Lin Cheng

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Lin Cheng (林成)
Alias(es)	Boss Lin 6 185
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Paranormal Forum — founder and leader 185
Occupation/Role	Ghost Handler; directs the Forum’s recruitment, supernatural operations, and territorial strategy 32 112 189
Base of Operations	Paranormal Forum Tower in Dachang City; also operates through its Dahai City branch 63 189
Territory	Dachang and Dahai cities initially; the Forum holds the southeast after Headquarters collapses 23 176
Status	Alive; preparing the final phase of an undisclosed plan 238
First Appearance	Chapter 6 — shown conducting a system check-in in his Dachang City office 6

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Five supernatural presences in balance	6	His first documented state contains five distinct supernatural presences maintaining a flawless balance. Their full identities are not disclosed.
Ghost Submarine — 60% paranormal intensity	24 51	Withstands Old Qin’s probe by using three entities together. At Huanggang Village, pressure at this intensity cannot stop the Ghost Messenger.
Ghost Submarine — 61%	93	A check-in adds 1%, dramatically expanding his Ghost Domain. He transports his companions to Dajing City and manifests an upside-down ocean over the city.
Ghost Tide restored in full	170	Zhou Deng returns the power Lin had lent him. Lin combines four vengeful ghosts at peak strength with the Ghost Fish’s reboot, escalating his tsunami to ten thousand meters.
Ghost Submarine — 65%	221	Several consecutive sign-ins increase its strength; the latest reward adds 2%. His internal ghosts are described as forming a perfect closed loop.

Background / History

Lin Cheng founded the Paranormal Forum several years before Yue Yan’an meets him. He had also visited the Caesar Hotel years earlier and nearly died there, giving him firsthand knowledge of its dangers and an existing connection with the Tall Male Corpse 58 185.

Six months before the Huanggang Village incident, Lin clashed with Headquarters and was believed by Feng Quan to have died. His survival and subsequent control of Dachang City overturn Feng’s understanding of the balance between Headquarters and the Forum 52.

His dealings with Headquarters secure extensive concessions: two supernatural items, access to its files, territory covering Dachang and Dahai, one hundred Ghost Candles, and ten million in cash. Old Qin later challenges how much Lin obtained in exchange for incomplete information 23.

Appearance

Lin Cheng is a young man with deep-blue eyes, usually presented in casual clothing rather than formal organizational attire 6 63.

• Plaid pajamas: Wears them to Headquarters meetings and confrontations, disregarding the setting’s formality 93 110.
• Distorted surroundings: The air around him visibly warps under his supernatural power 6.
• Intangible form: His body becomes translucent or insubstantial when using the Ghost Submarine 46 169.
• Signs of strain: Extreme exertion leaves him pale; his prolonged consciousness battle with Zhang Lei produces visible sweating 173 175.

Personality

Lin is relaxed, sarcastic, and openly dismissive of institutional ceremony. He treats a requested trip to Dajing City as a vacation, arrives in pajamas, and takes the head seat at a Headquarters conference table without asking permission 59 93 96.

He is also controlling and willing to manipulate people directly. He circumvents his promise not to attack the Cockroach Club by using recruits who have not formally joined the Forum, rewrites Feng Quan’s loyalty, and implants a fictitious family history in Qian Jun. His amusement at the Human Skin Paper’s victims exposes a particularly callous side 14 39 46 52.

His treatment of subordinates combines protection with deliberate exposure to danger. He lets Yang Jian face difficult incidents to develop independence, but confiscates a weapon Yang cannot safely use and later explicitly orders him to retreat from unmanageable threats. As the crisis worsens, Lin prioritizes keeping capable members alive over sending everyone into combat 25 58 187 188 207 238.

Abilities & Skills

Check-In System and Sky Screen Access

Lin possesses a system that supplies supernatural puzzle pieces, equipment, and increases to his existing power 6 93 221.

• Receives the Ghost Hand, special communication earpieces, Ghost Submarine upgrades, and the dormant Ghost Flesh Ball through check-ins 6 93 221.
• Can summon private Sky Screen split-screen views and request recorded footage, including Ning Rongrong’s replay 25 111.
• Is warned when the Douluo Continent’s law attempts to broadcast his location and is offered a concealment option 6.
• Uses Sky Screen information to monitor distant incidents without immediately intervening 207.

Ghost Submarine and Deep Blue Ghost Domain

The Ghost Submarine produces Lin’s ocean-like Ghost Domain, combining deep-sea pressure, large-scale movement, and intangibility 46 93 220.

• Deep Sea Pressure: Pins down Ghost Handlers and suppresses their supernatural abilities. At Headquarters, it also temporarily reduces recruits’ revival risks 94 220.
• Intangibility: Described as granting immunity to physical and supernatural attacks; Qian Jun’s Coiling Dragon Staff passes through him 46.
• Transportation: Moves Lin and others between cities through his domain 93 219.
• Scale: Covers Dajing City as an upside-down ocean; a later manifestation extends across the Asian continent 93 161.
• Containment: Holds suppressed ghosts, including the Name-Carving Ghost, but is nearly at capacity when Lin acquires it 66.
• Limits: The Ghost Messenger enters his domain despite its pressure, and large-scale use can cause backlash 51 188.

Ghost Tide and Tidal Return

The Ghost Tide supplies immense supernatural waves and a returning tide capable of removing negative conditions 170 190.

• Offensive waves: Forces Fang Shiming, Red Ning, and Ghost Douluo to flee when its full power returns 170.
• Selective suppression: Sweeps through Dachang without harming people or buildings while forcing active ghosts into dormancy 188.
• Restoration: Removes physical and mental exhaustion and resets dangerous ghost-awakening conditions among Forum members in Dahai 190.
• Power lending: Lin voluntarily transfers most of its power to Zhou Deng using a special item and the Thief Ghost. Zhou can release less than one-tenth of the Tide’s power, but it substantially improves his chances of survival 170.
• Cost: Combining it with his other ghosts at maximum output destabilizes Lin’s memories and consciousness 170.

Ghost Fish — Reboot

The Ghost Fish provides a seven-second reset, an ability Headquarters has observed during Lin’s previous operations 110.

• Retrieves it from the Ghost Messenger through the Ghost Brain, restoring his clarity and stopping the memory loss affecting him 52.
• Uses its reboot together with four ghosts at peak strength to escalate his tsunami against the Wish-Granting Ghost 170.
• Possesses reset power that Wang Xiaoming considers essential to the proposed Ghost Messenger fusion experiment 110 111.
• Does not disclose his full internal condition: Wang’s inference that repeated resets prove an imminent revival is largely incorrect 111.

Ghost Brain — Memory and Consciousness Manipulation

The Ghost Brain allows Lin to construct memories, alter allegiance, establish consciousness mediums, and rewrite supernatural logic 46 52 173 221.

• Fabricated identity: Makes Qian Jun believe Lin is his long-lost elder brother. A simple false memory fails under scrutiny, so Lin adds an elaborate lifetime of shared experiences 46 63.
• Loyalty alteration: Overwrites Feng Quan’s allegiance and adds memories intended to make Yue Yan’an loyal 52 185.
• Subconscious influence: Plants a preference for remaining with the Forum in Liu San instead of crudely rewriting his memories 221.
• Consciousness reinforcement: Multiplies Zhang Lei’s memories to strengthen his surviving human consciousness into a cage for the Wish-Granting Ghost 173.
• Supernatural redirection: Rewrites the Peddler’s logic, directing it northwest to obtain stock from Fang Shiming and Red Ning 221.
• Limits: A powerful ghost may detect forced memory changes and retaliate. Meng Xiaodong can also intrude into Lin’s constructed memories 66 67 221.
• Risk: The Zhang Lei procedure could destroy Zhang’s mind or expose Lin to reverse possession 173.

Ghost Balancing and Experimental Procedures

Lin helps others manage ghost revival by coordinating suppression, compatible puzzle pieces, and consciousness manipulation 58 68.

• Offers Yang Jian two possible routes to becoming a Different Kind: a safe Headless Paranormal Shadow route with severe emotional consequences, or a Ghost Baby route with only a thirty-percent success chance 58.
• Uses the Ghost Cabinet to stabilize Feng Quan before attempting to add the Name-Carving Ghost, employing the Ghost Spirit Tablet as a medium 68.
• Successfully completes Feng’s procedure, but warns that the resulting balance is fragile and that forgetting his name will allow the ghost to replace him 70.
• Investigates whether Soul Bones can become supernatural puzzle pieces and whether a Titled Douluo’s body can withstand powerful ghosts 25 46 67.
• Turns Zhang Lei’s combined Gluttonous and Wish-Granting Ghosts into a support resource for suppressing revival and helping proven members control a second ghost 187 188.

Lin is not a professional paranormal researcher. He relies heavily on experience and overwhelming force, while recognizing the potential of Wang Xiaoming’s more systematic theories 96.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Special Communication Earpieces / Custom Earpieces — System-provided communicators that ignore distance and supernatural interference. They allow contact even through Headquarters’ isolated Golden House 6 114 150.
• Coffin Nail — An item Ye Zhen requests for A Wu’s revival problem; Lin later gives one to Yang Jian for emergencies 66 188.
• Ghost Spirit Tablet — Retrieved beside the Ghost Coffin at Huanggang Village; used as a consciousness medium during Feng Quan’s control procedure 68.
• Firewood Cleaver — Takes it from Yang Jian because its dismemberment curse also affects its user, making it unsafe for Yang’s current condition 58.
• Ghost Flesh Ball — A dormant sign-in reward that suppresses awakening by stealing paranormal power. Lin gives it to Liu San; continued use accelerates its revival and can turn a user into another flesh ball 221 222.
• Ghost Hand puzzle piece — Receives it through check-in and identifies it as a suitable addition for Yang Jian’s powers 6.
• Figurine collection — Keeps dozens of figurines on a rosewood bookshelf. A hole appearing in the Ye Zhen figurine’s chest alerts him to Ye’s injury; the mechanism is not explained 9.

Relationships

• Yang Jian — Protégé and major Forum fighter. Lin supplies guidance, arranges growth opportunities, and leaves contingencies for consciousness-based threats. He later orders the creation of a weapon tailored specifically to Yang 58 100 213 241.
• Ye Zhen — Powerful ally and Forum leader who consults Lin about A Wu’s condition. Lin appoints him to guard the Cemetery and relies on him to lead the corridor convoy 66 67 207.
• A Wu — Forum second-in-command and operational manager. Coordinates Lin’s deployments and carries out the costly Connection Plan 113 219.
• Liu Xiaoyu — Operator and intelligence coordinator. Uses Lin’s clearance, relays emergency reports, and immediately implements his S-rank mission order 25 112 161.
• Wang Xiaoming — Initially a rival negotiator who schemes to restrain and exploit Lin. After Headquarters collapses, Lin grants him full authority over Forum supplies and resource allocation 110 150 189.
• Feng Quan — Recruited under coercion and made loyal through memory alteration. Lin subsequently helps him control the Name-Carving Ghost and warns him about its identity-erasing danger 52 68 70.
• Douluo Qian Jun — Experimental subject brainwashed into treating Lin as his elder brother. Lin selects him as a possible host for Luo Qian’s complete Grave Soil Ghost 46 63 67.
• Zhou Deng — Trusted operative who receives borrowed Ghost Tide power. Lin responds to his pursuit by the Peddler and later forbids him from returning to work while badly injured 161 170 187.
• Zhang Lei — Central subject of Lin’s Wish-Granting Ghost experiment. After the crisis, Lin assigns him to strengthen and stabilize Forum members rather than fight in the field 110 173 187.
• Shen Lin — Memory-based core member and hidden contingency. Lin can implant his image through the Ghost Brain, enabling Shen to enter a consciousness battlefield 180.
• Old Qin — Powerful elder with whom Lin has both confrontations and outstanding favors. Lin calls in a debt to obtain help suppressing his hidden fifth ghost 23 24 151.
• Luo Qian — Agrees to Lin’s proposed inheritance experiment after receiving assurances that the Cemetery will remain protected 67.
• Liu San — Joins the Forum through practical cooperation, supplying paper doubles and intelligence. Lin secretly influences his allegiance and rewards him with the Ghost Flesh Ball 220 221 222.
• Ning Rongrong / Red Ning — Lin deliberately permits her apparent defection and helps clear the way for her independent faction. The later fused Red Ning acknowledges his contribution to her awakening and accepts owing him a favor 105 115 230.
• Li Yang — Personally cultivated as Luo Wensong’s successor and stationed undercover in the Ghost Painting. Lin recalls him for the next phase of his plan and rejects his willingness to sacrifice himself 237 238.
• Zhang Xianguang — Partner in an earlier Ghost Painting arrangement, but also a possible future adversary. Lin rejects the false peace envisioned by Zhang’s Peach Blossom Spring Project 223 237 238.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Arc	Lin Cheng’s role
School incident and Soul Master arrivals	Monitors Yang Jian remotely, allows Ning Rongrong to retain the Sheepskin Paper, and requires newcomers to survive a mission before joining the Forum 6 14 32.
Cockroach Club elimination	Uses unaffiliated Soul Master recruits to evade his agreement with Wang Xiaoming. Zhou Deng delivers the decisive blow, while Lin maintains a cover story that Headquarters cannot prove false 39 59.
Huanggang Village	Confronts the Ghost Messenger, recovers the Ghost Fish and Ghost Spirit Tablet, and ends the incident when the Messenger returns to its coffin. Recruits Feng Quan before leaving for the Caesar Hotel 51 52.
Caesar Hotel and Yang Jian’s transformation choices	Withdraws from a threat his borrowed ghost cannot handle, takes custody of the Firewood Cleaver, and explains the costs of becoming a Different Kind 56 58.
Cemetery inheritance experiment	Suppresses the Name-Carving Ghost, awakens Luo Qian, and negotiates for the complete Grave Soil Ghost to test Qian Jun’s suitability as a host 66 67.
Headquarters training and Soul Plan	Demonstrates citywide suppression, brings his members for theoretical training, and refuses to reveal his method of controlling multiple ghosts. Wang then attempts to retain him for the Ghost Messenger Plan 93 94 96 100 110.
War with the Circle of Friends	Orders the Forum’s highest-tier mission after discovering the infiltration of its headquarters. Retaliation also serves his hidden objective of improving Red Ning’s position 112 115.
Wish-Granting Ghost crisis	Rejects the ghost’s coercive game, seeks Old Qin’s help, and unleashes his restored Ghost Tide. Shatters the Ghost Mirror’s domain, forces the ghost dormant, and begins a dangerous mental struggle to restore Zhang Lei’s control 150 151 170 173.
Post-Headquarters rebuilding	Returns to an overstretched Forum, protects injured personnel, makes Zhang Lei a revival-suppression resource, and clears active ghosts from Dachang. Accepts Wang Xiaoming’s plan to connect the two main strongholds 187 188 189.
Connection Plan and Peddler operation	Supports the convoy against dangerous ghosts and resolves Zhou Deng’s Peddler pursuit by rewriting its logic. Liu San’s paper doubles subsequently secure the route and release exhausted handlers from guard duty 207 216 219 221.
Ghost Painting and final preparations	Identifies the escaped Ghost Painting, meets the newly fused Red Ning, and enters the painting to recall Li Yang. Plans to help Li Yang complete the Knocking Ghost before beginning his final project 223 230 237 238.

Notable Quotes

“Sure enough, Yang Jian lacks strategy, and Ye Zhen lacks sense.” 6

“I'm not running a daycare here.” 32

“I'm here.” 58

“In the Forum, staying alive matters more than anything.” 238