Thousand Years For You Episode 33 Recap
> Thousand Years For You Recap
Daqian and his brothers went to Hongqing Stronghold for a fighting contest, but they were on the verge of losing, with lives potentially at stake. A distressed messenger rushed back to Qingquan Stronghold, informing Dengdeng. Dengdeng, who deeply disliked Hongqing Stronghold's unscrupulous tactics, was enraged to learn her people were being bullied. She immediately set off for Hongqing Stronghold, with Lu Yan following closely behind her.
They arrived just as Hongqing Stronghold's Third Brother was about to shoot Daqian during the "Courage Battle," where contestants pointed guns at each other's heads. Dengdeng intervened, demanding they stop. Hongqing Stronghold's leader not only refused to back down but also insulted her, questioning if her stronghold was run by a woman. Angered, Dengdeng smashed a table with her palm and declared she would fight them. The Hongqing chieftain then provocatively challenged Dengdeng with his gun.
As Dengdeng moved to accept, Lu Yan sensed something amiss and stepped in for her, catching the bullet with his bare hand. Witnessing Lu Yan's supernatural feat, the Hongqing Stronghold members panicked and conceded defeat. However, as everyone turned to leave, the Hongqing chieftain attempted a sneak attack. Lu Yan, sensing the danger, used his powers to magically block the gun's barrel. Furious, Dengdeng snatched the gun and pointed it at the chieftain's head.
Her own people from Qingquan Stronghold pleaded with her to stop, and Dengdeng eventually relented, sparing the chieftain's life. Meanwhile, Gu Beixi brought some of his men to assist at a medical team's outpost, where he found Seventeen. He asked her why she hadn't come to him after her escape from the temple.
Seventeen explained that after fleeing the shabby temple, she collapsed and was rescued by a village doctor who also taught her medical skills, enabling her to help others. When she asked about his relationship with Dengdeng, Gu Beixi assured her that he and Dengdeng were now the best of friends, and Dengdeng was happily in love with Lu Yan, leading him to believe he might soon become an uncle. He claimed to have completely moved on from her.
However, Gu Beixi's boisterous men, with guns strapped to their waists, scared away patients and even mistakenly used Seventeen's hard-found medicinal herbs as firewood. Exasperated, Seventeen kicked them all out. Undeterred, Gu Beixi sent his men away but remained outside the medical outpost himself, determined to stay. That night, amidst a fierce thunderstorm with purple lightning, Dengdeng was tormented by a nightmare.
In her dream, she saw many dead faces, and then the Black Saintess appeared, her eyes filled with murderous intent, advancing menacingly towards her. The Black Saintess, sensing Dengdeng's distress and the recent events at Hongqing Stronghold, had already begun to put her plan into motion. Dengdeng woke with a start, calling out. Lu Yan, noticing her distress, rushed into her room.
Dengdeng, still shaken, clung to him and vaguely described her nightmare, mentioning "many dead people" and "purple thunder," though she claimed she couldn't remember much. Lu Yan, sensing a deeper issue, promised to stay with her for the night. The next morning, mournful cries echoed through Qingquan Stronghold. Dengdeng and Lu Yan investigated, finding all the penned livestock—chickens, ducks, and pigs—dead, their enclosures damaged by the previous night's thunder.
Dengdeng tried to revive them with her energy but collapsed from exhaustion. Lu Yan quickly caught her and successfully restored the animals to life. Soon after, Gu Beixi arrived, bringing the welcome news that Seventeen was alive. He also delivered a shocking report: the entire Hongqing Stronghold had mysteriously died overnight. Dengdeng was disturbed by this uncanny coincidence with her dream but kept her thoughts to herself. Lu Yan and Xin immediately went to Hongqing Stronghold to investigate.
They discovered that all the deceased bodies strangely lacked shadows. Xin then pointed out a large eclipse totem on a wall. He recognized it from three thousand years ago, when Yun Xi had sealed her Dark Spirit in the ancient sacred tree on the other side of the East Sea to end the human-spirit conflict. Lu Yan realized that Zhu Rong must have resurrected the Black Saintess, Yun Xi's evil spirit.
Xin further explained that if the evil spirit broke free and reappeared, it would not only devour Yun Xi (now Dengdeng) and become her shadow, but also gain immense energy, bringing about a world-ending disaster. Lu Yan connected this to Dengdeng's unusually faint shadow and her recent uncharacteristic fury towards Hongqing Stronghold, confirming that the Black Saintess had begun her sinister work. Lu Yan and Xin quickly traveled to the East Sea, where they confronted the Black Saintess.
Lu Yan initiated an attack, but the Black Saintess revealed a startling truth: she and Yun Xi were "one body, same root," inextricably linked. If he harmed her, Dengdeng would suffer the same injury; if he killed her, Dengdeng would also die. The Black Saintess declared her intention to fully devour Yun Xi and turn the world into a shadow beneath her feet. Upon hearing this, Lu Yan ceased his attack.
They rushed back to Qingquan Mountain, only to find Dengdeng unconscious and bleeding from her mouth. Seventeen's explanation of what had happened to Dengdeng confirmed the Black Saintess's words, validating the perilous connection between the two. Lu Yan quickly brought Dengdeng back to Qingquan Stronghold for treatment. After Lu Yan provided her with a large amount of energy, Dengdeng regained consciousness after three hours. Feigning a swift recovery, she insisted that everyone leave her room to rest.
However, once alone, Dengdeng's face contorted in excruciating pain. Lu Yan later confessed his concerns to Xin, revealing that despite his extensive efforts, Dengdeng's shadow was growing fainter, and nearly half of her vital energy was depleted. Xin worried that Dengdeng might be completely consumed by the Black Saintess.
