Green Snake

The Buddhist monk Fat-hoi trains for twenty years to banish demons from the Human World. He traps a spider demon in a magical cauldron and leaves it beneath a gazebo, ignoring its pleas for reincarnation. When the demon’s beads glow, he starts to fear he may have misread the path to enlightenment.

A violent storm drives Fat-hoi into the forest where he confronts two snake spirits. He defeats them but releases them after realizing they protected a woman in childbirth. The encounter haunts him, as visions of the newborn’s mother linger in his memory.

White Snake and Green Snake reach the village after centuries of studying to take human form. White Snake becomes a respected healer; Green Snake, more impulsive, helps establish a magical house and a village medical practice. They attract attention, including that of the scholar Hsui Xien.

A buffoonish Taoist visits the sisters’ household. Green Snake leaves the care of the visitor to attend to him, highlighting the sisters’ independence and the shifting dynamic with Fat-hoi.

Another heavy storm floods the village. White Snake and Green Snake help vanquish the flood with Fat-hoi’s aid, then tend to the villagers’ medical needs and earn broad respect.

Green Snake grows envious of White Snake’s bond with Hsui Xien and treats him as a test subject for a possible human-snake relationship. White Snake remains calm and dismisses the jealousy, at least for the moment.

As the festival approaches, White Snake drags Hsui Xien to drink Xionghuang wine. He suspects something and instead discards the wine into the pond, exposing Green Snake’s true form. A Taoist and his apprentices arrive; White Snake disposes of them, and Green Snake leaves.

White Snake and Green Snake travel to Kwun Lun Mountain to obtain the Lin-Chi Herb, guarded by a Holy Crane. Green Snake helps out of guilt, Fat-hoi follows. After securing the herb, White Snake leaves Green Snake to fight Fat-hoi, who defeats her and nearly captures her in a cauldron.

White Snake restores Hsui Xien and the lovers consummate their relationship, strengthening their bond even as the danger around them grows.

The monk challenges his own restraint by letting Green Snake try to seduce him while he meditates. He loses the challenge, and Green Snake quickly returns to White Snake, exposing the fragility of their power struggle.

Hsui Xien confronts Fat-hoi after being warned about the sisters’ true nature. Fat-hoi offers protective beads, but Hsui Xien discards them into the river, choosing his own path and acknowledging the demonic danger.

Fat-hoi forcibly takes Hsui Xien to the Peaceful Land temple on an island to 'restore' him. White Snake pleads for his return, Green Snake joins in the plea, and the sisters demand his freedom in a bid to escape Fat-hoi’s control.

Green Snake creates a flood, attempting to overwhelm the temple; Fat-hoi lifts the temple above the water to prevent catastrophe. He tries to suffocate the snakes with his surplice, but their power endures and they outmaneuver him.

White Snake goes into labor as the flood reaches the village. Fat-hoi withdraws his surplice, allowing Green Snake to enter the temple to retrieve Hsui Xien, who has chosen monastic life. White Snake’s baby is saved, but the temple is crushed by the flood, and White Snake dies in the wreck.

Green Snake rescues Hsui Xien from the ruined temple but cannot find White Snake. She kills Hsui Xien so he can be with White Snake in the afterlife, then questions whether humans know what love is and departs, hinting at a possible return. Fat-hoi is left alone with the baby, facing the consequences of his choices.