Zhang Yuan

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Zhang Yuan (张渊)
Gender	Male
Daoist Name	Return to the True 207 744
Alias(es)	Returning-to-the-True-Self Celestial; Seventh Sun-Eroding Demon King; Li Huixi and Lu Qingwu of the Nine Nether Lu as assumed identities 164 387 896
Affiliation	Xiao Yuanjun’s foremost disciple; formerly described as a rogue cultivator; appointed Holy Son of the First God Cult 187 671 727 729
Occupation/Role	Cultivator and sword practitioner; former personal guard to Tan Chencheng; nominal emperor of Great Heng; acting ruler of the Bright Rosy Kingdom 310 649 954
Cultivation Paths	Sha Ingestion Gang Devoration Path, also called the Gang Sha Path; Qi Refinement to Immortality Path; Qi Sea Unity Path 950 958
Latest Documented Realms	Celestial Person Perfection on the Gang Sha Path; Middle Stage Purple Mansion on the Qi Refinement to Immortality Path; Peak Fate Lord on the Qi Sea Unity Path 800 866 990
Status	Alive; recovering from severe damage to his Celestial Person dharma body, with only a weak connection to his distant Dao Domain 990

Power Progression

The chapter column distinguishes on-page breakthroughs from levels already attained when first documented.

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Gang Sha Path — Third-Turn Qi Refinement	15	Gains his first life-bound divine ability, Golden Chariot, and a higher Dao status.
Gang Sha Path — Fifth-Turn Qi Refinement	28	Refines the Linked-Chain Baleful Force. Xiao Yuanjun conceals his aura because his refinement speed is unusually conspicuous.
Gang Sha Path — Advancement, realm unspecified	34	Discovers a new talent-selection opportunity after escaping Bian Kingdom. The available choices are Certain Gain, Innate Immortal Physique, and Immaculate Primordial Spirit; his choice is not shown here.
Gang Sha Path — Seventh-Turn Qi Refinement	44	Absorbs the Water Calamity Baleful Force obtained in Jianning City.
Gang Sha Path — Nine-Turn Qi Refinement Perfected	74 78	Reaches the ninth turn within roughly two months. Selecting Heaven-Reversing Nine Baleful Forces strengthens his nine manifestations severalfold.
Gang Sha Path — Tenth-Turn Qi Refinement	91	Refines the Ascension Heavenly Dipper in fifteen minutes, becoming the second person to reach the tenth turn. His strength and Dao status rise sharply, and his primordial spirit can leave his body.
Gang Sha Path — Ten-Turn Qi Refinement Perfected	92	Discovers his fourth life-bound divine ability, Great Cavern Yin-Spectacle Immortal Domain. Enhancing Myriad Coexistence lets him wield six divine abilities simultaneously.
Gang Sha Path — Early-Stage Celestial Person	181	Already attained by this chapter. Begins refining cinnabar yang fire qi and identifies the requirements for his next major advancement.
Outer Dao — First-Layer Qi Refinement	294	Uses the Great Unity True Qi Art and his Celestial Person Dao status to gather spiritual qi. His damaged root takes four hours to produce a single thread of spiritual power.
Outer Dao — Second-Layer Qi Refinement	307	Already attained. The Bloodlight Formation leaves this low-level cultivation unchanged while suppressing his Gang Sha imagoes.
Gang Sha Path — Mid Celestial Person	325	Incorporates Earth of the Fifth, balancing his domain’s volatile forces. Its land, central mountain, and Immortal Palace expand; ding fire becomes stabilizing palace lamps.
Outer Dao — Ninth-Layer Qi Refinement, Great Perfection	385	Achieved during three months on Sun-Moon Cliff after his spiritual root recovers enough to support sustained cultivation.
Gang Sha Path — Spring Harmony Scene formed	484	Transforms Three Calamities Return-to-Origin Divine Radiance into a divine wonder that progressively slows opposing techniques.
Gang Sha Path — Late Celestial Person	616	Places gui water in the Central Immortal Mountain as a stream, connecting the domain’s previously separate elements. Selects Malice Growth after the breakthrough.
Gang Sha Path — Celestial Person Perfection	800 804	His Dao status rises, narrowing the gap with established Perfection-level opponents. A strand of jia wood supplied by the True Lord of Ten Thousand Cycles of Balance contributes to the breakthrough.
Gang Sha Path — Heaven-Toppling Left-Hand Path selected	801	Gains a talent that could eventually let him attain True Lord status and then reach Great Immortal Lord or Divine Lord, combining the pinnacles of two traditions. It provides potential rather than immediate power.
Outer Dao — Mid-Stage Foundation Establishment	864	The starting level of his overnight cultivation session; the earlier breakthrough is not shown in the supplied material.
Outer Dao — Foundation Establishment Perfection	864	Advances from mid-stage in four double-hours while cultivating in the Crimson Firmament Rosy Radiance Realm.
Outer Dao — Early-Stage Golden Core	872	Survives heavenly thunder by absorbing it into a lightning bead and condenses his golden core. His spatial traversal range increases to roughly three hundred meters.
Outer Dao — Late-Stage Golden Core	896	Reaches this stage during ten quiet days at the White Estate. His restored root and Beholding the Demon greatly accelerate cultivation.
Qi Sea Unity Path — Ninth-Level Qi Gathering	901	Rapidly gathers True Mist Cloud Qi using the Mist-Sea Layered Tower Heaven-Splitting Scripture.
Qi Sea Unity Path — Source Lifting	901	Converts gathered qi into Source Qi on his first attempt, completing both advances in roughly half a day.
Outer Dao — Mid-Stage Nascent Soul	943	Already attained when the Black-Robed Demon King attacks.
Outer Dao — Late-Stage Nascent Soul	943	Refines battlefield remnant souls through the Heavenly Yin Jade Scenery Seal, together with surrounding spiritual energy.
Outer Dao — Nascent Soul Perfection	943	Continues the same refinement session and advances another minor stage before offering to assist Xie Jingxin.
Outer Dao — Early-Stage Purple Mansion	950	Reaches a new major realm during seclusion in the imperial treasury.
Qi Sea Unity Path — Peak Fate Lord	950	Cultivates the path after his Purple Mansion breakthrough, stopping at the barrier before Spirit Calamity.
Outer Dao — Middle Stage Purple Mansion	990	Improves the quality of his Magic Power. The breakthrough feels subtle because his purple mansion is already exceptionally large.

Spiritual Root Restoration

Condition / Grade	Chapter	Effect
Original immortal spiritual root extracted	17 115 319	The Eastern Bian Li Clan nearly kills him by removing it. Li Zhongshuang identifies the Supreme Unity Heavenly Dipper she refined as originally his root.
Low-grade black-tier	381	Restored sufficiently to convert slightly more than ten percent of his imago into Sword Qi without obstruction and resume Outer Dao cultivation.
Mid-grade black-tier → low-grade earth-tier	484	Refining taihu dragonheart grass improves the connection between his Sword Qi and imago.
Mid-grade earth-tier five-element root	864	A White Saint Fruit delivered by Bai Fu raises its grade.
Top-grade earth-tier	896	Reached after refining usable materials, including resources taken from the Nether Extinction Heavenly Palace. Beholding the Demon makes his aptitude equivalent to a pseudo-heavenly root.
Low-grade heavenly-tier	921	With the Sun-Eroding Demon King Palace’s enhancement, his cultivation aptitude becomes equivalent to mid-grade heavenly-tier.

Background / History

Bian Kingdom is the first country Zhang Yuan enters after arriving in the Azure Sky Dust-Stained Realm. Originally possessing an immortal spiritual root, he suffers a life-threatening injury when the Eastern Bian Li Clan extracts it. Xiao Yuanjun saves him and becomes his master. The missing root remains a lasting obstacle: even when he understands sword cultivation correctly, he initially cannot forge genuine Sword Qi 115 319 360.

His early cultivation relies on the Congenital True Law of Self-Transcendence and the Gang Sha Path rather than his damaged Outer Dao foundation. His unusually rapid progress repeatedly forces him to conceal his realm. Later, spiritual-root restoration allows him to develop the Qi Refinement to Immortality Path, while Chi Guanguan supplies the guidance needed to add the Qi Sea Unity Path 28 381 896 901.

Appearance

Zhang Yuan is described as a young man with impressive looks and an otherworldly bearing. His clothing changes considerably across his travels, often serving as a disguise or concealing protective equipment 49 936.

• Crimson wedding clothing: Draws scrutiny at Jianning’s gate and frightens Liu Yulan into mistaking him for a ghost 34 44.
• Moon-white and white Daoist robes: Become recognizable enough for Wei Jianxing to identify him during a distant battle 567 941.
• Transformable armor: Uses Radiant Colors to make the Bright Yang Glory-Bearing Armor resemble a moon-white, sky-blue feather robe 197.
• Later traveling attire: Wears numerous items at his waist and a steel sword measuring four feet seven inches across his back 936.

Personality

Zhang Yuan is cautious without being passive. He uses divination, concealed cultivation, false identities, and powerful patrons to reduce risk, but accepts that advancement requires fighting for opportunities. In Jianning, he chooses the useful Water Calamity Baleful Force over a much more dangerous contest for the Demon-Subduing Heavenly Dipper 28 38.

His principles are specific rather than universally merciful. He refuses to steal someone else’s spiritual root to repair himself, rejects attacking civilians for military merit, and honors promises even when abandoning them would be safer. Against active enemies, however, he readily uses deception, overwhelming force, and soul-destroying attacks 83 105 115 644.

He is irreverent, acquisitive, and frequently self-justifying. Spirit Stones can abruptly soften his threatening performance, while sparing an opponent becomes evidence—in his own estimation—of exceptional moral character. His playful exchanges with companions coexist with a dangerous intolerance of intimidation and humiliation 78 366 387 917.

Abilities & Skills

Congenital True Law of Self-Transcendence

His principal Gang Sha cultivation method supports exceptionally fast refinement and an individualized approach to developing his Dao Domain 28 233.

• Refines the Ascension Heavenly Dipper in fifteen minutes 91.
• Grants talent-selection opportunities as his cultivation and Dao status advance 92 325 616.
• Lets him prioritize domain development and future flexibility instead of immediately using every refined qi to raise his realm 233.
• Rapid realm advancement does not automatically provide deep Daoist attainment; he acknowledges that Xiao Yuanjun greatly exceeds him in this respect 78 181.

Golden Chariot

His first life-bound divine ability provides long-distance travel, escape, and an offensive carriage manifestation 15 310.

• Can carry him a thousand miles away with a thought 15.
• Conceals him from heavenly divination while the ability is in use, not continuously 15.
• Can empower his body for flight or manifest a carriage that crashes down on opponents 38 310.

Myriad Coexistence

A life-bound ability manifested through iron chains, with applications extending from restraint to shared power and connections between people 49 117 207.

• Binds opponents, intercepts attacks, and provides emergency treatment for his injuries 58 78.
• Maintains an indirect connection with Xiao Yuanjun, allowing him to check her safety 34 196.
• Xiao Yuanjun’s rank helps him safely refine the Lamp-Lighting Oil-Adding Pill, ordinarily too dangerous for a Qi Refinement cultivator 117.
• When enhanced by his Immortal Domain at the tenth turn, supports six simultaneous divine abilities 92.
• Can establish a lethal bond: Zhang Yuan considers controlling bound enemies’ lives even across enormous distances 341.
• Is not an infallible communication or summoning method; repeated attempts to send Xiao Yuanjun coordinates fail at the Dharma Assembly 207.

Great Cavern Yin-Spectacle Immortal Domain

His fourth life-bound divine ability raises Dao status and empowers other abilities beyond their normal limits. It later develops into a highly customized Dao Domain 92 233 325.

• Molten sea: Cinnabar yang fire qi forms a southern sea capable of melting a Celestial Person’s dharma body 233.
• Bladed vegetation: Xin metal qi hardens the central mountain’s plants and conceals their cutting edges 233.
• Stabilizing earth: Earth of the Fifth enlarges the domain and balances its volatile elements 325.
• Nourishing water: Gui water becomes a stream and rain, connecting its elemental aspects into a circulating system 616.
• Recovery: Supplies vitality to repair his damaged dharma body, though distance and a weak connection sharply restrict the flow 888 990.
• Risk: Raising his power too far beyond what he can withstand could destroy him; Xiao Yuanjun stops one such proposed experiment 92.

Offensive Radiance and Sword Qi

Zhang Yuan combines Three Calamities Return-to-Origin Divine Radiance with Fivefold Body-Rending Qi, often channeling both through a sword 81 632.

• Initially imitates sword qi and sword light by combining qi and radiance into a single slash, helping conceal how many divine abilities he possesses 81 113.
• Learns genuine Sword Qi cultivation from the Tai Bai Weapon-and-War Sword Scripture 115.
• Uses the Lamp-Lighting Oil-Adding Pill to convert and store Imago qi as Sword Qi despite his damaged root 117.
• Before further root restoration, calls himself only “half a sword cultivator” because he cannot freely turn all his imago into Sword Qi 310.
• Genuine Sword Qi can penetrate exceptionally tough True Dragon bodies that resist ordinary attacks 633 804.
• Against Wenren Shangzhi, abandons an unfavorable fistfight and uses his sword to sever the dragon’s arm 804.

Divine Wonders

Wonder	Applications and Limits
Spring Harmony Scene	Progressively slows opposing techniques; after two hours beneath its radiance, heaven and earth fall still 484.
Reaching the Subtlety of Heaven	Draws power across time and space. Through Xiao Yuanjun’s manifestation, borrows Dusk Veil and Myriad Forms Change at roughly his own late Celestial Person level 653.
Yellow Springs Drink and Arrive / Yellow Springs Arrival	In his attack on Wenren Shangzhi, allows a sword strike to bypass space-time restrictions 653.
Self-borrowing through Reaching the Subtlety of Heaven	Later uses his own power as a bridge, temporarily raising available imago from second-turn to seventh-turn Qi Refinement level; this is not a permanent cultivation breakthrough 986.

Perception, Divination, and Concealment

• Heaven’s Sight / Heavenly Vision: Shows possible futures and helps assess the danger of a proposed course of action 10 38.
• Read People: Reveals identifying tags, including rare gold and multicolored tags. Seeing a tag does not necessarily tell him its meaning or expose the person’s thoughts 17 22.
• Karmic assessment: Verifies information, investigates relationships, identifies potential attackers, and detects responsibility for past events 366 487 510 803.
• Severing Past and Present, Leaving No Trace: Conceals aura and karma, erases traces of killings, and supports the Past-Life Body technique used to rescue Chen Qinkuai 40 281 329.
• Dao-status concealment: Can prevent lower-status observers from identifying him without using an ordinary concealment spell 866.
• Limits: Superior treasures can pierce his concealment, and his injured dharma body restricts precise divination 95 878.

Selected Talents

Talent	Documented Effect
Immaculate Primordial Spirit	Clears his consciousness and protects him from spiritual or mental influence, including Sun Wulie’s heart fire 95 281.
Heaven-Reversing Nine Baleful Forces	Strengthens the manifestations of his nine refined forces severalfold upon selection 74.
Spring Breeze Caress	Influences treasures as well as personal relationships. Zhang Yuan hopes its affinity will aid future dealings with Metal Positions 160 197.
greatest of all time and ancestor of earth immortals	Together suppress the imagoes of the assembled Wenshui Deng Celestial People by forty percent during a confrontation involving Earth of the Fifth 369.
Malice Growth	Increases killing power as his malice grows, but hollows out the body and increases the imago required for divine abilities 616 840.
Heaven-Toppling Left-Hand Path	Expands his future potential to attain the highest ranks of two cultivation traditions after first proving the Dao as a True Lord 801.

Outer Dao, Soul Cultivation, and Spatial Arts

• Great Qian Primordial Soul-Refining Scripture: A high-tier method supplied by the First God Cult Master. Converts wandering ghosts and remnant souls into cultivation resources 856 943.
• Heavenly Yin Jade Scenery Seal: Stores and refines immense soul power, enabling his rapid advancement through the later Nascent Soul stages 943.
• As the Emperor Personally Walked: Initially permits spatial hops of up to three meters; reaching Golden Core extends this to approximately three hundred meters 864 872.
• Void Escape: His Celestial Person power lets him shatter space and move through it despite an outwardly low Outer Dao cultivation level 329.
• Three Netherworlds World-Devouring Great Hand Seal: Benefits from the higher-quality Magic Power gained at Middle Stage Purple Mansion 990.

Qi Sea Unity and Formation Arts

• Cultivates the Mist-Sea Layered Tower Heaven-Splitting Scripture, an ancient, high-tier method that gathers mist-cloud qi and sea qi 901.
• Can practice this path while simultaneously circulating his soul-refining scripture 901.
• Remains stalled at Peak Fate Lord when the Yin Luo Tranquil Radiance Palace lacks the qi required by his method 990.
• Learns formation principles from Chi Guanguan and can assess a Teleportation Array’s spatial stability, but does not regard himself as a master of Formation Dao 548 701.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Primordial Form-Absorbing — Life-bound weapon forged by the True Lord of the Ya East Cui. Changes between a flying sword, lightning spear, and twelve mystic orbs; Abyss Devouring refines other things’ imago to strengthen it 289 311.
• Lamp-Lighting Oil-Adding Pill — Innate Supreme Treasure kept inside his body. Heaven-Mending replenishes his innate foundation and nurtures body and soul; Qi-Hiding converts and stores Sword Qi 117.
• Five Directions Flags — Innate Supreme Treasures associated with five directions and elements. The Eastern Profound Sun Fusang Banner provides azure-lightning offense, while the Western Duguang Bridge-to-Heaven Banner partitions space for trapping and escape 295.
• Southern Flame-Bright Scarlet Radiance Banner — Intercepts an ambush arrow and burns away the attacker’s tree 307.
• Central True-Origin Emperor Banner — Acquired in a sealed treasure chamber; by the later First God Cult confrontation, Zhang Yuan deploys all five flags in the Innate Five-Direction Five-Element Grand Formation 496 595.
• Bright Yang Glory-Bearing Armor / Bright Yang Chengsheng Armor — Stores solar imagery for defense and changes its appearance through Radiant Colors. The Ya East Cui True Lord later removes its remaining Dragon Clan karma 197 219 289.
• Flying Light Sword — Its Light Leap effect lets the blade and Sword Qi travel through light, improving his ability to strike elusive targets 197.
• Celestial Season Orbs — Possesses twelve Spring and Summer orbs. Their weather-controlling power helps Xiao Yuanjun extinguish Sun Wulie’s heart fire 95 160 219.
• Nine-Vault Golden Separation Furnace — Outer Dao magical treasure containing potent pillfire, with combat and alchemical uses; Zhang Yuan initially lacks the knowledge to improve it 44.
• Immortal Ascension Platform — Innate Supreme Treasure capable of bestowing divine wonders, later given to him by the Great Heng Empress 623 644.
• Heng Emperor Primordial Ancestor Sword — Disguises this Innate Supreme Treasure as an ordinary Dharma Artifact and refuses Tan Yaozheng’s demand to return it 671.
• Golden long halberd — Linked to Divine Lord Chijian Zhoujun. Zhang Yuan uses it to support his claim of being Southern Heaven’s first Divine Lord 496 744.
• Thunder Pivot — Thunder Pearl used to threaten the Bright Rosy court and deter intervention 917 921.
• Protective bead bracelet — Chen Xinqiao replaces his previously used protective beads with a new bracelet before their farewell 644.
• Steel longsword — Keeps the two-handed sword despite learning a one-handed style. Zhao Lian and Xie Jingxin recognize it as Zhao Lian’s weapon taken by the Seventh Sun-Eroding Demon King 896 897.

Relationships

• Xiao Yuanjun — Master, rescuer, cultivation adviser, and closest traveling companion. Their bond combines deep trust, teasing familiarity, and her protective possessiveness; Zhang Yuan firmly denies that Qin Jieyu has replaced her as his master 17 92 149 244 295.
• Chen Xinqiao — Protects her from family coercion and the Wang Household. Her death motivates his pursuit of resurrection, and after her return she continues shielding him and urges him to take a safer path home 44 61 194 644.
• Li Huixi — Initially an argumentative source of intelligence, later an immensely powerful and possessive ally. Zhang Yuan promises to return and honor an agreement to marry Li Huixi if Chen Xinqiao is resurrected 22 34 207 385.
• Li Zhongshuang — The Li daughter linked to his original betrothal. Feels guilty after realizing she refined his extracted root, and is later ordered to watch him 17 207 244.
• Dongfang Caibai — Third Princess of Bian Kingdom, who selects him as consort. Li Huixi later severs their karmic connection 14 17 34.
• Cui Yuanxi — Close friend who considers him her best friend and shows romantic interest. He repeatedly protects her; her clan elders attempt to limit their closeness because of his powerful entanglements 57 159 361 455.
• Cui Zhaowei — Helps her pass Celestial Person Trials through Myriad Coexistence. Her parents encourage a closer relationship, while she comes to regard him as almost omnipotent 149 239 243.
• Jiang Peilan — Swordsmanship instructor and Cui Zhaowei’s mother. Diagnoses the missing-root obstacle to his Sword Qi and later becomes someone whose escort he seeks for protection 115 149 407.
• Cui Qiezhe — Ya East Cui ally who offers the treasure needed to begin repairing Zhang Yuan’s innate deficiency. Also pursues matchmaking arrangements involving Zhaowei 115 243.
• Cui Wenshan — Ally and grateful beneficiary of Zhang Yuan’s rescue. Once gathers ten Celestial People to avenge him and openly supports his closeness with Yuanxi 61 271 361.
• Qin Jieyu — Provides care and shelter but attempts to control his movements and discourage contact with unfamiliar women. Zhang Yuan acknowledges a karmic debt while refusing to recognize her as his master 289 294 295.
• Chi Guanguan — Ancient companion and adviser, frequently seated on his shoulder. Teaches him about formations and qi, helps complete his Dao Domain, and arranges his Qi Sea Unity cultivation method 548 616 901.
• Qin Tianyi — Recurring ally and rival. Assists him during rescues, but later approaches him under apparent coercion while indirectly warning him about the Great Heng Empress’s gifts 160 271 588.
• Ao Xiu — Trusted True Dragon companion and the subject of Zhang Yuan’s promised escort. Zhang Yuan refuses to surrender or abandon Ao Xiu despite safer alternatives; Ao Xiu objects to being called a spirit pet 407 644 649.
• Tan Chencheng — Former guard employer and later friend. Seeks a more informal relationship and reminds him of his nominal imperial status 649 954.
• Xie Jingxin — Sword Saint who repeatedly protects him from stronger enemies. During his later recovery, checks on him daily 943 958 990.
• Zhao Lian — Bright Rosy princess who mediates his court conflicts and grants access to the imperial treasury. Their cooperation is tempered by her suspicion of his intentions 917 927.
• Wenshui Deng Clan — Major enemy, particularly Deng Qiuzhi’s branch. Other branches are less hostile; Deng Yici pursues a marriage proposal, while Deng Fuchuan considers drawing Zhang Yuan to his side 164 366 633.
• South Sea Dragon Clan — Persistent adversary following the death of one of its True Dragons and the dispute over Ao Xiu. Wenren Shangzhi repeatedly fights Zhang Yuan but also temporarily cooperates when opportunities align 383 633 656 804.
• First God Cult Master — Supplies Zhang Yuan’s later soul-refining method but becomes a dangerous antagonist. Zhang Yuan holds the cult responsible for his Dao Domain being cast into the Nether Bureau’s depths 840 856 958.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Bian Kingdom and the Forced Betrothals

• Uses Heaven’s Sight to discover two fatal futures connected to the Third Princess’s marriage contract and one route to becoming her consort 10.
• Becomes Dongfang Caibai’s selected consort while rejecting the Li Clan’s imposed betrothal 17 22.
• After the Bian imperial crisis, escapes for three days and nights, concealing his connection to the wanted Xiao Yuanjun 34.

Jianning and the Chen Household

• Exploits a tomb’s scattered treasures to obtain the Water Calamity Baleful Force, then impersonates Li Huixi to deter would-be robbers 38.
• Rescues Chen Qinkuai, stays with his household, and intervenes when relatives attempt to seize Chen Xinqiao 40 44.
• Investigates the Wang Household and brings Xinqiao to the Cui Residence, using information about Wang Dingzhong’s plans to enlist Cui Wenshan’s help 61.

Military Merit and the Tenth Turn

• Joins the fighting around Mystic Scenery City while disguising his true cultivation 78 81.
• Dismantles the formation at the Three Suns Altar and earns 120,000 military merit, while refusing civilian slaughter as a shortcut 83.
• Refines the Ascension Heavenly Dipper and explores beyond the Azure Sky Dust-Stained Realm in primordial-spirit form, surviving an attempted capture by a vastly stronger being 91 92.

Sword Cultivation and the Cui Connections

• Discovers that his extracted spiritual root prevents ordinary Sword Qi cultivation despite his rapid understanding of Jiang Peilan’s scripture 115.
• Refines the Lamp-Lighting Oil-Adding Pill and begins accumulating genuine Sword Qi 117.
• Helps Cui Zhaowei through her trials and supports Cui Yuanxi against threats surrounding her Celestial Person attainment 149 159 160.
• Gains a reputation in the Ya capital as the Sword Immortal who slew a True Dragon 243.

Mountain-Sea Black-Yellow Realm

• Awakens during the Azure Nether Immortal Sect’s recruitment ceremony and conceals his existing cultivation and karma 281.
• Finds his damaged spiritual root too inefficient for sustained Outer Dao progress, instead prioritizing treasures and his Celestial Person abilities 294 295.
• Overcomes a cultivation-suppressing formation, acquires Earth of the Fifth, and advances to mid Celestial Person 307 311 325.
• Defeats covert assassins whose assessments rely on his misleadingly low Outer Dao cultivation 329.

Sun-Moon Cliff and Renewed Pursuit

• Is presumed dead during three months in Bian Kingdom, while actually restoring his root and cultivating on Sun-Moon Cliff 381 385.
• Departs with Xiao Yuanjun while reaffirming his conditional marriage promise to Li Huixi 385.
• Takes temporary refuge in Hengyang Lu territory and seeks powerful allies to protect him once he leaves 407.

Great Heng, the First God Cult, and Sky Mountain

• Becomes entangled with Great Heng’s royal politics and the First God Cult, eventually holding nominal imperial and Holy Son positions 561 649 671.
• Completes the Five Directions formation, advances to late Celestial Person, and later reaches Perfection 595 616 800.
• At Sky Mountain, builds invincible momentum through successive battles and reaches the summit under severe pressure 840 845.
• Subsequently appears in the Crimson Firmament Rosy Radiance Realm with a weakened foundation. Later identifies the First God Cult as responsible for his Dao Domain’s displacement into the Nether Bureau 850 958.

Crimson Firmament Rosy Radiance Realm

• Adapts to the realm’s abundant ghosts by cultivating the Great Qian Primordial Soul-Refining Scripture 856.
• Restores more of his spiritual root, reaches Golden Core, and adds the Qi Sea Unity Path under Chi Guanguan’s guidance 864 872 896 901.
• Defies the Bright Rosy court, later serving as the kingdom’s acting ruler and using its treasury to strengthen himself 917 927 954.
• Refines battlefield remnant souls to reach Nascent Soul Perfection, then advances into Purple Mansion 943 950.
• Continues recovering alongside Chi Guanguan and Xie Jingxin. By Middle Stage Purple Mansion, his dharma body is functional but still far from its former peak 990.

Notable Quotes

“A cultivator ought to hide his cultivation, then ruthlessly cross cultivation tiers downward to fight!” 28

“I’m half a sword cultivator.” 310

“If it’s a long story, make it short. Otherwise, I can’t guarantee your life will be long.” 623

Trivia

• His declaration that he is “invincible in the early stages” is misheard by Jiang Le’an as a reference to an ex-wife 307.
• The Wenshui Deng celebrate his presumed death for a week, only for him to reappear alive after cultivating on Sun-Moon Cliff 385 401.
• Claims to be Southern Heaven’s first Divine Lord while recruiting the Profound Ancestor. The passage presents this as strategic posturing, not a documented Divine Lord breakthrough 744.
• His campaign against the Demon King Palaces coexists with mundane financial problems: shortly before his Golden Core breakthrough, he cannot afford breakfast and accepts shared meat buns 868.