If you stumbled upon a mysterious, ancient land untouched by the modern world, would you stay? Would you try to escape? Lay a Beauty to Rest: The Darkness Peach Blossom Spring (葬花·暗黑桃花源) is a beautiful new love-suspense visual novel from developer Zero Creation Games. Lay a Beauty to Rest is based on the prose “Peach Blossom Spring” by poet Tao Yuanming (365-427 ce).

About the Game

Though Lay a Beauty to Rest takes place in modern times, it takes you to the ancient and legendary Peach Blossom Spring of the poem. You play as Ji Ming, a man wandering desperately to seek the meaning of life after failing in his career and losing his girlfriend. After wandering in the mountains, Ji Ming happens upon the same creek that led to the same cave, which led to the mystical Peach Blossom Land.

Upon entering Peach Blossom Land, Ji Ming meets the locals, including the young goddess Shuang Hua, the protective hunter Da Niu, and village elder Cun Zhang. Huyue Village is a hidden land that has been untouched by the outside world. The villagers essentially live as if it were still the time of the Qin Dynasty. The villagers are naturally distrustful of Ji Ming. They are wary of outsiders for a very good reason.

After showing his politeness, the villagers treat Ji Ming with hospitality, inviting him to stay for a few days. Falling in love with the beauty and innocence of the village, Ji Ming didn’t want to be seen as an outsider, but as a part of the town. He offered to help villagers with tasks, to learn, be productive, and contribute.

Gameplay

The art style of Lay a Beauty to Rest is exquisite. The scenes are bright and colorful without being overpowering. The music is light, airy, and soothing. The sound of the wind, the ambient sounds—the developers really created an immersive experience. Like most other visual novels, players read through each scene and throughout the game can make decisions. The decision you make affects the next scene, how the villagers perceive you, and the outcome of the game.

Spoiler: The first night you spend in Huyue Village, you’re told to stay inside at night for your own safety. Later that evening, you can choose to either obey and stay inside or sneak out and take a walk. Take the walk. Just saying. The twists and turns and surprises in this visual novel are—OMG! In some stories, you can foresee what’s about to come. In Lay a Beauty to Rest, however, the story unfolds in such an unexpected way. And there are several shocking endings, based on the choices you make.

How to Change the Settings to English

Though released in October 2021, the game was only recently released with English subtle options on August 30. Here’s how to change the language settings to English on Lay a Beauty to Rest. When you first log in, click the Settings wheel cog at the bottom right of the screen. At the very top of the screen, the first option is Language in Chinese. Click the arrow to the right twice to get to English.

The voice acting is in Mandarin, but the subtitles and instructions are in English. Though there are a few grammatical and spelling errors throughout the game, they don’t take away from the story at all. The story is still very intriguing and mysterious. Quite enjoyable. Also, with me taking Mandarin classes, this game also helped me understand spoken Mandarin and pronounciation as well.

Lay a Beauty to Rest: The Darkness Peach Blossom Spring is my very first visual novel. I’m glad playing this game was my first experience with VNs because it was such an enjoyable experience that made me want to play more. 10/10 would definitely recommend this game. Next, I’ll play and review Lay a Beauty to Rest: A Butterfly Dream, the DLC to The Darkness Peach Blossom Spring.