Lu Chengchuan

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Lu Chengchuan (陆成川)
Alias(es)	Mr. Lu; Brother Lu; City Lord
Species/Race	Human
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Independent cooperator with the Investigation Bureau; former City Lord of Xingxing City in the Otherworld
Occupation/Role	Martial artist; monster hunter; occasional Investigation Bureau operative; martial-arts instructor
Status	Alive; returned to Terra after being absent for 36 years 319
First Appearance	1

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Body Forging	1	The Life-Sacrificing System’s beginner package restores strength to his formerly sick body and establishes his initial realm.
Qi Refining	9	Perfects the Everspring Skill, produces tangible Qi in his lower dantian, and gains additional lifespan.
Acquired Realm	25	Raises the Giant Elephant Skill to its fourth layer; his body and Inner Energy undergo an initial transformation, allowing Inner Energy to be released externally.
Xiantian Realm	88	Perfects the Giant Elephant Skill, cures the illness that had plagued him, and gains a vision of an island and a beating heart.
Xiantian Realm (Gang Qi)	148	Perfects the Iron Cauldron Golden Body Skill; his Inner Energy transforms into indestructible gang qi that can form a protective barrier.
Spirit Refinement Realm	174	Advances the Soul-Seizing Grand Art to its second layer after accumulating 200 years of lifespan; can manifest a massive transparent palm capable of flattening a forty-story building.
Spirit Refinement Realm (Out of Body)	274	Perfects the Divine Physiognomy Skill; his soul can leave his body, and his mental perception expands to more than 100 kilometers.
Dharma Form	299	Perfects the Heaven-Rank Soul-Shifting Grand Art, merging Mind Power, Inner Energy, and physical strength into a major qualitative breakthrough.
Dharma Form (Outer Body)	337 338	Perfects the Myriad Forms True Essence Art and creates an Outer Body controlled by his consciousness, possessing roughly 80% of his main body’s strength.

Background

Lu Chengchuan began as a young man debilitated by an unknown illness. Receiving the Life-Sacrificing System restores his physical strength and places him on the path of martial cultivation, though the System initially notes that his illness is not fully cured 1 9.

His early growth is driven by a simple exchange: lifespan for martial mastery. He kills monsters to replenish that resource, quickly surpassing ordinary martial artists and Espers alike. His illness is finally cured when he enters the Xiantian Realm 88.

After an explosion during an investigation, Lu Chengchuan is transported to another world. He survives in a desert village, mentors the Esper Laya, becomes the City Lord of Xingxing City, and spends more than a century seeking a Divine Artifact capable of returning him to Terra 256 287 316.

Appearance

Lu Chengchuan’s physique changes dramatically after receiving the Life-Sacrificing System. Once pale and weak from illness, he becomes tall, strong, and energetic enough that even his relatives struggle to reconcile his appearance with the sickly man they knew 1 18.

• Retains a youthful appearance despite being more than a century old by the time of his reunion with his relatives 321.
• Possesses an unusually sharp, oppressive gaze when using Qi Observation Art or mental power 80 242.
• Can assume a Giant Elephant Transformation exceeding three meters in height 110.
• Can form a hundred-meter Dharma Form through the Myriad Manifestations Heaven-Drawing Art 325.
• His Outer Body resembles him by roughly 90% and is composed of pure condensed energy 337.

Personality

Lu Chengchuan is blunt, independent, and largely indifferent to rank, political etiquette, and institutional authority. He repeatedly refuses formal membership in the Investigation Bureau because he dislikes restrictions, preferring cooperation on his own terms 32 36.

Martial arts, personal strength, and lifespan are his overriding priorities. He actively seeks manuals, accepts difficult work in exchange for techniques, and treats monster hunting as both survival and cultivation 31 64 173. He is highly guarded about the origin of his power and refuses to explain it even to senior officials 140.

Despite his detachment, Lu Chengchuan consistently intervenes to protect civilians, soldiers, and people connected to him. He rescues Gu Mingwei’s family, saves victims of kidnappings and Cultists, and repeatedly clears paths through monster hordes for Investigation Bureau teams 16 50 89 127. Conversely, he is merciless toward enemies, traitors, and those who exploit or threaten others 163 173 288.

Abilities & Skills

Life-Sacrificing System

Lu Chengchuan’s System uses lifespan as a cultivation resource.

• Gains lifespan by killing monsters, absorbing Black Mist cores, and collecting certain crystals 42 124 173.
• Converts lifespan into instant mastery or advancement of martial arts 7 25.
• Can fuse mastered techniques into higher-ranked martial arts 31 177 289.
• Initially restores his bodily functions and eventually enables the complete cure of his illness upon reaching Xiantian Realm 1 88.
• Its status panel tracks his realm, martial arts, physical condition, and remaining lifespan 9 299 337.

Martial Cultivation and Physical Power

Lu Chengchuan’s body, Inner Energy, speed, durability, and striking force increase with each realm.

• Defeated Investigation Bureau operatives and Espers with overwhelming physical force shortly after gaining the System 4 15.
• Can withstand lightning-based Esper attacks and incapacitate powerful Espers with a single punch 33.
• His gang qi can form shields, blades, giant hands, and wide-area strikes 148 161 174.
• Giant Elephant Transformation drastically increases his size, strength, and defense, but consumes large amounts of Inner Energy 110.
• His Dharma Form lets him fight opponents such as the Beast King and annihilate large monster formations 299 325.
• The Heavenly Dipper True Body greatly reinforces his physical body and concealment of aura 325.

Soul-Seizing and Soul-Shifting Arts

His soul-based techniques are among his most dangerous abilities.

• Soul-Seizing Grand Art attacks a target’s mind and soul, allowing him to kill enemies invisibly or render them unconscious by removing their souls 158 163 211.
• Can suppress or kill high-level Espers before they activate their abilities 163.
• Uses mental power to track targets by attaching a trace of consciousness to them 196.
• Can read memories and acquire information directly from a target’s mind 317 336.
• The Heaven-Rank Soul-Shifting Grand Art strengthens his mind, body, and Inner Energy while forming the basis of his Dharma Form 289 299.

Perception and Mental Power

Lu Chengchuan possesses several methods of detecting hidden threats.

• Qi Observation Art reveals the Qi within people, distinguishes Espers from ordinary humans, and detects the Black Lines associated with Cultists and Godblood Stone corruption 66 98.
• Identified compromised officials and moles during a government meeting 80.
• Divine Physiognomy Skill expands his mental perception over dozens of kilometers, though extended use initially causes fatigue 232.
• At Out of Body level, his soul can separate from his body and scout undetected 274 279.
• Can sense emotions and lies with sufficiently developed Mind Power 267.

Movement and Mobility

• Shukuchi allows him to shorten distance instantly; its higher levels extend its range from tens to hundreds of meters 37.
• Near Yet Far eventually allows him to appear dozens of kilometers away in an instant 232.
• Earth Tunneling enables underground movement through stone and soil, letting him evade bombardments and pursue enemies beneath the surface 209 210.
• Can fly while carrying other people and propel a ship across land and sea using the Myriad Manifestations Heaven-Drawing Art 303 304.

Flame and Force Techniques

• Surging Wave Skill produces penetrating Inner Energy capable of bypassing armor and damaging targets protected by hardened shells 31 42.
• Magma Art manifests extremely high-temperature flames and was used to destroy the Flesh Giant 125 172.
• Furious Dragon Devours Elephant creates large-scale crimson fire attacks, including a sea of flame that killed hundreds of monsters 177 226.
• Myriad Manifestations Heaven-Drawing Art manipulates immense invisible force, allowing Lu Chengchuan to lift a hundred-meter mountain and manifest colossal giant forms 301 325.

Outer Body

The Outer Body is an energy duplicate created after Lu Chengchuan’s breakthrough in Myriad Forms True Essence Art.

• Shares Lu Chengchuan’s consciousness and has no independent will 337 338.
• Possesses approximately 80% of his main body’s strength 338.
• Can operate across great distances while Lu Chengchuan’s main body cultivates elsewhere 338 350.
• Demonstrates coordinated swordsmanship and independently holds back monster armies under Lu Chengchuan’s control 347 349.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Ink Bone Sword — A black sword forged from the bone left behind by the High Priest; durable enough for Lu Chengchuan’s gang qi-enhanced sword attacks 111 139 163.
• Beast King Horn Longswords — Two longswords Lu Chengchuan forged from the Beast King’s Bone Horns after eight years of training in weapon forging. He gifts one to Laya 315.
• Divine Artifact — A damaged metal sphere retrieved from the Secluded Continent; it can be repaired by absorbing energy and is used in his effort to return to Terra 304 316.
• Monster and Blood Crystals — Used to restore Inner Energy, restore physical strength, cultivate allies, and gain lifespan 173 262 283.
• Life-Extension Crystals — Valuable resources that contribute to his pursuit of strength and longevity 177.

Relationships

• Zhou Yaning — Investigation Bureau captain and Lu Chengchuan’s longest-running partner. Their relationship begins with a confrontation but develops into professional trust and repeated cooperation against monsters, Cultists, and rebels 4 123 338.
• Qian Xiaoling — Zhou Yaning’s subordinate, later Lu Chengchuan’s martial-arts student and close longtime friend. He guides her to the Body Forging Realm, and she reunites with him after his 36-year disappearance 216 246 319.
• Laya — Lu Chengchuan’s Otherworld disciple. He helps awaken her Esper abilities, mentors her cultivation, entrusts Xingxing City to her, and leaves her a Beast King Horn longsword before returning to Terra 262 302 316.
• Gu Mingwei — Businessman whose family Lu Chengchuan rescues. Gu Mingwei supplies martial-arts manuals and later receives Lu Chengchuan’s help with his company and lifespan 18 31 323.
• Zhang Chengyan — Director of the Guangnan Investigation Bureau. He recognizes Lu Chengchuan’s value, offers manuals in exchange for assistance, and seeks a long-term cooperative relationship 32 36 244.
• Lin Jing — Esper leader and recurring ally who relies on Lu Chengchuan during major crises and later discusses Shenghua Country’s unstable political situation with him 123 324.
• Huang Yuyun — Lu Chengchuan’s mother. Her care remains one of his primary ties to Terra; her death strengthens his resolve to eventually leave the world 18 338.
• Chiron — A Parasitic Spirit-Monster controlled by Lu Chengchuan. Chiron serves as his shadow attendant, verifies Divine Artifacts, and assists with the Artifact’s repair process 287 304 316.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Rise as a Martial Artist

Lu Chengchuan awakens the Life-Sacrificing System, defeats zombies and Investigation Bureau agents, and begins trading his lifespan for martial progress. His meeting with Zhao Chuanshan earns him the Giant Elephant Skill, while his rescue of Gu Mingwei’s family establishes a valuable source of martial-arts manuals 1 15 18 31.

Investigation Bureau Cooperation

Although he refuses official membership, Lu Chengchuan becomes an indispensable external cooperator. He defeats Espers, special-operations soldiers, Black Tower Mercenaries, Cultists, and monsters in exchange for martial arts resources and operational freedom 33 36 60 64.

Anyang, Donghai, and Bei Mo Crises

Lu Chengchuan reaches the Xiantian Realm during the disaster in Anyang City and saves Zhou Yaning’s group from a monster horde. He later assists in Cultist suppression, destroys Black Mist cores, confronts foreign threats, and uses soul arts to end the Bei Mo rebellion 88 124 163.

Martial-Arts Instruction

He teaches students at martial-arts academies, corrects flawed cultivation methods, and personally guides Qian Xiaoling to the Body Forging Realm. His demonstrations of Inner Energy establish him as a symbolic figure for modern martial arts 216 244 246.

Otherworld Exile and Xingxing City

After being teleported to another world, Lu Chengchuan adapts to its Esper-based cultivation system, mentors Laya, hunts increasingly powerful monsters, and becomes the City Lord of Xingxing City. His primary objective remains finding the Divine Artifact that can take him home 256 270 287 302.

Beast King and Divine Artifact

Lu Chengchuan rises to the Dharma Form realm, battles the Beast King, retrieves the Divine Artifact from the Secluded Continent, and eventually eliminates the remaining Lord-level monsters before departing the Otherworld 299 304 315 316.

Return to Terra

After 36 years away, Lu Chengchuan reunites with Qian Xiaoling, Zhou Yaning, his mother, and Gu Mingwei. He resumes dealing with monster incursions, Cultists, and rebellious City Lords while continuing to seek stronger martial arts and prepare for future departures 319 325 332 338.

Notable Quotes

“I still prefer to be free. I don't like places with too many rules.” 36

“The master leads you to the door, but cultivation depends on the individual.” 217