If you are a fan of “The Lost Tomb Series”, then the”Archives: The Nanyang Mystery” should be on your watchlist!!

Stepping away from the main universe that encompasses “The Lost Tomb Series”, the storyline follows the members of the Southern Archives, a mysterious unit belonging to the Zhang family. For those who aren’t acquainted with the central characters of this universe, we are talking about Zhang Qiling’s clan, who appear in most shows belonging to “The Lost Tomb Series” alongside the other main characters, Wu Xie & Fatty Wang. Adapted from the web novel “Daomu Biji: The Southern Archives” (盜墓筆記：南部檔案（食人奇荒) in the novel series “The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles” (盗墓笔记) by Kennedy Xu (南派三叔), the storyline focuses on the director of Southern Archives, Zhang Hai Qi and her adopted disciples, Zhang Hai Lou & Zhang Haixia. As they rediscover a long-lost secret buried by the Zhang clan, their bonds are tested by time & tide.

Storyline & Chemistry-

In the early years of the Republic of China era, a bizarre murder case occurs at sea in Nanyang. Zhang Hai Xia (Ding Yu Xi) and Zhang Hai Lou (Zhang Xin Cheng), the youngest staff members from the Southern Archives, were dispatched by the Zhang family to investigate the mysterious events. As they begin to investigate the deadly occurrences,, they are drawn into a deadly trap used to hunt down members of the Zhang family overseas, using the “Twilight Grass Phenomenon”. While saving Zhang Hai Lou, Zhang Hai Xia is seriously injured and left disabled.

Ten years, their Southern Archives has been shut down, and they have lost communication with their mentor, Zhang Hai Qi (Jiang Pei Yao), the director of Southern Archives. Hai Xia offers his life in a scheme to break the deadlock, sending Hai Lou aboard the giant ship, the Nan’an, back to Xiamen, in hopes of giving him a chance to survive. They are separated as they investigate the origin of the “Twilight Grass”. Forced to fake his death, Hai Xia is later bought back to life using ancient herbs belonging to the Zhang family. Unfortunately, the herbs have a drastic effect on his psyche and Zhang Hai Xia starts suffering from split personality disorder.

The twin personalities inside his body fight for dominance, as Zhang Hai Xia tries his best to solve the mystery surrounding the Twilight Grass and stopping his other personality from causing chaos. As things spiral out of control, Hai Lou is faced with the difficult choice of killing Hai Xia to save humanity.

Zhang Xin Cheng became well known in the Chinese BL circles for his portrayal of Pei Su in “Justice in the Dark.” The bromance in this show became so popular that the Chinese government censored the show, and it had to be released overseas through Japanese platforms. But that didn’t stop Zhang Xin Cheng from stepping into another bromance. His chemistry with Ding Yu Xi is out of the world. The love and trust between Hai Xia & Hai Lou can move mountains. Even though they are adopted brothers, their relationship is truly beyond that.

Final Impressions

The bromance thrives on the love between Hai Xia & Hai Lou. There is no other explanation for the sacrifices that Hai Xia makes!!

Zhang Hai Xia is indeed quite pitiful. Firstly, he gets grievously injured while protecting Hai Lou. Seated in a wheelchair, he still tries his level best to help his mentor and Hai Lou. Even when he is losing his mind, his consciousness always awakes whenever Hai Lou is in danger. In the end, he dies at the hands of the person whom he loved the most. Jiang Pei Yao does a fantastic job of embodying Zhang Hai Qi’s bold demeanor. Her relationship with her disciples is warm and endearing. This is one of those classics that will leave you riveted!!

Rating- 4.5 out of 5

Streaming on- IQIYI