Ballad of Ten Thousand Gu

Description

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Before she jumped into the pond filled with ten thousand venomous creatures, Ah Lai asked her, ‘Did you ever regret meeting him?’

Su Bai watched her quietly. After a long moment, she lifted her lips and smiled. ‘It was the greatest blessing of my life to have met him.’

And she leapt off the steps.

She thought: no matter how difficult her love was, no matter how she hated and then despaired, in this life, she was immensely fortunate.

Because she had once loved a person so deeply.

Even if, he had never loved her.

Associated Names
One entry per line
Ru Gu Xiang Si
Wan Gu Yao
万蛊谣
如蛊相思
Related Series
N/A
Recommendations
Mulberry Song (3)
Falling Dreams of Fang Hua (2)
Beauty to Ashes (2)
I Couldn’t Ask (2)
Hua Xu Yin (1)
Love in Another Life: My Gentle Tyrant (1)
Recommendation Lists
  1. Best of all times
  2. Cried a river
  3. Historical Romance
  4. Novels in 2024 and 2025
  5. Novels i would take to my grave#2

Latest Release

Date Group Release
10/03/17 catharcity epilogue
10/02/17 catharcity c3
10/02/17 catharcity c2
10/01/17 catharcity c1
09/30/17 catharcity prologue
Review
44 Reviews


KKristen
KKristen
Apr 19, 2018
Status: epilogue
I made the mistake of reading this without reading any of the other reviews.

There are only two things you need to know:

1) This is an amazing short story with a great translation. It is honestly one of the best on NU.

... more>> 2) YOU WILL NOT BE HAPPY READING THIS. You will rage at the world with the rest of us. Every fiber of your being will be filled with righteous indignation and angst.

Ballad of Ten Thousand Gu is really, really good. You won't regret reading it... except YOU WILL REGRET READING IT.

Be warned. <<less
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Skilvh
Skilvh
Dec 11, 2017
Status: epilogue
This is one of the best angst, sad & ironic short story that I've read.

I feel so conflicted in this story. :' (On one hand, I'm happy that they're together, too bad the FL didn't remember, on the other hand I'm angry at the ML for what he'd done. (He should have told her from the start on his plan!! And more over! At least at the end, the author should have at least show a short scene of them killing the b*tch Ah Lai!!! --Kkuuuuhh!! Biting and pulling a handkerchief with my teeth and both hands--)

SOL (Screaming Out Loud) : Ah Lai!!! I hate you two-faced b*tch!! I hope you die! Even if the author didn't wrote you die! I'm torturing you in my mind!!!
-whispers- only... more>> for a few mins after I finished reading this story.

Thank you catharcity's group TRANSLATOR for translating this story~
Love it~! <<less
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asyuki
asyuki
Apr 15, 2021
Status: --
This was tragic and sad but not for the reasons that's stems out of a sorrowful love story, nope, Su Bai was s*upid which eventually brought her doom.

If anything I'm mad, why on earth would she abandon her country and actively choose to slaughter them when her whole reasoning lies upon a man who couldn't give two sh*ts about you.

I don't even pity her, in the name of her "love" she has deliberately chosen to be ignorant and foolish. Her agony was well deserved imo.
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hikaoru
hikaoru
May 18, 2018
Status: epilogue
the MC, Su Bai's life can be summarized through her own statement:

"Master, you said that you would give me a home, but in the end, all that you have given me was a lifetime of sadness."

... more>>
Spoiler

and until the end, that bastard ML (which is also her master Yue Yi) for me still gave her a cruel life after her "death". Nothing can be changed with treating Jue Sha as Su Bai which already turned into a monster no matter how much she tried on not forgetting him (she can only remember his name, and not even herself) or how hard he showed his love for her.

if I were her, I would asked (upon reincarnation) to not meet that bastard ever again, but since she is loving him unconditionally, without him giving anything in return, she gave everything she had, even if it means it is her own life, killing and betraying her countrymen and giving her all. And that bastard have taken her everything without even giving her not even a single drop of love and care. She was even treated even worse than a s*ave since he only wants power. Bullsh*t and son of a b*tch ML.

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i hope that there will be a sequel which shows themselves facing a God deciding on their reincarnation in which a BETTER ML is introduced, MC asking to not ever meet this bastard ML, and bastard ML asking to see her again in their next lifetime. That way, bastard ML will turn to be her brother and feel all the hurt she felt before of unrequited love and seeing her happy with someone a whole lot better than him.

i want an ending just like how MC ended up being happy from the CN Grabbing Your Hand, Dragging you Away in which MC became happy after her reincarnation because her fiance and sister in her past life betrayed her and caused her immediate death. <<less
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theragingpanda
vuio
Jan 01, 2018
Status: epilogue
I don't care what his reason is. I still hate him. Oh my god, I cried so much.

This is 99999/5! A gem. A tragic gem! Ugh, my head hurts from crying so much.

Its short but it contain lots of sadness. Holy shit, I can't man. I keep crying whenever I thought of Su Bai's life. I hate Yue Chi. I hate Ah Lai. But I hate the master more.
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HitchHiker
HitchHiker
Dec 25, 2021
Status: --
This is quite well written to be a tear jerker. But my problem with this is that the actions of the ML are not logical. There is no explanation given for why acts like a jerk to her for her entire life when he actually cared.

Su Bai was super s*upid and heartless to go to war against her own people for a guy who wants to throw her out for being useless. Giving up on going back to her country was kind of lame but OK. Actually slaughtering her own... more>> people puts her at a place where she is bringing all of these on herself. There is absolutely no explanation at all for Yue Chi's terrible behaviour except he couldn't be bothered and took her for granted.

It made me cry buckets while reading it. But a little bit of thought makes this whole thing seem like rather pointless misery for the heck of it. <<less
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Xian-laoshi
Xian-laoshi
Jul 23, 2020
Status: Completed
A heart-wrenching love story filled with misunderstandings and unselfish sacrifices before finding the love that one had longed for so long, has always been by their side.

This short story teaches us that love requires proper communication and considerations.

She loved so deeply and unconditionally, willing to go to unimaginable heights just to fulfill his wishes.

He loves secretly and confusingly, causing despair upon the other and himself, until he achieved his bittersweet retribution.

(I believe this is a spoiler-free summary and review.)
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Mmand1
Mmand1
Oct 22, 2017
Status: epilogue
Short and tragic.

I was sobbing the entire time!

Yue Chi did not deserve Su Bai. Hers is love that is pure and (albeit s*upid) unwavering.

I still feel heavy-hearted with the ending. I need someone to slap to Ah Lai a hundred thousand times then she can be pushed to a Gu pond.
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DOHere
DOHere
Feb 10, 2019
Status: epilogue
Spoiler

The ml, even though he didn't mean to go through with the exchange, he still wanted to risk her life for that s*upid gu weapon. First she went to war for him, against her own nation to boost, then she gave her life for him.

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I don't like though that are a few unanswered questions we don't even have any clues for:
Spoiler

Why didn't he wipe her tears then after he told her about the exchange? Why didn't he even come out to meet her?
Why was he only smiling when the princess sang?
Also, why did he tell her he no longer had any use for and to continue her own training to become a good Gu Master? Of course, she was also crying as she pleaded with him back then, but he remained cold.

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Yukari_me
Yukari_me
Oct 03, 2017
Status: Completed
All I can say is that this story is really heart wrenching. But not that much as like the others but it has enough bitterness in it that we can relate if we are so devoted in love. Although there are those usual clichés where someone that appears and makes everything worse it was alright.

This story is about the last surivor of a young girl from a general's residence that got her family massacred mysteriously in one night. After surviving such an ordeal, Su Bai was then given a home... more>> by a famous Gu master named Yue Chi in another country. She was taken as an apprentice and worked hard to become a Gu master like her shifu. Falling in love and enjoying her peaceful life like never before. Sadly, she was schemed by a woman who came as a princess of the kingdom she was in and met Ah Lai, who slowly took everything from her and even tricked her in participating in a war between her home country and the country her shifu is in.

Su Bai fought with the army of the country she is in to show that she is loyal but sadly she was only used to be a chess piece that can be discarded by the army leading to her start of death after she knew the reason of her families death by a young general loyal to her family. After learning of the events that happened Su Bai fought to survive against the 2 armies that was set on killing her and went back to her shifu only to be told by Ah Lai that she will be going to her home country to be exchanged by a powerful gu that her master needs and getting told that she wasn't needed anymore. Su Bai didn't believe her and chose to seek her master only to be told that she really is going to her home country with him to get the powerful gu named Jue Sha. Su Bai felt betrayed and ran away sacrificing herself to become a gu much powerful than Jue Sha and jumped into a pond of gu to turn herself into a new Jue Sha and succeeded. She became someone who stayed by her master's side never leaving his side ever again.

I really liked the plot so I gave it a 5 for getting straight into action without wasting so much time on things that's not even worth talking about. As for the characters, it have some realistic traits in them on how devoted they are to one another that left me feeling bitter sweet in my heart. Although it was only 3 chapters and with an epilogue it was done quite well by how the conflict was smoothly resolved and got a happy ending at the end. Everything really is well done half way and it was quite good. That is, except the ending. It left me feeling like when I read a book where it was all good in the beginning making you feel so excited then suddenly BOOM! You got a shallow ending.

Spoiler

I don't know to others but the ending got me really unsatisfied. After Yue Chi knew what happened to Su Bai after 3 years by going to a Dream Master that Su Bai met before she died, it got really good in the beginning as to how he slowly felt regret and realization on the truth on why she suddenly disappeared on the night after she came home from the war. How she freaking kneeled in front of his room asking for answers if they really were going to go back to her home country. Yue Chi repled yes but I don't know if there was anything wrong with his brain or probably this was just something that happens often which in my opinion is a big fat no and casually go to bed after he answered her and still let her kneel there even though its raining for a realllllyyyy long time. What's more she was crying her lungs out outside his room while getting soaked in the rain. Like wtf bro why didn't you notice something was wrong when she kneeled for so long and even cried until her voice turned hoarse then you just start regretting everything. After she finally accepted reality she decided to stay by her master's side and become someone useful to him no mater what and thus she jumped into a pond of gu and became the most powerful gu. The price though, was that she will forget everything about her past in order to fully become a gu with no feelings.

After everything had come to light Yue Chi laughed so hard from the regret and fell unconscious after coughing blood and once he woke up he looked for Su Bai who now has turned into a gu and left together with her as he smiled so sweetly. Then the end. Like, thats it? Really thats it? The story didn't progress further not telling us on what happened to Ah Lai and if Yue Chi obtained the other Jue Sha from Su Bai's enemy who killed her family and got revenge for her. Although I think there might be more chapters but for now im so unsatisfied since it left readers with a lot of questions still yet to be answered.

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Although there some holes that we could pick on but this story is still something that everyone should try reading. If your someone who just wants to cry for no reason then read this novel and let you feel the feels. The translator did a really good job in translating it since we could really feel that each word was pasted with guilt all over it from the male lead's perspective. While the female lead left us feeling that love is something that can save us but can also be the reason it kill us. Its a must read still so go for it! <<less
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Tikkitumble
Tikkitumble
Oct 03, 2017
Status: epilogue
I had tears spewing from my eyes while I'm reading this on the train. It's a good short story, the essence of emotions and longing encapsulated within a few chapters. Very bittersweet.

I'm not sure why the ML treated Su Bai the way he did, and that part was largely unsatisfying and never explained (you can assume, but it was open-ended.)

But the tension and drama of the story was done well. Lots of anguish, sacrifice and tears.
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tedy2004
tedy2004
Sep 21, 2020
Status: --
1 star for author's ML and FL making them entirely s*upid. I really mean it, cause he was really sleeping in the novel all the time really for me this is not tragic at all, this is just 100x misunderstandings because of 0 communication between ML and FL. The reason for that are ML's actions: "Oh, I don't talk with her at all because I know that she believes in me, all the time!!!, so there is no need for communication, let Ah Lai give Su Bai trials to see... more>> if she believes in me continously." -.-

Spoiler

The FL could have asked ML if he loved Ah Lai. The ML could have told the FL before Ah Lai coming to the Gu South Residence, that he was planning to use Ah Lai etc but again everything was ruined with the ML being OOC with that s*upid sentence, when he started to warmly smile at Ah Lai and no communication at all.

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Really such a dissapointment "tragic" novel. The ML laughing at the end is really blaming the author for making him OOC.... sigh.... <<less
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Anagnorizien
Anagnorizien
Apr 17, 2020
Status: Completed
This got me so choked up. ? The only thing that got this story lose 1 star is my unreconciled feeling about Ah Lai.

Spoiler

What happened to that damned bish Ah Lai? I so want her to suffer more than Xiao Bai did! ? Yue chi you dumb man! You should've treated poor Xaio Bai better! For a person who claims to know Su Bai the best, you sure is dumb for not alleviating the pain she felt all along. I doubt that he loved her as much as she did him because as much as I know, you don't treat the one you love like that.

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xuexin
xuexin
Nov 25, 2019
Status: Completed
Damn, that's really tragic.

All of this could have been avoid if ML treated her well. I still feel that in the end he didn't love her the same way she did. Maybe he did only when she disappeared or after he saw what happened. But I still think that he doesn't love her, at least not romantically. I think he felt the way he did only because of guilt. Just my two cents.
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BillionJellyfish
BillionJelly
Feb 03, 2018
Status: Completed
*SLIGHT SPOILER ALERT*

THIS IS AN ANGSTY SHORT STORY.

This story is one of the ones that I dislike the most because it contains angst, but went ahead to read it anyways due to curiosity and I ended up torturing my poor heart. The MC isn't really the main character since she only narrates the story of the side characters and connects the dots of the tragedy.

The ML is either a complete a**hole or a really dense low EQ idiot or both. The characters are in a master-disciple relationship. The Master sent... more>> the Disciple to fight a war and after the war was over, the Master then sent the Disciple to marry an enemy in exchange for a rare specimen/more power basically while the Disciple was madly in love with the Master. But what a surprise, it turns out the Master was faking the whole marriage thing in order to steal the rare specimen but s*upidly, he never told the Disciple his plan because he just didn't (like how dumb can you get, this is a risky plan and you don't even tell the person involved). Anyways, this is when tragedy strikes because the Disciple slipped away from the arranged marriage and destroys herself. I seriously felt sad after reading the story, but thinking back on it, I find both the FL and ML have really low EQ and IQ. Like, why did they not talk it out first? If there's a problem in any relationship, then it's the best course of action to resolve it through communication and not to start making up wild assumptions and then proceeding to act based on those nonexistent problems. The more I think about it, the more annoyed I get because there was literally a hundred and one ways that this whole plot could have been resolved if only the FL or ML was more proactive in their pursuit for true love but whatever, the story ended the way it did.

Overall, I would still recommend this short story for those interested in angsty plots or tragic love stories. I want every one to feel the same way I felt after reading this, so please read it too! TT ^ TT <<less
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Chan2
Chan2
May 05, 2018
Status: Completed
I think I re-read this short story 6 times and each time my tears flow like Yangtze River. It was an excruciating read.

The MC's life is so pitiful. Lost parents and rest of family members at a tender age of 12. However that is not the end of her pain. Desperate for a sense of belonging and also love, she devotedly serves Southern Zhao and Lord Yue Chi for ten years hoping in return that she will have a home to come back to. Unbeknown to her, her father's subordinates... more>> have been searching for her to bring her back to her homeland. In her blind belief in Yue Chi, she killed her fellow countrymen. The excruciating pain she felt hearing the truth from Su San must have been unbelievable. Last but not least, feeling all hope gone, she became a thousand Gu creature just to fulfil Yue Chi's ambition and to be with him for all eternity.

The angst I have with this short story was there was no repercussion on the deeds of the villain, Ah Lai. <<less
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Aks96
Aks96
Mar 04, 2022
Status: Completed
One of the best story I have ever read.

Why I liked :

1) The way the story was written is just EPIC.

... more>> 2) It has been years since I cried and this novel made me cried. Though its Painful but still a good read. After crying the hell out and Cursing that b*tch Ah Lai and her 9 generations I feel refreshed.

3) The story has a lose end making you believe what you want to. Just imagine it to be a happy ending in the end.

What I Hate :

1) I cant go back to those Cliche sh*t of Webnovels, system novels, etc. Anymore after reading this beautiful piece of art.

2) That b*tch Ah Lai was not tortured to death.

Many people complain why the master acted like that or why he didnt do this or that but to me this is the Charm of this novel. This novel portrays what that Fate/Heaven divining master knows. What he sees is what we read. And yep he does not know all details between Su Bai and her Master. He only knows what Su Bai tells him. So yep we cant just tell that the Master is ret*rded as we only know a very small story about their life.

The heck. I tried giving it 5 dtar why is it showing 2 star.

Guys Its a solid 10/10 novel. Idk how I rated this 2 star.

Can anybody tell me how can I modify it. <<less
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remyrem
remyrem
Jan 19, 2022
Status: --
I went straight to the epilogue because that's what I like to do for fully TLed tragedies when I'm not sure if I should read it, and I ended up in too much emotional pain that I didn't want to read the other chapters.

The "ML realizes his mistakes too late and goes crazy/delusional from heartbreak" trope always gets me. I can't feel bad for the FL, because as someone else commented, this way she gets to be with her love forever but will never again have to feel pained or... more>> sad. On the other hand, ML finds out those 3 years while he was looking for her, he had already thoughtlessly made her his gu, and now that he knows he can't even do anything because she doesn't remember anything (and seems to not even understand how to be human anymore). He's stuck with the sins of his past with no way to make up for them, while the result of his mistakes is with him everyday to remind him of the past. In the end, all he can do is trap himself in his own world where he can pretend Jue Sha is still Su Bai and relive their happier past when they first met.

I give this a full 5 stars for making me cry until I have snot and tears running down my face. <<less
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Crescent
Crescent
Aug 01, 2021
Status: epilogue
Short and tragic story. I felt really upset for the FL (Su Bai) because I really empathised with her earnest dedication and how she worked hard despite all the difficulties she faced in her life. Reading her pursuit of the ML (Yue Chi) was difficult at times because I really wanted to punch him for being so s*upid. It's honestly amazing how she remained earnest towards him despite his stoic personality. I had mixed feelings about the ML and felt that the story discredited him as a plausible love interest.... more>>
Spoiler

Su Bai had a massive misunderstanding about ML loving Ah Bai (side character) because he smiled towards her many times while being all indifferent and callous to FL (e.g., never smiling towards Su Bai). They never really explain why he acted so differently. I mean let's say that even if he was trying to avoid his feelings towards Su Bai by being indifferent to only her, why the heck is he so nice to Ah Bai? Of course FL is going to misunderstand. I mean for someone who supposedly loves FL only, he doesn't show it very well, if at all until the very end.

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dyknowsaur
dyknowsaur
Mar 19, 2020
Status: epilogue
Had this on my yet to read list for too long. Finally read this short story. It's really good! It's well written, well translated. It will pull at your heartstrings.

Give it a chance. Join the rest of us.
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