Alchemy Of Souls is a 2022 Korean fantasy drama written by the Hong sisters – Hong Jung Eun and Hong Mi-ran – and directed by Park Joon Hwa. Set in the fictional country of Daeho, the series stars Lee Jae Wook, Jung So Min, Hwang Min Hyun, and Yoo In Soo.
How does Naksu become Jang Uk's maid?
Mages from Songrim, a city in Daeho, fight Naksu, a shadow assassin who kills mages. Park Jin, one of the Four Mighty Mages and Gwanju of Songrim, fights Naksu and his soldiers. Daeho Mages draw their power from the energy of a great lake, Gyeongcheondaeho, which gives their land its name. Naksu also has power and is considered one of the country's elite warriors, but is known as an assassin for having killed many magicians.
In a battle with many Songrim soldiers, Naksu is injured and runs to a nearby town. She can't run anymore, and the only way to hide from the soldiers is to transfer her soul into another body. She finds a woman and performs forbidden soul-changing magic. When Naksu wakes up, she is in the body of another woman who is blind, but Naksu can see with her eyes. She travels on a boat and tries to escape, only to discover that she doesn't have her powers. She needs her sword to get her powers, but it is next to her dead body and Park Jin has brought her to Songrim.
With the blue mark on Naksu's body, Park Jin knows that she has experienced a soul change and therefore kept her body and sword as he believes she will come to find them. Naksu, on the other hand, lives in the body of Mu Deok, who has just been sold to the Chwiseollu brothel. Joo Wol is the head of the brothel, and as she walks away, Mu Deok runs away with ornaments to sell and get some money to travel in search of his sword. She is caught by Jang Uk but threatens to kill him. Jang Uk offers her his jade tablet and lets her go.
Mu Deok goes to an illegal vendor to sell the jade tablet and is caught by Jang Uk's men. They take her to her palace and she is now assigned as Jang Uk's maid. It hurts Mu Deok's pride to serve Jang Uk, but it's safe for her to stay in the palace until she finds her sword. Jang Uk is the son of Jang Kang, one of the most powerful magicians who disappeared after Uk was born. Jang Kang exchanged souls with King Go Seong, who wanted an heir to his kingdom, and thus Jang Uk was born. Kang blocked Jang Uk's energy gate and forbade anyone from Daeho to open it.
There are four powerful magical families in Daeho Park: Seo, Jang, and Jin. The young magicians in the family are known as the four seasons in Daeho, namely Park Dang Gu, Seo Yul, Jang Uk, and Jin Cho Yeon. Among them, Jang Uk is the weakest and was expelled from many schools because no master could teach him the spells. He broke off his engagement to Jin Cho Yeon for unknown reasons. Jang Uk found out that Mu Deok is Naksu due to the bruise on her eyes, which even she doesn't know exists. Mu Deok steals Uk's tablet, which is her key to entering Songrim, and Uk follows her.
Mu Deok finds his body, but at the same time invaders attack Park Jin's palace. Uk finds Mu Deok and promises to save her only if she becomes his master and opens his energy gate. Uk knows that Naksu is the only one with power who doesn't follow his father's orders and can help him, but she is not easy to convince.
Will Naksu Jang Uk be champion?
Mu Deok is just a normal person without his sword, and she tells Jang Uk as much. He saves her from being caught, but afterwards the soldiers ask everyone in the palace to gather. Park Jin believes that there is a soulshifter among the people who helped the invaders enter Songrim. He invited Jin Cho Yeon with his Gwagu family heritage. A gwagu is a sapsali, or canine, spirit who can sense soul beasts and turn them to stone. A soulbeast goes berserk and turns into a rock when its soul collides with its trapped body.
The Gwagu takes the other soul beast and Mu Deok thinks she is safe and goes in search of her sword again. Jang Uk goes looking for her and finds her just in time to save her from the Sapsali spirit, who has sensed the soul changer in her. Jang Uk asks Mu Deok to flee while he destroys the Jin family heritage. Jang Uk is punished for multiple damages by Park Jin, and Mu Deok serves him one last time before finding his dead body and The Danju, the cult's leader.
Mu Deok returns to his old home to find everything destroyed. She leaves a note at her house to find on the illegal market and sell the plaque. She sends fireworks into the sky and Danju receives the signal. They break into her apartment and find the message. After returning, Joo tells Wol Mu Deok that her license plate was stolen. Danju's men enter the Chwiseollu and capture the woman with the plaque. They kill her and Mu Deok understands that Danju has separated her from the cult and her life is in danger.
Jin Mu appealed to make him the Gwanju of Cheonbugwan, as Jang Kang had not returned for many years. Park Jin objects to his proposal, saying that Jang Kang's son Jang Uk is still alive and has the right to become the next Gwanju. Jin Mu says that Jang Uk is weak and not strong enough to become a Gwanju. Jin Mu's request is denied, but he is given permission to burn Naksu's body and keep his sword. He pretended to retrieve Naksu's body from the invaders when he ordered the invasion.
Jin Mu will publicly cremate Naksu's body and Mu Deok is there to see him. She sees his burning body and also discovers that Jin Mu is Danju. Now she is trapped in Mu Deok's weak body forever. Jang Uk already took Naksu's sword from Jin Mu due to his right as Jang Kang's son. He gives the sword to Mu Deok and the sword recognizes its owner. However, Mu Deok cannot draw the sword. She doesn't have the energy for that. Both Jang Uk and Mu Deok are disappointed and Jang Uk asks Naksu to just live as Mu Deok for the rest of her life, but she says she would rather die and runs away.
Alchemy Of Souls Episódio 2: Ende
Gyeongcheondaeho is the tomb of soul changers whose rock-hard bodies are thrown into it. Mu Deok throws herself into the lake with her sword, but with the lake's power she manages to pull it out and it doesn't turn into a stone. Jang Uk goes to look for her at the lake after Joo Wol tells him where Mu Deok is going. Mu Deok came from the lake and she tries to draw her sword but fails again. She could only do this before because of the lake's power. Jang Uk takes her to the infirmary, where entry is prohibited, and gives Mu Deok a potion that will fade the blue scar on her eyes.
Mu Deok now knows that she can only regain her power from someone more powerful than she is. She and Jang Uk are now on the same page. No one can empower a maid, but Jang Uk is a natural born mage and can gain power. Park Jin and Heo Yeom discover that Jang Uk entered the forbidden ward and catch him. Mu Deok gives Jang Uk poison and tells Park Jin to open his energy gate to keep him alive. Mu Deok is punished, but does not tell the name of the poison. Heo Yeom has no choice but to open Jang Uk's energy gate.
Jang Uk rescues Mu Deok and after seeing him alive, Mu Deok agrees to become his master. Jang Uk was banned from receiving the energy. What will be the consequences now that your energy gate is open? We'll find out in upcoming episodes of Alchemy of Souls.
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