Shan Heyuan

Biodata

Power Progression

“By” marks the chapter confirming a realm when the actual breakthrough is not shown in the supplied passages.

Professional Rank

Background / History

Azure Cloud Dao Ancestor

Shan Heyuan’s connection to the cultivation world began more than three thousand years before his apparent arrival in Gangshi Village. Facing their world’s deterioration, the major sects attempted to draw souls from other worlds through gaps in space and time. Shan Heyuan was brought over through those efforts 159.

His first rise began as a Rogue Cultivator. Relying on quick thinking and good fortune, he eventually became a powerful cultivator, joined the Sword Reverence Sect as an elder, and succeeded to its leadership. As Azure Cloud Dao Ancestor, he led the sect out of decline and cultivated to the peak of Tribulation Transcendence. He was one of its sect masters, not its founding ancestor 159 160 180.

He lost his body during that earlier period and discarded his past along with it. Recovering this history later explains the missing memories and inconsistencies surrounding his apparent transmigration 159.

Rescue and Cultivation Beginnings

The Supreme Harmony Sect found Shan Heyuan unconscious in its territory, arranged housing in Gangshi Village, provided subsidies, and assigned Ma Rupei to help him adapt. Shan Heyuan initially understood himself to be an ordinary Earth transmigrator whose severely blocked meridians prevented cultivation 4 7.

A wooden talisman absorbed blood from his wound and revealed itself as a broken sword bound to him. Its connection to his Dantian brought him into contact with Shen Duheng, who helped him begin cultivating. To explain Shen Duheng’s presence publicly, they registered him as the broken sword’s spirit 4 5 6.

Although his Spirit Root test was discouraging, Shan Heyuan found a strong affinity with the Spring Transformation Art. His ability to keep living Spirit Plants inside his Dantian soon gave him an unusually efficient source of cultivation power 6 8 11 13 14.

Recognition as a Planter

Treating the Supreme Harmony Sect’s failing Spirit Plants established Shan Heyuan’s reputation. He taught himself the rare Spring Transformation Art, developed effective Fertilizer Pills, and cultivated an Illusionless Tree from a traded branch 24 35 39 40 46.

He initially declined an invitation to enter the Supreme Harmony Sect’s inner sect, preferring freedom to explore. He later accepted He Wu’s offer to become a Registered Disciple, retaining a connection to the sect without committing to full membership 28 32 41 90.

After qualifying as a third-grade planter, he became a teaching assistant at Sword Reverence Academy representing the Supreme Harmony Sect. His work included rehabilitating damaged teaching gardens, managing Spirit Plant inventories, and later teaching as a full instructor 53 58 68 121.

Dantian Secrets and Missing Memories

As Shan Heyuan approached Core Formation, his Dantian became a small world with a more complete Heavenly Dao than the deteriorating outside world. Shen Duheng urged him to conceal it. The three-thousand-year-old notes of Azure Cloud Dao Ancestor, bearing simplified Chinese characters, supplied another clue to his past 95.

A return to the Supreme Harmony Sect exposed discrepancies in his rescue. Ma Rupei’s memories showed him hairless, naked, and physically younger-looking, without familiar childhood scars. Shan Heyuan and Shen Duheng investigated whether his arrival involved reincarnation or missing years, but initially found no explanation for his appearance 122 123 124.

During the same period, he helped Shen Duheng examine the complete Principles of his Golden Core. The insight allowed Shen Duheng to master Seeing the World and advance to Nascent Soul Middle Stage 131.

Nascent Soul, Marriage, and Pursuit

Lord South Star Ji Chunqiu’s steward recruited Shan Heyuan to restore a large Clear Source Grass farm, offering seventy-two varieties of Nascent Soul-grade seeds. While treating the crop, Shan Heyuan entered a state of mass resonance that led into his Nascent Soul breakthrough 137 143 144.

The Sword Reverence Sect and Spirit Jade Palace later issued warrants for him and Shen Duheng. Shan Heyuan concealed their communication patterns and blocked contact with friends to avoid implicating them. In Youcheng City, the couple held their wedding banquet, with Master Kucheng and Shen Duheng’s aide Zhuo Zheng among the main-table guests 147 150.

Ji Li eventually found Shan Heyuan alone and overpowered him. During the ensuing confrontation, Shan Heyuan and Shen Duheng used Tribulation Lightning against him, with Shan Heyuan strengthening it through his small world’s Heavenly Dao Principles. The crisis also brought the truth of Shan Heyuan’s Azure Cloud identity back into focus 157 158 159.

Becoming the Heaven-Supporting Tree

Once the Spring Transformation Art could no longer provide a sufficient path forward, Shan Heyuan sought a Dao of his own. Inspired by horizontal gene transfer, he attempted to merge with the Illusionless Tree. The process incorporated Breathing Earth, spring materials, and a metal-rich rib that Shen Duheng had refined and removed from his own body 167 168 169.

The transformation succeeded, giving Shan Heyuan a giant tree as his true body. During the later battle with Ji Li, he converted his small world’s accumulated resources into Spiritual Power and absorbed the surrounding blood, lightning, and energy. The Three Nine Sect supported him by supplying Fertilizer Pills during the fight 171 181 182.

Afterward, the major sects pooled resources to nourish him as the Heaven-Supporting Tree. Their hope was that his growth could break the shell enclosing the cultivation world and reconnect its Heavenly Dao. His branches reached the obstruction in the third year; after more than seven additional months, they forced open a crack connecting his small world’s complete Heavenly Dao with the complete Heavenly Dao beyond 183 184.

Later Life and Return to Earth

Shan Heyuan returned to Earth with Shen Duheng, reunited with his family, resigned from his old job, and disclosed that he had a boyfriend. His family welcomed Shen Duheng, and Shan Heyuan felt that the visit completed his Dao heart 185 186 187.

His true body remained in the cultivation world, limiting how long he could stay away. Its branches eventually extended beyond that world and maintained an increasingly smooth connection with the upper realm’s Heavenly Dao, helping restore Spiritual Power and ease cultivation 187.

Neither partner accepted the major sects’ offers of positions or attendants. They lived beneath the Heaven-Supporting Tree in Three Nine Sect territory, occasionally traveled in disguise, and visited Earth each year. Zhewu New City was built beside the tree and prospered as cultivators gathered to comprehend the Dao. Shan Heyuan eventually became the first of the pair to face ascension 187 188.

Appearance

• Human appearance: Slender and handsome, with a fresh-faced, youthful look 18 83.
• Hair: Initially short after his rescue; grows long enough to gather and tie during his early cultivation life 18 123.
• Bearing: Becomes markedly calmer and more distinguished as his cultivation advances 53 122.
• True body: A giant tree, ultimately the Heaven-Supporting Tree. Its branches exceed three thousand meters before breaking the shell, and its crown later extends beyond the cultivation world 171 184 187.

Personality

Shan Heyuan is curious, practical, and persistent. He compensates for gaps in cultivation-world schooling through intensive reading and hands-on experimentation. His approach ranges from making his own fertilizer to attempting an artificial spirit spring; repeated failures and destroyed Spirit Stones do not easily persuade him to abandon a project 9 29 68 129 130.

He is openly grateful and strongly loyal. He remembers the Supreme Harmony Sect’s early support, treats several of its disciples as family, and promises to stand with Shen Duheng even against overwhelming opposition. At the same time, he values independence and has little interest in sect politics or positions of power 66 90 106 187.

His peaceful upbringing initially leaves him hesitant in combat, but he deliberately seeks harder training rather than accepting that weakness. He can acknowledge an enemy’s competence without forgiving them: he recognizes Ji Li’s administrative ability while remaining determined to kill him 81 172.

Abilities & Skills

Spring Transformation Art

A plant-cultivation method exceptionally well suited to Shan Heyuan, combining personal cultivation with techniques for regulating and nourishing Spirit Plants 8 11 14.

• Gentle Breeze / Spring Breeze Blows Gently: Smooths disordered Spiritual Power within plants; used in treatment, germination, and large-scale crop resonance 19 24 45 143.
• Rising Sun Ascends in the East: Nourishes large plants or groups of plants. Early use visibly expands an old tree’s canopy 19 58.
• Spring Breeze Turns to Rain: Turns water or prepared spirit liquid into misty rain for broad, even application 35 46 58.
• Return a Plum for a Peach: Connects the cultivator with a plant’s consciousness and internal channels, creating a mutually beneficial exchange. Shan Heyuan masters it by subduing demonic plants 59 74.
• Limits: Early techniques rapidly exhaust his reserves. The method ultimately reaches only the Nascent Soul realm, forcing him to develop his own path 19 167.

Dantian Small World

Shan Heyuan’s Dantian develops from an unusual storage space into a self-contained world with complete Heavenly Dao Principles 12 13 95.

• Living storage: Holds living Spirit Plants, something ordinary cultivators’ Dantians generally cannot do 13.
• Continuous cultivation: Stored plants release Spiritual Power into his meridians day and night. Early plants can become depleted and require recovery outside 14 15.
• Expanded capacity: Eventually accepts ordinary weapons and can swallow Spiritual Power released by a Nascent Soul cultivator 111.
• Habitable interior: Accommodates the Realm Spirit and Shen Duheng; however, its isolation means it does not automatically provide outside Spiritual Power for a guest’s breakthrough 130 131.
• Spatial concealment: By emphasizing his spatial presence and suppressing other traces, he makes his aura resemble a secret realm’s surroundings 116.
• Cultivation risks: Failed attempts to construct an artificial spirit spring destabilize the world and injure his meridians 129.
• World restoration: Its complete Heavenly Dao ultimately connects through the Heaven-Supporting Tree to the complete Dao outside the enclosing shell 184 187.

Spirit Plant Cultivation and Fertilizer Refinement

His strongest specialty remains cultivating plants and developing his Dantian Small World, even after he becomes proficient with a sword 180.

• Detects subtle Spiritual Power signatures, particularly those of plants previously kept in his Dantian 17.
• Diagnoses and treats damaged channels, disease, pests, rotting roots, and poorly executed grafts 20 24 58.
• Breeds Drunken Ox Grass through progressively higher-grade generations to obtain the seeds he needs 49.
• Produces Fertilizer Pills whose traces of Breathing Earth benefit high-grade Spirit Plants and attract the interest of Spirit Transformation cultivators 90.
• Refines growth liquid from spirit spring water and thirty-seven materials, successfully encouraging the Illusionless Tree to produce roots and a new leaf 46.
• Carries exceptionally strong vitality in his Spiritual Power, described as unlike that of other cultivators 106.

Pu Core Fire and Elemental Control

Shan Heyuan acquires the conscious Pu Core Fire after it follows him and eagerly consumes his Breathing Earth–tinged Spiritual Power 107.

• The fire is initially at Middle Core Formation, making it too dangerous for him to claim by force 107.
• He can emphasize its fire-element presence to conceal other qualities of his Spiritual Power 114 115.
• Uses it to melt and temper his Dantian Small World during his transformation 168.
• It later serves as the small world’s sun until he draws it back into his meridians during battle 181.

Swordsmanship and Combat Tactics

Although initially unsuited to a conventional sword-cultivation path, Shan Heyuan later recovers his earlier knowledge of Questioning the Sword and trains with Shen Duheng 8 160 180.

• Combines trapping formations, talismans, fog, Law Artifacts, and offensive, poisonous, or defensive Spirit Plants 81 84.
• Uses Golden Silk Dense Moss to cover the arena floor as part of a prepared battlefield 81.
• Remains vulnerable to superior direct offense early on: Lin Ji defeats his layered defenses with one precisely controlled sword strike 84.
• Eventually becomes more proficient in Questioning the Sword than in his other sword techniques, though swordsmanship remains secondary to his plant cultivation 180.

Lightning Absorption and Plant-Body Growth

His later cultivation turns external energy into nourishment for his true body 144 181 182.

• Conducts Tribulation Lightning through contact with Shen Duheng during his Nascent Soul breakthrough 144.
• Stores and releases Tribulation Lightning, then strengthens it by supplying his small world’s Heavenly Dao Principles 158.
• As a Spirit Plant, absorbs Spiritual Power much faster and can convert blood, Spirit Plants, Spirit Stones, and other resources into growth 181 182.
• Develops without a felt bottleneck as the Heaven-Supporting Tree, provided sufficient Spiritual Power is available 183.
• His Earth visits remain limited because prolonged separation from his true body may cause problems 187.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Broken sword: Initially disguised as a wooden talisman; binds to him through blood and enters his Dantian. Later develops silver lightning patterns and four apparently Nascent Soul-grade Lightning-Struck Wood Sprouts 4 101.
• Matching storage bracelet: One of a pair commissioned for himself and Shen Duheng from two space stones. Each bracelet can hold an area comparable to the Supreme Harmony Sect’s square 54.
• Spirit Plant Secrets: Supplies the recipe for the growth liquid used to revive the Illusionless Tree 46.
• Talismans and formations: Uses Spirit Gathering Talismans for plant care, defensive and offensive talismans for combat, and Explosive Flame Talismans when firing Fertilizer Pills 14 81 85.
• Planter’s jade token: Receives formal certification as a third-grade planter 53.

Relationships

• Shen Duheng — Cultivation guide, protector, and eventual husband. Their early dependence becomes reciprocal: Shan Heyuan supports his cultivation, shares his dangers, and helps restore his strength 6 106 131 150.
• He Wu — Nominal master who accepts him as a Registered Disciple, allowing the Supreme Harmony Sect to support him without a full inner-sect commitment 41 90.
• Ma Rupei — Early guide and one of his rescuers. Shan Heyuan remains grateful for his warmth and seeks him out when investigating his arrival 7 122 123.
• Jiu Mingyue — Supreme Harmony Sect friend who recruits him to treat its Spirit Plants and supports his development; Shan Heyuan considers him almost family 22 24 66.
• Qi Yuanbai — Friend and collaborator in plant treatment. After Shan Heyuan becomes He Wu’s Registered Disciple, Qi agrees to call him senior brother based on age 24 41.
• Zhong Shuran — Talisman-master friend from Gangshi Village; connects him with gathering companions, helps protect his courtyard plants, and advises him about tournament preparation 16 38 49 81.
• Jiang Zhi and Li Jian — Fellow growers and close academy friends. They exchange practical help, encourage him after defeat, and later learn his and Shen Duheng’s true identities 66 84 130 174.
• Huai Liu — Academy dean who offers him promotion to instructor and helps connect his Fertilizer Pills with higher-level buyers 90 121.
• Realm Spirit — Detects his unusual spatial presence in West Jing Secret Realm; later stays within his Dantian Small World and becomes a continuing acquaintance 114 131 152 172.
• Shi Mian — Senior planting master and competitor at the Clear Source Grass farm. Their professional discussions develop mutual appreciation despite the competitive arrangement 139 142.
• Ji Li — Mortal enemy who attacks him, recognizes the world-origin power within him, and becomes the target of Shan Heyuan and Shen Duheng’s joint confrontation 157 179 180.
• Shan Tongfeng — Older brother on Earth. Receives Shan Heyuan’s disclosure about his sexuality and agrees to discuss it with their parents 186.
• Parents and extended family — Welcome him home and accept Shen Duheng into the family. He continues visiting them after returning to the cultivation world 185 186 187 188.

Notable Quotes

“No matter what, I’m on your side. Count me in when it comes to revenge.” 106

“We’ve got a long life ahead of us. We’ll take it one day at a time, and everyone will see.” 187