Episode Summary
Shi Qianlv's plan to expose a traitor backfires, leading to a direct confrontation with Yuan Che. To save his father, Yuan Shang sacrifices himself. Meanwhile, Sima Jiao tracks Shi Qianlv's son, Shi Zhenxu, and forces a traumatized Liao Tingyan to kill him to protect the secret of the Spirit Fire. While Liao Tingyan recovers from the ordeal with Sima Jiao's help, a grieving Shi Qianlv blackmails Ye Ruling to find the couple.
Spoiler Alert
Episode 18 of When Destiny Brings the Demon begins with Shi Qianlv suspecting Ye Ruling is a traitor. But a chance discovery that Yuan Shang is still alive flips his theory, making him suspect Yuan Che has turned traitor. To test this, he deliberately sends Yuan Che some false information.
But while Shi Qianlv is busy with his own schemes, he's completely unaware that Sima Jiao is making moves in his own backyard. Sima Jiao has secretly placed puppets in the restricted areas under Shi Qianlv's control and attached a spirit butterfly to Shi Qianlv's son, Shi Zhenxu. This means that when Shi Zhenxu goes to Mount Taiwei to check on the security of the Spirit Fire, the butterfly sends a message, allowing Sima Jiao and Nian Jiu to tail him immediately.
Meanwhile, Shi Qianlv is waiting at Mount Wufeng to ambush Sima Jiao. When his target doesn't show, he gets a bad feeling and tries to send a message to his son. Yuan Shang, hiding in the shadows to protect Sima Jiao's plan, intercepts the message. Shi Qianlv spots him and doesn't hesitate to attack. Yuan Che rushes back just in time, but now he and Shi Qianlv have officially turned on each other. Yuan Che does everything he can to protect his son, but with Ye Ruling at his side, Shi Qianlv's power is formidable. Not wanting to see his father get seriously injured, Yuan Shang self-destructs to stop Shi Qianlv and his forces. Yuan Che can only watch in horror as his son vanishes into thin air before making a painful retreat.
Sima Jiao finally catches up to Shi Zhenxu, who would rather die than reveal the hiding place of the Spirit Fire. Instead, he just keeps cursing Sima Jiao and Liao Tingyan. Sima Jiao won't tolerate this and orders Liao Tingyan to kill Shi Zhenxu. When she flatly refuses, he physically takes her hand and forces it to deliver the fatal blow.
It's the first time Liao Tingyan has ever killed anyone. Even though Sima Jiao forced her, the sight of Shi Zhenxu's blood on her hand leaves her completely horrified. This highlights a huge gap between them; Liao Tingyan wishes for the killing to stop, but Sima Jiao lives in a world where you kill or are killed.
Liao Tingyan is plagued by nightmares, dreaming of Shi Zhenxu and her hands covered in blood. While continuing his search for the Spirit Fire, Sima Jiao also takes care of her. To help her get a good night's sleep, Sima Jiao finds a jade pillow for her, which is said to ward off nightmares. It works. She has a wonderful dream about hosting a food festival for all her friends, and Sima Jiao is able to see her happy dream as well. When she wakes up, her state of mind is much improved.
With his son dead, Shi Qianlv is obsessed with revenge. Unable to track Sima Jiao down, he captures members of the Yin Palace to blackmail Ye Ruling, giving her three days to find Sima Jiao and Liao Tingyan. As the episode closes, Sima Jiao prepares to go out searching for the Spirit Fire again. Liao Tingyan helps him get ready, urges him to be careful, and gives him a tender, heartfelt kiss.
