Shen Family

Biodata

Name	Shen Family (沈家)
Occupation/Role	Prominent martial family and dominant power in Diannan Prefecture
Status	Active 300
First Appearance	Chapter 1

History

Rise and rule of Diannan

The Shen Family had dominated the Prefecture City for more than a century by the time Zhuang Jin entered its third Martial Student Recruitment. Its established position made entry into the family a source of protection against local threats. 1 18

The family governed Diannan Prefecture from its headquarters in the Prefecture City and received annual tributes of medicinal materials, money, and other goods from the prominent families of its seven counties: Anfeng, Danhua, Yuyang, Guangping, Wanliu, Linji, and Qinghe. In return, it granted Azure Origin Liquid. 123

Its historical strength derived in part from the cultivation legacy of an Immortal. The Shen Family's core technique, the Wind Thunder Shocking Skill, is a Five Elements Mutation cultivation method supported by Azure Origin Powder and Azure Origin Grass. This slower, foundation-strengthening path is reserved for the family's core line and can support higher advancement than the externally taught Black Fiend Art. 131 213

Conflict with the Medicine King Gang

The Medicine King Gang's rise challenged the Shen Family's long-standing rule. The gang secretly used a damaged Mid-grade Azure Origin Pot to cultivate medicinal herbs, accumulate resources, and train martial practitioners. 132 199

The Shen Family initially answered the gang's recruitment of Martial Students by opening its own external recruitment program and expanding it several times. It later contested the north of the city, jointly squeezed out smaller gangs, and eventually launched a surprise attack to seize the advantage. 3 197

The conflict ended after Shen Xianhong, Zhuang Jin, and Prefect Mu Yuantu lured the Medicine King Gang's leader, Shi Yong, into peace talks and killed him. The Shen Family subsequently acquired the gang's damaged Mid-grade Azure Origin Pot and expanded across the north, east, and south of the city, as well as the seven counties under its jurisdiction. 201 205 214

Succession under Shen Xianhong

Shen Xianhong maintained the family through both external warfare and internal purges, including an investigation into corruption in the East of the City. 164 170

After judging Fourth Young Master Shen Xujing unfit to inherit, Shen Xianhong severed his meridians and removed his path to the Innate Realm. He instead selected Eighth Young Master Shen Xuchen as the prospective Patriarch and subjected him to the family's severe succession training. 214

By the time Shen Xianhong's health declined, Shen Xuchen had become Family Head. Shen Xianhong entrusted him with protecting Chen Yun, Shen Xujun, and Mu Qing; managing the Shen Family's relationship with the Mu Family; and supporting Shen Xujing as an idle noble if he remained obedient. 300

Organization

Rank / Group	Description
Family Patriarch	The family head and ultimate authority. Shen Xianhong held the position before Shen Xuchen succeeded him. 160 300
Inner Courtyard	The household's high-status sphere, including Inner Courtyard Maids in pink garments and the Shen Family's direct descendants. 5
Household Retainers	Black-robed personnel ranked above the Outer Courtyard's First-Class Maids. 5
Servants	Gray-robed staff identified by one, two, or three silver shoulder stripes; Three-Insignia Servants are equivalent in standing to Outer Courtyard First-Class Maids. 5 6
Outer Courtyard Maids	Lake-green-clad female staff divided into Third-Class, Second-Class, and First-Class ranks, marked by increasing numbers of willow-leaf patterns. 5
Guards	Seven- to Twelve-Meridian martial practitioners. They receive housing, stipends, exotic beast meat, transportation privileges, and assigned servants. 107 148
Attendants	Meridian Opening martial practitioners who have entered the Shen Family's upper ranks. At this level, the family must treat them as revered supporters rather than ordinary subordinates. 148 159

Recruitment and Training

Martial Student Recruitment

The Shen Family's external Martial Student Recruitment required a fee of one tael of silver. Recruits trained under closed management for one month; those who reached the Qi Condensation Realm and became true martial artists could join the family, while those who failed were dismissed. 3 5 7

• Recruits received bedding and basic necessities from the Shen Family during closed management. 5
• Martial Students were trained in the Black Fiend Stake Stance, an eighty-one-movement exercise used to control Blood Essence and refine Inner Breath. 7
• Reaching the Qi Condensation Realm required producing enough Inner Breath to leave a palm print on a wooden board. 7
• Formal Martial Artists received better meals and instruction in the Black Fiend Palm. 28 35

Black Fiend Art

The Black Fiend Art is the standard cultivation method issued to externally recruited martial practitioners, paired with Black Essence Powder and the Black Fiend Palm. It accelerates early cultivation but depletes bodily potential and makes later bottlenecks harder to overcome. 22 84

• The family can rapidly produce usable martial strength through Black Jade Grass, the primary ingredient of Black Essence Powder. 89 131
• The technique is widely used by the Shen Family's lower and middle ranks, as well as by martial practitioners in other influential families. 84
• The Black Fiend Art makes having offspring increasingly difficult at higher realms. 159
• The Shen Family controls the technique, its martial skills, cultivation resources, and marriage arrangements, allowing it to bind externally recruited practitioners closely to the household. 84

Core cultivation legacy

The Shen Family's direct line cultivates superior foundation-building methods rather than the Black Fiend Art. Their core inheritance is the Wind Thunder Shocking Skill, a wind-and-lightning-attributed Five Elements Mutation cultivation method. 131 213

• Direct descendants receive medicinal meals, baths, elixirs, and more suitable cultivation resources from childhood. 84 92
• The core path progresses more slowly early on, but preserves potential and provides a stronger foundation for later breakthroughs. 84 131
• The family possesses Heaven-grade exotic beast leather armor, including armor made from a Five Viscera Realm Wind Valley Thunder Ape. 209

Territory and Assets

• Shen Family Headquarters — The main Prefecture City base, containing the Outer and Inner Courtyards, training grounds, departments, and residences for members and retainers. 5 46
• East and South of Diannan City — Traditional Shen Family territory; the south includes the dangerous front line bordering the Medicine King Gang's western territory. 45 148
• Herb Fields Outside the City — A comparatively low-risk assignment area that also provides exotic beast meat and cultivation opportunities. 45
• North of the City — A contested region during the war with the Medicine King Gang, later incorporated into the Shen Family's expanded holdings. 96 214
• Azure Origin Pots — The family originally possessed a Low-grade Azure Origin Pot and later acquired the Medicine King Gang's damaged Mid-grade pot. Azure Origin Liquid drastically accelerates the growth of medicinal herbs. 131 201 214
• Cloud Concealment Tea — A rare Shen Family treasure that aids cultivation and bottleneck breakthroughs. 160

Notable Members

• Shen Xianhong — Long-serving Family Patriarch; an Innate martial practitioner whose strategy guided the family through its struggle with the Medicine King Gang. 160 192
• Shen Xuchen — Eighth Young Master and later Family Head; chosen by Shen Xianhong as prospective Patriarch after accepting the family's succession training. 214 300
• Shen Xianji — Deputy Director of the Skill Transmission Department; instructed Zhuang Jin on higher realms, cultivation methods, and martial skills. 159
• Shen Xujing — Fourth Young Master; removed from succession after Shen Xianhong judged his plan to eliminate Zhuang Jin and dominate Diannan too dangerous. 214
• Shen Xujun — Fifth Miss of the Shen Family; married Zhuang Jin as an equal wife to secure the family's alliance with him. 205 206
• Mu Mingxi — Director of the General Affairs Department; involved in the family's administration and its assessment of Zhuang Jin. 128 160

Relationships

• Zhuang Jin — Began as an externally recruited Martial Student, rose into the family's upper ranks, and became an Innate ally and honored guest. His marriage to Shen Xujun strengthened the connection, though Shen Xianhong remained aware that Zhuang Jin could not be fully controlled. 160 205 214
• Medicine King Gang — Long-standing rival whose expansion triggered the Shen Family's recruitment drive and city-wide conflict; the gang was ultimately destroyed through the alliance against Shi Yong. 197 201 205
• Mu Family — A powerful ally and rival. The families cooperated against the Medicine King Gang, but later disputed control of the north of the city before Zhuang Jin compelled a settlement. 202 212
• Prefecture Yamen — Officially neutral during the Shen–Medicine King conflict. Prefect Mu Yuantu repeatedly mediated disputes and later joined Shen Xianhong and Zhuang Jin's plot against Shi Yong. 172 202
• County prominent families — Subordinate local powers that render annual tribute to the Shen Family and receive Azure Origin Liquid in exchange. 123