Fang Shu

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Fang Shu (方束)
Alias(es)	Hu Muhuang 217 348
Species/Race	Human
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Formerly Solitary Gu Hall and Venom Hall; direct disciple of Yellow Wolf Immortal in the Vast Sea Immortal Prefecture; returned to Mount Lu as its new mountain lord 147 379 450 472
Occupation/Role	Gu master, formation practitioner, artifact user, direct disciple, and Mount Lu mountain lord 472
Status	Alive; Golden Core True Immortal 450
First Appearance	Chapter 3

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
First-Tribulation Essence-Refining Human Immortal	36	Voluntarily entered Solitary Gu Hall's Venom Pit ahead of schedule; endured its insects and venom untouched. 36 37
Second-Tribulation Essence-Refining Human Immortal	75	Completed his second tribulation; his bone structure rose to “Superior Superior,” and the Dao Register's Dragon Qi became usable. 75
Third-Tribulation Essence-Refining Human Immortal	104	Broke through after consolidating his cultivation; gained substantially stronger qi and blood. 104
Three-Tribulation Completion	131	Completed the Essence-Refining stage and began preparing to plant a spiritual root. 131
Qi-Refining Spirit Immortal	140	Sacrificed and refined the Worm-Grass Gu into himself, gaining control over human and insect forms and manifesting divine sense. 140
Fifth-Tribulation Qi-Refining Spirit Immortal	181	Emerged from five days of seclusion after breaking through, prompting a celebration in Guling Town. 181
Fifth-Calamity Qi-Refining Spirit Immortal	193	Reached thirty-one and a half Toads of magical power while managing the Yin- and Yang-Label Gu Pits. 193
Sixth-Tribulation Qi-Refining Immortal	250	Advanced after completing six Baleful Intents and refining Five Emperors True Qi; later concealed his true strength behind ordinary Five Elements True Qi. 243 250
Qi-Refinement Completion	267	Reached ninety Toads of true qi after consuming purified millennium-old spirit medicine in the Mount Lu Secret Realm. 267
Foundation-Building, Seventh Tribulation	308	Refined his Cordyceps Spiritual Root and Dao Register into a unique Foundation-Building Dao Insect, shedding and rebuilding his mortal body. 308
Eighth-Tribulation Foundation Establishment Immortal	371	Emerged from seclusion after crossing tribulation and demonstrated overwhelming power against the Yuan Family. 371 373
Nine-Tribulation Perfection	415	Completed the ninth tribulation, Heavenly Disasters and Human Calamities, becoming one step from Core Formation. 415 418
Golden Core True Immortal	450	Returned to Mount Lu after forming his Golden Core and revealed his new realm and true identity to the Five Sects. 447 450

History

At sixteen, Fang Shu was a mortal cultivator whose Long-Tongue Sword drained his essence and blood so severely that the newly acquired Mountain-Sea Immortal Palace Outer Disciple Register predicted his death at twenty-seven. The Register bound itself to his life, providing passive evil warding, records, and analysis; its first assessment listed no realm or dharma power, only the Mouth-and-Stomach Secret Sword Technique and his artifacts. 4 5

He discovered the Fur-Shedding Skin-Changing Technique on an old fox's tiger-skin notebook and refined a fox pelt that gave him a genuine fox form, heightened night vision, and greatly enhanced smell. He later entered Solitary Gu Hall, cultivated the insect path under Hall Master Du, and rose rapidly by combining its methods with the Lead-Mercury Blood-Treasure Artifact-Seeding Secret Method. 3 6 32 36

Fang Shu became known in Guling Town after killing Cheng the Jar, crossing the Venom Pit tribulation, and beheading the concealed Three-Tribulation immortal Luo Dalang with the Long-Tongue Sword and Flame Saber Art. He subsequently passed the Spring Examination, entered Five Viscera Temple, planted a Cordyceps spiritual root, and became a registered disciple of Venom Hall under Immortal Long Gu. 26 36 88 140 147

As a Qi Refiner, he seized control of the Yin- and Yang-Label Gu Pits, created the Gu-Refined Dao Soldier Method, and earned two hundred Dao merits—enough to secure inner-sect entry. His relationship with Long Gu later collapsed when he refused her order to surrender his primordial yang; he survived the resulting conflict and completed Foundation Establishment through a Dao Insect-based rebirth. 193 197 274 308

After leaving Mount Lu, Fang Shu entered Vast Sea Immortal City under the name Hu Muhuang. He became Yellow Wolf Immortal's direct disciple, defeated Chang Feng in a contest for direct-disciple status, and reached Nine-Tribulation Perfection while pursuing the path to Core Formation. 348 379 418

During a mission to Scarlet City Immortal Prefecture, Fang Shu escaped pursuit by a True Immortal through a life-damaging blood-shadow secret art. After returning, he gathered objects connected to Mount Lu, settled old grudges with a curse art, and went back to the mountain to seek his Golden Core. He announced his identity before Mount Lu's cultivators, formed his core, and returned to Five Viscera Hall as a Golden Core True Immortal. He then reunited with Yu Le, Fang Lu, and other old acquaintances. 420 427 447 450

Fang Shu subsequently became Mount Lu's mountain lord. In setting out its precepts, he abolished the former rule that those who failed to reach Qi Refinement would become medicine slaves. 472

Appearance

Fang Shu ordinarily appears as a youthful cultivator. His Foundation-Building rebirth removed old scars and flaws, leaving him with the appearance of a vigorous sixteen-year-old despite his actual age. More than ninety years had passed since his youth when he returned to Mount Lu to form his Golden Core. 308 418 447

• His body was tempered through blood-refinement, lead-mercury cultivation, dragon-whale body cultivation, and repeated tribulations. 33 230
• His fox pelt can wrap beneath his clothing and transform him into an upright fox demon. 217
• In full fox form, his face becomes furred and fox-like; his vision and scent perception improve sharply. 6
• After becoming a Dao Insect Foundation Establishment cultivator, he can transform his flesh and gnaw secret script from artifacts. 309 317

Personality

Fang Shu is calculating, patient, and intensely survival-minded. He searches opportunities thoroughly, tests suspicious situations before committing himself, and changes plans quickly when a location, treasure, or ally becomes unsafe. 3 80 218

He is also ruthless toward threats. Fang Shu assassinates enemies, destroys evidence, soul-searches hostile cultivators, and favors eliminating future dangers rather than accepting uncertain mercy. 26 61 215 260

Despite this pragmatism, he is loyal to people who have genuinely aided him. His decisions to rescue Yu Le, protect former Solitary Gu Hall associates, reward Venom Hall loyalists, and seek protection for his family all stem from this sense of obligation. 40 311 319

As mountain lord, he retained an interest in how the institution treated weaker cultivators, replacing Mount Lu's medicine-slave rule with a path for assigning work to outer disciples. 472

Abilities & Skills

Mountain-Sea Immortal Palace Outer Disciple Register

A life-bound register that records Fang Shu's condition, identifies artifacts and techniques, wards evil influences, and analyzes cultivation methods. 4 5

• Its evil-warding function is passive and can judge whether an object is foul, harmful, or permissible. 4
• It records cultivation progress, lifespan, artifacts, spells, magical power, and resources. 5 193
• Dragon Qi can greatly accelerate its analysis of difficult arts and incomplete methods. 75 218
• Its analysis allowed Fang Shu to repair the Cordyceps Parasitism Technique into the Fang Clan Cordyceps Gu-Seeding Art. 139

Gu Arts and Formation Dao

Fang Shu specializes in venomous Gu, Gu formations, Gu refinement, and the integration of Gu with other cultivation paths. 186 193 378

• Created the Flood Dragon Spine Hundred-Gu Banner by fusing Gu Dao with Formation Dao around the Flood-Dragon Bone Formation Rod. 184 186
• Uses formations such as the Three Talents Four-Gu Formation to suppress opponents, interfere with true qi, and defend against stronger attacks. 214 215
• Developed the Gu-Refined Dao Soldier Method, earning two hundred Dao merits and securing inner-sect admission. 197
• His Foundation-Building Dao Insect grants Insect Transformation at Will and the ability to gnaw secret scripts from artifacts. 308 309 317
• Improved his Dragon-Qi Gu Formation so that he could deploy it faster and cover a larger area. 441

Fur-Shedding Skin-Changing Technique

A skin-pouch transformation art originally copied by an old fox onto tiger skin. 3

• Refines demon or human skin into a wearable magical implement that grants one or two traits of its source. 3
• His fox pelt provides a real fox transformation rather than a mere illusion. 6
• The pelt can be shed as an escape measure and has been used to conceal his identity. 6 217

Sword and Blood-Flame Arts

Fang Shu's earliest combat art is the Mouth-and-Stomach Secret Sword Technique, which created the Long-Tongue Sword. 5 25

• The Long-Tongue Sword reached One-Tribulation artifact status through sustained nourishment with Fang Shu's qi and blood. 25
• The Red Snake Blood-Thread Flame Saber Art wraps blood essence around a blade as burning threads; at mastery, it can manifest a blood-red snake and approach Fourth-Tribulation power. 69
• Fang Shu merged the Flame Saber Art with the Long-Tongue Sword to kill Luo Dalang, a concealed Three-Tribulation immortal, in one strike. 88 89
• He later cultivated a White Bone Sword Pellet, though he considers his sword aptitude inferior to his Gu and formation talent. 321 378
• Following his eighth tribulation, he displayed powerful sword techniques against the Yuan Family, killing Yuan Junfeng with a single strike. 371

Ancient Arts and Mobility

Fang Shu used the Dao Register to master ancient fundamental arts, then combined their principles with modern methods. 160 167

• Object-Driving Technique — moves heavy objects through divine sense and true qi. 160
• Wall-Piercing Technique — passes through solid barriers and supports escape through confined terrain. 160 167
• Invisibility Technique — obscures him from the five senses. 160 167
• He later derived the Leaping Wall-Piercing Art, Five-Sense Invisibility Art, and Flying Weapon Manipulation Art. 167
• After forming his Golden Core, he developed a divine ability that lets him gather or scatter into yin-yang qi and pass through mountains, formations, and restrictions. In that state, Golden Core True Immortals of the same realm cannot see him unless he casts spells or transforms further. 472

Killing Intent and True Qi

Fang Shu cultivated the Six Desires Baleful Method alongside Life-and-Death Yin-Yang True Qi, Dragon-Whale Body-Nurturing Art, and Five Emperors True Qi. 193 230 250

• The completed Six Desires Baleful Method granted a passive intuition for approaching fortune and misfortune; it cannot be used as deliberate divination. 244
• Five Emperors True Qi improves both offense and protection while allowing him to disguise his deeper cultivation as ordinary Five Elements True Qi. 250
• His accumulation of one hundred and eight Toads of true qi made his magical power several times denser than that of ordinary cultivators at the same stage. 296
• He cultivated Moonlight Divine Water and later Imperial Dew, using the latter against Chang Feng's Three Lights Divine Water. 354 366 378

Soul-Searching and Curse Arts

Fang Shu can extract, seal, and interrogate souls, though he treats soul-searching as a dangerous technique requiring caution. 211 215

• The Soul-Searching Truth-Extraction Technique supports investigation and interrogation, while the Dao Register offers protection against its risks. 211 212
• The incomplete Seven-Arrow Nail-Head Technique became a potent surprise-killing method through his Nail-Head Arrows. 211 288
• He can use the Body-Sacrificing Suppression Substitute-Killing Art to turn seized fortune into a suppression object rather than bearing its risks directly. 375 381
• He cast the Heaven-Human Five Decays Curse-Killing Art against people he held responsible for humiliating his friends or slandering him, including Ming Jianxi and Tie Zhenglian. 427

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Mountain-Sea Immortal Palace Outer Disciple Register — life-bound analysis, recording, and evil-warding treasure. 4 5
• Long-Tongue Sword — Fang Shu's blood-fed secret sword and oldest major weapon. 25 100
• Fox Pelt — transformation artifact refined through the Fur-Shedding Skin-Changing Technique. 6 217
• Flood Dragon Spine Hundred-Gu Banner — quasi-Foundation Establishment formation artifact integrating Gu and formation arts. 184 186
• Human-Yellow Nail — quasi-Foundation Establishment artifact used to capture and suppress Shen Yin. 265 266
• Armored Horse — Foundation-Building talisman artifact that manifests horse-shaped armor and can charge through enemies. 261
• Ancient Thumb Ring Treasure — soul-stabilizing treasure that resists divine-sense pressure and spiritual attacks. 189
• Near Yet Far Jade Pendant — Ten-Calamity ancient treasure containing the divine power Worlds Apart, which slows movement and spells within its range. 405 406
• White Bone Sword Pellet — sword-cultivator inheritance artifact Fang Shu uses as a flying sword pellet. 321
• Foundation Establishment War Drum — sound-path killing artifact obtained from Shen Yin, particularly effective against groups. 269
• Suppression Copper Coin — object refined to bear the backlash of Fang Shu's suppression arts. 381
• Small Secret Realm — a realm on his immortal mountain that he sealed off and later strengthened with the mountain's extracted spirit vein. 385 427

Relationships

• Yu Le — Fang Shu's Second Uncle and early guardian; guided his entry into cultivation and remains the family member Fang Shu most consistently protects. They reunited when Fang Shu returned to Mount Lu as a Golden Core True Immortal. 16 40 311 450
• Hall Master Du — Fang Shu's master at Solitary Gu Hall; recognized his potential, permitted his early Venom Pit tribulation, and supported his advancement. 36 40
• Immortal Long Gu — former Venom Hall master; initially favored Fang Shu's talent, but their relationship ended after he refused her demand for his primordial yang. 197 274 275
• Fang Lu — senior sister whom Fang Shu formally acknowledges as an elder sister; she guaranteed his sponsorship, helped him obtain a spirit-root method, and later became Venom Hall's chief steward under his appointment. They reunited after his Golden Core formation, and he offered her pills and Three Lights Divine Water to aid her cultivation. 136 139 319 450 452
• Du Yu'er — senior sister from Solitary Gu Hall; assisted Fang Shu and later fought beside him against Shen Yin. 40 265 266
• Xiao Lili — former Scorched-Tail Hall disciple whom Fang Shu treated for a lethal evil art; she swore lifelong service to him afterward. 109 111 112
• Er Daiyuan — former sponsor and lover; later accompanied Fang Shu through the Mount Lu Secret Realm and became head of the Er Family. Fang Shu learned on returning to Mount Lu that they had descendants together. 164 275 321 434 450
• Hao Junliang — Fang Shu's second senior brother in Venom Hall; initially helpful and concerned for him, but ultimately died amid Long Gu's collapse. 191 240 274
• Wu Tong — Fang Shu's senior brother and major ally in Vast Sea Immortal City; helped him gain a foothold there and treats him as family. 311 333 356
• Yellow Wolf Immortal — Fang Shu's master and the sponsor of his direct-disciple status in Vast Sea Immortal Prefecture. 372 379
• Qi Yuexin — fellow direct disciple and traveling companion; Fang Shu guided her through the dangers and moral compromises of the wider cultivation world. She later looked after Wu Tong and his wife during Fang Shu's absence. 395 401 426
• Lady Tang — head of the Tang Family, which supported Fang Shu and provided an immortal mountain for his cultivation; they also became lovers. 366
• Tang Zhu — Lady Tang's daughter; after Fang Shu gained direct-disciple status, she achieved Foundation Establishment and entered the Vast Sea Immortal Prefecture as an Outer Prefecture disciple. 395
• Curse Frog Mantou — Fang Shu's spirit pet, which swallowed and sheltered him when he collapsed after escaping Scarlet City Immortal Prefecture. 420
• He Shoufeng — invited Fang Shu to become Mount Lu's new master and watched over events surrounding his Golden Core formation, though Fang Shu remained uncertain of his motives. 446 450