Anomaly

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Anomaly
Alias(es)	诡异; Divine Child (Mist God Cult terminology) 176
Species/Race	Supernatural entities associated with the All-Consuming Mist, aberrant plants, possession, and corruption 121 130 136
Gender	Varies; many Anomalies are nonhuman or take borrowed forms
Affiliation	None inherent; individual Anomalies may be controlled by aberrant plants or cooperate with humans 136 238
Occupation/Role	Threats to human settlements; sources of Psychic Energy and cultivation materials 130 145
Status	Extant; widespread
First Appearance	Referenced in Chapter 111 111

Nature

Anomalies and martial arts are described as inseparable: where martial arts persist, Anomalies do not disappear. The growth and number of Martial Artists accelerate the spread of the All-Consuming Mist, which in turn creates or enables Anomaly threats 121 242.

They are not a uniform species. Their bodies, intelligence, powers, and motives differ drastically. Some are little more than corrupted remnants driven by instinct or a final obsession, while others can deceive humans, negotiate, create illusions, or follow absolute supernatural rules 146 158 238.

Threat Classification

The Great Abyss Demon Suppression Bureau classifies Anomalies into four danger ranks 136.

Tier	Description	Documented examples
Evil	Weak Anomalies below the level of Martial Artists.	The corpse-like university students corrupted by an Aberrant Plant 136
Monster	A higher threat tier; generally dangerous to ordinary martial artists.	Listening-Wind Anomaly; Shadow-Hiding Monster 219 221
Ferocious	Powerful entities that can overwhelm lower-level Martial Artists; a bone Anomaly nearing this tier nearly killed Gan Qingyi.	Wuyang Mountain skeletal Anomaly 136
Malign	The highest listed classification.	No individual example is documented in the available records.

Appearance

Anomalies have no consistent physical form. They may imitate humans, inhabit hosts, manifest as beasts or objects, or reshape an entire environment.

• A raincoat-clad figure and a breakfast-stall owner passed as human before being exposed 130 159.
• A skeletal entity used the bones beneath Wuyang Mountain’s Mass Burial Ground to form a nearly ten-meter body 136.
• A hen mutated from a living creature into an Anomaly and killed a police officer 145.
• A leather-like skin scroll was identified as a Rule-type Anomaly 158 159.
• The Stone Statue Anomaly appeared as a fanged creature released from a bloodstained statue 208.

Traits and Abilities

Corruption and Transformation

Some Anomalies can alter living beings or dead bodies into more Anomalies.

• An Aberrant Plant used four dead humans as vessels; they retained frightening appearances but little of their former strength 136.
• An Anomaly impersonating Second Young Miss Yuan turned an entire town’s residents—including Niu Erhe, Cao Datou, and members of the Yuan Family—into Anomalies 168.
• Victims in the Tranquil Bamboo Sea became Anomalies after being killed, reinforcing the attacking horde 237.
• The entities trapped in a repeating day were described as incomplete souls controlled by an Anomaly rather than fully human or fully Anomalous 235.

Possession and Disguise

Anomalies can conceal themselves through imitation or possession, though their behavior may reveal them.

• The Lu Family Village Anomaly hid beneath a human disguise until a Specter Detection Talisman reacted to it 130.
• The Wuyang Mountain entity temporarily possessed a lame old man before revealing its skeletal form 136.
• Second Young Miss Yuan’s poor imitation of a human survivor allowed Chen Xu to identify and destroy her 168.
• Meng Baichuan concealed his Anomaly aura until he attacked Chen Xu with a sword 237.

Anomaly Power and Regeneration

Anomaly Power is distinct from Blood-Qi Force and can grant powerful regeneration, elemental effects, and abnormal attacks.

• The Sky Wolf Marshal wielded dark-green anomalous flames and risked madness as his Anomaly Power was depleted 155.
• Meng Baichuan regenerated a sacrificed arm through Anomaly Power, though Chen Xu’s frost suppressed this recovery 237.
• Blood-Qi Force is especially effective against Anomalies and can restrain their power 155 226.

Rule-type Anomalies

Rule-type Anomalies act according to fixed, inviolable conditions. Their rules make them predictable in one sense, but they are typically exceptionally dangerous 158.

• The Anomaly Skin Scroll attacks when touched; the final warning left by a missing investigator was: “Never touch it.” 158
• It appeared across multiple townships, commanderies, and provincial cities rather than remaining in one territory 158.
• After Chen Xu tried to subdue it, the scroll later drained his usable Essence and Blood-Qi Force and placed him in Lin Mu’s body in another world 159 160.

Illusions and Environmental Manipulation

Several Anomalies distort perception or weaponize their surroundings.

• An Aberrant Plant created a false memory-based illusion from Chen Xu’s past before he destroyed its roots 178.
• An Anomaly in the Bamboo Towers created an endless-corridor illusion, which Chen Xu shattered with Stone-Shaking Force 232.
• The Shadow-Hiding Monster alternated between solid and insubstantial states, attacking from shadows only when it became tangible 221.
• Elder Bamboo could rapidly grow bamboo shoots and claimed that every stalk in the Bamboo Sea possessed the potential to become an Anomaly 238.

Relationship with Humanity

• Great Abyss — Treats Anomalies as an existential threat, suppressing martial development to slow the All-Consuming Mist while cultivating controlled Martial Artists to harvest aberrant plants 121.
• The Masses — A loose Martial Artist organization that gathers Anomaly intelligence and eliminates Anomalies for rewards 130.
• Demon-Subduing Sect — Hunts Anomalies for Blood-Qi Pills and cultivates the Blood-Shedding Technique using Anomaly blood 224 225.
• Mist God Cult — Reveres Anomalies and aberrant plants as the gods’ children, seeks fusion with them, and researches artificial Anomalies 176.
• Chen Xu — Regards Anomalies primarily as sources of Psychic Energy, hunting and absorbing them to enhance his martial arts 130 138 224.

Known Anomalies

Anomaly	Characteristics	Fate
Wuyang Mountain skeletal Anomaly	Possessed a lame old man and drew strength from the Mass Burial Ground’s bones; assessed as near Ferocious Tier.	Destroyed by Chen Xu. 136 138
Hen Anomaly	A living hen transformed into a predatory monster.	Crushed and reduced to ash by Chen Xu. 145
Blood-coffin guardian	Scarlet-armored entity driven solely by the obsession to protect its general’s crystal coffin.	Beaten into black mist by Chen Xu. 146
Anomaly Skin Scroll	Mobile Rule-type Anomaly resembling a leather scroll; reacts to contact and transports Chen Xu into another world.	Active. 158 160 218
Ghost Infant	Mutated infantile entity capable of commanding other Anomalies.	Annihilated by Chen Xu’s Blood-Qi Poison Force. 168 169
Listening-Wind Anomaly	Monster-tier quadruped with two pairs of Wind-Attracting Ears.	Killed by Chen Xu; left behind a damaged Wind-Attracting Ear. 219
Shadow-Hiding Monster	Could become insubstantial and attack from shadows.	Destroyed by Chen Xu. 221
Elder Bamboo	Powerful Bamboo Sea Anomaly, comparable to a Martial Aspect within the Ancient Well; seeks to use humans to eliminate other Anomalies.	Active; negotiated with Chen Xu. 238 239

Trivia

• Anomalies can leave behind useful remains, including Wind-Attracting Ears, Anomaly blood, crystals, and severed parts accepted as proof for Blood-Qi Pill rewards 146 219 221 224.
• The Mist God Cult’s attempt to cooperate with Anomalies is unreliable because the “Divine Children” often kill cultists without distinguishing allies from enemies 176.
• Elder Bamboo argues that humans are no less likely than Anomalies to break promises 238.