A weak Xianxia made even more lackluster by the apparent lack of chemistry between the main leads. If you've seen one Xianxia then you've seen them all and IMO, it's the dynamics between the various characters that elevate one above the other. The problem with TSL is that the characters don't look like distinct individuals who are unique or peculiar but as extensions of each other where they're rendered useful or useless depending on the current status or experiences of the leads. I could probably overlook this had there been raised stakes where we didn't know who or what would pose a threat to our leads. Except we knew from the outset who the villains were and we understood their simplistic thoughts which is what almost all XX characters want. Power. Or specifically becoming the Crown Prince (for the Void dwellers) and becoming the Powerful Overlord (for the Heavenly Prince).

Even more spirit-dampening was the '3 shards' arc, where all the interesting things about the preceding episodes went to die. I legit yawned and FF'ed my way through it.

Look, I've been upfront about my lack of love for this genre because if not done properly, it tends to veer toward the "doom to mankind and only our hero can possibly save the world" kind of drama.

Which is what this was.