Chapter 144

(Warning: The long review contains spoilers. To avoid affecting the enjoyment of "The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation," it is suggested to ignore it.) (The original long review has been moved to my personal journal, and a brief comment has been corrected.)

(Actually, I suspect that Lord Lianfang was designed by the author to vent frustrations during writing, as well as to critique the character. Writing requires careful planning—deciding which angle to approach a scene from to avoid confusion and maintain a smooth narrative flow, ensuring that there are enough elements to drive the plot forward without sacrificing another perspective. In the author's mind, this must be a fierce tug-of-war—not writing feels unsatisfying, but writing it poorly is also a dilemma. A compromise is to find a moment to introduce the other perspective to the readers. If it truly can't fit into the main story, the author might write a side story, which is why side stories shouldn't be read first as they can spoil the plot.)

I think Lord Lianfang was right in what he said to Jiang Cheng at one point,

because his words reminded me of Jiang Cheng's father, Jiang Fengmian, expressing dissatisfaction with Jiang Cheng: "Do what cannot be done."

This statement seems like a reprimand, but it might also contain his father's hope that Jiang Cheng could develop the mindset and temperament of a leader.

If a leader dares not take responsibility for their subordinates' issues or fears debate and sacrificing certain interests, it might dishearten the subordinates.

Actually, Wei Wuxian didn't have to suffer so much in his past life.

In the matter of rescuing the remnants of the Wen family,

Wei Wuxian could have used his merits to offset the situation. (Not to mention the merits Wei Wuxian made while holding the Yin Tiger Tally, even if he couldn't save everyone or it was truly difficult to acquit them, he could have negotiated for them to live in a better environment, isolated from the world and not enslaved. I think conditions could have been discussed, otherwise, why would there be the saying "it's easier to get things done with connections in the court"?)

And what did Jiang Cheng, Wei Wuxian's backer, do?

He continuously blamed Wei Wuxian, unable to stand his ground, ultimately forcing Wei Wuxian to leave.

Moreover, their accusation that Wei Wuxian killed indiscriminately could have been resolved by asking the Lan family to perform spirit communication or by offering compensation (especially since it was the ghost who killed the enemy).

But at that time, Jiang Cheng showed no intention of helping Wei Wuxian out of the situation (which shows the extent of Jiang Cheng's trust in Wei Wuxian's character)... A clan leader and backer behaving this way is indeed laughable to Lord Lianfang, and it also goes against Jiang Fengmian's constant advice to Jiang Cheng: "Do what cannot be done."

What right does Jiang Cheng have to say that Wei Wuxian broke his oath? The one who first abandoned his subordinate was Jiang Cheng himself.

(If you've watched the opening of the animated version, there's a lyric that mentions: "How could a chivalrous and righteous heart end in vain?" (The chivalrous and righteous heart always refers to Wei Wuxian.) The scene accompanying "end in vain" is Jiang Cheng, which is a satire of Jiang Cheng's betrayal of Wei Wuxian. Don't say this is a coincidence; you must not understand the editing techniques of MV producers. Usually, MV scenes are edited together with the lyrics, which indirectly means even the official production has confirmed this conclusion...)

Wei Wuxian just didn't point it out, which is why he said it was as if he had broken the promise himself.

Near the end, Wei Wuxian didn't even want to explain the past grievances and emotions with Jiang Cheng anymore, feeling emotionally drained by Jiang Cheng. Jiang Cheng was no longer worth his effort. Even pretending to be carefree for Jiang Cheng no longer held any appeal. When someone is no longer interested in you or cares about you, it might be the harshest treatment for that person.

With Jiang Cheng's terrible brotherly love as a contrast, how could Wei Wuxian not realize that Lan Wangji was the one truly worth his effort?

(Let me help you out of this: Jiang Cheng said he was captured and had his golden core removed to protect Wei Wuxian, but why didn't he mention that Wei Wuxian took care of him all the way, risking himself to go out and gather information and find food? Actually, this is all Jiang Cheng's self-perception. The bias caused by only seeing things from his own perspective.

You should know that Wei Wuxian was just lucky not to run into the Wen family's minions, but that doesn't mean the risks he took weren't significant. There were many in Lotus Pier whom Wei Wuxian considered family. At that moment, it wasn't just Jiang Cheng who was suffering; Wei Wuxian had to be stronger than Jiang Cheng, not be defeated, and also had to use his brain to arrange things for Jiang Cheng. Was Wei Wuxian really supposed to do all this? If you think the destruction of Lotus Pier was due to Wei Wuxian, then it's no wonder you'd think Wei Wuxian deserved it.

If it weren't for Wei Wuxian, Jiang Cheng would have been captured long ago. If it weren't for Jiang Cheng, Wei Wuxian would have escaped far away and wouldn't have gotten involved with Wen Ning's lineage, owing them a favor.

The root of that incident was Jiang Cheng's ill-timed actions. Knowing that such a dangerous situation had occurred, he chose to be despondent. If he had acted together with Wei Wuxian instead of passively staying in one place, with one keeping watch and the other arranging daily necessities and gathering information, they wouldn't have been caught off guard by the Wen family's pursuers, and Wei Wuxian wouldn't have had to risk himself to lure the enemy away because they were too far apart to warn him in time.

What Jiang Cheng did at that moment was merely what he should have done. There was no question of Wei Wuxian owing him anything. Not mentioning it was the right thing to do; otherwise, it would have been self-defeating. Finally doing one thing right, there was nothing to be proud of.)

Side note:

(The lyric: "Fighting alone in the martial world." Showing the Jiang family... I think this probably refers to the tragedy of Lotus Pier being the only major family destroyed, with Yu Ziyuan guarding the impossible, fighting alone.)

(The lyric: "Never betraying the heart." Showing the Gusu Lan family, and we know that Lan Yuan is Wen Yuan. One interpretation is that even in death, Wei Wuxian did not forget to uphold his principles. Another interpretation is about Hanguang Jun, who never betrayed his own feelings, always guarding Wei Wuxian.)

(The lyric: "Good and evil both leave emptiness, but cannot erase the scars in the heart." Showing the Jin family. This refers to the fact that even though Jin Guangshan (evil) and Jin Zixuan (good) are both dead and gone (emptiness), the scars in the heart cannot be erased. There are two layers of meaning here: one of the culprits of the scars in Wei Wuxian's heart is the Jin family, and the other is that the destruction of his family is the scar in Jin Ling's heart, which Wei Wuxian's lifelong guilt cannot erase.)

(The lyric: "Even if the world is indifferent, the path differs, but righteousness remains in the heart." This is easier to guess. "Even if the world is indifferent" shows Hanguang Jun and his brother Xichen of the Gusu Lan family. "The path differs, but righteousness remains in the heart" shows Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji... Who is the righteous path, who is righteousness, and in whose heart, you can interpret it in a fujoshi interpretation. Or you can take it seriously, but we won't delve into that here.)

(The lyric: "Clearly distinguishing between good and evil, right and wrong." Showing Jin Ling. If he wasn't clear about good and evil, right and wrong, he wouldn't have been lenient towards Wei Wuxian despite carrying hatred. He is much more straightforward than his uncle.)