Li Xiangyi

Biodata

Power Progression

Background

Li Xiangyi and his elder brother, Li Xiangxian, escaped the destruction of the Li Household. Xiangxian later died of illness, leaving a family jade pendant to Shan Gudao and asking him to care for his younger brother. Qi Mushan took Shan Gudao as a disciple for Li Xiangyi’s sake. The pendant subsequently helped Shan Gudao pass himself off as the Nanyin royal descendant whose identity actually belonged to Li Xiangyi 38.

Raised under Qi Mushan and Qin Po at Mount Yun Yin, Li Xiangyi developed extraordinary martial talent. The narrative identifies him as a child of fortune whose potential to transcend martial arts and shatter the void could help the world’s Heavenly Dao advance 19 26.

Appearance

• Li Xiangyi: Handsome, with a proud, radiant bearing associated with his position as the greatest martial artist under heaven 36 37 38.
• Li Lianhua: His appearance and bearing differ greatly from his earlier identity. In the fisherwoman world, Wen Qiushui recognizes him by his soul rather than his face 20.
• Dress and manners: Keeps his clothes spotless even in poverty; his refined speech and conduct distinguish him from the inhabitants of Wang Family Village 22.

Personality

Li Xiangyi is proud, outspoken, and deeply loyal, but his confidence initially extends too readily to those close to him. He dismisses warnings about Shan Gudao and Yun Biqiu, and continues defending his senior brother even after suffering betrayal. Wen Qiushui sees in him the same combination of innocence, conceit, and misplaced trust that once ruined her own life 15 16.

His righteousness is not limited to punishing obvious villains. He opposes collective punishment and insists that each person’s wrongdoing must be established through evidence. After discovering Shan Gudao’s abuse of the He orphan, he accepts responsibility on his sect’s behalf, protects the child, and promises to investigate the massacre of the boy’s household 34 36.

Betrayal does not permanently break his resolve. Once recovery becomes possible, he regains the courage to confront his enemies and reorganize his sect. As Li Lianhua, he is more melancholy and experienced, but remains strongly attached to family and personal bonds. His children later remember his attentiveness, selflessness, and practical judgment 17 21 25 49 50.

Abilities & Skills

Yangzhou Man

Li Xiangyi’s self-created internal art is sophisticated enough for Wen Qiushui to compare it to a genuine cultivation method 19.

• Repairs severe internal injuries and helps expel Bicha poison when supported by suitable medicine 16 19 31.
• Neutralizes He Xiaolan’s specially prepared knockout drug even before he fully masters the art 36.
• Requires time and adequate physical condition: poisoning and injury can still leave him severely weakened 21 25 31.
• Inspires Wen Qiushui’s creation of the calming Ice Heart Instruction 19.

Xiangyi Grand Sword

His signature swordsmanship combines exceptional speed with techniques of his own creation 19 33.

• Exchanges more than a hundred moves with He Xiaolan while his swordsmanship is still incomplete 33.
• Is treated by Di Feisheng as a standard against which to judge Zhaoling’s Ethereal Swordsmanship 42.
• Does not guarantee superiority over a more experienced opponent: He Xiaolan’s refined technique prevents him from overcoming her despite his stronger internal power 33 34.

Investigation and Perception

His observational ability remains formidable even when his martial power declines 21 25.

• Reconstructs the He Household massacre through combat traces, local inquiries, and knowledge of martial techniques 36.
• Solves Second Miss Yu’s murder within two or three days despite retaining less than a tenth of his former martial ability 25.
• Recognizes that the woman occupying Qiao Wanmian’s body is not the original Qiao Wanmian 18.
• Continues solving cases and treating patients while traveling with his children in the Zhaoling world 50.

Leadership

• Restores his followers’ confidence after the Sigu Sect’s crisis and orders Yun Biqiu’s capture 17.
• Promotes Liu Rujing, Jiang Wuya, and other trusted followers to positions where they can check one another’s authority 18.
• Uses a public fighting platform to answer challengers while investigators pursue Wansheng Dao 19.
• Leads the Nanyin Cult after Wen Qiushui compels him to accept responsibility for it 31.

Equipment & Items

• Shaoshi Sword — Wielded during his confrontation with He Xiaolan and after his Yangzhou Man breakthrough. The Shaoshi displayed at the Hundred Rivers Courtyard’s gathering in the Zhaoling world is exposed as a fake 19 33 45.
• Lotus Tower — His wooden residence as Li Lianhua. In the fisherwoman world, he builds it using planks dredged from the sea; in the Zhaoling world, it becomes a home for journeys with his children 22 50.
• Lethe Flower — Gives it to Zhaoling while refusing her offer of medicine in exchange for becoming her prince consort 48.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Qiao Wanmian World

Wen Qiushui, occupying Qiao Wanmian’s body, warns Li Xiangyi against Shan Gudao, Xiao Zijin, and Yun Biqiu. He dismisses her concerns and receives the original Qiao Wanmian’s breakup letter without reading it. Shan Gudao’s reported death and the disappearance of his corpse then drive him into a duel with Di Feisheng as their factions go to war 15 18.

Li Xiangyi returns poisoned and injured to find Xiao Zijin advocating the Sigu Sect’s dissolution. Wen Qiushui kills Xiao Zijin, gives Li Xiangyi a detoxification pill, and leaves. The pill immediately neutralizes seventy percent of his poison and is expected to remove roughly ninety percent, giving him a chance to survive 16.

After discovering that Yun Biqiu also sent his loyal followers toward a fatal trap, Li Xiangyi has him captured, publicly tried, and executed. He then returns to Mount Yun Yin, where he learns that Shan Gudao survived his supposed death, stole Qi Mushan’s internal power, and was killed by Wen Qiushui. He also discovers the truth about Qiao Wanmian’s replacement, although he continues hoping the original woman might be found 17 18 19.

His subsequent martial discussions with Wen Qiushui lead to recovery and advancement. He reasserts the Sigu Sect’s authority and defeats Wansheng Dao’s schemes. In later years, he repeatedly handles the aftermath of Wen Qiushui’s killings and saves Di Feisheng from her sword before eventually leaving the world through a lightning tribulation 19.

Eastern Sea Fisherwoman World

Here, Li Xiangyi lives as the impoverished physician Li Lianhua, initially staying opposite Wen Qiushui in Wang Family Village. He notices a change in her bearing but chooses not to investigate. She later uses a conspicuously unsuccessful marriage proposal to him as a way to discourage other village matchmakers 20 21 22.

His medical reputation spreads through the jianghu, and he joins Fang Duobing in investigating the Jade City murders. After his identity becomes public, he returns to confront Shan Gudao’s Wansheng Dao and the Nanyin restoration conspiracy. Wen Qiushui later finds him near death in a boat, administers medicine, and leaves him with a letter and another pill for Fang Duobing and Di Feisheng to discover 23 24 25.

Jiao Liqiao World

Still searching for Shan Gudao’s remains, Li Lianhua is too weakened to investigate the newly powerful Nanyin Cult directly. Wen Qiushui, now occupying Jiao Liqiao’s body, draws him into an agreement by offering to reveal the corpse’s location 28 30.

She cures his Bicha poison, exposes the old conspiracy, and makes him take over the Nanyin Cult. His return redirects much of the martial world’s respect from the Hundred Rivers Courtyard to Nanyin. Feng Qing’s warning also prevents Xiao Zijin from proceeding with a scheme to revive the Sigu Sect and smear his name 31.

Li Lianhua marries Su Xiaoyong and eventually leaves the cult to their son. After her death, he releases the martial power he has been suppressing and shatters the void 31.

He Xiaolan World

This world intervenes much earlier in his life. Shortly after leaving Mount Yun Yin, Li Xiangyi confronts He Xiaolan for killing Shan Gudao. Her account forces him to investigate his senior brother rather than simply avenge him. The terrified He orphan confirms Shan Gudao’s cruelty, overturning Li Xiangyi’s assumptions 33 34.

Their joint investigation leads to Feng Qing and Shan Gudao’s followers. Li Xiangyi tries to stop He Xiaolan from killing everyone indiscriminately, arguing that involvement and guilt must be proved individually. Their disagreement crystallizes his ambition to establish an evidence-based hall of punishment for the martial world 35 36.

He later defeats the Blood Realm Heavenly Demon and establishes the Sigu Sect at twenty. His continuing friendship and annual sparring with He Xiaolan make him more receptive to warnings: he investigates the conduct of questionable associates and gradually distances himself from them. He remains the active, celebrated Sigu Sect master when He Duobing enters the jianghu 37.

Princess Zhaoling World

Zhaoling exposes Li Xiangyi’s true ancestry to Feng Qing and identifies the betrayal behind his apparent death. As Li Lianhua, he investigates cases with Fang Duobing while she dismantles the institutions protecting his betrayers. At the Hundred Rivers Courtyard, Yun Biqiu is charged with poisoning him, betraying the Sigu Sect, and leaking prison information 38 40 45.

Li Lianhua and Fang Duobing retrieve the Mother Worm from the Tower of Ultimate Bliss but lose it to the emperor’s men. Zhaoling’s subordinates help them escape the palace 46.

He refuses Zhaoling’s proposal to exchange marriage for treatment. She seals his acupoints and forces the marriage; afterward, he awakens cured of Bicha and learns she is carrying his child. He ultimately accepts the union to protect the unborn child. His subsequent care for her pregnancy is explicitly distinguished from falling in love with her 48 49.

Zhaoling gives birth to twin boys and later conceives a daughter before becoming emperor. In the daughter’s account, Li Lianhua leads the new Sigu Sect and travels with his children in the Lotus Tower, teaching them through investigations, medical work, and encounters with ordinary people 49 50.

Relationships

• Wen Qiushui — Repeated benefactor, martial interlocutor, and source of conflict across separate worlds. Her interventions can restore his health, redirect his responsibilities, or challenge his judgment 19 25 31 36 48.
• Qiao Wanmian — Former romantic partner. In her namesake world, he fails to read her breakup letter before discovering that her original consciousness has disappeared 15 18.
• Qi Mushan and Qin Po — Master and master’s wife. Both are devoted to him; Qin Po participates in his treatment and later welcomes his marriage in the Zhaoling world 17 19 48.
• Li Xiangxian — Elder brother who entrusted his care to Shan Gudao before dying of illness 38.
• Shan Gudao — Senior martial brother whom he initially trusts and defends. Discovering Shan Gudao’s cruelty and conspiracies becomes a central test of his judgment 16 18 34 35.
• Yun Biqiu — Sect associate who poisons and betrays him. Li Xiangyi personally executes him after a public trial in the Qiao Wanmian world 18 45.
• Di Feisheng — Rival and persistent sparring partner. Their repeated challenges continue even after Li Xiangyi assumes new identities and responsibilities 19 31 49.
• Fang Duobing — Investigative companion as Li Lianhua; receives leadership of the Sigu Sect before his departure in the Qiao Wanmian world 19 24 46.
• He Duobing — Child raised largely at Mount Yun Yin in the He Xiaolan world. Li Xiangyi offers to teach him martial arts, but does not become his biological father or primary childhood caregiver 35 36 37.
• Su Xiaoyong — Wife in the Jiao Liqiao world; their son succeeds him as Nanyin Cult leader 31.
• Princess Zhaoling — Coercive spouse in her world and mother of his children. Their marriage develops into family responsibility rather than an explicitly established romance 48 49.
• Feng Qing — Initially serves the wrong claimant to Nanyin’s royal lineage; later becomes Li Lianhua’s subordinate in the Nanyin Cult world 31 38.

Notable Quotes

“One day, I will establish a hall of punishment for the martial world. When dealing with evildoers, we must let the evidence speak, and there must never again be indiscriminate killing of the innocent.” 36

“Tell me your conditions. And please, call me Li Lianhua.” 30