Cangming Dao

Biodata

History

Founding and rise

Cangming Dao was founded roughly 1,700 years ago beside the Spirit Abyss Sea Ruins. Its Patriarch was then only at the Dao Foundation Realm, but gained an opportunity within the ruins and established the sect's mountain-protecting formation, securing its initial foothold. 485

Its founder, Cangmingzi, later allied with the Grand Ancestor of Great Han against Ying Chen, an ancient True Dragon who sought to seize humanity's destiny and establish a puppet dynasty. Their victory cost dearly, but the Grand Ancestor attained Golden Core through the dragon's source energy, while Cangming Dao obtained the Myriad Rivers Spiritual Waves Abyss Sealing Diagram. 73

The founding Patriarch eventually ascended as a Heavenly Sovereign through the Dao of [Wall Water]. He possessed authority over time profound enough to carve out the Temporal Secret Realm. 517

Water-vein authority

The Myriad Rivers Spiritual Waves Abyss Sealing Diagram allows Cangming Dao to monitor and regulate the world's water veins. With it, the sect expanded across the South Sea and three surrounding prefectures, becoming a pillar of the Great Han imperial order. 73

Its influence can directly alter rivers. When Chen Yuan became master of the Chishui River, an aura from Cangming Dao attempted to transform the river; his new bond with the river resisted the process. 129

Organization

Lineages

Cangming Dao is traditionally described as having ten veins and one hundred streams, with numerous subordinate branches and disciples spread throughout the dynasty. 73

Known lineages and branches include:

• Cold River Flow — One of the hundred streams; Jiang Qingyuan serves as its master. 73
• Myriad Treasures Glazed Sea — Qingli's lineage and the branch associated with the Hundred Treasures River. 129 130
• Mysterious Nether Sea — A major lineage whose rise to Dao Foundation status intensified its rivalry with the Ten Thousand Treasures River lineage. 302
• Ten Thousand Treasures River — An influential lineage represented by External Affairs Elder Wang Shouzhua. 302
• Wall Water — The Dao lineage tied to the sect's founding Patriarch and its inherited water-based authority. 517 524

Leadership and succession

• The Sect Master, Yun Cang True Person, leads Cangming Dao and has cultivated to the peak of the Dao Foundation Realm or beyond. 483
• The Hall Master of Transmission, Daoist Minghe, oversees the sect's transmission of teachings and techniques. 323
• The Dao Child is the highest-ranked heir of the sect's younger generation. The position stood vacant for a century before Chen Yuan's investiture. 483 524
• A Dao Child's decrees carry authority equivalent to the Sect Master's within the limits of sect law; island lords, water-manor masters, and disciples are required to receive and obey them. 524 525

Dao Child authority

The Dao Child mark is more than a title: it is an authorization left by the Patriarch. Through it, the bearer can sense and borrow from Cangming Dao's mountain-protecting formation and, to a degree, invoke the Myriad Rivers Spiritual Waves Abyss Sealing Diagram. 525

Chen Yuan's appointment as the seventh-generation Dao Child was personally decreed by the Patriarch's Dao Manifestation. The investiture granted him the Dao Heir mark, the Blackwater Robe, and the Dao Heir jade token. 524

Territory and institutions

• Cangming Archipelago — The sect's network includes thirty-six spirit islands, seventy-two water manors, and numerous vassal families. 525
• Vast Sea Marsh — The area surrounding the sect's main grounds, reached through the Glazed Waterway. 297 298
• Spirit Abyss Sea Ruins / Sinking Feather Abyss — An ancient ruin beside which the sect was founded; it opens periodically and serves as a major source of inheritances, Dao treasures, and sect trials. 485 491
• Cangming Hall — The sect's central hall, where the Sect Master receives important visitors and disciples. 333
• Court of Origin Hall — The site of Chen Yuan's Dao Foundation ceremony and subsequent Dao Child investiture. 524
• Glazed Waterway — A secret water-based transmission route operated through the Hundred Treasures River. 297

Known Members

• Cangmingzi — Founder of Cangming Dao; fought alongside Great Han's Grand Ancestor against Ying Chen. 73
• Yun Cang True Person — Sect Master; a peak Dao Foundation cultivator who seeks to refine the [Xun Wind] Golden Nature and advance toward the [Zhen Water] position. 502 563
• Daoist Minghe — Hall Master of Transmission and Dao Foundation cultivator; recognized Chen Yuan as a True Disciple and later presided over his investiture. 323 329 524
• Jiang Qingyuan — Master of the Cold River Flow; a Qi Eating Realm cultivator who effortlessly subdued Xuan Xiao. 73
• Qingli — Master of the Hundred Treasures River and a Qi Eating Realm grand cultivator of the Myriad Treasures Glazed Sea. 129 131
• Zhao Canghai — Cold River lineage disciple and Jiang Qingyuan's nephew; formerly remained in the mortal realm rather than return to the sect. 74 76
• Chen Yuan — Initially recognized as a True Disciple after his Qi Eating breakthrough; later became Bright Light True Person, Dao Heir, and Cangming Dao's seventh-generation Dao Child. 329 523 524

Relationships

• Great Han Dynasty — Cangming Dao and Great Han share a founding-era alliance forged during the war against Ying Chen; the sect became deeply tied to the imperial family after that victory. 73
• Great Han Grand Ancestor — Joined Cangming Dao before founding the dynasty and fought beside Cangmingzi against Ying Chen. 73
• Chishui River — Cangming Dao's water-vein influence attempted to transform the river, but Chen Yuan's River God Token and bond with the Chishui River complicated the process. 129
• Affiliated islands and water manors — Thirty-six spirit islands, seventy-two water manors, and vassal families fall under the sect's Dao Child inspection system. 525
• Imperial Court — The court recognizes Cangming Dao as a major Daoist power and has sought its aid in the political struggle surrounding Great Peace City. 505 515

Story Role / Major Arcs

• Xuan Xiao incident — Jiang Qingyuan intervenes when Xuan Xiao targets Chen Yuan, demonstrating Cangming Dao's authority over water domains and dragons. 73 74 76
• Hundred Treasures River descent — Qingli establishes the Hundred Treasures River near the Chishui River, extending the Myriad Treasures Glazed Sea's presence into Linhai. 129 130
• Chen Yuan's entry — Zhao Canghai brings Chen Yuan to Cangming Dao through the Glazed Waterway; Chen Yuan later enters the Sect Entry Ceremony and is recognized as a True Disciple immediately after reaching Qi Eating. 297 329
• Spirit Abyss Sea Ruins — The sect uses the ruins and true-inheritance rankings to select candidates for its core, with Yun Cang assigning Chen Yuan the task of retrieving a Dao seal. 483 491
• Dao Child investiture — After reaching Dao Foundation, Chen Yuan is named Bright Light True Person and personally invested by the Patriarch as the sect's seventh-generation Dao Child. 523 524
• Canghai Eye Dharma Assembly — As Dao Child, Chen Yuan uses Cangming Dao's authority to expose and discipline the great island clans, then establishes an Inspection Office to govern the sea region. 538 540 541

Trivia

• The Nine Ultimate Dao Bell is rung only for a Sect Master's ascension, a Dao Child's investiture, or matters affecting the survival of the lineage. 524
• Cangming Dao's cultivation techniques are divided into nine tiers: three turbid, three clear, and three profound. 342
• The sect's mountain gate is known for an immortal, secluded bearing, contrasting with Great Peace City's worldly and imperial character. 505