Turtle Chancellor

Biodata

Background / History

The Turtle Chancellor served the Ji River Water God when the river supported a hundred thousand aquatic subjects. During the war against the Yellow River’s aquatic forces, he detonated his true body, but his demon soul survived. The Ji River Water God refused to surrender and was killed after the Yellow River seized the river’s course 27 28.

According to the Chancellor, the victorious Yellow River Water Lord divided the dead god’s remains into seven pieces and refined them into the Sever Heaven and Earth Seal. The surviving Ji River forces were imprisoned in the Seven Water Eyes, cut off from spiritual energy. The Chancellor remained in the Water God’s palace, nourishing his soul and rarely venturing outside; by the time he met Cui Jiuyang, he had not spoken to anyone for a thousand years 28.

The Water God’s tomb was an empty cenotaph: the defeated Ji River had lacked even the wealth to provide robes and a crown. Despite the destruction of the Water Palace, the Chancellor continued to regard himself as its official and defender 27 29.

Appearance

The Chancellor’s surviving form is a palm-sized turtle dressed as a high-ranking court official 27.

• Body: Squat, with tiny black-bean eyes and a patterned dark-green shell worn outside his robes 27.
• Court robes: Vermilion, with gold-thread waves, narrow sleeves and collar, and a rank badge depicting a river flowing into the sea 27.
• Official accessories: A jade belt befitting a first-rank official, a winged black gauze hat, and an ivory ceremonial tablet 27.
• Investiture appearance: His robes take on a thousand-layered wave pattern, and his face appears touched by divine radiance while installing Ninth Lady as Chief Sacrificer 34.

Personality

The Chancellor is fiercely loyal to the Water God and protective of the Water Palace’s dignity. He repeatedly blames himself for failing his lord, mourns even in his sleep, and kowtows tearfully when Jidu Shrine reappears. News that a spark of the god’s spirit may survive transforms his grief into excitement 27 28 32.

He is also proud, officious, and sensitive to etiquette. Ninth Lady’s formal manners immediately please him, whereas Cui Jiuyang’s casual behavior earns blows from his ceremonial tablet. Flattery readily wins him over, and he insists that Ninth Lady maintain the solemn bearing expected of her office 27 28 37.

His bravado does not conceal his reduced strength for long: he invents a powerful tomb guardian to frighten intruders, then hides in Cui Jiuyang’s robe when the Malevolent Flood Dragon appears. Nevertheless, he devises their escape and later saves Cui Jiuyang. By the aftermath of the shrine battle, he openly approves of Ninth Lady’s affection for Cui and encourages hope that Cui can eventually free her 28 29 37 38.

Abilities & Skills

Cultivation and Soul Survival

The Chancellor retains an active soul despite the destruction of his original body 28.

Spiritual Resonance

He manipulates the Water Palace’s spiritual energy through resonance 28 29.

• Projects an imposing aura to impersonate a powerful aquatic guardian and deter intruders 28.
• Connects Ninth Lady to the palace while Cui Jiuyang channels power through its water sphere 29.
• Amplifies Drum-Thunder Sink: Sudden Rain Rush, producing drumbeats that torment the flood dragon until it breaks through the cavern ceiling 29.

Formation Knowledge

The Chancellor possesses extensive knowledge of the Water Palace’s formations and their resources 35 38.

• Claims that, with his demon body intact, establishing another Heavenly Cycle Formation would be simple 35.
• Directs Ninth Lady’s attention to the Jidu Shrine’s true formation power, beyond its defensive mist 35.
• Explains how the flood dragon’s corpse can fuel the Grand Formation and temporarily replace the shrine’s missing spiritual support 38.
• Cannot operate the Grand Formation himself in his diminished soul state; Cui Jiuyang takes that role 35.

Shrine Authority and Ritual Expertise

He understands the shrine’s offering rites and acts as an intermediary during investiture 32 34.

• Explains that a prospective Chief Sacrificer must first offer a sacrifice to the Water God 32.
• Identifies aquatic demon cores as especially attractive offerings to his lord 33.
• Receives a divine decree as a green jade talisman, presses it to Ninth Lady’s brow, and proclaims her appointment 34.
• Sweeps an icy presence through Jidu Shrine, making the guards’ rifles too cold to hold and unable to fire 33.
• Cannot simply appoint Ninth Lady himself in the Water God’s absence, despite having held that administrative authority when his lord lived 33.

Diagnosis and Treasure-Assisted Healing

He recognizes Cui Jiuyang’s shattered meridians and identifies the misuse of the Ji River’s spiritual power that caused them 37.

• Uses the Dragon-Transformation Wall, with Ninth Lady’s consent, to save Cui Jiuyang 37.
• Guides the treasure into Cui’s dantian with a claw pressed against his abdomen; its dragon-transformation energy rebuilds his meridians broader and tougher than before 37.
• Warns that the treasure has become part of Cui’s internal energy circulation, making future cultivation difficult but potentially extraordinary 37.
• Explains the cost before proceeding: without the treasure, Ninth Lady must remain at the shrine to sustain it and prevent the Water God’s spirit from dissipating 37.

Spiritual Perception and Inheritance Assessment

• Senses Jidu Shrine’s aura immediately upon its reappearance, waking from sleep 32.
• Rejects Cui Jiuyang as a recipient of the Water Palace inheritance because Cui’s profound cultivation method could conflict with it 29.
• Recognizes Ninth Lady’s suitability through her ability to commune with Nuo Masks, while warning that accepting the inheritance binds her soul to the Ji River 29.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Ivory ceremonial tablet — Official accessory used to strike Cui Jiuyang’s ankle and collarbone when reprimanding him 27 30.
• Court regalia — Vermilion official robes, jade belt, and black gauze hat marking his rank 27.
• Ji River Ghost Masks — Preserved Water Palace inheritance kept in an iron box decorated with aquatic motifs. He retrieves the box from thin air and entrusts the masks to Ninth Lady 29.
• Drum-Thunder Sink mask — Supplies Ninth Lady with the mask used in their escape plan; its spells include Sudden Rain Rush, Wind and Cloud Roll, and Vajra Reversal 29.
• Dragon-Transformation Wall — A shrine treasure he uses rather than a personal possession; incorporating it into Cui Jiuyang saves Cui but deprives the shrine of a vital Numinous Treasure 37.

Relationships

• Jishui Qingyuan Water God — His lord and the object of his thousand-year loyalty. He interprets Jidu Shrine’s repeated appearances as evidence that the god may still possess a surviving spark of spirit 27 28.
• Ninth Lady / Jiu Yizhi — Inheritor of the Ji River Ghost Masks and the Chief Sacrificer he invests. He advises her on ritual duties, formations, and ways to leave the shrine 29 34 38.
• Cui Jiuyang — Initially an irritating, disrespectful visitor; later his collaborator and patient. Their exchanges remain argumentative, but the Chancellor saves him and predicts a great future 27 29 37 38.
• Little Turtle / Giant Softshell Turtle — His adopted son, the enormous turtle of Lake Taibai—not the Chancellor himself. Abe and Togo’s party kills him and uses his demon core as an offering. Cui later identifies a child as the turtle’s reincarnation 27 28 32 42.
• Abe and Togo — Enemies who kill his adopted son and attempt to secure the shrine’s chief officiant position. He plans to confront them at Jidu Shrine 28 31 32.
• Old Man Xiang — Fellow member of the group rescued from the collapsed tomb and gathered against the Japanese; the Chancellor calls him the “firewood old man” 31.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Notable Quotes

“There is no powerful aquatic guardian... only me. Still, that poem was quite good, wasn’t it?” 28

“Same thing. We both have shells!”
— Explaining why a softshell turtle can be his adopted son 28

“His cultivation may prove quite difficult in the future. But if he succeeds one day... even ‘unrivaled under heaven’ may not be enough to describe him.” 37