The Journey of Legend Episode 32 Recap
> The Journey of Legend Recap
Xiao Qiushui and Fei Yuqiao arrived at the ancestral tomb, where Fei Yuqiao’s young grandson immediately recognized his father, Fei Danfeng's sword buried within. Fei Yuqiao, the head of the Fei family, confessed a tragic secret from five years prior. He recounted that Fei Danfeng, returning from an Imperial City Office mission to investigate Heavenly King Zhu, was ambushed.
Rushing to his son's aid, Fei Yuqiao encountered a figure on the road he believed to be Heavenly King Zhu's subordinate, Lord Roushui. Thinking this person was attacking his son, Fei Yuqiao used his powerful Marrow-Shattering Finger technique to kill him. However, upon tearing off the mask the figure wore, he was horrified to discover it was his own son, Fei Danfeng. Overcome with guilt, Fei Yuqiao self-crippled his internal energy, vowing never to use the Marrow-Shattering Finger again.
His grandson, upon hearing this, confronted Fei Yuqiao, accusing him of his father’s death. Fei Yuqiao further revealed that Fei Danfeng had discovered the Ironclad Constable was none other than Heavenly King Zhu, and that the Constable had orchestrated Fei Danfeng's death to acquire the Fei family's Thousand Faces mask, leading Fei Yuqiao to mistakenly kill his son. Fei Yuqiao emphasized that the Thousand Faces mask was tied to major martial world cases, not just his family's.
He pleaded with Xiao Qiushui to bring justice to the martial world and prove his family's innocence in any future chaos caused by the mask. Unseen, Liu Suifeng overheard their conversation and deduced that if Heavenly King Zhu was indeed Ironclad Constable and possessed the Thousand Faces mask, he could have easily impersonated Gang Leader Li Chenzhou to frame Herbal Valley for colluding with North Wasteland and orchestrated the deaths of Tianzheng and Taichan.
Meanwhile, Li Chenzhou entered the imperial palace for an audience with the Emperor. The Emperor, aware of Li Chenzhou's actions, accused the Power Gang of misusing national treasures by distributing them to martial sects, claiming nine-tenths went to the Power Gang. Li Chenzhou admitted his guilt, explaining that he converted ninety percent of Nantiandang's treasures into supplies for the northern frontline troops, who were suffering from winter shortages, and accepted any punishment for overstepping his authority.
The Emperor, interpreting this as a subtle criticism of his own neglect of the troops, then offered Li Chenzhou a cup of poisoned wine, which Li Chenzhou had no choice but to drink. Afterwards, Lord Liang approached Li Chenzhou, lamenting his earlier prejudiced views and acknowledging Li Chenzhou's ultimate sacrifice for the country.
Li Chenzhou, now feeling the effects of the poison, stated that his life’s journey was like a fleeting footprint in the snow, caring little for how the world judged him, only for his own conscience. Lord Liang then pondered who would finish Li Chenzhou's work should he perish. The Ironclad Constable was then summoned by the Emperor, who had been informed that the Power Gang had indeed converted Nantiandang's treasures into supplies for the northern front.
The Constable also reported that his men had failed to retrieve the imperial seal from Nantiandang due to Li Chenzhou’s schemes. The Emperor, pleased with Li Chenzhou’s poisoned state, which would force him to seek antidotes monthly, proclaimed that Heavenly King Zhu, whom he had elevated, now rivaled the Power Gang's influence. He then formally entrusted the entire Daxi martial world to the Ironclad Constable, commanding him not to fail, to which the Constable vowed his unwavering loyalty.
Later that night, as Xiao Qiushui traveled alone, Fei Yuqiao appeared to him in his true, disfigured form. Seeing Xiao Qiushui's strong sense of justice, Fei Yuqiao revealed more details about the Thousand Faces mask. He explained that the Ironclad Constable had learned the Marrow-Shattering Finger technique after borrowing the family's manual and had stolen the Thousand Faces mask.
He further warned that each use of the Thousand Faces mask severely damaged one's internal energy and left irreparable facial scarring, a fate he now bore. He expressed his desire to have the mask destroyed to prevent further bloodshed in the martial world. After Xiao Qiushui departed, the Ironclad Constable appeared before Fei Yuqiao, demanding an antidote for the Thousand Faces' backlash.
Fei Yuqiao defiantly stated there was no cure, and that his own disfigured face was the Constable's inevitable future, mocking him as another monster, neither human nor ghost. Enraged, the Ironclad Constable struck Fei Yuqiao down, killing him. Meanwhile, Xiao Yiren confronted Heavenly King Zhu, questioning his deceitful actions at Nantiandang and his alleged collusion with North Wasteland. Heavenly King Zhu scoffed at the concept of martial world reputation, asserting that imperial honor was paramount.
To prove his point, he presented Xiao Yiren with an imperial plaque personally inscribed by the Emperor: "Loyalty in Jinzhong," promising that the Xiao family's prestige would soon rival that of Shaolin and Wudang. He instructed Xiao Yiren to eliminate a specific person for the Emperor, a task for which he would be summoned later. Overjoyed by this imperial recognition, Xiao Yiren brought the plaque home. Nangong Xiaoyi, however, felt unease.
While happy for him, she found the imperial favor suspiciously sudden, given that the Wastelanders were still at large and Xiao Yiren's reputation remained tarnished. Xiao Yiren, angered by her skepticism, accused her of undermining his efforts to restore the Xiao family's honor. He dismissed her concerns, claiming that with imperial favor, loyalty would naturally follow, and promised she would witness the resurgence of the Huanhua Sect.
Privately, Xiao Yiren harbored deep resentment towards Xiao Qiushui for constantly thwarting his plans and vowed that no one would stop him now. Back at the Sword Retreat, Xiao Qiushui met with the Four Punks, who were seeking Xiao Xueyu's medical expertise for their joints and meridians. They recounted seeing a black-clad figure push the Ironclad Constable off a cliff.
Skeptical, Xiao Qiushui accompanied them to the cliff base, where they found the Ironclad Constable's severely dehydrated corpse, his fingers fixed in the distinctive Marrow-Shattering Finger posture. This confirmed Fei Yuqiao's earlier revelation. Xiao Qiushui deduced that the current Heavenly King Zhu must be an impersonator using the Thousand Faces mask.
He also noted the corpse’s unusual dryness, recalling passages from a novel where the "Asura Seal" from the Book of Oblivion would absorb a person's power, leaving victims as desiccated husks. This sparked a chilling realization that the Book of Oblivion, which was supposed to be in the Sword Retreat but was stolen and destroyed, might be connected. He then dispatched the Four Punks to locate Heavenly King Zhu’s hideout.
Returning to the Xiao family villa, Xiao Qiushui knelt before his parents’ graves. Left Qiu reported that during the collection of bodies after the tragedy, the Qianji Lock at the back of the Sword Retreat had been found opened. Xiao Qiushui knew the Huanhua Qianji Lock was meticulously designed by his father, requiring simultaneous activation from both inside and outside, a method known only to his parents and his two elder brothers, Xiao Yiren and Xiao Kaiyan.
He initially dismissed his brothers as they had arrived at Sword Retreat after him. However, Left Qiu then mentioned that when the Sword Retreat was under attack, Xiao Kaiyan had been responsible for fighting his way out, but had returned to report the path ahead was blocked, causing Xiao Yiren to take a detour. This conflicting information triggered a profound suspicion in Xiao Qiushui's mind about his second brother.
Seeking answers, Xiao Qiushui inquired about Xiao Kaiyan’s whereabouts from Nangong Xiaoyi, who informed him that Kaiyan was drinking at Pipa Pavilion. Xiao Qiushui immediately went there, finding Xiao Kaiyan seated before a table laden with their parents’ favorite dishes, and offering him a cup of wine. As Kaiyan reminisced about their mother's cooking, a sense of dread washed over Xiao Qiushui.
He recalled Kaiyan's subtle "reset" remark and the scar on Li Nan's palm from his previous life, and the truth hit him like a thunderbolt. " You're R! Li Nan, it was you all along, Xiao Kaiyan!" Xiao Qiushui confronted him. Kaiyan feigned ignorance, but Xiao Qiushui pressed on, accusing him of mastering the Book of Oblivion and reminding him that only their three brothers knew the secret to the Huanhua Qianji Lock.
In a sudden flashback, it was revealed that on the night of the attack, Xiao Kaiyan had returned to his parents, who were surprised but relieved, asking about his brothers' whereabouts and expressing confidence in Xiao Qiushui's ability to succeed. Back in the present, a seething Xiao Kaiyan, full of resentment, confessed that he, the often-overlooked brother, had changed his own fate through his efforts. He then declared that it was he who killed their parents, destroyed the Xiao family, and he would now reclaim everything he believed was owed to him.
