Fourth Elder

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Fourth Elder (四长老)
Entity Type	Village leadership title 58
Gender	Male; both known holders are men 10 58
Affiliation	East Wolf Village 9 10
Occupation/Role	Elder responsible for training village guards and cultivating the village's combat strength; also directs patrols, manages military affairs, and coordinates relations with Descenders 9 58
Original Holder	Unnamed elderly guard instructor 10
Current Holder	Zheng Dong, appointed by Gao Linzhi and the remaining elders 58
Status	Active title held by Zheng Dong; the original holder was killed by Gao Linzhi during the East Wolf Village elders' conflict 51 52 58 319
First Appearance	Chapter 10

Background / History

The Fourth Elder oversaw East Wolf Village's guards, offering Descenders a ten-year Guard Contract. Its terms required the village to provide training resources and required guards to follow combat deployments, while allowing them to refuse suicide missions; violations incurred “divine retribution.” 10

The contract also explicitly prohibited either party from harming or deceiving the other. 10

He considered guards essential not primarily for protecting ordinary villagers, but for defending the Ancestral Hall of Inheritance and the elders. He presented guard service as a long-term route toward class inheritances, increased lifespan, and possibly immortality. 13

When Lin Qing revealed her Purple Talent, he accepted her as a village guard and openly defied Xu Corporation's demands that she be surrendered. He secured defensive and escape jade talismans for Lin Qing and Gao Linzhi through the Third Elder, then distributed them as newcomer protection. 11 12

He personally trained Gao Linzhi and Lin Qing in foundational combat and observation skills. Impressed by Gao Linzhi's extraordinary learning speed, he arranged for Zheng Dong to help him maximize his Basic Skills and later taught him the Disguise Art. 17 26 30 31

He also gave Gao Linzhi a token authorizing him to kill captured monsters for experience. He advised prioritizing skill development over character levels, explaining that experience invested in skills could improve attributes while the village provided protection. His sponsorship subsequently entitled Gao Linzhi to learn the Martial Arts School's basic skills for free. 19 33

The Fourth Elder repeatedly attempted to protect Lin Qing from covert threats, though he admitted he lacked proof against those targeting her and could not prevent every attack. During an Anomaly incident, he lured the threat away rather than catching the person who threw a firecracker into her room. 25 26

Lin Qing later sought his support for learning through Skill Books rather than relying solely on conventional practice and offered to recognize him as her adoptive father. 35

When Gao Linzhi asked about magic-type Basic Skills, the Fourth Elder explained that access required dealing with three types of Anomalies or becoming strong enough to counter Corporate Players. He also described the village's strategy of using players to check one another. 40

His relationship with Gao Linzhi ultimately collapsed. After offering to take Gao to obtain Skill Stones, he led him toward a cursed formation in the Huai Tree Forest; Gao Linzhi recognized the danger through the very observation art the Fourth Elder had taught him. 50 51 Gao Linzhi subsequently killed the Fourth Elder with a punch, and the remaining elders publicly claimed that he had colluded with the Anomaly-possessed Great Elder. 51 52 53

The Great Elder's subsequent confrontation with Gao Linzhi revealed that the village intended to seize Gao's talent. Zheng Dong, who had overheard the conflict, understood the deaths as a backlash against the elders' oppression of Descenders rather than accepting the public explanation that Anomaly possession was responsible. 52 58

Known Holders

Holder	Tenure / Succession	Responsibilities and Outcome
Unnamed original Fourth Elder	Held the position when Gao Linzhi and Lin Qing entered East Wolf Village 10 11	Recruited and trained guards; killed by Gao Linzhi after leading him toward the Huai Tree Forest's cursed formation 17 50 51 52
Zheng Dong	Appointed after Gao Linzhi became Great Elder 58	Inherited military and guard-training duties, with an additional mandate to maintain good relations between villagers and Descenders; remained in office during the later influx of high-level players 58 319

Zheng Dong's Appointment

After taking control of East Wolf Village, Gao Linzhi identified the vacant Fourth Elder position as necessary for managing military affairs and completing the five-elder leadership. The remaining elders were technical specialists who lacked expertise in managing personnel, making a dedicated military administrator especially important to the village's reconnaissance and BOSS-hunting plans. 58

Zheng Dong initially doubted that a patrol captain could hold such a high position. He remembered the former Fourth Elder as mysterious, imposing, and confident, and considered himself inferior to his predecessor. Nevertheless, he accepted the appointment and pledged to perform his duties to the best of his ability. 58

The Second Elder defined the office's duties as cultivating reliable combat power, leading patrol teams, driving away demonic creatures, and avoiding or luring away Anomalies. Gao Linzhi's administration added responsibility for building good relationships with Descenders and coordinating their relationship with the village. Zheng Dong was also tasked with fighting a BOSS, with Gao offering to intervene if the danger proved excessive. 58

Zheng Dong did not intend to avenge his predecessor: he believed he lacked justification and had children to consider. However, he would have opposed Gao Linzhi if the new Great Elder had continued killing indiscriminately or attempted to destroy the village. 58

Later Administration and Player Encounters

Zheng Dong later handled miscellaneous village matters and served as an alternative point of contact when Gao Linzhi was unavailable. Zhang San, Wang Er, and Li Si visited him after being redirected by the Council Hall's guard, triggering a quest to investigate light emerging from an ancient well in the Huai Tree Forest. The quest led them to a bottle of Longevity Water said to grant two hundred additional years of life. 230

The interaction did not unfold as a normal briefing from Zheng Dong's perspective. The three players accepted the system quest and immediately departed, leaving him puzzled. Gao Linzhi recognized the event as an intervention by the game operators. 230

During a later influx of more than one hundred thousand players toward East Wolf Village, Zheng Dong and his patrol team intercepted most of the arrivals outside the village. He insisted that audiences with the Great Elder required formal requests, after which the players selected powerful representatives to enter the Council Hall. 319

The encounter alarmed Zheng Dong. More than half of the tens of thousands of players he observed appeared stronger than him, despite his position as a leading village figure. He wondered whether Descenders themselves resembled natural disasters or Anomalies, without realizing that the arrivals were unusually wealthy and powerful elites able to afford Respawn Point Switch Talismans. 319

Appearance

An elderly man who at one point appeared as an image in a scholar's robe. 22

• Usually composed and outwardly approachable, often smiling while discussing contracts or village prospects. 10 11
• Could become visibly grave when confronting Xu Corporation's threats or danger to his guards. 11 26
• Was remembered by Zheng Dong as mysterious, imposing, and confident. 58
• Sometimes sat dozing in a recliner in front of his courtyard in the village center. 19

Zheng Dong

Zheng Dong was initially described as a thin man with a simple-looking face. 9 After becoming Fourth Elder, he imagined that the position had made him more handsome and interpreted the three leisure players' brief visit as admiration for his valiant appearance. 230

Personality

The Fourth Elder was patient and methodical as an instructor. He emphasized that skills required persistence rather than relying solely on a Descender's “heavenly opportunity,” and he spent an entire night teaching Gao Linzhi and Lin Qing. 17

He valued talent highly, particularly Lin Qing's potential and Gao Linzhi's comprehension. He was willing to confront Xu Corporation to retain Lin Qing, and he showed genuine amazement at Gao Linzhi mastering skills in a fraction of the time it had taken him. 11 26 30

His initial priorities were unequal: after Gao Linzhi logged off to deal with real-world matters, he regarded Gao as an extra and considered properly training Lin Qing sufficient. His later admiration for Gao's learning speed marked a change in that assessment. 13 26 30

He also possessed a persuasive, political side. While introducing Lin Qing and Gao Linzhi to village life, he enthusiastically described East Wolf Village's economic and territorial prospects. 11 His later attempt to bring Gao Linzhi to the Huai Tree Forest cast doubt on the sincerity of his mentorship. 50 51

Although he acknowledged Descenders' extraordinary advantages, he believed their single lives restrained their potential danger. He remarked that Descenders with unlimited lives would be a calamity more fearsome than Anomalies. 26

His final words accused Gao Linzhi of being an “ungrateful wretch.” The surviving elders later privately characterized both him and the former Great Elder as too rigid, suggesting that greater flexibility could have prevented their deaths. 51 72

Zheng Dong

Zheng Dong approached his appointment with humility and a sense of responsibility. He knew the public explanation for the former elders' deaths was false but tried to convince himself that Anomalies were to blame, finding comfort in that interpretation while resolving to prevent the same mistake from recurring. 58

His later behavior combined conscientious administration with comic vanity. He enforced audience procedures during the mass arrival of players, but also imagined that becoming Fourth Elder had improved his appearance and attracted marriage offers from village families. 230 319

Abilities & Skills

Guard Training

The Fourth Elder trained village guards in both combat fundamentals and survival knowledge.

• Taught Basic Fists and Feet, Basic Parrying, Basic Lightness Skill, and Secret Scouting Technique to Gao Linzhi and Lin Qing. 17
• Explained that basic skills could otherwise require Copper Coins and Contribution Points from the village library. 17
• Assigned Zheng Dong to assist Gao Linzhi in maximizing his Basic Skills. 31
• Taught the Disguise Art after Gao Linzhi raised his Lightness Skill to Level 28. 30
• Proposed using Disguise Art to change his students' identities and conceal them within the village, reducing their exposure to covert attacks. 19
• Recommended improving skills before raising character levels and supplied access to captured monsters for experience. 19
• Identified Foxy Slope, Myriad Snake Cave, and Green Flood Dragon Beach as suitable newcomer leveling areas, while advising Gao to travel with experienced patrol members rather than alone. 30
• Warned that players should challenge a lair's BOSS before extensively farming its lesser monsters; if the BOSS could not be defeated, excessive farming was inadvisable. 30
• Acknowledged that he could no longer adequately guide Gao Linzhi after witnessing his rapid mastery of Disguise Art, citing the village's limited understanding of Descenders' Constitution. 30

Heavenly Sight, Earthly Hearing, Person-Judging Art

He instructed Lin Qing in the incomplete observation art and allowed Gao Linzhi to listen to the lesson.

• The art comprises Sky Reading, Earth Reading, and Person Reading. 16
• Enables preliminary assessments of weather, terrain, and another person's hostility or goodwill. 16
• Gao Linzhi later used its danger sense to refuse entry into the cursed Huai Tree Forest. 51
• Gao Linzhi came to believe that the Fourth Elder had withheld the complete version to avoid exposing his own intentions; this was Gao's interpretation rather than an explicit admission by the elder. 48

Anomaly Response

The Fourth Elder had practical knowledge of Anomalies and village defensive procedures.

• Warned that Anomalies were most likely to emerge at night and advised guards to log off when village alarms sounded. 24
• Explained that the village's large-scale talisman array protected most buildings from Anomalies. 24
• Identified the White Mist Anomaly known as Silence and instructed those present not to make loud noises. 25
• Lured an Anomaly away during the attack on Lin Qing's room. 26
• Could only evade the Faceless Man rather than confront it directly, illustrating the limits of his power against such threats. 25
• Avoiding or luring away Anomalies remained an explicit duty of the office under Zheng Dong. 58

Military and Administrative Authority

The Fourth Elder's position carries authority over the village's combat personnel and relations with Descenders.

• Cultivates reliable combat strength and directs the patrol team. 58
• Oversees operations to drive away demonic creatures and participates in BOSS-hunting assignments. 58
• Under Gao Linzhi's administration, coordinates relations between the village and Descenders. 58
• Handles miscellaneous matters and serves as a contact for players unable to obtain an audience with the Great Elder. 230
• Zheng Dong used the patrol team to regulate entry during the mass arrival of players and required formal requests for meetings with Gao Linzhi. 319

Equipment / Items

• Guard Contract Bronze Metal Plate — Ancient bronze plate bearing the ten-year Guard Contract. 10
• Jade Talismans — Obtained defensive, offensive, and escape talismans from the Third Elder for newly recruited guards. 11 12
  • The supplied batch contained fifty Blue Grade Defensive Jade Talismans, fifty Blue Grade Offensive Jade Talismans, and four Purple Grade Escape Jade Talismans. 11
  • Lin Qing and Gao Linzhi each received five defensive talismans and two escape talismans. 12
• Introduction to Anomalies — Book he placed in Gao Linzhi's room while beginning his instruction on Anomalies. 24
• Books and construction tools — Kept books on Skyfall's monsters, Anomalies, and cultivation, and allowed Gao Linzhi to take basic tools and food from his home. 24 19
• Authorization Token — Given to Gao Linzhi to obtain slaughter rights over captured monsters for experience; Zheng Dong honored the authorization. 19
• Courtyard Residence — Located in front of the street containing the Elder Council House, an arrangement that facilitated rapid dispatch of village forces. 53

Relationships

• Gao Linzhi / Can Xue — Guard and student. The Fourth Elder taught him foundational skills, provided growth opportunities, and arranged his placement with Zheng Dong's patrol; Gao Linzhi later killed him after becoming suspicious of his actions. 17 30 31 51 52 As Great Elder, Gao subsequently appointed Zheng Dong to the vacant office and offered assistance with dangerous BOSSes. 58
• Lin Qing — Guard and prized recruit. He protected her from Xu Corporation because of her Purple Talent and continued to advise her after attacks targeted her. 11 22 26 She later offered to become his adopted daughter while seeking support for accelerated learning through Skill Books. 35 He described her as the village's long-term reliance for the future, a statement later recalled by the West Wolf Village caravan leader. 60
• Zheng Dong — Subordinate patrol captain. The Fourth Elder assigned Zheng Dong to support Gao Linzhi's Basic Skill training; Zheng Dong later succeeded him as Fourth Elder. 31 58 Zheng Dong respected his predecessor's abilities but did not consider revenge justified after witnessing the circumstances of the elders' downfall. 58
• Third Elder — Fellow elder and talisman craftsman. Their relationship was strained, but the Third Elder supplied jade talismans at the Fourth Elder's request. 11 12 He warned that further supplies would be withheld if the Fourth Elder again failed to train qualified guards. 12
• Xu Corporation — Hostile external force. The Fourth Elder rejected its demands for Lin Qing and warned that its members could not harm East Wolf Village guards. 11 22
• Great Elder — Fellow village elder. The two were later collectively accused by the remaining elders of having been possessed or aligned with Anomalies. 53 The Great Elder's confrontation after the Fourth Elder's death exposed the village's intention to seize Gao Linzhi's talent. 52
• Second Elder — Fellow elder who explained the office's responsibilities to Zheng Dong after his appointment. 58
• Zhang San, Wang Er, and Li Si — Leisure players whose visit to Fourth Elder Zheng Dong triggered the ancient-well investigation quest. Their immediate departure confused him, while Gao Linzhi recognized the game operators' involvement. 230

Trivia

• The Fourth Elder said that Basic Lightness Skill had taken him a full year to reach entry level after beginning training at age five. 26
• He described the current Descenders as the seventh known batch to descend upon the Skyfall Continent. 30
• After his death, Zheng Dong was appointed as the new Fourth Elder and inherited responsibility for cultivating East Wolf Village's combat power. 58
• Gao Linzhi retained his former Guard Contract plate as a collectible after becoming Great Elder, associating it with “Betrayal and Counterattack.” 53
• Zheng Dong's belief that the title had made him more handsome followed a quest interaction whose system-generated briefing he did not appear to perceive. 230
• The original holder's warning that endlessly reviving Descenders would resemble a calamity was later echoed by Zheng Dong's fear of the rapidly growing player population. 26 319

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