Li Shun

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Li Shun (李顺)
Alias(es)	Tui Zhi (courtesy name); Fang Han (identity/body used in the Martial World) 25 157
Species/Race	Human; a transmigrated soul occupying Li Shun's body and later able to operate alternate puppet bodies 2 62
Gender	Male
Bloodline	Hundredth-generation descendant of Emperor Gan of Great Yu; bearer of the Mu Clan Blood Seal 92 94
Affiliation	Confucian School's Spring-Autumn Brush lineage; formerly Fang Xun's disciple 59 98
Occupation/Role	Former corvée laborer and miner; First-Class Gentleman; acting Shangyu County Magistrate 25 135
Status	Alive
First Appearance	Chapter 1

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Threefold Self-Reflection	2	Repairs and awakens a damaged stone statue with Cold Mountain Grass, gaining a divine ability that can reset time. 2
Longevity cultivation	26	Uses the Twelve Longevity Method to perceive life breath, borrow lifespan from Heaven, restore his youth, and heal his crippled leg. 26
Two hundred years of borrowed lifespan	29	Reaches a total of two hundred years of borrowed lifespan, though he falsely reports a lesser amount to Fang Xun. 29
Mortal Embryo Realm	59	Condenses the Spring-Autumn Brush and becomes a cultivator after drawing on Fang Xun's accumulated cultivation memories. 59
Middle-grade Mortal Embryo Realm	61, 76	Rapidly reaches the middle grade through fate-qi consumption; later reaches completion and arrives at the Gate of Earth. 61 76
Upper-grade Mortal Embryo Realm	84	Zhao Cheng identifies him as having reached the upper grade only shortly after beginning cultivation. 84
Empty Boat, Self-Erasure—beginner stage	74, 75	Learns Wei Wuqi's concealment art and uses it to avoid the lifespan-demanding shadows during a reflection. 74 75
Azure Wood Invocation	90	Masters all thirty-six ancient melodies after a year of cultivation within Square Inch. 90
Entering the Mundane World	92	Advances beyond the Longevity stage after accepting Elder Mu's task and learning of the puppet body's imperial ancestry. 92
Mortal Descent	93	Enters a stage in which his qi becomes intertwined with karma and tribulations. 93
Grand Simplicity Realm	139	Breaks through after refining Mystic Yellow qi gathered through reverence for the Three Elders; no longer depends on mortal food. 139
Upper-grade Spirit Resonance	205, 206	Reaches the upper tier after using Mystic Yellow qi to compensate for the end of Fang Xun's cultivation guidance. 205 206
Martial World—Body-Tempering limit	158	In Fang Han's body, uses Azure Wood Invocation to repair accumulated injuries and reach the limit of Body-Tempering. 158
Martial World—approaching Astral Qi	166	The tortoiseshell's gathered primordial qi accelerates Fang Han's cultivation toward the Astral Qi realm. 166

Background

Li Shun is a transmigrated soul who awakens in the body of an aged, crippled corvée laborer in Cold Mountain County. His survival depends on Square Inch, a hidden internal space containing Cold Mountain Grass, damaged stone statues, and a puppet reflecting the body he first possessed. He uses the awakened Threefold Self-Reflection statue to retry fatal outcomes and plan around the county's looming chaos. 2

While publicly presenting himself as a weak laborer, Li Shun secretly cultivates and trades Cold Mountain Grass for pages of the Book of Imperial Exegesis and intelligence. He learns that a Cold Mountain Venerable can elevate a laborer beyond corvée service, then exploits the Cold Mountain County turmoil to steal and consume one, greatly strengthening his divine soul and thought speed. 3 22

He later turns over a Cold Mountain Lord to County Magistrate Fang Xun, earning promotion to First-Class Gentleman. Fang Xun teaches him the Twelve Longevity Method, which lets Li Shun borrow lifespan from Heaven, regain a youthful body, and restore his damaged leg. 25 26

Appearance

Li Shun initially appears as a bent, white-haired, crippled laborer in coarse clothes. After borrowing longevity from Heaven, his body becomes that of a handsome youth with bright brows and sword-like eyes. 25 26

• His original possessed body was physically damaged by decades of forced labor, including a long-broken leg. 25 26
• His synchronized Square Inch puppet can retain the appearance and cultivation state of his youthful outer body. 62
• When operating as Fang Han in the Martial World, he inhabits the body of a young master of Heavenly Eye City's Fang Family. 157 160

Personality

Li Shun is patient, calculating, and highly protective of his secrets. He routinely adopts the mannerisms of a humble, frightened laborer or obedient disciple while concealing his actual knowledge, cultivation, and control of Square Inch. His performance before Fang Xun and Zhao Cheng is convincing enough to conceal his resistance to the Sacred Words Slip's indoctrination. 3 25 85

He is willing to be ruthless when necessary: he tortures Feng Guan for information, manipulates public opinion against Cheng Rang, and treats puppets as expendable safeguards against danger. 7 74 142 However, he also values those he considers his own. He risks entering a suspected trap to rescue Feng Guan and repeatedly works with Li Qing despite the danger surrounding them. 110 130

Li Shun's defining conviction is that his identity does not wholly belong to the body named Li Shun. Square Inch preserves his independent sense of self against the doctrines, memories, and external influences imposed upon him. 62 74

Abilities & Skills

Square Inch

Square Inch is Li Shun's core secret: an inner domain connected to his consciousness and described by him as his heart. It houses puppets, Cold Mountain Grass, stone statues, Mystic Yellow qi, and other seized objects or inheritances. 62 139

• Stores objects, plants, spirits, and puppet versions of individuals. 2 79
• Allows its stored Li Shun puppet to cultivate Cold Mountain Grass continuously. 2 62
• Can synchronize a puppet's fixed state with Li Shun's outer body when he chooses. 62
• May permit Li Shun to reappear through his puppet even if his external body is destroyed, according to his own understanding. 62
• Extracts special constitutions from puppets, such as Shentu Xin's Life-Qi Furnace, and can grant one extracted trait to another puppet at a time. 79 80
• Expands after absorbing Mystic Yellow qi and after Li Shun gains insight into its nature. 116
• Cannot yet expel a puppet once it has been stored. 79
• Conceals Li Shun's true thoughts from the ideological influence of cultivation methods, but the saint statues within it can still subtly affect him. 61 131

Threefold Self-Reflection

A divine ability associated with the damaged Confucian stone statue in Square Inch. It enables Li Shun to revisit and alter prior events through successive “reflections.” 2 63

• Requires repair and nourishment of the stone statue, initially through Cold Mountain Grass and later through other resources. 2 128
• Lets Li Shun preserve knowledge from failed timelines and revise his decisions. 72 200
• Can be used selectively with greater efficiency after Li Shun improves his understanding of it. 139
• Its resets affect Great Qian differently from the Martial World, creating a time discrepancy between worlds. 194
• Its full comprehension briefly raises Li Shun's perspective toward that of a Confucian Saint. 225

Heavenly Man Book / Heavenly Man's Writing

Li Shun gains access to the power associated with the intact stone statue, which can fabricate or rewrite a past and interfere with memory. 63 66

• Uses the name Heavenly Man Book while deceiving Jiang Chongguang about his memory-altering ability. 66
• Resists the Heavenly Man Book statue's attempt to overwrite his own past. 63
• Temporarily uses Heavenly Man's Writing while borrowing Sage-like power to erase a Creation Realm expert. 129
• Rewriting highly cultivated or karmically entangled targets causes severe backlash and consumption. 129

Twelve Longevity Method

A longevity art taught by Fang Xun that lets Li Shun perceive life breath and borrow lifespan from Heaven. 25 26

• Restores youth, vitality, and physical function by borrowing lifespan. 26
• Produces fate qi, which Li Shun can burn to temporarily amplify principle qi or accelerate cultivation. 60
• Allows him to compress years of cultivation into a day when supported by Fang Xun's memories and a stable Thought Furnace. 60
• Carries the danger of Heaven's lifespan demand and lifespan-seizing shadows. 73 106
• Cannot be used in the Martial World until the local Heaven's Dao recognizes the borrower. 157

Spring-Autumn Brush

Li Shun's primary Confucian cultivation lineage, inherited through Fang Xun's memories and formal discipleship. 59

• Condenses principle qi through Confucian classics and the Spring-Autumn Brush. 59
• Uses character formulas such as Strength Character Formula to enhance physical power. 59 61
• Can invoke protective teachings such as No Harm Can Touch the Body. 106
• Uses Thunder Gale Flashstep for short bursts of extreme flight speed, at the cost of later weakness. 210
• Its techniques become substantially stronger in the Primordial Illusion Realm because that realm possesses more complete heavenly laws. 209

Empty Boat, Self-Erasure

A secret concealment method taught by Wei Wuqi. It erases the user's sense of self and hostility, making them harder to detect. 73 74

• Reaches beginner stage within one hour. 74
• Lets Li Shun avoid the black shadows that demand borrowed lifespan during a reflection. 75
• Slows his cultivation because its principles conflict with the Spring-Autumn Brush. 76
• Cannot conceal him from Emperor Gan or Mu Wujiu at its highest level. 96

Azure Wood Invocation

One of the Primeval Ten Invocations inherited from Wu Peng. It is an ancient shamanic art requiring shaman-god bloodline. 89 90

• Contains thirty-six ancient melodies mastered by Li Shun inside Square Inch. 90
• Draws vitality from heaven and earth to temper and restore the body. 157 158
• Is dangerously overwhelming in Great Qian, where its vitality once blew Li Shun's body apart. 158
• Functions more gently through Fang Han's body in the Martial World. 158

Emperor-Slaying Sword Technique

A twenty-eight-form sword art taught by Wei Wuqi, built around concealed killing intent. 95

• The final established form, Old Friend, hides the killing intent accumulated by the preceding twenty-seven forms. 95
• Elder Wei's sword can assault the heart and force victims into devastating illusions. 96
• Li Shun later deduces an improved final sword, Perish Together, despite doubting that his own insight should be sufficient to improve a Cosmos Realm divine ability. 224

Divine Favor of Formless Suspended Skull

At Unsalted Mountain, Li Shun is overwhelmed by the deity Formless Suspended Skull and becomes one of its servants. 215

• His consciousness is tainted, and his priorities become centered on serving the deity. 215
• Gains a deep-blue divine thread, matching the deity's Spirit Transformation. 215
• Uses the thread to slow his fall from Unsalted Mountain and descend safely to the Kuanghuang Clan village. 215

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Mu Clan Blood Seal — Proof of Li Shun's imperial ancestry; causes the Blood Armored Guards to kneel and recognize him as imperial kin. 92 94
• Spring-Autumn Brush — His condensed Confucian cultivation instrument and basis for character formulas. 59
• Sword Branch — The seemingly ordinary branch Wei Wuqi uses to transmit the Emperor-Slaying Sword Technique. 95
• Sacred Words Slip — A Confucian relic used in an attempt to indoctrinate him; Li Shun is protected from its control by the sage statue in Square Inch. 84 85
• Wu Peng Armor — Ancient armor that temporarily grants power near the Spirit Resonance Realm even to an ordinary mortal; Li Shun later gives it to Elder Mu. 89
• Tortoiseshell — An arcane relic stored in Square Inch that gathers primordial qi but resists manifestation in Great Qian. 166

Relationships

• Li Qing — His younger brother in Li Shun's adopted life. Li Qing guards his secrets, fights beside him, and repeatedly urges him to be more cautious about revealing Threefold Self-Reflection. 57 75 110
• Fang Xun — Former master and county magistrate. Fang Xun teaches Li Shun the Twelve Longevity Method and sponsors his Confucian path, then sacrifices him to the Imperial Tomb mission; they later reconcile before Fang Xun's death. 25 84 98 149
• Feng Guan — Former Cold Mountain neighbor and Li Shun's only friend during his years of labor. Their relationship survives torture, manipulation, and Feng Guan's disastrous plea for rescue. 7 110 130
• Wei Wuqi (Elder Wei) — Mentor who teaches Li Shun Empty Boat, Self-Erasure and the Emperor-Slaying Sword Technique. He recognizes traces of Emperor Gan's gaze upon Li Shun. 73 95 98
• Elder Mu — Guardian within the Imperial Tomb and source of Li Shun's Mu Clan blood seal. He reveals Li Shun's lineage, directs him through the burial earth, and grants access to Wu Peng's inheritance. 90 92 93
• Zhao Cheng — Fang Xun's senior and Li Shun's martial uncle. He sends Li Shun into the Imperial Tomb's sealed earth under the belief that the Sacred Words Slip has secured his obedience. 84 85
• Kong Zhao — Senior brother, political informant, and ally. Li Shun saves him through a second reflection and later receives his support while acting as Shangyu County Magistrate. 135 200 206
• Duan Jiuzhang — Senior cultivator who approves of Li Shun's decision to rescue Feng Guan and accompanies him toward Yunguan County. 110
• Formless Suspended Skull — The grotesque deity whose divine will turns Li Shun into a favored servant. 215

Story Role / Major Arcs

Cold Mountain County

Li Shun begins as an ostensibly helpless laborer while secretly operating Square Inch. He steals a Cold Mountain Venerable amid the county's chaos, consumes it to strengthen his divine soul, and engineers his elevation from corvée laborer to First-Class Gentleman. 10 22 25

Fang Xun's Disciple

After borrowing longevity and recovering his youth, Li Shun seeks a true cultivation inheritance. He becomes Fang Xun's disciple, condenses the Spring-Autumn Brush, and burns fate qi to advance at an abnormal rate. 59 60

Imperial Tomb Sealed Earth

Zhao Cheng sends Li Shun on a mission expected to end in his death. Li Shun feigns indoctrinated loyalty, enters the sealed earth, encounters the legacy of Wu Peng, learns Azure Wood Invocation, and discovers that the body named Li Shun descends from Emperor Gan's imperial line. 84 85 89 92

Imperial Kin and Confucian Politics

Upon returning from the Imperial Tomb, Li Shun uses the Mu Clan Blood Seal to command the respect of the Blood Armored Guards and publicly severs ties with Fang Xun. He later accepts Fang Xun's apologies, becomes entangled in court investigations, and gains Kong Zhao as a key Confucian ally. 94 98 135

Shangyu County

As acting magistrate, Li Shun uses governance, memorial inscriptions, and public reverence for the Three Elders to generate Mystic Yellow qi. He advances to Grand Simplicity, then destroys Cheng Rang's challenge through calculated rhetoric, staged conflict, and official pressure. 135 139 142

Martial World

Through Fang Han's body, Li Shun enters a separate martial world. He seeks a path to become an innate grandmaster, uses Azure Wood Invocation to temper his martial body, learns Emperor Fist Years, and uses Square Inch to observe grandmasters who cultivate the Twelve Longevity Method. 157 160 184

Hundred Schools Gathering and the Primordial Illusion Realm

Li Shun joins the Hundred Schools Gathering after reaching upper-grade Spirit Resonance. In the Primordial Illusion Realm, he confronts ancient monsters, the ten-sun calamity, the blue moon, Unsalted Mountain's deity, and Mount Buzhou's guardian Roushou. 206 209 215 221

Notable Quotes

“Square Inch is my heart.” 62

“I am merely myself. That soul who came from beyond the heavens, not the laborer born in the imperial mausoleum who spent his life toiling away on Cold Mountain.” 62

“If I could take them all into my possession and extract all manner of heaven-defying qualities... Would I not be able to forge a perfect body?” 80

“To face death without flinching for the sake of a friend and neighbor—this is righteousness. To recognize a perilous situation and seek every possible safeguard—this is wisdom.” 110

Trivia

• Li Shun's courtesy name, Tui Zhi, is interpreted by Fang Xun as “knowing when to advance and when to retreat.” 25
• He initially claims to have borrowed only fifty-five years of lifespan while actually possessing two hundred years. 29
• The Threefold Self-Reflection statue resembles, but is not identical to, the Confucian Sage seen through the Sacred Words Slip. 84
• Li Shun considers Square Inch more important than either Threefold Self-Reflection or Heavenly Man Book; he refuses to allow even Li Qing to learn its full nature. 139