The Living Dead (生魂; shēng hún; lit. living hun) was the first spinoff movie of the Web Series. It premiered on November 07, 2019.
Synopsis[]
Night falls upon the small town of Fufeng. A young man takes care of his sick little sister. Once he ventures outside doors covered in Talismans, however, he is stalked and by a Puppet in red, and his little sister soon meets the same fate.
Wen Ning enters the town to learn that after dark, no one in Fu Feng dares to light a lamp or a fire, as the "ghost" promptly appears to suck their flesh and blood dry. However, the townspeople soon flee from Wen Ning, believing the Puppet to be a ghost.
Wen Ning attempts to lure the creature with a candle at night, and experiences many hallucinations upon its attack. However, he reveals that the chains he carries are now capable of fighting evil creatures.
Lan Sizhui arrives and the creature escapes. He wonders if it truly is a ghost, and Wen Ning says that cowards are the only ghosts in this world. After playing Inquiry on the husks that remain of the brother and sister, he finds no soul, indicating that the creature may devour their souls along with their flesh and blood.
Venturing to a graveyard, Lan Sizhui attempts Inquiry again, and this time, finds that the souls of the dead remain. He and Wen Ning conclude that the creature is collecting the souls of those who light a fire.
They encounter an old woman worshipping at the memorial of the Xiao family, who were once renowned for their lantern-making. She explains that the entire family died in a fire, and the door seemed locked from the inside.
Lan Sizhui and Wen Ning approach the Xiao mansion. A strange flower gives Wen Ning a hallucination of himself in chains. His chained self mocked him as neither living nor dead, and Wen Ning finds himself as the one chained as he shouts that he is not a puppet.
Wen Ning comes back to himself, and he and Lan Sizhui discover a pitiful young man hiding from them. The man identifies himself as Xiao Yi, and claims that his entire family was killed by a wicked ghost named Zhou Zishu.
Xiao Yi explains that a year ago, the town was alive and flourishing alongside the Xiao family. As the son of a concubine, however, Xiao Yi was frequently bullied by his cousins. Still, his half sister Xiao Qing intervenes and offered to have them sent away, though Xiao Yi was too afraid of retaliation to agree.
A poor man named Zhou Zishu arrived and impressed everyone with his lantern-making skills. Xiao Qing fell for him, but one night, Xiao Yi happened to see Zhou Zishu humiliated by his cousins. He was horrified when Zhou Zizhu responded by hypnotizing the cousins into drowning themselves in the family's bond.
Xiao Yi was too afraid to tell anyone, but he eventually told Xiao Qing after she and Zhou Zishu became engaged. She refused to believe him, and so Xiao Yi found a manuscript in this room that proved he had manipulated fragments of the Yin Metal.
He was arrested, but Xiao Qing convinced her brother to help free him lest he be executed. However, once freed, Zhou Zishu killed the entire family, including Xiao Qing, whom he threw into a fire. He kept Xiao Yi alive, torturing him so that he would turn over the manuscript. Nevertheless, Xiao Yi has steadfastly refused.
Xiao Yi shows Lan Sizhui and Wen Ning the manuscript, which he has hidden in the love token of Xiao Qing and Zhou Zishu. The manuscript is none other than Wei Wuxian's, formerly kept by Jin Guangyao at Golden Carp Tower.
Zhou Zishu attacks, and while Wen Ning and Lan Sizhui battle the dark energy around them, Xiao Yi cuts the throat of Zhou Zishu. Lan Sizhui comforts him, but when Wen Ning inspects the puppet's body, he is confused to see that Zhou Zishu kept Xiao Xingh's portrait on his person, in good condition.
Xiao Yi confesses that he lied – Xiao Qing actually died by accident. Zhou Zishu wished to kill him, but accidentally struck Xiao Qing into the fire. He has been killing those in Fufeng in an attempt to resurrect her.
Wen Ning and Lan Sizhui attempt to remove Xiao Yi's name from the memorial, but they cannot find it. There is, however, one Zhao Yi, a mere servant.
Wen Ning realizes that Xiao Yi is actually Zhao Yi. He was the one arrested for murdering the cousins and possessing the Yin Metal, while Zhou Zishu was the witness. Thus, he is the one who accidentally killed Xiao Qing, and has been murdering the residents of Fu Feng in an attempt to resurrect her.
They return to the Xiao mansion, where they realize that in his last moments, Zhou Zishu was not pointing at Zhao Yi, but at an illusion that hid Zhao Yi's secret chamber. Inside, Zhao Yi uses a wind-like spell on Lan Sizhui before freezing Wen Ning.
Wen Ning again hallucinates himself hanging from chains, while Zhao Yi approaches with a sword. Just in time, Wei Wuxian appears in his hallucination to insist that he is capable of love, and can follow his own path.
Wen Ning breaks free. He and Lan Sizhui battle and defeat Zhao Yi's puppets, but Zhao Yi escapes. Back in his chamber, he prepares to resurrect Xiao Qing.
Wen Ning insists that her family and lover are dead, that she would not want this.
Just then, Xiao Qing arises. Zhao Yi tearfully apologizes and asks for forgiveness. She nods, and he throws his arms around her as she dissolves away.
Lan Sizhui insists that Zhao Yi needs to recognize the reality that she cannot forgive him. He and Wen Ning declare their intent to take him to Gusu for trial, but Zhao Yi attempts to kill himself. Wen Ning intervenes, telling him that he must live with his crimes – and live as a puppet forever.
Wen Ning and Lan Sizhui leave Fufeng with the Yin Metal in hand, presumably to turn it over to the Gusu Lan Clan.[1]
Characters[]
In order of appearance:
- Zhou Zishu
- Wen Ning
- Lan Sizhui
- Zhao Yi
- Xiao Qing
- Jin Guangyao (mentioned)
- Wei Wuxian
- Lan Wangji (mentioned)
Events[]
- Night-Hunt on Dafan Mountain (mentioned)
Locations[]
- Fufeng
- Golden Carp Tower (mentioned)
Creatures[]
Cultivation Abilities[]
Cultivation Tools[]
Divergence from the Novel[]
This spin-off is unique to the Web Series.
The statement that ghosts do not exist is, however, a divergence from the novel,[2] as is Wen Ning's statement that he never died.[3]
References[]
- ↑ Web Series, The Living Dead
- ↑ Novel, Chapter 36
- ↑ Novel, Chapter 72