Detective Dee: The Four Heavenly Kings 2018

As Dee Renjie (Mark Chao) embraced his new responsibilities as the head of the Court of Judicature and Revision (Da Li Si), adorned with the revered “Dragon Taming Mace” granted by Emperor Gaozong, he found himself entangled in a web of power play orchestrated by Empress Wu Zetian (Carina Lau). The Empress’s relentless ambition began to create ripples of discontent, prompting her to view Dee as a potential threat to her growing dominion. To counter this challenge, she enlisted the support of Yuchi Zhenjin (Shaofeng Feng), the veteran commander of the royal guard, to lead a skilled group of sorcerers in a covert operation aimed at stealing Dee’s treasured mace. Unbeknownst to Yuchi, Wu’s true intent was to have Dee eliminated outright.

In an effort to outsmart Wu’s malicious plans, Dee went underground, stashing away his prized mace and utilizing his intellect to thwart her schemes. He later instructed Yuchi to track down the missing relic, setting the stage for an intense confrontation with a rogue sorcerer that ended in a fierce battle, resulting in the sorcerer’s demise.

With Dee absent from court, Wu seized this moment to paint him as a criminal, stripping him of his title and branding him a fugitive. Meanwhile, Yuchi’s return with the Dragon Taming Mace earned him a promotion within the imperial court, where San Zang (Xian Gao), the leader of the sorcerers, was gaining notoriety. The grand display of magical ferocity soon took a dark turn when an animated dragon statue wreaked havoc, slaughtering two sorcerers and sending the palace into a state of panic.

Capitalizing on the turmoil, Wu accused Yuchi of cultivating Zang’s influence and masterminding the chaos, which promptly led to his arrest. Disguised as an ordinary citizen, Dee infiltrated the royal palace, liberated Yuchi, and undertook a meticulous investigation that uncovered the true nature of these illusions: the dragon statue was merely a grand ruse, while Zang had met an untimely fate at the hands of a malevolent impostor who took his place. Moreover, two so-called deceased sorcerers were discovered to be complicit in the deception, feigning their deaths to further mislead the palace officials.

As the plot thickened, it became evident that the Empress’s purported absolute power was nothing but a façade, crafted from treacherous assurances by unseen adversaries. The true orchestrators behind this villainous scheme were unveiled as the vengeful Wind Warriors, an Indian sorcery cult brutalized and disfigured following the reign of the previous emperor. Demonstrating keen insight and strategy, Dee had secretly relocated the royal family and enlisted the aid of Shatuo Zhong (Kenny Lin) and Moon Water (Sichun Ma), a defected sorceress privy to the enemy’s strategies. Together, they ventured on a treacherous mission to seek the allegiance of Zen Master Yuan Ce (Ching-Tien Juan), a sage with immense power, to rally against the deceptive army led by the mysterious “Faceless Monster”.

What followed was a breathtaking clash at Da Li Si, marked by dazzling displays of magical ingenuity, as the Faceless Monster’s formidable illusions pushed Dee and his allies to their limits. Just as despair threatened to overwhelm them, Yuan Ce intervened, vanquishing the leader of the Wind Warriors and restoring equilibrium to the empire. With darkness vanquished and true justice served, Dee and Yuchi regained their esteemed positions, their honor and legacy reinstated.