Liu Zhenyuan

Biodata

Appearance

Liu Zhenyuan has a stern, unyielding presence that commands respect without requiring an angry expression 7.

• Wears a silver-white Flying Fish Uniform 7.
• His uniform is embroidered with cloud patterns and a four-clawed flying fish 7.

Personality

Liu judges subordinates by their service rather than the orthodox or unorthodox origins of their martial arts. When Cao Jinxing’s sudden transformation raises suspicions, Liu explicitly refuses to treat a possible demonic-path connection as grounds for rejection, provided Cao remains devoted to public duty 7.

He combines admiration for talent with political caution. He sees something of his younger self in Cao’s refusal to submit to intimidation, but warns him that rapid success invites jealousy and that unsuitable associations can give enemies grounds to attack him 15 32.

His imposing public manner gives way to teasing and exasperation around trusted subordinates. He jokes about Cao putting obstructive colleagues in bed, bargains over his rest period, and shares imperial pastries while complaining that Cao is eating too many 15 32.

Liu is fiercely protective of the commission and its members. He responds to the Zhao Family’s suspected involvement in the prison break by seeking an Eastern Depot investigation, and the death of the former thirteenth Guardian leaves him visibly grief-stricken and determined to avenge him 48.

Abilities & Skills

Five Thunder Heavenly Heart Palm

Liu’s signature martial art is the Five Thunder Heavenly Heart Palm. He comes from Dragon-Tiger Mountain’s Celestial Master Mansion and is described as sweeping aside opposition with this art 49.

• Fights without weapons 49.
• No specific cultivation realm or advancement is identified in the supplied chapters.

Speed and Unarmed Interception

Liu demonstrates exceptional speed and precision when intervening in Cao Jinxing’s confrontation with Zhao Siyuan 34.

• Reaches the fourth floor of the Secret Vault in a lightning-like flash 34.
• Stops Cao’s finishing strike by clamping Snow Soul between two fingers 34.

Intelligence Assessment

Liu investigates unusual developments without immediately treating them as evidence of disloyalty 7 15.

• Questions Zhu Wu and the other returning guards about Cao’s changed temperament and martial strength 7.
• Uses palace intelligence to assess Cao’s conduct, aptitude, and possible factional connections 15.
• Revises his initial theory of an expert transferring power, reasoning that such a transfer would not explain Cao’s extraordinary comprehension. He instead proposes that a spiritual treasure awakened Cao’s understanding; this remains Liu’s explanation, not an established account of Cao’s transformation 15.

Command and Political Judgment

As commissioner, Liu controls assignments, rewards, disciplinary action, and access to the Secret Vault 7 15 19 32 34.

• Builds Cao’s small team around assistants with clean records and no dubious factional ties 36.
• Uses the emperor’s interest in longevity to give Cao a route to promotion and imperial protection 19 20.
• Distinguishes permitted private fighting from prohibited attempts to kill fellow guards 34.
• Recognizes when insufficient evidence prevents a direct arrest and seeks a broader investigation through the Eastern Depot 48.

History

Recognizing Cao Jinxing

Following the successful Crouching Tiger Mountain operation, Liu promotes Cao to company captain and grants him access to two sixth-grade martial arts. He then questions the other guards about Cao’s abrupt improvement, but decides that his achievements justify retaining and rewarding him despite uncertainty over the source of his power 7.

Liu had originally ordered an infiltrator with weak internal energy and nimble hands and feet to be selected for the bandit mission. Cao’s later assessment places responsibility for the rigged selection on Zhang Ying, not Liu 8.

Hehuan Sect Assignment

Liu passes on the fifth-rank Fortune Creation Pills bestowed by Eunuch Lu and warns Cao that his achievements have made him an object of envy. At Feng Bao’s recommendation, he assigns Cao five days to locate the Hehuan Sect remnants and formally transfers Su Yunsheng and Sun Lang to his command 15.

Privately, Liu recommends Cao to Shen Xiang as a possible successor to the vacant thirteenth Guardian position. Shen agrees that Cao’s aptitude is exceptional but wants more time to observe him 15.

When Cao destroys the remnants rather than merely finding their hideout, Liu rewards Su and Sun with a sixth-rank spiritual martial art each. He offers Cao sixth-rank medicinal pills and another martial art, then proposes a major achievement that could justify promotion to Deputy Qianhu 19.

Millennium Fire Tortoise Mission

Liu sends Cao on a confidential mission to retrieve the Taiyi Gate’s Millennium Fire Tortoise for Jiajing. Beyond earning merit, the assignment is intended to bring Cao to the emperor’s attention and make rivals reluctant to move against him 20.

After Cao returns, Liu forwards the tortoise and mission report to Commander Lu Bing that same night. Jiajing approves Cao’s promotion. Liu subsequently provides the Deputy Qianhu uniform, permission to study one fifth-rank technique, and a fifteen-day Imperial Prison posting that allows time to rest and cultivate 31 32.

Secret Vault Disciplinary Case

Liu stops Cao from killing Zhao Siyuan after Zhao’s failed ambush. Rather than dismissing the incident as a sparring match, he obtains the vault keeper’s eyewitness account and orders Zhao imprisoned for attempting to murder an Embroidered Uniform Guard 34.

He also orders the commission notified that future malicious attackers will be expelled and charged. Although he supports Cao’s right to defend himself, he remains exasperated by the trouble and fearsome reputation surrounding his subordinate 34.

Prison-Break Aftermath

After Cao and Shen Xiang repel the Bright Sect’s prison break, Liu concludes that the surviving evidence is insufficient to arrest Zhao Wenhua directly. He instead directs that the matter be reported upward so the Eastern Depot can investigate the Zhao Family’s other vulnerabilities 48.

Liu rewards Cao with the thirteenth Embroidered Spring Saber, one of thirteen exceptional weapons forged from meteoric iron and refined western metal. He explicitly states that permission to use the saber is not appointment to the Thirteen Guardians: Cao has not yet served long enough, and his eventual selection depends on further performance 48.

Discussion of the vacancy recalls the former thirteenth Guardian’s death while surrounded by the Golden Family in Mongolia. Liu vows to make Altan Khan repay that blood debt 48.

Relationships

• Cao Jinxing — Subordinate and prospective Guardian whom Liu promotes, equips, protects, and repeatedly admonishes 7 15 32 48.
• Shen Xiang — Trusted colleague consulted about Guardian candidates. Shen addresses Liu as “big brother”; the passages do not establish a biological relationship 15 48.
• Lu Bing — Superior commander. Liu forwards the Fire Tortoise through him and casually takes imperial pastries from his supply 31 32.
• Su Yunsheng and Sun Lang — Guards selected as Cao’s assistants for their clean records and lack of questionable factional connections 15 36.
• Zhao Siyuan — Guard whom Liu imprisons after confirming his lethal ambush against Cao 34.
• Zhao Wenhua and the Zhao Family — Subjects of the investigation Liu seeks after their suspected involvement in the Imperial Prison breakout 48.
• Altan Khan — Target of Liu’s vow of vengeance for the fallen thirteenth Guardian 48.

Notable Quotes

“The Pacification Commission makes no distinction between orthodox and unorthodox. We judge deeds, not hearts.” 7

“The Pacification Commission does not prohibit private fights, but it does prohibit fights to the death!” 34

“One day, I'll make Altan Khan pay that blood debt in blood!” 48