Ninth Ancestor

Biodata

Appearance

• Build and face: Slender, with an ordinary-looking face 5.
• Hair: White, initially described as draped over his shoulders 5.
• Eyes: Seem to contain an entire sea of stars 5.
• Presence: His unrestrained might overwhelms the Chen Clan elders; in battle, he appears beneath an ancient bronze bell with white hair streaming behind him 5 228.

Personality

The Ninth Ancestor is affectionate and teasing toward Chen Qingyu, frequently calling him “Little Qingyu.” He celebrates the boy’s achievements enthusiastically but also challenges his confidence, warning that rapid cultivation cannot replace combat experience or mastery of techniques 9 10.

His warmth turns to fury when the clan is threatened. Learning that someone manipulated Chen Qingyu through stolen Supreme Void authority provokes visions of exploding stars and collapsing nebulae behind him 140.

He places the Chen Clan’s survival above personal sentiment. This outlook shapes his matchmaking, his interest in the Great Void Primal Spirit’s reincarnation, and his insistence that he must consider benefits and risks for the entire clan. Nevertheless, he rejects forcibly enslaving the reincarnation, judging the danger of retaliation unacceptable 55 149 428.

He is willing to damage his own reputation for Chen Qingyu’s sake. After the younger man surpasses him, he privately pressures other ancestors to surrender their Great Void Authority, taking responsibility for the coercion rather than leaving Chen Qingyu to do it 513 516.

History

Earlier Clan Decisions

More than sixty years before Chen Qingyu’s travels, the Ninth Ancestor spared Chen Zhengxing after a grave mistake because he valued Zhengxing’s talent. Instead of execution, Zhengxing was assigned to guard the Great Yin Grotto and retained his main-line status, while surviving relatives were stripped of theirs and expelled from the Divine Capital 155 310.

The Ninth Ancestor and other elders initially expected Chen Qingyu’s mixed Human–Spirit heritage to weaken his Chen bloodline and limit his prospects. His extraordinary talent overturned those expectations, although the Ninth Ancestor later explained that the low initial concentration of his Saint King bloodline had been real 70.

Guiding Chen Qingyu

The Ninth Ancestor awakens early in Chen Qingyu’s rise and summons both him and Chen Zhengxing to the Hall of Supreme Harmony. After Qingyu reaches the Blood Sea Realm, he introduces him to the Supreme Void Dao Realm and the Dragon Gate Dharma Assembly 5 9 10.

He arranges Qingyu’s meeting with Wu Su’e in cooperation with a Taihuang Wu Clan ancestor and promises guidance in One Star, Nine Luminaries. He also directs Qingyu to the last preserved drop of Saint King’s Blood in Liyang City and reveals his mixed heritage after witnessing the resulting bloodline transformation 55 67 70 71.

When Qingyu seeks the Divine Shore Realm, the Ninth Ancestor fears that the attempt will delay his otherwise exceptional progress. He nevertheless permits a one-year trial and grants access to Chen Kaihai’s handwritten notes, Path to the Other Shore 120.

Stolen Authority and the Southern Journey

Qingyu’s report about Xu Yuanxian exposes the misuse of the Supreme Void Eternal World Mirror. The Ninth Ancestor admits that he sensed an abnormality but could not trace it: his authority clearance was lower than Qingyu’s, and he had not expected an attack within the Divine Capital 140 141.

He then asks Qingyu to search for the Great Void Primal Spirit’s reincarnation. Before the journey, he supplies protective treasures, a fully documented cover identity, and a hidden Dao protector, Little Seventeen 148 149 153 155.

During the Yanggu Zhang Clan crisis, he intercepts and kills Master Jia, destroys more than a dozen Corpse Monsters, and checks Qingyu for injuries. Rather than treating the affair as a failure, he emphasizes that Qingyu saved prodigies, exposed the Sage Evolution Palace, and obtained intelligence that could unite the holy lands against it 228 231.

Clan Service and Emperor Yuan Palace

After Qingyu returns at the True Gang Realm, the Ninth Ancestor arranges for him to serve as inspecting envoy in Central Capital Yangchuan. He repeatedly reserves the position while allowing further journeys, but warns him against leaving Central Heaven Prefecture because hostile sacred lands and the Sage Evolution Palace are targeting him 265 269 291.

He recognizes a recovered black token as an important lost treasure of Saint King Chenliu, supplies Qingyu with the Thirteen Golden Grain Pill, and discloses the hidden history of the Kings of High Antiquity. He later explains that Emperor Yuan’s approaching death could remove the continent’s strongest deterrent to war 291 305 307 330.

The Ninth Ancestor and Qingyu discover Saint King Chenliu’s coffin empty. At the Dragon Gate Dharma Assembly, he answers Qingyu’s summons alongside three other ancestors and confronts Emperor Yuan Palace over the stolen remains. He returns home with the recovered remains and learns that Qingyu has completed all three secret missions entrusted to him 328 373 375 376.

Finding Chen Qingmeng

After Qingyu identifies Wu Chenkong as the Sage Evolution Palace’s hidden leader, the Ninth Ancestor brings the intelligence to Wu Xiangchen. The subsequent investigation forces the Wu Clan ancestor to acknowledge his own ancestor’s involvement 422 423 424.

In Liyang City, the Ninth Ancestor investigates a mysterious girl who has remained a child for over 130 years. He and Qingyu confirm her connection to the Great Void Primal Spirit and bring her to the Divine Capital as Chen Qingmeng 426 427.

He arranges concealment through the Myriad Stars Armillary Heaven Bell and agrees to handle her clan registration. He later proposes that the original Primal Spirit’s consciousness and memories may have been erased during reincarnation, leaving Qingmeng as a distinct person 428 429.

War and the Holy Land Alliance

Following Emperor Yuan’s death, the Ninth Ancestor calls for the holy lands to unite. When Saint King Tianchen attacks the Divine Capital, he confronts him with both Chen Clan treasures, but suffers serious injuries against Tianchen’s superior strength 500 501 502 503.

As Qingyu becomes the alliance’s central military power, the Ninth Ancestor shifts toward political support. He seeks the deputy alliance leader position to strengthen Qingyu’s standing and persuades—or threatens—the Myriad Phenomena and East Flow ancestors into transferring their Great Void Authority to him 511 513 516.

He joins the other Saints after Qingyu kills Wu Chenkong and ends the war. In the aftermath, Qingyu entrusts him with Emperor Yuan’s treasures, and the Ninth Ancestor urges prompt action against the holy-land masterminds responsible for the Divine Capital’s calamity 539 546.

Later Years

The Ninth Ancestor suggests reforging a Chen Clan treasure into a Quasi-Emperor supreme treasure so the clan can retain world-suppressing strength without relying entirely on Qingyu’s presence. He also participates in receiving Quasi-Emperor Canliu and the refugee Yinshan Liu Clan 557 560.

He remains at the Floating Heavenly Palace during Qingyu’s later absence, worrying about him alongside Chen Zhengxing. He welcomes Qingyu home after three years and appears again at the later reunion, offering to arrange a feast before Qingyu announces plans to relocate the clan 684 816.

Abilities & Skills

Extreme Transformation Cultivation

• Holds Seventh Heaven Extreme Transformation Realm cultivation 503.
• Is described before Qingyu’s rise as the strongest cultivator of the present-day Desolate Continent; during the war, he remains the strongest expert among the established sacred lands 153 503.
• With the Chen Clan’s two supreme treasures, his combat strength barely approaches Saint King level. Saint King Tianchen nevertheless overpowers and injures him 503.

Spatial Manipulation

• Summons Chen Zhengxing and Chen Qingyu into the Hall of Supreme Harmony with a sweep of his sleeve 5.
• Creates the Star Sea Floating Island within the Floating Heavenly Palace 375.
• Tears open spatial passages and transports groups through the void 232 375.
• As an ancestor near the peak of the Extreme Transformation Realm with access to Saint King weapon power, can appear anywhere on the Desolate Continent almost instantly 388.

Great Void Authority

• Holds the Chen Clan’s share of authority over the Supreme Void Eternal World Mirror 140 141.
• Cannot automatically detect every misuse: Qingyu’s higher clearance and the concealed nature of the stolen authority obstruct his investigation 141.
• Coordinates the voluntary transfer of his authority and the other two ancestors’ shares to Qingyu 513 516.

Spiritual Sense and Soul-Searching

• Attempts to search Master Jia’s soul, but encounters a secrecy oath that begins triggering self-detonation. He destroys Jia’s body and soul before it can proceed 228.
• Uses spiritual sense to investigate Qingmeng’s abnormal existence in Liyang City 427.
• Can move among ordinary people without attracting their notice through spiritual-sense manipulation 426.

Refining and Instruction

• Personally refines and nurtures a Mystic Artifact embryo for ten thousand years before gifting it to Qingyu 149.
• Crafts a disguise mask that cannot be penetrated by anyone whose cultivation does not exceed his own 153.
• Teaches the Supreme Void Mora Dao Practice Incantation and guides Qingyu’s study of One Star, Nine Luminaries 10 55 71.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Myriad Stars Armillary Heaven Bell — Saint King Chenliu’s life-bound Mystic Artifact and the Chen Clan’s supreme defensive treasure. Its chime destroys Master Jia’s body and soul; its power also conceals Qingmeng within the Divine Capital. It suffers damage during the battle against Tianchen 228 428 502 503.
• Nine Luminaries Heaven-Shaking Hammer — Clan-guarding Divine Weapon with nine chained hammerheads shaped like divine beasts. It has greater offensive power than the bell but cannot gather stellar power from the Void Cosmos. Two hammerheads are shattered against Tianchen 434 502 503.
• White seal Mystic Artifact embryo — A smooth, unmarked treasure embryo gifted to Qingyu. The Ninth Ancestor leaves its eventual naming to its recipient 149 150.
• Disguise mask — Crafted for Qingyu’s travels to protect his true appearance from cultivators at or below the Ninth Ancestor’s level 153.
• Thirteen Golden Grain Pill — Given to accelerate Qingyu’s cultivation; the Ninth Ancestor explains that Qingyu’s unusually strong foundation limits its expected effect 307.
• Emperor Yuan’s treasures — Entrusted to him by Qingyu after the war 546.

Relationships

• Chen Qingyu / Chen Shaojun — Younger clansman, protégé, and eventual successor as the Chen Clan’s pillar. The Ninth Ancestor progresses from protecting his life to securing his political authority 9 228 513 516.
• Chen Zhengxing — Younger clansman whose life he spared for his talent. He later celebrates Zhengxing’s advancement to the Extreme Transformation Realm 310 491.
• Chen Guangsheng — Great-grandnephew and Qingyu’s great-grandfather. The Ninth Ancestor reinforces him against Master Jia and later praises his contribution to Qingyu’s safe return 228 265.
• Little Seventeen — Great-grandnephew appointed as Qingyu’s secret Dao protector, with instructions to intervene against danger or bullying 155.
• Wu Su’e — Taihuang Wu Clan princess whom he arranges for Qingyu to meet; he later dismisses the idea that the meeting constituted a settled engagement 55 149.
• Wu Xiangchen — Allied Taihuang Wu Clan ancestor, addressed as “Brother Wu.” The Ninth Ancestor shares intelligence with him and later fears his clan’s destruction when contact is lost 423 509.
• Chen Qingmeng — Helps identify, relocate, conceal, and register her within the Chen Clan; follows her growth and the implications of her reincarnation 427 428 523.
• Saint King Tianchen — Enemy who threatens the Chen Clan and grievously injures him during the assault on the Divine Capital 501 503.

Notable Quotes

“With martial techniques and divine abilities, mastery matters more than quantity.” 10

“As the pillar of the Chen Clan, I am responsible for the entire clan. I have no choice but to consider things from a higher level.” 428

“As your elder, I'm already weaker than you and can no longer shield you on your journey. Taking the blame for you is about the only use I have left.” 516