Sage King

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Regency and the Eastern Campaign

Ji Zhao had been an ordinary person in a previous life before transmigrating into this world. As Luo Zhao, he became the first-generation founding ancestor of the Luo Clan and a marquis aligned with the Zhou Royal House 3 207.

King Wu wished to pass the throne to him, but he refused because King Wu already had heirs. He regarded succession from an elder brother to a younger brother despite the existence of heirs as a source of future disorder. He instead served as regent for twelve years, established enfeoffment and the clan hierarchy, and instituted the Rites of Zhou 53 177 377.

His Eastern Campaign destroyed dozens of states and relocated the old Yin Shang clans southeast, securing the foundations of Zhou rule. His younger brother, Marquis of Cheng Lin, remained in Haojing to gather provisions and instruct the Son of Heaven 20 72.

The campaign also involved extensive bloodshed. Li Si described the slaughter of rebellious Shang nobles, while the First Emperor claimed that eight or nine out of every ten members of the old Yin Shang clans perished. Later, Sima Qian’s examination of preserved Shang sacrificial implements led him to accept why the Sage King had destroyed Yin Shang’s records and culture 177 198 508.

Return of Authority and Death

Ji Zhao returned governing authority to King Kang. Afterward, he ruled from Luoyi, where eastern feudal lords paid homage to him before traveling to Haojing to honor the king—an arrangement remembered as “dividing governance at Shan” 66 311 336.

He died in King Kang’s seventeenth year. He was posthumously invested as Sage King, received the name Wen, and was buried with royal rites. Despite his standing, his only burial offering was a golden coffer he had previously presented to King Wu; he did not use human burial companions 7 115 203 270.

The title Sage King originally denoted someone who possessed a sovereign’s virtues and achievements without occupying a sovereign’s throne. Much later, Jia Yi argued that Ji Zhao’s burial rites were specifically those of the Son of Heaven, and Liu Heng formally established that mortal honorific 218 338.

Continued Existence and Disappearance

After death, Ji Zhao continued to watch events, accumulate Fortune Points, and bestow blessings. He spent long periods asleep in a separate world that appeared as a peach-blossom landscape when he awakened 67 91.

His eventual disappearance left the Luo Clan unable to rely on his guidance. According to Luo Jin, he had first left a prophecy that the Hu People had received Heaven’s Mandate and that only the Luo clansmen could quell them. Luo Jin ordered the clan to migrate to Liaodong and declared that Zhao City would remain a forbidden marsh until the Sage King returned and the divine scepter struck the land again 795.

Appearance

Ji Zhao’s divine appearance is changeable rather than fixed. During his meeting with Liu Che, his apparent age shifted continuously between youth and old age 426.

• Eyes: Retained an indescribably noble quality despite the changes in his appearance 426.
• Crown and divine imagery: Appeared crowned, with aspects of wind, clouds, an Azure Dragon, and an accompanying Phoenix 426.
• Traditional depictions: Usually portrayed as a recognizably human nobleman, dressed as either a civil official or military officer; some images used the Son of Heaven’s tasseled crown 873.
• Western Regions depictions: Later Temple images became immensely tall and overtly godlike, departing from the earlier human likeness 873.

Personality

Ji Zhao’s refusal of King Wu’s throne and eventual return of authority made him a model of loyalty and restraint. Later regents, particularly Luo Xin, were judged against his example of wielding supreme power without retaining the sovereign’s position 311 336 337.

His teachings emphasize human effort rather than dependence on divine rescue. His descendants repeatedly invoke his expectation that people strengthen themselves, oppose tyranny, and solve mortal problems instead of praying to him over everything 116 214 275.

His reputation for benevolence coexists with the severity of his campaigns. Admirers credit him with establishing enduring institutions, while the First Emperor emphasizes the destruction and cultural suppression behind that achievement 177 198.

Although fusion with Mysterious Yellow Qi is drawing him toward a demigod state, he retains personal curiosity. He meets the dying First Emperor partly because he wants to see the legendary ruler for himself, and he looks forward to discovering what Li Er will write after their discussion 67 207.

Abilities & Skills

Governance and Military Command

Ji Zhao established the political and ritual framework that sustained Zhou rule 177 377.

• Created the systems of enfeoffment, clan hierarchy, and the Rites of Zhou; the latter also functioned as law governing the nobility 177 484.
• Held the regency for twelve years before returning authority 377.
• Destroyed dozens of states during the Eastern Campaign and reorganized the defeated Shang clans 72.
• Was considered an all-round genius, though Luo Yan acknowledged that a specialist such as Sun Wu could rival him in warfare if supernatural assistance were excluded 72.

Fortune System and Ancestral Blessings

Ji Zhao receives Fortune Points and items through achievements, historical developments, and the accomplishments of his descendants 7 35 54 237.

• Accumulated substantial fortune over centuries and bestowed Ancestors’ Blessing 67.
• Sent fortune to Luo Yu as protection before returning to sleep 91.
• Received 5,000 Fortune Points and increased Clan Prestige when Luo Ling crowned Xiang Yu 237.
• Gained part of Liu Che’s fortune after Origin became the first era name of All Xia 383.
• Some extraordinary effects require Fortune Points; Wishing for One’s Child to Become a Dragon, for example, fulfills written hopes only if sufficient points are paid 54.

Divine Sense and Communication

Ji Zhao can reach descendants and act through intermediaries 67 163.

• Spoke through Luo Yan to explain the Dao De Jing to Li Er 67.
• Used Divine Sense to awaken Ji Lingjun and order her to retrieve Zhou’s Phoenix before Heaven reacted 163.
• Met the dying First Emperor and, in a side story, Liu Che 207 426.
• His interventions are intermittent. Luo Ling explicitly recognized that he could not constantly watch over the mortal world 247.

Weather Manipulation and Miracles

His supernatural reputation includes wind, rain, snow, thunder, and lightning, supported by system items with defined effects 10 25 72.

• The Celestial Observatory Platform, once constructed, allows its user to regulate an entire state’s weather while standing within it 3.
• Borrow the East Wind summons a directional gale; June Snow creates heavy snowfall at a chosen time and place 10.
• During Liu Che’s sacrifice, the slips bearing Taichu burned, and a new heavenly slip supplied the era name Origin 383.
• Not every miracle attributed to him is performed personally: Luo Yi uses divine artifacts to create the battlefield wind and rain that followers recognize as the Sage King’s intervention 213 214.

Philosophical Learning

His writings provide a foundation for later debates on government, morality, and Heaven 54 66 67.

• The Way of Heaven was valuable enough to be offered as an inducement to bring Li Er to Luo State 66.
• Explained that Heaven and the Great Dao were impartial, while his own existence followed a different principle 67.
• Left classics from which Luo Xiu distilled practical theories of kingship and hegemony 54 67.
• His teachings on filial piety and ancestral sacrifice also stressed Esteeming Life: the living must first live well before properly honoring their ancestors 115.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Sage King’s Divine Scepter — A jade-and-gold scepter used in Haojing to invest feudal lords and exercise the Mandate of Heaven. Luo Shu later presents it when condemning Li Jue and Guo Si 704.
• Heaven Tier · Celestial Card — Raises three attributes to 100, granting extraordinary capacities in governance, strategy, and command 3 10.
• Heaven Tier · Celestial Observatory Platform — A state-protecting artifact constructed from blueprints; enables statewide weather regulation once completed 3.
• Earth Tier · Heart-Knot — Links its user to one person and permanently fixes that person’s trust at its maximum 3.
• Earth Tier · Heroic Spirit Card — Allows a descendant to become a heroic spirit capable of reincarnation, gradual memory recovery, and slightly increased potential 10.
• Mystic Tier · Thousand-Li Talisman — Instantly transports its user to a mentally envisioned destination 7 10.
• Mystic Tier · Five Thunder Righteous Law — Requires exceptional reputation and an oath upon the user’s life to call down lightning against one person. Later clarification limits its targets to subjects, such as treacherous ministers 10 794.
• Mystic Tier · Divine Striking Talisman — Raises martial prowess, command, and military strategy to 99 for eight hours 10.
• Unique Mystic Tier · Wishing for One’s Child to Become a Dragon — Bamboo slips on which a person’s future can be written, with fulfillment dependent on sufficient Fortune Points 54.
• Weather items — Include Borrow the East Wind, June Snow, and Favorable Winds and Timely Rain, the last of which blesses a province-sized area for ten years 10 25.

Relationships

• King Wu — Elder brother and ruler who wished to make Ji Zhao his successor. Ji Zhao declined in favor of preserving the existing succession 53.
• King Kang — Sovereign to whom he returned authority. King Kang honored him after death with royal rites and spoke of their relationship in terms of loyalty and filial piety 336 338 449.
• Marquis of Cheng Lin — Full younger brother; supplied the Eastern Campaign and instructed the Son of Heaven while Ji Zhao was away 20.
• Luo Clan — Descendants and custodians of his legacy. Their achievements sustained his reputation, while his blessings and prestige supported the clan 67 220.
• Luo Yan — Descendant through whom he answered Li Er’s questions about Heaven and the Dao 67.
• Li Er / Laozi — Philosopher whose perception of Ji Zhao disrupted his theory of an impartial Heaven. Ji Zhao resolved his doubts, but Li Er still admitted that he could not explain the Sage King himself 66 67.
• Confucius / Kong Qiu — Follower of his political and moral way, especially the principle that state and people should become strong together 70 91.
• Ji Lingjun — Awakened by his Divine Sense and entrusted with retrieving Zhou’s Phoenix 163.
• Luo Ling / Sage King Zhao — Descendant who defended his standing and developed a framework for his worship. Ji Zhao summoned him at the end of his mortal life 247 396.
• The First Emperor — Admired his institutions, sought to surpass his achievements, and resisted the Luo Clan’s independent authority. Ji Zhao met him as he was dying 177 180 207.
• Liu Che — Emperor who received his heavenly revelation and interpreted it as proof of Heaven’s favor. Liu Che regarded himself as the Sage King’s son in the mortal world 383 453.

Major Interventions

Teachings and Intellectual Legacy

Worship and Religious Legacy

Zhou and All Xia

• Zhou tradition regarded him as King Wu’s successor and the spiritual totem of the old Zhou People. This reputation underpinned the Luo Clan’s stewardship of Heaven’s Mandate 31.
• His standing was incorporated into royal ceremonies, ancestral sacrifice, and hymns. At Ji Fu’s accession, the people paid homage both to the new Son of Heaven and to the Sage King 35.
• The blessing “May the Sage King be with you” functioned much like “May Heaven bless you” among ordinary Shandong people. Educated followers and the Luo People understood him more specifically as Heaven personified, with richer emotions 232.
• His descendants’ repeated achievements reinforced belief in him: their conduct made his greatness appear credible across generations 220.
• Central Plains worship ultimately leaned toward a conceptual deity invoked in everyday speech, rather than requiring organized religious adherence 873.

Divine Authority and Its Limits

Xiang Yu proposed abolishing sacrifices to other gods and worshipping only the Sage King, receiving his mandate from their shared ancestor. Luo Ling rejected this approach because Ji Zhao could neither constantly oversee humanity nor answer every prayer. He instead framed the Sage King as the just aspect of Heaven, sometimes sleeping and sometimes awakening to punish wrongdoing 247.

The distinction between divine and mortal responsibility remained important. Luo Jing rejected the idea that the Sage King should supervise every ruler’s morality, maintaining that common people themselves would rebel against a tyrant 381.

Daoist Doctrine and the Way of Great Peace

• Later Daoist teaching identified the Sage King as the source of all Dao, gods, and sages, with earlier sage rulers treated as incarnations of his divine consciousness 584.
• The same doctrine described Ji Zhao as his true self descending into the world, and Laozi as a final incarnation of his divine consciousness. These are religious interpretations, distinct from the earlier account of Ji Zhao meeting Li Er 67 584.
• The Way of Great Peace adopted this framework. Zhang Jue preached that the Sage King would awaken and bring peace, while claiming transmission from Lord Lao rather than directly invoking the Sage King’s authority 584.

The Western Regions Temple

• Descendants of settlers in the Western Regions preserved worship of the Sage King and the hope that his emissaries would one day bring them home to All Xia 421.
• The Sage King Temple became a major religious institution with a High Priest, divine scepter, and Temple Army. Its influence could reach commoners and slaves beyond the effective reach of royal authority 792.
• Luo Xing proclaimed the Temple Army both the shield of the faith and the sword that would spread its sacred radiance 792.
• After Zhao State’s collapse, Temple radicals defeated conservatives and pursued authority above the region’s monarchs 873.
• By Luo Su’s visit, Western Regions worship had developed into an institutional religion with monumental divine images, sharply contrasting with the Central Plains’ more philosophical deification 873.

Notable Quotes

“An elder brother has heirs, yet passes the throne to his younger brother. Is this not the root of disaster?”
— Refusing King Wu’s proposed succession 53

“The only constant under heaven is change. The way of antiquity can only be used in antiquity.”
— Teaching attributed to the Sage King by Li Er 71

“On the day I die, All Under Heaven shall know my loyalty.”
— Statement recalled during a Han court dispute 449