Episode Summary
In this episode, Yan Huan makes the tragic choice to sacrifice himself to save his child from a cursed destiny of forced breeding. This act makes Sima Jiao understand his own mother's past pain. When Sima Jiao discovers his clan is being horrifically exploited at Baifeng Mountain, a rescue attempt goes wrong due to Shi Qianlv's trap, resulting in a massacre. Enraged, Sima Jiao destroys Chiyan City and kills the guards. The episode ends with a traumatized Sima Jiao, comforted by Liao Tingyan, as he prepares to face Shi Qianlv and the eight major sects who have gathered to seal him away.
Spoiler Alert
When Destiny Brings the Demon: Episode 12 Recap
The whole thing kicks off with Yan Huan, who has basically lost all hope. Liao Tingyan, trying to do a good thing, sets up a reunion for him with his wife and baby. She even decorates their room like a wedding chamber, with red silks and candles everywhere. It’s supposed to be a happy moment. Yan Huan holds his baby for the first time, and you can see the love in his eyes. But then, everything changes. He spots a red birthmark on the baby’s shoulder. This isn't just any birthmark; it's a sign that the child is cursed to be a puppet, whose only purpose in life is to breed.
That happy family moment turns dark real fast. Yan Huan, holding his child, can only see a horrible future ahead. He decides to end it all and sets the room on fire, planning to die with the baby. But hearing his wife crying hysterically outside the flames, he just can't go through with it. He realizes the baby is innocent in all this. In a last-second decision, he throws the child out of the fire to safety and chooses to die alone, hoping to end the curse with his own life.
Liao Tingyan is watching this whole tragedy unfold, tears streaming down her face. Sima Jiao is right there with her, and he doesn’t stop any of it. But seeing Yan Huan sacrifice himself for his child makes something click for Sima Jiao. He finally gets the heart-wrenching pain his own mother must have felt when she had to leave him behind. He then takes the baby to get verified by an Immortal Envoy before heading to a place called Baifeng Mountain.
At Baifeng Mountain, things get even more messed up. Sima Jiao finds his own Sima clan members locked up in a dungeon. He learns they're being used in two horrific ways: either as living blood banks for others to cultivate their power, or they're forced to have children. Because they're from the Sima clan, their kids have incredible spiritual power and are taken away to be used as well. The women are in so much pain that they beg Sima Jiao to just kill them. He has to watch as a newborn is snatched away before its mother even gets a chance to look at it.
Furious, Sima Jiao breaks their chains to free them. But just as they're about to escape, they run into a magical barrier set up by Shi Qianlv. Anyone who tries to pass through has their Inner Core ripped out, and they die a terrible death.
Staring at the bodies of his clan members lying in pools of blood, Sima Jiao is completely enraged. To make matters worse, assassins sent by Shi Qianlv start closing in. Realizing they never intended for him to leave alive, Sima Jiao stops holding back. He goes on a rampage, killing all the guards and then burning the entire Chiyan City (Red Flame City) to the ground.
Meanwhile, Liao Tingyan is just chilling and eating fruit when she sees the sky light up with fire and feels the ground shake. She runs outside into total chaos, with fireballs raining from the sky. She immediately knows something is terribly wrong and runs to find Sima Jiao.
She finds him stumbling out of the fire, holding the body of a dead child. He's a complete wreck. Seeing all his people slaughtered has brought back his own childhood trauma. Even after killing all the bad guys, his anger is still boiling over. Liao Tingyan finds him covered in blood, looking emotionally dead. She desperately tries to get through to him, reminding him over and over how much his mother wanted him to live.
But the drama isn't over. Shi Qianlv, knowing he's messed up, has already gathered the eight major sects to try and seal Sima Jiao away again. A huge fight is coming. Sima Jiao just gives a cold smile, changes into an all-black outfit, and stands ready to face them all.
