Su Yuanshan

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Su Yuanshan leads the Su Family and was its only Bone Tempering Realm expert before Lin Fan joined the family. At Lin Fan’s age, Yuanshan had only just entered the Muscle Refinement Realm, making Lin Fan’s rapid advancement especially astonishing to him 38 45.

When Lin Fan publicly challenges the Pill Pavilion’s senior alchemists, Su Yuanshan personally intervenes to prevent the dispute from harming the family’s reputation. He arrives with the pressure of a Late Bone Tempering Realm expert, agrees to witness the wager, and ensures that the contest is conducted openly 39 40.

After personally confirming that Lin Fan refined fifteen high-grade batches of pills, Su Yuanshan doubles his monthly salary from 1,000 to 2,000 taels. Impressed by both Lin Fan’s ability and his restraint after victory, he offers the family’s resources and support 43.

Recognizing the mutual affection between Lin Fan and Su Qingwei, Su Yuanshan proposes their marriage. He views Lin Fan as both a suitable husband for his daughter and a powerful alchemist and martial expert who can strengthen the Su Family against rival gangs 44. He and Madam Su arrange the engagement rites, dowry, wedding date, and renovation of Sunset Glow Courtyard for the couple 45.

Despite Lin Fan’s status as a fugitive, Yuanshan supports the marriage and assures Madam Su that the Su Family can protect him from local interference. He reasons that the town’s distance from the royal capital and the Imperial Court’s need for martial experts make the warrant a manageable risk, particularly if Lin Fan’s cultivation continues advancing 44 45.

After Lin Fan marries Qingwei, Su Yuanshan treats him as family. He provides cultivation herbs, reacts with pride to Lin Fan’s Mid Bone Tempering breakthrough, and reinforces the Su Residence’s defenses when the Flower Thief threatens nearby towns 48 49. During this period of heightened vigilance, Lin Fan also gives him high-grade combat pills in preparation for a possible attack 50.

As the Flower Thief’s possible breakthrough becomes imminent, Su Yuanshan lends Lin Fan the Su Family’s secret Inner Qi Circulation Method and gives him a Forging Grade 33 Hundred-Forged Cold-Iron Spear. He later verifies Lin Fan’s advance to the Late Bone Tempering Realm and advises him to begin nurturing Inner Qi 53 54.

As the abductions in the city worsen, Su Yuanshan coordinates secret patrols and restricts the Su Family’s martial-trained women from leaving the residence. He and Lin Fan deduce that the White Ram Gang may be serving the vanished Flower Thief, but Yuanshan remains unwilling to provoke a major conflict without proof 57 58.

Following the abduction of Zhou Hu’s daughter, Yuanshan orders the Su Family to cooperate with the Black Tiger Gang’s investigation. He permits searches while requiring Su Family accompaniment in the women’s inner courtyards, seeking to prevent suspicion and conflict that would benefit the actual culprit. He also warns Lin Fan to protect Qingwei at night 60.

The Black Tiger Gang’s subsequent destruction troubles Yuanshan both strategically and personally. He had maintained friendly relations and legitimate trade with Zhou Hu, who had attended Lin Fan and Qingwei’s wedding feast. Recognizing that the White Ram Gang’s sudden expansion threatens the Su Family, he orders caution and places renewed hope in Lin Fan’s cultivation 63. When Lin Fan breaks through to the Bright Force Realm, Yuanshan senses the powerful aura from his study and reacts with disbelief followed by elation 64.

When the White Ram Gang and the Flower Thief attack the Su Residence, Su Yuanshan organizes the family’s guards, shield bearers, archers, and martial artists into a defensive formation. He personally holds off three Bone Tempering Realm enemies for nearly three hours, relying on his experience to remain undefeated until Lin Fan’s battle with the Flower Thief determines the wider conflict. His survival is also aided by the two hired opponents’ reluctance to fight at full strength before the Bright Force battle is decided 67 68 69.

After Lin Fan departs in pursuit of the Flower Thief, Yuanshan personally binds the three incapacitated Bone Tempering Realm enemies with specially made chains above Forging Grade 30. The restraints secure their hands, feet, shoulders, and necks, preventing them from easily escaping even if they recover 69.

Following the Flower Thief’s death and the White Ram Gang’s defeat, Su Yuanshan directs the securing of its prisoners, businesses, strongholds, and treasure. He works closely with Lin Fan to absorb the surviving Black Tiger Gang members, welcome Zhou Hu as a guest elder, and consolidate the defeated factions’ resources under Su Family control 71 72.

When the Flower Thief’s self-destruction shakes the city, Yuanshan dispatches two teams of elite guards to investigate and search for Lin Fan. His relief at Lin Fan’s safe return accompanies his report that the White Ram Gang’s remaining forces and holdings have been secured 71.

Yuanshan accepts Lin Fan’s proposal to retain seventy percent of the former White Ram and Black Tiger Gangs’ business profits for three years before transferring full ownership to the Su Family. He also supports the integration of the Raging Tide Gang and White Sand Gang after their leaders submit to Lin Fan 73 74 75 76 77.

After the captured gangs’ wealth has been inventoried, Yuanshan consults Lin Fan about more than a hundred remaining White Ram Gang prisoners and presents a detailed record of their crimes. He agrees to verify their offenses, publicly execute those responsible for the worst atrocities, and assign offenders who have not killed innocents to repair damaged villages and roads. Their settlement also includes reforms to the gang’s brothels, gambling houses, and money houses, including the release of abducted women 80 81.

Yuanshan receives the imperial envoys who revoke Lin Fan’s arrest warrant and appoint him General Pacifying the Lands. He and the family share in the relief of Lin Fan’s pardon, and he subsequently handles most of the congratulatory visitors and social obligations so that Lin Fan can continue cultivating 89 90.

When Su Qingwei’s concealed Early Bright Force Realm cultivation is inadvertently exposed, Su Yuanshan is stunned but quickly recognizes Lin Fan’s caution. He orders that Qingwei’s breakthrough remain secret from servants, guards, relatives, and even the family steward, regarding her hidden strength as a vital safeguard for the family 93 94.

Though Lin Fan has promised to help him enter the Bright Force Realm, Yuanshan initially remains at the Late Bone Tempering Realm because a public breakthrough would be difficult to conceal. He instead supports Lin Fan’s efforts to gather Breath Concealment and Alchemy manuals, mobilizing trusted Su Family personnel to search the prefectural city and surrounding regions 96 102 103 104 105.

To finance this effort, Lin Fan relinquishes his remaining share of the defeated factions’ future business profits, worth several million taels, in exchange for the Su Family purchasing relevant books. Yuanshan warns that high-grade concealment manuals are tightly controlled by powerful factions but agrees to the broad search. Teams return approximately every ten days with new materials, and Yuanshan personally delivers additional chests to Sunset Glow Courtyard. After learning that Lin Fan intends to create his own technique, he continues the search regardless of individual manuals’ quality 102 103 104 105.

After reaching the Transforming Force Realm in secret, Lin Fan prepares to leave for the prefectural city and turns his attention to strengthening Yuanshan as the Su Family’s protector. He creates a personalized Manifest Force Breath Concealment Technique that can disguise Early Bright Force cultivation as Late Bone Tempering and gives it to Yuanshan 108. Yuanshan studies the technique diligently for approximately two months and reports that he has attained great mastery 114.

Lin Fan then transfers thirty streams of Inner Qi into Yuanshan each afternoon for five days, carefully respecting his body’s absorption limit. On the fifth day, Yuanshan breaks through to the Early Bright Force Realm, ending nearly twenty years of stagnation. Lin Fan suppresses the disturbance, and Yuanshan immediately activates his concealment technique. Overjoyed, he bows deeply to Lin Fan and declares that the Su Family will never forget his help 94 115.

Lin Fan leaves the eventual decision to reveal or conceal Yuanshan’s new cultivation to Yuanshan himself, explaining that he will depart for Commandery City in a few months 115. When the departure takes place, Yuanshan and Madam Su remain outside the Su Family Estate to see off Lin Fan, Qingwei, their twins, and the rest of the traveling household 117.

After Lin Fan joins the Azure Elixir Sect as an elder, he sends Yuanshan a letter requesting that the Su Family relocate to Azure Elixir City for protection from Ten Thousand Treasures Commerce. Yuanshan responds by bringing several hundred family members to the city, where Lin Fan arranges a residence for them. The Su Family settles in the city while Lin Fan and his immediate household live on his private mountain within the sect 159.

Appearance

Su Yuanshan is an imposing martial artist whose presence at the Late Bone Tempering Realm could silence an entire courtyard. After reaching the Early Bright Force Realm, he conceals his stronger aura and continues to appear to outsiders as a Late Bone Tempering martial artist 39 115.

• Often wears a dark-patterned brocade robe. 39
• His tempered bones possess a restrained, lustrous white glow beneath his flesh. 39
• His martial pressure is heavy enough to crack bluestone tiles beneath his feet when exerted. 39
• Changes into fitted martial clothes when preparing to defend the Su Residence. 67
• When practicing martial arts, his fist wind can scatter fallen leaves and stir the Inner Qi within his Late Bone Tempering Realm body. 102
• During his Bright Force breakthrough, his robes billow without wind as newly formed force spreads through his body. Once he conceals his aura, his imposing presence recedes. 115

Personality

Su Yuanshan is pragmatic, cautious, and deeply invested in the Su Family’s stability. He personally oversees disputes that could damage the family’s standing and refuses to underestimate potentially dangerous figures, including Lin Fan before the alchemy competition 39 40.

He values ability, composure, and integrity rather than talent alone. Lin Fan’s refusal to become arrogant after winning the alchemy contest earns Yuanshan’s particular respect, as he believes an unstable temperament can lead to flaws in cultivation and battle 43.

As a father, Yuanshan is attentive to Su Qingwei’s future and seeks a husband capable of protecting her. His proposal to Lin Fan is both a political alliance and an expression of confidence that Lin Fan will be dependable to Qingwei 44 45.

Yuanshan is a responsible commander in a crisis. He prioritizes the safety of the Su Residence’s women, secretly evacuates some family members when the threat escalates, and organizes the family’s defense rather than relying solely on Lin Fan’s superior strength 57 58 67.

He also possesses considerable political judgment. After the gang war, he favors absorbing submittable enemies and stabilizing their organizations over indiscriminate slaughter, while recognizing that Bai Jingtian’s brutality and demonic-path ties merit execution 73 74. His handling of the remaining White Ram Gang prisoners similarly distinguishes between the most serious offenders and those who can be punished through reparative labor 80 81.

Although initially overwhelmed by Qingwei’s unexpected Bright Force Realm cultivation, Yuanshan readily accepts the necessity of concealing it. His response reflects his understanding that a powerful but insufficiently protected local family can attract disaster through excessive exposure 93 94.

His caution does not prevent disciplined effort or ambition. After receiving a concealment technique tailored to him, he studies it day and night for approximately two months without slackening. His eventual Bright Force breakthrough brings intense joy, but he promptly reins in his aura rather than publicly displaying his achievement 114 115.

Yuanshan is deeply grateful for Lin Fan’s cultivation assistance. He regards the daily transfer of precious Inner Qi as an extraordinary kindness and acknowledges that, without it, he would likely have remained trapped at Late Bone Tempering until death 115.

Abilities & Skills

Late Bone Tempering Realm Cultivation

Before his breakthrough in Chapter 115, Su Yuanshan was a Late Bone Tempering Realm expert and one of the town’s foremost martial artists.

• His martial aura can suppress a crowd of cultivators and spectators into silence. 39
• His fully tempered sinews and bones grant him immense physical power; slight exertion cracks the stone beneath his feet. 39
• He can rapidly travel to Sunset Glow Courtyard after sensing Lin Fan’s breakthroughs. 48 54
• Before Lin Fan’s arrival, he was the Su Family’s sole Bone Tempering Realm expert. 38
• He is a veteran combatant capable of remaining undefeated against three Bone Tempering Realm opponents for an extended period through experience and tactical restraint. The two hired opponents’ unwillingness to commit fully also contributes to his survival. 68
• He had accumulated more than one hundred strands of Inner Qi before crossing the Bright Force Realm threshold. 93 94 115
• His sharpened hearing and eyesight allow him to pick out discussions around the Pill Pavilion before entering the contest courtyard. 40
• Wields a saber when leading the defense against the White Ram Gang’s assault. 67

Early Bright Force Realm Cultivation

Su Yuanshan enters the Early Bright Force Realm with Lin Fan’s assistance, gaining the strength needed to better protect the Su Family during his son-in-law’s absence 108 115.

• His breakthrough transforms his flesh and meridians and converts his Bone Tempering force into Manifest Force. 115
• His combat strength increases more than tenfold compared with his previous realm. 115
• The advancement grants an additional thirty years of potential lifespan. 77 115
• During the assisted advancement, he can safely absorb thirty streams of transferred Inner Qi per day. Lin Fan warns that exceeding this limit could cause hidden injuries. 115

Manifest Force Breath Concealment Technique

Lin Fan creates this technique specifically for Su Yuanshan, enabling him to possess Bright Force strength without immediately exposing the Su Family’s increased power 108.

• Designed to conceal Early Bright Force cultivation beneath the apparent aura of a Late Bone Tempering martial artist. 108
• Reaches great mastery after approximately two months of dedicated study. 114
• Successfully suppresses his newly elevated aura immediately after his breakthrough, leaving outsiders with the impression that he remains at Late Bone Tempering. 115
• Allows him to decide whether to maintain secrecy or reveal his actual cultivation after Lin Fan leaves for Commandery City. 108 115

Leadership and Family Authority

As Su Family Head, Yuanshan directs the family’s personnel, security, resources, and major decisions.

• Presides over the alchemy wager as an impartial witness and establishes consequences for dishonesty, including expulsion from the family. 40
• Grants Lin Fan increased remuneration and promises Su Family support in exchange for his service. 43
• Arranges Lin Fan and Su Qingwei’s engagement, wedding, and residence within the estate. 44 45
• Strengthens guards and patrols throughout the Su Residence in response to the Flower Thief threat. 49
• Suspects the White Ram Gang is connected to the city’s disappearances but will not act without sufficient evidence. 54
• Deploys secret city patrols, gathers intelligence, and restricts the movements of martial-trained Su Family women as the kidnappings escalate. 57
• Cooperates with the Black Tiger Gang’s search for Zhou Ling while protecting the privacy of the Su Family’s inner courtyards. 60
• Commands the Su Family’s organized defense during the White Ram Gang’s assault and personally confronts the invading Bone Tempering Realm martial artists. 67 68
• Personally secures three incapacitated Bone Tempering Realm captives with chains above Forging Grade 30. 69
• Dispatches elite guards to investigate the Flower Thief’s self-destruction and locate Lin Fan. 71
• Directs the postwar seizure and administration of the White Ram Gang’s prisoners, strongholds, businesses, and assets. 71 72
• Supports the incorporation of defeated gangs into the Su Family’s sphere of influence and helps determine the disposition of their leaders. 73 74 75 76 77
• Consults Lin Fan on the remaining White Ram Gang prisoners and agrees to verify their crimes before imposing execution or reparative labor. 80 81
• Receives the imperial delegation delivering Lin Fan’s pardon and appointment. 89
• Manages the Su Residence’s relations with visiting martial factions after Lin Fan receives imperial recognition. 90
• Becomes a stronger defensive safeguard for the Su Family after reaching the Bright Force Realm in preparation for Lin Fan’s departure. 108 115
• Leads several hundred Su Family members to Azure Elixir City after receiving Lin Fan’s warning and relocation request. 159

Cultivation Guidance

Yuanshan safeguards the Su Family’s Inner Qi Circulation Method and can advise others on its use.

• Lends the secret Inner Qi Circulation Method to Lin Fan after judging him to be a trusted member of the family. 53
• Questions Lin Fan about the method and advises him to nurture his first thread of Inner Qi after reaching Late Bone Tempering. 54
• His understanding of the method is surpassed by Lin Fan’s accelerated comprehension. 54
• Recognizes the value of concealment after Qingwei’s breakthrough and establishes strict secrecy procedures to protect her hidden Bright Force Realm cultivation. 94
• Supports Lin Fan’s attempt to develop the Hidden Dragon Breath Concealment Technique by dispatching trusted personnel to collect relevant manuals and Alchemy texts. 102 103 104 105
• Continues circulating his own cultivation method to absorb and refine the Inner Qi Lin Fan transfers into him during his assisted advancement. 115

Resource Administration and Political Consolidation

Yuanshan is an experienced administrator who can convert military victory into durable family influence.

• Accompanies Lin Fan in inspecting the White Ram Gang and Black Tiger Gang treasure vaults and organizes guards and carts to secure their contents. 72
• Accepts Lin Fan’s temporary claim to seventy percent of the defeated factions’ business profits, recognizing the terms as generous to the Su Family. 73
• Welcomes Zhou Hu into the Su Family as a guest elder after Lin Fan rescues Zhou Ling and saves the Black Tiger Gang survivors. 72
• Oversees the recording, transfer, and management of wealth acquired from the surrendered Raging Tide and White Sand Gangs. 75 76 77
• Helps reform the White Ram Gang’s former predatory businesses into legitimate enterprises, contributing to the town’s later stability and prosperity. 81 93
• Allocates the giant wild boar’s remains for medicinal broth, equipment-forging materials, and prized estate treasures, issuing instructions to the family’s stewards. 100
• Organizes the purchase of Breath Concealment and Alchemy books using the future business profits Lin Fan relinquishes for that purpose. 102 103
• Oversees rotating collection teams and the screening of gathered texts to reduce identical duplicates, personally escorting additional books to Sunset Glow Courtyard. 104

Relationships

• Su Qingwei — His daughter. He actively arranges her marriage to Lin Fan and remains concerned for her security and happiness. After learning that she has secretly reached the Early Bright Force Realm, he is immensely proud and helps protect the secret of her cultivation. He later reaches the same realm himself with Lin Fan’s assistance. 44 45 93 94 115
• Madam Su — His wife and Qingwei’s mother. They jointly organize Qingwei’s dowry, betrothal rites, and wedding preparations. They later share the joy of Qingwei’s breakthrough and the birth of Lin Fan and Qingwei’s twins. Both see the younger household off when it leaves for Commandery City. 45 93 94 95 105 117
• Lin Fan — His son-in-law, Golden Guest Elder, and valued Su Family alchemist. Yuanshan rewards his talent, provides him with resources, entrusts him with the family’s Inner Qi method, and increasingly treats him as a trusted family partner in military, political, and financial affairs. Lin Fan fulfills his promise to help Yuanshan reach the Bright Force Realm and provides a personalized concealment technique. Yuanshan regards this assistance as a great kindness to both himself and the Su Family. 43 44 53 72 73 77 102 103 104 105 108 114 115 After becoming an Azure Elixir Sect elder, Lin Fan arranges for the Su Family’s protection and housing in Azure Elixir City; Yuanshan follows his request to bring several hundred family members there. 159
• Lin Fan and Su Qingwei’s twins — His grandson and granddaughter. Yuanshan celebrates their birth alongside Madam Su and the rest of the family and later sees them off with their parents when they depart for Commandery City. 105 117
• Su Family alchemists — Senior Pill Pavilion alchemists whose contest with Lin Fan he oversees. He orders them back to their duties after their defeat. 39 43
• White Ram Gang — Initially a hostile local force Yuanshan suspects of aiding the Flower Thief. After its assault on the Su Residence fails, he helps secure its prisoners, territory, businesses, and resources for the Su Family. 54 57 71 72 73
• Bai Jingtian — The White Ram Gang leader. Yuanshan regards his demonic-path collusion and atrocities as grounds for execution, supporting Lin Fan’s decision to kill him. 73 74
• Zhou Hu — Former Black Tiger Gang leader and later Su Family guest elder. Before the gang’s destruction, Yuanshan maintains friendly personal relations and legitimate trade with him, and the two share conversation at Qingwei’s wedding feast. Yuanshan later provides healing pills and accepts Zhou Hu’s pledge after Lin Fan rescues Zhou Ling and saves the surviving Black Tiger Gang members. 63 72
• Zhou Ling — Zhou Hu’s daughter. Yuanshan supports the investigation after her abduction and helps provide refuge for her and her father after Lin Fan rescues her. She thanks both him and Lin Fan for saving and taking them in. 60 72
• Raging Tide Gang and White Sand Gang leaders — Former attackers who submit to Lin Fan and the Su Family. Yuanshan supports their incorporation as a means of extending order and influence into nearby towns. 73 74 75 76 77
• Ten Thousand Treasures Commerce — The threat from which Lin Fan seeks to protect the Su Family by requesting its relocation to Azure Elixir City. Yuanshan brings several hundred family members to the city in response. 159

Notable Quotes

“Since you possess such great talent, my Su Family is not a stingy one.” 43

“Cultivate well. Just do not let Qingwei suffer any grievance.” 53

“If I can truly step into the Bright Force Realm, it will be a blessing for me, Su Yuanshan, and a blessing for the Su Family as well!” 77

“I did it! I've broken through to the Bright Force Realm!” 115

“Without your constant help, my worthy son-in-law, I would probably have remained trapped in late bone tempering until my dying day. The Su Family will never forget this great kindness!” 115

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