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"But do you know when you are with them, you'll be considered good, outstanding and talented. But if your voice is different from theirs, you'd be a lunatic, ruthless and evil person. You think you can be righteous alone? No one has ever done so!"
— Jiang Cheng arguing to Wei Wuxian that he shouldn't go against the other clans' wishes
Wei Wuxian knows all too well that Jiang Cheng despises him now and more than ever. Reflecting upon the past once more, he remembered how even after the avenged the tragedy of Lotus Pier's fall, new problems continued to threaten — and destroy — their friendship.
- Adaptational Nice Guy:
- When Jiang Cheng accosts Wei Wuxian, he doesn't use Fairy to keep him intimidated like he did in the novel, which is a cruel act on his part given the latter's cynophobia.
- In the childhood flashback in the novel, Jiang Fengmian was encouraging both Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian to get along before proceeding to carry only the latter, which made him come across as horribly insensitive to his son. He was more considerate in this episode, picking Wei Wuxian up only because the child was afraid of Jiang Cheng's dogs approaching him.
- Adaptational Villainy: Implied with the Lan Clan. When Wei Wuxian pulls out the nails from Wen Ning, he realizes that they're forged by people from both the Jin and the Lan Clans, whereas only the former was involved with experimenting on Wen Ning in the novel.
- Adaptation Distillation:
- Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng's conversation is shortened compared to the novel to make way for Wen Ning's sudden appearance and the ensuing ruckus between the trio.
- Wei Wuxian argued with the Jin Clan at their banquet about the Stygian Tiger Amulet before setting out for Qiongqi Path in the novel. The episode saves time by having the argument take place at Qiongqi Path, with the characters at the banquet in the novel (such as Lan Wangji and Jin Guangyao) being there when Wei Wuxian both rescued the surviving Wens and argued with Jin Guangshan.
- In the novel, when Wei Wuxian bleakly advised Jiang Cheng to just give up on him when it became clear the Jiang Clan's reputation was in danger, the two later staged a duel to convince the cultivation world that Wei Wuxian had officially cut ties with the clan. This episode gets straight to the point and has Wei Wuxian telling Jiang Cheng to inform everyone that he defected from the Jiang Clan, forgoing the need for a duel.
- Ain't Too Proud to Beg:
- Wei Wuxian loudly screams for help when he gets cornered by Fairy, leaving Jin Ling's unimpressed when he arrives at the scene. Lucky for Wei Wuxian, this further convinces the teen that the man's not the Yiling Patriarch since such a feared figure wouldn't be scared of dogs.
- Wen Qing was a very proud and strong-willed woman. However, she didn't hesitate to kneel to Wei Wuxian and grab his clothes while pleading with him to save her brother.
- Ascended Extra: Unlike in the novel, Wen Ning makes an appearance in Qinghe and attacks Jiang Cheng during his confrontation with Wei Wuxian, allowing the latter to escape.
- Came Back Strong: When he was still alive, Wen Ning was so meek he would never willingly draw a sword on anyone. After he was revived by Wei Wuxian as a fierce corpse, he immediately laid waste to a few Jin Clan cultivators.
- Chiaroscuro: In the present time, when Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng are arguing, a shot of them from above is shown. The shot not only shows the roof beam positioned between both characters, but it also shows Jiang Cheng sitting in the spot where there's sunlight while Wei Wuxian is in a spot where he's shrouded in darkness. This represents the current friction and divide between the two.
- Continuity Nod:
- When Jiang Cheng berates Wei Wuxian for getting concerned about Jin Ling, he reminds him of how he (albeit inadvertently) mocked the latter for not having any parents to raise him.
- In the flashback, while arguing about what do with the Wen survivors, Wei Wuxian punched Jiang Cheng in the face after the latter's remarks started to sound too unsympathetic for his liking. This echoed how he himself got punched for similar reasons in the past, particularly when Jiang Cheng chewed him out for sticking up for Lan Wangji and Jin Zixuan. Additionally, the same music is played in both scenes.
- Lan Wangji returning to Xinglu Ridge and finding nothing but Wei Wuxian's flute mirrors how he searched for Wei Wuxian in Yiling years ago and found only his Clarity Bell.
- Does Not Know How to Say "Thanks": Wei Wuxian notices Jin Ling's inability to express his thanks, and gently tells him that "thank you", along with "I'm sorry", are the two phrases everyone must learn how to say.
- Evil Power Vacuum: Wei Wuxian accuses Jin Guangshan of corruption and wanting to fill in Wen Ruohan's shoes by ruling over all the cultivation clans.
- Fair-Weather Friend: Downplayed. Jiang Cheng outright warned Wei Wuxian that everyone only saw him as an ally as long as they shared the same opinions, and were all too ready to regard him otherwise the moment that's no longer the case.
- Fisticuff-Provoking Comment: In the flashback, Wei Wuxian punched Jiang Cheng in anger when the latter made a callous remark at how Wen Qing and Wen Ning's innocence and their act of saving their lives didn't matter because they were still part of the Wen Clan.
- Friend to All Children: Despite being the infamous Yiling Patriarch that just killed a bunch of Jin clansmen for torturing the Wens, Wei Wuxian happily playing with the child Wen Yuan when Jiang Cheng visited him emphasised that he was still a good-hearted man.
- Generation Xerox: Both Jin Ling and a young Jiang Cheng's reactions to seeing Wei Wuxian's fear of dogs? "Coward."
- Humanizing Tears: The grumpy and sullen child Jiang Chen fell into a pit while looking for Wei Wuxian, and was later found there while crying endearing tears.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite his previous grievances with "Mo Xuanyu", Jin Ling doesn't stop Wei Wuxian from escaping Jiang Cheng's wrath. In addition to not believing his uncle's claim that Mo Xuanyu is Wei Wuxian's new host, he also does it out of gratitude for the man saving his life at both Huaicang Mountain and the Man-Eating Castle, showing he does have an honourable side underneath his feisty demeanour.
- Know When to Fold 'Em: Although he kept up with the "Mo Xuanyu" act in previous episodes to hide his identity, Wei Wuxian doesn't bother playing dumb anymore with Jiang Cheng when are in private since the latter's already found him out and has him cornered.
- Mood Whiplash: What follows after a tense confrontation between Wei Wuxian, Jiang Cheng, and Wen Ning is a comedic chase scene between the former and Fairy.
- No Sympathy: When Jiang Cheng saw that the Wen survivors rescued by Wei Wuxian comprised just the elderly, weak, and the children, he callously remarked how unsightly they were. When the latter reminded him of what would happen to the Wens should he give them up, Jiang Cheng's response had the underlying message of, "So what?"
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: In the past, despite the growing friction in their relationship, Wei Wuxian never verbally nor physically lashed out at Jiang Cheng unless it was to snap him out of an emotional or depression-induced haze. But the latter's attitude regarding the Wen survivors was enough to enrage Wei Wuxian into punching him.
- Out of the Frying Pan: Just as Wei Wuxian manages to get away from Jiang Cheng, he then gets chased by Fairy.
- Ridiculously Cute Critter: Jiang Cheng's three puppies from his childhood were adorable yipping furballs. They unfortunately still scared Wei Wuxian to death due to his cynophobia, leading to the puppies being taken away.
- Rule of Symbolism: During Wei Wuxian's standoff with the Jin Clan, both stood on opposite sides of the bridge. Later on, Lan Wangji intervened and landed on the middle of the bridge, with Wei Wuxian eventually severing said structure. This represented several things — Wei Wuxian standing against the Four Great Clans, Lan Wangji's dilemma on who he should side with, and Wei Wuxian's decision to essentially isolate himself from the rest of the cultivation world.
- Shame If Something Happened: Jin Guangshan stated that trouble might come to the Jiang Clan if Wei Wuxian kept acting against the Jin Clan while remaining a part of the former clan. This gave Wei Wuxian the idea to leave the Jiang Clan, so that his actions wouldn't be associated with them.
- Sins of Our Fathers: Majority of the cultivation clans saw the innocent surviving Wens as guilty as all the other Wens that participated in the Sunshot Campaigh, simply because they shared the same blood.
- Take a Third Option: Wei Wuxian was pressured by Jiang Cheng (on behalf of the other clans) to either continue sheltering the Wen surivors and risk the backlash the Jiang Clan might receive, or give them up and potentially lead these innocents to their deaths. Not wanting either parties to suffer, he decided to leave the Jiang Clan altogether so that his protection of the Wen survivors wouldn't be associated with the clan.
- Talk to the Fist: In the flashback, Wei Wuxian socked Jiang Cheng square in the jaw after having had enough of the latter's argument that anyone with the name Wen was instantly guilty of Wen Ruohan's crimes. The punch was enough to shock Jiang Cheng speechless.
- Tranquil Fury:
- Aside from a brief explosive moment of throwing a cup near the other's face, Jiang Cheng is composed the entire time he's talking to Wei Wuxian. That being said, his anger is completely palpable.
- In the past, when Wei Wuxian realized that Wen Ning was killed by the Jin Clan, he quietly yet eerily asked Jin Zixun if he killed him, before proceeding to turn Wen Ning into a fierce corpse.
- Tsundere: When Wei Wuxian asks Jin Ling if he would have saved him earlier if he hadn't escaped from Jiang Cheng earlier, the teen blushes and sullenly looks away in response. He gets annoyed when Wei Wuxian laughs at him and hastily claims that he's only helping him to get even for being saved from the Man-Eating Castle.
- Undying Loyalty: Even when Wen Ning hasn't regained his consciousness nor sense of self yet, he immediately rushes to defend Wei Wuxian from Jiang Cheng despite being given no orders to do so, and goes to him after no one's around to see him.
- Ungrateful Bastard: Wei Wuxian implicitly accused Jiang Cheng of showing no appreciation to Wen Qing and Wen Ning for helping the two survive after the Jiang Clan massacre, since Jiang Cheng intended to kill the latter and suggested that they let the surviving Wens get executed. While he acknowledged what they did, he argued that everyone else still still saw Wen as an enemy regardless of their innocence.
- Unreveal Angle: Downplayed. When Wei Wuxian briefly sees Wen Ning's memories, it's revealed that Jin Guangshan and two disciples were responsible for secretly keeping him alive for the past 13 years and were implied to be experimenting on him. The P.O.V. Cam only shows the clan leader's identity, with the two disciples' faces cut out of frame; what's still clear, however, is that one was from the Jin Clan and the other was from the Lan Clan.
- Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Downplayed. When Jiang Cheng and Wen Ning fight in the public streets, the civilians look in confusion as to what's going on but aren't panicking or at least backing away from the site of the commotion.
- Who Names Their Kid "Dude"?: Wei Wuxian wryly asks Jin Ling who gave Fairy its name, clearly finding the naming choice odd. Jin Ling doesn't realize it and simply answers that the dog was called Little Fairy before it grew up and hence rendered the "Little" useless.
- Would Hurt a Child: When Jin Zixun was about to hurt the elderly Wen woman with the branding iron, she was standing between him and her grandson Wen Yuan. This implied he was actually originally intending to hurt the child.
