锦瑟 [Jin Se]

by Priest

仙侠背景的狗血人妖文……好吧，是妖攻VS人受文
　　伪君子受VS偏执狂攻
　　亲爱的我们造反吧！
　　1V1 HE 不坑
　　PS：本文纯属胡编，偶尔心血来潮考据，大部分不可信……未成年人请勿模仿= =

Genres: Romance, LGBT, China

960 pages, ebook

First published April 1, 2011

About the author

Associated Names:
* Priest
* พีต้า (Thai Profile)

Reviews

[Dilushani Jayalath · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always, Priest managed to sweep me off my feet with her writing. There's a certain way that Priest's characters slowly crawls into your heart and just hook their claws inside your heart. I am yet to find a book in which there are nay characters that made me want to smash their heads against a huge boulder. Even the villains are characters that makes you want to know more about them. That is the beauty and magic of Priest's novels.

For me Historical Asia, is a genre that I love to read about. There is something colorfully great in terms of culture and setting that hooks me in. Therefore starting this one itself, I knew that I'll have a certain bias. The characters were wonderfully written. Despite it being comparatively shorter, the story flowed well. I've heard through grapevine that JinSe is among the first novels of Priest and it clearly shows the great author she is to become. The yao-human interactions, the differences, all made the story what it was. This novel leave you on the edge. The characters if I am being honest, are morally grey. There are no good or bad characters but we have characters that are human (pun not intended), characters who stumble and make mistakes because that is what it is. Characters that will make you feel as if they are a friend you met at school, a co-worker, a stranger you sometimes meet while on a jog. This makes you feel connected to the characters.
There were few scenes that made me want to ask Priest 'Whyyyyyyy???', especially a certain non-con scene but if you look past it (yes I know, I'm not the type to do so generally) there's something to look forward to. In any way I do not support it, neither do I say it's good but due to my ultimate bias, I look past it. The romance isn't the type to move mountains and skies but as always, romance takes a backseat. But despite saying that I will agree this is one of the stories where a main arc was predominantly controlled by romance. You would see if you do read the book that one major plot line is pushed forward due to romance. In a way I can say that romance takes up at least 1/2 the plot but that does not mean that there is romance. Romance is just catalyst here. If you are looking for a lovey-dovey story please look somehwere else.

All in all it was another pleasant experience for me (I feel like I'm rating a luekwarm date but believe it is not so. This is much better than that XD). As I have mentioned many times above, I am highly biased towards Priest novels and I am not ashamed to admit it, so please do take my review with a grain of salt. Yet I would always reccomend Priest novels to those readers who love great world building with complex characters who are flawed yet human.

[k a e · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ★
Leer esta historia ha sido una experiencia un tanto diferente, y no en el mal sentido; pues, a fin de cuentas es una novela de Priest y a Priest yo le tengo un respeto gigante.
Cuando empecé la historia, lo único que sabía era que es una historia del género xianxia y que los protagonistas eran un humano y un yao (y que justo este último era el gong). Con esa premisa, no dudé en ir a leerme la historia, además es de las más cortitas que tiene Priest (pero ojo eso no implica que carezca de contexto).
Habiendo leído más de 5 historias de su autoría, siento que Priest usa una especie de estructura 50-30-20 (50% world-building, 30% desarrollo de personajes y 20% romance) y es justo en esta historia donde analicé mi teoría. Me pareció interesante que el mundo de la cultivación del protagonista estuviera relacionado con la adivinación y el destino, aunque no entendí mucho de la mecánica, me hizo recordar a los fang-shi, quienes si no me equivoco adivinaban y pronosticaban el clima y los desastres naturales y también Dinghai Fusheng. No voy ahondar mucho porque soy sincera, hubieron varios capítulos donde me perdí. Pero si han leído Qi Ye y Sha Po Lang, ocurren varios enfrentamientos, rebeliones y traiciones:c
Me gustó muchísimo el desarrollo de Shi Wuduan. Por el amor a dianxia, todo lo que tocó vivir desde que era un niño, lo hizo crecer y madurar muy rápido. Fue una clara representación de cómo las circunstancias pueden cambio a uno. Y Bai Li, ay TT, para él la única persona que lo trató bien fue Shi Wuduan y lo quiso hasta el punto en que me hizo recordar a cierto personaje de otra historia que no se digna a unir su alma. Ahora, el romance que fue la principal razón por la que me aventé esta historia en dos días es justamente la razón por la que sentí que algo no me terminó de cuajar. A ver, fueron varias etapas mías durante la novela: al principio estaba expectante y ansiosa, luego sentí como que se estaba poniendo medio raro y no raro del bueno (lo digo por el non-con, y no es spoiler porque está en las etiquetas, pero fue de verdad una sorpresa grande y no es nada explícito pero estaba como: ¿era necesario? WHY). Ya después, pasaron muchas cosas, pero el momento donde "x" se da cuenta de sus sentimientos, lo sentí un poco apresurado, pero al mismo tiempo se entendieron muchas de las acciones y sucesos que habían ocurrido; ya que casi siempre hubieron varios malentendidos TT asi que quedé uhmm....
Sin embargo...no voy a mentir, ese final sí que me gustó XDD es que de por sí, ambos sufrieron muchísimo y de verdad, merecían ser felices y la manera en la que Priest me describió cómo lograron su happy ending, hizo que me emocionara mucho.
So...¿me gustó? Sí, aunque me pareció un poco corto y algo apresurado, pero eso no lo hace malo. Así que sí me gustaría que más personas la leyeran. Hay muy pocos fanarts, MANIFESTING more visual material SKJDSF

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of priest's earlier and shorter works. The story spans 20+ years, starting from when Shi Wuduan (MC) and Bai Li (ML) first met when they were children. Their encounter was one that was destined, both of their fates intertwined so closely that no matter how they acted, they would always be brought back together.

But SWD and BL's fates was also because of their karma that binded them together and one's actions would always affect the other. Even though this was short with only 80 chapters, I thought the pacing was good and the progression of the story kept me on the edge of my seat. I couldn't stop reading and I basically devoured this story as quickly as I could.

As for characterisation, I think priest did a good job on the MC and ML. They were both different but similar individuals, both had their strengths and weaknesses but both stood on par with each other in terms of strength. Both didn't yield to the other until nearly the end and if either of them messed up, they would pay for it.

The side characters were less developed in this novel but they still made the novel feel more complete; they also provided some humour amidst all the heaviness and scheming.

I really like the way priest writes and it's no different in this one. She doesn't use any flowery words, but the way she writes does leave me winded sometimes.

For example, the passage below:
人生如水，过刚易折。总有一些人，一些事，是不得不妥协的，总有那么一瞬间，为了某些东西，再怎么怒气冲冲的人也要停下来，冷静片刻，收起周身的刺，原谅别人一次，也原谅自己一次。

只有这个时候，才会发现，原来把自己逼到绝境的罪魁祸首之一，就是自己的心。

It's just a regular passage but it invoked a feeling of melancholy in me, almost.

Also, I was actually doubting the HE tag because this novel was full of separations and a generous amount of angst. The lives SWD and BL led weren't easy and their childhoods were but a brief moment in time where they could live without any care in the world. Circumstances wrenched them apart and they had to fight against the heavens in order to end up together. But luckily, priest came through with the HE and I'm not complaining about how it ended because it seemed like an appropriate ending.

[V.ya · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has its moments, but most of the time it’s just a dry story of scheming and plotting. There are no memorable side characters, and the CP consists of dark, barely likable characters.

Maybe it’s even a 2.5⭐️ for me cause I hardly enjoyed it.

[Dianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm on a roll! This marks my 5th Priest story (and 3rd consecutive one), and while it was decent, it didn't capture my attention the way some of her other stories have. It makes sense, as the story is shorter and it's one of her earlier works. It didn't help I was a bit lost on what was going on at times with the Shi Wuduan's schemes or whatever he was trying to do with his astrolabe.

**Warning: Spoilers Ahead**

I spent much of the book frustrated at the distance and hostility separating our main characters Shi Wuduan and Bai Li. I also had mixed feelings about their relationship to begin with. When they first met, both of them, and especially SWD, was very young and ignorant in the ways of the world. Even if Bai Li latched onto fond memories of SWD to survive his time in the demon world, they both underwent a lot of hardship and become very different people as adults. SWD is mainly focused on his goals of getting revenge for his master on his old sect and the emperor, and Bai Li wants to keep the power he's accumulated as the Demon Lord. It seems a bit silly for the basis of their relationship to be the idealistic time they spent together as kids.

Surprisingly, given the fact that SWD is planning a whole rebellion with his eldest brother Gu Huaiyang, Priest doesn't dedicate a whole lot of the story to it. It's mentioned quickly in passing that the armies are clashing or that SWD's scheming to raise grain prices in the northwest so he can orchestrate a market crash, but not a lot of time is spent on the finer details. Instead, a good majority of the story is focused on the relationship between SWD and Bai Li, and as I mentioned above, I liked their relationship but didn't love it.

I also can't claim to fully understand everything that happened, especially during the final clash between the Emperor's forces and Gu Huaiyang's. Something about SWD sacrificing himself to reseal the demon realm and in the process breaking the karmic ties between Bai Li and the demon realm, but I don't understand how he came back to life again. Did they preserve his body, or carve a new one from the wood of the sacred tree?

Maybe I missed this, but I'm also not sure what made Bai Li change his mind and make himself whole again and submit first in the relationship.

Even though it felt like I was reading in a constant state of semi-confusion, I did appreciate how the story ended, with cultivators and special powers dying out and eventually becoming a myth, exactly as SWD planned. It was gratifying to see the two of them leisurely traveling the world together centuries later, when everyone else has forgotten them. They both deserve the peaceful times after everything that's happened to them.

The writing and translation were both done beautifully. Here are some examples of passages I particularly enjoyed:

When a child who’d once been so intrigued and enthusiastic about the great wide world saw with his own eyes the lighting of the seven mountain lanterns, the rise to power of those who were clearly in the wrong; when that tiny bit of stubbornness and unruliness had become the source of bitter anguish; when he’d been exiled, forced to hide, obligated to put on a mask and feign compliance…

Gu Huaiyang understood that yearning. It was the yearning that a man lost in the desert had towards water; it was the yearning that a man who was drowning had towards air.

Those who had that kind of yearning were all insane. They wouldn’t have gotten so far without their madness.

-------------------------

Thus, he instantly averted his gaze, abruptly feeling rather clueless about how to face the current Bai Li.

Before, that person had always seemed like a child, simple and stubborn, often throwing fits of temper, always wanting things that weren’t his, not willing to compromise in the slightest, single-mindedly selfish and willful, never caring about what others thought. That was just his innate disposition; the violent bloodline of demons mixed with that of yao, hidden deep within Cangyun Valley, he’d grown up without a trace of cunning. 

That was the Bai Li he once knew, that he once liked, was annoyed by, and had even hated. He’d even faintly thought that “wouldn’t it be better if this person had never existed” before.

But now, Shi Wuduan found that all his memories regarding Bai Li were actually all jumbled.

That little fox who’d put on a smile, even if he wasn’t feeling it, just for him; that man, carrying the weight of all those demon shadows and an insane possessiveness; that demon, who on the most yin night, had ruthlessly tried to take his life; that enemy, who, at Dazhou Mountain, had drawn his bow and shot an arrow at his heart.

That Bai Li, who, in the Inferno Realm, was moody, temperamental, and in pain because his soul was incomplete; and the Bai Li that stood before him now, calm and patient. They were all Bai Li. 

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this so fast omg, I literally couldn't stop thinking about it. I think there's some not ideal parts too but I like it too much to not rate it 5 stars.

This is childhood friends to enemies to lovers. I really really liked that when they reunited again after being apart for so many years, there's this strange awkwardness because so much has changed and it's almost like you don't know the other person anymore because their demeanor is different and there's too much history there to know. But shi wuduan still chooses to trust bai li. and bai li ofc, as stubborn as he is, has loved shi wuduan this whole time.

a;lsjkdf;lkjas;ldkjfasdf I can't explain how much I like the two of them actually. This book is actually so incredibly up my alley, the childhood friends being annoying to each other but also so soft and gentle. but then also becomes enemies and being on completely opposing sides but still keeping that bit of softness for the other in ur heart and al;jksdf. there's so much like, uncontrollable outer forces that leads them to be where they are but also, they still think about their past and how they can't go back to it again but in the moments when it's just the two of them again, it sorta goes back to that and they're able to be comfortable and not hide behind a facade again and a;ljksldjflajd;lkjf;lja;sldjkf;lakjs;ldkjfas. I can't stop thinking about this book, literally everything I see reminds me of it omg

I think I personally don't have very many thoughts on politics plots in books but I think I still liked it. There was a lot a lot of details about the politics and mindschemes and the aspects of the rebellion so I think if that's ur thing along with everything else, this would def be ur thing. I liked the early aspects of shi wuduan getting out of jiulu mountain and pretending to be this calm collected slow dude who cursed ppl out internally. And I like the group for the most part that he came to be a part of, especially his relationship with Xia Duanfang lol. But I think I can definitely tell that this is an early priest work because it doesn't feel as well balanced(?) as her later works such as mo du. like balancing the thoughts and emotional narration(?)/monologues of the rebellion with actual plot stuff??? idrk how to explain it but there were a lot of long sections that were describing the state of the rebellion and imo it wasn't as compelling to me as the character dynamics (which tbh, priest never fails at)

[Zita Azlina · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 or 5 stars?
4.3, i think.

The first half of this book is a little... hard to get through. It's fine, the emotional turmoil is crazy. And the character development is amazing, too. But the pace is a little too slow and some of the filler scenes are absolutely unnecessary. Also, the relationship between Bai Li and Shi Wuduan at this first half of the book is... how do I describe it? Whimsical, I think.

Indeed that's the point. They aren't compatible, contrary on their trajectory. With all those karmic links and retribution and everything in their way, it's the beginning of their long rough road of their relationship. But it's almost so clear that Shi Wuduan want nothing to do at all with Bai Li on those whole stretch of time, in the first half of the book. Why is he suddenly in love with him the moment he is gone?

Okay, this is not new. But still, huh?

But anyway, the second half of the book is ABSOLUTELY REMARKABLE. The whole "I hate you but I love you" thing? I vomit blood as we speak. All the wars and schemes and the detailed description of Shi Wuduan's astrological calculation and arrays? Unique and astonishing.

And their love at the ending is so fucking clear that I stopped thinking about how horrible they're to each other. Oh my God. This is the most unique book I ever read.

I do know that their relationship had some flaws and the characters are a little... Eh. The only interesting person I cared about is only the main characters, Shi Wuduan and Bai Li. The other side characters? Unlike any other Priest's books, I don't even care about their wellbeing at all. No, I dont even care about their existence at all.

But well, at least the main characters are fairly interesting enough. I said fairly, because their character is not really novel and unique. (Their dynamics remind me a lot of Xiyuan, if they were to stand in the opposite sides). So this book worth more than three stars at least.

I don't know if this is biased, but I will give this book 5 anyway. 4.3, actually, but I really can't bear to give this 4 lol.

Okay, that's that. This book is amazing, but not to that extent. Love the unique concept, though. Love the the characters, too.

[Rebeca F. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of Priest's earlier works and it shows, but it's still Priest, so it was an intense ride full of complex and dark plots and brilliant characters against a backdrop of chaos in turbulent times with really lovely reflections about everything that's relevant in existence and human society, all in her usual melancholy style. Just my style.
As is usual with Priest, there's romance, which lightens a bit the story, which otherwise would be really heavy and dark (although in all honesty, the romance is heavy and dark in itself), but it's not the main focus. It's a sweet touch in a narrative that leans more toward the power conflicts, heavily focused on politics and the fight for dominance in a world ravaged by natural disasters and societal inequality.
Jin Se is a cultivation novel that follows the struggles of Shi Wuduan, the endearing and mischievous disciple of an important sect, who sees his world change after his master is murdered during a power struggle on the sect motivated by the greed of the emperor who performs a forbidden ritual to save his dying dynasty.
As usual with Priest, it's very tragic and full of complex machinations and dark plots. Just lovely.

[nolongerhuman · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️
primo libro di priest che leggo! sapevo che non fosse uno dei più conosciuti nè uno dei migliori, ma tutto sommato mi è piaciuto. il problema di questo libro più che altro è stato che le sue potenzialità non sono state sfruttate al massimo, a parer mio. i due personaggi erano davvero interessanti e il loro rapporto era così complesso che, quando in realtà è stato sviluppato bene, avrebbe potuto essere approfondito di più: la parte in cui erano intrappolati nel regno demoniaco (?) era la migliore, ma è rimasta anche l’unica in cui si sono potute osservare nel dettaglio le dinamiche fra i due. la trama ad essere sincera mi ha annoiata un po’, ma forse è colpa mia dato che l’ho letto in maniera un po’ irregolare, o semplicemente la guerra mi annoia.
detto ciò, non vedo l’ora di leggere sha po lang…per quello ho aspettative alte xD

[sitarafia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Original rating: 3.75

I read somewhere that this is one of Priest's early works? And, yes, even though it's simpler than her recent releases, it already captures her style and preference vividly, one can confidently say that "ah! This must be Pipi's work!"

Reading this after reading Pipi's recent work is definitely a humbling experience, but then it's cool to see that from Jin Se's political affair we get to Sha Po Lang, and it gets even more complicated in Tai Sui /crying/
It's cool to see her improvements, really.

Kudos to wangxianbot for translating the first few chapters, and for halfdeadhulijing for translating the rest! <3

[Xantababy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Considering Priest’s other works, I’d say this was just okay since he got a lot more amazing works. Honestly I didn’t understand half of it, especially all those astrolabe things. I think I need to reread it to fully understand. Putting those aside, the other parts are either super funny or full of angst, which I love the most while reading this novel. 😂

[Sabrina Rios · Rating 4 out of 5]

Con lo bien elaborada y establecida que está, esta historia, estoy realmente sorprendida de que sea tan corta, no puedo cree que tal viaje epico pueda comprimirse en lo que dura esta novela, AMO Priest es la diosa de mi corazon

[salted fish · Rating 5 out of 5]

ADDED TO ONE OF MY FAVORITE DANMEI NOVELS. WORDS ARE NOT ENOUGH TO DESCRIBE HOW I LOVE THIS NOVEL. I LOVE THEM SO MUCH. IM SO HAPPY THAT THEY GOT THEIR HAPPY ENDING COZ THEY DESERVES IT. I WILL SURELY MISS READING THIS NOVEL😩

[⋆ ࣪˖ ִֶָ sel ་༘࿐ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Please. The ending is so beautiful! It's so satisfying and comforting. I love LiDuan! There are moments which reminded me of Tai Sui (also by Priest), and it makes me INSANE. Jin Se is a bit fast-paced and a short read, but it's definitely a must read!

[ᓚᘏᗢ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5*

[Miryam · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5
Shi Wuduan♡Bai Li

[Daz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Masterpiece

[glau · Rating 5 out of 5]

essa cacetada da priest doeu viu

[Kav · Rating 5 out of 5]

my liduan...

[Dancce · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a weird one. Felt emotionally flat. Loved MC’s astrology powers.