Chen Tang

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Chen Tang (陈唐)
Alias(es)	Ping Shou Chen (“Tie Chen”), a mocking nickname earned for repeatedly fighting powerful opponents to draws in his early career 475
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Chen family; former Ministry of Revenue; Red Mountain Hall 257 311
Occupation/Role	Former Vice Minister of Revenue overseeing the Guanghui and Guangji Treasuries; Grand Master of Glorious Felicity; political organizer of Chen Shi's True King ascension 257 464 502
Status	Alive 626
First Appearance	Chapter 74 (mentioned); Chapter 267 (first personal appearance) 74 267

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Soul Merging strength	299	Chen Tang recalls using this level of strength at the beginning of his earlier duel with Yan Hanqing.
Body Equalization strength	299	He escalated to this strength after Yan Hanqing forced out more of his ability.
Soul Egress strength	299	He used this level to finish the fight in a draw, preserving his opponent's and the Yan Family's face.
Great Ascension stage	475	Chen Tang finally raises his cultivation to Great Ascension against Yan Hanqing, merging with the Xuanwei Sword and breaking through the Luotian Twelve Divine Demon Great Formation.

Background

Scholar and official

Chen Tang came from a poor family and was self-taught. He passed the imperial examinations as a recommended scholar and then a Jinshi, eventually becoming Vice Minister of Revenue in his forties after striving even harder following Chen Shi's death. He oversaw the Guanghui Treasury and Guangji Treasury. 257 259

During his own Metropolitan Examination, Chen Tang deliberately placed fourteenth despite essays so brilliant that they circulated throughout Western Capital and made paper scarce. He avoided offending the Noble Families by engineering draws against their disciples, earning the derisive nickname Ping Shou Chen. 293 475

He developed a reputation for incorruptibility and strict public service. Sun Yisheng, his longtime classmate and subordinate, credits Chen Tang's guidance, cultivation teachings, and example for his own career and character. 257 258

Family and identity confusion

Chen Tang is the son of Chen Yindu, husband of Wu Qingyu, and Chen Shi's father. Chen Shi's recovered childhood memories show that Chen Tang and Wu Qingyu raised him before his death, though Chen Tang later became distant after Chen Shi's resurrection. 451

Created Being Xiao Wu repeatedly impersonated Chen Tang. The young “Chen Tang” who appeared after Li Xiaozheng's death and visited Huangpo Village was Xiao Wu in disguise, not Chen Tang himself. 133 137

When Chen Shi arrived in Western Capital, Chen Tang allowed him to remain at the family residence but initially refused to acknowledge him as his son, believing his original son had died. His tenderness toward Wu Qingyu and his later actions gradually reveal that this rejection was bound up with grief rather than indifference. 267 268

Appearance

Chen Tang is a tall middle-aged man with an upright posture and dignified bearing. He resembles a younger Chen Yindu and is commonly seen in formal official attire. 267

• Wore a red official robe and official hat while serving in Western Capital. 267
• Carries himself with measured, almost ritualized precision, following the same route, gait, and schedule on his way to court. 284
• Uses the Xuanwei Sword, whose extraordinary aura is maintained with incense at the Chen residence. 267
• His sword light is described as erupting like “a hundred thousand small suns” when the Xuanwei Sword is drawn. 441

Personality

Chen Tang is reserved, disciplined, and principled. He is comfortable discussing official business but avoids personal networking and favors, which leaves him isolated among Western Capital's officials. He refuses to yield when ministers demand that Chen Shi surrender the Top Scholar title. 293

He is a highly capable learner but lacks the spontaneous creativity of Chen Yindu, Created Being Xiao Wu, and Chen Shi. Granny Sha considers him more suited to mastering existing methods than inventing new ones. 304 312

Despite his severe manner, Chen Tang is deeply protective of his family. He prepares a room for Chen Shi, buys him clothing, combs his hair, looks after Wu Qingyu's daily care, and worries whenever Chen Shi spends time with Created Being Xiao Wu. 268 269 292

His affection is often expressed through action rather than words. He is visibly awkward when meeting Chen Shi after years apart and stiffens when Chen Shi embraces him upon returning from the Earthly Immortal Realm. 267 626

Abilities & Skills

Profound Micro Sword Scripture

Chen Tang cultivates the Profound Micro Sword Scripture, a highly intricate sword method from the Ten Books of Cultivation. Though it can only be cultivated as far as the Ascension Realm, its sword techniques are exceptionally subtle and complex. 279 283

• Uses precise sword-finger and sword-energy techniques.
• Can predict and intercept an opponent's movements, even neutralizing Chen Shi's close-combat attacks with a chopstick. 279
• Fought Chen Shi's Nascent Soul Realm strength using only Spirit Transformation Realm power, achieving an even match. 293
• Defeated all eleven of Yan Hanqing's surviving Primordial Spirits through precise swordsmanship. 476

Xuanwei Sword and Void Realm

Chen Tang's primary weapon is the Xuanwei Sword, an extraordinary divine sword associated with his concealed cultivation.

• Can conceal a Void Realm within the sword's scabbard through sword energy. 441
• Emits overwhelming brilliance when drawn, filling an opponent's vision with sword light. 441
• Allows Chen Tang to merge man and sword into a single attack. 475
• Its scabbard shattering exposed that Chen Tang could no longer fully conceal his Void Realm. 476

Talisman Arts

Chen Tang possesses advanced talisman knowledge inherited from Chen Yindu's tradition.

• Repairs the damaged Talisman God Heavenly Mechanism using a cinnabar brush and rare talisman ink. 296
• Maintains multiple Talisman God Heavenly Mechanisms despite their instability and tendency to be influenced by moonlight. 296
• Understands enough talisman creation to recognize Chen Shi's superior creative talent and support his work rather than interfere with it. 312

Talisman God Heavenly Mechanisms

Chen Tang carries boxes containing thirty-seven Talisman God Heavenly Mechanisms—cloth dolls that transform into enormous eight-armed talisman gods. 441 504

• The thirty-seven mechanisms create thirty-seven overlapping Ghost and God Domains. 441
• Their domains can suppress an opponent's mana and prevent formations from operating. 504
• Used them to overwhelm Fei family experts and severely suppress former Fei Sect Master Fei Jiu. 504
• Chen Tang believes the full array can contend even with Half-Immortals or Immortals. 441

Political and administrative skill

Chen Tang combines financial administration with careful political judgment.

• Managed the Ministry of Revenue's deployment of paper currency and gunpowder across fifty provinces. 268
• Recognized the Young Master's hidden ambition behind his public image and warned Chen Shi to remain cautious. 274
• Successfully gathered officials, rogue cultivators, the Six Ministries, and the Divine Machine Battalion in preparation for Chen Shi's ascension. 502
• Joined Red Mountain Hall to preserve influence and accommodate former Ministry of Revenue officials after political upheaval. 311

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Xuanwei Sword — Chen Tang's divine sword and the vessel for his hidden Void Realm. 441
• Wooden boxes — Conceal and transport the thirty-seven Talisman God Heavenly Mechanisms. 441 442
• Talisman God Heavenly Mechanisms — Eight-armed talisman gods created through Chen Yindu's New Talisman art. 296 504
• Cinnabar brush and rare talisman ink — Used to restore and alter the Heavenly Mechanisms. 296
• Black Daoist robe with white lapels and red sash — Clothing Chen Tang purchases for Chen Shi in his own preferred style. 269

Relationships

• Chen Shi — His son. Chen Tang initially denies their relationship after Chen Shi's resurrection, but becomes a demanding mentor, protector, and political supporter. 267 279 502
• Wu Qingyu — His wife and Chen Shi's mother. Chen Tang devotedly tends to her while she remains catatonic after Chen Shi's death. 267 269
• Chen Yindu — His father. Their relationship is burdened by Chen Yindu's absences, favoritism toward Xiao Wu, and the legacy of the Western Capital massacre. 320 441
• Created Being Xiao Wu / Chen Wu — His created elder brother and long-standing rival. Xiao Wu's impersonation of Chen Tang and attempts to claim Chen Shi intensify their hostility. 268 442
• Sun Yisheng — Former classmate, subordinate, and trusted confidant. Sun Yisheng credits Chen Tang for his cultivation and official advancement. 257
• Granny Sha — An elder acquaintance and talisman expert. She openly criticizes Chen Tang's lack of creative talent but later assists Chen Shi under his protection. 304 350
• Hall Master Yu Tiancheng — Red Mountain Hall's leader. Chen Tang joins the Hall to extend its influence across the Western Ox Continent. 311
• Houtu Huangdiqi — Chen Shi's godmother. Chen Tang resolves to protect her temples and revived divine lineage from Despair Slope. 441

Story Role / Major Arcs

• Western Capital reunion — Chen Tang receives Chen Shi after his arrival in Western Capital, refuses to acknowledge him as his son, but permits him to live in the Chen residence and begins caring for him as family. 267 269
• Father-son sparring — He repeatedly spars with Chen Shi to expose weaknesses in his son's instinctive combat style, forcing Chen Shi to develop spellcasting, tactics, and a better understanding of his own strengths. 279 283
• Top Scholar conflict — Chen Tang refuses the Noble Families' pressure to remove Chen Shi from the Top Scholar competition and seriously injures Minister of War Ren Xiao when threatened. 293
• Departure from Western Capital — After the political struggle surrounding Chen Shi, Chen Tang leaves the Ministry of Revenue and returns toward Xinxiang with the Chen family's ancestral tablet and sword. 320
• Guardian of Houtu Huangdiqi — He confronts Yu Changbai to prevent Despair Slope from destroying Houtu Huangdiqi's temples, preparing the thirty-seven Heavenly Mechanisms before Xiao Wu intervenes. 441
• Battle with Yan Hanqing — Chen Tang reveals Great Ascension cultivation and man-and-sword unity while fighting Yan Hanqing's Luotian Twelve Divine Demons. 475
• Founding a new dynasty — Following the cataclysm, he travels across devastated provinces to recruit ministers and generals, escapes repeated Noble Family ambushes, and prepares Chen Shi's path to becoming True King. 502 504
• Reunion with Chen Shi — Chen Tang waits at the Imperial Capital gate for Chen Shi's return from the Earthly Immortal Realm, showing open relief despite his habitual restraint. 626

Notable Quotes

“Accommodating others is my kindness. Do not force me to resort to rudeness.” 293

“I can try!” 475