Ling Jiuxiao

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Ling Jiuxiao (凌九霄)
Alias(es)	Nine Heavens Immortal Venerable
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Founder of the Heavenly Path; master of Nine Heavens Gate Sect Master Jun Ling Yuan; master of the Nine Heavens Limitless Palace 816 856
Occupation/Role	Great Luo Immortal Venerable; cultivator of the Dao of Transcendence; strategist pursuing the Dao of Creation 816 909 872
Status	Active
First Appearance	Mentioned on the Nine Tribulation Tower's historical ranking 530; appears in person 816

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Great Luo Immortal Venerable	816	Had already ascended from the Lower Realm and stood among the Immortal Realm's peak figures after killing Yuhua Immortal Venerable and taking his foundation.
Late Zenith Heaven cultivation	890	Returned from the Underworld with reported late Zenith Heaven cultivation.
Late-stage Daluo	913	Jun Ling Yuan reports that Ling Jiuxiao had recently entered late-stage Daluo and further advanced his divine arts.
Near the Peering into Truth threshold	941	Eternal Night Devil Venerable judges that Ling Jiuxiao has the potential to reach Peering into Truth, a state beyond ordinary Daluo perfection.

Background

Ling Jiuxiao was born into an ordinary Lower Realm family with unremarkable aptitude. In his youth, he worked in the fields with his father, an experience he later used to teach Jun Ling Yuan the value of advancing through apparent retreat. 816 857

He rose from this background through cultivation, founded the Heavenly Path, ascended to the Immortal Realm, and eventually became known as the Nine Heavens Immortal Venerable. At the height of his rise, he killed Yuhua Immortal Venerable and devoured her foundation, claiming Yuhua's former Daoist temple—the Nine Heavens Limitless Palace—as his own. 816 856 909

Ling Jiuxiao's legacy predates the main story by ages. His name occupies the highest position on the Nine Tribulation Tower's historical stele: he completed the Thousandfold Heavenly Stairs in four breaths, surpassing Fang Tianyi's five-breath record. 530

Appearance

Ling Jiuxiao initially appears as an inconspicuous plain-robed man, deliberately lacking the outward splendor expected of an Immortal Venerable. 816

• Plain appearance and neat, simple robes without ornaments. 816
• Clear eyes described as capable of reflecting the human heart. 816
• When acting openly, wears a Fate Battle Robe and radiates oppressive killing intent that overwhelms weaker cultivators. 1040

Personality

Ling Jiuxiao is patient, calculating, and exceptionally difficult to provoke into acting without certainty. He considers long-term positioning more valuable than impulsive victory, comparing strategic retreat to planting rice: every backward step establishes another row. 857

He recognizes talent and potential with unusual clarity, praising Azure Dragon as “peerless in this age” while also treating him as a threat that must be removed before he grows further. 816 872 His methods are ruthless when necessary; he is willing to use disciples, allies, arrays, inherited treasures, and political authority to construct layered traps. 872 880 922

Despite his ambition to break free from fate, Ling Jiuxiao remains deeply entangled with it. Shen Yun identifies his reliance on the Great Yan Divine Venerable's lingering protection as a critical weakness, shaking but not breaking Ling Jiuxiao's Dao Heart. 932

Abilities & Skills

Dao of Transcendence

Ling Jiuxiao's fundamental path is the Dao of Transcendence, refined from the laws of the Heaven-Intercepting Dao. It focuses on seizing spiritual essence, refining it for oneself, and breaking the shackles of other Dao paths. 909

• Performs rapid fate calculations and divinations. 857 966
• Seeks to transcend causality and the limitations imposed by fate. 909 941
• His mastery of this Dao is tied to the Destiny Heavenly Book's Transcendence Chapter. 1010
• His efforts to sever fate remain incomplete; his dependence on outside protection can become a psychological vulnerability. 932

Destiny Heavenly Book

Ling Jiuxiao is the final page—the Transcendence Chapter—of the Destiny Heavenly Book, making his existence inseparable from the divine artifact's complete inheritance. 1010

• Uses Destiny Power to deduce the future and track karmic threads. 857
• Could not locate Azure Dragon in the River of Destiny, forcing him to revise his plans. 857
• His knowledge of the book allows him to recognize the danger posed by Shen Yun's own mastery of it. 941
• The book's final inheritance cannot be completed without him. 1010

Heaven-Intercepting Dao

Ling Jiuxiao can employ the Heaven-Intercepting Dao in direct combat and defense. 927

• Manifested a massive Divine Sense hand capable of tearing open the firmament. 927
• Formed an Immortal Heavenly Gate before the Nine Heavens Limitless Palace to resist heavenly tribulation. 927
• Could not fully withstand Shen Yun's triggered Sea of Annihilation Thunder; the backlash destroyed his palace and heavily wounded him. 927

Fate-Severing Techniques

During his battle with Shen Yun, Ling Jiuxiao used the Severing Fate and Cutting Life technique, destabilizing time and space in an attempt to reverse the situation. 929

• Attacks through fate rather than relying solely on raw magical power. 929
• Can interfere with the opponent's life and karmic trajectory. 929
• Failed to secure victory against Shen Yun, whose techniques and heavenly-tribulation control continually disrupted Ling Jiuxiao's defenses. 929 932

Strategic Planning

Ling Jiuxiao treats cultivation conflicts as long-term campaigns rather than duels. 872 880

• Uses Jun Ling Yuan's spies and hidden arrangements to gather intelligence. 880
• Recruited Wan Jinsheng to delay Azure Dragon and supplied him with the Sun Key. 872 922
• Invited the Fourth Array Emperor to forge the Sumeru Killing Realm, intending to trap Azure Dragon for three days before intervening personally. 922
• Used the Jiemie Ancient Token to gain authority to enter the Immortal Ancient Battlefield. 1040

Equipment & Treasures

• Destiny Heavenly Book — Transcendence Chapter — Ling Jiuxiao himself is identified as the final page required to complete the book's inheritance. 1010
• Jiemie Ancient Token — An ancient token representing the Jiemie Immortal King's authority; it can bypass the Immortal Ancient Battlefield's sealing formation. 1040
• Seven-Colored Immortal Pagoda — A Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal-level magic tool used against Shen Yun; Shen Yun destroyed it with a single palm strike. 929
• Fate Battle Robe — His battle garment when descending before the Immortal Ancient Battlefield. 1040
• Heavenly Heart Saint Orchid — Ling Jiuxiao successfully plucked one stalk from Eternal Night Devil Venerable's possession while seeking recovery and further advancement. 940

Relationships

• Jun Ling Yuan — Direct disciple and Sect Master of Nine Heavens Gate. Ling Jiuxiao mentors him in strategy but frequently rebukes his impatience and overconfidence. 816 857 880
• Shen Yun / Azure Dragon — Principal opponent. Ling Jiuxiao initially investigated Azure Dragon's identity, later devoted extensive resources to eliminating him and seizing the Dao of Creation. 816 817 872 941
• Yuhua Immortal Venerable — Former Immortal Venerable slain by Ling Jiuxiao, whose foundation he absorbed during his ascent. 816 909
• Eternal Night Devil Venerable — Powerful ally of convenience. The two cooperate against Azure Dragon while recognizing each other's status and strength. 940 941
• Wan Jinsheng — Recruited as a delaying piece against Azure Dragon; Ling Jiuxiao guides him through a breakthrough and entrusts him with the Sun Key. 872 922
• Old Turtle — Ling Jiuxiao attempted to bargain with it for clues to Great Venerable Bai Ze's whereabouts, offering immortal arts in exchange. 857 865
• Ancestor God Wudao — Opposing force who ordered the Five Prisons War Gods to locate and kill Ling Jiuxiao after discovering him observing the conflict. 886

Story Role / Major Arcs

• Nine Tribulation Tower legacy — His four-breath record establishes the historical standard that Shen Yun later surpasses. 530 531
• Investigation of Azure Dragon — Appears after Shen Yun's departure, questions Jun Ling Yuan about Azure Dragon's background, and evaluates Azure Dragon as a peerless talent. 816
• Misidentification of Shen Yun — Accepts Jun Ling Yuan's conclusion that Shen Yun and Azure Dragon are different people because of Shen Yun's public use of a puppet. 817
• Campaign for the Dao of Creation — Builds a network of spies, recruits Wan Jinsheng, and develops plans to trap and kill Azure Dragon rather than confront him recklessly. 872 880 922
• Battle at Nine Heavens Limitless Palace — Shen Yun brings heavenly tribulation to Ling Jiuxiao's Daoist temple, destroys the palace, and forces Ling Jiuxiao into a desperate battle. 927 929
• Defeat and recovery — Ling Jiuxiao survives Shen Yun's assault, loses the Seven-Colored Immortal Pagoda, and later seeks cooperation with Eternal Night Devil Venerable. 929 932 940
• Immortal Ancient Battlefield intervention — Descends with the Jiemie Ancient Token under the stated purpose of suppressing a Demonic Calamity; Turtle Elder identifies Shen Yun's elimination as Ling Jiuxiao's actual objective. 1039 1040 1041

Notable Quotes

“The Dao of Creation will, in the end, be something in This Seat's pocket.” 872

“With every step I take backward, another row of seedlings is planted.” 857

“When a lion fights a rabbit, it still uses its full strength.” 872

Trivia

• Ling Jiuxiao's four-breath completion of the Thousandfold Heavenly Stairs remained the Nine Tribulation Tower's top historical record until Shen Yun surpassed it. 530 531
• He deliberately presents himself in plain robes and avoids outward displays of status when observing events covertly. 816
• Though he seeks to transcend fate, he repeatedly relies on fate calculation and the Destiny Heavenly Book in his plans. 857 1010