Ancestor Tianyan

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Dominance and Retreat

Tianyan lived more than a hundred thousand years before the present Lu Clan’s revival. Although the clan was already depleted when it came into his hands, he restored some of its vitality through divination and schemes against other powers. His Heavenly Derivation Art made him a dominant figure on the Cangxuan Continent, and clan records credited him with subduing powerful enemies without fighting 5 7 40.

Repeatedly probing heavenly secrets brought backlash from the Heavenly Dao upon both Tianyan and his descendants. As his lifespan dwindled, he found that no younger clansman could succeed him. His search for help failed because the enemies he had made during his rise refused to assist him 5.

To preserve the lineage, Tianyan moved the Lu Clan from Central Province to a remote part of Qingzhou and concealed its heavenly secrets. He also divided the clan into branches scattered across the continent to mislead anyone tracing its origins. Having left his resources to the clan, he entered the Ancestral Land expecting never to emerge again 5 7.

Awakening and the Clan’s Revival

Within the Ancestral Land, Tianyan discovered that its contamination was draining the clan’s fortune. He also learned that sleeping ancestors could gradually purify it: their death Qi harmonized with the foul Qi, extending their lives and increasing their cultivation. He understood this process as part of the forefather’s arrangements for the clan’s future 5.

After awakening at the Sage King Realm, Tianyan explained these secrets to Lu Qingshan and the three elders and urged them to restore the clan before its forefather returned. He also forcibly awakened the clan’s bloodline power, substantially improving its overall strength 5 12.

Tianyan detected Lu Fan’s reincarnation and questioned his intentions before accepting him as a clansman. He secured Lu Fan’s loyalty by promising support in recovering his former strength and confronting the enemies of his previous life, then assigned him to assist Lu Qingshan 6 7.

Alliance with the Azure Feather Dynasty

Tianyan drew Ancestor Qingtian into his hidden small world and revealed detailed knowledge of his history and failing lifespan. Warning of an approaching war involving all four provinces, he offered an alliance in exchange for resources to rebuild the Lu Clan. Qingtian accepted, swore an oath with him, and handed over his storage ring 7 8.

When a Central Province force attacked the Azure Feather Dynasty, Tianyan refused to intervene. He judged the Lu Clan too weak to withstand the consequences and revealed that he had weakened the alliance oath to limit its backlash. After the dynasty’s fall, he also rejected seizing the Lush Wood Blessed Land, fearing that exposing his strength would upset the balance between superpowers and precipitate a wider war 14 16.

Return to Central Province

Five hundred years later, Ancestor Danyang awakened. Tianyan welcomed the senior alchemist and supported returning to Central Province, where he had already identified a suitable settlement site 17 18.

At Qiyun Mountain, Tianyan subdued Yu An and seized the Yellow Pill Grotto-Heaven. He spared Yu An after recognizing the value of another alchemist, then released more than ten thousand clanspeople from a special space to build their new home. He chose the secluded mountain because neither he nor Danyang excelled at direct combat 21.

The return brought Tianyan some relief from his guilt over the clan’s decline. Before the ancestral tablets, he announced that the Lu Clan had finally returned after a hundred thousand years. He later presented the refined Yellow Pill Grotto-Heaven to the other ancestors, enabling Danyang to establish it within the clan’s small world 26 27.

Defense and Further Awakenings

After detecting an attempt to divine the Lu Clan’s strength, Tianyan consulted Danyang and Xuanzhen about a possible attack. He backed Xuanzhen’s defensive preparations and remained composed when six Saint Kings approached; Xuanzhen’s formations subsequently repelled them 34 35 36.

Tianyan later helped receive an ancient ancestor’s awakened will, which revealed the clan’s origins in the Yuan Realm and accelerated further awakenings. When Ancestor Dali emerged, Tianyan explained the circumstances and later offered to locate the clan’s enemies for him 37 39 40 41.

During the Xuan Clan coalition’s attack, a stronger enemy’s concealment prevented Tianyan from discovering the threat early. With Dali absent, he called to the Ancestral Land rather than attempt a recall he believed would be too late. The Blood Dao Ancestor subsequently emerged and saved the clan 45 46.

After several days of deductions, Tianyan located the mastermind behind the black-robed Saint King, allowing Dali to pursue him 49.

Appearance

• Elderly features: A wrinkled face and graying beard 7 8.
• Clothing: Described as a black-robed elder during his meeting with Ancestor Qingtian 7.

Personality

Tianyan combines confidence with a preference for indirect solutions. He uses information, secrecy, and negotiation to secure advantages, allowing Qingtian’s uncertainty about him to strengthen his position. He readily promises protection and resources to capable recruits when their service benefits the Lu Clan 7 8.

His concern for his descendants can be ruthless. He initially considers killing Yu An to prevent future retaliation against the clan, sparing him only after identifying a practical use for his alchemy. Likewise, he prioritizes the Lu Clan’s survival over fulfilling its alliance with the Azure Feather Dynasty 14 21.

Despite his historical reputation, Tianyan carries considerable guilt for the clan’s decline. He views its restoration as an opportunity to make amends. His pride is also tempered by the far stronger presences within the Ancestral Land, and he treats ancestors such as Danyang with explicit deference 5 18 26.

Abilities & Skills

Heavenly Derivation Art

Tianyan’s signature art concerns divining heavenly secrets and deducing information 5 7.

• Personal investigation: Identifies Lu Fan’s reincarnation and exposes Qingtian’s history, failed breakthrough, and dwindling lifespan 6 7.
• Prediction: Foresees a continent-wide war and anticipates another ancestor’s awakening 8 44.
• Tracking: Locates the mastermind behind the black-robed Saint King after several days of deductions 49.
• Detection: Notices an outside attempt to divine the Lu Clan’s true strength 34.
• Backlash: Excessive use once harmed both him and his descendants. Attempting to investigate the emerging Blood Dao Ancestor causes bloody tears 5 45.
• Limits: Cannot divine information about sufficiently powerful ancestors. Stronger opponents can also obscure heavenly secrets and evade his advance detection 40 45.

Concealment and Counter-Divination

• Conceals the Lu Clan’s heavenly secrets during its retreat to Qingzhou 5.
• Hides his own presence to avoid exposing a Sage King expert and disturbing the balance between powers 7 16.
• Uses a powerful divination method to conceal the clan’s location at Qiyun Mountain 26.

Spatial Manipulation

• Opens a small world for cultivation 14.
• Draws Qingtian into a hidden small world for a private meeting 7.
• Carries more than ten thousand clanspeople within a special space and releases them at Qiyun Mountain 21.

Bloodline and Physique Assistance

• Forcibly awakens the Lu Clan’s bloodline power, improving its collective strength 12.
• Tells Qing Xu that he can help evolve her Spirit Communion Physique into a Heavenly Spirit Physique; the provided account does not establish that the evolution is completed 10.

Oath Mitigation and Soul Investigation

• Weakens a sworn oath sufficiently to avoid serious consequences for withholding aid, though slight aftereffects remain 14.
• Captures a slain attacker’s remnant soul and discovers that portions of his memories have been erased 42.

Combat Limitations

• Can suppress opponents such as Yu An, but does not specialize in fighting 21.
• Would struggle against an ordinary Saint King expert, favoring planning and preparation instead 21.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Ancestral Land incense burner — Clan treasure containing the sleeping ancestors. Tianyan can summon the burner into his hand and calls upon it during the coalition attack 5 45.
• Yellow Pill Grotto-Heaven crystal ball — Seized from Yu An and refined by Tianyan before being presented to Danyang for placement within the clan’s small world 21 27.
• Qingtian’s storage ring — Received as alliance support and passed to Lu Qingshan for the clan’s recovery 8.

Relationships

• Lu Qingshan — Descendant and current patriarch. Tianyan advises him on resources, security, and expansion, while Qingshan regards him as the clan’s savior 5 8 16 44.
• Lu Fan — Reincarnated sage recruited into clan service. Tianyan promises help restoring his strength in exchange for complete loyalty 6 7.
• Ancestor Qingtian — Alliance partner who supplies vital resources. Tianyan later withholds military aid when the dynasty is attacked 8 14.
• Qing Xu — Junior whom he offers to help evolve from a Spirit Communion Physique to a Heavenly Spirit Physique 10.
• Ancestor Danyang — Senior ancestor and ninth-grade alchemist. Tianyan respects his seniority and secures resources and personnel supporting his work 18 21 27.
• Ancestor Xuanzhen — Senior array ancestor entrusted with the clan’s defenses. Tianyan authorizes him to draw whatever resources he needs from the treasury 34.
• Ancestor Dali — Senior combat specialist. Tianyan’s deductions provide targets for his retaliation against the clan’s enemies 41 49.
• Yu An — Defeated alchemist spared and assigned to the Lu Clan’s Alchemy Pavilion 21 27.

Notable Quotes

“Don't put too much pressure on yourself. Your ancestor is still here.” 8

“Qingshan, you must understand the cruelty of the world, and recognize the limits of your own strength.” 14

“Ancestors, after a hundred thousand years, our Lu Clan has finally returned to Central Province.” 26