(No spoilers in this first section of review)
I went into this drama with low expectations despite seeing all the positive reviews and comments. I haven't watched much C-Dramas so I wasn't familiar with the cast. When I looked at the cover photo and some of the photos of the drama, I wasn't really impressed and had a feeling I wouldn't like the actors at all.

I went into the first episode and I was interested in the story. I eventually got hooked into the drama and binge-watched it. I know this genre isn't everyone's type. It was my first time watching Xianxia as well and I still liked it. The drama also ended up being an emotional rollercoaster. Had some nice plot twists. I watched the opening and ending scene and through each episode I would start theory crafting. I was usually wrong for the most part and I'm glad I didn't figure everything out despite them spoiling a few scenes in those songs.
For some, the first few episodes may seem uninteresting and slow. But I can assure you, it starts to pick up. The one thing I will say is that the drama does throw you off with some wording/subbing. For example, I went into the drama wondering where the demon tribe is since it was mentioned but they mainly focused on the Ghost Tribe. It took me a few episodes (like 6?) to understand that Ghost Tribe=Demon Tribe. They are supposed to be used interchangeably. I'm not sure if it's a translation error, but it did throw me off at the start of the drama. There were other times where they would call Bai Feng Jiu , Xiao Jiu and it took me time to understand they are same person (same with other characters as well). Also, the time. The timeline they use from the Celestial Palace to mortal realm didn't make sense. It would have been better to just add a small note on bottom of screen (like oh this is blank day of mortal realm = blank day of celestial).

Acting & Characters-
I really liked Yang Mi and Mark Chao's acting. They both did a wonderful job portraying their characters.
Yang Mi did a great job in portraying her 3 characters Si Yin, SuSu, and Bai Qian. Each of them had their own personalities, my favorite being Bai Qian. As for Mark, he really made you love his character by acting out as Ye Hua.
Their chemistry was on point! I was pretty much hungry for their scenes.
As for the antagonists, I would say they aren't exceptional. They may have done a good job in making you pissed at them but their motivations were similar. I did want to see more scenes regarding the other support characters such as Zhe Yan, Bai Zhen, and Mo Yuan. They made a side story drama for Feng Jiu & Dong Hua (with Lian Song + Cheng Yu), but I still wanted to see the rest of the characters in more scenes.
Music- I do have to add Bracing the Chill was my favorite! I usually don't comment on music but this one whenever I watched on a higher volume to hear the music, would always add to the emotional scenes.
Rewatch- I don't think I'll get bored. I already rewatched some of my favorite scenes since I wasn't over the drama. But the entire drama I probably will rewatch in the future.


*SPOILERS BELOW* (A long rant about what bothered me & what was confusing, and then the good stuff)

In the first 10 episodes, we see Si Yin's character and Mo Yuan. I already figured out Mo Yuan had developed some sort of feelings for her because he did whatever he could to protect her. I expected Si Yin to have feelings for him as well, but then unexpectedly she falls for Li Jing. I personally didn't want them to have a relationship because I just didn't like the playboy side of Li Jing and I'm glad they didn't get into a serious relationship. I didn't want to see our female lead become vulnerable to him. And in a way it's a good thing she saw his pathetic self who cannot understand her and decides to cheat without using his head.

I was surprised though that they let Xuan Nu steal the tactical strategy for war. I thought at least Mo Yuan would be smart enough to see through it. They didn't show how she stole it, but I assumed she transformed to Si Yin. It could have fooled the other disciples, but HOW did it get past Mo Yuan? If he was available to see through Bai Qian's transformation, why not this?
Then we don't see Mo Yuan for 70,300 years since his spirit is scattered and we learn he isn't the story's focus. The story's main focus is Ye Hua. We all know that he's from the golden lotus but why does he look like Mo Yuan was a mystery. I always thought it was a spirit of Mo Yuan and that's what needs to be recovered for Mo Yuan to come back alive.

When Bai Qian undergoes a trial in the mortal realm, a red dot appears on her forehead. They never really explained its significance? Why did she get it all of a sudden? Was it to show that her powers sealed? But if that's the case then how come Ye Hua didn't notice it? He didn't question why she has a mark on her forehead or look into it. They made it look so normal. Feng Jiu's plumed cockscomb was explained, but not this. Was having a red dot normally seen as a birthmark? But then in the portrait Ye Hua drew of SuSu, the red dot wasn't drawn. Does that mean it was just something for viewers? If so, why make it a viewer thing when we all clearly know that she lost her memories?

Episodes 19-25, we're introduced to Su Jin creating problems. I was frustrated with the drama with this but held through. I was also angry seeing how SuSu's character was weak and gullible. She fell for the same tricks by Su Jin over again causing her to lose her eyes. But seeing how Ye Hua wasn't the same as Li Jing, made me continue. Ye Hua was truly devoted to her in the mortal world, prepared to sacrifice everything for her. But after being caught, he had to pretend to be cold in order to protect her. Although his method was not the best way, he at least didn't betray her and stayed loyal to her.

Episode 26 and onward gets even more interesting. You finally see Bai Qian's character. Qian is shown to be unafraid and smart. They showed how attentive Ye Hua was to immediately figure out SuSu is Bai Qian (you can see how he really loves her just by picking up every detail of hers). The drama slowly built their relationship again with problems as well, but not the same as before. Bai Qian is much wiser and was able to see through Su Jin's tricks. The drama handled Xuan Nu and Su Jin's case pretty well. When Bai Qian regained her memories and took her eyes back, I was cheering for her. That was something I wanted to see badly. The same applies when Bai Qian showed Xuan Nu's true self and went to battle alone. The plot twist of Ye Hua being the twin brother of Mo Yuan never occurred to me. I was always wondering why they had the same face and even when it was in lotus form it showed his face. But that explained a lot about Ye Hua. The part where Bai Qian is upset with Ye Hua after remembering everything and then she didn't even have the chance to reconcile with him teared me up. They went to battle right away and he dies without them being able to have a talk. The ending did satisfy our hearts seeing them together again which I knew they would find a way to bring him alive from the opening/ending songs. But it was nice that they gave us a brief somewhat believable explanation. They just added a last minute (convenient) detail about how Sea of Innocence can help with recuperation along with the coffin being an artifact. The part where he only used the Heavenly Father's power and not his own spirit was believable.

What I wanted to be more clarified/ and see more of:
-A Li's relationship with Bai Qian. It doesn't look like a typical mother/son relationship which was funny and I was fine since she didn't remember him. But, after Ye Hua's death, Bai Qian was depressed for 3 years but didn't see her son? I get she couldn't see her son that much because he has to study a lot with a new burden on him because of his father's death.
- Zhe Yan and Bai Zhen. These 2 are always together. I wanted more of their bromance.
- Mo Yuan with someone else. I felt so bad because when he came back he finds out the disciple he loves is with his younger twin. And every time she mentioned Ye Hua's name he was a bit hurt. But I'm glad they showed Mo Yuan different and willing to give up and bury his feelings.
- Su Jin's maid receiving punishment. I'm sure she did, but they never showed it. The maid was pretty much an accomplice.
- Season 2 of this with Bai Qian and Ye Hua with the same actors again. While the ending was nice for them kinda wished to see more scenes of them with another plot. No more of their relationship issues. Just keep building their relationship. I felt like their scenes were not enough and wanted more. Gotta see their wedding and everything.
- How was Ye Hua easily able to get his arm movement back?

What I didn't like:
- How the main 2 female antagonists (Su Jin and Xuan Nu) are the same. They both hate Bai Qian being the interest of the man they love. It's like they're showing how women go crazy over the man they love and are willing to do anything.
At least give the other antagonist a different motive.
- Qing Cang is just a threat for a few episodes. He's a threat in the start and all we see is him in the bell mostly and then out for a few minutes till he dies. I feel like he could have been shown to be a better antagonist than the ones above.
- Feng Jiu constantly trying for Dong Hua. I just don't like how the character looked almost desperate. It's nice to show her sincerity, but seeing her get constantly hurt was just sad.
- I found it funny how Su Jin was punished by Ye Hua's grandfather when he knew about her scheme to kill Su Su for him. Yet, the grandfather didn't get punished? Where's the punishment for that? If Dong Hua can get punished by the heavens why not him? YH's grandfather pretty much supported Su Jin's scheme for SuSu.
- The drama is too short actually. They should have made it longer & developed characters better. And more YH & BQ Scenes!