Old Crow

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Old Crow (老鸦)
Species/Race	Human
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Ning Wu and their hired cultivator group
Occupation/Role	Cultivator; organizer of artifact-retrieval missions; assassin-for-hire
Status	Deceased; killed by Li Yi during the assault on Li Yi's home 48
First Appearance	Chapter 1

Appearance

Old Crow is a man with a low, deep voice that creates a sense of pressure. His eyes emit a faint glow in darkness, a visible sign of cultivation. 1 11

• Bright, faintly glowing eyes that Li Yi likens to a beast lurking in the dark 1 11
• Usually speaks in a low, threatening tone 1 5 10
• Suffers a broken arm during his final confrontation with Li Yi 48

Personality

Old Crow is calculating, coercive, and deeply motivated by the value of Mysterious Artifacts. He recruits ordinary people to enter haunted locations because their lack of cultivation makes them less visible to vengeful spirits, while he and other cultivators remain outside to exploit the results. 1 4

He uses threats when negotiations fail, but is willing to compromise when delay or official scrutiny could jeopardize his plans. After the Ruined City expedition, he attempts to recover Li Yi's belongings through intimidation and an intentionally low offer rather than honoring the original payment agreement. 1 5 10

Old Crow is also cautious when facing direct danger. He withdraws from the Earthbound Spirit's area, does not pursue Li Yi when Wang Jian targets him with a sniper laser, and later treats Li Yi's rapid growth as a serious threat. 4 5 46

Abilities & Skills

Cultivation

Old Crow is a cultivator who has activated his Spirit Medium, placing him among those able to perceive supernatural threats invisible to ordinary people. 4 5 11

• Can see vengeful spirits and fierce ghosts in the Ruined City 4 5
• His eyes emit light, indicating accumulated cosmic energy and bodily evolution 11
• Was identified as one of the Spirit Medium Realm cultivators involved in the attack on Li Yi 48 49
• Remains vulnerable to conventional firearms; Wang Jian's sniper threat prevents him from pursuing Li Yi 5

Planning and Recruitment

Old Crow gathers personnel, provides mission intelligence, and arranges dangerous operations surrounding Mysterious Artifacts.

• Recruited five ordinary people to search a haunted Ruined City building for suspected artifacts 1
• Prepared flashlights and provided the group with known entry, exit, and danger information 3
• Used ordinary people because cultivators were more likely to be attacked by spirits 1 4
• Investigated Li Yi's identity and residence before organizing the assassination attempt 46

Background / History

Ten days before his first meeting with Li Yi, Old Crow sent people into a building in the abandoned district after an anomaly appeared there. Several died; only two ordinary people returned, one insane and one critically injured. Old Crow later entered the building with a partner, but the partner died, leaving Old Crow as the sole survivor. From these attempts, he concluded that the building likely contained a Mysterious Artifact and that ordinary people faced less danger there than cultivators. 1

He recruited Li Yi, Wang Hu, Wei Li, Liu Yan, and Zhang Kaiwen for an expedition, initially offering a deposit and payment for confirming or retrieving the item. Old Crow threatened the group during negotiations but ultimately accepted their demand for a larger advance payment. 1

At the Ruined City, Old Crow worked with Ning Wu while remaining outside the deepest area. He recognized that the second basement was occupied by an Earthbound Spirit and densely populated by vengeful spirits, making direct intervention too dangerous for cultivators. When the ordinary recruits successfully removed burial objects and unleashed the spirits, Old Crow sought to reclaim the items but was stopped by Investigator Wang Jian. 4 5

After his release from investigation, Old Crow followed Ning Wu's order to locate Wang Hu, Wei Li, and Li Yi. He contacted Li Yi by phone, threatened his family, and offered only 10,000 yuan for Li Yi's burial clothes after Ning Wu judged them unlikely to be Mysterious Artifacts. Li Yi used the exchange to conceal the half Knife Coin in his possession. 9 10

A month later, Old Crow confirmed that Li Yi had advanced from an ordinary person to a Spirit Medium Realm cultivator and had killed a Biao. He and Ning Wu concluded that Li Yi must possess the genuine Mysterious Artifact from the Ruined City, then planned to kill him before his strength grew further. 46

Story Role / Major Arcs

Ruined City artifact expedition

• Recruits ordinary people to investigate a haunted building and search for a suspected Mysterious Artifact 1
• Explains that cultivators draw the attention of vengeful spirits, while ordinary people are comparatively safer 1 4
• Watches the expedition with Ning Wu from a distance and retreats when Wang Hu's actions provoke the Earthbound Spirit's domain 4
• Attempts to stop Li Yi from escaping with burial objects but is prevented from pursuing him by Investigator Wang Jian 5

Recovery attempt

• Is released alongside Ning Wu and tasked with finding the three survivors who took items from the Ruined City 9
• Threatens Li Yi over the phone, identifies Li Yi's parents and Medical Pods as leverage, and purchases the visible burial clothes for 10,000 yuan 10
• Mistakenly concludes that Li Yi is not carrying a valuable artifact, shifting attention toward Wang Hu and Wei Li 10

Assassination of Li Yi

• Learns that Li Yi's extraordinary progress and Biao hunt likely came from a Mysterious Artifact 46
• Helps Ning Wu prepare a covert operation against Li Yi, including personnel recruitment and a possible sniper failsafe through Wang Kui 46
• Leads cultivators into Li Yi's home, intending to kill him and seize the artifact 47 48
• Is overwhelmed by Li Yi's fist technique, suffers a broken arm, attempts to flee, and is killed by Li Yi 48

Relationships

• Ning Wu — Accomplice and partner in the Ruined City artifact operation. She orders him to locate the survivors and later works with him to plan Li Yi's assassination. 5 9 46
• Li Yi — Former recruit and eventual target. Old Crow first hires Li Yi for the Ruined City expedition, later threatens him over the artifact, and is ultimately killed by him. 1 10 48
• Wang Jian — Investigator who interrupts Old Crow's attempt to reclaim the expedition's loot and has him taken in for investigation. 5
• Wang Hu and Wei Li — Survivors of Old Crow's expedition whom he is ordered to locate because they escaped with burial objects. 5 9
• Kong Sheng — Perimeter lookout during the assault on Li Yi. Kong Sheng later discovers Old Crow's body and reports the operation's failure to Ning Wu. 49