Zhao Gongming

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Zhao Gongming (赵公明)
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Jie Sect
Occupation/Role	Eldest Outer Sect disciple under Master Tongtian; one of the Jie Sect’s prominent immortals. 46
Cultivation	Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal. 26
Status	Alive; protected from his originally prescribed death under the reformed Investiture rules. 127
First Appearance	1

Background / History

Zhao Gongming was already one of the Jie Sect’s better-known disciples, with greater external renown than Zhao Xuan despite Zhao Xuan’s status as Eldest Senior Brother. He attended the core disciples’ gathering at Biyou Palace when Zhao Xuan’s three-century-old prophecy concerning Haotian, Zixiao Palace, and the Investiture of the Gods began coming true. 1

Three hundred years earlier, Zhao Xuan had specifically warned him that his devotion to righteousness could be exploited. As the Investiture crisis approached, Zhao Gongming began to understand that loyalty and affection could be turned into traps against the Jie Sect. 2 6

As the eldest Outer Sect disciple under Tongtian, Zhao Gongming holds an important position within the sect and enjoys a high reputation among overseas independent cultivators. His activities outside the island include mediating disputes, settling blood debts along trade routes, suppressing cultivators who attack travelers, and escorting Outer Sect disciples back to the island. 46 48

These contributions are secretly used to classify him as a suitable candidate for the Heavenly Court’s Wealth Department. The discovery of his name in an All-Department Preliminary Register reveals that his prospective appointment was being prepared before the list’s formal descent. Subsequent investigation connects his selection to a policy prioritizing meritorious and useful Jie Sect disciples for departmental vacancies. 45 54

His original prescribed future involves descending the mountain to aid Shang, routing Chan Sect immortals with the Twenty-Four Sea-Calming Pearls, and then being killed by Lu Ya’s Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book. His sisters’ attempt to avenge him would bring them into confrontation with the Twelve Golden Immortals and, ultimately, the Sages. This is a foretold path that he resists, not an account of events that actually occur to him. 3 111 123 127

Personality

Zhao Gongming values loyalty, family, and sect ties deeply. His first concern is often the welfare of others: he fears that his own misplaced loyalty could lead his three sisters into danger, and initially worries that the Jie Sect’s withdrawal from worldly affairs will leave demons, human tribes, and rogue cultivators unchecked. 4 6

He becomes more cautious after Zhao Xuan’s warnings and confirmed predictions. Rather than rejecting loyalty, he concludes that Jie Sect disciples must investigate apparent provocations before descending the mountain, refusing to let grief or vengeance dictate their actions. 6

He is also pragmatic and observant. During the Heavenly Court’s crisis, he recognizes that the Jie Sect’s withdrawal alone cannot force Haotian to abandon the Investiture; its immediate purpose is to make Jie Sect disciples recognize their own importance. 10

His growing trust in Zhao Xuan leads him to acknowledge that withdrawing assistance can be more effective than immediately fighting. Even when his own name is implicated, he accepts restrictions on leaving Golden Turtle Island and agrees to let Zhao Xuan investigate the underlying system before examining his personal case. 11 45 55

Zhao Gongming does not shrink from personal danger. He repeatedly volunteers to have his own name investigated, but his courage becomes increasingly disciplined rather than impulsive. By the establishment of the island’s new rules, he pledges to register before entering the tribulation and to let the Three Steles expose any attempt to provoke him through the lives of fellow disciples before he acts. 50 55 123

Abilities & Skills

Cultivation

Zhao Gongming is identified as a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal. 26

• Possesses vast divine power and magic. 6
• His future vision shows him being targeted through the Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book rather than defeated in a direct battle. 2 26
• No later cultivation-realm advancement is established in the recorded developments; his later feats concern the use of his existing treasures and resistance to imposed fate. 69 111 123

Sea-Calming Pearls

Zhao Gongming can manifest the Twenty-Four Sea-Calming Pearls.

• When the Investiture of the Gods List reveals his predicted death, the pearls appear behind him in twenty-four rays of five-colored light. 26
• Their manifestation shakes the “Jie Sect” inscription on the phantom Investiture of the Gods List. 26
• During White Crane Boy’s attempted escape, the pearls lock down his escape routes while Duobao, Jinling, and the Three Xiao Sisters contain him. 69
• Zhao Gongming uses them to break the line prescribing his death by the Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book and capture the associated phantom straw effigy. 111
• When his old fatal path reappears before the Three Steles, the pearls smash its wording apart, allowing the steles to pin down the emerging effigy. 123

Mediation and Wealth Administration

• Skilled in managing wealth and goods, resolving debt disputes, and securing trade routes. These abilities are cited as qualifications for assigning him to the Wealth Department. 45 46 48
• Has experience mediating disputes among overseas independent cultivators and suppressing violence along merchant routes. 45 48
• Intercepts three forged Flying Letters intended to spread false accusations from Chaoge to Xiqi, preserving them as evidence. 89 90 95

Resistance to Imposed Fate

Zhao Gongming participates in the Jie Sect’s rejection of predetermined deaths by bringing his own power before the Three Steles. Following Zhao Xuan’s instruction that named disciples use their Life-Bound Dao Seals to reject the list’s sentences, he breaks his assigned death line with the Sea-Calming Pearls. 111

His protection from ritual assassination is later incorporated into the reformed Investiture rules. This protection comes from the Three Steles and the new system rather than an independently demonstrated immunity inherent to his cultivation. 127

Power Progression

Chapter	Cultivation / Stage	Development or Demonstrated Feat
26	Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal	Explicitly identified at this realm; manifests the Twenty-Four Sea-Calming Pearls in five-colored divine light against the list’s imposed fate. 26
69	No new realm stated	Uses the Sea-Calming Pearls to seal White Crane Boy’s escape routes during the coordinated capture. 69
111	No new realm stated	Breaks his prescribed death sentence with the pearls and captures the phantom straw effigy associated with it. 111
123	No new realm stated	Smashes the reappearing inscription of his old fatal path; the Three Steles restrain the emerging effigy. 123
127	No new realm stated; formal fate protection	The reformed Investiture rules protect him from his foretold death and prohibit ritual methods used to kill Jie Sect disciples. 127

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Twenty-Four Sea-Calming Pearls — Zhao Gongming’s manifested treasure, which responds to his anger at the fate imposed upon him. Also used to prevent escape and shatter the wording of his prescribed death. 26 69 111 123
• Phantom Straw Effigy — An apparition associated with his Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book death sentence. He captures it when breaking that sentence; a later manifestation is pinned by the Three Steles. It is evidence of the imposed fatal path, not an established weapon of his own. 111 123

Relationships

• Zhao Xuan — Eldest Senior Brother whose warning about Zhao Gongming’s righteousness forces him to reconsider how loyalty can be exploited during the Investiture calamity. 2 6 Zhao Xuan protects him from being lured off Golden Turtle Island, suppresses the Wealth Department pattern attached to his fate, and postpones direct scrutiny of his name until the mechanisms behind the appointments are exposed. 45 50 55
• Yun Xiao — Younger sister; her counsel that they should investigate possible traps reinforces Zhao Gongming’s new caution. 6 She steadies and comforts him when his death and prospective appointment are exposed, and directly asks Zhao Xuan whether he can save her brother. 26 45 50 51
• Qiong Xiao — Younger sister; joins the family discussion over whether they should act when fellow disciples are harmed. 6 She demands to know who registered Zhao Gongming’s name and volunteers to accompany his investigation. 45
• Bi Xiao — Younger sister; initially favors direct resistance and later shares the Jie Sect’s anger toward the Investiture. 2 6 She reacts protectively to his Wealth Department connection and vows to join his investigation, though the siblings obey Zhao Xuan’s order to remain on the island. 45 50 55
• Master Tongtian — Sect master. Zhao Gongming supports Tongtian and Zhao Xuan’s challenge to the Investiture of the Gods List. 26 33 Tongtian entrusts him with protective duties while taking disputes to Zixiao Palace, including authority to seize anyone issuing Investiture orders to the sect during his absence. 94 113
• Qingxiaozi — Fellow Jie Sect disciple. Zhao Gongming supports the demand that Qingxiaozi’s service to the Heavenly Court be formally recognized rather than treated as an unpaid obligation. 19
• Holy Mother Guiling — Fellow Jie Sect disciple and ally in confronting Guangchengzi; both stand ready to defend Zhao Xuan during the East Sea dispute. 18 She also teases Zhao Gongming when he acknowledges the value of strategic withdrawal. 11
• Daoist Duobao — Fellow senior disciple and ally in defending Zhao Xuan. They cooperate in capturing White Crane Boy and are among the first disciples to challenge their individual written fates before the Three Steles. 69 111
• Lu Qing — Fellow Outer Sect disciple whose case becomes the first major audit of the appointment system. The loosening of Lu Qing’s fate gives Zhao Gongming hope that the List Qi attached to his own name can also be resisted. 50 52 55
• Lu Ya — Named as the perpetrator of Zhao Gongming’s originally prescribed death through the Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book. Zhao Gongming rejects the written sentence; no actual killing of him by Lu Ya occurs in the recorded outcome. 3 111 127
• Wen Zhong — Fellow Jie Sect disciple whose mortal affairs become a target of manipulation. Zhao Gongming helps protect his investigation by intercepting forged letters falsely accusing Chaoge and the Grand Preceptor’s Residence of murder and witness-silencing. 89 90 95
• White Crane Boy — Yuxu Palace disciple whom Zhao Gongming helps capture after his attack on Zhao Xuan. The Sea-Calming Pearls prevent his escape. 69

Story Role / Major Arcs

Investiture Crisis

Zhao Gongming is present when the Jie Sect learns that the Investiture of the Gods List may soon manifest. Though Bi Xiao initially advocates fighting, he is troubled by Zhao Xuan’s earlier warning and begins to recognize the political scale of the calamity. 1 2

Zhao Xuan subsequently describes his predicted fate in detail: Zhao Gongming would descend the mountain to aid Shang, defeat Chan Sect immortals with his pearls, and then fall to Lu Ya’s remote curse. The revelation makes the danger personal, particularly because his death would lure his three sisters into their own fatal confrontation. 3 6

When Zhao Xuan proposes withdrawing the Jie Sect from the Primordial World’s affairs, Zhao Gongming raises practical concerns about the chaos that could follow. Zhao Xuan’s response—that the Jie Sect should not bear responsibility for disasters it did not create—becomes a major turning point in Zhao Gongming’s understanding. 4

Heavenly Court Withdrawal

After the Jie Sect recalls its disciples, Zhao Gongming observes the resulting failures in the Heavenly Court’s administration. He challenges Zhao Xuan on whether exposing this dependence can truly alter Haotian’s intent, and accepts Zhao Xuan’s answer that the strategy’s immediate purpose is to show the Jie Sect its own value. 10 11

During the Third Sea Eye dispute, he supports Qingxiaozi’s right to receive formal recognition, merit, and protection from misplaced blame. After Qingxiaozi stabilizes the Sea Eye, Zhao Gongming states that what had once been assistance given out of friendship must henceforth be treated as a debt owed to the Jie Sect. 18 19

When Guangchengzi’s intervention threatens to become violent, Zhao Gongming insists that the record distinguish between suppressing the disaster and suppressing the people demanding accountability. He remains ready to act when Yuanshi’s voice intervenes, but obeys Zhao Xuan’s instruction not to move. After Guangchengzi leaves, he recognizes that the written account can no longer simply be erased. 20

Challenge to the Investiture of the Gods List

When severed Old Merit Karma causes calamity energy to rebound, Zhao Gongming sees his own predicted death: his true spirit being destroyed through the Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book. He rejects this fate as an unjust reward for his loyalty to his sect and siblings, then manifests the Sea-Calming Pearls against the list. 26

As Zhao Xuan exposes the allocation of benefits and costs, Zhao Gongming voices the injustice of every other faction profiting while the Jie Sect is left to die. His reaction reflects the disciples’ growing recognition that the supposed Heavenly Mandate is serving political interests. 30

He later recognizes Zhao Xuan’s restraint during the accountability proceedings: Zhao Xuan is not seeking momentary satisfaction, but a position from which the Jie Sect and its ledger can stand firm. 29 32

Internal Investigation

After the Dao Ancestor temporarily seals the dispute, Zhao Gongming accepts responsibility for investigating Jie Sect disciples traveling abroad. The assignment is part of Zhao Xuan’s effort to identify internal wrongdoing before outside factions can use individual crimes to condemn the entire sect. 33

Wealth Department Registration

The Clear Gate Register exposes Zhao Gongming’s name alongside qualifications for the Wealth Department, revealing that the Heavenly Court’s private preparations extend beyond the Water Department. Remembering the future in which he dies and becomes the God of Wealth, he realizes that others may already have assessed his usefulness and selected a position for him. 45

Zhao Gongming asks to investigate the account himself, and his sisters immediately rally around him. Zhao Xuan permits investigation only on Golden Turtle Island, warning that anyone trying to draw the siblings away will be treated as adding to the suspicious register. A gray-white fragment bearing Zhao Gongming’s name and the beginning of his Wealth Department designation then appears, confirming a connection between the preliminary records and the Investiture List. Tongtian’s lingering sword intent destroys the fragment. 45

Further questioning reveals that his mediation and protection of trade routes have been converted into supposed qualifications for a foreordained divine office. List Qi marks his sleeve and presses down on the karmic fate associated with the appointment. Zhao Xuan explicitly distinguishes this from completed enrollment and forbids a direct attack that could be used to justify forcing him further into the list. 48 50

Although Zhao Gongming volunteers to be examined first, Zhao Xuan chooses Lu Qing’s less politically entangled case to uncover the system’s operation. As Lu Qing’s fate loosens, Zhao Gongming sees that the List Qi is not invulnerable. The investigation reveals that departmental authority gaps, the Director of Fate’s rules, and a Jade Emptiness annotation prioritizing Jie Sect disciples all contribute to the selection process. 50 52 54

When the Wealth Department pattern resurfaces during Lu Qing’s case, Zhao Xuan records the connection and suppresses it without pursuing Zhao Gongming’s name prematurely. Zhao Gongming accepts the delay, while Zhao Xuan pledges to investigate his case and those of the other affected disciples. 55

Defense of Zhao Xuan and Capture of White Crane Boy

After a white-robed Daoist wounds Zhao Xuan and attempts to destroy his brush, the senior disciples act together. Duobao blocks the attack, Jinling wounds the attacker, and Zhao Gongming and the Three Xiao Sisters contain him. The Sea-Calming Pearls seal the escape routes even as the Daoist sacrifices part of his crane wings to flee. 69

The captive identifies himself as White Crane Boy of Yuxu Palace. Zhao Xuan orders that he remain alive as a witness, and the Jie Sect takes its grievance to Kunlun’s gates without crossing the boundary. Zhao Gongming’s pearls remain part of the sect’s protective formation during the confrontation. 69 73

Chaoge–Xiqi Conspiracy

When unrest threatens to destroy testimony in Wen Zhong’s investigation, Zhao Xuan assigns Zhao Gongming to intercept communications between Chaoge and Xiqi. Zhao Gongming captures three forged Flying Letters claiming that Chaoge murdered an envoy and that the Grand Preceptor’s Residence silenced the witness. 89 90

The letters become part of the evidence linking disturbances in Chaoge, false reports to Xiqi, and a counterfeit Northern Border military order. Tongtian later presents them before Hongjun, emphasizing that the reports of the envoy’s death had been prepared while the envoy was still alive. 90 95

Zhao Gongming stands with the assembled disciples behind Tongtian when the sect master intervenes against Yuanshi. When Tongtian and Zhao Xuan depart for Zixiao Palace, he remains behind with other senior disciples under orders to protect the island and keep the affected mortal affairs stable. 93 94

Breaking His Prescribed Death

The Three Steles eventually reveal the individual fates written for the Jie Sect, including Zhao Gongming’s death by the Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book. He confronts the fact that Lu Ya’s killing method has been assigned before he has even left the mountain. 111

Following Zhao Xuan’s call for disciples to reject their own sentences, Zhao Gongming steps forward after Duobao, breaks his death line with the Twenty-Four Sea-Calming Pearls, and captures the associated phantom straw effigy. His action is an active rejection of the imposed fate rather than merely an expression of anger at it. 111

Before Tongtian’s next journey to Zixiao Palace, Zhao Gongming and the other designated senior disciples receive orders to seize and question anyone who attempts to command the Jie Sect in the name of the Investiture during the master’s absence. 113

Golden Turtle Island’s Rules and Final Protection

When Golden Turtle Island establishes its rules, Zhao Gongming pledges to register with the Three Steles before entering the tribulation. He also declares that attempts to goad him through the lives of fellow disciples must first be illuminated by the steles. When his old path—descending the mountain, lending his treasures, and falling victim to the Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book—appears, he smashes it apart with the pearls while the steles pin the emerging straw effigy. 123

Hongjun’s final settlement formally protects Zhao Gongming from his foretold death and prohibits ritual methods used to kill Jie Sect disciples. The Three Xiao Sisters’ old fatal path is likewise broken, and their Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation is entered into the Guardian Sect Formation Register with requirements to reveal karma and limits on Sage interference. Zhao Gongming responds approvingly from Golden Turtle Island as his pearls light up. 127

Notable Quotes

“I, Zhao Gongming, have never shunned the mortal world. I value my sect, I value my siblings, and I value the word ‘loyalty’.”
— 26

“In the past, this was out of friendship. From now on, this is a debt.”
— 19

“Only now do I understand that sometimes, pulling one's hand back is more ruthless than throwing a punch.”
— 11

“I never knew. I settled a few debt disputes for rogue cultivators overseas. And that became the Heavenly Mandate.”
— 48

“Lu Ya. I haven't even left the mountain, and his arrow book is already waiting for me?”
— 111

“If I enter the tribulation, I will first register my name with the Three Steles.”
— 123

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