My own theory: Until the cellar incident, he used to take on that gray-hair youthful appearance whenever he came to the mortal world (cuz in all his other wilderness demon ZY flashbacks, he has those cheek marks and black hair mixed with gray, which I’m sure is his natural demonic form). Also, we know back when he was still mastering his human appearance as a young demon, he took on that gray-hair cute persona due to the flashback with the grandpa and walnuts. By that assumption, he stopped taking on the youthful gray-hair appearance after the killing spree and took on the current matured ZYZ appearance as a human.

2. Not so much a question, but a curiosity. I wonder how ZhuYan and Zhao Wan'er came to have a brother-sister-like bond. ZY normally used to have a very easy-to-get-along, mischievous personality, obviously, and Wan'er also appeared kind and wise like Wen Xiao. But around that time, ZY appeared heavily depressed. He had no will to live.
My theory is, he was just sitting by the sea one day and she came to sit down beside him. and they just naturally clicked. Like the scene from the special episode!
P.s. would have loved to see the scene when Wan’er gives him his human name Zhao Yuanzhou.

3. Speaking of him being heavily depressed and wanting to die, I wasn't clear if he became depressed like this before or after he fell apart with LiLun. I'm a little confused about the timeline. Did ZY lose all his motivation and faith after seeing the cruel side of humans and losing his childhood best friend?

4. Does ZY go out of control every blood moon? Even before 8 years ago? because the baize Goddess was alive there when he lost control. Or did this madness start after he accidentally consumed the ever-burning wood fire? It was already mentioned that he was born as a vessel for malicious energy, so or do I remember it wrong?

5. Why does LiLun appear troubled in the human world due to that crying child? Does he also absorb negative energy like ZY?

I just finished this, and gosh, that was such a wonderful ride. Can't expressed how much I enjoyed this. The cast did such a phenomenal job. The chemistry with everyone was on FIRE. I loved all of them in my own way. I was so afraid to finish this cuz the future was already predicted and I already expected this ending, but can't say it didn't hurt. Despite all the deaths, his one still hit the hardest. because come on, those last moments... But safe to say, the special episode was a ray of hope. So glad for that. Otherwise, I'd be crushedddd.

Anyway, I have some questions! If anyone can answer them, I'll be really grateful.