The Unclouded Soul Episode Discussion - Episodes 24 - 26
Welcome to another episodic discussion of The Unclouded Soul. A lot has happened in these episodes. So buckle up. It’s gonna be a bumpy ride.
All Discussion Posts | Masterpost | Episodes 1 - 8 | Episodes 9 - 11 | Episodes 12 - 14 | Episodes 15 - 20 | Episodes 21 - 23 |
Retrieving the Sky Stone
Sky Stone Collected: 1
PDA: 3
Episode 24 starts off with a romantic falcon ride. One of the things I have been impressed with is this drama’s attention to detail. As Xiao Yao and Hong Ye utter sweet nothings to each other, I can see Wu Huan’s feathers rippling in the wind and it makes me want to run my hand through his fluffy feathers.
I thought that we had graduated from kindergarten when we left the Demon Valley, but it turns out that we only went up to grade school. The Treasurer Swallower who guards the West Coast happens to be this childish septuagenarian who would feel right at home with the toddler demons we just left behind. To get on his good side, Xiao Yao first feeds him all the food Luo Luo prepared for her (wait…did Luo Luo prove to be useful just once?) and then spends the day teaching him how to play with the toys/treasures he has amassed over the years.
The entire time, Hong Ye doesn’t really have a whole lot to do other than look on disapprovingly and warn the Treasure Swallower not to covet Xiao Yao. Hum…having Hong Ye be all jealous over a geriatric is another thing I do not have on my The Unclouded Soul bingo card.
I do like that Xiao Yao obtains the sky stone by treating its owner sincerely and asking instead of trying to strike a deal or stealing from him. The Treasure Swallower is just a lonely old man and I love Xiao Yao for treating him like a real person and spending a fun day with him.
How to Restore a Demon’s Power in 2 Simple Steps
Once Xia Yao and Hone Ye are back in the Demon Valley, neurotic kitten is able to “stream” the sky stone and tell them what the Heavenly Mother did to restore her powers.
📝1. Use the Heart-Burning Incantation and an Array to reverse time (aka. time-reversing technique.)
📝2. Find your younger self and retrieve your primordial spirit
The catch? Going back in time will revert you to your fetal state. You will not retain any of your memories or your powers. This holds true for both humans and demons.
Also, Xia Mu can only see what the Heavenly Mother did but not the outcome. So they don’t even know if she succeeded.
But wait a minute…Since Xiao Yao is neither demon nor human, she is an exception to the rule. So that makes her the prime candidate to go back in time to retrieve Hong Ye’s primordial spirit. But Hong Ye won’t allow it. Xiao Mu wonders if it’s because it’s too dangerous for Xiao Yao, or it’s because Hong Ye doesn’t want Xiao Yao to see his younger self. Methinks it could be both.
Hei Wu Liberates the Big Bad Demons
Hei Wu is not dead. Raise your hand if you are not surprised. 🙋
Turns out that the furnace at the palace is no match for a demon as powerful as Hei Wu. Once Hei Wu gets out, he heads to Yunmeng Lake, where the Sea Turtle Demon Lord is guarding a barrier that is keeping a bunch of evil demons locked up. Hei Wu is able to get the aquatic demon lord drunk and reveal the secret to taking down the barrier in no time.
Now the three ancient mega-demons are free to cause chaos in the world.
Silly Hei Wu wants the 3 big bad demon lords to help him become the Monarch of Demons. Uh...what makes him think he has the ability to control them?
As expected, he lost control of the situation pretty quickly, but he still knows how to lie. He tells his new overlords that Hong Ye is selling demons to the humans and proceeds to lead them to the Demon Valley.
Qiong Qi, Ao He, and Teng She.
Hum…when it comes to Teng She, I have to say that I much prefer this one.
With catastrophe hovering over them, Hong Ye finally agrees to let Xiao Mu activate the Time-Reversing Array and send Xiao Yao to the past. Even if Xia Yao is unable to retrieve his primordial spirit, the past may now be the safer place for Xiao Yao to be.
Hong Ye: “Come back safely.” Xiao Yao: “Wait for me.”
The three evil demons lords arrive in Demon Valley almost immediately on the heels of Xiao Yao’s departure. It turns out that they actually knew Hong Ye from before. How will Hong Ye protect the Demon Valley without his powers?
The Emperor Declares War on Demons
Hei Wu’s escape is the last straw for the long-suffering emperor, who immediately gives his Feiyu Guards one month to rid the world of all demons. If they fail, they will all be sentenced to death by a thousand cuts and their families and friends will be killed as well.
Bing Zhu is still reluctant to declare war on the demons, because not all demons are bad. Pian Pian accuses him of not wanting to hurt Xiao Yao. I think Bing Zhu has to face the fact that the Pian Pian he knew is gone, and that a vengeful spirit has taken her place.
Talking about a guy stuck in a toxic relationship. The is not the look of a happy camper.
Having caught a glimpse of Pian Pian with Bing Zhu, Ji Yan and the Feiyu Guards come knocking on Bing Zhu’s door. They want Pian Pian to make them into spirits as well so that they can be powerful enough to carry out the emperor’s decree to kill all demons. Uh…Bing Zhu must know that making a bunch of unscrupulous people that powerful is insane, right? And once they become spirits, why would they still want to serve the wrinkly emperor?
So did Pian Pian grant them their wish? I‘m really not sure. But the next thing we know, the Feiyu Guards are about to depart for their demon slaying mission. And Pian Pian has appeared before the emperor again and tells him to give his military seal to Bing Zhu. Pian Pian is still on Bing Zhu’s side, it would seem. But what kind of toll or price will this exact from him?
Xiao Yao Becomes Princess Ning’an
While an interspecies war is about to break out in Tiansheng, Xiao Yao has successfully travelled back in time. On her way to the past, she hears Heavenly Mother’s voice telling her to collect a drop of Hong Ye’s tear. When she wakes up, she finds herself in the body of Princess Ning’an. Her memories are intact but all her powers are gone.
From her maid, she finds out that Princess Ning’an is a quiet woman who likes to read, write, and draw and has no interest in gold or silver. In short, her beau’s ex is the exact opposite of Xiao Yao. This knowledge does not sit well with Xiao Yao.
That night, Hong Ye who is not her Hong Ye sneaks into her room looking for Fuxi, her zither that also happens to be an ancient demon relic. Xiao Yao agrees to give Hong Ye the zither in exchange for his company, then pulls out all the stops to collect a teardrop from him.
💧She straight out asks him to cry. But he tells her that demons don’t cry easily.
💧She cooks him a bowl of noodles with loads of chili powder. But he can’t even tell that the dish is spicy.
💧She asks him to cut plates after plates of onions and ends up crying like a baby herself.
💧She tries to get him to sniff snuff powder but ends up sniffing most of it herself.
💧She attempts to get him drunk on the rooftop but ends up getting drunk first.
So it’s all much ado about nothing. But it does allow Xiao Yao to get drunk, again, and employ xianxia trope #132: 酒後吐真言 (Uttering truths after drinking wine) to show Hong Ye how much she cares about him and how well she knows him. Hong Ye is visibly touched.
Other Tidbits
The hammiest acting award goes to: Xiao Ming/Xiao Mu
This guys is not just bad. He is like…very bad. And I know this may be the writers’ fault, but there are other ways to convey emotion than having this guy throw a temper tantrum every time something doesn’t go his way
Hammiest acting award runner up: Hei Wu
“You are tearing me apart, Lisa.”
Oops…wrong picture. Here’s the right one.
The cutest moment award goes to: Hong Ye closing Xiao Yao’s mouth as she gawks at all the gold inside the Treasure Swallower’s Cave.
So, what happens next?
I think we are finally at the stage of the drama where everything starts falling apart for our couples. For our main couple, my guess is that Xiao Yao is going to get Hong Ye to fall in love with her only to end up breaking his heart, thereby collecting his tears in the process. I was also going to guess that she’ll stab him in the heart because she’s been Ning’an all along, and it has always been her caught in a never-ending time loop where she repeated kills him and then tries to save him.
As for our demon slayer, I am not sure what is going to happen except that he is probably already on a tragic trajectory. For those of us who have been dying to see Wang Dou get a happy ending in a drama, I am not sure we are going to get our wish.
Posted Jan 4, 2026, 8:56 AM UTC