Yun Ying

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

In her previous life, Yun Ying was a man devoted to swordsmanship. That world lacked cultivation, and after reaching its pinnacle of swordsmanship, she could advance no further. In her current life, she is a member of the Celestial Clan and the younger of Yun Canghai’s twin granddaughters 1 3.

Yun Ying grows up withdrawn, rarely smiling or speaking at length. She lives alone at Heavenly God Mountain, where Yun Xi is her most frequent visitor. Despite being the younger twin, she privately regards Yun Xi as a little sister and often takes the protective role in their relationship 1 2 3.

Her path centers on developing her own Sword Dao rather than collecting established precious techniques. Even before learning an inheritance, her independently developed understanding of runes produces power comparable to, or greater than, precious techniques 1.

Appearance

Yun Ying looks identical to Yun Xi, but her calm, ethereal bearing distinguishes her from her more expressive sister 1 19.

• Hair and eyes: Long purple hair and gemstone-like purple eyes 3 12.
• Clothing: Usually wears purple robes 6 9 49.
• Bare feet: Habitually goes barefoot, a recognizable signature noted by Shi Hao and other observers 23 30 49.
• Hairstyle: Yun Xi styles her hair into twin ponytails tied with white ribbons, with small loops beside her ears 26.
• Bloodline mark: A mysterious purple-gold mark forms on her back after her bloodline transforms 26.
• Sword manifestations: Crystal-like Sword Blossoms appear around her or beneath her feet; they become increasingly illusory as her attainment deepens 42 43.

Personality

Yun Ying is reserved rather than socially accommodating. She speaks little to most people, including her clansmen, and prefers solitude to traveling in groups. Her distance from Heavenly God Mountain’s community also reflects her dislike of the arrogance and contempt many sacred-mountain beings show toward outsiders 15 21 29.

Her warmth is most visible with Yun Xi. Since childhood, she has shared half of whatever good things she obtains with her sister. She comforts Yun Xi about cultivation, indulges her requests, and offers advice without forcing her to disclose embarrassing matters 1 16 36.

Her devotion to the sword outweighs interest in prestige, romance, or even celebrated inheritances. She believes that reaching the pinnacle of her own Dao need not leave her inferior to Kun Peng. She remains unmoved by Qing Ming’s courtship and says that falling in love would be difficult for her 21 28 29 36.

Yun Ying combines courage with practical judgment. She accepts an ancient god’s supposedly fatal trial without hesitation, but negotiates with Bear Child rather than risking the captive Chi Dragon’s safety. She also refuses to condemn the peacock associated with Heavenly God Mountain without first hearing Yun Canghai’s account 5 18 47.

Abilities & Skills

Sword Dao and Sword Dao Runes

Yun Ying develops sword-shaped runes through her own understanding and incorporates other insights into her sword-centered path 1 3 6.

• Generates sword qi with her fingers, palms, gaze, body, or Purple Bamboo Sword 4 17 43 45.
• While still in the Spirit Transformation Realm, defeats the Inscription Realm Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast and kills Inscription Realm monkey chiefs 9 10 11 12.
• Uses precise killing strokes, cutting dozens of monkeys’ throats in a single exchange 11.
• Cuts through six simultaneously unleashed precious techniques with one sword-finger strike, opening a fissure hundreds of yards long in the void 45.
• Her sword intent is judged comparable to that of the ancient gods; this assessment concerns her Sword Dao, not a divine cultivation realm 46 47.

Sword Blossoms

Yun Ying condenses sword qi and runes into flowers, grasses, and blossoms, combining living forms with cutting power 12 14 17.

• Forms a gigantic defensive blossom that blocks the Divine Monkey King’s golden eye beams 12.
• Creates crystalline flowers and grasses to disperse Bear Child’s golden sword-feather attack 17.
• Manifests different powers of heaven and earth within blossoms, including flame, lightning, and snow 42.
• Later blossoms arise naturally as outward expressions of her attainment rather than deliberate displays 43.

Instant Ice Blossom

Her named attack, “My sword is like frost—Instant Ice Blossom,” combines freezing power with Sword Dao sharpness 27.

• Freezes the sea outward from her position and transforms her Sword Blossoms with frost 27.
• Attacks with icy sword energy above and enormous ice swords below, forcing even a Venerable’s Spirit Avatar to retreat 28.
• Breaks the sea-race coalition’s assault and ends its attempt to block the Primordial Sacred Mountains 28.

Sword Body, Sword Soul, and Sword Transformation

Yun Ying interprets Spirit Transformation’s bodily and spiritual stages as forging a Sword Body and condensing a Sword Soul 4.

• Tempering runes fuse with her flesh, bones, and organs; her initial Sword Soul appears as a small white sword at her brow 4 14.
• Uses the Soul-Attracting Lotus to increase soul power and further condense her Sword Soul 37.
• Eventually transforms her entire body and spirit into a translucent purple divine sword, shattering the surrounding void 42.
• Can return to human form after the transformation 43.
• Explains that becoming a sword is an expression of Sword Dao attainment, not a separate cultivation method 43.

Star Art and Star Sword Wings

An ancient god grants Yun Ying the complete Star Art after she comprehends the source of his god-level rune. She immediately reshapes its stellar runes into sword-shaped forms 6.

• Develops azure, crystalline Star Wings, then transforms them into Star Sword Wings resembling two heavenly swords 6.
• Uses the wings for rapid flight and to escape the Divine Monkey King’s descending hand 13.
• Receives permission from the ancient god to adapt the Star Art or pass it to others 6.

Bloodline Refinement

Her Celestial Clan bloodline has exceptional potential, which qualifies her for the ancient god’s special inheritance 5.

• Uses a secret art and divine blood to begin refining her bloodline 6.
• Awakens a purple-gold mark carrying a trace of heavenly might 26.
• Little Tower identifies her later development as ancestral reversion and describes her potential as boundless 39.

Zither Mastery

Playing the zither is Yun Ying’s greatest skill apart from the sword. Her music can nourish the spirit or embody Sword Dao slaughter 3.

• Produces runic visions of flourishing landscapes and star-filled skies 3.
• Fills the forest with pear blossoms and a life-renewing atmosphere while playing for Yun Xi 36.
• Devastates an attacking force numbering in the tens of thousands with a single melody; protected survivors include powerful cultivators and those with life-saving treasures 25.

Divine Intuition

Her Sword Dao produces an unusually powerful intuition that can perceive a person’s underlying origin 49.

• Recognizes Shi Hao beneath his disguise without needing to unravel the disguise itself 49.
• Remains effective despite changes to appearance, bearing, or techniques 49.
• Can be obstructed by cultivation far above her own or an exceptionally powerful protective artifact 49.

Kun Peng Inheritance

Yun Ying masters the surviving portion of Kun Peng’s inheritance, which contains less than one-third of the original technique 32.

• Demonstrates its runes for Yun Xi and Heavenly God Mountain’s servants to study 33.
• Declines to pursue the complete inheritance because its karmic debts could endanger Yun Xi 34.
• Promises Heavenly Desolation that she will assist Kun Peng’s future inheritor when necessary 32.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Purple Bamboo Sword — A three-foot, slender, rune-branded sword whose aura initially forms a seamless whole with hers. It is tempered during the tenth cave heaven tribulation 1 2.
  • Absorbs half a piece of azure water divine gold and surviving Kun Wood heartwood 23 24.
  • Gains dragon patterns, mysterious Dao sounds, and quality no inferior to a sacred artifact 23.
  • Its Kun Wood component assists Dao comprehension; after these changes, it is technically no longer merely a purple bamboo sword 24.
• Purple Bamboo Zither — Her instrument for spirit-nourishing music and Sword Dao attacks 3 25 36.
• Bloodline-refining scroll — An ancient beast-hide scroll obtained from the god’s palace; provides the secret art behind her bloodline transformation 6 26.
• Two pale-blue bells — Removed from beside the ancient palace’s doors after she completes its inheritance 6.
• Heart-Link Pendants — Owns a pair but stores them away because she dislikes wearing earrings 10.
• Kun Wood leaf — Gives the leaf to Yun Xi to aid cultivation and Dao comprehension, retaining the enhanced sword for her own use 24.
• Quasi-sacred medicine and silver peaches — Helps secure a stalk of quasi-sacred medicine and later takes two silver peaches, giving one to Yun Xi 13 15.
• Bronze Book Fragment — Earns it by inscribing “Yun” on the Record Stele, then gives it to Shi Hao as his ninth fragment in exchange for a future favor 46.

Relationships

• Yun Xi — Elder twin sister and closest companion. Yun Ying protects her, shares resources with her, and avoids inheriting Kun Peng’s complete karmic burden out of concern for her safety 1 16 24 34.
• Yun Canghai — Grandfather and master of Heavenly God Mountain. Advises her cultivation, initially conceals her tenth cave heaven achievement, and respects the sisters’ right to choose their own partners 1 2 43.
• Shi Hao / Bear Child — Rival and recurring ally. Their duel ends in a bargain for Chi Dragon’s release; she later protects him from sacred-mountain youths, gives him a Bronze Book Fragment, and recognizes him in disguise 16 17 39 46 49.
• Ancient god of the palace — Inheritance benefactor. Grants her the Star Art and access to the bloodline-refining legacy, regretting that he cannot take her as a disciple 5 6.
• Heavenly Desolation — Kun Peng’s broken weapon. Praises her comprehension and obtains her promise to aid its master’s future successor 30 32.
• Yin Xue and Lian’er — Acquaintances close to Yun Xi; among the few peers comfortable teasing Yun Ying 18 28.
• Qing Ming — An admirer from Azure Sky Sacred Mountain. Admits his interest, but Yun Ying gives him little encouragement and sometimes ignores him 28 29.
• Mo Shang — Sea God descendant and adversary. Attempts to seize her Kun Wood, loses to her, and later participates in forces that fail to stop her 22 23 28.
• Chi Dragon — A sacred-mountain creature she frees from Bear Child through negotiation 16 17.
• Wolf Pup — Unexpectedly approaches her at the Stone Emperor’s banquet and enjoys being held and stroked 39.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Hundred Broken Mountains

• Accompanies Yun Xi after learning that her sister possesses a treasure map, but explores separately once inside 3 4 5.
• Passes the ancient god’s trial and acquires both the Star Art and a bloodline-refining inheritance 5 6.
• Finds the Ageless Divine Spring already drained; Bear Child mistakes her for Yun Xi and tries to capture her 7.
• Forces the Jade-Eyed Golden-Pupiled Beast to surrender azure water divine gold 9 10.
• Clears a path through the monkey troop, protects Yun Xi from the Divine Monkey King, and escapes with additional silver peaches 11 12 13.

North Sea and Kunpeng Nest

• Obtains Kun Wood and defeats Mo Shang before strengthening her sword with its surviving heartwood 21 22 23.
• Spends two years cultivating near the nest, repelling those who seek her Kun Wood and advancing her bloodline refinement 25 26.
• Breaks the sea-race blockade and enters the opened Dao Arena ahead of the other cultivators 27 28 30.
• Masters the incomplete inheritance, shares it with Heavenly God Mountain, and leaves the talisman bone for others rather than pursuing the complete technique 32 33 34.

Stone Kingdom and Sky Battlefield

• Attends the Stone Emperor’s birthday banquet at Yun Xi’s request and drives away youths attempting to harass Shi Hao 37 39.
• Returns to cultivation and reaches the Array Formation Realm through her body-to-sword transformation 42 43.
• Agrees to observe Shi Hao and Shi Yi’s decisive battle; later answers an attack involving six precious techniques with a single sword strike 43 45.
• Records her sword intent on the stele and gives the resulting Bronze Book Fragment to Shi Hao 46.

Approaching Calamity and Fire Kingdom

• Identifies Heavenly God Mountain’s incomplete ancient formation as its hope against the approaching Desolate Region calamity 47.
• Travels with Yun Xi to find Shi Hao and request the peacock as repayment for his favor 47 48.
• Recognizes the disguised Shi Hao and halts the outside-region kings’ pressure on him 49.
• When Qin Shoucheng seals the courtyard and suppresses its occupants, she responds by extending her hand and releasing Sword Dao sharpness; the provided passage does not establish the outcome 50.

Notable Quotes

“Heaven and earth stretch boundless, the way of the sword shines resplendent. Forge my undying sword body, condense my immortal sword soul. With the sword I begin, with the sword I end!” 1

“Not at all. You and I will always be sisters. That will never change.” 26

“Grandfather, that wasn't a method. It was Sword Dao.” 43