‘Alchemy Of Souls’ Episode 1 & 2: Recap And Ending, Explained: Who Are Naksu And Four Seasons?

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“Alchemy Of Souls” is a 2022 Korean Fantasy Period Drama written by The Hong Sisters—Hong Jung Eun and Hong Mi-ran—and directed by Park Joon Hwa. The series is set in the fictional country of Daeho and stars Lee Jae Wook, Jung So Min, Hwang Min Hyun, and Yoo In Soo in leading roles.


How Does Naksu Become Jang Uk’s Maid?

The mages of Songrim, a town in Daeho, are in a battle against Naksu, a shadow assassin who kills the mages. Park Jin, one of the four powerful mages and Gwanju of Songrim, has been fighting with Naksu and his soldiers. The mages of Daeho have got their power from the energy given by a big lake, Gyeongcheondaeho, after which their country is named. Naksu also has power and is considered one of the elite warriors of the country, but she is infamous as an assassin for killing many mages.

In a battle with many Songrim soldiers, Naksu gets injured and runs away to a nearby town. She cannot run any further, and the only way to hide from the soldiers is to shift her soul into another body. She finds a woman and performs the forbidden magic of soul-shifting. When Naksu wakes up, she is in the body of a different woman who is blind, but Naksu can see with her eyes. She is traveling on a boat and tries to escape, only to realize that she doesn’t have her powers. She needs to have her sword to have the powers, but it is lying next to her dead body, and Park Jin has taken it to Songrim.

With the blue mark on Naksu’s body, Park Jin knows that she has been soul-shifted and hence has kept her body and sword as he believes she will come to find it. Naksu, on the other hand, has been living in the body of Mu Deok, who has just been sold to Chwiseollu, a brothel. Joo Wol is the head of the brothel, and while she goes away, Mu Deok runs away with ornaments to sell them and get some money to travel around in search of her sword. She gets caught by Jang Uk, but she threatens to kill him. Jang Uk offers her his Jade plaque and lets her go.

Mu Deok goes to an illegal seller to sell the jade plaque and gets caught by Jang Uk’s men. They bring her to their palace, and she is assigned as Jang Uk’s maid now. It hurts Mu Deok’s pride to serve Jang Uk, but it is only safe for her to stay in the palace until she finds her sword. Jang Uk is the son of Jang Kang, one of the most powerful mages, who disappeared after Uk’s birth. Jang Kang had shifted souls with the king, Go Seong, who wanted an heir for his kingdom, and that is how Jang Uk was born. Kang has blocked Jang Uk’s gate of energy and has forbidden anyone from Daeho to open it.

There are four powerful mage families in Daeho-Park: Seo, Jang, and Jin. The young mages of the family are known as the four seasons in Daeho, namely Park Dang Gu, Seo Yul, Jang Uk, and Jin Cho Yeon. Among them, Jang Uk is the weakest and has been thrown out of many schools because no master could teach him the spells. He has called off his engagement with Jin Cho Yeon for unknown reasons. Jang Uk, has found out that Mu Deok is Naksu because of the blue mark in her eyes that even she doesn’t know exists. Mu Deok steals Uk’s plaque, which is her key to entering Songrim, and Uk follows her.

Mu Deok finds her dead body, but at the same time, intruders attack Park Jin’s palace. Uk finds Mu Deok and promises to save her only if she becomes his master and opens his gate of energy. Uk knows Naksu is the only one with power who won’t follow his father’s order and can help him, but she is not easy to persuade.


Will Naksu Become Jang Uk’s Master?

Mu Deok is just a normal person without her sword, and she tells so to Jang Uk. He saves her from getting caught, but later, the soldiers ask everyone in the palace to gather. Park Jin believes that there is a soul shifter among the people who helped intruders enter Songrim. He has invited Jin Cho Yeon with her family heirloom, Gwagu. A Gwagu is a Ghost Sapsali or a dog who can sense the soul shifters and can turn them into rocks. A soul shifter goes wild and turns into a rock when its soul crashes into the captured body.

The Gwagu catches the other soul shifter, and Mu Deok thinks that she is safe and again goes to search for her sword. Jang Uk starts looking for her and finds her just in time to save her from the Ghost Sapsali, who has sensed the soul shifter in her. Jang Uk asks Mu Deok to run away while he goes and breaks the Jin family’s heirloom. Jang Uk gets punished by Park Jin for multiple damages, and Mu Deok serves him for the last time before she goes to find her dead body and The Danju, the cult leader.

Mu Deok goes back to her old home and finds everything destroyed. She leaves a message at her place to find her at the illegal market, selling the plaque. She sends a firework in the sky, and Danju gets the signal. They raid her place and find the message. After going back, Joo Wol tells Mu Deok that her plaque has been stolen. Danju’s men intrude into the Chwiseollu and catch the woman who has the plaque. They kill her, and Mu Deok understands that The Danju has cut her off from the cult, and her life is in danger.

Jin Mu has appealed to make him the Gwanju of Cheonbugwan since Jang Kang hasn’t returned for many years. Park Jin opposes his proposition, saying Jang Kang’s son, Jang Uk, is still alive and has the right to become the next Gwanju. Jin Mu says that Jang Uk is weak and is not powerful enough to become a Gwanju. Jin Mu’s request is denied, but he gets permission to burn Naksu’s body and keep her sword. He had faked getting Naksu’s body back from the intruders when he had ordered the intrusion in the first place.

Jin Mu is going to burn Naksu’s body publicly, and Mu Deok is there to see it. She sees her body burn and also finds out that Jin Mu is The Danju. Now, she is forever stuck in the weak body of Mu Deok. Jang Uk has already taken Naksu’s sword from Jin Mu, owing to his right as Jang Kang’s son. He gives the sword to Mu Deok, and the sword recognizes its owner. However, Mu Deok can not unsheathe the sword. She doesn’t have enough energy to do so. Both Jang Uk and Mu Deok get disappointed, and Jang Uk asks Naksu to just live as Mu Deok for the rest of her life, but she says that she would rather die and runs away.


Alchemy Of Souls Episode 2: Ending

Gyeongcheondaeho is the grave of soul shifters whose rock-hard bodies are thrown into it. Mu Deok throws herself into the lake with her sword, but with the power of the lake, she is able to unsheathe it, and she doesn’t turn into a rock. Jang Uk comes to find her at the lake after Joo Wol tells him where Mu Deok is headed. Mu Deok has come up from the lake, and she tries to unsheathe the sword but cannot do it again. She could only do it before because of the power of the lake. Jang Uk takes her to the infirmary, where he is forbidden to enter, and gives Mu Deok a potion that will fade the blue scar in her eyes.

Mu Deok knows now that she can only gain her power back from someone more powerful than her. Both she and Jang Uk are on the same page now. No one can give power to a maid, but Jang Uk is a born mage and can get the power. Park Jin and Heo Yeom find out that Jang Uk has entered the forbidden infirmary and go to fetch him. Mu Deok gives Jang Uk poison and tells Park Jin to open his gate of energy to keep him alive. Mu Deok gets punished but doesn’t tell them the name of the poison. Heo Yeom is left with no choice but to open Jang Uk’s gate of energy.

Jang Uk rescues Mu Deok, and, after seeing him alive, Mu Deok agrees to become his master. Jang Uk was forbidden to receive the energy. What will be the consequences now that his gate of energy is open? Let’s find out in the upcoming episodes of “Alchemy of Souls.”


See More: ‘Alchemy Of Souls’ Episode 3 & 4: Recap And Ending, Explained: What Is Jang Uk’s Pitiful Fate?


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Neha Bhondve
Neha Bhondve
Neha is an Entertainment Writer and a Korean language and culture enthusiast. She loves to explore new people and places and when not writing, she is either learning Korean, reading a book or making a new travel plan.

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