>>718902140
Everyone involved is stuck in the loop. Xuanyangzi as the final boss successfully used a jarred Wuchang to transcend. He's not divorced from the Xuanyangzi you deal with throughout the story. It's a different cycle one but that's the end goal of Xuanyangzi right from the get go.

>>718766586
>Is Xuanyangzi even an evil character?
Absolutely. He never heals anyone and lies to everyone. Notice how nobody ever got better? Then his reactions to the fucked up notes he would get. Then at Bo Capital, he was talking about transcending and if you get the jar ending, he stabs Wuchang in the back and puts her in a jar to later turn into a pill to help him achieve transcendence and immortality.
>>718775685

>>718261461
You fight an already ascended version of him while the current cycle Xuanyangzi takes advantage of the situation to stab Wuchang in the back and then jar her. That's why after he jars her and she awakens, the next cycles Wuchang comes walking down the stairs.