Long Xuan

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Long Xuan (龙玄)
Alias(es)	“Masked hero” 26
Species/Race	Human
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Independent Rogue Cultivator; formerly a medicinal-garden laborer and medicine apprentice under Old Long 1 22
Occupation/Role	Gu refiner, alchemist, spirit-herb cultivator, and creator of cultivation methods 1 21 28
Status	Alive 50
First Appearance	Chapter 1

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Longevity Scripture, 10th layer	2	The original body had already reached the tenth layer before adulthood, gaining roughly a century of additional lifespan.
Longevity Scripture, levels 11–20 deduced	2	Long Xuan identifies the scripture as only 10% complete and deduces ten further layers; each new layer is estimated to add about a century of lifespan.
Early Spirit Gathering Stage	15	Still at the early stage after two years of work; his slow progress stems from the demands of his Ten Extremity Physique.
Longevity Scripture, 12th layer	15	Advances two layers and gains approximately two hundred additional years of lifespan.
Mid Spirit Gathering Stage	21 22	Hundred Flower Pills and sustained cultivation carry him into the mid stage.
Ten Absolutes Scripture, first layer	28	Completes the Spirit Gathering–stage layer to 12.5%; the method possesses eight layers in total and creates five Externalized Clones.
Late Spirit Gathering Stage	46	Reaches the late stage while his clones cultivate in his stead during two years of wine research.

Background / History

Long Xuan awakens after transmigrating into the body of a handsome fifteen- or sixteen-year-old boy of the same name. The original Long Xuan was an orphaned commoner and medicinal-garden worker who considered his ability to see the growth progress of all things useless. The transmigrated Long Xuan recognizes that it can expose incomplete Gu recipes and optimize the cultivation of spirit herbs, turning the garden into his first source of wealth. 1

His previous-life experience as an entomologist shapes his approach to Gu refinement. Rather than following orthodox recipes, he experiments with organisms’ survival traits, beginning with cockroach-based Gu intended to provide extreme regeneration and resilience. He sells his creations through disguises, avoids buying blood-contracted Gu from strangers, and gradually establishes a reputation in Far Western Market. 3 15

After refining the Eye of Heavenly Secrets, Long Xuan secretly studies Old Long’s alchemy and completes the Hundred Flower Pill formula that Old Long had failed to solve for ten years. His progress indicator makes herb purification and pill refinement unusually efficient, allowing him to become an alchemist despite his poor conventional cultivation aptitude. 17 18 20 21

Old Long’s explanation of the Ten Extremity Physique inspires Long Xuan to create a cultivation method suited to his own body. Drawing on the incomplete Sun-Moon Heart Scripture, he develops the Ten Absolutes Scripture and its five elemental Externalized Clones, overcoming part of his cultivation-speed problem while gaining a foundation for combat. 22 27 28

Appearance

Long Xuan initially appears as a handsome adolescent of about fifteen or sixteen. A year of eating spirit-chicken eggs leaves his once-thin body noticeably fuller; years later, he is shown shaving, bathing, and changing into clean clothes before returning to the market. 1 2 49

• Often conceals his identity with masks, altered clothing, gloves, and disguises during transactions. 15 38 44
• Bears the concealed Eye of Heavenly Secrets in his glabella after forming a blood contract with it. 16
• Commonly presents himself as an ordinary, low-level Rogue Cultivator while hiding his Gu, wealth, formulas, and true combat strength. 15 34 38

Personality

Long Xuan is analytical, inventive, and obsessive about experimentation. He approaches Gu refinement, alchemy, formations, wine-making, and cultivation methods as research problems: observe a process, identify its measurable progress, test variations, and retain only what works. His previous-life scientific knowledge gives him ideas that local cultivators often consider impossible or unconventional. 1 16 18 26

He is ambitious but highly risk-averse. Long Xuan routinely disguises himself, uses clones as intermediaries, fabricates the impression of a powerful master, and prefers institutional protection from the Qian Clan Merchant Association over exposing himself in private deals. His refusal to enter the ancient tomb proves well founded when most of its Rogue Cultivator explorers die. 15 27 38 39

Despite calling himself a “grind emperor,” he is also pragmatic and comfort-seeking. Once his clones can cultivate for him, he delegates routine work so he can focus on research, treasure hunting, and leisure. He values longevity not merely as survival, but as time to enjoy food, wine, and a comfortable life. 28 33 46

Abilities & Skills

Progress-Tracking Golden Finger

Long Xuan can perceive the growth or completion progress of living beings, treasures, spirit herbs, recipes, and certain processes. He uses this information to optimize cultivation, identify incomplete formulas, and test material combinations one at a time. 1 3 20

• Reveals the optimal dosage and timing for Ripening Liquid, reducing waste in medicinal-garden cultivation. 1 2
• Displays the completion of incomplete Gu recipes, pill formulas, cultivation methods, maps, and Spirit Flame formulas. 1 2 19 28 35
• Identifies hidden value in objects nearing transformation, including fossils containing spirit insects and rare materials. 3 13 37
• Allows him to recognize disguised people through their progress readings, since appearance-altering techniques do not significantly change a person’s progress. 41
• Has a major limitation: when multiple possible recipes use similar materials, it prioritizes the recipe with the greatest required number of materials rather than necessarily the most useful one. 15

Ten Extremity Physique

Long Xuan possesses the Ten Extremity Physique, a rare body with immense spiritual reserves, broad meridians, and exceptional same-stage combat potential. Its advantages are offset by an enormous Spirit Sea that ordinary techniques struggle to fill. 22 34

• Gives him spiritual power and attack strength far beyond ordinary cultivators of the same stage. 34
• Allows his divided Externalized Clones to retain combat power sufficient to injure Late Spirit Gathering opponents. 34
• Rejects ordinary cultivation methods because the specialized method once meant for the physique has been lost. 22
• Makes low-grade breakthrough medicines comparatively ineffective for him because of his unusually vast and solid spiritual foundation. 38

Ten Absolutes Scripture

Long Xuan’s self-created cultivation method is tailored to the Ten Extremity Physique. Its first layer is designed for the Spirit Gathering Stage; it combines five-element spiritual power and a divine ability adapted from the incomplete Sun-Moon Heart Scripture. 23 28

• Creates five physical Externalized Clones: Metal, Wood, Water, Flame, and Earth. 28
• Each clone cultivates one elemental spiritual power and returns its gains to Long Xuan. 28
• Lets him divide into six combatants, including his main body, or retract the clones to concentrate his power. 34
• The scripture has eight total layers; the second layer is intended for the Marrow Cleansing Stage. 28

Eye of Heavenly Secrets

The Eye of Heavenly Secrets is a supreme-grade Eye Gu refined through an enormous recipe and blood-contracted into Long Xuan’s forehead. Though initially at 0% growth, it grants extraordinary perception and an illusion ability called Origin Realm. 16 17 37

• Magnifies Long Xuan’s vision from the microscopic scale to bacteria, viruses, molecules, atoms, and atomic nuclei. 16
• Grants limited see-through vision through thin, low-density objects. 16
• Combines enhanced distance vision with magnification to produce Thousand-Mile Sight. 17
• Works with his progress-tracking ability to locate underground spirit-stone veins, metal deposits, fossils, and other concealed resources. 17
• Can analyze pills, poisons, spirit-insect feed, and other materials at a microscopic level. 16 19
• Requires further growth or metamorphosis before its long-distance sight can reach its projected potential. 17

Origin Realm

Origin Realm is the Eye of Heavenly Secrets’ illusion technique. It reproduces observed reality so perfectly that targets cannot identify flaws while inside it. 16 24

• Can recreate locations Long Xuan has personally seen, including the Qian Clan Treasure Pavilion. 24
• Pulls real beings’ consciousness into the illusion while leaving their actual bodies dazed and defenseless. 24 35
• Lets him test techniques and recipes in a simulated environment without consuming real materials or risking his real lifespan. 24 48
• Cannot independently create conscious beings or their possessions; larger scenes and powerful treasures take longer to reproduce. 24
• Leaves Long Xuan’s physical body vulnerable while he is operating within the illusion. 24

Alchemy and Formula Reconstruction

Long Xuan learns alchemy by secretly observing Old Long through Thousand-Mile Sight and by using progress displays to monitor purification and pill formation. 18 20

• Completes the Hundred Flower Pill formula in two days after Old Long’s decade of failure. 19
• Refines eighty-one Hundred Flower Pills in his first complete attempt, producing no defective pills. 21
• Reconstructs low-grade formulas from defective pills and incomplete pill fragments. 21 38
• Refines Spirit-Gathering Pills, which increase the chance of reaching the Marrow Cleansing Stage by roughly ten percent for an average user. 38
• Stops large-scale pill sales when Gu refinement proves more profitable and less time-consuming. 21

Five Elements Jade

Five Elements Jade is the first supporting spiritual art created for the Ten Absolutes Scripture. It compresses and combines five types of spiritual power into destructive jade-like projectiles. 26

• Mutual Generation Cycle — emphasizes endurance and sustained power. 26
• Mutual Return Cycle — emphasizes direct offensive force and momentum. 26
• Mutual Overcoming Cycle — emphasizes explosive power. 26
• Extreme Jade — uses a single attribute for more specialized but weaker effects. 26
• Flame Jade, used by the Flame Clone, severely injures a Late Spirit Gathering opponent despite the clone’s lower cultivation. 34

Energy Bomb

Energy Bomb is a secret forbidden technique developed with the Cockroach Gu. It converts lifespan into destructive energy spheres capable of creating enormous explosions. 48

• Can severely injure Long Xuan himself as well as his target. 48
• Is reserved for desperate circumstances because lifespan is its fuel. 48
• Was tested extensively in Origin Realm, where the lifespan cost could be simulated without harming his real body. 48
• Long Xuan hides the manual rather than selling it, considering secrecy central to its value. 48

Gu Insects

• Cockroach Gu — Long Xuan’s cockroach-based Gu creation, valued for resilience and regeneration. It can regrow severed limbs, but the process may take years rather than occurring instantly. 3 7
• Little Strong Gu — A popular product associated with surviving otherwise fatal injuries and exchanging wounds with opponents; its public success greatly increases Long Xuan’s sales. 15
• Eye of Heavenly Secrets — Supreme-grade Eye Gu that provides microscopic vision, Thousand-Mile Sight, hidden-resource detection, and Origin Realm. 16 17 37
• Wine Gu / Little White — A supreme-grade Gu refined from a Wine Worm and Four-Flavor Wine distilled to an unprecedented potency. 46 49
  • Slowing Domain reduces enemies’ movement speed within its range. 49
  • Acceleration Domain increases the movement speed of Long Xuan and his allies within its range. 49
  • Both domains can operate simultaneously. 49

Equipment / Items

• Green three-legged pill furnace — Obtained from Little Medicine Boy in exchange for Cockroach Gu and waste pills; used for Long Xuan’s first pill-refining attempts. 19 20
• Insect-Rearing Pouch — Used to conceal and carry contracted Gu, including Little White. 20 49
• Treasure Map Fragment — A partially burned map restored through months of experimentation; it leads Long Xuan to the Fossil Ore Vein. 32 35 36
• Fossil Ore Vein map — Sold through the Qian Clan Auction House for 700 million Spirit Stones. 39 44
• Divine Ice Flame Formula — A self-created cold Spirit Flame formula requiring three hundred rare materials, including Millennium Ice Marrow; it remains unrefined because he cannot obtain the latter. 18 21 49

Relationships

• Old Long — Employer, medicinal-garden owner, and unwitting source of Long Xuan’s alchemical knowledge. Long Xuan secretly completes Old Long’s failed Hundred Flower Pill formula and copies the Violet Demon Flame formula, but avoids using the latter directly for fear of discovery. 1 17 18 22
• Brother Chicken — A female spirit chicken Long Xuan humorously names “Brother Chicken.” It protects the medicinal garden from spirit insects and supplies eggs, while remaining fiercely protective of its own eggs. 2
• Old Daoist Li — Market acquaintance and occasional trading partner. His difficult-to-guard Gu indirectly motivates Long Xuan to develop microscopic vision; later, Li brings the incomplete Sun-Moon Heart Scripture that inspires the Ten Absolutes Scripture. 7 26 27
• Qian Duoduo — Qian Clan merchant and auction-house manager. He repeatedly underestimates Long Xuan’s knowledge but becomes a key intermediary for the Fossil Ore Vein auction. 9 38 39
• Qian Jinjin — Qian Clan figure whose Glow Gu competition gives Long Xuan access to the Stone King. Long Xuan later invades her awareness through Origin Realm, prompting her to investigate the unknown illusion-user. 12 24
• Little Medicine Boy — Clever alchemy assistant and recurring market rival. They trade a pill furnace and waste pills for Cockroach Gu, then later bargain over the damaged treasure map. 19 20 32
• Di Xin — Veiled Formation Raider and Treasure Exchange Fair host. She trades Long Xuan formation books and a substantial portion of his Divine Ice Flame materials in exchange for pills and spirit insects. 29 30 33
• Five Externalized Clones — Metal, Wood, Water, Flame, and Earth are Long Xuan’s physical elemental incarnations. They cultivate for him, perform assigned labor, and fight as a coordinated force. 28 34 46
• Long Lie — A powerful acquaintance and creditor of Old Long who approaches Long Xuan after detecting the scent of his wine; he demands wine in repayment for Old Long’s alleged debt. 49 50

Story Role / Major Arcs

Medicinal Garden and First Fortune

Long Xuan converts a lowly medicinal-garden position into a research base. By optimizing Ripening Liquid, cultivating herbs efficiently, and using Brother Chicken to control pests, he builds the resources needed to begin refining Gu. 1 2

Market Inventor and Stone King

At Far Western Market, Long Xuan sells herbs, studies treasures through progress readings, and refines cockroach-based Gu rather than relying on dangerous secondhand Gu. His creativity wins the Qian Clan’s Glow Gu development contest, granting him the Stone King and the rare Eye within it. 3 9 12 13

Eye Gu and Alchemical Rise

Long Xuan refines the Eye of Heavenly Secrets, develops Origin Realm, spies on Old Long’s alchemy, and becomes an unusually capable pill refiner. He uses alchemy primarily to accelerate his own cultivation and fund more ambitious projects rather than to build a public reputation. 16 18 21

Ten Absolutes Scripture

Learning that his Ten Extremity Physique rejects ordinary cultivation methods, Long Xuan develops a bespoke scripture. Its five clones solve part of his cultivation-speed problem and make his hidden combat power far greater than his realm suggests. 22 28 34

Ambush, Map, and Fossil Ore Vein

Three Rogue Cultivators ambush Long Xuan after observing his wealth. He defeats them with his clones, Cockroach Gu, and Origin Realm, then devotes three months to restoring their damaged treasure map. The restored map leads him to a Fossil Ore Vein, which he sells to the Long Family for 700 million Spirit Stones. 34 35 36 37 44

Four-Flavor Wine and Wine Gu

Long Xuan spends two years designing superior sour, sweet, bitter, and spicy Spirit Wines to refine a Wine Gu. His heavily distilled wine leaves the Wine Worm unconscious for hundreds of days, but the experiment ultimately produces Little White, a supreme-grade Wine Gu with both Slowing and Acceleration Domains. 46 48 49

Notable Quotes

“Treasures were all well and good, but he had to be alive to spend them.” 27

“You like using numbers to bully the few? What a coincidence. So do I.” 34

Trivia

• Long Xuan names a female spirit chicken “Brother Chicken” because of a naming habit from his previous life. 2
• He considers himself a “grind emperor” and is willing to spend months or years repeatedly testing formulas, maps, and techniques. 36 48
• Although he is cautious about exposing valuable creations, he once accidentally draws Qian Jinjin into Origin Realm during a private moment, creating rumors and a future investigation. 24 26