What actually happens to Beefleaf in Canon?
I feel like there are a lot of misconceptions about what happens to Beefleaf in canon. Most of this misconceptions are due to the deceptive way in which the story is constructed, which has the objective of increasing the perceived terror leading up to the confrontation against Black Water, to maximize it during the very confrontation and, in order to do so, temporarily gives the reader false information about Black Water, that is rectified later in the story, sometimes even after the end of the Black Water arc. Some of these misconceptions are actually encouraged by the author as a mean to create fear in her characters, before being disproved.
Due to the structure of the story, what actually happens in canon may be lost on a first reading, but it becomes more obvious during a second reading, when one can revisit older scenes, knowing He Xuan’s identity and motivations.
In this meta I will examine:
When does He Xuan substitute the Earth Master?
Xie Lian’s deduction
Ming Yi’s Face
When does He Xuan discover about the traded fates?
Xie Lian’s deduction
Why did He Xuan infiltrate the heavens?
What did He Xuan want for Shi Qingxuan?
The escape from the Water Master’s palace
Shi Qingxuan’s corruption
He Xuan hurting Shi Qingxuan
Was He Xuan really going to trade Shi Qingxuan’s fate?
The MDZS parallels
About He Xuan’s characterization
He Xuan’s goodness and his fight against tyranny
He Xuan’s diet
He Xuan’s bearing
The “Not your best friend” gag
As this meta’s focus is on misconceptions, Beefleaf’s romatic troping won’t be examined in here, unless relevant to the meta’s scope.
So, let’s get right into it!
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