1 00:00:06,969 --> 00:00:11,479 The talented young herbalist named Xu Xian was in trouble. 2 00:00:11,479 --> 00:00:13,422 It should have been a victorious moment– 3 00:00:13,422 --> 00:00:16,212 he had just opened his very own medicine shop. 4 00:00:16,212 --> 00:00:19,132 But he bought his supplies from his former employer, 5 00:00:19,132 --> 00:00:22,252 and the resentful man sold him rotten herbs. 6 00:00:22,252 --> 00:00:25,722 As Xu Xian wondered what to do with this useless inventory, 7 00:00:25,722 --> 00:00:27,892 patients flooded into his shop. 8 00:00:27,892 --> 00:00:29,502 A plague had stricken the city, 9 00:00:29,502 --> 00:00:31,752 and he had nothing to treat them. 10 00:00:31,752 --> 00:00:33,502 Just as he was starting to panic, 11 00:00:33,502 --> 00:00:39,242 his wife, Bai Su Zhen, produced a recipe to use the rotten herbs as medicine. 12 00:00:39,242 --> 00:00:43,113 Her remedy cured all the plague-afflicted citizens immediately. 13 00:00:43,113 --> 00:00:46,503 Xu Xian’s former boss even had to buy back some of the rotten herbs 14 00:00:46,503 --> 00:00:48,193 to treat his own family. 15 00:00:48,193 --> 00:00:52,793 Shortly after, a monk named Fa Hai approached Xu Xian, 16 00:00:52,793 --> 00:00:55,882 warning him that there was a demon in his house. 17 00:00:55,882 --> 00:00:58,502 The demon, he said, was Bai Su Zhen. 18 00:00:58,502 --> 00:00:59,932 Xu Xian laughed. 19 00:00:59,932 --> 00:01:03,512 His kindhearted, resourceful wife was not a demon. 20 00:01:03,512 --> 00:01:04,922 Fa Hai insisted. 21 00:01:04,922 --> 00:01:10,122 He told Xu Xian to serve his wife realgar wine on the 5th day of the 5th month, 22 00:01:10,122 --> 00:01:12,052 when demons’ powers are weakest. 23 00:01:12,052 --> 00:01:15,312 If she wasn’t a demon, he explained, it wouldn’t hurt her. 24 00:01:15,312 --> 00:01:17,292 Xu Xian dismissed the monk politely, 25 00:01:17,292 --> 00:01:20,152 with no intention of serving Bai Su Zhen the wine. 26 00:01:20,152 --> 00:01:23,252 But as the day approached, he decided to try it. 27 00:01:23,252 --> 00:01:25,902 As soon as the wine touched Bai Su Zhen’s lips, 28 00:01:25,902 --> 00:01:29,122 she ran to the bedroom, claiming she wasn’t feeling well. 29 00:01:29,122 --> 00:01:32,262 Xu Xian prepared some medicine and went to check on her. 30 00:01:32,262 --> 00:01:33,712 But instead of his wife, 31 00:01:33,712 --> 00:01:37,952 he found a giant white serpent with a bloody forked tongue in the bed. 32 00:01:37,952 --> 00:01:40,512 He collapsed, killed by the shock. 33 00:01:40,512 --> 00:01:42,482 When Bai Su Zhen opened her eyes, 34 00:01:42,482 --> 00:01:45,292 she realized immediately what must have happened. 35 00:01:45,292 --> 00:01:48,522 The truth was that Bai Su Zhen was an immortal snake 36 00:01:48,522 --> 00:01:50,792 with formidable magical powers. 37 00:01:50,792 --> 00:01:53,362 She had used her powers to take a human form 38 00:01:53,362 --> 00:01:56,212 and improve her and her husband’s fortunes. 39 00:01:56,212 --> 00:01:58,412 Her magic couldn’t revive Xu Xian, 40 00:01:58,412 --> 00:02:00,822 but she had one more idea to save him: 41 00:02:00,822 --> 00:02:05,052 an herb that could grant longevity and even bring the dead back to life, 42 00:02:05,052 --> 00:02:07,400 guarded by the Old Man of the South Pole 43 00:02:07,400 --> 00:02:12,250 in the forbidden peaks of the Kun Lun Mountains. 44 00:02:12,253 --> 00:02:15,543 She rode to the mountains on a cloud, 45 00:02:15,543 --> 00:02:18,303 then continued on foot passed gateways and arches 46 00:02:18,303 --> 00:02:21,103 until she reached one marked “beyond mortals” 47 00:02:21,103 --> 00:02:22,783 hanging over a silver bridge. 48 00:02:22,783 --> 00:02:24,013 On the other side, 49 00:02:24,013 --> 00:02:27,293 two of the Old Man’s disciples guarded the herb. 50 00:02:27,293 --> 00:02:29,753 Bai Su Zhen disguised herself as a monk 51 00:02:29,753 --> 00:02:33,883 and told them she’d come to invite the Old Man to a gathering of the gods. 52 00:02:33,883 --> 00:02:35,377 While they relayed her message, 53 00:02:35,377 --> 00:02:37,575 she plucked some leaves from the herb and ran. 54 00:02:37,575 --> 00:02:40,595 The servants realized they had been tricked and chased her. 55 00:02:40,595 --> 00:02:43,715 Bai Su Zhen coughed up a magic ball and threw it at one. 56 00:02:43,715 --> 00:02:45,695 As the other closed in on her, 57 00:02:45,695 --> 00:02:48,485 she put the herb under her tongue for safekeeping, 58 00:02:48,485 --> 00:02:51,915 but its magic forced both of them into their true forms. 59 00:02:51,915 --> 00:02:54,355 As the crane’s long beak clamped around her, 60 00:02:54,355 --> 00:02:55,985 the Old Man appeared. 61 00:02:55,985 --> 00:02:59,125 Why, he asked, would she risk her life to steal his herb 62 00:02:59,125 --> 00:03:00,995 when she was already immortal? 63 00:03:00,995 --> 00:03:03,745 Bai Su Zhen explained her love for Xu Xian. 64 00:03:03,745 --> 00:03:07,235 Even if he didn’t want to be with her now that he knew she was a demon, 65 00:03:07,235 --> 00:03:09,725 she was determined to bring him back to life. 66 00:03:09,725 --> 00:03:13,575 The two had a karmic connection dating back more than a thousand years. 67 00:03:13,575 --> 00:03:15,625 When Bai Su Zhen was a small snake, 68 00:03:15,625 --> 00:03:17,675 a beggar was about to kill her, 69 00:03:17,675 --> 00:03:19,965 but a kind passerby rescued her. 70 00:03:19,965 --> 00:03:23,405 Her rescuer was Xu Xian in a past life. 71 00:03:23,405 --> 00:03:25,885 Touched by her willingness to risk her life for him, 72 00:03:25,885 --> 00:03:30,905 the Old Man permitted her to leave the mountain with the immortal herb. 73 00:03:30,905 --> 00:03:35,831 Bai Su Zhen returned home to revive Xu Xian. 74 00:03:35,832 --> 00:03:37,032 When he opened his eyes, 75 00:03:37,032 --> 00:03:40,512 the terrified look frozen on his face became a smile. 76 00:03:40,512 --> 00:03:41,411 Demon or not, 77 00:03:41,411 --> 00:03:43,811 he was still happy to see his wife.