Zhu Rong

Biodata

Power Progression

Background

Zhu Rong was nurtured in Pangu Hall alongside the other Ancestral Witches. After Dijiang purified the hall’s turbid qi into innate spiritual qi, Zhu Rong awakened, recognized Dijiang as his eldest brother, and cultivated a Primordial Spirit under his guidance. 2

Like the other Ancestral Witches, Zhu Rong discarded his inherited half-human, half-beast form and transformed into an Innate Dao Body modeled after Dijiang’s appearance. He was the first sibling to openly demand that the group leave Pangu Hall and explore the Primordial World, prompting Dijiang to organize the first expedition. 3

Dijiang assigned Zhu Rong to Zhu Jiuyin’s group alongside Tian Wu. The pairing combined Zhu Rong’s fire with Tian Wu’s wind, while Zhu Jiuyin’s Time Law provided control and protection. 3

After the Ancestral Witches established the Witch Cult and occupied the Heavenly Court, Dijiang enfeoffed Zhu Rong as the Immortal Longevity Emperor of the Southern Pole, with authority over flames and the southern stars. 55 62

Appearance

Zhu Rong takes the form of a straight-backed, heroic young man in an Innate Dao Body. 3

• His body is often engulfed in violent Southern Bright Flame during combat. 3 7
• He fights bare-chested in battle, with fire blazing across his skin. 7
• His eyes are described as holding crimson flames after his breakthrough to the Late Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm. 18
• After cultivating on the Sun Star, his eyes carry both golden Solar True Fire and red Southern Bright Flame. 32
• He can assume the form of a flaming giant tens of thousands of zhang tall. After defeating Yuanshi Tianzun as a Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal, he was wreathed in Nine-Colored Divine Flame. 47 86 89

Personality

Zhu Rong is impatient, direct, and intensely adventurous. His boredom with secluded cultivation drives the Ancestral Witches’ first journey into the outside world, and his affinity for Flame Origin leads him toward dangerous opportunities such as the Seven-Colored Fire Li Stone. 3 8

He is fiercely defiant in combat. Even while grievously injured and suppressed by stronger Phoenix Clan elders, Zhu Rong refuses to yield and prepares to fight to the death. 7 His aggression also makes him quick to challenge perceived enemies, as shown when he attacks Yuanshi Tianzun for attempting to claim the Primordial Gourd Vine. 38 He later uses Yuanshi’s Sage-level attacks to temper his body and laws, achieving a breakthrough in the midst of their battle. 87 88

Despite his impulsiveness, Zhu Rong is deeply devoted to his siblings. He is shaken by Dijiang’s decision to burn origin blood essence to save him, supports the return to Pangu Hall for recovery, and vows to grow strong enough to confront the Phoenix Clan in the future. 9 10 When Dijiang is besieged by Sages, Zhu Rong recognizes that his own injuries would make him a burden and returns to Pangu Hall to summon their siblings. 95

His rivalry with Gonggong is constant and usually verbal, rooted in their opposing fire and water natures. Both nevertheless submit immediately when Dijiang intervenes. 26 33 Gonggong later mocks Zhu Rong’s repeated failures at artifact refinement. 54

Zhu Rong also shows concern for the Witch Cult’s future. He advocates responding to Demon Clan provocations, proposes seizing the Heavenly Court before Di Jun, and suggests contacting the newly created Human Clan. 56 58 59 75

Abilities & Skills

Flame Law and Southern Bright Flame

Zhu Rong innately commands the Flame Law and wields Southern Bright Flame, a destructive fire capable of overwhelming powerful cultivators and Spirit Treasures. 3 7

• His fire is amplified severalfold when Tian Wu supports him with Astral Wind. 7
• He used Southern Bright Flame against two Late Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal Phoenix elders, though the realm gap left his group severely suppressed. 7
• He destroyed the Myriad Poisons Ancestor’s White Bone Banner after Zhu Jiuyin froze time. 45
• His fire dragon attack scorched Yuanshi Tianzun’s Three Treasures Jade Ruyi and seriously injured Yuanshi with lingering fire poison. 38
• His direct flame-based assault is limited by opponents substantially stronger than him; Zhu Jiuyin’s Time Law was necessary to repeatedly prevent fatal attacks during the Phoenix Clan battle. 7
• Before his Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal breakthrough, his flame attacks could contend with those of the newly ascended Sage Yuanshi Tianzun and crack Yuanshi’s protective auspicious cloud. 86 87
• After the breakthrough, his Southern Bright Flame became a purer, more restrained Flame Origin. He shattered Yuanshi’s defenses with an ultimate-flame punch, absorbed Jade Clarity Divine Thunder, and destroyed Yuanshi’s Sage body with a nine-colored flaming sword. Heaven’s Way subsequently revived Yuanshi. 88 89

Flame Dao Fruit and Solar True Fire

Zhu Rong condensed a Flame Dao Fruit upon entering the Primordial Origin Golden Immortal realm. 22

• He cultivated beneath the Fusang Tree on the Sun Star, using its Solar True Fire to temper his embryonic Flame Dao Fruit. 31
• He successfully fused Solar True Fire with Southern Bright Flame, advancing both his cultivation and understanding of the Flame Law. 32
• His Flame Dao sermons are practical teachings intended for lower-level cultivators at Mount Buzhou. 36
• Under Yuanshi Tianzun’s Sage pressure, the Flame Dao Fruit compressed and cracked as part of its transformation. Its Flame Origin merged into Zhu Rong’s body and Primordial Spirit, allowing him to advance to the Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm. 88

Physical Combat

As an Ancestral Witch of the Pangu Orthodox Lineage, Zhu Rong possesses a formidable physical body and favors direct, close-range fighting. 7 47

• His punches carry force described as capable of burning the heavens and boiling the seas. 7
• He pushed Yuanshi Tianzun backward with a single punch despite Yuanshi’s Quasi-Saint cultivation and Jade Clarity Immortal Radiance. 47
• He remained battle-capable after suffering grave wounds from stronger Phoenix Clan opponents. 7
• He rose and attacked again after Yuanshi’s Sage technique blasted him into Mount Buzhou, deliberately using the pressure of their fight to temper himself. 87
• After his breakthrough, he repeatedly wounded Yuanshi in close combat. His recently attained realm was still unstable, however, and he was severely injured when Hongjun secretly empowered Yuanshi through Heaven’s Way. 88 91

Cooperative Fire Control

Zhu Rong can apply his Flame Law with precision rather than only destructive force.

• At Undying Volcano, he sorted and purified chaotic earthfire into pure Flame Origin while Houtu stabilized the earth veins. 27 28
• The operation reduced Origin Phoenix’s backlash by more than half and earned Zhu Rong and Houtu Heavenly merit. 28
• He follows Zhu Jiuyin’s battlefield direction when the latter’s Time Law is needed to protect their team. 3 7

Artifact Refinement

Dijiang assigned Zhu Rong to study artifact refinement and gave him material from the emptied Treasure-Dividing Rock to practice with. Despite tempering it with Southern Bright Flame for a hundred thousand years, Zhu Rong repeatedly destroyed his furnaces and had not produced even a low-grade Acquired Spirit Treasure. 53 54

His failures nevertheless produced unusually durable metal resistant to the Flame Law. Dijiang used this material as a basis for talisman paper capable of bearing a Primordial Origin-tier Space Severing Talisman. 54

Twelve Capitals Divine Baleful Formation

Zhu Rong is one of the twelve contributors to the formation inherited from Pangu. The Ancestral Witches combine their bloodline, laws, Primordial Spirits, and baleful energy to manifest a colossal Pangu Phantom wielding an illusory axe. 22

• The enhanced formation is possible because all twelve possess Primordial Spirits and Law Dao Fruits. 22
• Dijiang deploys the formation against Yuanshi Tianzun rather than allowing Zhu Rong to continue an individual duel. 47
• After the other Ancestral Witches complete breakthroughs during the Sages’ siege of Mount Buzhou, Zhu Rong joins them in taking their positions; Dijiang then enters the formation. 95

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Seven-Colored Fire Li Stone — A treasure condensed from innate supreme-grade Flame Origin. Zhu Rong obtained it near Undying Volcano and refined it during seclusion. 7 10 12
• Eight-Scenery Palace Lamp — A Supreme-Grade Innate Spirit Treasure containing Tushita Divine Flame; Dijiang selected it from the Phoenix Clan treasury specifically for Zhu Rong. Zhu Rong later used its Nine-Colored Divine Flame to block Yuanshi Tianzun’s Sage attack and to form a Flame Fiend God against a Heaven-empowered thunder dragon. 27 87 91
• Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd — One of the seven mature gourds from the Primordial Gourd Vine; it contains Flame Origin and was assigned to Zhu Rong. 39
• Treasure-Dividing Rock material — Dijiang gave Zhu Rong material from the emptied rock for artifact-refinement practice. Zhu Rong’s failed attempts tempered it into durable metal useful for Dijiang’s talismans. 53 54

Relationships

• Dijiang — Eldest brother and leader. Zhu Rong trusts Dijiang’s commands, receives major fire-attributed treasures from him, and is deeply affected by Dijiang’s self-sacrifice during the Phoenix Clan conflict. Dijiang later saves him from Yuanshi’s Heaven-empowered attack and shields him while he recovers. 3 9 10 27 91 93
• Zhu Jiuyin — Elder brother and leader of Zhu Rong’s expedition group. Zhu Jiuyin’s Time Law repeatedly saved Zhu Rong from fatal attacks, tempering Zhu Rong’s impulsiveness with restraint. 3 7 9
• Tian Wu — Expedition companion. Tian Wu’s Astral Wind amplifies Zhu Rong’s Southern Bright Flame in battle. 3 7
• Gonggong — Rival and fellow Ancestral Witch. Their fire-water opposition produces frequent arguments and near-sparring matches, though both yield to Dijiang’s authority. They also jointly urge action against Demon Clan provocations. 26 33 56
• Houtu — Sister and partner in stabilizing Undying Volcano; her Earth Law anchors the earth veins while Zhu Rong organizes the fire qi. 27 28
• Yuanshi Tianzun — Longstanding enemy and former rival over the Primordial Gourd Vine. Zhu Rong defeated and humiliated Yuanshi with Southern Bright Flame, intensifying Yuanshi’s resentment. Their later confrontation as Ancestral Witch and Sage brought Zhu Rong his Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal breakthrough and ended with him destroying Yuanshi’s Sage body. Yuanshi was revived by Heaven’s Way and subsequently attacked Zhu Rong with power secretly supplied by Hongjun. 38 47 88 89 90 91
• Origin Phoenix — Former enemy whose crisis at Undying Volcano became a negotiated alliance. Zhu Rong’s aid earned her gratitude and improved Phoenix Clan relations with the Ancestral Witches. 27 28
• Zhu Yan — A Great Witch nurtured from Zhu Rong’s origin blood who inherited fiery power. Zhu Rong proudly welcomed him and invited him to follow him. 62

Story Role / Major Arcs

First Expedition and the Seven-Colored Fire Li Stone

Zhu Rong initiates the Ancestral Witches’ first expedition beyond Pangu Hall. During the southern journey, his attraction to Flame Origin brings Zhu Jiuyin and Tian Wu to the Seven-Colored Fire Li Stone near Undying Volcano. 3 8

The group is attacked by two stronger Phoenix Clan elders seeking the stone. Zhu Rong fights with Southern Bright Flame and Tian Wu’s wind support but is grievously wounded before Dijiang arrives to rescue them. 7 8

Recovery and the Witch Clan Debate

After Dijiang is injured saving the southern group, Zhu Rong supports Zhu Jiuyin’s proposal to return to Pangu Hall and cultivate. He vows to overturn Undying Volcano after growing stronger. 9

Zhu Rong later proposes creating a Witch Clan through the Pangu Blood Pool, the Ancestral Witches’ essence blood, and accumulated turbid qi. Dijiang rejects bloodline expansion as too costly to their foundations, leading Zhu Rong to accept the alternative strategy of protecting and teaching outside beings. 11 12 13

Dao-Demon War and Collective Advancement

Mount Buzhou’s growing population grants the Ancestral Witches immense fortune, enabling Zhu Rong to reach the Late Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm. 16 18

After following Dijiang’s guidance on law cultivation, Zhu Rong condenses his Flame Dao Fruit and becomes a Primordial Origin Golden Immortal. He then participates in learning the Twelve Capitals Divine Baleful Formation. 20 22

Undying Volcano and the Sun Star

Dijiang negotiates with Origin Phoenix for treasures in exchange for Zhu Rong and Houtu stabilizing Undying Volcano. Zhu Rong receives the Eight-Scenery Palace Lamp before entering the volcano’s core to organize its chaotic fire qi. 27

Following the successful transaction, Zhu Rong earns Heavenly merit and later remains on the Sun Star to cultivate beneath the Fusang Tree. His fusion of Solar True Fire and Southern Bright Flame raises him to the Mid-Primordial Golden Immortal realm. 28 31 32

Gourd Vine Conflict and Mount Buzhou Defense

When powerful cultivators gather to claim the mature Primordial Gourd Vine, Zhu Rong immediately attacks Yuanshi Tianzun and drives the Three Pure Ones into retreat. 38

He later receives the Nine-Nine Soul-Scattering Gourd and continues serving as a Mount Buzhou preacher, using Flame Dao teachings to help draw fortune and followers to the Ancestral Witches’ lineage. 39 36

When Yuanshi returns as a Quasi-Saint to challenge Mount Buzhou, Zhu Rong openly mocks him, withstands his pressure, and forces him backward before Dijiang escalates the conflict into the Twelve Capitals Divine Baleful Formation. 47

Witch Cult and Heavenly Court

Dijiang assigns Zhu Rong the side path of artifact refinement as part of an effort to broaden Mount Buzhou’s expertise. Zhu Rong’s repeated failures unexpectedly provide the material that enables Dijiang’s Primordial Origin-tier talisman breakthrough. 53 54

The Witch Cult’s establishment and subsequent growth strengthen Zhu Rong’s cultivation. He and Gonggong later report Demon Clan harassment of Witch Cult disciples and press Dijiang to respond. After Di Jun withdraws his forces, Zhu Rong proposes that the Ancestral Witches claim the Heavenly Court first and make Dijiang Heavenly Emperor. 55 56 58 59

Following the Ancestral Witches’ occupation of the Heavenly Court, Zhu Rong is enfeoffed as Immortal Longevity Emperor of the Southern Pole. He contributes origin blood to the Pangu Blood Pool, nurturing the flame-wielding Great Witch Zhu Yan. The Heavenly Court’s growing fortune later helps raise Zhu Rong and the other Ancestral Witches to the Peak Primordial Golden Immortal realm. 62 63

Sage Battle and Breakthrough

When the newly ascended Sage Yuanshi Tianzun descends on Mount Buzhou and suppresses its disciples, Zhu Rong dispels the pressure and confronts him. His flames match Yuanshi’s initial attack, and he fights aggressively enough to force the Sage onto the defensive. 86

Zhu Rong uses the Eight-Scenery Palace Lamp to withstand Yuanshi’s full-force Jade Clarity Divine Thunder. Although a subsequent attack severely injures him, he returns to the fight and deliberately tempers his body and laws under Sage pressure. He breaks through to the Primordial Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm, overwhelms Yuanshi, and destroys his Sage body with a nine-colored flaming sword. Heaven’s Way later revives Yuanshi. 87 88 89

Hongjun secretly empowers the revived Yuanshi to test the Witch Cult. Zhu Rong’s newly attained realm is not yet stable, and Yuanshi’s enhanced thunder destroys his Flame Fiend God and gravely injures him. Dijiang intervenes before the attack can kill him and protects him as the confrontation expands to include other Sages. 90 91 92 93

During the ensuing siege, Zhu Rong returns to Pangu Hall to summon the other Ancestral Witches rather than remain exposed while injured. When they emerge from seclusion, he joins them in activating the Twelve Capitals Divine Baleful Formation alongside Dijiang. 95

Notable Quotes

“Big Brother, you're finally awake! Aside from bitter cultivation day in and day out in this Pangu Hall, our mouths are practically growing tasteless! How about we go out for a stroll?” 3

“Fine, let's spar! Who's afraid of who?” 26

“With only that much skill, you dared come steal our brothers' things?” 38

“Today, I shall tread upon your Sage's body and attain the Primordial Origin Realm!” 87

“A Sage is nothing special!” 89