Thousand Wood Temple

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Thousand Wood Temple (千木观)
Founder	Daoist Yuxiao 239
Affiliation	Southern Central Province Dao Lineage; later reorganized alongside the reestablished Taiyan Sect 239 712 853
Occupation/Role	Daoist cultivation sect, spiritual dojo, and regional cultivation authority
Headquarters	Thousand Wood Mountain 20 174
Status	Active; inherited and administered by Shen Xiaozhu in the later era 954 1013
First Appearance	Chapter 5 — its Inner Hall and Outer Gate are renovated and put back into use 5

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Rebuilt mountain temple	5	Renovated two abandoned side halls into the Inner Hall for inner disciples and the Outer Gate for registered disciples; several Daoists established small dojos on Thousand Wood Mountain.
Foundation Establishment infrastructure	20	Eight Spirit Gathering Towers, a mountain enclosure, spirit grass, spirit wood, and a feng-shui well were established to increase the mountain’s spiritual energy.
Formalized sect administration	37	The inner sect developed dedicated Inner, Pill, Martial, Artifact, and Discipline Courts; the Strange Pavilion was built for the Yin-Yang Body Tempering Grand Formation.
Regional great sect	174	The outer sect housed over 5,000 disciples, while the inner sect and elemental academies held nearly 1,000 selected inner disciples.
Great Sect	536	The temple had over 1,000 inner disciples, 27 Immortal Realm cultivators, several hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators, and over 1,200 registered Qi practitioners; its total rolls likely reached 20,000–30,000 disciples.
Fourth-Realm-era transformation	666	Following the Ancestor’s Fourth Realm advancement, the sect’s grounds expanded into five mountain ranges with a strong Earth Vein aura.
Pure-land transition	853	Most disciples were moved to Taiyan Mountain, the remaining disciples were dismissed, and the former complex was cleared so Thousand Wood Temple could cease bearing broader karmic ties.
Restored inherited sect	954 1032	Shen Xiaozhu rebuilt cultivation courtyards and taught new disciples; the temple later counted 30 Second Realm Taiyan cultivators and 103 Taiyan cultivators who had entered a realm.

Background / History

Origins and earlier calamity

Daoist Yuxiao founded Thousand Wood Temple. After the Taiyan Sect faded from prominence, Yuxiao inherited the Dao Lineage of southern Central Province; the temple later supported Lord Xiaoshan during his conflict with Daoist Wuma over that lineage 239.

A later calamity nearly erased the temple’s lineage. An account preserved by Zi Luan states that a Daoist Scripture Hall case against the Great Demon of Baishui Lake led to an ambush on Thousand Wood Temple by the demon and allied cultivators. The Star God Alliance also searched the temple’s former grounds. Lord Xiaoshan later arranged for its inheritance to be preserved in Shang'an Prefecture through the Daoist Scripture Hall 712.

Rise under Daoist Yucheng and Wang Ping

By the seventh year of Baoyuan, Thousand Wood Temple had restored its Inner Hall and Outer Gate, accepted registered disciples, and attracted traveling Daoists to stay on the mountain 5. Wang Ping’s Foundation Establishment preparations further transformed the site through spirit-energy infrastructure and large-scale planting 20.

The temple became a regional center for cultivation, public worship, and secular commerce. Its Dharma assemblies drew officials, Daoists, martial artists, scholars, and wealthy merchants from Nanlin Road and surrounding regions 149. The town at the foot of the mountain absorbed Wang Family Village, developed major river commerce, and became closely tied to the temple’s affiliated cultivation grounds and businesses 174.

Attacks, reconstruction, and expansion

An attack on Thousand Wood Temple caused major losses and prompted Wang Ping, Daoist Yucheng, Zi Luan, and Zuo Xuan to restructure its security and purge Wulang’s followers 277. Wang Ping subsequently separated the mountain range from the mortal world with a fortified river channel, water formations, alarm arrays, banyan barriers, and fog formations 305.

As its influence spread across the Chu Kingdom, Central Province, East Continent, and West Continent, Thousand Wood Temple developed into a Great Sect with tens of thousands of disciples and affiliates 536. It later hosted cultivators from across the land for negotiations intended to unify Central Province and reestablish the Daoist Scripture Hall 646.

Transition toward Taiyan Sect

Wang Ping regarded the reestablishment of Taiyan Sect as necessary for recognition as the orthodox Mystic Sect, stating that Thousand Wood Temple would eventually become “a thing of the past” once Taiyan Sect was restored 712. He later ordered Thousand Wood Temple transformed into a quiet cultivation pure land, with the Taiyan Sect assuming its karmic burdens and external ties 853.

The temple nevertheless continued as an inherited institution. Shen Xiaozhu took charge of the Mountain Top Dojo, accepted disciples with Spiritual Roots, and imposed strict sect rules; Liu Shuang and Zuo Liang maintained their own established inheritances under Thousand Wood Temple’s leadership 954 1013.

Grounds

Core complexes

• Front Hall — enshrines Daoist Saints, True Lords, former Prefects, and Thousand Wood Temple’s ancestral masters; it remained standing when the broader complex was cleared because of these memorial tablets 174 853.
• Inner Hall and Outer Gate — restored from two abandoned side halls; the former housed inner disciples, while the latter housed registered disciples 5.
• Five Courts — the Inner Court, Pill Court, Martial Court, Artifact Court, and Discipline Court managed administration, spirit fields, cultivation, artifact forging, and rewards or punishments 37.
• Strange Pavilion — a large, pillar-free pavilion built for Wang Ping’s Yin-Yang Body Tempering Grand Formation; its mortise-and-tenon structure used 109 ironwood trees over 300 years old 37.
• Mountain Top Dojo — Wang Ping’s secluded cultivation site was later located beneath it in an enormous cavern connected to an underground river 554.
• Ascension Platform — served as a controlled entry point for guests and disciples; visitors were permitted to fly only after reaching an inner platform beyond the Sect Gate 305 666.

Mountain range

• The reconstructed river channel completely separated the Thousand Wood Temple mountain range from the mortal world; it was at least ten zhang wide at its narrowest point and included water formations and silt-clearing arrays 305.
• Banyan barriers and mist-generating water formations obscured the mountain range from Zhonghui County Town, while alarm arrays identified intruding cultivators 305.
• After Wang Ping’s Fourth Realm advancement, the surroundings were remade into five mountain ranges with dense Earth Vein aura, forests, pavilions, and towers 666.
• Wang Ping later cleared most buildings and mountain steps, replacing them with Spirit Wood forests to make the site a secluded cultivation ground 853.
• Shen Xiaozhu subsequently began rebuilding cultivation courtyards around the Mountain Top Dojo and Front Hall 954.

Infrastructure & Defenses

Nine Extremes Great Array

• Supplies spiritual energy across Thousand Wood Mountain and can be adjusted to support disciples attempting Foundation Establishment 174 287.
• Generated a Wood Spirit Qi shield around Thousand Wood Mountain and the town below when Wang Ping sensed a battle between great-realm cultivators nearby 174.
• Supports internal construction projects, including pill-refining plans and later formations designed to absorb excess Wood Spirit Qi 174 856.

Barrier formations

• Wang Ping designed a barrier formation for the mountainside, reinforced by an illusion realm created through the Water Moon Bell; it could withstand most Second Realm cultivators even in his absence 305.
• The temple’s barrier array automatically sealed the sky during Shen Xiaozhu’s Immortal Realm advancement, preventing mortals from observing the Wood Spirit Qi phenomenon 560.
• Wang Ping later installed monitoring formations to signal that Thousand Wood Temple was not open to casual investigation by True Lords 1013.

Flying vessels

• Thousand Wood Temple operates two jade-green main flying vessels, each 100 zhang long and covered in cloud-pattern formations 991.
• Several hundred smaller and medium vessels can form a coordinated attack-and-defense grand formation around the main vessels 991.
• Each main vessel contains control hubs, transfer talismans, Spirit Gathering Arrays, balancing formations, and Wood Spirit Formation-sealed energy pillars 991.

Membership and Recruitment

Period	Recorded composition
Early expansion	Registered disciples came and went through the Outer Gate, while traveling Daoists also stayed at the temple 5
Regional prominence	Over 5,000 outer disciples; nearly 1,000 inner disciples across the academies 174
Great Sect era	Over 1,000 inner disciples, 27 Immortal Realm cultivators, several hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators, and more than 1,200 registered Qi practitioners 536
Pure-land transition	Fewer than 500 menial disciples remained after most courts moved to Taiyan Mountain 853
Later era	30 Second Realm Taiyan cultivators, 103 Taiyan cultivators who had entered a realm, and one disciple qualified for a Third Realm advancement competition 1032

• Outer disciples were selected after the annual post–Spring Festival worship ceremony based on Spiritual Roots and comprehension 756.
• Disciples who left cultivation were not forcibly recalled; they became secular disciples and could later recommend descendants to the temple 756.
• Shen Xiaozhu accepted disciples with Spiritual Roots but enforced harsh rules, leading some to leave the mountain each year 1013.

Relationships

• Daoist Yuxiao — founding ancestor who inherited the southern Central Province Dao Lineage after Taiyan Sect’s decline 239.
• Lord Xiaoshan / True Monarch Xiaoshan — historical ally in the struggle for the southern Dao Lineage; later arranged for Thousand Wood Temple’s inheritance to be preserved after its calamity 239 712.
• Daoist Yucheng — senior master associated with the temple’s recovery and development; implemented a new sect system after the attack on Thousand Wood Temple 37 279.
• Wang Ping / Prefect Changqing — leader who expanded the temple’s infrastructure, defenses, political influence, and cultivation resources 305 605 804.
• Shen Xiaozhu — inherited Thousand Wood Temple and rebuilt its disciple courtyards and teaching structure 954 1013.
• Taiyan Sect — the older orthodox foundation tied to Thousand Wood Temple’s Dao Lineage; Wang Ping shifted the temple’s broader karmic ties toward the reestablished Taiyan Sect 239 712 853.
• Daoist Scripture Hall — preserved the temple’s inheritance after its earlier calamity and was later targeted for reestablishment under Thousand Wood Temple’s leadership 712 646.
• Sanhe Temple, Pingdong Gate, and allied sects — participated in Thousand Wood Temple’s grand competition, reflecting its alliance network across Nanlin Road 383.

Notable Events

• Hosted a seven-day Dharma assembly featuring Daoist arts discussions, martial contests, academic exchanges, and a final Heaven-worship ceremony 149.
• Withstood a major attack that led to the relocation of medicinal fields, a security overhaul, and the separation of the sect from Zhonghui City 277.
• Convened cultivators from across Central Province to negotiate regional unification and the reestablishment of the Daoist Scripture Hall 646.
• Served as the base from which Thousand Wood Temple forces entered the Southeast Sea Region conflict under Zi Luan’s command 797.
• Became the object of damaging accusations that its disciples had captured living people for blood sacrifices, seriously harming its public reputation 788.