Ling Xi, sovereign of heaven and earth, made an exception and took Shen Yuan, an orphan of the demon race, as her disciple. She taught him swordsmanship and magic, and even used the Zhaotian Seal to cleanse the demonic aura from him and protect him from harm. She guarded him like both a teacher and a mother. Shen Yuan, in turn, saw Ling Xi as his only light. He trained hard, hoping to "protect Master in return," and was full of dependence and admiration for her. Their bond as master and disciple was pure and deep. The Demon Venerable forged a "secret order to kill demons" in Ling Xi's name, making Shen Yuan believe that he was the target of her plan to "wipe out the roots." He thought she had taken him as a disciple to spy on him, and protected him only so she could kill him once he had grown powerful. This misunderstanding tore apart their bond in an instant. Under the control of a demonic parasite, Shen Yuan used the swordsmanship Ling Xi had taught him to stab her through the heart himself. When Shen Yuan pierced her heart with the Shattered Star Sword, using the swordsmanship Ling Xi had taught him, the Zhaotian Seal exploded in grief at its master's death. One half fell with Ling Xi's remnant soul; the other, carrying her last power and resentment, seared itself into Shen Yuan's palm. The scar was no ordinary wound. It was a sacred treasure's punishment for the one who killed its master, and a mark of the broken bond between the sword seal and its wielders, like a "proof of guilt" that could never heal. Five hundred years later, Ling Xi's remnant soul became a little flower demon, but she had lost her memories. After coming to his senses, Shen Yuan took over as sovereign, burdened by guilt for having killed his master, and spent five hundred years searching for her. After their reunion, he once again protected the little flower demon, Ling Xi, in the role of her master. But too consumed by guilt to reveal who he was, he could only endure the pain of "having killed the person I most wanted to protect" alone as he taught her to recognize swords and seals. They were bound together in an uneven relationship: she depended on him innocently, while he protected her under the weight of his guilt.
Theme: The fall and rebirth of the sovereign of the Three Realms tells of a reconciliation between master and disciple, arriving five hundred years after love and murder.
