This drama is not perfect by any means, but it is an entertaining xianxia with some elements that make it stand out from some of the more bland offerings in the genre, so despite its flaws, for me it’s worthwhile. However, I’m speaking as someone who read the novel and has been looking forward to this drama, so that may make me somewhat biased in favor of the drama.

Unfortunately the biggest flaw may be the writing of the female lead. In about 40% of her scenes, she’s either pathetic or annoying. The actress playing her doesn’t help by making some truly bad choices—lots of flouncing, pouting, etc.—but these things are in line with the way the character is written, so I’m not sure I can blame the actress.

The male lead is better but the actor playing him is rather limited in his abilities. He does well when the male lead is being fearsome and majestic. He becomes bland and boring in most scenes when the male lead is interacting with the female lead.

The costumes for the drama are puzzling. The male lead’s costumery is fantastic. The female lead’s gowns are frumpy, baggy, dumpy, and ill-fitting. Headpieces for many male characters are ornate and interesting, going far beyond the usual bun holder crown style. You get the sense that the costume designer cared a lot about what the male characters were wearing, and then maybe wanted to keep the female characters well covered up? I don’t know, I’m hoping the costumes improve.

Production values are VERY HIGH, to rival any other big budget xianxia you have seen when it comes to effects and sets. If you can watch this drama in 1080p on a very large screen, DO SO.

In terms of plot…I don’t want to say much b/c I want to avoid spoilers. So I’ll put it this way: it seems like the drama may have cut out some of the best parts of the novel, or maybe is saving them for later, it’s hard to tell. It has certainly diverged from the novel, and not, in my opinion, in great ways. BUT the writing is very cohesive and the storytelling is highly competent.