Zhao Chong

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Zhao Chong (赵崇)
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Zhao family; formerly a Foundation Establishment deacon of the Tai Xuan Sect 8 13
Occupation/Role	High-profile prisoner and key witness connected to the Fifteen Cases and the Fifteen Cases Master Ledger 24 53
Status	Alive; last documented being covertly taken into the Scripture Library by Bai Chongshan's men while leaving a trail for pursuers 54
First Appearance	Chapter 8 (implicated in the Spirit-Suppressing ID Token incident) 8

Background / History

Zhao Chong is Zhao Yuanqing's second uncle. His spiritual-energy imprint was found on the Spirit-Suppressing ID Token used to sabotage Li Sanshun during the Tai Xuan Sect entrance trials. The evidence led to his detention by the Law Enforcement Hall and placed the Zhao family’s cultivation quota at risk 8 13.

Before his detention, Zhao Chong entered the hidden ninth floor of the Scripture Library and removed half of a letter concerning the Gold Blade, the Mystic Bird descendants, and the Foundation Establishment outline of the Primordial Origin Art. His access to the secret floor indicated outside guidance, since a normal Foundation Establishment deacon should not have known it existed 13.

Records also connect him to a six-year-old escort case. A forged escort order was later used to claim that Gu Changyue had colluded with Zhao Chong and released a high-profile court criminal; the order was exposed as part of Xu Zhenchuan’s scheme 53.

Imprisonment and Escape

After the Scripture Library evidence surfaced, Qi Shouxuan ordered Zhao Chong’s spirit power sealed and had him held in solitary confinement. He disappeared from Cell No. 15 after an elder-level Law Enforcement token legally opened the cell and the communication array was sealed 13 14.

His captors used Breath-Closing Powder to induce suspended animation, allowing them to pass him off as a corpse. He was smuggled through the prison ventilation shaft in a corpse bag, switched with the dead prisoner Ma Quan, and transported away by corpse cart 18.

Zhao Chong was eventually found alive in an iron box beneath the old herb cellar on North Mountain. He had been covered in Corpse-Bone Vine and trapped above an ignition array intended to burn the cellar and eliminate the witnesses 21. Vein-corroding poison and iron nails had severely damaged his meridians, leaving his future cultivation uncertain 23.

Connection to the Fifteen Cases

Zhao Chong knew that the “fifteenth copy” was not an object, but a person connected to the larger conspiracy surrounding Li Sanshun 23. He also possessed information crucial to the Fifteen Cases investigation and refused to cooperate without guarantees of public testimony, believing private detention would leave him vulnerable to assassination 24.

He identified “Mr. Bai” as the masked figure who coerced him. Mr. Bai used evidence of Zhao Chong’s private sales of sect herbs to threaten him with at least ten years in the Cold Prison, then compelled him to obtain materials and enter the ninth floor of the Scripture Library 24. Zhao Chong’s description of the man—an elderly figure with a fire-damaged right hand and detailed knowledge of sect affairs—helped Li Sanshun and Gu Qinghe identify Bai Chongshan as the likely culprit 28.

Escape From Custody Again

After Xu Zhenchuan’s plot was exposed, Zhao Chong was moved to the Cold Prison as bait for another assassination attempt. The attackers used a counterfeit summons order and a genuine-looking main-peak seal, but struck a Mountain-Moving Puppet disguised as Zhao Chong instead 38 39.

Bai Chongshan’s men later used the same forged six-year-old escort order to remove Zhao Chong from the dungeon. Rather than merely being taken hostage, Zhao Chong secretly used Breath-Closing Powder, coded scratch marks, false blood, and staged traces to guide Li Sanshun’s group along the route 53 54.

His trail ultimately led into the Scripture Library. Li Sanshun concluded that Zhao Chong was exploiting Bai Chongshan’s men to locate the Fifteen Cases Master Ledger, while Bai Chongshan’s side intended to force the ledger’s location from him 54.

Skills and Methods

Concealment and Escape Planning

Zhao Chong repeatedly used prison procedures, fake identities, and Breath-Closing Powder to create the appearance of his death or conceal his movements.

• Used Breath-Closing Powder to reduce his heartbeat and breathing to near-zero, causing his prison life tablet to appear extinguished 18.
• Was moved through the morgue in a corpse bag after being substituted for a dead prisoner 18 21.
• Left a continuous Breath-Closing Powder trail beneath a prisoner cart so Li Sanshun could follow without alerting his escorts 54.
• Used Law Enforcement Hall escort code marks to signal the number and strength of his captors 54.
• Cooperated with false injury evidence and fake blood to misdirect his captors and pursuers 54.

Knowledge of Sect Secrets

Zhao Chong possesses information connected to both the Scripture Library’s ninth floor and the Fifteen Cases.

• Entered the secret ninth floor and took half of a letter concerning the Gold Blade and the Mystic Bird descendants 13.
• Knows information related to the Fifteen Cases Master Ledger, making him a repeated target for silencing 53.
• Had knowledge of imperial tribute transport, forged blood-authentication, and imitation-token requisition orders 38.

Relationships

• Zhao Yuanqing — Nephew. Zhao Yuanqing’s reliance on Zhao Chong’s influence became a liability once Zhao Chong was implicated in the entrance-test sabotage 8 13.
• Li Sanshun — Investigator and uneasy protector. Li Sanshun uncovered his false death, helped rescue him from the herb cellar, and followed his later coded trail into the Scripture Library 18 21 54.
• Gu Qinghe — Law Enforcement investigator who participated in locating, rescuing, questioning, and pursuing Zhao Chong 18 21 24 54.
• Bai Chongshan — Coercer and adversary operating under the identity “Mr. Bai.” Bai used Zhao Chong’s illegal herb-sales records to force his cooperation and later sought the Fifteen Cases Master Ledger through him 24 28 53.
• Xu Zhenchuan — Conspirator who repeatedly attempted to have Zhao Chong silenced, including through a false summons and the forged six-year-old escort order 38 39 53.
• Sun Erhe — Fellow victim of the corpse-cart plot. Sun’s testimony confirmed that Zhao Chong had been transported in corpse bag No. 9 21.

Notable Quotes

“You can't protect me.” 23

“If I die, the lead on the fifteenth case will be broken too. Do you dare to gamble on that?” 24