Hongjun

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Hongjun is the reincarnation of an ancient Chaos Demon God. Although he possessed the potential to pursue Law-Proving Dao, he chose the faster Three-Corpses route in order to stabilize the Heavenly Dao. He later explains that obtaining the Creation Jade Disc constrained his fate from that moment onward. His killing of Luohu during the Dao-Devil War was, by his own account, necessary for survival: had he not killed Luohu, Luohu would have killed him. 56 79

Following the Dao-Devil War, Hongjun's coming ascension is recognized as the beginning of an age in which Saints will dominate the Primordial World. He ultimately becomes a Saint, filling the world with purple qi, falling heavenly flowers, golden lotuses, auspicious clouds, and surging innate spiritual qi. 1 9

After attaining sainthood, Hongjun summons those with affinity to Zixiao Palace and promises three sermons, each lasting three thousand years. He teaches from his comprehension of the three thousand Great Daos through the Creation Jade Disc. 8 12

At the conclusion of his first sermon, Hongjun appoints Dong Wang Gong and Xi Wangmu as leaders of the male and female immortals, respectively. He grants them the Dragon-Headed Staff and Pure Water Bowl, while warning that partiality will bring disaster. 13 14

During the second sermon, Hongjun reveals the Immortal Dao hierarchy above Daluo Golden Immortal and formalizes the Three Corpses Severing Method. He distinguishes personally attained Primordial Golden Immortals from Quasi-Saints who rely on Innate Spiritual Treasures, then explains that Hunyuan Daluo Golden Immortal is the realm of Dao Realization. 15 16 17

When Houtu asks how the Witch Clan can attain the Dao without Primordial Spirits, Hongjun states only that the clan will encounter its own future opportunity. 18

Later, Hongjun secretly observes Dao Xuan's efforts to gather Five-Element Spiritual Roots. He identifies Dao Xuan as a major variable but elects not to intervene, believing that a powerful yet manageable variable may be useful when he undergoes Dao Integration with the Heavenly Dao. 40

Third Sermon and Distribution of Treasures

Hongjun summons the great powers to his third sermon through a voice transmission. Appearing substantially stronger than before, he announces that the lecture will address Saint-level Dao and that afterward he will merge with the Heavenly Dao to complete and supplement it. Most attendees cannot follow the teachings and turn to studying the techniques engraved in Zixiao Palace, while a smaller group comprehends portions of the discourse. 54

After the sermon, Hongjun explains Law-Proving Dao, Three-Corpses Dao-Proving, and Merit-Proving Dao. He accepts Laozi, Yuanshi, Tongtian, Nuwa, Jieyin, and Zhunti as disciples and designates them as future Heavenly Dao Saints, bestowing treasures and Primordial Purple Qi upon them. An additional strand of Primordial Purple Qi goes to Hong Yun. Hongjun then permits the assembled powers to divide the treasures on Treasure-Dividing Cliff. 55

Hongjun privately restrains Dao Xuan and keeps him behind while the others leave. He asks about Yang Mei, whom he identifies as the Primordial World's first cultivator to prove Hunyuan, and discusses the Creation Jade Disc's role in both his success and his impending loss of freedom. Believing Dao Xuan is using Five-Element origins to supplement the Four Symbols Laws, he offers him the Plain Cloud Boundary Flag, God-Slaying Spear, and Immortal Peach Tree. 55

Dao Integration and the Promise of Rescue

Before releasing the gifts, Hongjun asks Dao Xuan to save him if a future opportunity arises. He explains that Dao Integration will eventually assimilate his consciousness until Hongjun no longer exists as an individual. The future Saints cannot rescue him because they will themselves be bound by the Heavenly Dao; he therefore places his hope in Dao Xuan's potential to attain independent Hunyuan cultivation. He acknowledges that the gifts and request are a gamble on Dao Xuan's strength and willingness to keep his promise. 56

Dao Xuan accepts, then questions Hongjun about Luohu's death and his decision not to follow Yang Mei's path. Hongjun answers that survival and the fate imposed by the Creation Jade Disc left him no retreat. He subsequently activates the disc and merges with the Heavenly Dao, allowing Dao Xuan to witness the Heavenly Dao directly during the process. 56

After this revelation, Dao Xuan finds himself before the emptied Treasure-Dividing Cliff. He interprets his placement there as Hongjun's intention that he obtain the cliff itself and collects it. The cliff is subsequently described as a gift from Hongjun and becomes material for two of Dao Xuan's treasures. 56 59

Intervention in the Witch-Demon Conflict

After Dao Integration, Hongjun intervenes in a major battle between the Witch Clan and Demon Tribe, preventing the Pangu projection summoned by the Twelve Ancestral Witches from killing Dijun and the Demon Tribe's leadership. He makes the two sides cease hostilities and establishes the arrangement that the demons rule the heavens while the witches govern the land. 68 78

His intervention is not simply favoritism toward the demons. The repeatedly summoned Pangu projection has drawn upon immense baleful qi and is approaching the point of triggering the Immeasurable Calamity, while the surviving demon leaders still possess the strength to fight to the death. Hongjun stops the conflict so that the Heavenly Dao can stabilize the world. 78

Reunion with Dao Xuan

Hongjun observes Dao Xuan's Five Elements sermon at Nuwa's sanctuary and is surprised that Dao Xuan apparently attained Hunyuan through the Five Elements rather than the Four Symbols. Although briefly irritated by his earlier misunderstanding, he accepts that either law-based route could lead to Hunyuan attainment. 76

He then summons Dao Xuan to Zixiao Palace, whose interior has been simplified to include two ordinary meditation cushions and a rubbing of Pangu's Taiji Diagram. Hongjun reveals that he cultivates the Order Dao, reminds Dao Xuan of his promise, and warns him that attaining Hunyuan does not place him above the Heavenly Dao. Their exchange also exposes Hongjun's lingering assumption that Dao Xuan was Yang Mei's disciple, which Dao Xuan finally corrects. 77 78

Hongjun explains the deeper purpose of Dao Integration: the Primordial World's Heavenly Dao is fundamentally incomplete, lacking the “one” that would make it equal to the Great Dao. His Order Dao can repair flaws in its operation and postpone the world's destruction, but cannot supply the missing foundation. Dao Xuan responds with genuine reverence and renews his pledge to help. 78

Dao Xuan then reveals his actual World-Proving Dao and permits Hongjun to inspect his Greater Thousand World. Hongjun is astonished by its structure and the World Tree supporting it, recognizing a genuine possibility of liberation where he had previously held little hope. He addresses Dao Xuan as a fellow Daoist and explains the conditions under which they might separate his true spirit from the Heavenly Dao. 79

Before Dao Xuan leaves, Hongjun refuses a joking request for hundreds or thousands of treasures and spiritual roots, explaining that innate treasures are important to the Primordial World's integrity. He discusses other worlds in Chaos and instead gifts Dao Xuan a diagram containing the Taiji Diagram's law-patterns. 80

The World's Original Trajectory

The explanation of Hongjun's responsibilities also sets out the Primordial World's original future trajectory, rather than presenting all of those calamities as already completed events. In that course of history, renewed Witch-Demon warfare and Mount Buzhou's collapse severely damage the world despite Hongjun's attempts to regulate the calamity. He subsequently promotes the Human Tribe within the Heavenly Dao's main course, but the Saints' struggles further undermine the world's stability. 78

After the devastation of the Investiture of the Gods, Hongjun restricts the Saints' interference and banishes them to reside in Chaos. Nevertheless, successive calamities continue to erode the world, while the Heavenly Dao gradually assimilates Hongjun. The world eventually declines toward the Immeasurable Calamity. Dao Xuan's emergence offers Hongjun a new independent agent who may help avert or mitigate this trajectory, even though the Heavenly Dao's underlying deficiency remains unresolved. 78

Personality

Hongjun is composed and overwhelmingly authoritative. He appears soundlessly before the assembled powers of Zixiao Palace, establishes their seating order without challenge, and restores calm when the crowd becomes consumed by the prospect of sainthood. 12 16

As a teacher, he is unusually open about the distinctions between Saints, Hunyuan Daluo Golden Immortals, Primordial Golden Immortals, and Quasi-Saints. He also explains the limitations of relying on the Three Corpses Severing Method rather than presenting it as an effortless path to transcendence. 16 17

He is cautious and calculating beneath this detached demeanor. Although he chooses to let Dao Xuan develop, he does so partly because he believes Dao Xuan may remain useful and controllable after Hongjun's Dao Integration. 40

Later revelations establish that his concern for order is also rooted in genuine self-sacrifice. He integrates with the Heavenly Dao to prolong the Primordial World's existence despite knowing that it will cost his independence and may ultimately erase his consciousness. His desire for rescue coexists with his acceptance of responsibility for the path he chose. 56 78

Hongjun can be humorous and visibly exasperated in private. Dao Xuan's evasiveness and teasing provoke him into threatening to strike him with the Dragon-Headed Staff, but his irritation is not entirely serious. He enjoys an irreverent familiarity that contrasts with the unvarying deference of other cultivators. 77 78

He is willing to recognize innovation and revise his judgments. After discovering Dao Xuan's World-Proving Dao, he openly praises it, acknowledges Dao Xuan as a peer, and shifts from near despair to cautious hope. Nevertheless, he refuses to sacrifice the world's essential resources merely to accelerate Dao Xuan's cultivation. 79 80

Abilities & Skills

Sainthood and Heavenly Dao Authority

Hongjun holds the Saint Karmic Rank, making him an emissary of the Heavenly Dao with authority to convey its will.

• His ascension produces phenomena felt throughout the Primordial World and pressures countless beings into kneeling. 9
• As the Heavenly Dao's spokesperson, he can draw upon the Primordial World's Heavenly Dao against enemies. 40
• Before Dao Integration, he anticipates that a deeper connection to the Heavenly Dao could compromise his individual identity. He later confirms that eventual assimilation is a real consequence of the merger. 40 56
• He completes Dao Integration through the Creation Jade Disc, becoming part of the Heavenly Dao while retaining enough individuality to converse, teach, and seek assistance. 56 77 79 80
• After integration, his words and actions must represent the Heavenly Dao. He can make limited adjustments within its general trend, but cannot freely reverse its decrees. 77 78
• His authority allows him to intervene in the Witch-Demon conflict and halt a battle threatening the world's stability. 68 78

Order Dao and World Stabilization

Hongjun cultivates the Order Dao rather than the Yin-Yang Taiji Dao depicted in the painting within his palace. 77

• He uses the Order Dao after integration to repair defects in the Heavenly Dao's workings and stabilize the Primordial World. 78
• These repairs postpone destruction but cannot remedy the Heavenly Dao's fundamental incompleteness or supply its missing “one.” 78
• His restrictions on destructive conflict are intended to preserve the world, not merely maintain his personal supremacy. 78
• He originally identifies perfecting the Law of Order and attaining a Dao surpassing the Heavenly Dao as his own possible route to liberation. However, comprehending and proving that law becomes vastly more difficult after integration. 79

Dao Transmission and Cultivation System

Hongjun teaches and organizes cultivation knowledge on a Primordial World-wide scale.

• He comprehended the three thousand Great Daos through the Creation Jade Disc and transmits them during the Zixiao Palace sermons. 12
• He helped establish the Immortal Dao system, from Earth Immortal through Daluo Golden Immortal. 15
• He systematized the Three Corpses Severing Method after attaining sainthood. 16
• The method entrusts benevolent thoughts, malicious thoughts, and obsessions to Innate Spiritual Treasures, creating Three Corpses avatars that must ultimately reunify for Hunyuan attainment. 16 17
• His third sermon addresses Saint-level Dao, followed by an explanation of Law-Proving Dao, Three-Corpses Dao-Proving, and Merit-Proving Dao. 54 55
• Dao Xuan later revises his earlier belief that Three Corpses Reunification absolutely requires treasures of identical origin. Matching origins are advantageous, but different-origin treasures can also work if they accord with the cultivator's Dao. The method is inherently difficult, rather than a trap deliberately devised by Hongjun. 81
• Hongjun explains that Hunyuan Taiji requires perfecting a second complete law and successfully fusing it with the first. He recognizes that World-Proving Dao may ease this process because its laws are already integrated within a world. 79
• He identifies Hunyuan Taiji as beginning to match the Heavenly Dao in essence, while the Wuji Realm corresponds to Pangu's level, described as a half-step Great Dao Realm. He warns that ordinary Hunyuan attainment does not protect a cultivator from the Heavenly Dao's destructive power. 80

Zixiao Divine Thunder

Hongjun possesses the Zixiao Divine Thunder, regarded as the foremost divine thunder of the Primordial World aside from Pangu's incomplete Dutian Divine Thunder.

• The characters comprising “Zixiao Palace” contain this supreme lightning inheritance. 10 11
• Dao Xuan considers it one of a Saint's prized divine abilities and comprehends roughly sixty to seventy percent of its principles. 10 11
• The Three Pure Ones' later thunder arts are described as deriving from their attempts to supplement inherited fragments through comprehension of Zixiao Divine Thunder. 10

Divination and Observation

Hongjun can observe and deduce events involving major variables in the Primordial World.

• He watches Dao Xuan's actions from Zixiao Palace and identifies him as a variable affecting established destinies. 40
• He infers that Dao Xuan is gathering Five-Element Spiritual Roots to replenish his Four Symbols origin. 40
• His knowledge is not absolute: neither he nor the Heavenly Dao can determine what opportunity Dao Xuan obtained from the Three Immortal Islands. 40
• He tracks Dao Xuan's acquisition of spiritual-root origins from Zhen Yuanzi, Dijun, Taiyi, Jieyin, and Zhunti, but initially mistakes his true cultivation method for Law-Proving Dao. 55
• His assumptions about Dao Xuan's Four Symbols attainment and connection to Yang Mei are later corrected. Dao Xuan's concealed Inner World remains unknown to him until Dao Xuan voluntarily reveals it and removes its defenses against his inspection. 76 78 79
• He has detected other worlds in Chaos, but explains that their Heavenly Daos are typically absorbed upon contact with the Primordial World. 80

Palace Concealment and Restraint

• Hongjun can make Zixiao Palace appear to selected visitors. Unless he wishes it to be seen, even a Saint cannot locate the palace amid Chaos. 77
• He secretly binds Dao Xuan with an invisible force after the third sermon, keeping him behind for a private conversation. 55
• He temporarily prevents Dao Xuan from collecting his three offered gifts until he explains his request for future rescue. 56

Conditions for Liberation

Hongjun's integration is sufficiently deep that a careless separation could destroy his true spirit or collapse the Primordial World's Heavenly Dao. He identifies two possible routes to liberation. 79

Neither route has yet been completed. Hongjun's explanation distinguishes his possible rescue from the removal of everything he contributed to the Heavenly Dao: preserving the world requires leaving his Dao fruit behind. 79

Equipment / Treasures

• Creation Jade Disc — A damaged artifact surpassing ordinary Innate Supreme Treasures. Hongjun used it to comprehend the three thousand Great Daos and possessed the exceptional foundation needed to successfully prove the Dao through Three Corpses Severing. It is later identified as the incomplete remnant of one of Pangu's three Chaos Supreme Treasures, retaining at least the grade of a top-grade Chaos Spiritual Treasure. Hongjun activates it to complete Dao Integration and regards it as the source of both his success and his inescapable fate. 12 17 55 56
• Zixiao Palace — His Daoist sanctuary within chaos, where he lectures the great powers and leaves the inheritance of Zixiao Divine Thunder in its name. After Dao Integration, its interior is simplified, and Hongjun controls whether it can be seen even by Saints. 10 12 77
• Dragon-Headed Staff — Originally bestowed on Dong Wang Gong as a symbol of authority over male immortals. It returns to Hongjun after Dong Wang Gong's death; Hongjun later produces it while threatening to discipline Dao Xuan. 13 14 77
• Pure Water Bowl — Bestowed on Xi Wangmu when Hongjun appoints her leader of the female immortals. 13 14
• Plain Cloud Boundary Flag — One of the Innate Five-Direction Banners, corresponding to the west and possessing Five Elements power. Hongjun gives it to Dao Xuan alongside his request for future rescue. 55 56
• God-Slaying Spear — A slaughter treasure formed from the Chaos Azure Lotus's stem and the baleful aura of three thousand demon gods. Originally an Innate Supreme Treasure, it is damaged and downgraded to a Supreme-Grade Innate Spiritual Treasure. Its remaining power can injure a Saint's Primordial Spirit, though Hongjun states that it can no longer kill Saints in its diminished condition. He gives it to Dao Xuan. 55 56
• Immortal Peach Tree — The Innate Ren Water Spiritual Root, previously held by Hongjun and considered inaccessible to Dao Xuan. Hongjun eventually gives it to him to support the supplementation of the Four Symbols through the Five Elements. 24 55 56
• Primordial Purple Qi — Hongjun distributes strands to his six designated future Saint disciples and an additional strand to Hong Yun. 55
• Pangu Banner — Bestowed on Yuanshi during Hongjun's distribution of treasures. Hongjun compares its offensive power unfavorably to the God-Slaying Spear in the latter's original supreme-treasure condition. 56
• Four Swords of Immortal Slaying — Obtained by Tongtian through the treasure distribution. Hongjun states that none of the four swords individually matches even the damaged God-Slaying Spear. 55 56
• Treasure-Dividing Cliff — A cliff formed from Chaos Stubborn Stone that holds the treasures distributed after the third sermon. Dao Xuan collects the emptied cliff after witnessing Hongjun's integration, understanding it as a further gift. He later uses one-tenth to refine the Myriad Mountains Seal and the remainder to upgrade the Four Symbols Qiankun Fan. 56 59
• Taiji Diagram Rubbing — A depiction of Pangu's Taiji Diagram displayed in the simplified Zixiao Palace. Hongjun studies it despite cultivating the Order Dao and later gives Dao Xuan a diagram containing its law-patterns. 77 80

Relationships

• Dao Xuan — Listener at Zixiao Palace and a variable Hongjun secretly observes. Hongjun initially permits his growth because he may become useful after Dao Integration, provided he remains controllable. He later gives Dao Xuan three major treasures in exchange for a promise to attempt his rescue from assimilation. After learning of World-Proving Dao and inspecting Dao Xuan's Inner World, Hongjun acknowledges him as a peer and sees a genuine possibility of liberation. Their relationship develops into reciprocal trust, mentorship, and a familiar, teasing rapport, although Hongjun continues to warn him against defying the Heavenly Dao. 12 40 55 56 77 78 79 80
• Haotian and Yaochi — Attendants of Zixiao Palace who open its gates and announce Hongjun's arrival before the first sermon. 11 12
• Houtu — Attendee who asks how the Witch Clan can attain the Dao without Primordial Spirits; Hongjun cryptically tells her that the clan will have its own opportunity. She does not attend the third sermon. 18 54
• Dong Wang Gong and Xi Wangmu — Appointed by Hongjun to govern the male and female immortals. He entrusts them with authority and warns them to rule impartially. Dong Wang Gong disregards the warning, whereas Xi Wangmu takes it seriously. After Dong Wang Gong's death, his Dragon-Headed Staff returns to Hongjun. 13 14 77
• Jieyin and Zhunti — Attendees who request instruction in the Three Corpses Severing Method, prompting Hongjun to explain its principles in detail. He later accepts them among his six future Saint disciples and gives them treasures and Primordial Purple Qi. Both eventually attain sainthood through the Western Teachings and their forty-nine great vows. 17 55 90
• Laozi, Yuanshi, and Tongtian — The Three Pure Ones, accepted as disciples and designated future Heavenly Dao Saints. Hongjun explains that their eventual dependence on the Heavenly Dao prevents them from serving as his independent rescuers. 55 56
• Nuwa — One of Hongjun's six designated Saint disciples. Hongjun observes the gathering at her sanctuary, where Dao Xuan publicly teaches the Five Elements Dao. 55 76
• Hong Yun — Recipient of the additional strand of Primordial Purple Qi after the third sermon. He later becomes a Saint through merit accumulated from the Earth Immortal Church and Western Teachings, following Dao Xuan's guidance. 55 82 90
• Yang Mei — The Space Demon God whom Hongjun considers superior in Dao. Hongjun recalls being thoroughly suppressed by him despite his own Saint authority and treasures, and identifies Yang Mei as the first being in the Primordial World to prove Hunyuan. He initially suspects Dao Xuan inherited Yang Mei's legacy and later assumes he was Yang Mei's disciple, but Dao Xuan corrects this misunderstanding. 40 55 77 78
• Luohu — Hongjun's opponent in the Dao-Devil War. Hongjun explains his killing of Luohu as a matter of survival rather than an action from which he had a safe alternative. 56
• Witch Clan and Demon Tribe — Rival powers whose warfare Hongjun restrains to prevent a world-destroying calamity. He establishes a division between demon rule of the heavens and witch governance of the land, acting to stabilize the world rather than simply favoring either side. 68 78
• Heavenly Dao — The source of Hongjun's Saint authority and the system with which he eventually integrates. His Order Dao helps stabilize its incomplete operation, but the merger restricts his freedom and threatens to assimilate his consciousness. Separating his true spirit from it requires care to avoid destroying either Hongjun or the Heavenly Dao. 16 56 78 79

Notable Quotes

“I am Hongjun. Today, I have become a saint. In three thousand years, I will expound the Dao at Zixiao Palace. All those with affinity may come!” 8

“A Saint is not truly a realm, but a Karmic Rank beneath the Heavenly Dao.” 16

“My Dao succeeded because of the Creation Jade Disc, and it shall also fail because of the Creation Jade Disc.” 55

“Dao Xuan, if there is a chance in the future, I hope that at a critical moment, you can save me!” 56

“From the moment I picked up the Creation Jade Disc, my Fate was no longer mine to decide!” 56

“I cultivate the Order Dao.” 77

“Such a Dao-Proving method is simply unheard of.” 79

---