Chen Mu

Biodata

Power Progression

Soul Power

Swordsmanship Development

Heavenly Prodigy Ranking

Background / History

Chen Mu belongs to the Chen Clan’s Jade branch. His father is Chen Hua, his mother is Ma Suyun, and his paternal grandparents are Chen Cong and Mu Lingyun. Unlike his father and grandfather, who are Control Type Soul Masters, he follows the Agility Attack Type path because his temperament is unsuited to control-type cultivation 4 69.

Chen Feng is only a few months older. The two sparred repeatedly from childhood, developing a close friendship and exceptionally smooth combat coordination. While Chen Hua spent much of his time away, Ma Suyun devoted herself to Chen Mu and also helped care for Chen Feng 78 102 830.

His enrollment at Chang’an Academy marks a departure from the clan’s previous practice of keeping its members away from the nearby imperial institution. Chen Xiaojun interprets the choice as part of the family’s decision to emerge publicly 596.

After demonstrating his own swordsmanship breakthroughs, Chen Mu chooses specialization rather than Chen Feng’s broader sword-formation path. He intends to preserve the clan’s pure agility-attack lineage, develop the Lone Peak sword art, and seek Chen Cong’s help in making the fourteenth sword accessible to more clansmen 837.

Appearance

• Handsome, youthful features: Described as combining distinguished-family nobility with youthful good looks 826 1938.
• Swordlike brows: Sharpen noticeably when he discusses Winter’s potential 1867.
• Composed public bearing: Carries himself with the elegance and measured conduct expected of a prominent clan’s young master 820 826.
• Distinctive accessory: Wears a silver-threaded, cloud-patterned hair ribbon during the journey to the Provincial Preliminary 1374.

Personality

Chen Mu is irreverent and theatrical among relatives, but refined and methodical before outsiders. His arena poetry and confident taunts earn him the nickname “Divine Show-off Mu,” while his family knows him as a habitual clown. His lighthearted manner does not reflect a lack of effort: he trains hard, and his mastery of the Lone Peak Thirteen Swords is attributed to comprehension and perseverance 69 820 821 826.

He and Chen Feng remain optimistic despite growing up amid stronger peers and frequent defeats. Their outlook is peaceful but unyielding. Chen Mu can acknowledge a superior opponent without bitterness, as shown when he gracefully concedes to Xixi, although he remains fiercely competitive with Chen Feng and Shan Wei 826 830 914 1653.

His jokes also conceal a perceptive mind. He recognizes Chen Xiaojun’s conception-level techniques, questions the deeper purpose behind his tactics, and is credited by Chen Shurui with seeing through plans while deliberately playing along 949 972.

Chen Mu is protective of his companions but pragmatic toward people brought under clan authority. He suffers injuries defending the younger boys and Chen Xiaojun, yet tells Winter that freedom and better treatment must be earned by proving his worth. He offers security and cultivation resources without promising unconditional release, and responds harshly when captives organize unrest 947 1857 1864 1915 1932.

Abilities & Skills

Seven Kill Sword and Agility-Attack Combat

• Favors rapid, precise attacks against vulnerable areas such as joints, the neck, and throat 69 929.
• Uses offense as defense, striking directly into an enemy technique’s critical point rather than relying solely on evasion 102 1533 1534.
• Identified as the fastest member of the younger generation during the Bone-Digging Corps battles 1833 1927.
• Can combine speed with substantial striking force, as demonstrated when his opening assault nearly knocks Yang Yanyu’s Soul Breaking Spear from his hands 1413.

Soul Skills

• First — Sword Wings Like Flight: Increases both his movement speed and the Seven Kill Sword’s speed. Despite its name, it does not independently grant flight 69 824.
• Second — Sword Falls, Lone Wild Goose: An explosive rapid attack used to sever earth pillars, disrupt Feng Sha’s wind vortex, and intercept an assassin targeting Chen Xiaojun 69 1533 1833.
• Third — Plum Blossoms Ninefold: Produces nine sword blossoms, expandable into eighty-one attacks. He can adjust the output for precision; its later Sword Radiance manifestation cuts apart a Soul Emperor-powered Abyssal Soul Spider Web 824 929 1927.
• Fourth — Seven Kill Annihilation: Combines sword qi with a mental attack. Its compatibility with the Slaughter Character Art makes it especially effective as an amplified finishing strike 929.
• Fifth — Rainbow Soaring Beyond the Heavens: Uses his ten-thousand-year fifth ring to form a large, seven-colored light sword carrying concentrated sword radiance 1531.

Lone Peak Swordsmanship

• Core style: Broad, sweeping attacks built around speed, explosive power, and relentless pressure 69 102.
• Documented moves: Jade Balance Cloud-Piercing, Lone Peak Heavenfall, Stone-Shattering Heaven-Shocker, Light Through the Clouds, and Shadow Stirs a Thousand Mountains 756 964 1413 1533.
• Darkness Without Daylight: Obstructs opponents’ five senses and can cut off stellar-attribute effects, weakening Starfall Academy’s skills, recovery, and defenses. Against Shan Wei, it creates oppressive darkness capable of rending space 1412 1652.
• Limits: His fourteenth sword initially exceeds his control. Later, he struggles with the sixteenth sword’s subtle variations and conception; attempting Yin-Yang imbalance also raises the danger of injuring himself 829 1043.

Movement and Breathing Techniques

• Sword Shadow Form: Combines with Sword Wings Like Flight and footwork to enhance his speed and counter an opponent’s pressure 69 824.
• Sword Steps: Uses Starstream Thunderstrike, Swift Body—Flying Wild Duck, and Lotus Sway in a Square Inch for acceleration and close-range evasion 69 824 1413.
• Seven Stars Step: Uses the Heavenly Rose step’s three rapid directional changes to evade multiple lock-on attacks 1533.
• Thunder Breathing: Employs Thunderclap Flash, including its Godspeed variant, for explosive movement and attacks 1413 1421.
• Wind Breathing: Uses Dust Tornado: Cleaving Slash, Cold Autumn Falls on Mountain Wind, and Skanda Typhoon 824 1413 1421.
• Combined application: Layers Thunderclap Flash—Godspeed with Skanda Typhoon to create a lightning tornado thirty meters across 1421.

Profound Arts and Recovery

• My Body Is a Sword: Manifests an ancient-looking Seven Kill Sword phantom and amplifies his attacks 929.
• Slaughter Character Art: Adds concentrated killing intent, strengthening Seven Kill Annihilation’s offensive and mental components 929.
• Big Dipper Art and Healing Chapter: Practices alongside Chen Bin and Chen Shurui; their resonant Stellar Soul Power is used to support his recovery after serious injuries 947.

Leadership and Talent Assessment

• Leads Chang’an Academy’s tournament lineup and studies opposing teams’ formations, including Changyu Academy’s anti-control strategy 1374 1376.
• Leads a piercing assault that collapses the Wolf Bandits’ front-left defensive line 958.
• Assesses rescued children’s soul power and martial souls, recognizing Winter’s Iceblood Dragon as near ninth grade 1861 1864.
• Understands distinctions between rare attributes, explaining annihilation’s erosion of living beings versus destruction’s violent breakdown of matter and energy 1867.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Raised Brow Sword: The name used for his Seven Kill Sword when he fights Zhu Wukui 69.
• Nethersea Seven Kill Sword: Moved into his newly opened middle soul nest after his medicinal enhancement 824.
• Inheritance-Level Soul Bone quota: Receives the right to exchange for a clan soul bone but postpones redeeming and absorbing it to continue refining his Soul Ancestor foundation 1374.

Relationships

• Chen Xiaojun — Younger clan brother, sixth in seniority, and one of his closest companions. Provides sword-development advice while frequently teasing him and assigning him demanding work 600 826 1043 1374.
• Chen Feng — Slightly older childhood companion, coordinated fighting partner, and competitive rival. Chen Mu particularly enjoys surpassing him on the Heavenly Prodigy Ranking 78 102 914.
• Chen Cong — Paternal grandfather and mentor. Recognizes the significance of his self-created sword and hears his plans to develop the agility-attack lineage 69 830 837.
• Chen Hua — Father. Chen Mu jokes about him but becomes visibly subdued when reprimanded; Chen Hua personally tests whether his son has neglected training 1049 1050.
• Ma Suyun — Mother. Devotes substantial attention to him during Chen Hua’s absences and takes pride in his breakthrough against Xixi 830.
• Mu Lingyun — Paternal grandmother, belonging to the Green Lotus Mu Family 4 527 1386.
• Chen Yanwu — Eldest clan sister and childhood idol. Her authority still makes him instinctively straighten up and behave, even after major tournament victories 67 1535.
• Chen Bin and Chen Shurui — Younger clan brothers whom he protects at considerable personal cost; they help support his recovery through shared cultivation 947.
• Mu Zizhu — First cousin, daughter of his paternal aunt Mu Xuan. She complains about the gap between his level 49 and her level 42 1386.
• Zhu Wuneng — Companion and frequent target of his teasing. Zhu Wuneng confidently supports him against Tang Xiao; their later banter ends with Chen Mu threatening to drink him under the table 820 1988.
• Xixi — Familiar opponent who defeats his strongest revealed sword. He accepts the loss courteously, and she acknowledges his first-rate ability 829 830.
• Shan Wei — Rival and friend born on the same day, month, and year. Neither reveals his birth hour, so they use sword duels to settle seniority 1653 1661.
• Winter — Rescued captive whose shackles he removes. Offers clan resources in exchange for demonstrating potential and recognizes his exceptional Iceblood Dragon martial soul 1864.
• Bi Qingxiu — Exchanges playful teasing with him and reveals her true face, calling him the first outsider to see it. His advice about worth and freedom leaves a lasting impression on her 1932.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Early Clan Training

• Fights the older, higher-ranked Zhu Wukui, displaying his first two soul skills and agility-focused swordsmanship 69.
• Partners with Chen Feng in a martial-techniques-only spar against Zhao Mingsheng. Their complementary offense and field control secure victory and impress Chen Xiaojun 102.

Public Arena and the Seven Stars

• Defeats Tang Xiao after sustaining pressure with the Lone Peak Thirteen Swords, then halting his thirty-six-strike Chaotic Cloak attack head-on with Skanda Typhoon 820 824.
• Faces Xixi and publicly declares himself the Jade Balance Sword of the Chen Clan’s Seven Stars. Although defeated, his self-created sword establishes the Seven Stars’ reputation 829 830 831.
• Receives greater recognition from the elders and commits to developing the clan’s agility-attack inheritance 837.

Wolf Bandit Campaign

• Kills the Thunder Tiger Soul Master with Darkness Without Daylight, then sustains severe injuries protecting his younger companions 929 947.
• Challenges Chen Xiaojun’s decisions and draws out his suspicions that the camp attack belongs to a larger scheme 949.
• Breaks the enemy’s front-left line and later unleashes Lone Peak Heavenfall against the Wolf Bandits 958 964.

Continental Elite Tournament

• Takes responsibility for analyzing eighteen opposing academies and captains Chang’an’s Provincial Preliminary lineup 1374 1376.
• Uses Darkness Without Daylight to undermine Starfall Academy’s stellar defenses, then treats Yuesi Academy and Zhong Weifeng as a test of his Soul Ancestor limits 1412.
• Defeats Feng Sha in their resumed duel by striking through Wind Demon Prison Suppression with Seven Kill Annihilation and stopping his sword at Feng Sha’s throat 1533 1534.
• Insists on completing his seniority duel with Shan Wei without assistance despite an existing arm injury 1652 1653 1661.

Bone-Digging Corps and Its Aftermath

• Follows Chen Xiaojun into the front line and assumes a major role in defending him, intercepting attackers through rapid movement and precision sword skills 1830 1833.
• Emerges from the battle with a wounded shoulder and visible exhaustion 1857.
• Helps evaluate rescued children, recruits promising individuals into the clan, and confronts unrest among those held under clan authority 1861 1862 1864 1915.
• Acknowledges that intimidation alone cannot secure lasting allegiance and that integrating the captives will require sustained work 1920.

Notable Quotes

“I am Chen Mu—the Jade Balance Sword of the Chen Clan’s Seven Stars!” 829

“We’re the babies at home, but savage beasts outside!” 1376

“Choose: will you be a buried stone, or fight for a future of your own?” 1932