Mysterious Lotus Casebook

"Mysterious Lotus Casebook" is a costume wuxia mystery drama.

## Synopsis

Li Xiangyi is a legendary figure in the martial arts world, known for his unwavering commitment to justice and his unparalleled swordsmanship. He was the master of the Si Gu Sect, alongside the deputy leader — his adoptive older brother, Shan Gudao. As tensions between the Si Gu Sect and the Jin Yuan Alliance (also known as the Demon Sect) rose, war became imminent. During this conflict, Li Xiangyi found himself in a legendary battle in the East Sea against Demon Sect leader Di Feisheng, culminating in their mysterious disappearance.

Ten years later, Li Xiangyi and Di Feisheng are presumed by many to be dead, and the Si Gu Sect dissolved to form the Bai Chuan Court — a collection of martial artists who act as investigators and keepers-of-the-peace. Li Lianhua is a travelling doctor who lives in a horse-drawn building called the Lotus Tower. Despite wanting to live a quiet life, he becomes famous due to rumours about his miraculous healing abilities. He meets Fang Duobing, who aspires to become a Bai Chuan Court detective and insists that he is the last disciple of Li Xiangyi. Fang Duobing is convinced that Li Lianhua is a quack doctor, and becomes determined to prove that he is lying about his identity and abilities.

As they begin a game of cat-and-mouse, begrudgingly solving mysteries together during the chase, Di Feisheng returns to the martial arts world having spent the past ten years healing. His goal is to do battle with Li Xiangyi again and prove himself superior in their long-standing rivalry. He quickly realizes that Li Lianhua is actually Li Xiangyi, rendered almost unrecognizable by a deadly poison that has dampened his martial arts abilities and has left him with only months to live.

Li Lianhua is intent on leaving his past behind and insists that Li Xiangyi died ten years ago in the East Sea. Fang Duobing's presence in his life threatens to pull him back into the conflicts of the martial world he so desperately wants to leave behind. With Di Feisheng and Fang Duobing following him closely, his hidden identity as Li Xiangyi risks being revealed and he finds it difficult to turn his back on unsolved mysteries from his past life.  Chief among these are the suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of his adoptive brother.

## Extended Plot Description (SPOILERS)

Ten years ago, Sigu Sect and Jinyuan Alliance’s battle caused both sides to suffer huge consequences, including the disappearance of their leaders. Ten years later, Li Lianhua was a travelling miracle doctor known for bringing people back to life. In reality, he was a quak with not one ounce of medical knowledge. Nevertheless, not knowing the truth, most people believed Li Lianhua really could resurrect people. Thus, people from the Fenghuo Hall wanted him to bring a thief they killed back to life so he could tell them where the object he stole was. After being tricked by Li Lianhua, they threw him into a restaurant where, seemingly by accident, he backed into the table Fang Duobing was sitting at. After Fang Duobing got him out of trouble, Li Lianhua drugged his tea (since the thief - who wasn't actually dead - was actually stealing something for Li Lianhua).

Soon after, Li Lianhua met Fang Duobing again in the Lingshan Sect where Fang Duobing forced him to help him investigate the Lingshan Sect Master's death. After successfully cracking that case, Fang Duobing followed Li Lianhua to his Lotus Tower and invited himself to dinner. Li Lianhua got him drunk, dumped him by a tree and drove away in his house.

Suspecting Li Lianhua of being the Medicine Demon of the Jinyuan Alliance, Fang Duobing tracked him down again at Xiaomian Inn where, following Yu Qiushuang's murder, they were both apprehended and brought to Yu City. Again, Fang Duobing forced Li Lianhua to investigate the case with him. Following the resolution of that case, Li Lianhua discovers that Di Feisheng is still alive and, wishing to question him about the whereabouts of his martial brother's body, drugs and abandons Fang Duobing for the third time.

Li Lianhua suspected that Di Feisheng would seek the Guanyin's Tears - a legendary medicine rumoured to be in the Yipin Tomb - to further regain his martial arts, so made his way to Pingshan Town where an expedition into the tomb was being prepared. Fang Duobing, intending to investigate a case, met him there again. Also among the expedition team was a child whom Li Lianhua recognised as Di Feisheng. Li Lianhua poisoned the Guanyin's Tears, thus disabling Di Feisheng's martial arts when he consumed them and made a bargain with Di Feisheng to restore his martial arts if he told him where Shan Gudao's body was.

Their investigations lead them to Cailian Manor where they crack another case involving the man who hid Shan Gudao's body. Thus, Li Lianhua's ten-year search for his martial brother's body concluded. With Di Feisheng's end of the bargain completed, Li Lianhua abandoned Fang Duobing again and went with Di Feisheng to restore his martial arts. Obsessed with having another duel with Li Xiangyi, Di Feisheng tried to cure Li Lianhua of the Bicha Poison to no avail. Upon learning that the Styx Flower is the only cure, he dispatched people to find it.

To force Li Lianhua into a duel, Di Feisheng revealed that Fang Duobing was Shan Gudao's son. He fatally injured Fang Duobing, agreeing to heal him only if Li Lianhua agreed to duel him. To save Fang Duobing while not agreeing to Di Feisheng, Li Lianhua went to Yuanbao Villa in search of the Bolan Goblet which could cure Fang Duobing. After curing Fang Duobing, Li Lianhua saw Zongzheng Mingzhu stealing the Bolan Goblet and fought him, managing to retrieve the Goblet. However, Zongzheng Mingzhu escaped with the Ice Fragment that was stored with the Bolan Goblet. Shortly afterwards, Li Lianhua discovered that Shan Gudao's death seemed to have a connection to Nanyin - a nation that was conquered nearly a century ago - and began investigating.

As Li Lianhua's investigations progressed, he began to feel that all the events both ten years ago and in the present seemed to centre around Shan Gudao's death. He also discovered that Nanyin left a mysterious object that would enable its descendants to restore the nation. He concluded that the Rama Ice Fragments - such as the one found in Yuanbao Villa - must be keys to the object.

It was later revealed that the object in question was Rama Tripod which contained Yehuo Bugs - a Nanyin technique which enabled them to control other people. Shan Gudao's death became increasingly suspicious as Li Lianhua realised that the symbol of the mysterious Wansheng Sect (which had been allied with Jiao Liqiao since ten years ago and was the only side that received benefits from Sigu Sect and Jinyuan Alliance's battle) was the same as a jade pendant worn by Shan Gudao. This discovery was accompanied by the revelation of Li Lianhua's true identity to Fang Duobing - who, feeling betrayed, vowed revenge on Li Lianhua if it was ever proven that Shan Gudao was murdered by Li Xiangyi.

After being reassured that Li Xiangyi couldn't have had anything to do with Shan Gudao's death and learning that Li Lianhua was dying from the Bicha Poison, Fang Duobing ceased to be angry at him. In an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to cure Li Lianhua, Fang Duobing took him to the residence of Li Xiangyi's master where they discovered that Shan Gudao hated Li Xiangyi all along.

Shortly following that revelation, a very alive Shan Gudao revealed himself to Fang Duobing and Li Lianhua. It was revealed that the battle between Sigu Sect and Jinyuan Alliance ten years ago - which resulted in heavy casualties to both sides - was orchestrated by Shan Gudao so his Wansheng Sect would gain power. With the help of the Rama Tripod and other Nanyin descendants, Shan Gudao aimed to make himself - a descendant of Nanyin royalty - emperor and restore his country. He allied himself with Jiao Liqiao's Yulong Niuma Gang, intending to betray her. On the other side of the alliance, Jiao Liqiao - descended from Nanyin royalty herself - wanted to betray Shan Gudao and make herself emperor.

Li Lianhua became determined to stop Shan Gudao and was assisted in his efforts by Fang Duobing and later Di Feisheng. They have a confrontation with Shan Gudao and Jiao Liqiao, resulting in Jiao Liqiao's death at Di Feisheng's hands and Shan Gudao's at Li Lianhua's. It was revealed that Shan Gudao wasn't in fact descended from Nanyin royalty - his jade pendant by which other Nanyin descendants recognised him was supposed to belong to Li Xiangyi's deceased older brother. Thus, Li Lianhua was the true Nanyin descendant.

After putting an end to Shan Gudao's scheme, Di Feisheng gave Li Lianhua the Styx Flower which he obtained from Shan Gudao. Di Feisheng challenged Li Lianhua to a duel in 15 days time by the sea, by which time Li Lianhua would have cured himself using the Styx Flower. Unexpectedly, however, Li Lianhua secretly gave the Styx Flower to the emperor who was recovering from poisoning and by doing so cleared himself and Fang Duobing's family of suspicion for treason.

Without the Styx Flower, Li Lianhua became ill after using Yangzhou Man to cure Yun Biqiu. Somewhat recovered the following day, he secretly left the Lotus Tower. On the appointed day of Li Lianhua and Di Feisheng's duel, a letter was delivered to Fang Duobing from Li Lianhua which stated that he had died. Unconvinced, Fang Duobing vowed to find Li Lianhua no matter what.