Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation: Mo Dao Zu Shi is chock-full of Grey-and-Gray Morality, so there are many ways the audience perceives its characters.
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Yunmeng Jiang Clan
Jiang Cheng
- Even after 13 years, there are no dogs roaming Lotus Pier despite Jiang Cheng adoring dogs. One could assume that Jiang Cheng was waiting for Wei Wuxian to come back to Lotus Pier, but it's also possible that he was simply too busy with many other matters to even think of getting himself a dog. Or that he refused to accept another dog, because no other could compare to this three puppies.
- Jiang Cheng insulting Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji's relationship — is he attempting to put down Wei Wuxian (yet again) by hitting him where it hurts? Is he lashing out at their relationship out of envy? Or is it a bit of both? There's also the question of whether he's homophobic in general (which appears to be the default attitude in their society) or just specifically dislikes the protagonists' relationship.
- In spite of their turbulent history, there's no denying that a part of Jiang Cheng sincerely cares for Wei Wuxian deep down. However, it is unclear how Jiang Cheng views his old friend, both in the past and present. Does he see Wei Wuxian as an equal, or does he see him of someone of a lower rank?
- Jiang Cheng continued to support the extermination of the Wen remnants even after finding them to be no more than a few elderly farmers and a small child. Did he really hold so much resentment for the Wens that he wanted even the innocent among them to be exterminated? Did he believe defending them was a hopeless cause? Or was he merely willing to sacrifice them for the favour of the other clans during a period of political uncertainty for his clan? It could also be that he felt even innocent members of the Wen Clan could one day become a threat if they ever decided to seek retribution.
Jiang Fengmian
- Did he really favor Wei Wuxian over Jiang Cheng, or did he love both equally but — like Wei Wuxian believed — was only stricter towards Jiang Cheng because he was his heir and consequently acted more accommodating and lenient to Wei Wuxian, who had no such responsibilities? Asian parenting standards leans towards the latter as it is common and normal for parents to be strict with their own children but much more lenient with the children of other adults.
- Was he really in love with Wei Wuxian's mother and his distance from his wife and son was due to his resentment of being in an Arranged Marriage he was pressured into? Or did he regard Cangse Sanren only as a friend and only got angry whenever Yu Ziyuan mentioned the rumors about his alleged feelings for her and how Wei Wuxian could be his illegitimate son because he found such rumors to be a grave insult to his friends' memory?
Yu Ziyuan
- It's unquestionable that she disliked Wei Wuxian and often got into spats with her husband because of it. But did she hate Wei Wuxian only because she disliked how her husband seems to favor him more over Jiang Cheng? Or did she also feel threatened since Wei Wuxian is always one step ahead of Jiang Cheng and is also the son of someone Jiang Fengmian is rumored to have feelings for? And if that's the case, does it mean that she's in love with Jiang Fengmian and that's why her clan pressured him into marrying her — which could also explain part of her bitterness about their distant relationship? Or was the marriage arranged strictly for political reasons, but she still dislikes their ongoing family dynamic regardless?
- In the donghua, Wen Qing examined Wei Wuxian's back injuries from Zidian and revealed that the weapon should've caused worse wounds due to its legendary power, which implies that that Yu Ziyuan may have held back on the punishment. Was she avoiding to truly debilitate Wei Wuxian for fear of what Jiang Fengmian would do to her had he known what occurred? Was she just avoiding to rend Wei Wuxian too incapacitated to look after her son if necessary, given the situation? Or did she, deep down, actually care for him to some extent?
Lanling Jin Clan
Jin Guangyao
Jin Guangyao is a villain, albeit a complex one, which makes it hard for the reader to be 100% certain about his true motives behind many of his actions.
- Is his kind image and interest in helping the little people all an act to cover up his villainous intentions, or due to Pragmatic Villainy? Or is he a genuinely caring leader that wants to improve society, and only carried out his past misdeeds as a knee-jerk reaction to the people who did him wrong or because he was in a difficult situation?
- In the finale, Jin Guangyao decides to meet his death at Nie Mingjue's hands and lead Lan Xichen along with him, only to push him away at the last moment. Was Jin Guangyao intentionally leading Lan Xichen over? If so, did he have a change of heart about letting Nie Mingjue kill him and Lan Xichen? Or was it a calculated move that Jin Guangyao performed as one last act of spite to Lan Xichen, knowing that he wouldn't be able to live with the guilt? The donghua leans towards the former.
Qinghe Nie Clan
Nie Huaisang
It's telling that the protagonists themselves are not completely certain that Nie Huaisang was the mastermind behind the entire plot, making it hard to figure out what is a mask and what isn't.
- Is he a sociopathic manipulator on the level of Jin Guangyao who uses people and sees them as tools? Or is he a genuinely kind person who nevertheless is so desperate to avenge his brother that he is willing to use any means necessary to fell a more powerful and dangerous enemy?
- Did he become The Chessmaster as a result of a decade of scheming, or was he always this manipulative even as a child, or a combination of both — someone with a natural tendency towards guile and strategy that was forced to become more ruthless and cunning as a result of his brother's untimely death and being thrust into the position of clan leader? Was he only pursing revenge or was taking down Jin Guangyao a step of a larger plan, possibly to gain power for his clan?
