Great Scholar

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Great Scholar
Alias(es)	大儒; Grand Scholar
Affiliation	Confucian sect
Occupation/Role	Highest Confucian cultivation rank in the mortal world, beneath Sage
Status	Active cultivation rank
First Appearance	11

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Scholar Realm	20	Comprises the Self-Awareness, Writing, and Poem Creation minor realms.
Master Realm	20	Reached after the Poem Creation Realm through accumulated learning; cultivators perceive the Mountain of Books and Sea of Learning.
Great Scholar Realm	20 179	Attained by traversing the cultivation of the Mountain of Books and Sea of Learning, described as six mountains and seas.
Great Scholar breakthrough	245	Can manifest as a pillar of Righteous Qi, azure clouds, and a white crane. Successful advancement extends lifespan by sixty years.

Standing in the Confucian Sect

Great Scholars are the highest-ranked Confucian cultivators in the mortal world; only Sages stand above them. In the current era, the Confucian sect has no Sage, placing Great Scholars among the world's foremost powers 14.

They are considered a cornerstone of the Human Race. A single Great Scholar can uphold a family's reputation as a scholarly family; two or more elevate it into a powerful family 188 620.

“Great Scholar” is a cultivation rank rather than a measure of intelligence, virtue, or moral character. Advancement depends on the depth and coherence of one's scholarship and reasoning, which can be righteous, narrow, or distorted 179 278.

Cultivation

Mountain of Books and Sea of Learning

After becoming a Master Teacher, a Confucian cultivator sees the Mountain of Books and Sea of Learning within their consciousness. Progress toward Great Scholar consists of climbing the former and crossing the latter through continued study, review, and hardship 20.

• The path may be obstructed by damaged Confucian Hearts, accumulated killing intent, or an inability to reconcile scholarship with lived experience 245.
• Great Scholars are also called Mountain and Sea People because of this path 20.
• Though the usual route requires traversing the six mountains and seas, shortcuts to Great Scholar status exist 179.

Home, Country, and World

A Great Scholar can manifest their Confucian principles as a Home, Country, and World—a domain-like projection shaped by their scholarship and life experience 187 345.

• Its form varies widely; it may resemble landscapes, cities, rivers, or even a dilapidated wooden house 345.
• It can be developed into unique Supernatural Powers through literary comprehension 187.
• Compatible Great Scholars may fuse their domains into a Great Scholar Combined Attack, producing power beyond their individual realms 237.
• Such combined attacks require compatible domains and strong soul resonance; they are most commonly achieved by close relatives or couples 237.

Righteous Qi and Supernatural Powers

Great Scholars wield Righteous Qi at a level capable of affecting combat, space, weather, and the battlefield.

• Thousand Mile Step — a movement Supernatural Power that allows rapid travel across vast distances 236.
• Heaven and Earth Overturned — Su Liancheng's Great Scholar Supernatural Power, used to prevent an enemy's escape 27.
• Righteousness of a Thousand Li, a Single Saber on a Single Horse — a literary-derived offensive power created after a Great Scholar studied Romance of the Three Kingdoms 187.
• Clashes between Great Scholars and Barbarian Kings can alter local weather patterns, producing oppressive storms over entire cities 276.

Dream Schoolhouse

Certain Great Scholars can lecture through a Dream Schoolhouse, drawing listeners into a dream environment to impart knowledge and accelerate comprehension 192.

• Its use requires the virtue of Enlighten the World 192.
• The instruction may simulate practical settings, such as command tents and military campaigns, rather than merely presenting abstract scholarship 192.
• Romance of the Three Kingdoms created a Dream Schoolhouse that taught military strategy and formation warfare 192 193.

Literary Treasures

Great Scholars refine and employ Great Scholar’s Literary Treasures as major cultivation and combat resources.

• A gentleman's personal sword may become the first Literary Treasure they refine after it has been carried and nurtured until it resonates with its owner’s qi 131.
• Literary Treasures are valuable enough to be used as wagers between Great Scholars 174.
• A Half-Saint could raise the Fisherman's Painting only to the level of a Great Scholar’s Literary Treasure, demonstrating the treasure class's significance 174.
• Wenchang Pavilion provides resources that Great Scholars may exchange for; such resources can be used to refine a first Literary Treasure 879.

Institutions and Social Role

Wenchang Pavilion

Wenchang Pavilion is a major Confucian institution associated with Great Scholars. Wei Yan, a third-rank Gewu Realm Great Scholar, served there 11.

• It records more than a thousand named Great Scholars, though only roughly one-tenth are actively engaged within the pavilion 879.
• Active members include Great Scholars stationed in prefectures and serving as academic officials 879.
• Membership grants access to missions, cultivation resources, and like-minded scholars pursuing their Saintly Paths 879.

Service to the Human Race

Great Scholars commonly serve as officials, military defenders, academy leaders, and protectors of cities and families.

• Some hold high third-rank offices or hereditary noble titles such as Earl and Marquis 184.
• Great Scholars stationed at the northern frontier use coordinated attacks to kill Barbarian Kings and defend Human Race territory 276.
• Veteran Master Teachers near the end of their lives may seek a final breakthrough to Great Scholar, both to continue serving and to gain renewed lifespan 245.
• Thirty-six veteran Master Teachers successfully advanced in Dongcang City, dramatically increasing the city's scholarly strength 245 246.

Notable Great Scholars

Great Scholar	Known details
Wei Yan	Courtesy name Tianyi; a third-rank Gewu Realm Great Scholar of Wenchang Pavilion and Cai Tongchen's teacher 11.
Su Liancheng	Wielder of Heaven and Earth Overturned; later sacrificed himself after using the forbidden power Righteousness to Destroy Kinship against Barbarian Kings 27 345.
Yun Siyao	Defended Dongcang City by effortlessly destroying more than three hundred attacking Barbarian Blood Beasts 219.
Xiang Jixuan	A battlefield Master Teacher who broke through during Dongcang's Morning and Evening Assembly and pledged to remain in the city thereafter 245.
Sima Lie	A Great Scholar of the Shi family and successor of a Half-Saint; possesses a supernatural power capable of rewinding time 165.
Leng Hanbing	A Wenchang Pavilion Great Scholar who observed the Star Picking Tower ceremony and later offered Literary Treasures to prospective disciples 125 464.

Trivia

• Great Scholars may gain new Supernatural Powers by comprehending Chen Luo's writings; sixty-three Great Scholars built around “righteousness” did so after reading “A Lone Rider Crossing a Thousand Li” 187.
• Great Scholars are not necessarily elderly. Successful advancement can visibly restore youth and vitality 245.
• The term is sometimes translated as Grand Scholar, including in Wei Yan's introduction 11.