Jie Sect

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Jie Sect
Original Name	截教
Other Name	Interception Sect
Affiliation	Shangqing lineage; based at Golden Turtle Island
Leader	Master Tongtian
Senior Leadership	Zhao Xuan, Eldest Senior Brother and first disciple under Master Tongtian; granted full authority over Investiture-related matters and later appointed overseer of the tribulation. 33 128
Status	Active; survives the rewritten Investiture of the Gods, with disciples subject to individual karmic accountability and regulated participation in the tribulation. 126 128
First Appearance	1

Background / History

The Jie Sect is the largest and most influential sect in the Primordial World, described as having “ten thousand immortals” under its banner. Its members come from diverse origins, and its doctrine emphasizes teaching without discrimination and preserving a chance of survival for all beings. Zhao Xuan entered the Shangqing lineage before the Three Pure Ones separated, then followed Master Tongtian east when the sect was founded on Golden Turtle Island. 1 6

For years, Jie Sect disciples undertook much of the work others avoided: suppressing East Sea demons and Sea Eyes, pacifying the Southern Wilderness’ poisonous miasma, protecting human tribes, mediating overseas cultivator conflicts, repairing celestial infrastructure, and staffing peripheral Heavenly Court posts. Their service was routinely treated as expected labor rather than recognized merit. 1 8 14 29

Despite these contributions, the sect is disparaged by the Chan Sect for its members’ varied true forms and origins. Its worldly intervention and accumulated killing karma are later used as grounds to mark it for the Investiture of the Gods, while Zhao Xuan argues that these are consequences of answering requests for aid and bearing others’ responsibilities. 1 17 27 28

The sect’s defense of its historical service develops into an internal disciplinary reform and a challenge to the Investiture’s predetermined outcomes. Zhao Xuan acknowledges that the Ten Thousand Immortals include disciples of uneven character, but rejects using individual crimes to justify destroying the entire lineage. The final settlement preserves the sect while requiring each disciple to answer for personal wrongdoing, merit, and participation in the tribulation. 33 42 125 126 128

Organization and Doctrine

• Headquarters: Biyou Palace, Golden Turtle Island in the East Sea. 1
• Lineage: Shangqing, led by Master Tongtian. 1 28
• Teaching: Accepts disciples without discrimination based on origin or true form. 6 28
• Scale: Known for “ten thousand immortals coming to pay homage”; its numbers, influence, fortune, and reach are considered foremost in the Primordial World. 1
• Internal administration: Day-to-day sect affairs are generally handled by Daoist Duobao, Holy Mother Jinling, and other senior disciples; Zhao Xuan ordinarily avoids public management but commands exceptional trust as Tongtian’s first disciple. 1
• Core vulnerability: Its loyalty, willingness to aid others, broad membership, respect for its master, and commitment to justice can be exploited to draw disciples into the Investiture calamity. 6
• Investiture authority: Tongtian later grants Zhao Xuan full control over matters related to the Investiture of the Gods. This authority includes investigating disciples and judging betrayal without exemptions based on Tongtian’s personal affection. 33 37
• Disciplinary administration: Duobao verifies the roster, Jinling presides over executions, Wudang investigates Outer Sect disciples’ origins, and Guiling supports enforcement. Direct disciples are subject to investigation alongside the Outer Sect. 33 42
• Departure oversight: Guiling takes charge of the departure register, which becomes a Black Daoist Book beside the Three Steles. Disciples must register before leaving the mountain. 123
• Final governing principle: Sect survival does not exempt its members from consequences. Disciples may enter the tribulation, guard the sect, cultivate in seclusion, or seek Heavenly Court posts, but must act under the new registers and Three Lists. 126 128

Clear Gate Regulations

Zhao Xuan establishes three Clear Gate Regulations after the investigation of Chang’er Dingguang Xian exposes how outside factions use private favors and correspondence to influence disciples. Tongtian approves the regulations and the inclusion of direct disciples in the investigation with Shangqing Sword Intent. 41 42

Regulation	Requirements and consequences
Register sensitive outside requests	Ordinary Dao lectures, banquets, and exchanges remain permitted. Private requests concerning internal affairs, disciples’ whereabouts, or sect deployment orders must be registered within three days; subsequent requests must also be reported to the Clear Gate Register. 42
Forbid influence purchased through benefits	Disciples may not accept outside benefits to speak for outsiders or trade the Jie Sect’s name for personal gain. Lesser offenses lead to crippled cultivation and expulsion; grave offenses lead to execution and erasure of the offender’s name. 42
Treat the sale of sect trust as betrayal	Trading the sect’s loyalty, teachings, whereabouts, or trust within the master’s lineage for an outside path is judged as treason against the sect. 42

The Clear Gate Register also becomes the required authority for verifying disciples’ past merits. The Heavenly Court, Water Department, Dragon Clan, and Star Palace are forbidden to privately record or use those merits to lure disciples into appointments; such recruitment is classified as buying their lives. 44

Tribulation Participation Rules

• Outside orders and invitations must be reported rather than answered privately. 123
• Disciples must register before leaving the mountain and clarify their purpose and karma before entering the tribulation. 123
• Mortal military affairs are separated from immortal sect battles. Mortal commands cannot, by themselves, order Jie Sect immortals into the killing tribulation. 123 124 127
• Sect-protecting formations must expose the relevant enemies and karma before being used; they are not licenses to harm uninvolved people. 123 124 127
• Wrongdoing is judged through individual karma rather than through a predetermined sentence against the entire sect. No single sect may bear the full cost of the Investiture. 125 126 128

Power Progression

Stage	Organizational advancement	Significance
Established Shangqing sect	Tongtian leads the Ten Thousand Immortals from Golden Turtle Island; the sect possesses extensive influence and powerful formations and treasures. 1 2	Its strength and broad membership also make it the principal intended source of Investiture casualties. 2 6
Strategic recall	Disciples withdraw from voluntary Heavenly Court and worldly service under Tongtian’s decree. 7 8	The sect uses its indispensable labor as leverage without formally defying Heavenly Court appointments. 8 10
Public karmic accounting	The Three Steles record disaster origins, original responsibility, and the allocation of merit and karma. 22 23	Requests for aid become public records rather than unacknowledged burdens. 23
Severance of Old Merit Karma	Tongtian cuts the karmic connection that could turn past Heavenly Court service into an Investiture shackle. 24	The hidden list is forced to reveal the Jie Sect’s name. 24 25
Investiture accountability	Zhao Xuan creates the Accountability Ledger and challenges the list’s charges and distribution of benefits. 26 27 29 30	The sect’s resistance extends from protecting individual disciples to auditing the Investiture itself. 27 30
Internal disciplinary reform	The Clear Gate Register and Clear Gate Regulations govern investigations, outside dealings, punishments, and verification of old merits. 37 42 44	The sect rejects both internal impunity and outside attempts to turn individual crimes into collective guilt. 37 42
Rejection of transferred tribulation	Zhao Xuan rules that the Twelve Jade Emptiness Tribulation Lamps may not be sustained through Jie Sect lives. 64	The lamps dim, gray qi retreats from disciples’ names, and part of Wen Zhong’s imposed death-fidelity line loosens. 64
Direct resistance to written fate	Tongtian strikes the full list; Duobao and Zhao Gongming break their assigned fate lines. 111	Disciples begin actively rejecting the outcomes prescribed for them. 111
Protection from karmic substitution	Jade Emptiness disciples are forbidden to use Jie Sect disciples as shields to shed their own karma. 121	The Twelve Golden Immortals must face scrutiny and tribulation according to their own actions. 121
Regulated sect defenses	Departure and mortal-affairs registers are established; the Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation, Ten Absolute Arrays, and Ten Thousand Immortal Formation are preserved under protective rules. 123 124	Former traps become regulated defenses, and several old death predictions are erased. 123 124
Reversal of predetermined destruction	Hongjun declares that the Jie Sect shall not perish, and the sect’s fortune returns instead of draining into the Investiture. 126	Survival replaces the old decree of collective destruction while individual accountability remains binding. 126
Final reformed Investiture	Hongjun finalizes the Killing Tribulation, Profit-Sharing, and Willing Divinity Lists; Zhao Xuan becomes overseer of the tribulation. 127 128	Forced vacancy-filling through Three Teachings disciples’ deaths ends, and the sect operates under lasting registration and accountability rules. 128

Known Members

Leadership

• Master Tongtian — Sect leader and Shangqing Saint; supports Zhao Xuan’s strategy and severs the sect’s Old Merit Karma linked to the Heavenly Court. 4 24 He later entrusts internal judgment to Zhao Xuan, transforms the Ten Thousand Immortal Formation into a sect-protecting formation, and secures the lineage’s survival while acknowledging his earlier disciplinary failures. 37 124 126 128
• Zhao Xuan — Eldest Senior Brother and first disciple; leads the sect’s strategic withdrawal, accountability campaign, and challenge to the Investiture of the Gods List. 1 5 27 He receives full Investiture-related authority, establishes the sect’s disciplinary and tribulation safeguards, and is appointed overseer of the reformed tribulation. 33 42 123 128
• Daoist Duobao — Second-ranked direct disciple; commonly handles sect affairs and initially favors preserving the larger situation. 1 4 He verifies the roster, volunteers to be investigated first among the direct disciples, and uses his Golden Bell to crack his assigned fate line. 33 42 111
• Holy Mother Jinling — Core disciple; supports resistance and advocates confronting threats to the sect. 1 3 She presides over executions, carries out Chang’er Dingguang Xian’s bodily execution, and is Wen Zhong’s master. 33 37 64
• Holy Mother Guiling — Core disciple; outspoken defender of the sect against discrimination and Heavenly Court exploitation. 1 9 She supports the internal purge and later takes charge of registering disciples’ departures. 33 123
• Holy Mother Wudang — Core disciple; reserved but resolute in the confrontation with the Investiture. 1 30 She investigates Outer Sect disciples’ origins and stresses continued restraint after the sect’s survival is secured. 33 128

Other Named Disciples

• Zhao Gongming — Outer disciple and brother of the Three Xiao Sisters; recognizes that the sect’s loyalty is being weaponized against it. 1 6 He breaks his written death sentence with the Twenty-Four Sea-Calming Pearls, vows not to lend them out, and gains protection against his foretold ritual death. 111 123 127
• Yun Xiao, Qiong Xiao, and Bi Xiao — The Three Xiao Sisters; outer disciples. Yun Xiao advocates caution against traps, while Bi Xiao initially favors direct battle. 1 2 6 They preserve the Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation as a regulated sect-protecting formation rather than following its old fatal course. 123 127
• Qingxiaozi — Guarded the Third Sea Eye for two thousand years; his records expose Water Department negligence, and he later formally suppresses the Sea Eye under a Heavenly Court petition. 12 19
• Daoist Qingyi — Previously assisted in suppressing Southern Wilderness poisonous miasma for three thousand years; dispatched again only after responsibilities, merit, and karma are publicly recorded. 23
• Daoist Chisong — Repaired shifting North Star Domain nodes alone for thirty-six days, though a Dou Department official claimed the credit. 14
• Yu Hua — Assisted the Thunder Department in capturing an evil cultivator; two of his disciples were later killed in retaliation without Heavenly Court support. 14
• Immortal Lingya — Mediated an overseas cultivator conflict for the Heavenly Court and was abandoned to handle the aftermath alone. 14
• Wen Zhong — Jinling’s disciple and Great Shang’s Grand Preceptor. He rejects the use of loyalty as payment for another sect’s tribulation and establishes the Mortal Tribulation Envoy Register to separate mortal commands from immortal participation. His old death at Juelong Ridge is abolished, and he returns to Chaoge without drawing the whole sect into his responsibilities. 64 123 124 127 128
• Fire Spirit Holy Mother — Recognizes the danger of answering outside orders privately and agrees to report them under the new tribulation rules. 123
• Ten Heavenly Lords — Keep the Ten Absolute Arrays under the Guardian Sect Formation Register, agreeing to open them together rather than allow their old sequential destruction. 124
• Shi Ji — Target of a manufactured calamity involving Antarctic’s decree, Randeng’s alterations, and Taiyi’s execution of the plan. She ultimately returns to Skull Mountain with Biyun. 108 128
• Lu Qing — Outer disciple who guarded the Third Sea Eye for twenty-seven years; his service is exposed as material used for the Heavenly Court’s recruitment register. 43 44
• Chen Chao — Outer disciple who accompanied the Water Department in dredging South Sea water veins seven times. 43
• Han Li — Outer disciple who escorted Water Department officials into and out of the Dragon Palace three times. 43
• Bai Qu — Outer disciple who transported aquatic demon criminals for the Heavenly Court. 43
• Wei Chen — Outer disciple who repaired a fissure in the Ninth Sea Eye. 43

Executed and Removed Members

• Ma Yuan, Immortal of One Qi — Brought before the internal investigation for destroying a temple, terrorizing a small clan, seizing spiritual materials, and abusing the Jie Sect’s name. He admits his acts but claims they built sect prestige and invokes collective involvement as a defense. He is executed before the Heavenly Court and Yuxu investigators arrive. 34 37
• Chang’er Dingguang Xian, Long-Ears — Former Seven Attendant Immortal with a favorable reputation among Outer Sect disciples. His oppression and resource seizures are followed by evidence that he negotiated with Yuxu and the Western Sect, offering sect information for protection and advancement. Jinling severs his body, the Clear Gate Register erases his membership and attendant status, and Zhao Xuan destroys his fleeing true spirit with the Accountability Ledger. 36 37

Role in the Primordial World

Area of service	Jie Sect involvement	Documented consequence
East Sea Sea Eyes	Guarded multiple Sea Eyes, including the Third Sea Eye through Qingxiaozi. 8 12	The Third Sea Eye destabilized after Qingxiaozi’s withdrawal; replacement Water Department personnel failed. 10 15
North Star Domain	Assisted in patrolling twenty-one of thirty-six star nodes; Daoist Chisong repaired shifted nodes. 8 14	Star-node emergencies followed the sect’s recall. 10 21
Southern Wilderness	Helped suppress poisonous miasma, including Daoist Qingyi’s three-thousand-year assistance. 1 23	The miasma became a crisis after withdrawal, revealing Heavenly Court responsibility. 22 23
Human and lower realms	Protected human tribes, suppressed evil cultivators, and handled demon-related disturbances. 1 8	Lower-realm disturbances escalated when disciples returned to Golden Turtle Island. 10
Heavenly Court	Branch disciples filled numerous peripheral positions and maintained water, star, patrol, and suppression duties. 1 8	The court’s dependence became visible once the disciples left. 8 10
Investiture reform	Exposed predetermined casualties, transferred tribulations, and covert recruitment; developed registers and steles to record responsibility. 43 64 111 125	The final system assigns consequences by karma, records contested gains, and allows voluntary divine appointments instead of imposing the full cost on one sect. 126 127 128
Mortal dynastic affairs	Wen Zhong continues serving Great Shang under the Mortal Tribulation Envoy Register. 124 128	Mortal warfare continues, but military orders can no longer automatically draw Jie Sect immortals into lethal sect battles. 127 128

Defensive Formations and Registers

Formation or instrument	Function under the sect’s reforms
Golden Ao Three Steles	Record responsibility, merit, and karma; preserve and distribute evidence; expose hidden fate arrangements; and support the revised lists and sect safeguards. 22 23 108 111 126
Investiture of the Gods Accountability Ledger	Audits the debts and beneficiaries of the Investiture and is used to destroy Long-Ears’s fleeing true spirit. 26 29 37
Clear Gate Register	Records investigations, disciplinary rules, membership erasure, outside dealings, and verified past merits. 37 42 44
Departure register / Black Daoist Book	Records disciples before they leave the mountain, under Guiling’s oversight. 123
Mortal Tribulation Envoy Register	Separates mortal military duties from immortal sect participation and prevents mortal orders alone from sending disciples into the killing tribulation. 124 127
Guardian Sect Formation Register	Records the protective use of formations and the karma of those entering or arranging challenges against them. 123 124 127
Nine-Bend Yellow River Formation	Preserved as a sect-protecting formation, restricted to tribulation participants rather than innocents; relevant karma must be revealed, including that of intervening Sages. 123 127
Ten Absolute Arrays	Preserved as coordinated defenses that must open together, with challengers’ and inviters’ karma recorded. 124
Ten Thousand Immortal Formation	Retained by collective choice as the sect’s ultimate defense. Its old defeat prediction is struck out, and attackers, converters, treasure-seizers, and suppressors must have their responsibility recorded. 124

Story Role / Major Arcs

Forewarning of the Investiture

Zhao Xuan’s three-hundred-year-old prophecy begins to come true when Haotian, Taiqing, Yuanshi, the Western Sect Saints, and Master Tongtian converge at Zixiao Palace. The Jie Sect realizes that its size and diversity may make it the primary target for filling the Heavenly Court’s divine positions. 1 2

Zhao Xuan reveals the predicted outcome: many disciples will die, be listed as gods, be converted, or see the sect nearly destroyed. He characterizes the coming calamity as a division of benefits in which the Jie Sect supplies the lives and losses. 2 3

Strategic Retreat and Recall

Rather than entering the calamity through loyalty or provocation, Zhao Xuan proposes that the sect withdraw from worldly affairs, recall its disciples, seal Golden Turtle Island, stop accepting new disciples, and avoid involvement in the Heavenly Court and human dynasties. Master Tongtian conditionally grants Zhao Xuan decision-making authority for the Investiture crisis. 4 5

A Supreme Clarity Dharma Decree recalls Jie Sect disciples working for the Heavenly Court and elsewhere. Their departure exposes that they had been performing indispensable but unofficial labor across the Three Realms. 7 8 10

Zhao Xuan rejects the Heavenly Court’s attempt to delay the recall and orders disciples to hand over their duties and leave. When the court seeks replacements, the Chan Sect cites seclusion and the Western Sect claims it lacks suitable disciples, further exposing the unequal distribution of work. 9 10

Accountability Campaign

When Qingxiaozi is falsely blamed for deaths at the Third Sea Eye, Zhao Xuan produces jade slips documenting his service and the Water Department’s negligence. He refuses to let the Heavenly Court punish a Jie Sect disciple without evidence. 11 12

The sect then demands formal recognition, clear responsibility, and compensation before providing aid. Haotian ultimately seals a petition authorizing Qingxiaozi as temporary Water Department guardian; Qingxiaozi suppresses the Third Sea Eye, proving both his own competence and the Heavenly Court’s dependence on Jie Sect personnel. 15 16 19

Zhao Xuan establishes three steles outside Golden Turtle Island. Supplicants must record the source of a disaster, the party originally responsible, and the distribution of merit and karma after Jie Sect intervention. The steles turn requests for aid into public karmic records and expose neglected Heavenly Court duties. 22 23

Confrontation with the Investiture of the Gods List

When the Heavenly Court attempts to remove the steles, Master Tongtian severs the Jie Sect’s Old Merit Karma tied to the Heavenly Court. This act forces the phantom of the Investiture of the Gods List to appear—with “Jie Sect” at its head. 24 25

The sect’s core disciples receive visions of their projected futures, confirming that the list targets them. Master Tongtian and the Ten Thousand Immortals join Zhao Xuan in demanding to know what crime warrants the Jie Sect’s placement on the list. 25 26

Using the Investiture of the Gods Accountability Ledger, Zhao Xuan challenges the list’s three stated charges: deep worldly involvement, heavy killing karma, and excessive, mixed numbers. He argues that each charge is evidence of the sect’s prior service, the burdens it carried for others, and its doctrine of teaching without discrimination. The resulting conclusion is: “Past merits are not crimes. Shangqing is innocent.” 27 28 29

Zhao Xuan then records the unequal benefits of the Investiture: the Heavenly Court gains gods, the Chan Sect avoids tribulation, the Western Sect gains influence, and the Xuan Sect gains order—while the Jie Sect bears death, lost immortality paths, scattered disciples, damaged reputation, and collapse of sect fortune. 29 30

The Dao Ancestor eventually withdraws the manifest list until the true calamity arrives, but the Accountability Ledger remains open and the account is unresolved. 32

Internal Cleansing and Exposure of Outside Influence

Zhao Xuan warns that postponement is not acquittal: outside factions may seek real crimes among individual disciples and use them to condemn the whole sect. Tongtian grants him full Investiture-related authority, and the senior disciples begin an internal investigation rather than waiting for outsiders to define the sect’s guilt. 33

Haotian and Yuanshi independently seek evidence against Ma Yuan and Chang’er Dingguang Xian. Ma Yuan openly admits oppressive conduct and attempts to shield himself behind sect prestige and the involvement of others. Long-Ears’s case goes further, revealing recorded negotiations in which he offers internal information to Yuxu and the Western Sect for his own survival and advancement. 34 36 37

The sect executes both offenders before the outside investigators arrive. Tongtian refuses to protect Long-Ears through personal affection, and Zhao Xuan distinguishes fear of death from selling the sect’s trust. After Long-Ears’s name and spirit are destroyed, the remaining attendant immortals and Outer Sect disciples submit their jade slips, and the investigation continues with Golden Turtle Island closed until its register is reconciled. 37

Evidence of the Western Sect’s promised Lotus Throne seat exposes covert recruitment during the calamity. Zhao Xuan records the scheme in the Accountability Ledger and requires disciples to surrender outside correspondence, invitations, and gifts within three days. He clarifies that ordinary contact is allowed, but purchasing influence over sect affairs is not. 40 41

The Clear Gate Regulations extend the investigation to the Inner Sect, with Duobao volunteering to be examined first. A surrendered Heavenly Court letter then reveals an attempt to buy access to disciples familiar with water arts, Sea Eyes, and the Dragon Clan. Old service records are exposed as recruitment tools, including a preliminary Water Department register and priority markings for Investiture candidates. Zhao Xuan places verification of past merits under the Clear Gate Register to prevent further misuse. 42 43 44

Uncovering Transferred Tribulations and Manufactured Calamities

The Clear Gate Register reveals that the Twelve Jade Emptiness Tribulation Lamps can be sustained through the deaths of Jie Sect disciples, allowing Jade Emptiness to offset its own killing tribulation. Zhao Xuan forbids any Jie Sect life from lighting a lamp. The lamps dim, imposed gray qi retreats, and part of Wen Zhong’s death-fidelity line loosens; the investigation then traces the arrangement toward a remnant of the Zixiao council. 64

After Antarctic is detained at Zixiao Palace, the Jie Sect’s anger threatens retaliation. Tongtian forbids an attack on Kunlun or any violation of the palace decree. Meanwhile, Yuanshi sends Jiang Shang to arrange a mortal Mount Qi assembly, shifting the contest toward public political proceedings rather than direct sect intervention. 98

The Shi Ji and Chentang Pass affair exposes a coordinated manufactured calamity. The Three Steles preserve a talisman showing instructions to draw Shi Ji into the tribulation and authorize Taiyi’s use of the Nine Dragon Divine Fire Cover. Zhao Xuan identifies Antarctic as the issuer, Randeng as the modifier, and Taiyi as the executor. Further evidence implicates plans for Heavenly Court incense gains and Western Sect recruitment amid Chan–Jie conflict. 108

Breaking the Disciples’ Assigned Fates

The Three Steles reveal the full Investiture arrangements, including predetermined deaths, divine positions, lineages, offerings, and merit. A declaration from Zixiao Palace states that the list was deliberated there and that all Sages knew. Tongtian strikes the entry for Golden Ao’s Ten Thousand Immortals with the Green Duckweed Sword, while Zhao Xuan urges disciples to reject their individual written outcomes. 111

Duobao cracks his line with the Golden Bell, and Zhao Gongming breaks the sentence tied to the Nail-Head Seven-Arrow Book with his Twenty-Four Sea-Calming Pearls, capturing its phantom straw effigy. The sect’s response shifts from collective anger to deliberate resistance against specific mechanisms of death and conversion. 111

Under the revised lists, the Twelve Golden Immortals receive tribulation-entry seals and must face their own karma. Zhao Xuan establishes that using Jie Sect disciples as substitutes or shields will itself be recorded on the Killing Tribulation List. Yuanshi accepts responsibility for his disciples’ karma without reconciling with Tongtian. 121 128

Golden Turtle Island’s New Safeguards

Tongtian and Zhao Xuan gather the sect at Biyou Palace to convert its escape from the old list into practical rules. Outside invitations must be reported, departures registered, and the purpose and karma of tribulation entry clarified. Zhao Gongming refuses to lend his treasures or act on unverified provocations, and the Three Xiao Sisters register their formation as a defense rather than abandon it. 123

Wen Zhong establishes the Mortal Tribulation Envoy Register, separating Great Shang’s military commands from immortal sect affairs. The Three Steles erase his old death at Juelong Ridge. The Ten Heavenly Lords retain their arrays under a coordinated defensive register, preventing the old pattern of their being challenged and destroyed one at a time. 124

The entire sect chooses to preserve the Ten Thousand Immortal Formation as its final defense. Tongtian strikes out its old defeat prediction, while new conditions require the karma of attackers, converters, treasure-seizers, and those suppressing the sect to be illuminated and recorded. 124

These reforms expose the remaining root of the old arrangement: the decree that “The Interception Sect must perish.” Zhao Xuan argues that uneven character justifies judging individual disciples, not predetermining the destruction of their lineage. 124 125

Rewriting the Investiture and Securing Survival

As Tongtian prepares to reopen the Immortal-Slaying Formation against the old destruction decree, Hongjun declares that the Jie Sect shall not perish. The old mark shatters, and fortune that had been draining into the Investiture returns to Biyou Palace, the Three Steles, and the disciples. The rewritten provisions guarantee sect survival, assign tribulation entry according to the Three Lists’ karma, and forbid making any single sect bear the entire cost. 126

At the final Zixiao proceedings, threats to the sect’s disciples and traditions are formally addressed. Taiyi is punished for the Chentang Pass affair, the Twelve Golden Immortals can no longer transfer their trials, Zhao Gongming’s foretold ritual death is blocked, the Three Xiao Sisters’ formation receives protective rules, and Wen Zhong’s Juelong Ridge death is abolished. The Western Sect must disclose conversion-related karma and may not use Jie Sect defeat or destruction as an unauthorized recruitment opportunity. 127

Hongjun finalizes the Killing Tribulation List, Profit-Sharing List, and Willing Divinity List. The Heavenly Court receives a lawful voluntary recruitment mechanism, and Three Teachings disciples may no longer be forced into vacancies through death. Zhao Xuan is appointed overseer, answerable for misuse of the Three Steles, disorder in the lists, or attempts to restore the old system. 128

Tongtian and Zhao Xuan return to Golden Turtle Island with the sect’s survival secured but discipline still binding. Disciples register their movements and choose among tribulation participation, sect defense, cultivation, and voluntary divine office. Wen Zhong resumes his duty in Chaoge without bearing the mortal calamity on behalf of the entire sect; future conflict and karma remain possible, but the old path to collective destruction has been broken. 128

Relationships

• Master Tongtian — Founder and leader; backs the sect’s retreat and supports Zhao Xuan’s defense of the sect. 4 24 26 He later upholds internal punishment over favoritism, acknowledges his earlier failure to discipline disciples, and maintains that he will defend the surviving lineage against renewed destruction attempts. 37 128
• Heavenly Court — Relied heavily on Jie Sect disciples for operations but sought to assign them blame, retain their labor, and fill divine positions through the Investiture. 8 11 27 Its private recruitment register turns past service into a means of selecting future deities. Under the final settlement, it must recruit through the Willing Divinity List rather than depend on forced Jie Sect casualties. 43 44 128
• Chan Sect — Rival sect whose members disparage the Jie Sect’s origins; Zhao Xuan accuses it of avoiding tribulation while benefiting from Jie Sect losses. 1 17 30 The Tribulation Lamps and manufactured Shi Ji calamity substantiate mechanisms for shifting its burdens. Its Twelve Golden Immortals are ultimately required to bear their own karma, and Yuanshi accepts the new lists without reconciling with Tongtian. 64 108 121 127 128
• Western Sect — Viewed as a beneficiary of Jie Sect collapse and conversion of its disciples; its leaders recognize that the Accountability Ledger could implicate them as well. 2 29 30 Long-Ears’s bargain and Zhunti’s exposed seal reveal covert recruitment schemes. The settlement requires karmic disclosure and restricts exploitation of sect defeat, destruction, or personal resentment for conversion. 37 40 108 127 128
• Dragon Palace — Benefited from Jie Sect protection of the East Sea but faces reckoning through Zhao Xuan’s merit-and-debt records. 16 19 21 The Clear Gate Register later forbids private use of Jie Sect service records by the Dragon Clan to lure disciples into appointments. 44
• Human tribes, Mountain Gods, Earth Deities, and rogue cultivators — Frequent recipients of Jie Sect aid; many realize the sect’s historical contributions once the public ledgers expose them. 1 23 29
• Hongjun and Zixiao Palace — Authority behind the old deliberated Investiture framework and the final reform. Hongjun overturns the decree of Jie Sect destruction, formalizes individual accountability and shared tribulation costs, and appoints Zhao Xuan overseer of the replacement system. 111 126 128
• Great Shang — Connected to the sect through Wen Zhong’s service as Grand Preceptor. The Mortal Tribulation Envoy Register preserves his mortal responsibilities without allowing military orders to automatically commit fellow immortals to sect warfare. 123 124 128
• Nezha — His opposition to harm at Chentang Pass helps expose the manufactured calamity and the misuse of sect loyalty. After the settlement he neither returns to Qianyuan Mountain nor joins the Jie Sect, remaining free to choose his own path. 108 128

Notable Quotes

“Why is it that whenever there is dirty, tiring, bitter, or suicidal work, they all think of our Jie Sect?” 4

“Past merits are not crimes. Shangqing is without sin.” 28

“The benefits of the Investiture: the Heavenly Court gains gods, the Chan Sect avoids the tribulation, the Western Sect gains influence, and the Xuan Sect gains order. The cost of the Investiture: why must it be borne solely by the Jie Sect?” 29

“If a Jie Sect disciple is guilty, that disciple may be judged according to the three lists.” 125

“The Interception Sect shall not perish.” 126

“No single sect shall be made to bear the entire cost of the tribulation.” 126

Trivia

• The Jie Sect’s prosperity—its vast membership and broad social role—is identified as the main reason it is targeted for pruning through the Investiture. 28
• Though many Jie Sect disciples assist the Heavenly Court, they are not formally Heavenly Court officials, allowing the sect to recall them without technically defying an order. 8
• The Investiture of the Gods List’s first visible entry is “Jie Sect,” revealed only after Tongtian severs the sect’s Old Merit Karma. 24 25
• The internal reforms do not prohibit ordinary banquets, Dao lectures, or friendships with outside cultivators; they distinguish such contact from buying influence, information, or allegiance. 41 42
• The sect preserves its major formations rather than abandoning them, changing their governing rules and purpose from predetermined death traps into accountable defenses. 123 124
• The final settlement saves the sect without ending Great Shang’s mortal tribulation or exempting Jie Sect disciples from the consequences of their own actions. 126 128