Immortals

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Immortals (列仙)
Species/Race	A broad class of transformed or cultivated beings rather than a single race; their forms include humans, altered lifeforms, corpse-like entities, and ancient Golden Armored Lishi 305 367 497
Status	Extant; Immortals, including Earth Immortals and the Twelve Golden Immortals, remain active in the present era 367 492
First Appearance	95

Classification

Rank / Type	Description
Insignificant Immortals / Feathered Immortals	Relatively weak immortals. Those who change paths too early, such as upon entering the Sixth Realm, may become this class; sufficiently exceptional Sixth Realm experts can kill them 257 318 367.
Corpse Disintegration Immortals	Immortal beings discovered beneath the Immortal Grave, emerging from subsidiary tombs amid white immortal mist 303 304.
Earth Immortals	Powerful immortal beings associated with the Seventh Realm. They can alter their lifeforms, survive severe bodily damage, and may retain or reform through Pure Yang consciousness 494 497 506.
Heavenly Immortals	Higher achievers associated with Grotto-Heavens; the Earth Immortal in the Immortal Grave offered surviving cultivators the prospect of attaining this position 257 306.
Twelve Golden Immortals	Ancient Golden Armored Lishi from the Earthen City who became Immortals, each associated with one of the twelve zodiac animals 367.
Fiend Sword Immortals	Demon Race sword cultivators whose innate racial abilities augment their sword arts 329 333.

Characteristics

Immortals are not uniformly holy, human, or even beautiful. Their appearances range from ethereal, feather-robed figures to grotesque transformed bodies, undead entities, and creatures with animal traits. Ling Canghai notes that holy and illusory-looking Immortals are only a small portion of the whole 305.

• Ethereal guise — Earth Immortals may appear youthful, graceful, and clad in feathered garments despite their age and power 492.
• Altered lifeforms — Earth Immortals commonly lose their original appearance after changing paths, becoming ferocious and unpredictable forms with scales, feathers, slime, or distorted flesh 497 498.
• Undead or decayed states — Corpse Disintegration Immortals and decayed gods may persist in graves, tombs, or damaged bodies long after their prime 303 515.
• Golden-armored variants — The Earthen City’s Immortals wear ancient armor associated with the highest-ranked Lishi of legend 367.

Abilities & Traits

Immortal Body and Pure Yang Consciousness

Earth Immortals possess bodies and consciousnesses that are exceptionally difficult to destroy permanently.

• They can endure catastrophic injuries and, in some cases, reform their bodies after being split apart 497 498.
• Their Pure Yang consciousness can persist after the destruction of the physical body, though it can still be worn down or annihilated by overwhelming force 500 506.
• Earth Immortal blood, skin, and bone remain dangerous or valuable after separation; spilled blood can burn ordinary beings to ash, while bone fragments are sought as artifact materials 500 503.

Lifeform Transformation

Becoming an Immortal often involves changing one’s original lifeform rather than preserving it.

• Earth Immortals rarely retain human appearances after embarking on their path 497 498.
• Some cultivators seek to reverse this transformation through prolonged blood exchange and rebirth practices 497.
• Ancient Golden Armored Lishi may have transformed into nonhuman-looking beings after reaching a perfected state 367.

Immortal Cultivation and Combat

Immortal power varies greatly by individual, realm, and condition.

• Some weak Immortals can be slain by exceptionally strong Founding Ancestors or Sixth Realm cultivators 318 367.
• The Immortals of the Immortal Grave overwhelmed numerous Founding Ancestors through numbers, forcing the defenders to use the Thirty-Six Heaven Stabilizing Divine Stakes 306 307.
• Earth Immortals can traverse lethal forbidden lands, wield Dao Chains, and carry powerful artifacts such as the Sky-Patrolling Mirror 494 495.

Longevity and Decay

Immortality does not guarantee eternal life.

• Earth Immortals have finite lifespans and fear aging or decline 494.
• Heavenly Immortals and Earth Immortals may lose whole major realms of power as they decay; at the final stage, they can become weaker than ordinary people 515.
• Many choose self-immolation before complete decay, leaving behind an immortal shell rather than enduring a diminished death 515.

Documented Items

• Dao Chains — Ultimate weapons carried by the four Earth Immortals who descended from the heavens; used to protect their true bodies and suppress opponents 492 497.
• Sky-Patrolling Mirror — An ancient tracing artifact used by Nian Songhe’s group to recover recent scenes and follow spiritual-energy traces 494.
• Thirty-Six Heaven Stabilizing Divine Stakes — A set of immense sealing weapons used by Founding Ancestors to suppress the Earth Immortal beneath the Immortal Grave 307.
• Immortal Contract — A consciousness-rooted “document” capable of controlling its target; an analogous black contract later attempted to enslave several Earth Immortals 290 500.

History

Immortal Grave Crisis

The Great Wilderness Expansion uncovered an “Immortal Nest” beneath the Immortal Grave: a separate realm containing Corpse Disintegration Immortals, quasi-Immortals, and a living Earth Immortal sealed in the main tomb 303 305 306. The Immortals attempted to recruit the Founding Ancestors, but the latter refused and chose battle instead 306.

Although the defenders killed several Immortals, they suffered severe losses. The surviving Founding Ancestors ultimately sacrificed themselves and activated the Thirty-Six Heaven Stabilizing Divine Stakes to seal the graves and force back the Earth Immortal 306 307.

Revival of the Earthen City

The ancient Earthen City later emerged in Kunlun. Its corpse-filled walls were purified as the city revived, revealing living inhabitants and twelve ancient Golden Armored Lishi who had become Immortals 367. These Twelve Golden Immortals invited the major powers to enter the city for discussion, signaling that not all ancient Immortals were immediately hostile 367.

Descent of the Four Earth Immortals

Nian Songhe, Xiao Qingheng, Qi Yunding, and Mu Cangwu descended upon the Great Rui capital from the heavens, intending to unify the mortal realm and Seal the Heavens 492. Their arrival compelled dynasties and sects into submission or concealment, while their disciples searched Immortal Land and other ancestral courts for powerful cultivators 492 495.

The four later entered the Kunlun Forbidden Lands, subdued local powers, and bound the Five Elements Palace prodigy Zhong Sheng with a Law Chain 494. Their campaign ended disastrously when Nian Songhe, Xiao Qingheng, and Mu Cangwu were hunted through the Night Ruins and destroyed by a coalition of powerful beings 500 503.

Story Role / Major Arcs

• Immortal Path ideal — The Immortal Path is treated as a major cultivation tradition, but the supposed divide between “Immortals and mortals” is challenged by Qin Ming’s growing ability to injure Beyond the Mundane cultivators 95.
• Immortal Grave threat — The discovery of an entire Immortal population transforms an archaeological expedition into a struggle for the survival of multiple races 304 306.
• Ancient resurgence — The Twelve Golden Immortals and the Earthen City reveal that ancient immortal civilizations still survive beyond the modern world’s understanding 367.
• Heavenly domination — The Four Earth Immortals’ descent demonstrates the political authority and military power wielded by the old factions of the heavens 492 495.
• Decline of the old factions — The deaths and mutilation of the descending Earth Immortals expose their vulnerability outside the heavens and undermine their former supremacy 500 503.

Notable Quotes

“Immortals come in all forms, some are more ferocious and uglier than vengeful ghosts. Holy, ethereal, and illusory immortals are just a small fraction of the entire group.”
— Ling Canghai 305

“Earth Immortals have lifespans, and their lives are far shorter than ordinary people imagined.” 494