Gu Clan

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Gu Clan (古族)
Alias(es)	Ancient Clan 132
Organization Type	Imperial Clan; one of the Eight Ancient Races 70 97
Species/Race	Human descendants of a Dou Di 254 304
Affiliation	Eight Ancient Races alliance; the Six Ancient Clans’ joint search for the Sword Emperor’s Successor 90 110
Occupation/Role	Ancient bloodline power seeking the Sword Emperor Inheritance and the secret of Origin Qi 89 125
Founder	The Ancient Emperor, whose legacy established the clan 318
Clan Leader	Gu Yuan 89
Headquarters	Gu Realm; later the New Ancient Realm, assembled from the damaged Xiao Realm 90 276
Status	Destroyed as a major power. Gu Yuan, Gu Jian, and Gu Ming survive and plan its revival; Gu Xun’er is sheltered by the Zhongzhou Alliance 329 330 331
First Appearance	First directly identified in the supplied passages during Su Yun’s emergence from the Sword Altar 70

Power Progression

The documented increases below concern prominent clan members rather than a cultivation rank belonging to the organization itself.

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Gu Yao — Eighth-grade Bloodline; Purple-gold Clan Emblem	227	Receives his Clan Tattoo during the Coming-of-Age Ceremony, immediately increasing his aura and combat strength.
Gu Xing and Gu Hua — Purple-gold Clan Emblems	227	Both receive tattoos through the ceremony’s bloodline testing and inscription process.
Gu Qingyang — Seven-colored Clan Emblem	227 229	Receives his Clan Tattoo during the ceremony; the subsequent battle shows his seven-colored radiance alongside his teammates’ three purple-gold emblems.
Gu Xun’er — Divine Bloodline; Seven-colored Clan Emblem	228	Her adulthood bloodline test confirms the Divine Bloodline previously considered only a future possibility.
Gu Jian — Improved swordsmanship	275 276	After secluded cultivation, defeats Gu Lie. Gu Yuan appoints him manager of the New Ancient Realm, with Gu Lie assisting. No new cultivation rank is specified.

Organization and Hierarchy

Leadership and Notable Members

Member	Position / Standing	Documented Details
Gu Yuan	Clan Leader	A Nine-star Peak Dou Sheng and the clan’s sole Nine-star Dou Sheng. His pursuit of the Sword Emperor Inheritance ultimately costs the clan its protective realm 214 318 330.
Gu Xun’er	Young clan leader; Gu Yuan’s daughter	The clan’s only Divine Bloodline holder in this generation. Repeatedly opposes its treatment of Xiao Yan 73 224 252.
Gu Dao	Supreme Elder; head of the Three Immortals	Has the greatest seniority among the Three Immortals but ranks third in their combat strength. Organizes the hostage scheme against Xiao Ji Bai and is later killed by Su Yun 132 213 267.
Gu Ming	One of the Three Immortals	Investigates bloodline-devouring practices and provides alchemical support to the surviving leadership 132 276 329.
Gu Jian	One of the Three Immortals	A sword specialist described as the strongest fighter among the Three Immortals; later manages the New Ancient Realm 132 275.
Gu Lie	Senior combat expert	An Early Eight-star Dou Sheng who exercises restraint after Gu Yuan’s defeat and follows his orders 267.
Gu Yang	Second elder of the ancestral shrine	Advocates capturing Xiao Ji Bai through Xiao Yan. Uses a Soul Clan secret technique while attempting to seize the Human Emperor Banner’s souls 89 220.
Gu Qingyang	Leading young prodigy	Respects Xiao Yan’s achievements despite their opposing positions. Later fights Ling Quan to buy time for Xun’er to escape 228 315.
Gu Yao	Leading young prodigy	An Eight-star Dou Zun before receiving his Clan Tattoo. Later killed by the defected Ling Quan 217 315.
Gu Hua and Gu Xing	Leading young prodigies	Join Gu Qingyang and Gu Yao in the four-against-one match against Xiao Yan 227 228.
Ling Quan	Disciple; later traitor	Loses his bloodline to Xiao Ji Bai’s sword intent, then accepts Su Yun’s Blood Skull Gu and devours fellow clansmen to regain power 93 270 315.
Gu Shan	Half-Saint investigator	Stationed in the Beast Domain to search for the Son of the Dragon Phoenix. Su Yun kills him before he can report his discoveries 200.
Gu Nan Hai	Intelligence operative	Monitors the Wutong Phoenix Nest with elders from other clans, awaiting the Son of the Dragon Phoenix’s return 278.

Bloodline-Based Status

• Dou Di Bloodline grade determines standing. The elders initially dismiss Xiao Yan because he lacks an active Emperor bloodline; Ling Quan fears becoming worthless within the clan after losing his own 89 93.
• Descendant People occupy the lowest rank. Their inherited bloodline has become negligible, but rare Bloodline Ancestral Return can restore their eligibility to join an Imperial Clan 72.
• Low-grade members are treated as expendable. Gu Dao selects members below the fifth bloodline grade for the dangerous Sword Emperor Ruins expedition 94 95.
• Elite youth receive exceptional cultivation support. Every young member qualified for a Clan Tattoo at the documented ceremony is already a Dou Zun, despite the oldest being only a little over twenty 227.
• The Black Annihilation Army patrols clan territory. Its soldiers wear pitch-black armor and carry long spears; they continue guarding the wreckage after the Gu Realm’s destruction 269.

Bloodline Techniques and Resources

Clan Tattoos

• Bestowed during the Coming-of-Age Ceremony, held once every fifty years to test young members’ Dou Di Bloodlines and inscribe their tattoos 215.
• Increase combat strength by drawing upon the bearer’s inherited bloodline power 227 229.
• Follow the hierarchy silver → gold → purple-gold → seven-colored. A Seven-colored Clan Emblem requires a bloodline of at least the ninth grade 70.
• Can allow exceptionally gifted Nine-Revolutions Dou Zun cultivators to contend briefly with Half-Saints; they do not normally erase the broader gap between Dou Zun and Saint-level power 150.

Bloodline Testing

• The clan uses a Star Disk nearly ten feet wide, bearing ten stars, to measure Dou Di Bloodline strength 93.
• Ling Quan’s test falls from five stars to four and a half after Gu Yuan attempts to remove the sword intent intertwined with his bloodline 93.

Inheritances and Defensive Foundations

• Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame — The clan’s inherited Heavenly Flame, ranked fourth on the Heavenly Flame Ranking and carried by Xun’er. It forms the core of the clan’s Dou Emperor reserves 71 255.
• Ancient Emperor Array — A defensive foundation powerful enough to deter Pill Tower’s Old Ancestor. Gu Lie later states that it could have defended the intact Gu Realm against the Son of the Dragon Phoenix 230 280.
• Dou Emperor reserves — Capable of unleashing an Ancient Emperor’s attack. Activating them requires a sacrifice involving the clan’s sole Divine Bloodline holder, Xun’er 254 255 257.
• Inherited cultivation methods and Dou Techniques — Like the other surviving Imperial Clans, the Gu Clan possesses techniques left by Dou Di ancestors. Its interest in the Sword Emperor Inheritance chiefly concerns the missing means of reaching Dou Di 125 161.

Items and Spatial Assets

• Soul Guiding Jade — Gu Yuan obtains its crafting method and orders the Dou Sheng elders to seek a flaw that would let them trace Xiao Ji Bai through Xiao Yan’s communications 106.
• Space Jade Slips and Space Passages — Used to summon clan experts and move between distant regions or realms 89 222 226.
• Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade Fragment — The clan’s share of the eight-part key to the Ancient Emperor’s inheritance cave. Gu Yuan eventually trades it to Hun Tiandi for a secret art to control resurrected experts 74 341.
• Heavenly Tomb access — Located within the Gu Realm. An interclan pact assigns two youth-entry slots to each of the eight clans, but the Gu Clan has also taken the declined Xiao Clan’s slots for a thousand years 245.
• New Ancient Realm — A makeshift replacement headquarters formed by relocating the fragmentary Xiao Realm from Misty Cloud Mountain after the Gu Realm is destroyed 276.

History

Alliance with the Xiao Clan

The Gu and Xiao Clans maintained a friendship described as lasting ten thousand years. When the Xiao Clan fell, Gu Yuan promised Xiao Xuan that he would preserve its surviving bloodline. Xun’er was later raised in the Xiao Family, and she presents her presence there as an effort to assist them 71 89 214.

The Gu Clan also attempted to merge the Xiao Realm into its own Small World. The spatial barriers collided, producing turbulence that swallowed the Xiao Realm and damaged the Gu Realm’s borders; the latter required a hundred years to recover. Su Yun later suspects that the Gu Clan emptied the Xiao Realm’s treasure and pill repositories, while the bloodline-restricted library escaped 83 106.

Pursuit of the Sword Emperor Inheritance

After Xiao Ji Bai emerges as the Sword Emperor’s Successor, the elders propose using Xiao Yan to draw him out. Xun’er protests, but Gu Yuan orders her into secluded cultivation and excludes her from decisions concerning the Xiao Family 89.

Gu Yuan’s unsuccessful attempt to cure Ling Quan reveals that Xiao Ji Bai’s sword intent can erode a Dou Di Bloodline. He orders the discovery concealed, partly because a Peak Dou Sheng’s inability to resolve it would undermine his authority 93.

The Gu Clan contributes five hundred members to a two-thousand-person expedition into the Sword Emperor Ruins. Hun Miesheng kills the entire advance force. The clans then establish a base and Space Passage rather than risk entering the ruins themselves 95.

The subsequent search spreads across the Northwest Continent. Information about a second inheritance leads the Gu Clan and its partners to target the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan as a possible route to the Son of the Dragon Phoenix 100 106 136.

The Coming-of-Age Ceremony Trap

Gu Dao captures Xiao Clan survivors, Wind Venerable, and Mu Qingluan, presenting wounded and tortured prisoners before the assembled clan leaders. He proposes combining them with the Soul Clan’s captives, Yao Chen and Xiao Zhan, to force Xiao Ji Bai to surrender the Sword Emperor Inheritance 213 214.

The Gu Clan publicly announces that it will “host” the Xiao descendants at its Coming-of-Age Ceremony. Xiao Yan arrives, and Gu Yuan eventually offers their release if he defeats Gu Qingyang, Gu Hua, Gu Xing, and Gu Yao after their Clan Tattoos are bestowed. Xiao Yan is forbidden to use the Human Emperor Banner 214 217 227.

Xiao Yan wins. Nevertheless, Hun Xuzi kills Xiao Ning, while Gu Dao offers protection only to Xiao descendants willing to remain in the Gu Realm. Su Yun then arrives to settle the earlier grievances 230.

Star Annihilation and the Clan’s Defeat

Su Yun demonstrates the Star Annihilation Sword Art, suppressing the Dou Di Bloodlines of Gu Yang and five other clan experts. He distributes its cultivation method to the spectators, making a weapon against Imperial Clan bloodlines available beyond the clans themselves 234 237.

Under pressure from the Sword Emperor Jade Slip, Gu Yuan apologizes and releases the remaining captives. The Gu Clan has already lost a Five-star Dou Sheng elder and suffered a public humiliation 241.

The clans subsequently prepare another attack using the Soul Clan’s Emperor Slaying Formation and the Gu Clan’s ancestral reserves. Fifty million Descendant People are assembled for sacrifice, while the imprisoned and weakened Xun’er serves as a formation core 254 255 257.

The confrontation leaves Gu Yuan severely injured and the Gu Realm ruined, with devastating casualties among the elders. Su Yun kills Gu Dao and departs with Xiao Yan and Xiao Xuan, deterring pursuit through the threat of another Sword Emperor Jade Slip 267 269.

Internal Collapse and Beast Race War

The survivors establish the New Ancient Realm from the damaged Xiao Realm. Gu Yuan’s wounds remain unhealed, and the clan has lost both its original protective Small World and its ancestral foundation 275 276 280.

Gu Ming’s investigation exposes supposed Bloodline Ancestral Return prodigies as users of an evil art that devours fellow clansmen’s bloodlines. Ling Quan is among Su Yun’s recruits: he accepts the Blood Skull Gu in exchange for surrendering control over his life 270 276.

Su Yun later mobilizes the Beast Race army specifically to settle accounts with the Gu Clan. During the fighting around the Thunder Realm, Ling Quan locates Gu Yao, Gu Qingyang, and Xun’er. Now a Nine-Revolutions Dou Zun with a ninth-grade bloodline, he kills Gu Yao; Gu Qingyang fights to give Xun’er time to escape 299 304 314 315.

Surviving Leadership and Revival Scheme

Gu Yuan escapes the Beast Race army and reunites with Gu Jian and Gu Ming in the Tianheng Mountain Range. The three are identified as the clan’s remaining Saints. Gu Ming proposes a Ninth Grade Mysterious Du’e Pill to suppress Gu Yuan’s otherwise untreatable injuries temporarily 329.

With Xun’er safe among the Zhongzhou Alliance, Gu Yuan turns to reviving and controlling the Pure Lotus Demon Saint. Gu Jian identifies Xiao Yan as the holder of an ancient map fragment needed for the plan. Gu Yuan later obtains the Soul Clan’s control art by surrendering the Gu Clan’s Tuoshe Ancient Emperor Jade Fragment to Hun Tiandi 330 331 341.

Relationships

• Xiao Clan — Former ally whose survivors Gu Yuan promised to protect. That relationship becomes openly hostile when the Gu Clan uses the descendants as hostages to pursue Xiao Ji Bai’s inheritance 71 214.
• Soul Clan — Long-standing rival and eventual tactical partner. The Six Ancient Clans initially exclude it from their search, but later cooperate in hostage-taking and the planned attack on Xiao Ji Bai 110 214 254.
• Other Six-Clan partners — The Yao, Lightning, Flame, Stone, and Spirit Clans cooperate with the Gu Clan in the inheritance hunt. Lei Ying becomes distrustful after witnessing its treatment of the Xiao survivors 97 214.
• Pill Tower / Zhongzhou Alliance — Opposes Imperial Clan coercion and protects Xiao Yan. Later shelters Xun’er, while remaining deeply suspicious of cooperation with the surviving Imperial Clans 222 224 327 330.
• Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan — Targeted for information about the Son of the Dragon Phoenix despite its initial ignorance of him 106 136.
• Su Yun — Opposes the clan through his Xiao Ji Bai and Son of the Dragon Phoenix identities. His sword art attacks its bloodline advantage, while the Blood Skull Gu encourages its members to prey on one another 234 270 276.