Seven Star Gang

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Seven Star Gang (七星帮)
Type	Gang / martial organization
Affiliation	Originally based in Qingyang Ancient City and Seven Star Fort; later relocated to Qingzhou City
Occupation/Role	Martial organization, territorial power, and successor to a caravan gang
Status	Active; reconstituted under Cao Feng after an internal purge and relocation
First Appearance	1

Background / History

The Seven Star Gang was one of Qingyang County's Three Major Gangs. Its predecessor was a caravan gang, and it was regarded as comparatively more decent than the Blood Saber Sect and Ironclad Sect because it retained some respect for Jianghu honor. Nevertheless, it engaged in protection-fee collection, bullying, and other ordinary gang abuses. Its scale was substantial, with a North City branch housing hundreds of recruits and laborers. 2 7 113

The gang recruited mainly youths between thirteen and fifteen. Unless they displayed extraordinary talent, entrants began as unpaid menial laborers with food, lodging, and access to the Twelve Forms Boxing. Recruits who reached the Nurturing Blood stage or mastered one form could become official members. The branch also maintained a Library Pavilion and provided instruction for illiterate recruits. 1 5

Its former power structure included a Gang Leader, Deputy Gang Leader, two Guardians, and Hall Masters. Cao Feng—also called Cao Shi in some accounts—was a Guardian and the gang's strongest expert. The organization was divided by internal factions and faced pressure from external rivals, making ordinary members vulnerable to being used as cannon fodder. 18 93 114

Corruption and schism

The gang's upper ranks secretly colluded with the Moon Worshipping Sect. Gang Leader Shen Shikang and several Hall Masters used a Blood Refining Array and abducted children for demonic cultivation; they also cultivated disciples to the Nurturing Blood Realm before sending them to the Moon Worshipping Sect as “medicinal materials.” 112 114 115

After Chu Fan uncovered the scheme, killed Qingmu Hall Master Qin Fei, and destroyed the array, Cao Feng and Li Qingxue seized the Qingyang branch. They eliminated or detained loyalists of Hurricane Hall and the Hall of Elders, then spread evidence of the leadership's crimes through the branch and Seven Star Fort. 112 114

The splinter led by Shen Shikang retained Seven Star Fort and cooperated openly with the Moon Worshipping Sect. It later sent more than 150 Nurturing Blood Realm disciples to repair the Blood Refining Array, while the Cao Feng-led faction worked to expose this action and dismantle the fort's support from within. 115 122

Collapse in Qingyang and relocation

Seven Star Fort and the Moon Worshipping Sect attacked the reformed Seven Star Gang in Qingyang. The gang survived only after Chu Fan, acting as the Ghost-faced Man, killed several attackers, including Supernatural Power Realm experts. 125 126 128

Following the crisis, Cao Feng, the Cao and Li clans, and their allies left Qingyang. The gang's Qingyang properties were sold, leaving its former headquarters deserted. 130 131

With support promised by Demon Suppression Envoy Yue Mankong, the gang relocated to Qingzhou City and received streets under its management. The Moon Arrow Martial Arts School and Kaishan Boxing Gym merged into the organization; their masters, Chen Xuan and Wang Kaishan, became its Left and Right Protectors. 139 144

Organization

Position / Group	Known members	Notes
Gang Leader	Cao Feng	Led the reformed gang after the branch coup. 114 125
Former Gang Leader	Shen Shikang	Retained Seven Star Fort and allied with the Moon Worshipping Sect. 125
Guardians	Cao Feng; Jiang Lianyue	Cao Feng was formerly Left Guardian; Jiang Lianyue served as Seven Star Fort's Right Protector. 114 125
Hall Masters	Qin Fei, Xiao Tianyuan, Lin Luoxue, others	Qin Fei led Qingmu Hall; Xiao Tianyuan led Hurricane Hall; Lin Luoxue was formerly Punishment Hall Master. 112 114 125
Branch leadership	Cao Feng and Li Qingxue	Took control after the purge; supported by the Cao and Li clans. 114
Qingzhou Protectors	Chen Xuan; Wang Kaishan	Former masters of Moon Arrow Martial Arts School and Kaishan Boxing Gym. 144
Consultants	Green Snake; White Snake	Spiritual Demons from Misty Swamp invited by Cao Feng. 144

Training and Resources

Twelve Forms Boxing

The Twelve Forms Boxing is one of the gang's guardian martial arts and the foundational technique available to menial laborers. Cao Feng regularly instructed recruits during the Weishi training period. 5 7 9

• Access to the technique was a principal incentive for impoverished youths to join. 1 5
• Mastering one form qualified a laborer for official membership. 5
• Training required circulating qi and blood; medicinal soup was issued to help recruits advance toward Nurturing Blood. 9
• Chu Fan later demonstrated the complete technique and defeated three peak Tempering Tendons Realm cultivators, impressing Li Qingxue and the clan elders. 116

Recruitment system

• Most recruits began as laborers regardless of background or status. 5
• Food and lodging were provided, but laborers received no wages. 5
• Assigned work included shoveling horse dung and chopping firewood. 5 17
• The gang recruited heavily in the years before its schism, an abnormal expansion later connected to supplying Nurturing Blood Realm disciples to the Moon Worshipping Sect. 114

Facilities

• North City branch — Included a large training ground, canteen, lodgings, work areas, Library Pavilion, and branch administration. 5 7
• Library Pavilion — Held fist manuals and arranged oral instruction for illiterate members. Chu Fan borrowed Records of Demons and Devils there. 5 17
• Seven Star Fort — Mountain fortress 120 miles north of Qingyang Ancient City, marked by seven watchtowers and controlled by the old leadership after the schism. 112 125
• Qingzhou headquarters — New base managing several commercial streets marked with a small Seven Star emblem. 144

Relationships

• Moon Worshipping Sect — The former leadership collaborated with the sect in child abduction, demonic cultivation, and the Blood Refining Array; the reformed gang became its target after disrupting these plans. 112 114 126
• Seven Star Fort — Stronghold of Shen Shikang's faction after Cao Feng seized the Qingyang branch. 114 125
• Demon Suppression Bureau — Investigated the gang's crimes through Yue Mankong; later allocated territory supporting the gang's relocation to Qingzhou. 112 139 144
• Cao Clan and Li Clan — Provided the core support for Cao Feng and Li Qingxue's seizure and stabilization of the branch. 114
• Moon Arrow Martial Arts School — Allied with the gang during the Qingyang crisis and later merged into it. 120 144
• Kaishan Boxing Gym — Allied during the crisis and later merged into the gang. 120 144
• Blood Saber Sect — Longstanding enemy; the gang seized portions of its territory as the sect weakened. 94 109
• Ironclad Sect — Rival gang; the Seven Star Gang defeated it in a duel and secured Xingning Street. 104

Major Arcs

Chu Fan's recruitment

Cao Feng selected Chu Fan as one of eight candidates after observing his self-taught saber technique. Chu Fan entered the North City branch as a laborer, received access to the Twelve Forms Boxing, and was assigned to chop firewood after Cao Feng intervened. 5

Expansion and factional conflict

The gang expanded into Blood Saber Sect territory, including the fishery wharf. Meanwhile, rivalry between Cao Feng's side, Zhou Ye's faction, and the fort-aligned members became increasingly visible. 75 95 104

Blood Refining Array revelation

Chu Fan discovered Qingmu Hall's child-abduction operation near Seven Star Fort. Qin Fei's statements exposed the gang's long-standing partnership with the Moon Worshipping Sect, while the destroyed formation freed the trapped Yue Mankong and halted its immediate function. 112

Branch coup

Cao Feng, Li Qingxue, Chu Fan, and their allies killed or purged key branch loyalists, including Hurricane Hall Master Xiao Tianyuan. Cao Feng then took de facto control of the branch and began a campaign to undermine Seven Star Fort. 113 114

War with Seven Star Fort

The old leadership and Moon Worshipping Sect attacked the reformed gang after it disrupted their supply of Nurturing Blood Realm disciples. Although heavily outmatched, the gang held its ground through Chu Fan's intervention and the efforts of Cao Feng, Cao Yan, Li Qingxue, and their allies. 122 125 128

Qingzhou reconstruction

After abandoning Qingyang, the gang rebuilt in Qingzhou City with territory provided through Yue Mankong's arrangement. Its membership and prestige increased after the merger with two martial schools, while Chu Fan became the central source of its reputation and deterrence. 139 144 147

Trivia

• The Seven Star Gang's founder or former Gang Leader personally wrote the plaque at Seven Star Fort; the ink was said to penetrate three inches into the wood. 112
• The gang's former apparent respectability was one reason Chu Fan chose it over the Blood Saber Sect and Ironclad Sect. 2 112
• After the Qingzhou relocation, the gang was not considered among the city's strongest factions, but its ties to Chu Fan and the Demon Suppression Bureau compelled other forces to treat it cautiously. 144