Western Wasteland

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Western Wasteland
Original Name	西荒
Alias(es)	Western Wastes; Western Wastes Cultivation World 2 32
Type	Cultivation region containing dozens of mortal kingdoms 1
Geographic Form	Originally shaped like a spindle laid on its side 32
Principal Cultivation Center	Jixia Immortal City, headquarters of the Defender Alliance 102
Political Organization	Kingdoms controlled behind the scenes by cultivation sects and lineages; regional alliances change over time 1 264 544
Status	Expanding southward and experiencing a recovery of spiritual energy after the disappearance of the Land of Deathly Silence 545
First Appearance	Chapter 1 1

Geography

Original Territory and Borders

Area	Geography and significance
Western extremity	Extends into the Cloudmist Mountains, with Windmist Immortal City marking the spindle-shaped region’s western tip 32.
Cloudmist Mountains	Vast mountains inhabited by demon beasts, venomous insects, and Demon Kings comparable to Core Formation cultivators. An earlier explorer traveled nearly a million li without finding their end 32 127.
Central region	Contains the Jiang Kingdom, slightly west of the region’s center. Several kingdoms and tens of thousands of li separate it from Windmist Immortal City 14 96.
Northern frontier	Yan and Liang border the Far North Grassland. Their borders stretch for tens of thousands of li and historically face Tuluo raids 32.
Eastern extremity	Several kingdoms became Demonic Path territory. Beyond them lies the Endless Vast Sea Desert, separating the region from a larger cultivation world 32.
Original southern boundary	The Forbidden Deathlands, also called the Land of Deathly Silence, formerly prevented settlement and exploration southward 32 545.

Southern Expansion

• The disappearance of the Land of Deathly Silence enlarged the Western Wastes Cultivation World by several hundred times, if not more 545.
• The newly exposed territory contains numerous spirit veins, including third-tier veins. Major Core Formation sects divided it into territories and began large-scale development 545.
• The expanded region reaches the Southern Sea, but extensions of the Cloudmist Mountains and Endless Vast Sea still block it to the west and east 545.

Major Locations

Location	Description
Windmist Immortal City	A major haven for rogue cultivators, founded after Windmist True Person killed a third-tier demonic wolf and claimed its spirit vein. The city spans a hundred li and originally had a third-tier protective formation 1.
Azure Dragon Mountain	Windmist Immortal City’s central third-tier spirit vein and the original cultivation grounds of Windmist True Person’s lineage. Its surrounding inner and outer districts have second- and first-tier veins respectively 1.
Jixia Immortal City	Located in the Qi Kingdom; the region’s leading cultivation center and the Defender Alliance’s headquarters 102.
Donghua Mountain	The Academy’s stronghold and the entrance site of the Qingyun Secret Realm. Its capture, joint administration, and eventual recovery are central to regional politics 151 202 458.
Qingyun Secret Realm	Former source of most principal ingredients for Foundation Establishment Pills and many valuable third-tier materials. Its destruction severely weakened the region’s cultivation economy 151 443 506 510.
Jiang Kingdom	A lake-and-hill kingdom divided by the north–south Jianglan River, also known as the Land of Waters. Initially controlled by the Jiang Lineage 1 96.
Heavenly Wound Immortal City	The Heavenly Roam Sect’s base in the Yan Kingdom, where Li Ping purchases intelligence after returning from the Far North 263.
Great Ning	Territory ruled by the Seven Immortals Sect, whose Core Formation cultivators include Wang Xingwei, Bai Qing, and Meng Wanjun 506 508.
Meishan City	Home to three allied families associated with Li Ping. It eventually becomes a Core Formation-level power and firmly controls the Jiang Kingdom 544.

Cultivation and Resources

Cultivation Ceiling

• Early in the story, not every kingdom has a Core Formation protector, and the existence of local Nascent Soul cultivators is uncertain 2.
• The region initially lacks a fourth-tier spirit vein, making travel elsewhere necessary for cultivators pursuing higher realms 32.
• Core Formation is described as the region’s highest cultivation realm. Limited cultivation and lifespan also make fourth-tier craft inheritances difficult to develop locally 272.
• Core Formation late-stage cultivators receive distinctive honorifics, including Chixiaozi, You Yuzi, and Huang Yunzi. Some titles follow sect-specific naming traditions 443.
• Spiritual energy later begins recovering, and Donghua Mountain’s spirit vein is reported to be approaching the fourth tier 545.
• Li Ping nevertheless warns against attempting Nascent Soul formation locally: a powerful force once seized a demon beast during its transformation in the Cloudmist Mountains 545.

Spirit Land and Advancement

• Sects and lineages occupy the region’s graded spiritual lands. The Jiang Kingdom alone contains dozens of cultivation factions 1.
• Poor access to pills and suitable spirit land can prevent advancement for an entire lifetime; the Bai Family ancestor remains at early Foundation Establishment under such conditions 167.
• Before its destruction, the Qingyun Secret Realm supplies the vast majority of the region’s principal Foundation Establishment Pill ingredients, making control of it a regional lifeline 151.
• Under the Academy’s system, eligible Qi Refining family cultivators gather herbs in the realm for military merit, which can be exchanged for rewards such as Foundation Establishment Pills. Rogue cultivators are excluded 145.

Resource Decline and Trade

Resource category	Regional conditions
Qi Refining and Foundation Establishment supplies	Considerably cheaper than in Spirit Firmament City, making them profitable exports to Great Zhou 510.
Third-tier and higher materials	Scarce and expensive. After the Qingyun Secret Realm collapses, the region loses its only stable source of third-tier spirit materials 510.
Core Formation treasures	Difficult to obtain even with substantial funds because buyers must compete for limited supply; comparable treasures can be purchased directly in Great Zhou shops 510.
Imported high-tier resources	Teleportation trade supplies pills, treasures, and breakthrough aids to the Academy, Cloudtreading Sect, and Seven Immortals Sect 510 544 576.

Background / History

Early Order and Demonic Migration

Before the Four Demonic Sects arrived, righteous forces dominated the Western Wasteland. Native demonic cultivators survived by hiding in the Cloudmist Mountains or retreating to the grasslands. The region was not peaceful even then: sects fought over territory, while northern Otherfolk raided for resources 127 264.

The Four Demonic Sects and the Marquis of Xiping were exiled to the Western Wasteland together. The sects accepted the journey across the Vast Sea because the Marquis claimed to possess a teleportation formation connecting the region with Great Zhou. When he failed to appear for decades, the sects fought native powers for territory and unsuccessfully searched for the formation 315.

The Bloodshadow Sect’s conquest of the Nine Chariots Kingdom destroyed its ruling Heavenly Profound Sect. In the Evergreen Gazetteer, the Evergreen Hermit used this event to warn that the region’s nations needed to unite against demonic expansion. Li Ping noticed that the conquest and Windmist Immortal City’s founding occurred around the same period, but could not establish a connection 32.

Defender Alliance and Regional War

The Defender Alliance coordinated resistance to demonic cultivators, northern invaders, and beast tides from Jixia. Control of the Qingyun Secret Realm gave the Academy a particularly important position within the region 102 151.

When the six great Tuluo tribes marched south and the Four Demonic Sects prepared another invasion of the Yuan Kingdom, Xiao Changkong divided the alliance’s defensive responsibilities. His faction faced the demonic offensive, while Huang Yunzi and Chixiaozi organized aid for Yan and Liang 175. Northern preparations prevented the Tuluo surprise attack from succeeding, but the alliance’s eastern front fared much worse 183.

Xiao Changkong eventually crushed the grassland tribes, then fell when the Four Demonic Sects captured Donghua Mountain and took the Seal of All Beings. Following costly fighting, Lu Old Devil proposed making Donghua Mountain a joint market and sharing the Qingyun Secret Realm. The Academy opposed compromise but was outvoted 202 264.

Armed Peace and Demonic Withdrawal

Lu Old Devil’s departure left the Defender Alliance and Four Demonic Sects in a wary balance. Minor clashes continued, but large-scale battles involving Core Formation powers largely ceased for decades 264.

The calm later persisted for different reasons. Xiao Yunzhi, now Granny Suyue’s disciple, recovered the Seal of All Beings after Lu Old Devil’s death and promised to return. The alliance waited for her, while the Four Demonic Sects searched for an escape rather than provoke war 433.

After the Marquis of Xiping warned that Xiao Yunzhi and her Nascent Soul master would return, the Four Demonic Sects fled into the Vast Sea. Their departure did not end covert activity: the Nine Nether Sect placed the Formless Young Master inside the Crimson Flame Sect to gather intelligence 458.

Li Ping and Xu Guike’s Victories

Li Ping’s Desolate Fire Sparrow killed the Formless Young Master in a single strike. Chixiaozi’s refusal to challenge the combined strength of Li Ping and his bird led the gathered cultivators to recognize Li Ping as the Western Wasteland’s foremost cultivator 452.

Xu Guike then destroyed Purple Cloud Valley, Sword-Washing Pool, and Greenwood Sect to avenge his master, killing seven Core Formation cultivators. His achievement prompted debate over whether he or Li Ping deserved the region’s strongest-cultivator title 454.

These victories reshaped local rule. With Li Ping and Chixiaozi backing her, Ji Shuwen gained control of Yue, Chi, Ji, and Windmist Immortal City. The city subsequently entered a period of rapid development 506.

Peace, Decline, and Recovery

Li Ping’s killing of demonic and Tuluo Core Formation cultivators brought unusual peace to the surrounding regions. The weakened Tuluo faced attacks from other Otherfolk, whose own conflicts left Yan and Liang largely undisturbed 506.

Peace coincided with a weaker upper cultivation tier. Older Core Formation late-stage cultivators died, ambitious successors left for Great Zhou, and the Qingyun Secret Realm’s destruction deprived those who remained of high-grade materials. By this period, middle-stage Core Formation cultivators stood at the region’s highest resident level 506 508.

Teleportation trade later strengthened three leading factions, while younger Core Formation cultivators emerged and the older generation dwindled. The disappearance of the Land of Deathly Silence then opened an enormous southern territory and accompanied a broader recovery of spiritual energy 544 545.

Major Powers

Power	Regional role
Defender Alliance	Former coordinating body for the region’s kingdoms and sects; internal disagreements repeatedly limit its unity 175 202 286.
Academy	Original controller of Donghua Mountain and the Qingyun Secret Realm; later one of the three factions controlling teleportation trade 151 576.
Four Demonic Sects	Foreign powers that conquered eastern territories, severed the Great Zhou route, and later withdrew into the Vast Sea 32 197 458.
Crimson Flame Sect	Chixiaozi’s power base. Receives the Featherflame Kingdom as a warning post against a possible demonic return, in an arrangement restoring the Academy’s Donghua Mountain holdings 458.
Seven Immortals Sect	Ruler of Great Ning and a beneficiary of Great Zhou trade; develops into one of the region’s leading factions 508 544.
Cloudtreading Sect	Shares control of the Great Zhou teleportation formation with the Academy and Seven Immortals Sect 576.
Meishan City’s Three Families	Li Ping-associated lineages whose growth is supported by allied Core Formation figures and imported cultivation resources 464 544 576.

• Li Ping — A regionally influential cultivator whose reputation protects his associates, though he repeatedly declines opportunities to build a dominion or rule the Western Wasteland 335 443 506.
• Ji Shuwen and Yan Jing — Effectively govern the three kingdoms, Windmist Immortal City, and Jiang Kingdom under the protection of Li Ping’s reputation 506.
• Qi Hanmo — Proposes using the teleportation formation’s profits to rebuild a cooperative regional order. Ji Shuwen and Bai Qing instead favor retaining private control of the trade route 544.

Travel and External Connections

Travel Within the Region

• Wilderness routes expose travelers to demon beasts and robber cultivators. Li Ping considers the Jiang Kingdom–Windmist journey impossible for a lone Qi Refining cultivator; his first crossing uses a caravan led by a Foundation Establishment cultivator 14.
• During the joint Tuluo–demonic invasion, troop transfers north weaken security in the Central-Southern and Western Regions. Windmist becomes a comparatively safe refuge, provided no major beast tide occurs 189.

Great Zhou

Period	Connection
Before demonic migration	Flying boats travel regularly between the two cultivation worlds. Late-stage Core Formation cultivators go to Great Zhou to seek Nascent Soul opportunities 197.
Under the Four Demonic Sects	The sects cut off the established route, while threatened native leaders hesitate to leave their home sects 197.
Hidden teleportation route	A formation in the Cloudmist Mountains links the regions across hundreds of millions of li 286 508.
Destruction and repair	The Great Zhou end is destroyed after Li Ping and Meng Wanjun return. Li Ping later repairs the route and uses it to bring Teng Feng home 432 505.
Trade monopoly	The Academy, Cloudtreading Sect, and Seven Immortals Sect control the formation and exchange local resources for Great Zhou’s higher-tier supplies 510 576.

Far North

• Snowflight City lies toward the western side of the Far North; traveling south from it leads toward the Western Wasteland 211.
• A Foundation Establishment cultivator with sufficient spirit stones could make the southward journey by flying boat over several years 211.
• Li Ping’s return route crosses ice fields, deserts, Gobi, grasslands, and territories inhabited by the Snowfolk, Barbarians, Fire-Worshippers, Tuluo, and other Otherfolk 263.

Historical Accounts and Unresolved Claims

• Evergreen Gazetteer — A major account of the region’s geography and neighbors, combining the Evergreen Hermit’s firsthand exploration with older records and collected reports 32.
• Ancient spiritual abundance — Tuluo legends describe a world where ambient spiritual energy exceeded modern spirit veins, followed by a great upheaval. Li Ping considers the environmental decline plausible but doubts their account of human origins 32.
• Origin of the Forbidden Deathlands — Legend attributes the lifeless region to an ancient battle. The Hermit verifies its destructive aura, which kills mortals instantly and stops his own exploration before a hundred steps, but does not establish its cause 32.
• Minggu’s former rule — Minggu tells Teng Feng that he was once lord of the Western Wasteland before exile and poisoning reduced him to a remnant soul 71.
• Marquis of Xiping’s territorial claim — Lu Old Devil claims the Sacred Emperor granted the Western Wasteland to the Marquis. Xiao Changkong rejects Lu’s authority to speak for him 153.