Ancient Emperor

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Ancient Emperor (古皇)
Alias(es)	Ruler of Ancient Imperial City
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Ancient Imperial City; Ancient Emperor Clan
Occupation/Role	Emperor and supreme ruler of Ancient Imperial City
Status	Alive 50
First Appearance	Chapter 31

Background

The Ancient Emperor has ruled Ancient Imperial City for more than three hundred years. His long life is sustained by medicinal pills, and some of his descendants are themselves over a hundred years old 31 32.

He presides over a court in which military merit, political obedience, and personal usefulness determine favor. Although he initially treats Lin Yu as an insignificant prisoner, the latter's evidence against Mo Ce—including eighteen enemy commanders’ heads and six cultivators’ heads—reveals a threat that could have destroyed the city. The emperor orders Mo Ce and the generals under his command executed 31 33.

Appearance

The Ancient Emperor is an elderly man with a white beard. He wears pale-yellow imperial robes embroidered with dragons and light-cloud patterns 31 32.

• Pale-yellow dragon-embroidered robes
• White beard
• Maintains an aged appearance despite a reign exceeding three centuries 31

Personality

The Ancient Emperor is domineering and accustomed to unquestioned obedience. Lin Yu's refusal to kneel, reject military office, and decline marriage to Linglong Princess repeatedly provoke his anger, particularly when Lin Yu challenges the authority of an imperial decree 31 34.

He is also pragmatic. Rather than immediately executing Lin Yu for open defiance, he recognizes his military value, appoints him to high office, and attempts to bind him to the imperial family through marriage. Lin Yu later concludes that the appointment also serves the emperor's effort to remove the former Great General's political faction 34.

His apparent concessions are unreliable. After publicly permitting Lin Yu to resign, he privately asks Elder Gu how to deal with those who refuse to serve him; Elder Gu advises killing them. Lin Yu is subsequently attacked by repeated waves of assassins while returning home 36 37.

Political Authority

Imperial Rule

• Commands the Ancient Imperial City court and its military hierarchy.
• Can appoint or dismiss high-ranking generals, including the posts offered to Lin Yu: Spirit-Pacifying General, Great General, and temporary Grand General 34 35.
• Orders the execution of Mo Ce and the generals under Mo Ce's command after Lin Yu exposes their failures and concealed threats 33.
• Uses imperial marriage proposals and decrees as tools to secure loyalty 34.
• Cannot freely mobilize every powerful cultivator; after Lin Yu's warning, he expresses a desire to send a ninth-rank cultivator, but Elder Gu notes his limited authority to do so 37.

Court Manipulation

• Attempts to retain Lin Yu in the capital by presenting military appointments as rewards or temporary necessities 34 35.
• Seeks to replace the political network tied to the former Great General by elevating Lin Yu 34.
• Relies on Elder Gu's counsel when deciding how to handle threats beyond normal court control 36 41.

Story Role

Mo Ce's Trial

When Mo Ce returns from the Tianling City campaign, he claims the victory for himself and accuses Lin Yu of being an enemy spy. The Ancient Emperor questions Lin Yu's refusal to kneel but unexpectedly laughs off the insult and permits him to answer the accusation 31.

He turns the dispute into a lethal contest: whichever side cannot prove its case will lose their head. Lin Yu produces evidence of his military order and the heads of eighteen enemy commanders, then reveals six additional cultivators he killed. Realizing Mo Ce concealed an existential danger to Ancient Imperial City, the emperor orders Mo Ce and his generals executed 33.

Attempts to Claim Lin Yu

Impressed by Lin Yu's ability, the Ancient Emperor offers him the office of Spirit-Pacifying General. Lin Yu refuses, preferring a life away from officialdom and seeking the woman he loves. The emperor then offers Linglong Princess in marriage, but Lin Yu rejects this as well because he already has a family-arranged engagement 34.

Furious at the rejection, he threatens to override Lin Yu's engagement by decree. He ultimately appoints Lin Yu Great General instead and orders him to remain in the capital, recognizing that Lin Yu is too valuable to release easily 34.

Resignation and Assassination Attempts

The emperor later pressures Lin Yu into temporarily serving as Grand General because no replacement commander has been found. Lin Yu publicly requests resignation, supported by several ministers and Linglong Princess. The emperor finally permits him to leave after Linglong threatens not to speak to him for a month 35 36.

After Lin Yu departs, the emperor consults Elder Gu about eliminating those who will not serve him. Lin Yu survives multiple assassination waves, kills Liu Cun and the other attackers, and sends a message threatening to take the emperor's head if the harassment continues 36 37.

Yan Baiping's failure to kill Lin Yu forces the emperor to confront the danger posed by Lin Yu's poison and growing strength. Elder Gu advises accepting the loss for the time being 41.

Relationships

• Lin Yu — Formerly valued military asset turned enemy. The Ancient Emperor repeatedly tries to recruit, retain, or eliminate him after Lin Yu rejects imperial authority 31 34 36 41.
• Linglong Princess — Favored daughter. The emperor offers her hand to Lin Yu, then reluctantly yields to her intervention in Lin Yu's resignation 34 36.
• Mo Ce — General whose false report initially brings Lin Yu before the throne. The emperor executes him after Lin Yu proves Mo Ce concealed the enemy threat 31 33.
• Elder Gu — Influential adviser and the most cautious figure in the emperor's faction. He recommends killing those who refuse imperial service and later assesses Yan Baiping's poisoning 36 41.
• Gu Tian — His son, who competes with Yan Fei for the Rainbow Butterfly and attempts to recruit Lin Yu before Lin Yu maims him 44 45.
• Flame Emperor — Long-standing rival whose conflict with the Ancient Emperor continues through their descendants and armies 24 45.

Notable Quotes

“Plenty of people kneel to me; one less or one more makes no difference.” 31

“I grant you the post of Great General. Remain in the imperial capital and teach the lessons of this battle. Do not refuse again, or I will cut off your head.” 34