Tiger and Crane Episode 34 Recap
> Tiger and Crane Recap
After a fierce confrontation, Qi Yanran engaged Yi Mei in battle, seeking to avenge her grandmother. However, Yi Mei's devotion to her master, whose corpse she fiercely protected, became a point of leverage for Qi Yanran, allowing her to strike Yi Mei. Enraged, Yi Mei retaliated, striking Qi Yanran. As the fight intensified, Mo Lingzhi, who had appeared in the form of Jiang Xici, intervened to shield Qi Yanran, though her spirit essence was already depleted.
She tried to warn Qi Yanran against reckless action, but Qi Yanran, driven by vengeance, charged forward, only to be struck down again by Yi Mei. Mo Lingzhi, despite her weakening state, bravely used her own body to protect Qi Yanran from a fatal blow. Seizing an opportunity when Yi Mei was distracted, Qi Yanran fatally wounded Yi Mei with a flying knife. Together, Qi Yanran and Mo Lingzhi finally defeated Yi Mei.
As Yi Mei fell, she continued to express her unwavering loyalty to her master. Qi Yanran, observing Yi Mei's profound, tragic devotion to what she realized was merely a puppet, began to question the true events of five hundred years ago. Before leaving the scene, Mo Lingzhi, out of respect for the deeply affectionate Yi Mei and Ye Kongming, instructed Qi Yanran to carefully place both the puppet and Ye Kongming’s body back into the crystal coffin.
Mo Lingzhi, severely weakened from the battle, revealed to a shocked Qi Yanran that her time was at an end. Qi Yanran was stunned to discover that "Jiang Xici," her comrade in battle, was in fact her grandmother, Mo Lingzhi. Mo Lingzhi confessed that after she was knocked off a cliff by Yi Mei and rescued by Mo Guzi, her meridians reversed, causing her to take on a different appearance.
She tearfully apologized for her past harshness and resentment towards Qi Yanran, admitting her stubbornness and lack of genuine care, despite Qi Yanran and Qi Xiaoxuan being her own blood. She acknowledged Qi Yanran’s excellence and regretted giving up on her so easily. As Mo Lingzhi spoke her final words, calling Qi Yanran by her nickname, she perished, her primordial spirit condensing into a luminous bead. Qi Yanran, devastated, cradled the bead and wept.
Afterward, Qi Yanran returned to the main camp, bringing the primordial spirit bead. Upon learning it was his grandmother's condensed spirit, Qi Xiaoxuan broke down in tears. News of Mo Lingzhi's disappearance, along with Qi Wuji's, quickly spread through the main camp. Meanwhile, Hu Zi, Qi Xiaoxuan, Xintong, and Cheng Jinian returned, bringing alarming revelations about Qi Wuji.
They declared that Qi Wuji was a 500-year-old demon, whose elaborate conspiracy with Yi Mei was designed to obtain the heart of the Qi family bloodline, a scheme that tragically led to Mo Guzi's death. Many sorcerers initially scoffed, accusing them of slandering their revered ancestor and savior, even calling Hu Zi a demon's son. However, Xiu Damen urged for calm, allowing the group to present their case.
Xintong recounted Qi Wuji's suspicious disappearances and how his misleading guidance regarding the Netherworld Sea's outlet had nearly caused disaster. Commander-in-chief Zhao corroborated that Qi Wuji's directions for finding the Demon Emperor's Heart had been intentionally false, leading them into perilous quicksand. Qi Xiaoxuan, asserting his own Qi family lineage, passionately argued against blind faith in Qi Wuji, reminding them of his consistent absence during critical moments.
Gradually, swayed by the logical arguments and the proven integrity of Hu Zi, some sorcerers laid down their weapons, choosing to trust their comrades over the deceitful ancestor. As the discussions continued, a massive sandstorm descended, far more intense than any previous one, threatening to engulf the camp. Just as everyone prepared to evacuate, a magnificent White Tiger appeared, effortlessly calming the raging winds. Hu Zi, recognizing his long-lost mother, rushed into her embrace.
The White Tiger revealed that Yi Mei had once saved her life, and in return for restoring her human form, she had promised to reveal the truth of five hundred years ago. She explained that everything they believed was a lie and that finding the Demon Emperor's Heart was paramount to stopping the growing Netherworld Sea from engulfing the continent.
Although previous searches in the treacherous Peak Valley had failed, the Second Master offered his unique paper cranes, which could scour every corner of the valley. Despite the risk to his dwindling spirit essence, he persisted, and with the White Tiger's aid, who imbued the cranes with her power by dipping them in her blood, they successfully pinpointed the Demon Emperor's Heart's location.
The Second Master, his spirit essence completely depleted, bid a final, heartfelt farewell to Qi Yanran, lamenting his inability to properly accompany his "Young Miss" (Mo Lingzhi) on her last journey, before collapsing. The White Tiger then led Hu Zi, Qi Xiaoxuan, and the others into the core of the Demon Emperor's Heart. There, they witnessed visions of Peak Valley's past, a place of stunning beauty, resembling a fairyland.
The White Tiger revealed that Peak Valley was not the birthplace of demons but the sacred home of Mountain Gods and auspicious animals, divine beings who protected the peace of the Four Seas and sustained all life. She then showed them the arrival of Ancestor Qi Wuji, accompanied by his brother Qi Wushuang and Ye Kongming, seeking a cure for Qi Wushuang's leg ailment. While searching for food, Qi Wuji inadvertently entered the White Tiger's sacred cave.
As a playful challenge, the White Tiger tasked him with plucking hair from the fearsome ancient beast, Taotie, to create a special brush. To her astonishment, Qi Wuji bravely undertook the dangerous task, succeeding where no ordinary human could. The White Tiger used Taotie's hair to craft the renowned Zi Jin Wolf Brush, which would eventually become the revered Eldest Master in the Qi family.
During this time, a deep connection formed between them, symbolized by a token of love Qi Wuji gave her, and the White Tiger revealed the location of the Mountain God Cave, anticipating Qi Wuji's return for their union. Hu Zi, hearing this, realized that Qi Wuji was his true father, a fact that contradicted the Qi family's official genealogy.
The White Tiger recounted how, pregnant with Hu Zi, she later rushed to Twin Mountain to share the news with Qi Wuji. Instead, she found him after he had brutally murdered the Mountain God, whom the world would later mistakenly call the "Demon Emperor." This heinous act unleashed devastating Netherworld Flames from Twin Mountain, first engulfing Peak Valley, then flowing into the sea to create the destructive Netherworld Sea.
Miraculously, the auspicious animals and people suddenly lost their memories, turning on each other in inexplicable violence. A transformed, heartless Qi Wuji then manipulated the confused masses, falsely blaming the White Tiger for the catastrophe. Despite her pleas, she was branded an "evil demon" and attacked.
Shot down by Qi Wuji into the nascent Netherworld Sea, the White Tiger, though severely injured and stripped of her divine power and eight tails by the legendary flames, managed to swim to the mainland. To protect her unborn child, she sealed Hu Zi within herself, spending five hundred years recovering until she could finally give birth to him. This complete, tragic truth revealed Qi Wuji as the true orchestrator of the devastating Netherworld Sea and the architect of the five-century-long deception.
