Liu Yunan

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Liu Yunan grew up in Xiushui Village as the only son of Liu Dashu and Yang Jinshu, commonly called Widow Liu. His father died when he was three. His mother supported him and his younger sister, Liu Shengsheng, through farming and paid women’s work from town; his paternal relatives offered no assistance and repeatedly troubled the family 17 27.

Rumors about his mother, reinforced by his paternal grandparents’ claims that she would abandon her children, initially turned him against her. Although she kept both children fed despite their poverty, he eventually refused to eat at home because of the gossip surrounding her ability to provide for them. After befriending Lin Xiao at five, he escaped much of the bullying and exclusion he had faced. Lin Xiao and their friends foraged with him and helped feed him, though he remained noticeably thin 17.

At eight, he fought a group of children after one insulted his mother. He beat the culprit to the ground but lost a patch of hair and was left bleeding. The injury earned him the nickname Tuzi, which he accepted proudly after Lin Xiao called the bald patch a “medal” 17.

His mother later revealed that she came from the Yang Household, once the largest cloth merchant in Liaoju Prefecture. Her family lost its fortune, and a refugee crisis separated her from her parents. Years later, Liu Yunan met his maternal grandmother, Zhu Xiurong, after she joined the Lingxian Sect. He was happy for his mother’s reunion but mourned the grandfather who had died before returning home 51 446.

Appearance

• Childhood build: Extremely thin, repeatedly compared to a hemp stalk; still somewhat malnourished when first introduced 17 23.
• Complexion: Darkened by spending whole days outdoors around Xiushui Village 17.
• Distinguishing feature: A small bald patch caused by the fight in which he defended his mother’s reputation 17.
• Later physique: Foundation Establishment gives him a strong body and recovery far beyond an ordinary person’s, despite his demanding work schedule 442.

Personality

Liu Yunan is fiercely protective of his family. He confronts relatives attempting to take his sister away and refuses to yield even when he knows Boss Liu is stronger. After being severely injured, he forces himself to remain conscious and keeps hold of his mother’s and sister’s hands because he fears leaving them unprotected 23 24 25.

He takes deep satisfaction in being useful. Lin Xiao recognizes that his enthusiasm for administrative work comes partly from having once been too young and frail to help his mother with her labor. This dedication also leads him to overwork; Lin Xiao advises him to lighten his responsibilities and train assistants 258.

His caution is especially apparent in unfamiliar places and financial decisions. On his first trading visit to Yuanling City, he avoids crowds, eye contact, and unnecessary stops. He also questions the risks of sharing production formulas and giving the Li Clan control over external trade 227 366 543.

His outlook broadens with experience. Initially unsettled by the idea of delaying an emperor’s request, he later negotiates directly with the imperial court. A conversation with the village elders also reminds him that the sect should cooperate with its community rather than avoid the villagers’ questions 222 223 324.

Abilities & Skills

Sect Administration

Liu Yunan develops from Lin Xiao’s assistant into the sect’s formally appointed Affairs Elder 286.

• Handles routine affairs independently and consults Liao Pantu and Sun Yigao on difficult decisions 197.
• Oversees supplies, stipends, storeroom access, task settlements, and emergency arrangements 197 505.
• Registers newcomers, distributes uniforms and cultivation supplies, and introduces them to sect facilities 274 373.
• Organizes lecturer rotations, master-disciple information, and new disciples’ work opportunities 440 442 445.
• Trains temporary substitutes before traveling and later gives Bai Zhu practical exposure to sect management 288 580.

Trade and Negotiation

• Coordinates production and packs goods for transactions with the Many Treasures Pavilion 227.
• Studies goods and prices in Yuanling City, enabling him to assess procurement feasibility and selling prices when reviewing imperial orders 325.
• Works with Qin Jianghe on capital-based business, village financing, and the development of Xiushui City 324 472 516.
• Identifies ordinary mortals in the Immortal Cultivation Realm as potential customers for the sect’s labor-saving farming tools 608.

Law Techniques

Divine Sense

• Can project Divine Sense outward after reaching Foundation Establishment 324.
• Checks the surroundings before he and Qin Jianghe sit down for their imperial audience 324.

Swordsmanship in the Clouds

• Studies the sect’s Swordsmanship in the Clouds, but has not finished its first level by the time he begins planning the sect monthly 472.

Equipment / Items

• Storage Bag — Receives one made by Lin Xiao; later carries notebooks, documents, and supplies for his work 32 440 445.
• Storeroom key — Entrusted to him before Lin Xiao enters extended seclusion 197.
• Identity token — Alerts him to activity in the main control room, including capacity warnings from the Heart-Questioning Road 421.
• Lock Ring — Used to communicate with Lin Xiao about matters such as He Yi’s admission 505 506.
• Administrative notebooks — Keeps records of arrangements such as which elders are accepting disciples 440 442.
• Two Aspects Life and Death Formation — Retrieves this sect asset from storage during the threatened attack by Wei Hai; it is not identified as his personal possession 231 238.

Relationships

• Lin Xiao — Childhood friend, sect master, and trusted elder-brother figure whom he calls “Brother Xiao.” Lin Xiao helped feed and protect him as a child and later entrusted him with the sect’s administration 17 197 223.
• Yang Jinshu / Widow Liu — Mother. Their early estrangement gives way to protectiveness and pride in her growing confidence and authority. He trains her to manage affairs during his trip to the capital 17 288 378.
• Liu Shengsheng — Younger sister. He risks his life to prevent their paternal relatives from taking her away and later brings her and their mother to the cultivation room after they join the sect 23 24 52.
• Liu Dashu — Father, who died when Liu Yunan was three. He had separated from the old Liu household after marrying Yang Jinshu 17 27.
• Zhu Xiurong — Maternal grandmother, reunited with the family after a separation lasting twenty years. Liu Yunan later visits her with his mother and learns about ordinary life in the Immortal Cultivation Realm 446 608.
• Boss Liu / Liu Dashan — Abusive paternal uncle who breaks his arm while attempting to take Liu Shengsheng. Lin Xiao subsequently cripples Boss Liu’s hands and feet 24 25 29.
• Qin Jianghe — Childhood friend and frequent partner in finance, trade, and development planning. They travel to the capital together and jointly propose expanding Xiushui into a city 17 287 516.
• Sun Yigao — Fellow administrator whose judgment Lin Xiao recommends on questions of right and wrong. They help determine the sect’s response to the emperor and its approach to shared cultivation classes 197 222 441.
• Liao Pantu — Cultivation adviser and senior administrative partner. His instruction helps Liu Yunan advance, and he accompanies him on the trading trip to Yuanling City 127 197 227.
• Du Liushui and Hu Deli — Village elders who intervene when Boss Liu attacks his family. Their later advice strengthens his commitment to cooperation between the sect and Xiushui Village 25 222 223.
• Bai Zhu — Junior disciple he increasingly involves in administrative work. Liu Yunan values his diligence, accountability, humility, and kindness 580.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Defending the Liu Family

• Discovers that his grandmother and aunts intend to send Liu Shengsheng to a wealthy household for ten taels, financing a cousin’s proposed business venture. He challenges their reasoning and throws Eldest Aunt Liu out of the courtyard 23.
• Stands against Boss Liu despite the limits of his newly acquired cultivation. His uncle breaks his left arm and leaves him coughing blood; the village elders intervene 24 25.
• Returns to cultivation despite his injuries, determined to grow stronger. Meanwhile, Liu Shengsheng develops a dangerous fever, and their mother can initially afford only one dose of medicine 29 32.
• Later confirms to Hu Deli that his broken arm healed long ago 222.

Managing the Sect During Lin Xiao’s Seclusion

• Receives authority to manage ordinary affairs, with Liao Pantu and Sun Yigao forming the consultation group for more difficult matters 197.
• Helps delay the emperor’s vague proposal until the sect has more information and Lin Xiao has emerged from seclusion 222.
• Changes the sect’s approach to villagers after Du Liushui and Hu Deli remind him of the community’s mutual support 223.
• Organizes goods for the Many Treasures Pavilion and travels with Liao Pantu to complete the transaction, carefully limiting travel costs 227.

Wei Hai’s Threat

• Arranges medicine for the injured Tietou and alerts Liao Pantu after learning of suspicious cultivators near the village 230.
• On learning that Nascent Soul cultivator Wei Hai may arrive within hours, warns the sect, begins evacuating villagers, and asks whether the poisoned informant can be saved 231.
• Retrieves the Two Aspects Life and Death Formation. His proposed placement on the Heart-Questioning Road is ruled out because formations cannot be placed there; activating it outside the road would also leave the user exposed during setup 231 238.
• Later helps Lin Xiao and Liao Pantu count the spoils taken from Wei Hai 247.

Affairs Elder and Imperial Trade

• Is formally appointed Affairs Elder after serving as Lin Xiao’s assistant and managing affairs during his absence 286.
• Trains his mother and other senior family members to cover sect administration before leaving for the capital with Qin Jianghe 288.
• Helps buy a shop with a large rear courtyard for 9,600 taels, providing cover for the sect’s dealings with the imperial family 324.
• Meets Emperor Li Zhouxuan to review supply requirements for the campaign against Huanyou Nation, drawing on his knowledge of cultivation-market prices 324 325.

Recruitment and Disciple Life

• Opens the sect’s recruitment examination and repeatedly authorizes Heart-Questioning Road upgrades as demand approaches capacity. The upgrades begin at 1,000 ordinary Spirit Stones, increasing by 500 each time 421.
• Prepares tours and demonstrations for newcomers, including visually spectacular but harmless talismans commissioned from Liu Chun 434.
• Helps choose shared cultivation classes to reduce divisions and rivalry between disciples of different masters 441.
• Coordinates eleven lecturers and requires Xiaoluan to teach in human language, answer patiently, and refrain from beating students 442.
• Explains that new disciples must build their homes to essentially equal standards, while allowing personal interior decoration 445.
• Distributes Peach Leaf Pendants ahead of schedule after all the newcomers successfully draw Qi into their bodies 456.

Community Development and Xiushui City

• Establishes the Sect Bell shrine near Peach Blossom Road so people in difficulty can summon help 453.
• Finalizes a village project’s funding arrangements with Qin Jianghe and Village Chief Du, then begins planning a sect monthly with rules intended to make it transferable to future staff 472.
• Welcomes He Yi without special treatment after he passes the entrance trial. He Yi’s recognition of the Ten-Li Peach Blossom Tree reveals its identity as the legendary Illusory Spirit Immortal Peach Tree 505 506.
• Jointly proposes a city rather than a town-sized trading center, arguing that future cultivator caravans need more space and villagers should gain livelihoods beyond farming 516.
• Introduces residents to the completed Xiushui City’s running water, waste-pumping arrangements, automatic streetlights, scheduled buses, and protected residential community 530.
• Questions the financial risks of giving the Li Clan full control of external trade; Lin Xiao explains that extending trust could turn them into dependable allies 543.
• Equips travelers to the Immortal Cultivation Realm with safety handbooks, farming-tool samples, and recording Jade Slips, combining product promotion with material for the sect monthly 608.

Notable Quotes

“No matter what you're doing, Brother Xiao, count me in first!” 17

“Little Sister, don't be afraid. I'm here. None of them can take you away.” 24

“From now on, we don't have to hide whenever we see the villagers.” 223

“So! You must change the way you saw the world as mortals! Adapt to all extraordinary things as quickly as possible!” 443

Trivia

• Although Tuzi originated from a childhood injury, Liu Yunan regarded it as a badge of courage rather than an insult 17.
• As the childhood friends grow older, they gradually replace their nicknames with their proper names without losing their closeness 416.
• He is initially embarrassed when Gu Yuxiao calls him “Martial Uncle,” and later feels similarly uncomfortable when Han Weishu addresses him as “Senior Liu” 274 327.