Yao Lao

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Yao Chen (药尘) 1 221
Alias(es)	Yao Lao (药老); Venerable Yao; Number One Alchemist of the Central Plains 1 120 154
Gender	Male 118
Affiliation	Yao Clan — expelled; Starfall Pavilion — co-founder; Pill Tower (Danta) — later Tower Master 1 211 223 330
Occupation/Role	Alchemist; mentor and elder figure to Yao Yan 153 176 418
Cultivation	Formerly Nine-Revolution Dou Zun Peak; later reaches Dou Sheng 178 251
Alchemy Rank	Peak eighth-rank alchemist before his resurrection 153
Status	Alive; physical body restored after surviving as a soul body 251 504 505
First Appearance	Mentioned by name in the opening chapter; sleeping soul body first shown inside the Bone Flame Ring 1 81

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Dou Zun	1	Established himself outside the Yao Clan and became known as Venerable Yao.
Nine-Revolution Dou Zun Peak	178	Retrospectively identified as his strength before losing his body. He could sense the Dou Sheng bottleneck but lacked a Heaven Rank cultivation technique and a suitable opportunity.
Partial soul recovery; awakened	118	Soul Nourishing Liquid restores enough power for him to awaken and communicate. Yao Yan deliberately limits the dose, leaving him unable to resist.
Recovered soul	185	His soul recovers, but losing the Bone Spirit Cold Fire reduces his combat power.
Dou Sheng; physical body restored	223 224 251	Completes resurrection using a Two-Star Dou Sheng skeleton, ninth-rank demonic beast blood essence, and an eighth-grade peak Life and Death Reincarnation Pill. His existing Heaven Level Soul Power supports the breakthrough.
Further strengthening accepted; resulting rank unspecified	252	Accepts the Pill Tower Old Ancestor’s offer of a drop of essence, with the condition that he become Tower Master and guard the tower.

Background / History

Expulsion and Alchemical Career

Yao Chen was cast out of the Yao Clan after being set up by Yao Wangui, an elder of its Punishment Hall. Despite his expulsion, he remained deeply attached to the clan through his parents’ teachings and childhood upbringing 1 222 504.

Outside the clan, he won the championship of Danta’s tournament and rose to prominence as the Number One Alchemist of the Central Plains. He jointly founded Starfall Pavilion with Wind Venerable, although he never managed its affairs and showed little interest in expanding its influence 1 154 176 211.

His years at Danta were among the happiest of his life. He had a master who treated him like a son and access to numerous pill formulas, but he also experienced betrayal by fellow disciples 222.

Han Feng’s Betrayal

Yao Lao adopted Han Feng as a child, raised him like a son, and painstakingly built his cultivation foundation. Their relationship collapsed over the Flame Mantra: Han Feng believed his teacher was withholding it and joined forces with Yao Lao’s former junior brother, Mu Gu, to grievously injure him 119 128 130 211.

Han Feng publicly claimed that Yao Lao had died from an alchemy backlash. In reality, Yao Lao survived as a soul body inside the Bone Flame Ring, accompanied by the Bone Spirit Cold Fire and his accumulated collection 1 80 120.

Awakening and Partnership with Yao Yan

Yao Yan forcibly eroded the Bone Flame Ring’s Soul Imprint with Soul Erosion Grass. The process also injured Yao Lao’s sleeping soul, leaving it nearly transparent. Yao Yan then accessed his collection and took the Nameless Technique later identified as the Flame Mantra 80 81.

Yao Yan eventually awakened him with Soul Nourishing Liquid. With his ring and possessions already under Yao Yan’s control, Yao Lao negotiated from a position of weakness. They agreed that Yao Yan would revive him in exchange for the Bone Spirit Cold Fire, followed by further exchanges involving pill formulas 118 119 120.

The initially coercive arrangement developed into genuine attachment. Yao Lao advised Yao Yan on cultivation, investigated threats, and grew concerned for his safety. After personally dealing with Han Feng, he increasingly regarded Yao Yan as the junior who filled the emotional void left by his former disciple 133 153 156 176.

Return to the Central Plains and Resurrection

Yao Lao returned to Starfall Pavilion and reunited with Wind Venerable, revealing the truth about Han Feng and Mu Gu. He sought support for Yao Yan’s entry into the Tianshan Blood Pool and warned against bringing Zi Yan because of the danger posed by the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan 210 211.

He then chose to join the Pill Tower, sacrificing the independence he had long valued to secure protection for Yao Yan. Xuan Yi obtained rare resurrection materials and offered access to a Heaven Rank cultivation technique, which required Pill Tower membership 220 221 223.

Yao Yan refined his new body from a Two-Star Dou Sheng skeleton, ninth-rank demonic beast blood essence, and an eighth-grade peak Life and Death Reincarnation Pill. Yao Lao successfully merged with the body and emerged as a Dou Sheng 223 224 251.

Estrangement and Reconciliation

His resurrection coincided with the revelation that Yao Yan belonged to the Soul Clan and was Hun Xuzi’s disciple. Rather than reacting with rage, Yao Lao felt emptiness and asked for an explanation. He said he would have preferred remaining a soul body to witnessing this apparent betrayal 251.

After Yao Yan departed with the Soul Hall Master, Yao Lao accepted the Pill Tower Old Ancestor’s strengthening offer and responsibility for the tower. He was later identified as its newly appointed Tower Master 252 330.

Yao Yan’s role in the Yao Clan’s destruction further strained their relationship. After becoming Dou Di, Yao Yan disclosed his origins and Hun Xuzi’s involvement in his life. Yao Lao accepted the explanation and rejected the idea that Yao Yan alone had been obligated to save everyone 414 417.

Yao Lao agreed to help rebuild the Yao Clan and serve as witness at Yao Yan’s wedding to Cai Lin and Cai Die. Their reconciliation did not erase all lingering pain: surviving clanspeople still reminded him of the destruction. Nevertheless, he supported the Pill Tower’s cooperation with Yao Yan’s later plans 418 504 505.

Appearance

Yao Lao appears as an aged soul body with a white beard, often clasping his hands behind his back or stroking his beard while speaking 118 151.

• His severely weakened soul is nearly transparent while sleeping inside the Bone Flame Ring 81.
• Soul Nourishing Liquid visibly solidifies his soul form during his awakening 118.
• His bearing is compared to that of an immortal sage, even when he is visibly unhappy with Yao Yan’s treatment 125.

Personality

Yao Lao is outwardly carefree, humorous, and fond of freedom. He resisted his friends’ earlier attempts to recruit him into the Pill Tower because membership would restrict his independence. Alchemy interested him more than romance, and he initially rejected Xuan Yi while devoting himself to raising Han Feng 151 220 221.

Beneath that easygoing manner, he values affection deeply and is willing to sacrifice for those he acknowledges. His decision to join the Pill Tower was driven largely by his desire to protect Yao Yan, even at the cost of his freedom and accepting substantial help from Xuan Yi 221 222 252.

Repeated betrayals made him suspicious, at one point even causing him to doubt Wind Venerable. He likewise questioned Yao Yan’s unexplained abilities and teacher’s identity, but restrained those doubts rather than immediately rejecting him 153 154.

He can also be pragmatic under pressure. Upon awakening, he avoids provoking Yao Yan despite watching the younger man take possession of his lifelong collection. Their later rapport includes teasing, matchmaking, and blunt warnings about recklessness and the Soul Hall 118 129 153 210.

Abilities & Skills

Alchemy

A peak eighth-rank alchemist before his resurrection, Yao Lao possesses extensive knowledge of medicinal ingredients, pill formulas, and refinement methods 120 153.

• Recognizes Soul Nourishing Saliva from Yao Yan’s ingredient selection and explains its benefits for soul bodies 120.
• Supplies first- through sixth-rank formulas and the seventh-grade Yin-Yang Mysterious Dragon Pill formula 120.
• Knows how to leave safeguards within medicinal pills 133.
• Later studies a formula for a Ninth Grade Golden Pill; the passage does not establish that he successfully refines it 504.

Bone Spirit Cold Fire

Yao Lao’s signature pale-white Heavenly Flame combines intense heat with terrifying cold and has accompanied him for centuries 80 81 185.

• Automatically protects his soul and the Bone Flame Ring’s Soul Imprint while he sleeps 80.
• Can freeze and destroy an intruder’s Soul Power 80.
• Its full control requires substantial cultivation; Yao Lao tells Yao Yan that Dou Zong strength is needed to wield it perfectly 119.
• He voluntarily relinquishes it and cooperates with Yao Yan’s inheritance of the flame 185.
• Losing it reduces his combat power despite his soul’s recovery 185.

Soul Power

Yao Lao possessed Heaven Level Soul Power before his resurrection, an important advantage in his attempt to reach Dou Sheng 224.

• Survives the destruction of his physical body in soul form 80 211.
• Uses the Bone Flame Ring’s nourishing properties to sustain and restore his soul 80 128.
• His weakened state can leave him barely able to remain awake, with little capacity to fight 118 121.

Cultivation Knowledge and Guidance

Yao Lao is one of the few Yao Clan cultivators known to have mastered the Three Flowers Gather Fire Skill, a difficult foundation-building method 2 56.

• Obtained the Flame Mantra from an ancient ruin and gave the Nameless Technique its name; the context does not show him cultivating it himself 119 192.
• Initially considers the Flame Mantra dangerously impractical, but becomes interested in its potential after observing Yao Yan’s success 119 220.
• Warns Yao Yan to reach Dou Zong through his own cultivation rather than external aids, emphasizing the breakthrough’s connection to understanding Space Power 176.
• Identifies the Three Mysterious Transformations of Heavenly Flame as especially suitable for Yao Yan’s multiple flames and advises against obtaining it by force 220.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Bone Flame Ring — A high-grade storage ring commissioned by Yao Lao and forged from rare Soul Warming Spirit Gathering material. It shields against Soul Power, nourishes souls, and houses his collection. Yao Yan erases its original Soul Imprint and takes control of it 80 81.
• Bone Spirit Cold Fire — His former signature Heavenly Flame, surrendered as part of his revival agreement with Yao Yan 119 185.
• Flame Mantra scroll — Stored among his possessions as a Nameless Technique before Yao Yan retrieves it 81 119.
• Accumulated collection — Centuries’ worth of pill formulas, cultivation techniques, Dou Skills, and unusual objects kept within the Bone Flame Ring 80 81.

Relationships

• Yao Yan — Trading partner who becomes a mentee and son-like junior. Their bond survives a rupture over Yao Yan’s Soul Clan allegiance and involvement in the Yao Clan’s destruction 119 176 251 417 418.
• Han Feng — Adopted disciple raised like a son. His betrayal leaves Yao Lao physically destroyed and emotionally wounded; Yao Lao later deals with him personally 119 128 176.
• Wind Venerable / Feng Xian — Close friend and fellow founder of Starfall Pavilion. Their reunion is marked by Wind Venerable’s shock and joy that Yao Lao survived 119 211.
• Xuan Yi — Longtime friend with romantic feelings for him. She provides rare resurrection resources and later comforts him through his distress over Yao Yan 221 223 414.
• Xuan Kongzi — Old friend who welcomes him back to the Pill Tower and urges him not to disappoint Xuan Yi 220 221.
• Mu Gu — Former junior brother who joins Han Feng in the attack that destroys Yao Lao’s physical body 119 130 211.
• Yao Wangui — Yao Clan Punishment Hall elder who set him up before his expulsion 1 222.
• Heavenly Fire Venerable — Fellow soul-body survivor and companion during Yao Yan’s rise. They discuss resurrection, future plans, and Yao Yan’s potential 171 176 195.
• Cai Lin — Companion whom he reassures about Yao Yan’s unusual resilience and encourages to cultivate diligently to keep pace with him 129 156.
• Zi Yan — Younger companion whose safety he considers when planning the Tianshan Blood Pool journey. She later remembers his kindness and urges Yao Yan to help him 211 368.

Notable Quotes

“Kid, remember this. Debts of gratitude are the hardest to repay...” 222

“Besides, none of this was your responsibility to begin with. It would be rather laughable to place all hope upon you. You had no obligation to save everyone.” 417

Trivia

• The name “Yao Lao” is also used for Heavenly Fire Venerable in some dialogue. In Yao Yan’s later reunion with him, both Yao Yan and Xiao Yi Xian use that address; those exchanges refer to Heavenly Fire Venerable, not Yao Chen 306.