Zhang Chulan

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Zhang Chulan learned the Golden Light Mantra and Thunder Method from his grandfather, whom he knew as Zhang Xilin. Investigating that name yielded little because it was an alias: his grandfather’s real name was Zhang Huaiyi, a direct disciple of the Celestial Master Mansion and the creator of Qi-State Origin-Flow 115 116 120.

He enters the Luotian Grand Ceremony to meet Zhang Zhiwei and uncover the truth about his grandfather and the Jiashen Rebellion. Zhang Zhiwei recognizes him as a grand-disciple but explains that the answers are tied to the Celestial Master’s succession: Zhang Chulan must win the right to succeed him before he can learn everything 116.

Despite his inherited techniques, Zhang Chulan is relatively new to the active Outsider world and initially lacks experience in genuine life-or-death combat. A ten-year gap in his cultivation also leaves his Nature and Life foundation behind those of the older temporary workers 130 132 170.

Appearance

• Tournament clothing: Wears a gray cloak during his early Luotian Grand Ceremony match, using an imposing entrance to intimidate his opponents 117.
• Chastity seal: Bears a restriction inscribed by his grandfather, which becomes the subject of other young practitioners’ curiosity 117 131.
• Lightning effects: His Thunder Method surrounds him with blue-white lightning and produces electric afterimages during high-speed movement 133 136.

Personality

Zhang Chulan is calculating, adaptable, and largely indifferent to public approval when it interferes with his goals. He wins an early tournament match by manipulating his opponents into fighting one another, then attacks the exhausted survivor after pretending to offer him time to recover. The resulting outrage earns him the nickname “Shameless Bastard” 117.

His exaggerated cowardice and flattery often conceal practical risk assessment. Before confronting Quanxing’s Four Unruly Ones, he seeks additional help because he knows how little lethal combat experience he has. Once empowered, he deliberately endures Shen Chong’s attacks to learn how an experienced fighter operates 129 130 132.

He is deeply protective of Feng Baobao and willing to place another person’s safety above an immediate victory. He abandons his position against the fleeing Quanxing members to stop Zhang Lingyu from exhausting his life, and later accompanies Feng Baobao to Biyou Village despite fearing Lu You’s involvement 133 161.

His guardedness also creates friction with allies. Lu You criticizes him for concealing information even from someone who has helped him, prompting Zhang Chulan to disclose the Company’s full Biyou Village operation. In the tournament final, however, he briefly sets calculation aside and meets Zhang Lingyu’s strongest attack head-on out of respect for their shared roots and mutual understanding 136 165.

Abilities & Skills

Golden Light Mantra

An inherited Celestial Master Mansion technique taught by Zhang Huaiyi 115 116.

• Produces golden light that serves as a defensive layer.
• Its protection can be corroded by Zhang Lingyu’s Water Filth Thunder 136.

Yang Five Thunders

Zhang Chulan’s Thunder Method manifests as fierce blue-white lightning. The Yang Seed strengthens both its output and the physical abilities supporting it 132 136.

• Palm Thunder: Fires a concentrated lightning blast from his palm. He uses it against Zhang Lingyu and Ma Xianhong 136 167.
• Lightning Speed: Accelerates his movement until he becomes difficult to follow with the naked eye. He jokingly announces its heightened use as “premium membership” 136.
• Great White Worm: Compresses his Yang Five Thunders into a brilliant, dragon-shaped beam for his final exchange with Zhang Lingyu 136.
• Lightning blades: Uses electrical arcs to cut enemies during the Yaoxing Society battle 171.
• Limitations: High-output attacks consume substantial energy. During the final, the Yang Seed replenishes his reserves; without fully releasing it, his ordinary output remains slightly below Zhang Lingyu’s 136.

Yang Qi Seed

Lu You’s pale-gold Qi Seed supplies blood vitality and boosts Zhang Chulan’s qi, physique, speed, and strength 130 132.

• Lets him withstand Shen Chong’s attacks and overpower him despite inferior combat experience 131 132 133.
• Helps protect his mind against Gao Ning and Dou Mei, although their combined formation still disrupts his emotions and slows his reactions 132.
• Retains power into the tournament final after Zhang Lingyu has already exhausted his Yin Seed, giving Zhang Chulan an advantage 135 136.
• Leaves lasting improvements to his Nature and Life cultivation after its initial use 170.

Old Farmer’s Skill and Qi-State Origin-Flow

Feng Baobao teaches Zhang Chulan the Old Farmer’s Skill, which he circulates while absorbing the Yang Seed. He later suspects that it may be connected to Qi-State Origin-Flow but cannot explain how to write it down 130 178.

• Lu You confirms that an embryonic form of Qi-State Origin-Flow is hidden inside him 178.
• When Lu You probes it, Zhang Chulan loses conscious awareness and the hidden qi automatically breaks down invading qi into its most primitive form 178.
• This defense cannot dismantle the blood vitality carried within Lu You’s qi 178.
• Lu You obtains a complete diagram of the art without removing its seed from Zhang Chulan’s body 178.

Chastity Seal

A restriction placed on him by his grandfather that also provides protection against sexual charm 131.

• Suppresses his physical response to Xia He’s allure.
• Gives him high resistance to that type of charm, rather than general immunity to mental attacks 131 132.

Deception and Tactical Analysis

Zhang Chulan uses misdirection, observation, and negotiation to compensate for gaps in strength or experience.

• Turns three tournament opponents against one another through appeals to their pride 117.
• Studies Shen Chong’s combat methods while deliberately remaining on the defensive 132.
• Distracts Biyou Village’s bridge guards while the temporary workers infiltrate 163.
• Recognizes that Ma Xianhong will no longer trust Company personnel and suggests using outsiders or the Top Talents to persuade him 170.
• Holds out for Old Meng and Chen Duo’s arrival, anticipating that Chen Duo’s presence will draw Lu You into the battle 171 172.

Relationships

• Zhang Huaiyi / Zhang Xilin — Grandfather and original teacher. His concealed identity and connection to the Jiashen Rebellion drive Zhang Chulan’s investigation 115 116.
• Feng Baobao — Close companion and the person he is determined to protect. She teaches him the Old Farmer’s Skill, helps his tournament campaign, and protects him when Ma Xianhong’s bell incapacitates him 117 130 161 167.
• Xu San and Xu Si — Nadou Tong colleagues who accompany him to Mount Longhu and advise him during Company operations. Xu San explicitly entrusts Feng Baobao’s protection to him 114 135 161.
• Zhang Zhiwei — Sect grandmaster. Recognizes his lineage and makes winning the succession contest a condition for revealing his grandfather’s secrets 116.
• Zhang Lingyu — Junior martial uncle, tournament rival, and later trusted ally. Zhang Chulan saves him during the Quanxing battle; the two reconcile and fight the final seriously 133 134 135 136.
• Lu You / Daoist Tianji — Powerful benefactor and creditor seeking Qi-State Origin-Flow. Gives him the Yang Seed, criticizes his secrecy, and eventually obtains the art’s diagram while leaving its seed intact 116 130 165 178.
• Wang Ye — Fellow practitioner who introduces him to Zhang Zhiwei and later helps him pass through Biyou Village’s illusion formation. Wang Ye remains wary of his schemes 116 163.
• Tian Jinzhong — Sect elder who treats him kindly on Mount Longhu. Zhang Chulan mourns his murder and understands that his crippling was connected to Zhang Huaiyi 147.
• Ma Xianhong — Initially welcomes him as a fellow inheritor of an Extraordinary Skill. Their relationship deteriorates during the Company operation, leaving Ma unwilling to believe his warnings about Qu Tong 164 170.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Mount Longhu and the Luotian Grand Ceremony

• Fortune-telling encounter: Pays Lu You 1,998 yuan for a reading; Xu San pays another 1,998 after the dispute escalates. Lu You predicts that Zhang Chulan will reach the end of the ceremony but refuse the Celestial Master position 115.
• Succession investigation: Learns his grandfather’s real identity from Zhang Zhiwei, whose explanation confirms that the mystery is bound to the Celestial Master succession 116.
• Notorious tournament run: Advances through manipulation and unconventional matches, including an eating contest with Wang Ye and a fixed fight with Feng Baobao. A drunken gathering also ends with him stripping and displaying his Golden Light Mantra while Lu You takes photographs 117 135.
• Quanxing night raid: Receives the Yang Seed and joins Zhang Lingyu against the Four Unruly Ones. He severely injures Shen Chong before turning to save Zhang Lingyu from uncontrolled qi expenditure 130 132 133.
• Final victory: Defeats Zhang Lingyu after their strongest lightning attacks collide. He helps his opponent up, and the crowd applauds both fighters 136.
• Attack aftermath: Searches for the missing Feng Baobao and witnesses Lu You’s painting cover Mount Longhu. He later sees Tian Jinzhong’s body and grieves his death 143 147.

Biyou Village Operation

• Joining the mission: Accompanies Feng Baobao when the Company mobilizes its temporary workers against Biyou Village and the Body-Cultivation Furnace 161.
• Infiltration and negotiation: Uses information about Gong Qing as a reason to visit Lu You, while helping the temporary workers enter the village. After Lu You confronts his evasiveness, he reveals the Company’s actual plan 163 164 165.
• Fight with Ma Xianhong: Works with Feng Baobao to keep Ma away from the furnace. The Soul-Shaking Bell incapacitates him, leaving Feng Baobao to protect him until he recovers 166 167 169.
• Yaoxing Society ambush: Attempts to escape with Feng Baobao when Qu Tong reveals her intention to capture her. He subsequently fights alongside the temporary workers and Top Talents until Lu You intervenes 169 171 172.
• Aftermath: Is assigned to guard Qu Tong and arranges Feng Xingtong’s arrival at Lu You’s request. Lu You later collects the promised Qi-State Origin-Flow diagram 175 176 178.
• Further investigative work: When Ma Xianhong joins the Company under supervision, Zhang Chulan is proposed as someone capable of investigating his family history and lost memories 179.

Notable Quotes

“A warrior’s heart? How much is that worth? Can you eat it?” 117

“So stats are everything!” 132

“Just this once.” 136