Ye Chen

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Betrayal and Recruitment

Ye Chen belonged to one of Black Spirit Town’s three major lineages. His childhood betrothal to Luo Susu ended when she sought to break the engagement publicly with a powerful backer’s support. Although the humiliation angered him, he later reflected that there had been little affection between them 2.

He subsequently fell in love with his maid, Xu Yan, and insisted on marrying her despite his parents’ objections. When Li Xuansu discovered Xu Yan’s special physique and accepted her as a disciple, Xu Yan demanded release from her maidservant’s indenture. At her request, Li Xuansu struck Ye Chen, severely injuring him and severing his meridians. His household prepared to flee before Xu Yan could return to destroy it 2 34 68.

Lin Ye offered him a way to cultivate without meridians. Ye Chen accepted despite being warned of unbearable pain, joined the Black-Yellow Sect with his father’s consent, and formally became Lin Ye’s first disciple. His new manual, Pain Dao-Body Forging, was actually the renamed Hell Devil-Forging Body 3.

Building the Sect’s Reputation

Ye Chen’s early duties included buying grain, guarding the sect, and arranging accommodation for newly recruited disciples. He also volunteered his own silver to purchase food 5 6 11.

His first major mission targeted the Chen Household of Songxi Town, which enslaved miners and had massacred a village. With a puppet lent by Lin Ye, he destroyed its leadership and freed the prisoners. He distributed money to the survivors and brought fifteen miners with cultivation aptitude back to the sect 14 15.

While traveling, he rescued abducted women, destroyed bandit strongholds, and promoted the Black-Yellow Sect. His encounters with criminals connected to the Blazing Sun Sect convinced him that his own sect upheld righteousness while supposedly orthodox rivals sheltered demonic cultivators 22 23.

Together with Yang Yang, he entered the Bai Household’s marriage tournament to publicize the sect. He won but refused the marriage, provoking Bai Jiuzhong. The pair later became contracted members of the Demon Suppression Bureau 25 26 27.

Settling His Grudges

Xu Yan located Ye Chen and lured him from the sect with a false report that his household was in trouble. He defeated her, but she escaped and abandoned her Supreme Simplicity Sword. Concerned about retaliation from a four-star sect, he reported the encounter to Lin Ye 33 34.

When Xu Yan tried again, Ye Chen returned home to protect his family. He survived her Thunder Pearl, pursued her after she used a Teleportation Talisman, and killed her. Li Xuansu subsequently came to kill him; he destroyed her Clothes-Binding Ring and cut her in two, ending his grudge against the woman who had crippled him 68 70.

Campaigns Against Hostile Forces

Emotion-Severing Cultivation and Tantai Yao

The Seven Emotions and Six Desires Selfless Saber required Ye Chen to sever his emotions and desires before eventually recovering control over them. He endured ten days with his ears, eyes, mouth, and nose sealed, then overcame the desires for life and death through a near-death encounter staged by Lin Ye. He later severed sorrow by witnessing widespread suffering 135 136.

Ye Chen approached Tantai Yao to cultivate the technique, then abandoned her. When she confronted him outside Eastern Mountain City, he admitted his purpose and fought back without mercy after she attacked. Lin Ye stopped him before he could strike again and compensated her with a Phoenix Ancient Realm Fragment token 137 150.

Perfecting the technique restored Ye Chen’s emotions and left him horrified that he had attacked her. He sought her out, apologized, and claimed that Lin Ye had sealed his memories to force him to cultivate the Dao of Ruthlessness. Tantai Yao provisionally accepted his explanation; they later reunited and traveled together 157 159 166.

When he learned that the Tantai Household planned to extract collateral clansmen’s bloodlines, he feared for her safety and urgently sought Lin Ye’s help. She later became his wife, and they had a son, Ye Fan 181 212 236.

Rankings, Emperorship, and the Darkness Principle

Ye Chen defeated Bai Luo to take first place on the Phoenix Ancient Ranking. Chu He temporarily displaced him while he accompanied Tantai Yao, but Ye Chen renewed his efforts and finished the trial in first place. He selected the Phoenix Soul-Illuminating Seal and coordinated his other reward choices with his fellow disciples to avoid duplication 159 163.

On the Emperor Road, his junior brothers and sisters secretly agreed to let him claim the Emperor’s throne rather than risk discord among themselves. Chu He deliberately conceded their final exchange, transferring his accumulated providence to Ye Chen 233.

After refining the throne, Ye Chen chose the Darkness Principle, explicitly recognizing that his cultivation followed the Devil Dao. His breakthrough received the Profound Heaven Realm’s recognition, producing heavenly flowers and golden lotuses. Refining its origin gave him authority over the realm, to the extent that he could be called its master 236.

As Great Emperor Xuanchen, he later rescued Chu He from the Flame Devil Emperor and severely injured the attacker. He withdrew after sensing a much stronger hidden presence and reported it to Lin Ye 239.

Appearance

• Bearing: Described by Yang Yang as handsome, with a fine bearing and a slightly wicked quality 24.
• Physical development: His physique and demeanor changed markedly after body refinement, though relatives could still recognize his face 20.
• Emotion-severing period: Developed a colder expression and an icy presence that discouraged others from approaching 135.
• Phoenix Ancient Realm battles: Radiated such intense killing intent that many Primordial Descendants fled upon encountering him 157.

Personality

Ye Chen’s defining strength is perseverance rather than an innate special physique. He repeatedly resumed body refinement after fainting from pain, gradually extending his endurance from minutes to hours. Lin Ye considered his steadfast will particularly suitable for controlling the Heartless Demon Saber rather than being controlled by it 4 66.

He is grateful to his master, protective of his household, and willing to help weaker people. He contributed personal money to both the sect and rescued miners. His early faith in the Black-Yellow Sect was so strong that he dismissed accusations about his obviously sinister-looking techniques, reasoning that their contents contained nothing evil 5 15 23.

His apparent cruelty during emotion-severing cultivation was temporary and technique-induced. At major accomplishment, he retained only a trace of respect even for Lin Ye and responded to attacks with detached, lethal force. After perfection, his affection and regret returned; his attempt to win Tantai Yao back also showed a willingness to give a self-serving explanation 150 157 159.

Despite his offensive strength, Ye Chen acknowledges his limits. He admitted that Chu He and Han Bing could outlast him, and he remained conscious of the gap between himself and stronger Great Emperors after his own breakthrough 161 236 239.

Abilities & Skills

Body Refinement

Ye Chen’s original cultivation route bypasses meridians entirely, tempering the body by absorbing energy rather than circulating Qi and Blood through them 3.

• Pain Dao-Body Forging / Hell Devil-Forging Body: High Black-grade method with exceptionally powerful flesh-tempering effects; its principal drawback is extreme pain 3 33.
• True Devil Body Refining Technique, Devil Dragon Body Refining Technique, and Hell Devil Divine Art: Contributed to the physical strength he used against Bai Luo 159.
• Six Desires Golden Body: Selected by Lin Ye for Ye Chen’s transformed soul and comprehension. At mastery, it grants illusion immunity and resistance to ninety percent of soul attacks 165.
• Darkness Emperor Physique: Complements the Darkness Principle; used to strengthen his attack against the Flame Devil Emperor 236 239.

Early Martial Arts

• Pure Yang Finger / Blood Demon Finger: A penetrating finger technique capable of piercing refined iron. Ye Chen used it for his first kills during the Chen Household raid 5 14.
• Pure Yang Escape Technique / Blood Escape Technique: High-speed movement used to pursue enemies and beasts. Lin Ye initially instructed him to reserve it for emergencies 5 18.
• Pure Yang Claw / White Bone Claw: A close-range claw technique capable of piercing hard stone and catching an opponent attempting to escape 19 23.
• Multiple Shadow Clone Technique / Demonic Shadow Clone Technique: Mid-tier earth-grade technique that creates deceptive shadows or afterimages, confusing opponents and aiding evasion 19 23 33.

Formless Secret Method

A disguise method that changes the outward characteristics of his Qi and slightly alters his appearance 25.

• Conceals the blood-colored appearance of the Pure Yang Finger.
• Helps prevent observers from identifying his martial arts as demonic.
• Its documented appearance alteration is limited, rather than a complete transformation 25.

Heartless Saber

The Heartless Saber, originally named Heartless Demon Saber, is a Divine Ability Technique chosen for Ye Chen’s tenacious will 66.

• Reached entry level when he killed Xu Yan 68.
• Destroyed Li Xuansu’s Clothes-Binding Ring before killing her 70.
• Served as the foundation for his later emotion-based saber cultivation 135.

Seven Emotions and Six Desires Selfless Saber

A Great Divine Ability Technique that initially requires severing the practitioner’s emotions and desires, followed by a transformation at perfection 135.

• Before perfection: Removes emotional attachments and enables exceptionally calm, single-minded cultivation 137 150.
• At perfection: Restores emotions under conscious control and transforms the soul, consciousness, and State of Mind 157.
• Mental defense: Prevents opponents at the same level from shaking his emotions and counters illusions and emotion-based techniques 157.
• Limit: A sufficiently large difference in cultivation and soul power can overcome this protection 157.
• Combat role: Gave him the strongest attack among the fellow disciples he compared himself with during the Phoenix Ancient Realm trial, but did not make him superior in endurance, defense, or speed 161.

Selfless Heavenly Demon Blade

A demonic Saint Technique practiced after his reunion with Tantai Yao. His perfected Selfless Saber provided a strong foundation for learning it 166.

• Reached perfection by his encounter with Great Emperor Wuchen’s phantom.
• Delivered the finishing slash that dispersed the phantom 227.

Immemorial Devil God Fist

An Emperor Technique that manifests a Primordial Devil God phantom and delivers overwhelming physical force 190 216.

• Killed Huang Duo with one punch, annihilating half his body 216.
• Advanced during the battle against Wuchen’s phantom 227.
• Combined with the Darkness Principle, Darkness Emperor Physique, and Devil Dragon Armlet to severely injure the Flame Devil Emperor 239.

Wuchen Saber Technique

An inherited saber technique obtained by defeating the phantom of Great Emperor Wuchen, a saber specialist from three hundred thousand years earlier 227.

• The inheritance immediately brought Ye Chen to the introductory realm.
• Added another powerful saber art to his existing repertoire 227.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Saber: Used for his saber techniques; the weapon he carried in the Phoenix Ancient Realm Fragment was a middle-grade Spirit Treasure 68 154.
• Devil Dragon Armlet: Emperor Weapon that supported his attack on the Flame Devil Emperor 239.
• Identity token: Receives messages and transmitted techniques; used to communicate with Lin Ye and fellow disciples 25 163.
• Peak Body Casting Realm puppet: Lent by Lin Ye for the Chen Household rescue; controlled after blood refinement 14.
• Peak True Qi Realm puppet: Supplied by Lin Ye and deployed against a Mystic Blood Devil Sect deacon whose white bone banner animated corpses 31.
• Saint tracking talisman: Exchanged from the sect to locate Huang Duo 216.
• Blood Extreme Body Refining Pills: Early cultivation resources that accelerated his physical tempering and breakthroughs 4 6.
• Phoenix Soul-Illuminating Seal manual: Support-type Saint Technique chosen as a trial reward; dispels heart demons and protects against soul attacks. His mastery is not documented 163.

Relationships

• Lin Ye — Master and benefactor who restored his cultivation prospects. Ye Chen remains respectful even after becoming a Great Emperor and repeatedly seeks his aid against threats beyond his strength 3 181 236.
• Ye Long — Father and head of the Ye Household. Consented to his recruitment and later celebrated him as the lineage’s first Body Forging cultivator 2 3 21.
• Tantai Yao — Wife. Their relationship survived his abandonment and emotionless attack during saber cultivation; they later reconciled and traveled together 150 159 166 212.
• Ye Fan — Son. Gained an emperor-grade bloodline through Ye Chen’s breakthrough as his direct descendant 236.
• Yu Yu — Martial aunt and Lin Ye’s junior sister. Met him upon his arrival at the sect and later observed his rapid growth despite his painful training 3 290.
• Dongfang Bai — Second junior brother. Supplied warnings about Xu Yan and Li Xuansu and helped obtain intelligence for the Mystic Blood Devil Sect investigation 68 70 97.
• Dongfang Rou — Third junior sister. Broke through to the True Qi Realm alongside him and provided crucial interrogation abilities during the search for the Mystic Blood Devil Sect 41 97.
• Yang Yang — Fourth junior brother and traveling partner. Helped plan the sect’s publicity efforts; Ye Chen openly acknowledged his formidable physique and endurance 24 25 161.
• Han Bing — Fifth junior brother. Ye Chen considered him too difficult to kill to defeat in a prolonged fight 11 161.
• Chu He — Sixth junior brother. Ye Chen reluctantly helped him cultivate through beatings; Chu He later conceded their Emperor Road battle so Ye Chen could claim the throne 47 233.
• Luo Susu — Former fiancée whose public rejection humiliated the Ye Household 2.
• Xu Yan — Former maid and love interest who arranged his crippling and repeatedly threatened his family. Ye Chen ultimately killed her 2 33 68.
• Li Xuansu — Xu Yan’s master and the person who severed his meridians. Killed by Ye Chen when she came to avenge Xu Yan 34 70.

Notable Quotes

“It’s only pain. I’m not afraid.” 3

“I did love you once, but that love is gone. You’re going to die today.” 68

“I slashed Yao’er with my saber!” 157