Lin Household

Biodata

Power Progression

History

Rule over Shangyu Market

The Lin Household initially held undisputed authority over Shangyu Market, with a Foundation Establishment ancestor stationed there. Its protection was uneven: the outer city suffered repeated barbarian raids, and longtime residents Qin Fei and Old Zhang had never seen the household respond to them 1 14.

The household also pursued Yunxiu, offering a reward of 100 Spirit Stones. Under interrogation, she explained that it wanted the destroyed Thousand Mechanisms Sect’s inherited cultivation method, which strengthened Divine Sense. She later clarified that the household knew she possessed an inheritance item, allowing it to pursue the teachings despite the soul restriction preventing their forced disclosure 1 13 15.

Refugee Crisis and Alliance

After the destruction of Qinghe Market, hundreds of thousands of displaced cultivators reached Shangyu Market. The Lin Household introduced dozens of regulations and deployed an enforcement team, but widespread violence overwhelmed its ability to maintain order 17.

The displaced Lu Household settled in the inner city and joined the Lin Household in the Foundation Establishment Lineage Alliance. Public accounts credited the Lin ancestor’s sincere invitation; Fairy Caiyi later recalled that the Lin Household had initially been unwilling to accept the newcomers and that the Azure Wood Palace secretly brokered the arrangement 17 31.

During the next barbarian attack, the Lin ancestor led all six allied Foundation Establishment cultivators out of the inner city in a counterattack. The household subsequently announced a market-wide defensive formation and an end to the distinction between inner and outer city, pledging to share the residents’ fate 24 25.

Heavenly Secrets Sect Ruins

Fairy Caiyi brought Qin Fei and a Heavenly Mystery Key to the household after a Lu cultivator attacked him while searching for the key. The household head suspected that the Lu Household had concealed an approaching secret realm to monopolize it. Caiyi proposed cooperation with the Lin Household and secured Ice Silk Soft Armor for Qin Fei as a reward 30 31 32.

The secret realm appeared north of Shangyu Market, near the human–barbarian frontier. Competition brought clashes with the Barbarian Tribe, while Lin Man’s planned marriage into the Lu Household was postponed. Privately, she explained that the household intended to confront the Lu Household and feared she would become a hostage if the wedding proceeded 32 33.

The ruins were identified as those of the Heavenly Secrets Sect. The two households could not keep out the influx of rogue cultivators and outside forces, so they concentrated on their own expeditions. Possession of a Heavenly Mystery Key remained necessary to enter the core 38 39.

War with the Lu Household

A dispute over a relatively unimportant medicinal herb escalated into fighting between Lin and Lu cultivators. Neither leadership stopped the confrontation; both sent reinforcements. Their Foundation Establishment cultivators eventually fought inside the ruins 40.

The conflict spread into Shangyu Market. Although the Lin Household initially benefited from its local influence, its extensive commercial holdings became liabilities: Lu forces could raid exposed businesses and withdraw before a decisive response. The Wondrous Pill Pavilion was among the targets 40.

According to a delivery worker, the household deliberately leaked false information about Old Shen’s final shipment to draw Lu attackers away from one of their businesses. Old Shen died in the resulting ambush. The account alarmed Qin Fei, who feared that his own outer-attendant position offered little protection from being similarly sacrificed 41.

Fairy Caiyi’s intervention briefly gave the Lin Household the advantage. The arrival of Daoist Fuchen, who supported the opposing side and forced Caiyi onto the defensive, checked that advantage as the struggle shifted toward treasures in the ruins’ core 46 49.

Barbarian War and Forced Cooperation

The approaching barbarian war forced the two households back into cooperation under Daoist Fuchen’s pressure, although both continued arguing over the destruction of their businesses. The Lin side cited the Gathering Immortals Pavilion and Wondrous Pill Pavilion among its losses 56.

The households sealed Shangyu Market’s gates, preventing registered Rogue Cultivators from leaving, and imposed compulsory service against the barbarian army. A military-merit exchange offered rewards for participation. Fairy Caiyi obtained relatively safe duties for Qin Fei and his companions, although Li Tiezhu was assigned to escort supplies to the front 57.

Their temporary accommodation did not end their rivalry. When Qin Fei discovered that Lu forces were using reinforcement squads to protect Lu Tianchou’s Foundation Establishment attempt, he sent Lin Man the location under the pretext of requesting help against the barbarians. He expected the Lin Household to oppose a breakthrough that would make the Lu Household the strongest lineage in Shangyu Market 64.

The Lu operation involved the forbidden Five Extremes Spirit-Devouring Grand Formation, which sacrificed cultivators inside it. Qin Fei escaped before the Lin Household arrived. After Lu Tianchou’s breakthrough failed and surviving patrol cultivators exposed the sacrifice, the Lin Household secretly encouraged public outrage. Its council hall hosted the subsequent meeting at which Daoist Fuchen demanded that the Lu Household hand over Lu Tianchou 64 65.

After more than two years of war and the destruction of two small barbarian settlements, the Lin patriarch urged an end to the offensive, warning that Shangyu Market’s manpower and wealth were nearly exhausted. Daoist Fuchen ordered a transition to defense and the reopening of the gates before departing with Fairy Caiyi to report to Azure Wood Palace. The two household leaders feared that, without those additional Foundation Establishment cultivators and with Rogue Cultivators unwilling to fight for them, the market could not withstand a barbarian counterattack 74.

Recruitment and Qin Fei’s Seclusion

Once Qin Fei reached the Qi Refining Eighth Layer and became known as captain of the Jia Sixteen patrol squad, Lin Man formally invited him to become an inner-door Attendant. He refused because he preferred freedom from household management. Members of the Star Radiance Merchant Association also rejected recruitment: the households’ infighting and forced conscription had squandered the goodwill created during Shangyu Market’s reconstruction 71.

Qin Fei nevertheless asked about attending lectures by second-tier Puppet Masters at the household’s Dao Academy. Later, after Wei Zhao visited the household and acknowledged Qin Fei as his student, Lin Man informed Qin Fei that he would be exempted from menial assignments. This allowed him to prepare for extended seclusion without accepting an inner-attendant position 71 73.

Evacuation and Beast-Tide Disaster

After the barbarian army received reinforcements, Shangyu Market was abandoned and its cultivators evacuated toward Repel the North City. The procession included hundreds of thousands of people and moved slowly because many lower-ranking cultivators lacked flying Law Artifacts or were accompanied by mortal relatives. During the retreat, the household leaders debated abandoning the slower Rogue Cultivators to escape pursuit 78 79.

The Lin and Lu Households placed their descendants at the front, intending the Rogue Cultivators behind them to delay any pursuing barbarian army. This arrangement proved disastrous when a million-strong beast tide approached head-on. A Luodan had provoked the tide by capturing a Crimson Zheng cub and arranged for the beasts to blame the human refugees 79.

The Lin ancestor ordered a retreat and prioritized protecting lineage descendants over the Rogue Cultivators, but flying Demon Beasts overwhelmed those attempting to escape through the air. He fought free and fled, while the third elder was swallowed by the tide. Later accounts confirmed that the second elder also died, leaving the ancestor as the household’s only surviving Foundation Establishment cultivator 79 89 94.

The disaster ruined both households. Initial accounts described losses exceeding ninety percent of their people, while a later account placed their combined cultivator losses at nearly ninety-nine percent. Their position at the front nevertheless bought the refugees behind them time to escape 79 89.

Decline and Attempted Reconstruction

After Qin Fei reached Foundation Establishment, the Lin patriarch and the Lu Household’s surviving second elder approached him in an effort to rebuild their strength. Qin Fei declined to join them. The Lin patriarch then proposed marrying Lin Man to him, but Qin Fei rejected this offer as well, stating that he had no plans to take a dao companion 89 90.

The surviving households established shared grounds in the southeastern Heavenly Pivot District. Although their numbers recovered somewhat over the following years, they remained far weaker than before. The Lin patriarch proposed abandoning the lineage model and founding a sect together, recruiting large numbers of outside disciples to replenish their strength. The Lu leader agreed despite concerns that doing so would disperse their inherited foundations 104.

Survival of the Lu Household’s Destruction

Qin Fei arrived during the households’ joint meeting to settle his longstanding feud with the Lu Household. The Lin patriarch initially sought to mediate, but Guo Nanshan, the Beast Taming Sect’s Middle Stage Foundation Establishment sect master, warned him not to intervene. The Lin ancestor ultimately stood aside as Qin Fei, Iron Guard, and Jumang overwhelmed the Lu leader 104 105.

While Qin Fei pursued the fleeing Lu cultivator, the Lin ancestor assembled both households’ disciples in separate groups. Upon Qin Fei’s return, he explained that he had gathered the Lu disciples to let the matter be resolved without involving his own household. Qin Fei killed the assembled Lu disciples but left the Lin members unharmed, recognizing that there had been little enmity between them 105.

The Lin ancestor then ordered that any Lu disciples returning from outside be killed without exception. His reasoning was that the surviving Lu members would regard the Lin Household’s failure to intervene as a betrayal and might become its blood enemies. The Lin Household thus survived, while the Lu Household was destroyed and their planned joint sect lost its intended partner 105.

Organization and Personnel

Leadership and Military

Attendant System

• Recruitment scale: Qin Fei understood the household to employ at least several hundred outer attendants 26.
• Specialist recruitment: The household sought puppet attendants and repeatedly invited Wang Hu to become an inner-circle attendant; he declined because he disliked restrictions 25 43.
• Unsuccessful recruitment campaign: Qin Fei declined a formal inner-door invitation delivered by Lin Man after reaching the Qi Refining Eighth Layer. The Star Radiance Merchant Association group also refused invitations, citing the households’ conduct during the conflict and conscription 71.
• Assignment exemptions: Following Wei Zhao’s intervention, the household exempted Qin Fei from menial duties because of his status as Wei Zhao’s student 73.
• Proposed institutional change: The patriarch later advocated replacing the lineage structure with a jointly founded sect open to outside disciples. The Lu leader agreed, but no completed reorganization is recorded before his household’s destruction 104 105.

Holdings and Resources

• Lin Residence — A large, guarded building complex containing administrative offices, meeting halls, and the household treasury. Its council hall later hosted wartime deliberations and the hearing over the Lu Household’s blood sacrifice 26 31 32 65 74.
• Lineage treasury — Held numerous rare materials and treasures under token-controlled security. Qin Fei received Ice Silk Soft Armor from its stores 32.
• Northern puppet scrapyard — A high-walled site at the market’s edge where Qin Fei repaired and salvaged discarded puppets. Deliveries later included wreckage from the Heavenly Secrets Sect ruins and nearby battles. Qin Fei remained there for years and used it as the site of his extended seclusion 26 40 71 73.
• Wondrous Pill Pavilion — One of the household’s businesses, attacked during the conflict with the Lu Household 40.
• Gathering Immortals Pavilion — A household-associated commercial holding wrecked during the conflict with the Lu Household. Its proprietor later left the household and reopened independently on a smaller scale 56 94.
• Dao Academy — A household enterprise that hosted occasional lectures by second-tier Puppet Masters. Lin Man could recommend teachers, and Qin Fei expressed interest in attending as a student rather than teaching 71.
• Market fortifications — Reforms included a planned protective formation encompassing the entire market, massive walls with watchtowers, and excavation of a moat more than ten zhang wide 25 26.
• Heavenly Pivot District manor — The Lin and Lu Households’ later shared grounds, located in the district’s southeastern corner. Their proposed conversion into a sect was discussed there before Qin Fei destroyed the Lu Household 104 105.
• Demon Hunting Pavilion connection — Rumored to have Lin backing, but an alternative rumor attributed it to an immortal sect; ownership is not confirmed 7.

Governance

• Emergency prohibitions: Magical combat, flying, and destruction of shops were among the activities banned during the refugee influx 17.
• Uneven enforcement: Violence and looting became too widespread for the enforcement team to contain. The flight ban remained effective because airborne offenders were conspicuous 17.
• Transport market impact: The flight ban increased the appeal of Qin Fei’s Zhang Yu Motor Vehicles as practical transport within the market 20.
• Unified defense policy: After the barbarian counterattack, the household announced the abolition of the inner city’s separate defensive formation in favor of protection covering all residents 25.
• Wartime lockdown and conscription: The Lin and Lu Households sealed the market and conscripted registered Rogue Cultivators for defense and counterattacks. Military merit could be exchanged for valuable rewards 57.
• Erosion of public support: Infighting, ineffective handling of the barbarian threat, and compulsory service alienated cultivators who had initially welcomed the market’s reconstruction. This contributed to refusals of household recruitment and widespread flight during the war 71 74.
• Deserter policy: Daoist Fuchen ordered fleeing cultivators to be treated as deserters and their entire clans placed on wanted lists. The Lin head questioned the practicality of pursuing so many people, but Fuchen insisted on enforcement 74.
• End of the lockdown: On shifting from offense to defense, Daoist Fuchen ordered the city-gate restrictions lifted 74.
• Evacuation priorities: During the retreat from Shangyu Market, the households placed their descendants ahead of the Rogue Cultivators to shelter them from pursuit. When the beast tide struck from the front, the Lin ancestor ordered the protection of lineage descendants rather than the refugees 79.

Relationships

Members and Attendants

• Lin Man — Household daughter and Qin Fei’s supervisor at the northern puppet scrapyard. Her proposed marriage to Lu Tianchou was intended to strengthen ties between the two lineages, but was postponed as their relations deteriorated. Later identified explicitly as the patriarch’s daughter, she delivered the household’s unsuccessful inner-door invitation to Qin Fei. Her father subsequently offered her hand to him after his Foundation Establishment breakthrough; Qin Fei declined 26 29 32 33 71 89 90.
• Qin Fei — Outer puppet attendant recruited through Old Zhang’s recommendation. His repair work pleased Lin Man, and his discovery of the Heavenly Mystery Key earned a household reward. He later refused promotion to inner-door Attendant, received an assignment exemption through Wei Zhao, and declined both renewed recruitment and a marriage proposal after reaching Foundation Establishment. He spared the Lin Household when destroying the Lu Household 25 26 28 31 32 71 73 89 90 105.
• Old Zhang — Outer talisman attendant whose monthly obligation was ten first-tier talismans 27.
• Li Tiezhu — Military centurion promoted through battlefield merit. During the barbarian war, he was assigned to escort supplies to the front lines 38 57.
• Old Shen — Outer attendant responsible for transporting scrapped puppets. Reportedly killed after the household used his shipment as bait against Lu forces 40 41.
• Second and third elders — Early Stage Foundation Establishment members who died in the beast tide. Their deaths left the patriarch as the household’s only Foundation Establishment cultivator 17 79 89 94.

Other Powers

• Lu Household — Former co-governor and military ally. Their planned marriage alliance collapsed into open warfare over the secret realm and competing interests. Wartime cooperation did not remove their rivalry, but their shared devastation later prompted joint rebuilding and a proposed merger into a sect. The Lin ancestor ultimately stood aside during the Lu Household’s destruction and ordered the killing of any returning Lu remnants to prevent future retaliation 17 32 40 64 104 105.
• Azure Wood Palace — Secretly arranged the initial accommodation between the Lin and Lu Households. Its cultivators later supported opposing sides of their conflict. The departure of Fairy Caiyi and Daoist Fuchen after the war left the household leaders concerned about their ability to resist a barbarian counterattack 31 46 74.
• Fairy Caiyi — Cooperated with the household over the Heavenly Mystery Key and fought alongside it against the Lu Household. She later secured safer wartime duties for Qin Fei’s circle before returning to Azure Wood Palace 31 46 57 74.
• Daoist Fuchen — Initially balanced Fairy Caiyi’s support for the Lin Household by backing the Lu side. He later pressured both households into wartime cooperation, presided over the blood-sacrifice dispute, and directed the transition from offensive warfare to defense 46 56 65 74.
• Barbarian Tribe — Conducted raids against Shangyu Market and later contested access to the secret realm. Its reinforced army forced the market’s evacuation, and A Luodan engineered the beast tide that devastated the fleeing households 14 24 33 79.
• Wei Zhao — His recognition of Qin Fei as a student prompted the household to exempt Qin Fei from menial assignments 73.
• Star Radiance Merchant Association — Its members rejected household recruitment after the lineages’ infighting and forced conscription undermined their trust 71.
• Beast Taming Sect — Its sect master, Guo Nanshan, accompanied Qin Fei during the reckoning with the Lu Household and deterred the Lin patriarch from intervening 104 105.

Notable Quotes

“Sweep away the barbarian hordes and protect our human race!”
— The Lin Household’s ancestor, ordering the counterattack 24

“What foundation do we have left? It vanished like smoke in that beast tide long ago. At this point, only by changing do we have a chance to rise again from the ashes.”
— The Lin Household’s patriarch, advocating conversion into a sect 104

“I gathered these Lu Household disciples in the hope that this matter could be settled quickly, without involving my Lin Household.”
— The Lin Household’s ancestor to Qin Fei 105

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