Hongjun

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Hongjun (鸿钧)
Alias(es)	Dao Ancestor; Heavenly Dao Hongjun
Species/Race	Being of the First Realm; neither an innate being of the Primordial Era nor a Chaos Demon God 166
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Purple Cloud Palace; Heavenly Dao (formerly its spokesperson) 10 48
Occupation/Role	Sage; Dao lecturer; founder-master of the Heavenly Dao Sages; architect of Primordial Era governance
First Appearance	Chapter 3

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Infinitely close to Grand Dao Golden Immortal	3	Before attaining Sagehood, he could not fully access Heavenly Dao authority and placed all priority on his breakthrough.
Sage	7	His attainment produced Primordial-wide auspicious phenomena and compelled beings below Golden Immortal of Great Oneness to kneel. Sagehood is a Heavenly status rather than solely a cultivation realm 7 46.
At least late-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin	50	His strength after the Third Sermon was assessed at this level before accounting for the power he could mobilize after harmonizing with the Heavenly Dao.
Close to the Heavenly Dao Realm	111	His casual use of the Jade Disc of Creation and Three Thousand Green Silks was described as nearing the Heavenly Dao Realm.
Hunyuan Wuji Golden Immortal	248	He revealed this realm while confronting Styx at the Human Race Ancestral Land.

Background / History

Rise to Sagehood

Hongjun had recently prevailed in the Dao-Devil War against Devil Ancestor Rahula when he sensed the Heavenly Dao’s disturbance over the Blood Sea. Unable to determine its cause, he chose to ignore it and continue pursuing Sagehood 3.

He attained Sagehood ten thousand years later, announcing that all beings with affinity could seek the Purple Cloud Palace in Chaos for a lecture on the Dao. His breakthrough created golden lotuses, eastern purple qi, spiritual rain, and other phenomena throughout the Primordial Wilderness 7.

At Purple Cloud Palace, Hongjun announced three Dao sermons of 3,000 years each, separated by 10,000-year intervals. His first lecture covered the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm and lower stages; later lectures addressed the Three Corpses Severing Method and the Sage’s Path 10 24 45.

Establishing the Dao Lineage

Hongjun sought to stabilize the Primordial Wilderness through appointments and patronage. He named Eastern Duke and Western Queen Mother as the respective leaders of male and female immortals, granting each a Top Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure 15.

At the conclusion of the Third Sermon, he explained that a cultivator must first reach the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal of the Origin and fuse with Primordial Purple Qi to attain Sagehood 46. He distributed Primordial Purple Qi to Styx, the Three Pure Ones, Nüwa, Kunpeng, Jie Yin, and Zhun Ti; he accepted Laozi, Yuanshi, Tongtian, Nüwa, Jie Yin, and Zhun Ti into his tutelage 46 47.

He then distributed major spiritual treasures to his disciples, including the Taiji Diagram to Laozi, the Pangu Banner to Yuanshi, and the Immortal Slaughtering Sword Formation to Tongtian. Styx and Kunpeng were excluded from this distribution 47.

Harmonization with the Heavenly Dao

After the third lecture, Hongjun declared that he would harmonize with the Heavenly Dao, stating that “Hongjun is the Heavenly Dao, but the Heavenly Dao is not Hongjun.” He crossed a golden bridge to the Heavenly Dao Golden Wheel, strengthening the Heavenly Dao’s influence over the Primordial Era 48.

As Heavenly Dao Hongjun, he acted to suppress the emergence of the Earthly Dao during Hou Tu’s sacrifice. He used the Jade Disc of Creation and the power of three thousand laws to forcefully suppress the restless Primordial land, though Hou Tu still became the Earthly Dao Sage 68.

He later opposed the birth of the Human Dao and confronted Styx and Pingxin directly. During this conflict, he wielded the Jade Disc of Creation against the Earthly Dao Supreme Treasure, the Six Paths of Reincarnation Plate 111.

Governance of the Primordial Era

Hongjun convened the great powers to decide the succession of the Heavenly Emperor. Rather than accepting the proposed rotating system, he appointed his attendants Haotian and Yaochi as Heavenly Emperor and Heavenly Empress, respectively, and supplied them with treasures for their rule 124.

When Pingxin and Minghe challenged Haotian’s authority over the Netherworld, Hongjun compromised by creating the Six Royals structure: Haotian became Supreme Emperor, while Pingxin and Minghe received authority over Netherworld-related Great Emperor positions 125.

During Haotian’s later humiliation and attempt to abdicate, Hongjun summoned the Grand Unity powerhouses and announced the coming Investiture of the Gods Calamity. He produced the Investiture of the Gods and the God Beating Whip for the selection of Heavenly Gods 216.

Identity and Origin

The public identity of “Dao Ancestor Hongjun” was later revealed to be more complicated than it appeared. Hongyuan, who had been sealed within the Grand Unity Golden Brick, claimed that the publicly active Hongjun was actually his Three Corpses and that the two had exchanged identities 165.

The original Hongjun confirmed that he had used Hongyuan as a substitute: Hongyuan preached the Dao, harmonized with the Heavenly Dao, and bore the associated captivity in his place 166. This also explains why Hongyuan’s appearance during the Human Dao conflict cast doubt on whether the Three Corpses Severing Method could truly lead to Sagehood 112.

Hongjun originated in the First Realm, a world later reduced to ruins. He stated that an overwhelmingly powerful figure sent him into the Primordial Era to explore and eventually dominate it, as the First Realm’s origin was nearing exhaustion 166.

Though he described himself as controlled by this figure, Hongjun sought freedom and claimed that remaining in the Primordial Era served his interests more than returning to the First Realm 166 167.

Appearance

Hongjun is typically presented as a Daoist in flowing robes, with an ethereal, unfathomable bearing that makes his realm impossible for most cultivators to perceive 10 216.

• His Daoist robe moves without wind when he exerts power 111.
• After harmonizing with the Heavenly Dao, his aura becomes increasingly elusive and detached 48 68.
• His presence alone can silence assembled great powers and repel their spiritual probes 10.

Personality

Hongjun is patient, calculating, and intensely goal-oriented. Before Sagehood, he dismissed unexplained Heavenly Dao disturbances because becoming a Sage mattered more to him than investigation 3. He generally maintains a composed exterior even while managing hidden debts, political rivalries, and long-term schemes 10 43.

He is also pragmatic in his relationships. His favor toward Jie Yin and Zhun Ti was driven in part by his karmic debt to the Western Lands, while his appointment of Haotian and Yaochi placed loyal attendants at the center of Primordial governance 10 47 124.

Beneath his detached Dao Ancestor persona, Hongjun harbors resentment toward both his First Realm controller and the Heavenly Dao. After breaking free from Heavenly Dao suppression, he attacked the Human Race Ancestral Land partly to vent this resentment and to strike at Styx 166 248.

Abilities & Skills

Dao Preaching

Hongjun’s sermons established the principal cultivation path followed by much of the Primordial Era.

• Conducted three 3,000-year sermons at Purple Cloud Palace, with 10,000-year intervals 10.
• Explained cultivation beneath the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm during the First Sermon 10.
• Expounded the Three Corpses Severing Method during the Second Sermon, enabling numerous great powers to enter the Quasi-Sage realm 24.
• Taught the Sage’s Path during the Third Sermon, though most listeners lacked the cultivation needed to understand it 45.
• Withheld and discouraged the path of Proving the Dao through Laws when Styx questioned him about it 45.

Heavenly Dao Authority

After harmonizing with the Heavenly Dao, Hongjun could draw upon its laws and authority.

• Strengthened the Heavenly Dao upon harmonization, expanding its influence over the Primordial Era 48.
• Manifested through Heavenly Punishment Divine Lightning and intervened in the Earthly Dao’s emergence 67 68.
• Could employ Three Thousand Green Silks formed from the laws of the Jade Disc of Creation 111.
• Temporarily sealed the Heaven, Earth, and Human Three Ways with outside assistance, preventing Styx from drawing upon their power 249.

Three Corpses Strategy

Hongjun used the Three Corpses Severing Method not merely for cultivation, but as a means of survival and deception.

• Had Hongyuan, one of his Three Corpses, assume his identity and undertake the preaching and Dao-harmonization process 166.
• Used the separation between main body and Three Corpses to avoid personally bearing the risks of harmonizing with the Dao 165 166.
• The method’s public credibility was damaged when Hongyuan appeared independently, demonstrating that its originator had not relied on it in the expected manner to become a Sage 112.

High-Level Combat

Hongjun possesses combat power sufficient to challenge the strongest figures of the era.

• Suppressed Primordial land using the Jade Disc of Creation and the power of three thousand laws 68.
• Fought Styx and Pingxin while resisting the Six Paths of Reincarnation Plate 111.
• Reached the Hunyuan Wuji Golden Immortal realm and launched an attack capable of threatening the entire Human Race Ancestral Land 247 248.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Jade Disc of Creation — A damaged former Chaos Treasure, now retaining the grade of a Chaos Spiritual Treasure. It contains and channels the power of three thousand laws 68 111.
• Investiture of the Gods — A treasure presented by Hongjun for recording the names of disciples selected for the Investiture of the Gods Calamity 216.
• God Beating Whip — Presented alongside the Investiture of the Gods during the planning of the calamity 216.
• Primordial Purple Qi — Sagehood-bestowing qi distributed by Hongjun to selected great powers 46 47.

Relationships

• Hongyuan — Hongjun’s Three Corpses and identity substitute. Hongyuan preached and harmonized with the Heavenly Dao under Hongjun’s name, then became an opposing force after the identity exchange was exposed 165 166.
• Styx — Initially a difficult attendee at Purple Cloud Palace whom Hongjun avoided provoking because of Styx’s dense Heavenly Dao aura. They later formed a secret alliance against Hongyuan and the First Realm threat, before becoming open enemies again 10 167 248.
• Pingxin — Opponent in the struggle over the Earthly and Human Daos; later joined Styx in confronting Hongjun and negotiating the secret alliance 111 167.
• Haotian and Yaochi — Hongjun’s longtime attendants. He elevated them to Heavenly Emperor and Heavenly Empress and granted them treasures to support their rule 124 125.
• Laozi, Yuanshi, Tongtian, and Nüwa — Disciples who received Primordial Purple Qi and major spiritual treasures from Hongjun 46 47.
• Jie Yin and Zhun Ti — Closed-door disciples favored by Hongjun as repayment for his karmic debt to the Western Lands 47.
• First God — The powerful figure from the First Realm who sent Hongjun into the Primordial Era and retained control over him. Hongjun later cooperated with forces from other worlds connected to this figure 166 249.

Notable Quotes

“After Harmonizing with the Dao, Hongjun is the Heavenly Dao, but the Heavenly Dao is not Hongjun. I will not emerge unless there is a great matter.” 48

“You and Pingxin colluded with the Heavenly Dao to suppress me for many years.” 248