Chen Cheng

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Chen Cheng (陈诚)
Alias(es)	Ruthless A-Cheng
Species/Race	Human
Gender	Male
Age	18 68
Affiliation	City Guard Office, Ruyi Ward Branch; Luo's Shop
Occupation/Role	Former South City Prison guard; formal City Guard Office constable; offering retainer of Luo's Shop 2 69
Status	Alive
First Appearance	Chapter 2

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Iron Garment Art — Beginner	5	Corrected the incomplete manual to 100% through cultivation and extracted mnemonics, then entered the art's Beginner stage.
Skin-Tempering Realm — Minor Accomplishment	14	The Iron Garment Art's Minor Accomplishment made him a true martial artist; he broke arm-thick firewood barehanded without injuring his fist.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Initiation	19	Reached the initiation level after three days of studying and practicing the manual.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Beginner 26/100	23	Optimized his practice by using weighted training and entering focused states after removing the weights.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Entry 36/100	33	His fight with He Zhiling raised the technique by six points and helped him defeat a mastery-level saber user.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Minor Accomplishment 28/1000	38	Reached Minor Accomplishment while continuing to train under pressure from the Flying Eagle Gang.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Mastery	44	Reached Mastery after his Iron Garment Art's growing physical benefits accelerated his saber cultivation.
Skin-Tempering Realm — Completion	48	Reached the realm's completion by the time he confronted the Jiang Family over its unpaid debt.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Major Mastery 82/10000	51	A life-or-death battle with Bao Yansong and a subsequent focused state produced a major increase in progress.
Brown Bear Skin-Tempering Art — Beginner 32/100	55	Began body tempering with coarse sand and medicinal baths; his existing physique and medicinal absorption enabled unusually rapid progress.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Great Success 589/10000	67	His observations during Zhou Fang's match continued to yield progress after the saber art reached Great Success.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Great Mastery 985/10000	71	Gained several hundred points of insight after witnessing Gongsun Rou's sword techniques.
Chasing Wind Saber Technique — Major Completion 1258/10000	72	Continued cultivation after returning from Zheng Martial Hall, using the insights gained from Gongsun Rou.

Background

Chen Cheng inherited his late father's position as a South City Prison guard after his father died of illness. Half a year later, his memories and wisdom from a previous life awakened, changing the way he navigated the dangerous world around him. At the time, he was seventeen and had already gained the prison nickname “Ruthless A-Cheng.” 2 3

Before his awakening, Master Xiuchen swindled him with an incomplete Iron Garment Art manual. Chen Cheng's reckless cultivation depleted his qi and blood, left him bedridden for three days, and ultimately triggered the awakening of his past-life memories and system panel. He retaliated by repeatedly torturing Xiuchen for the missing mnemonics while cultivating and automatically correcting the art himself. 4 5

Chen Cheng lived in poverty with Mu Xiaowan, the child bride purchased by his father after the Jiang Family broke its childhood betrothal with Chen Cheng. He steadily improved their circumstances through debt collection, manual-copying, and martial cultivation while remaining fiercely protective of Xiaowan. 6 8 12 16

Appearance

Chen Cheng is a lean, handsome young man with delicate features. He was initially frail and underdeveloped, but regular meat consumption, weighted training, and body-tempering cultivation made his body steadily taller, sturdier, and more powerful. 5 23 55

• Initially appeared thin and unremarkable enough to disappear in a crowd. 19 32
• Maintains an outwardly calm, refined bearing even in violent confrontations. 30 68
• Wears weighted clothing lined with refined iron as part of his daily cultivation. 23 53
• Later uses a seventy-jin iron-layered inner armor beneath his clothes. 63 64

Personality

Chen Cheng is cautious, pragmatic, and intensely committed to survival. He avoids needless confrontation with stronger enemies, conceals the origin of his martial arts, and understands when to defer to superiors or invoke useful connections. 19 22 40

Despite his “Ruthless” reputation, he distinguishes sharply between enemies and people he considers deserving of help. He protects Mu Xiaowan, pays Aunt Cuihua's protection fee, treats colleagues generously, and takes Xi'er into his household. 7 10 20 53

He can be merciless when threatened. He secretly kills Ma Liu, defeats the Jiang Family's guards, and uses lime powder, terrain, and lethal force against Bao Yansong and Zhou Fang rather than relying on fair combat. 20 48 50 67

Abilities & Skills

System Panel

Chen Cheng possesses a panel that records his realm and skill progress.

• Corrects incomplete martial arts during cultivation, allowing him to complete the Iron Garment Art even when Master Xiuchen lacked the full mnemonic set. 4 5 13
• Guarantees cultivation progress through practice and can grant sudden breakthroughs during focused states or real combat. 19 23 33
• Allows him to benefit rapidly from medicinal power while cultivating the Brown Bear Skin-Tempering Art. 55

Iron Garment Art

An internal-breath method centered on weighted training, qi-and-blood circulation, strength, speed, and endurance.

• Reached Minor Accomplishment and brought Chen Cheng into the Skin-Tempering Realm. 14
• Uses iron plates sewn into clothing; he raised the load from roughly twenty pounds to fifty jin, then seventy jin. 12 23 56 63
• Greatly improves his physical strength, agility, stamina, and the speed at which he learns external martial skills. 6 42 44
• Does not provide the same skin-membrane durability as a dedicated body-tempering art. 51

Brown Bear Skin-Tempering Art

A top-tier body-tempering method supplied through Liu Yunfeng, later identified as a gift arranged by Shen Qingshuang. 34 42

• Requires coarse-sand abrasion, medicinal baths, oral medicine, and brown bear blood. 54 55
• Thickens and hardens his skin and flesh, supplementing the Iron Garment Art's internal cultivation. 55 64
• Its medicinal requirements are extremely expensive: brown bear blood costs at least fifty taels per portion, with further auxiliary ingredients required. 36 37
• Chen Cheng's existing physique and the panel's absorption effect let him advance far faster than normal practitioners. 55 60

Chasing Wind Saber Technique

A mid-grade saber technique purchased from Luo's Shop for fifty taels of silver. 17 19

• Includes forms such as Wind-Riding Form, Wind-Guiding Form, and Wind-Chasing Form. 19 67
• Emphasizes swift footwork, evasion, changing positions, and striking once an opponent's stamina or guard fails. 32 33
• Enabled Chen Cheng to defeat He Zhiling despite He possessing a mastery-level Six Harmonies Saber Technique. 32 33
• Reached Mastery before Chen Cheng's duel with Bao Yansong and later continued toward completion through combat insights. 44 51 67 72

Inborn Divine Strength

Shen Qingshuang initially believed Chen Cheng possessed inborn divine strength after he defeated Li Lin with an unstructured punch. 30

• His punch sent Li Lin flying several meters despite Li Lin's fist technique nearing Major Accomplishment. 30
• His exceptional physical power actually stems from the concealed Iron Garment Art and subsequent body tempering, which others initially fail to recognize. 14 30 64

Combat Cunning

Chen Cheng routinely creates advantages rather than relying solely on direct exchanges.

• Uses superior movement speed to exhaust stronger technicians before counterattacking. 32
• Blinded Bao Yansong with lime powder, then launched a two-to-three-hundred-jin millstone at him before delivering the killing strike. 50
• Recognized Zhou Fang's sudden transformation as resembling Black Lotus Sect secret arts and chose to kill him before he could become a recurring threat. 67 68

Equipment

• City Guard Office standard saber — Issued after his promotion to formal constable. 69
• Iron Garment weighted clothing — Refined iron plates sewn into underclothes for daily cultivation. 23 56
• Iron Garment Layered Armor — Seventy-jin refined-iron inner garment made by Mu Xiaowan and Xi'er; capable of resisting cuts and thrusts from a saber. 63
• Corpse Rot Poison Water hidden weapon — Purchased for eight taels of silver as protection against dangerous martial artists and the Black Lotus Sect. 45 46
• Lime powder — Used to blind Bao Yansong during their duel. 50
• Promissory notes — Used to collect debts from Widow Tian and Jiang Rongxuan. 9 47

Relationships

• Mu Xiaowan — His child bride and future wife. Chen Cheng protects and provides for her, while she supports his training, makes his weighted clothing, and later becomes Gongsun Rou's disciple. 6 23 63 72
• Xi'er — A beggar girl Chen Cheng takes in as a maidservant after she identifies him through tracking. She helps Mu Xiaowan make his layered armor. 53 63
• Liu Yunfeng — Chief constable and mentor who defends Chen Cheng, helps him enter the City Guard Office, provides the Brown Bear Skin-Tempering Art, and later entrusts him with information on the Black Lotus Sect. 9 34 40 69
• Liao San — City Guard Office colleague and sworn-elder-brother figure who helps Chen Cheng seek a runner position and repeatedly warns him about dangerous opponents. 10 24 67
• Master Xiuchen — Death-row prisoner who deceived Chen Cheng with an incomplete Iron Garment Art. Chen Cheng tortured him for revenge and missing mnemonics. 4 5
• Qian Bin — Luo's Shop steward who buys Chen Cheng's copied manual, sells him the Chasing Wind Saber Technique, and offers extensive cultivation guidance. 16 17
• Shen Qingshuang — Ruyi Ward's chief constable. She recognizes Chen Cheng's potential, arranges for him to receive the Brown Bear Skin-Tempering Art, protects him after Zhou Fang's death, and seeks to recruit him for the Shen Family. 42 60 68
• Jiang Yun — Former childhood betrothed whose family broke off the engagement. Their relationship is hostile; she later develops admiration for Chen Cheng's strength. 8 11 67
• Jiang Rongxuan — Jiang Yun's father and debtor to Chen Cheng's late father. Chen Cheng eventually forces repayment of principal and interest. 8 47 48
• Zhou Biao — Flying Eagle Gang figure who becomes Chen Cheng's adversary after protecting Widow Tian and sending men to monitor him. 22 38 40
• Zhou Fang — Zhou Family candidate for the formal-constable assessment. Chen Cheng kills him after Zhou Fang resorts to hidden weapons and Black Lotus Sect-like secret arts. 67 68
• Luo Yunzhi — Luo's Shop manager and wife of Zheng Martial Hall's Old Master Zheng. She recruits Chen Cheng as an offering retainer. 69
• Gongsun Rou — First Madam of Zheng Martial Hall and Mu Xiaowan's master. Her sword demonstration grants Chen Cheng major insight into the Chasing Wind Saber Technique. 71 72

Story Role / Major Arcs

South City Prison

Chen Cheng begins as a prison guard struggling to support Mu Xiaowan. Master Xiuchen's fraudulent manual nearly kills him, but Chen Cheng's awakened panel lets him correct the Iron Garment Art and become a martial artist. 2 4 5 14

Locust Tree Alley Conflicts

He establishes his reputation by crippling Ma Liu and Second Fool, collecting Widow Tian's debt through legal pressure, protecting Aunt Cuihua's household, and eventually killing Ma Liu after recognizing him as a continuing danger. 8 9 20

Joining the City Guard Office

To gain protection against the Flying Eagle Gang, Chen Cheng resigns from South City Prison and enters the Ruyi Ward Branch Office. He passes the probationary assessment by overpowering Li Lin and defeating He Zhiling with a saber technique far below He Zhiling's level. 22 24 30 33

Jiang Family Debt and Bao Yansong

Chen Cheng returns to the Jiang Family to collect its long-overdue debt. After defeating four guards, he is pursued by Bao Yansong, whom he kills through superior speed, lime powder, and improvised force. Bao is later identified as connected to the Black Lotus Sect. 47 48 50

Formal Constable Assessment

Chen Cheng refuses to withdraw from the formal-constable assessment despite the Zhou Family's interference. He defeats Li Sheng, confronts Zhou Fang, and beheads him after Zhou Fang uses hidden weapons and a Black Lotus Sect-like secret art. Shen Qingshuang promotes Chen Cheng to formal constable. 60 65 67 68

Luo's Shop and Zheng Martial Hall

After his promotion, Chen Cheng becomes an offering retainer of Luo's Shop, receiving a residence, stipend, and martial-hall access. He brings Mu Xiaowan to Zheng Martial Hall, where Gongsun Rou accepts her as a disciple; Chen Cheng's observation of Gongsun Rou's swordsmanship dramatically advances his own saber art. 69 71 72

Notable Quotes

“Who said I was quitting?” 67

“I will participate in the assessment match.” 60

“The future is promising!” 6

Trivia

• Chen Cheng insists that he is “kindhearted” despite his prison nickname and habit of crippling or killing threats. 9 20
• He concealed his cultivation by claiming that his saber technique was inherited from his late father. 28
• The Iron Garment Art can only be cultivated by men because its completed method requires drawing yang energy into the dantian. 45
• Xi'er identified Chen Cheng by the rust scent from his weighted clothing and the unusually deep footprints left by its concealed iron plates. 53