The Untamed Episode 35 Recap
> The Untamed Recap
Awakening, Jin Ling was furious with Wei Wuxian, believing he had intentionally beaten him and exclaiming that even his uncle had never laid a hand on him. Wei Wuxian, however, quickly defused the situation by claiming Lan Wangji was approaching, which promptly scared Jin Ling away. Later that night, Wei Wuxian walked alone through the quiet streets. He looked up to see Lan Wangji standing on a bridge, clad in white, looking tall and dignified under the moonlight.
Wei Wuxian mused that he had always believed Jiang Cheng would remain by his side, while Lan Wangji would be his adversary. He was struck by how much time had passed and how completely their roles had reversed. Wei Wuxian approached Lan Wangji, who immediately noticed the evil curse mark spreading on Wei Wuxian's leg, as well as the faint scars from being struck by Purple Lightning.
Lan Wangji's expression turned serious, but Wei Wuxian dismissively brushed it off, claiming it was just a common curse mark that he could handle with a little help. Lan Wangji, frowning, insisted on carrying Wei Wuxian, who found the idea embarrassing for a grown man. Lan Wangji simply sighed, bent down, and carried him. As they walked, Wei Wuxian cautiously asked how Lan Wangji had recognized him back on Dafan Mountain.
Lan Wangji offered no direct answer, telling him to figure it out himself. Upon returning to their lodging, Lan Wangji showed Wei Wuxian a piece of cloth he had torn from the mysterious figure, revealing it to be a Nie clan emblem. Donning a mask, Wei Wuxian accompanied Lan Wangji to visit Nie Huaisang, intending to press him for information regarding the Man-eating Bunker.
Years had passed, but Nie Huaisang remained as timid and evasive as ever, repeatedly claiming ignorance to every question. Seeing this, Wei Wuxian decided to sit down and calmly explain his deductions. Wei Wuxian patiently elaborated on the rumors of the Man-eating Bunker on Walker Ridge. He pointed out that despite the widespread tales, there had never been any actual victims. Therefore, the rumors served as a "first line of defense" to keep ordinary people away.
The "second line" consisted of the malevolent beings on Walker Ridge, designed to terrify anyone who ignored the rumors. The "third line" was the disorientation trap near the stone bunker, intended to deter cultivators. Wei Wuxian concluded that the sole purpose of these triple defenses was to conceal the Man-eating Bunker, and given its location within Nie clan territory, only the Nie clan could have established such elaborate measures.
He further pressed Nie Huaisang, questioning the origin of the bodies in the walls and warning him of the consequences if the truth were exposed. Cornered, Nie Huaisang revealed that it was not a Man-eating Bunker at all, but the Nie clan's ancestral grave. He explained that unlike other cultivation clans, the Nie clan, founded by a butcher, cultivated the blade dao.
The ancestral blades of their clan leaders possessed extreme malevolent energy and killing intent, often leading their wielders to suffer qi deviation and die violent deaths. While living, the clan leaders could control their blades' agitation, but after their deaths, the uncontrolled blades became dangerous weapons. These blades did not require human sacrifice but instead needed evil spirits to appease them, as they had slain countless such beings throughout their lives.
Nie Huaisang further explained that the sixth clan leader devised a method to inter the blades of his ancestors within coffins in the stone bunker, along with numerous evil beings as funerary objects, to mitigate the blades' ferocity. This brought peace to subsequent generations. Initially, it was a common blade tomb, but a group of grave robbers, seeking treasures, unearthed it. Their actions awakened the blade spirits, and the trapped evil spirits broke free.
With the "sacrifices" diminished, the grave robbers themselves were absorbed into the walls, becoming new offerings. This incident led to the rumors of man-eating entities on Walker Ridge, which the Nie clan intentionally exaggerated to keep outsiders away. Jin Ling, Nie Huaisang clarified, had accidentally blasted a hole in the wall, fragmenting the skeleton of a grave robber, which caused him to be pulled into the wall as a replacement.
Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian promised confidentiality, allowing a trembling Nie Huaisang to depart. Lan Wangji noticed the evil curse mark on Wei Wuxian's leg growing larger. At that moment, the spiritual weapon in the Spirit-trapping Pouch stirred violently, seemingly reacting to the curse mark. The two quickly played a Requiescat to suppress it, and Wei Wuxian realized that the Man-eating Bunker was where the spiritual weapon was trying to lead them.
Consequently, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji returned to the bunker, which Nie Huaisang had already walled up again. Lan Wangji promptly dismantled the wall once more, sending skeletons spilling out, but they found no new clues. At Wei Wuxian's request, Nie Huaisang opened all the stone coffins to inspect the ancestral blades, yet they all appeared normal. Lan Wangji pondered for a moment before realizing that Nie Mingjue’s blade, Baxia, was missing.
Nie Huaisang's expression became grim as he recalled Nie Mingjue’s sudden rampage at the Jin clan's Floral Banquet, where his meridians ruptured, yet he strangely managed to escape, with his body never found. Wei Wuxian gasped, concluding that the spiritual weapon in the Pouch was likely Baxia’s blade spirit, and its agitated state suggested Nie Mingjue had met a violent end. They decided to continue following the blade spirit's direction to uncover the truth.
Following the blade spirit's westward pull, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji found lodging at an inn where the innkeeper was vividly recounting the story of the Chang clan massacre from years ago. The tale prompted Wei Wuxian to recall that this was where Xiao Xingchen and Song Lan had captured Xue Yang. He mused aloud that Xue Yang must have later become a guest retainer of the Jin clan.
Lan Wangji confirmed this and explained what had transpired during Wei Wuxian's absence. Xue Yang had appeared at Lanling Jin Sect, and while other clan leaders demanded punishment, Jin Guangshan had vehemently protected him, questioning the lack of eyewitnesses to the massacre and declaring he could protect whomever he wished. Lan Wangji continued that the sole survivor, Chang Ping, later recanted his testimony, proclaiming Xue Yang’s innocence.
This allowed Xue Yang to go free, a move Wei Wuxian privately condemned as "setting the tiger free." It was only after Jin Guangshan’s death and Jin Guangyao’s rise as sect leader that Xue Yang was finally cast out. Wei Wuxian questioned why Xiao Xingchen and Song Lan had not intervened. Lan Wangji replied that Xiao Xingchen had disappeared and Song Lan had embarked on distant travels, neither seen since.
He then added that sixteen years ago, Chang Ping, after recanting, lost both his eyes overnight and later died from Lingchi. The weapon used was Xiao Xingchen’s sword, Frostwork, leading people to believe the missing Xiao Xingchen had returned for revenge. Reflecting on the unpredictability of life, Lan Wangji uncharacteristically raised his cup and drained it in one gulp.
