Ye Yan

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Ye Yan (叶延)
Alias(es)	Newman Easton; “Spirit Detective” (an unwanted public title) 16 36
Species/Race	Human transmigrant inhabiting the body of Ewan Dalmons 1 4
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Administrator of Samsara Bookstore; external associate and consulting detective for Scotland Yard 19 20
Occupation/Role	Consulting detective; bookstore proprietor; occult knowledge seeker 20 37
Residence	222 Baker Street, London 17 18
Status	Active 50
First Appearance	Chapter 1: “The Stranger from the Distant East”

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Soul Essence: Edge; Fragment of Inside and Outside	1	Obtained after his sincere words influence Lestrade’s future course; gains the Pen of Surface and Interior and Diary of the Outlander.
Principle of Guidance: Luck Compass (Tier One)	7	Consumes Lestrade’s Coordinate Mark to ascend the staircase of Guidance. The Compass records marked people or objects and indicates their direction.
Soul Essence: Grail	13	Sharpened his perception of Compass coordinates and increased his Consciousness Space storage capacity from three slots to four.
Fragment of Inside and Outside	22	Restores access to memories from his previous life and strengthens his connection to the path toward “Home.”
Queqian Meter	22	Learns a rhythm for revealing hidden doors; allows him to control the Shell-Opening Blade’s door-opening function without spending his lifespan.
Lantern Guidance (manifested)	41	Develops heightened sensitivity to anomalies, allowing him to perceive the concealed transformation of the Color-Changing Rose.

Background

Ye Yan was originally a liberal-arts student majoring in English before transmigrating into Victorian London. He awakens in the body of Ewan Dalmons, an adolescent whose parents died in a storm and who later attempted suicide with Nightmare Wine. A corpse in the house immediately makes Ye Yan a murder suspect, but Inspector Lestrade ultimately confirms his alibi. 1 2 4

He quickly realizes that this London is not the history he remembers: literary figures and fictional characters coexist, while occult forces operate beneath ordinary society. After discovering this reflected world, he resolves to leave his own mark on it while seeking a route back home. 6

Following the Sunset Church incident, a Curio’s side effect alters his formerly adolescent body into that of an adult. With Lestrade’s help, he creates the legal identity of Newman Easton, an Eastern cousin of Ewan Dalmons and a translator who arrived after his aunt’s family died. 16

Appearance

Ye Yan originally appears as a frail adolescent boy with an appearance suggestive of mixed Eastern and Western heritage. After the Sunset Church operation, he is physically transformed into an adult and maintains his new identity as Newman Easton. 1 16

• Black hair and black eyes. 1
• Deep-set eye sockets give him a mixed-heritage appearance rather than a standard East Asian look. 1
• Initially wears a dark brown vest, white shirt, and suspender trousers. 1
• His adult appearance conceals what Lestrade considers “a child’s heart” beneath an older exterior. 16

Personality

Ye Yan is cautious, observant, and highly adaptive. He avoids accepting the promises of occult organizations at face value, remains wary of James Smith and Witch Lane, and deliberately keeps himself independent to avoid becoming a resource others can exploit. 10 16 47

His primary goal is returning home, and he treats knowledge as the most reliable means to achieve it. This drives his work with Samsara Bookstore, his interest in occult languages, and his willingness to turn experiences into books and travelogues. 6 19 40

Despite describing his own actions as self-interested, Ye Yan repeatedly intervenes for people in danger. He protects Billy rather than sending him directly into the workhouse system, risks himself to support the defenders at Sunset Church, and treats Daphne with consideration after summoning her. 15 23 35

Abilities & Skills

Luck Compass

A Tier One Guidance ability that records marked targets as coordinates and identifies their direction.

• Can use either people or objects as coordinates. 7
• Tracked the Mysterious Key back to Apartment 222 and later used blood ties to locate Jules. 7 13
• Enables him to trace residual power, including the trail from a blood-stained letter opener to Black Raven Alley. 28
• Provides directional intuition and strengthens his sensitivity to possible paths and hidden opportunities. 7
• Can guide the Shell-Opening Blade toward a selected destination rather than leaving its destination to chance. 15

Consciousness Space

Ye Yan possesses an internal storage space that can store and identify items.

• Appraises objects placed inside it, identifying Curios, tools, materials, and their Aspects. 2 44 45
• Stores weapons, keys, materials, and selected occult items. 2 48
• Cannot store the Shell-Opening Blade because it is bound to Jules. 15

Samsara Bookstore Administration

As Samsara’s first Administrator in five thousand years, Ye Yan can exchange written knowledge and stories for occult information.

• Uses the Key to Samsara Bookstore to access the Statue Gallery and the bookstore. 18 19
• Submits books and travelogues to gain recipes, coordinates, languages, and occult techniques. 19 40
• Can name selected books connected to “Home,” allowing him to draw knowledge from them. 11 20
• Obtained the coordinates of Woodland and Mansus from his travelogue; both make his Path Home clearer, though neither is Home itself. 16

Door Techniques

Ye Yan combines Guidance with the Queqian Meter and the Shell-Opening Blade to locate, reveal, and traverse doors.

• The Queqian Meter reveals hidden portals through a distinct rhythm. 22 33
• Allows controlled use of the Shell-Opening Blade’s door-opening power without the usual lifespan cost. 22
• Used the Blade’s connection to the cultists’ location to arrive precisely at Sunset Church and intervene against the Abomination. 15
• The Blade is dangerous for ordinary users: unknown doors normally lead to random destinations, and its previous use prematurely aged Jules. 15

Spirit Summoning

Ye Yan can summon and communicate with the complete spirit of Daphne Crowley.

• Summoned Daphne despite her having been dead for twenty years, an act Watson identifies as impossible under ordinary necromantic rules. 31
• Daphne can answer Ye Yan’s mental call, walk through the night, hide her tracks, and assist against hostile occult forces. 35 42
• Her pearl allows Ye Yan to summon her again after her spirit body dissipates. 35
• His association with Daphne earns him the public reputation of the “Spirit Detective.” 35 36

Lantern Guidance

Lantern Guidance heightens Ye Yan’s perception of concealed supernatural changes.

• Allows him to detect anomalies within the Color-Changing Rose. 41
• Supports his study of transformations between occult Aspects, including the rose’s change from Cup to Edge. 41

Crafting and Occult Learning

Ye Yan is an active maker and researcher rather than solely a field investigator.

• Crafted Salt Trace, a tracking and revealing substance, and produced four vials in one night. 19 21
• Began fermenting the Blood Spirit Wine Sinking Red Wisdom using a Color-Changing Rose and a custom starter. 40 41
• Acquired the recipe for Star Gall Ink, an Ink of Power that never fades. 47
• Learns Sanskrit at an abnormally rapid pace under Archbishop John Alwin. 48
• Pursues the ancient language Vaha, which may grant access to Great Arts and unrestricted passage through Samsara’s gates. 40

Combat and Investigation

Ye Yan relies on practical weapons, occult tools, and preparation rather than formal combat training.

• Killed a Walking Corpse with his revolver while under its freezing influence. 9
• Uses the Luck Compass to track criminals and occult clues. 10 28
• Possesses an enchanted VR Police Sword, a Tier One Edge tool capable of cutting with exceptional sharpness. 48
• Maintains composure during interrogations, ambushes, and negotiations despite lacking Sherlock Holmes’s deductive expertise. 1 43

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Pen of Surface and Interior — First Tier Curio obtained with the Diary; initially inaccessible and unable to be materialized. 1 2
• Diary of the Outlander — First Tier Curio that records Ye Yan’s experiences and helps produce diary entries connected to book-naming rights. 1 2 11
• Key to the Samsara Bookstore — First Tier Curio and the activated key to Samsara’s hidden entrance. 2 18
• Shell-Opening Blade — A living-seeming oyster knife bound to Jules; opens doors and can cross space, but is normally unpredictable and costly. 15 22
• Heart-Knocking Bell — First-Order Heart Curio that confuses anyone who hears it; the user suffers the same confusion seven days later. 44
• VR Police Sword — Tier One Edge tool purchased from the Administration. 48
• Revolver — His regular defensive weapon against mundane and supernatural threats. 9 23
• Daphne’s pearl — Enables him to summon Daphne Crowley. 35
• Moon Shadow Tear — A gift from Daphne that helps him resist a witch’s illusion. 42
• Fidelis Hound Hair — Tier One material with Heart and Scale Aspects, acquired from Parker in exchange for ham. 45

Relationships

• Sherlock Holmes — Guardian and neighbor. Holmes offers legal guardianship after Ye Yan’s exposure to the supernatural, later protects him from losing control after the Abomination’s death. 5 15
• Inspector Lestrade — Initially interrogates Ye Yan as a murder suspect, then becomes a trusted ally who clears his name, supports his new identity, and works with him on investigations. 1 2 16 25
• Jules Dalmans — His blood-related uncle through Ewan’s body. Jules is reckless and eccentric but fiercely protective, supports Ye Yan’s bookstore plans, and shares the danger of the Shell-Opening Blade. 13 15 18
• Dr. John H. Watson — Physician, friend, literary collaborator, and occult contact. Watson treats Ye Yan, shares supernatural knowledge, gives him Holmes’s case manuscripts, and brings Parker for protection. 2 20 45
• Daphne Crowley — Summoned spirit companion. Daphne addresses Ye Yan as her master, follows his commands, and entrusts him with the means to summon her again. 31 35 42
• Mycroft Holmes — Director of the Supernatural Administration Bureau. He rewards Ye Yan for saving Sherlock by granting him Apartment 222 Baker Street and warns him about Witch Lane. 17 36
• James Smith — Administration investigator and uneasy associate. Smith initially coerces Ye Yan into cooperation, later assists with Joseph and the Blue-Eyed Girl investigation; Ye Yan remains distrustful of his motives. 10 11 28
• Joseph Darmans — His younger blood relative in France. Their letters establish a brotherly connection, and Ye Yan sends him financial help. 21 22
• Billy and Irene — Orphans Ye Yan helps free from Scarface’s criminal network. Billy considers Ye Yan his benefactor and receives his lucky coin as a gift. 23 25 26
• Oliver Twist — Manager of the workhouse that shelters Billy and Irene. Ye Yan recognizes his connection to Mr. Brownlow, and the two agree to become friends across generations. 25 26
• Parker — Watson’s Fidelis Hound. Parker quickly accepts Ye Yan, guards the imprisoned Julie, and becomes a reliable protector. 45 46
• May / Miss Nightingale — Nature Witch and Witch Lane representative. Their relationship is transactional and cautious; she trades the Moon Phase Hymn and seeks Ye Yan’s help with spirit communication. 43 46 47
• Fabre — A figure Ye Yan deeply admires. Naming Insect Records unknowingly anchors Fabre’s sanity across the ocean, and Fabre later sends word that he needs to meet Ye Yan. 40 50

Story Role / Major Arcs

• Murder Suspect and Transmigration — Awakens in Ewan Dalmons’s body beside a corpse, is arrested by Lestrade, and discovers the first signs of his Curios and residual memories. 1 2
• Guardian of Baker Street — Enters Holmes’s care, learns that this world’s history is a distorted reflection of his own, and commits himself to finding a way home. 5 6
• Seal of the Four-Colored Horse — Awakens the Luck Compass, confronts the Sunset Church, works uneasily with Smith, locates Jules, and helps stop the Abomination at the cost of risking his own control. 7 10 13 15
• Newman Easton and Samsara — Assumes a new adult identity, gains Apartment 222 Baker Street, becomes Samsara’s Administrator, and begins trading stories for occult knowledge. 16 19
• Consulting Detective — Registers as a consulting detective for Scotland Yard, assists Lestrade with the Blue-Eyed Girl case, and helps rescue Billy, Irene, and other children from Scarface’s network. 20 23 25
• Spirit Detective — Summons Daphne Crowley, resolves the Thorny Rose case, and gains unwanted notoriety after publicly proving he can call back the dead. 31 35 36
• Witch Lane and Ancient Knowledge — Defeats and detains Julie, negotiates with May, studies secret prayers and Sanskrit, and seeks deeper access to Vaha and the Great Arts. 42 46 48
• New Continent Lead — Receives Fabre’s urgent recording from Peter Cape Port, giving him a possible reason to pursue the mysteries of the New Continent. 50

Notable Quotes

“Knowledge is power. Knowledge can change destiny. One day, everyone will realize this.” 18

“I only hung up the sign of a Consulting Detective back then to earn an extra paycheck.” 36

Trivia

• Ye Yan’s English major helps him navigate English-language texts after transmigrating, but he later admits that he struggles with French pronunciation. 1 48
• He is prone to motion sickness on trains but does not become seasick during the voyage to Jersey Island. 7
• He dislikes the title “Spirit Detective,” viewing it as the result of coincidence rather than professional detective ability. 36
• His apparent enthusiasm for meeting Fabre leads Jules to mistakenly worry that Ye Yan is involved in a taboo romance. 50