Whispers of Fate Episode 32 Recap
> Whispers of Fate Recap
Liu Yan arrived at the Central Plains Sword League's pleasure boat, demanding to see Tang Lici. Shen Langhun and Chi Yun initially blocked his way. Liu Yan forced his way in, only to find a mannequin dressed as Tang Lici.
He realized this was a decoy, part of a plan by Shao Yanping for Shen Langhun and Chi Yun to take the boat by river to lure Liu Yan away and buy time for imperial reinforcements to arrive, especially as Puzhu's injuries were almost healed. Furious, Liu Yan cursed Shao Yanping's cunning. Chi Yun mocked Liu Yan, suggesting he go home before losing everything at Mount Haoyun.
Liu Yan retorted that he would sacrifice the entire Guild to catch Tang Lici, convinced he was still at the League. He then unleashed a devastating attack, "Crimson Lotus! Annihilation!" Meanwhile, Puzhu, recalling his past conversation with Xifang Tao, ventured to a location where she was waiting for him. Xifang Tao had anticipated his return to battle after his seven days of healing.
She offered him a remedy for his fire toxin, explaining she brought it out of a debt to him. Puzhu questioned why she saved him if they were enemies, and expressed he would prefer her to "choose the light." Xifang Tao then warned Puzhu that Liu Yan had gone mad and the Guild would fall, and revealed a secret about the Nine-Shift Kirin, asking if this counted as "choosing the light."
Ashei, upon hearing that Tang Lici had returned severely injured, rushed to see him. She found him lying peacefully and asked Shui Duopo if he was recovering. Shui Duopo, with a heavy heart, revealed that Tang Lici was dying from a unique poison, crafted specifically for him, which she couldn't counter. She further explained that Fang Zhou's heart crystal, now inside Tang Lici, was consuming his life force. Fang Zhou's body was long gone, making his revival impossible.
Shui Duopo grimly stated that the only way to save Tang Lici was for him to consciously wake up and use his own Rebirth Record to transfer all the toxins to Fang Zhou's heart crystal. If he failed to wake, he and the heart crystal would die together in a "beautiful dream." If he woke but refused this "cruel choice," he would regret it.
Ashei was deeply conflicted and saddened, torn between her desire for her brother to live and the cruel choice it presented to Tang Lici, especially recalling that Tang Lici was also responsible for her brother's death. In his coma, Tang Lici dreamed he was back at the Zhoudi Tower, celebrating his birthday with Fang Zhou and Liu Yan, just like old times. He joyfully embraced Fang Zhou, believing his past suffering and Fang Zhou's death were merely a nightmare.
He recounted a dream where, ten years later, the Artificer returned, but Fang Zhou was gone, and all sacrifices were in vain. Fang Zhou reassured him that the past decade of peace had saved countless lives, and no time was wasted; hope would always rise from the ashes.
Fang Zhou then pointed to new friends—Ashei, Chi Yun, Shen Langhun, Shui Duopo, Puzhu, and Lord Jiang—telling Tang Lici that they were his new hope and had come to take him back, as they needed him. Tang Lici, realizing the profound meaning, understood he could not stay in the dream.
Fang Zhou explained the true meaning of Tang Lici's name, given to him when he was found at Mount Li: "A thousand years without a match, severing ties with the past," hoping he would live a life different from his past. He urged Tang Lici to use his unique abilities for good, reminding him that his golden pupil mark did not define him, but his choices, "a single thought, a single division of mind," did.
Fang Zhou’s final message resonated: "Those with power must serve the common people, having no regrets in your heart, and no fault with heaven's will." Tang Lici awoke, his eyes red, understanding his mission. Shui Duopo attempted to treat him for the unique, tailor-made poison contained within the Myriad Hex Pins that would cripple his meridians if he used his inner energy, but Tang Lici insisted on knowing the war situation.
Ashei, with a heavy heart, informed him that while he was unconscious, Liu Yan had ordered a full assault on Quicksand River, fighting to the last breath. Lord Jiang, leading the Yanmen disciples, had bravely sacrificed himself to cover the retreat, ensuring the Sword League's main force would not be wiped out again. He had died fighting, hearing his son's voice one last time, proving that Yanmen's honor was priceless.
Shao Yanping later confirmed Lord Jiang's death, the fall of Quicksand River, and the precarious state of Mount Haoyun. Tang Lici was heartbroken by the news of Lord Jiang and other heavy casualties, including Island Lord Cheng Wunpao, who was gravely wounded. Deputy City Lord Yu (Yu Furen) had killed his own father, Yu Qifeng, for the greater good.
Sword Masters Pu Kuisheng and Ji Wuyou had fallen, with Pu Kuisheng deliberately sacrificing himself to cripple the Guild's elites, while the widow Shang Yunqi avenged her husband. Overwhelmed, Tang Lici felt he had failed them all, but Fang Zhou's words echoed in his mind: one can decide their own fate, and some things are more important than life itself. He realized that Fang Zhou's heart crystal, which had prolonged his life, had been waiting for this very moment.
Determined, Tang Lici asked Xiao Shi to leave. He picked up a dagger, intending to remove the heart crystal from his own body. Ashei, distraught, tried to stop him, calling him insane and begging him not to abandon her brother, as it would mean Fang Zhou would be truly gone forever.
But Tang Lici explained that he had already forced all the Myriad Hex Pins and toxins into the heart crystal, believing it should have been buried with Fang Zhou long ago, and his own foolish attachment had kept it clinging to life. Despite Ashei's desperate pleas, Tang Lici proceeded. Finally, Tang Lici appeared on the Central Plains Sword League's battlefield, unleashing his power. Fang Zhou's words about new hope and renewing the world with storm and thunder filled his mind.
Liu Yan confronted him, declaring that the Myriad Hex Pins had reached his core, and this would be his final move. But Tang Lici, drawing upon his remaining strength and the stored energy of the Tianyang Heart Meridian accumulated by ancestor Zhao Quanyang, activated a massive sword energy array, which decimated the Nine-Shift Kirin and repelled the Guild's forces. Greatly weakened, Tang Lici used the brief peaceful moment to heal, with Xiao Shi guarding him.
He collapsed, whispering, "Fang Zhou, I did it." Xiao Shi reported to the Sword Master that royal and Azure Palace troops had arrived, with only minor skirmishes remaining on the southern mountainside, where Puzhu was. Liu Yan, enraged by the destruction of his "masterpiece," attacked Puzhu. Xifang Tao intervened and saved Puzhu, reiterating her offer to help dismantle the Rewriter before the Nine-Shift Kirin could be repaired, if Puzhu would vouch for her.
Liu Yan, in a desperate act, attempted to detonate himself and take them all with him, but Puzhu rescued Xifang Tao from the blast, stating that everyone deserved a second chance. Ashei, near a lake, struggled with her complex emotions towards Tang Lici, unsure whether to hate or love him. Meanwhile, Liu Yan found the incapacitated Tang Lici, who was unable to speak or move.
Liu Yan cruelly mocked Tang Lici's helplessness, taunting him about his lost eloquence and martial arts. Xiao Shi fiercely protected his master, defying Liu Yan and telling him not to hurt Tang Lici.
