Original subtitles

Time passes. Seasons change.

What actually is 'time'?

If we could control time - travel back and forth,

could we then change fate and rewrite history?

Mankind has always explored this riddle of time

Scientists discovered that time is actually speed

If we could master the secrets of speed,

then we could control time

And thus control the past and the future

Man devised technology to break the sound barrier

But even faster than sound - is light

And so, we wait to see how light-speed can be broken

Will such future technology

be rockets and spaceships?

Or will it just be a program developed on the internet?

Remains of ancient civilizations actually show us

some did traverse space-time

came to this world

Mysteries of the ancients

the pyramids, the heads on Easter Island,

or the still-unexplained Mayan civilization

And sages who could predict the future,

were they cosmic travelers who held the secrets to space-time?

I can tell you now

There really were those who became time travelers.

Because I am one of them

Back then, the Ming empire was formidable

I was one of the Emperor's elite guard

I was born in 1591

When I was ten, Nurhaci united the Manchu banners,

the Italian missionary Matteo Ricci came to China

I was drafted into the imperial court, away from Taoyuan village and my people

Away from my people

I was then placed into a training camp for the elite guard.

Training was arduous,

but that's how I met the friends who'd die for each other

Can you do it?

Yes, we can!

He Ying,

what do you want do when you grow up?

Me? I'm gonna be a real man -

a servant of the court and a good son

- That's it? - Yep. What about you?

I'll do something big

so I don't waste the skills I've learned

And you, Niehu? What's your dream?

I want to marry a beautiful wife

You wish

Dream on

What about you, Sao?

Me? Let me think

I want a giant chicken leg,

a drumstick so big, I'll never finish it

You're hopeless!

It's always about food!

"1624 AD"

The four of us were sent out west

I never expected that expedition would change my life

Shall we?

Let's go!

I met a holy monk

He bestowed on me the secret to time travel

Can you swear on your life

that you will never reveal the chant that starts the orb?

That monk had me deliver the orb to the capital

But the Emperor was young and neglected his duties

I don't think we should give him the Linga

For the sake of the people,

I will forever guard the the orb's secret

Deceiving the Emperor could cost your head

For you

Alright

This almost cost me my life four hundred years later

That was a catastrophe

Or should I call it a conspiracy

From the western reaches, I bring back this sacred orb!

Long live the Emperor!

Please slow down, Your Highness

This western campaign has wrought great rewards,

but why has General He Ying not returned?

Eunuch Wei,

Japanese pirates and Jurchen forces lurk at our borders

Generals He and Sao received word en route

and voluntarily set off to fight them

That pleases me greatly

Especially this golden orb

It is the work of the gods

Put it in the treasure stores so that I can toy with it!

General Yuanlong, is there some way to operate this orb?

It requires something called a Linga.

He Ying has it

This orb has the power to alter time and space

Are you telling me everything?

As your ally, I of course would conceal nothing

But you are destined to suffer great calamity

What calamity?

Life becomes death. Death becomes life. In three cycles

By Heaven's authority, the Emperor decrees

He Ying has failed him, colluding with pirates,

and slaughtering Justice Minister Du's entire family

I have been honest and true all my life

I could not possibly commit such murders!

The Emperor has ordered your whole clan's execution!

That was the avalanche that buried us

When we awoke,

it was to a world hundreds of years later

"Route 3, Hong Kong"

An illicit businessman smuggling national treasures

brought Niehu, Sao, and me down to Hong Kong

I met many strange people

They said I was from the past

At first, I couldn't believe it

But everything here was so unimaginable,

it wasn't a matter of believing

Luckily, she was at my side,

helping me understand what to me was a totally unfamiliar world of the future

And yet I never expected

that my three best friends

would be here as well

Four hundred years later,

they still believed

I was an ungrateful traitor who abandoned the Ming empire

Even more unexpected

was that their pursuit would paralyze all of Hong Kong

And that is how I fell into the sea

At that moment,

I thought I had left the world for good

Thus is your fate

and thus is the test Heaven hath given

Should you pass this adversity,

you will reach another plane

Inspector! Inspector!

About the chaos at the bridge caused by the strange men,

does the police have any comment?

Can you tell us anything?

sir, we got the one from the ocean and took him to the morgue

Be right there

There's another one held in solitary

I just checked. He still has a pulse

Niehu

Boss!

Eat something

If everything you say is true,

then I say write a book

Write it all down.

It ought to do better than that Palace series

- He's still alive. - What do you mean?

I have to find him

Where would you look?

Police are still investigating the bizarre events at the bridge,

but have declined further comment

The deputy inspector of this case

has been missing for several days

and is a suspect in an officer's death in the morgue

Police have ordered his arrest

Sao isn't important to us

Only He Ying knows the chant

Help me find the orb. It's the only way back

Not in my wildest dreams did I imagine

Yuanlong would be the one to save me

The execution of the Minister's family was really a setup

My brothers finally realized they had me all wrong

But with all of Hong Kong looking for me,

I had to completely change my look

To save my mother and my village,

I had to change history

But first I needed to find May

She had to be worried about me

So he got here before you did

and now he's even some kind of

assistant police chief?

If he hadn't intervened to save me,

I would've been a goner

Hey, you cut your hair

That's right, I did

Because I needed a fresh start

May, I really must thank you

for looking after me all this time

Oh, you noticed

So what are your plans?

Actually...I came to say goodbye

You're going back to the Ming era?

How is that possible?

Yuanlong found the orb!

He found the orb!

Hey, why don't we take a selfie?

The times have moved on

The old hutongs are all gone

Now they're all these strange, tall buildings

Let me use your phone

You have friends in Beijing?

How could I have friends in a place like this?

But I've got one in Hong Kong

"At the capital, don't worry"

The Emperor was young and Eunuch Wei ran amok

He died after a six year reign

Chongzhen ascended. He fought the tide,

but the dynasty was doomed

This is the Ming Mausoleum

Thirteen of the Emperors are buried here

"A country falls, the land remains. The city in spring, green grows thick"

Look at the Forbidden City of today

Back then, no one could enter

Now, anyone who buys a ticket can go in

How were you able to find the orb in the palace?

It was in the northwest treasure room all along

At the end of the Qing dynasty,

a great fire struck the treasure stores

Eunuchs smuggled it out during the chaos

It's been out among the people, ever since

You and He Ying owe your trip to Hong Kong

entirely to these guys

Mister Deng!

Mister high-level, Hong Kong, fugitive cop!

"Beijing welcomes you!"

Beijing is your turf. You've got your ways

That thing from last time - did you do it?

When I'm on the case, you can relax

Here you go

That's where it is

Even a fighter as talented as Yuan Chengzhi

at last had to flee far away

The fall of the Ming dynasty

was a foregone conclusion

Where's Niehu?

Dealing with something in town

He'll meet back with us later at the cave

Wow, truly a divine creation

Hundreds of years and yet still flawless

How is it activated?

The orb is made of two companion parts

With the Linga inserted and the chant spoken,

it should start working

Do you still remember the chant?

Of course

Then there's no time to lose

The four of us were trapped in ice for centuries

If we leave, we should leave together

If it can really make time travel possible,

we can go first, then come back for them

No way

Defying nature cannot be taken so lightly

We're out of time

- Boss! - There he is

I'm here. Let's go

Where's Sao?

He Ying,

Hong Kong police found Sao's body yesterday

He's not coming back with us

What?

He's dead?

Enough waiting. There's no more time

Yuanlong! ls Sao dead?

He's gone! What are you waiting for?

If he's dead, I still want to see the body!

Everyone is looking for the three of us!

This is the modern world. We can't stay here!

You want to go back to Hong Kong to see the girl, right?

What was that?

May!

Had you worked with me,

He Ying!

I wouldn't have resorted to this

- We're brothers - You're naive, He Ying

Since we found the device

we should make good use of it

I've waited eighteen years, just for this day

With this orb, the world is mine

I have no words

Tell me what the chant is

or I shoot her dead

The chant!

The chant, spit it out!

God mandates Bodhisattva Mahasattva

The Emperor mandates Bodhisattva...

I'm going, too!

You can stay. See you later!

You okay?

Let's go

Well, we can't get out

Hey, why did you come out here?

Back home, the news said they found one of you

I was so worried about you

Today, two fishermen

discovered a bloated body out on the Gold Coast.

The dead man's identity is unclear

Police have not yet commented on the matter

"Come to the capital, quickly"

Niehu captured me

I didn't expect to see you here

I've brought you trouble yet again

No. I'm the one who brought it to you

If not for me,

you wouldn't have used the chant to start the orb

Damn you!

I'm sorry

I may not have a job

or even any family,

but since the day we met,

I haven't regret a thing

Truly no regrets?

Then that's a good thing

Come

see that?

Never give up hope

LINGA is over there

God mandates the Bodhisattva Mahasattva

The Emperor mandates the Bodhisattva...

Let me help you

Get up

This is an inspection!

What's going on?

Looks like they mean business

Don't make them angry

Oh no!

Excuse me, what year is it?

The sixteenth year of the Republic

He Ying!

We arrived in the 'Republic'.

- You know it? - The Republic?

- When was the Republic? - After the Ming

That's them!

What do you want!

None of your business!

Grab them!

stay out of this!

Don't give it to them!

Take her away!

Down with warmongers!

How dare you!

Let her go!

Down with warmongers!

Jap bastards strutting on Chinese soil

Hand it over!

in broad daylight?!

I will not stand for this!

I'm gonna kill you!

Attacking a woman? I'll murder you!

Die!

Okay, that's enough

Jap bastard

Bring backup!

Outta the way!

Don't be frightened

You could take on ten of them

Bring it on!

Let's get her!

Get out of China!

Quit staring! Let's get out of here!

This is from the Japanese Prime Minister

It details a plan for their emperor

Brave young people risked their lives to steal it

We were tasked to bring it back

and alert everyone, so they might stand and fight Japan

You two are the real heroes

Allow me to pay you my respect

We would be honored to know your names

Yes, everyone should know of your decency

We are...

visitors

Take care

It was through a freak set of circumstances

that this trip took us back to 1927

The document they guarded was the Tanaka Plan,

It advised their emperor that conquering the world

meant conquering China

To take China, they must first take Manchuria

The exposure of this document

delayed Japanese invasion by ten years

Let's go!

Holy monk...why are you here?

Seasons depart and return. Finally, so have you

How do I save my people?

Once the major planets align,

your life will see its greatest change

Cause and effect

Those hang upon you now

No matter the price,

I will pay it to save my family

Behind you are two roads back to your village

One on the left, the other on the right

Note well: as paths differ, so do outcomes

Do I go to the left or...

to the right?

He Ying!

Where are you?

May!

He Ying, where are we now?

We're back in the Ming

Really?

Get on. We're going to Tao Yuan village

Desolation abounds The corrupt hold power. Thieves run rampant

What's your plan?

A man of character must do four things

First, we must protect our land,

our households,

our brothers,

and our women and children

Then my conscience will be clear

Halt! Hold it!

Who goes there!

It's He Ying!

Oh, He Ying!

He Ying!

Da Zhi, I'm so happy

Brother He, your hair...

I went out west

Men out there all wear it like this

Pretty convenient!

It's so good you're back

He Ying's come back!

He Ying has come back!

Everyone! He Ying has come back!

Brother He!

He's returned!

My son!

Look out, look out!

How have you been?

- Son! - Mom!

You're finally back!

I am

It's so good to have you back

You've been gone ten years

Son, why does it seem like

you've changed so much?

Yeah, his...his hair

Right, let me explain

The westerners like the convenience.

Out w-w-west.

Look, Jade's been so worried for your return

that she's thought of nothing else

Long time no see.

Brother He!

Stand a little closer!

Don't be embarrassed

You're no strangers

And this is?

Ah. May...

This is Miss May

Say hello

How do you do, auntie

Welcome to our village, Miss May

Yes, welcome!

So tonight, let's all make dumplings!

Yeah!

Food will be ready soon. Don't you worry

Smell

So fragrant

Isn't it?

It's fennel.

Fennel, like 'final'

so when you have fennel dumplings,

you'll finally remember to come home, son

Does it fit?

Un

What are you doing here?

We want to see your challenger

Yeah

Watch your tongue

- Hi - Hello

What's this?

Oh, my bag

it has things I normally use

Wow, what is this stuff?

What's this for?

It's a Rubik's Cube

A Rubik's what?

It's for training your brain

I need that

And this?

This...is perfume

Come closer

smells nice

Together, rock-paper-scissors

One, two, three, rock, paper, scissors!

Yay, you won, you won!

Dumplings are best with

vinegar, soy, and sesame oil

He Ying told me the same thing, too

That's right

Everyone

let's raise our drinks

and give He Ying a proper welcome!

- Let's drink! - Bottoms up!

Don't drink so much