Xun Yecheng

"The God of Thunder" (formerly) Theme

Xun Yecheng, "The God of Thunder", a prodigious elder of the Xun Clan, brother-in-law of the Patriarch. That's how he used to be described until fifteen years ago. Now his name is spat with disgrace and the memory of his failed uprising fills the member of the Xun with a mix of sorrow, rage and shame.

Born to a minor clan in the Northern Domain, Yecheng's talents marked him out as one of those whose destiny will shape the fate of the realm. In recognition of his potential, many factions vied for his loyalty, but it was the Xun that managed to secure it, at least for a time. Yecheng married into the Xun, joining the great clan officially by becoming the husband of the Patriarch's sister, while his former clan became Xun's vassals.

It took time, but eventually, what started out as a political union turned into a sincere relationship, love having blossomed between Xun Yecheng and his wife. The love bore fruit, and the couple had been blessed with a daughter, who they named Haoran. Yecheng was happy...

...But he was not satisfied. Having lived for a long time, he had witnessed the tyrannical side of the Jin's rule, the extortionist tributes, the excessive punishments, the corruption, laziness and ineptitude. This was not the world he wanted his daughter to grow up in.

Yecheng believed that Xun are strong enough to overthrow the Jin's grasp on the North. That if they but rose up, the great clans of other provinces would follow suit, forcing the Jin to fight on multiple fronts, spreading their armies thin, and eventually ensuring that they'll be forced to make concessions. With this plan, he approached the Patriarch.

But the Patriarch refused. He called Yecheng's ambitions foolish and dangerous. He said that the other clans would stand idle and watch the Xun get torn apart. That even if some did follow, the might of the Jin is such that the toll the war would take would not be worth it. That the risk is too high. He forbid Yecheng from ever brining the topic up again, for even the rumours of treason can bring disaster.

Yecheng's protests fell on deaf ears, and he'd been sent away. His ambition, however, did not let him rest. If the Patriarch was too blind to do what must be done, he thought, then it's someone with vision that will have to take the lead. He gathered his allies, the core of which was formed by his former clan, who eagerly followed their prodigious son. His plan was to force the Patriarch's hand, to attack the Jin first, and ignite the flames of war from which Xun couldn't run from.

He had overestimated his hand, and underestimated the enemy's. The Patriarch learned of Yecheng's plan and stopped his clansmen from following him. With each day, instead of gaining support, he was losing followers, the few Xun he managed to convince, turning back on him and heeding the Patriarch's orders, leaving him with just the core guard formed from Yecheng's former clan. The God of Thunder got desperate and impatient. He needed a big display of force, a spark that would announce his rebellion to the world. He decided to give open battle against the high command of the Jin northern army, to take its general's head as a sign for all to see.

Whether it was due to Jin's spies, or maybe it was the Xun who betrayed Yecheng, but the enemy learned of his plans of attack and set up a trap. The battle was harsh, scorched earth still marks the grounds where it took place, even so many years later. Despite his talents, Yecheng did not manage to slay the Jin general. Yet, the formations designed against the God of Thunder failed to hold him, and when he saw the turning tide, Yecheng managed to retreat, with as many of his clansmen as still breathed, fleeing into hiding to regroup.

But the Jin did not rest. The general who failed to capture Yecheng was executed for his incompetence, and a new one appointed. An ambassador from the capital had been sent to the Xun with a list of demands. The delicate political dance of negotiations took days, as the Jin needed to painfully punish any attempts at treason, but at the same time knowing that if they pushed too far, it'd end up with war with the entire Xun clan, and just as Yecheng envisioned, that'd be a precarious condition.

The scapegoat was found in Yecheng's former clan. They've been marked as the rebellious ones, their patriarch pointed as the rebellion's leader, rising both against the Jin and the Xun. By the Imperial Edict, each of their members was to be executed, their lands razed, and their name expunged from the chronicles. The Xun, as those who failed to control their vassal, were to be the ones to execute the sentence, and moreover be forced to pay increased tribute and give up a portion of their lands. But one more thing was demanded.

Since an imperial general had to pay with his life as a result of the rebellion, the Xun were also supposed to pay with their blood. Their member to whom the Yecheng's former clan answered to most closely was to be the one who was to pay with his life. Naturally, that man was Yecheng, but since he was still in hiding, the Jin ambassador declared that his child will do. Haoran's mother's protested, and when her pleading was denied, she offered herself in her child's stead. Her brother tried to stop her, but the mother's love was too strong. The Jin accepted, believing that the head of a clan elder was more valuable than that of a young child.

Having heard of what happened, Yecheng returned home, to visit his wife's grave. Stricken by grief and fury, he confronted the Patriarch, accusing his inaction as the reason for this. The Patriarch, similarly mourning his sister, accused Yecheng in return, saying that it's his arrogance and disobedience that led to this. The two fought and the Patriarch was victorious. He declared that death would be too good for Yecheng, that it would be a relief, and he needs to witness the consequences of his actions.

Instead, he crippled Yecheng. He damaged his golden core, sending him multiple realms backwards and destroying his ambitions that had cost them so much. He crippled his body, so the hands that dared to be raised against the Jin could do so no more. He blinded him, for the eyes that could not see the folly of his actions, did not deserve to see anything at all. Finally, he exiled him.

Without Yecheng, his former clan was not able to oppose the Xun, and their sentence was carried out swiftly. Haoran had been raised without learning the reasons for her father's rebellion. As for Yecheng, he was forced to wander, his brilliant mind trying to devise a way to regain what he lost.

Region

Northern Territory

Origin

Minor Clan (clan name expunged from records)

Martial Spirit Foundation

Heavenly Tribulation Spirit Foundation (Divine Greater Elemental Spirit Foundation)

The wrath of the Heavens strikes from the skies at those who dare reject its laws. The Divine Lightning punishes those who stubbornly try to ascend above the lot they were given, at the same time granting them a glimpse of the power they seek. Yecheng's fate ironically bound his spirit to this power, letting it guide him against the very forces it represents. But maybe this too was but a sign of how his hubris will be his undoing.

Natural Talents

Skill: 5
Intelligence: 5
Body: 0
Perception: 0

Perks

Dual-type Spirit Foundation
Natural Insight (Lightning)
Hidden Technique IV
Innovator II

Techniques

Thunder God's Spirit (Hidden-Rank Cultivation Technique)

As with all techniques Yecheng retained over the years, this Cultivatiton technique is a result of him recombining multiple techniques he mastered and rejected, perceiving the universal truths behind them and bending them to his needs. This technique is that of brilliant bursts, like lightning strikes or divine inspiration, it allowed Yecheng to rapidly advance in his cultivation. After periods of seemingly no progress, he experienced sudden breakthroughs in his powers, advancing in an instant many times more than what lesser techniques would allow for. What's more, his qi reserves took a similar nature, being able to refill fully seemingly at random.

But now, with his cultivation broken, the inspiration avoids him, letting him stagnate. The shallow reserves of his qi, aren't even able to take full advantage of their rapid replenishemnt.

Thunder God's Fury (Hidden-Rank Combat Technique)

The power that made Yecheng a threat to even the Jin armies. The destructive power of lightning was at his finger. The calamitous fury of nature eager to instantly rip through his enemies, striking with precision when needed, or able to level fortresses when that's what Yecheng wished.

But the shadow of his former self is able to summon only a tiny fraction of that power now, the lightning's power not even able to obliterate some of the children to whose level he has been reduced.

Thunder God's Step (Hidden-Rank Movement Technique)

Yecheng had the ability to transform into lightning, nearly instantly crossing vast distances, uncaring for the obstacles in his path. The sound of his arrival being what earned him his title.

Now that he has to keep his presence hidden, the great thunder that accompanies this technique makes his use of it rare, and even when he does, his broken cultivation has greatly limited how often and how far he can transport with it.

Thunder God's Insight (Hidden-Rank Utility Technique)

The spark of the divine flows through everything. The field of power that permeates all, and that signals actions before they can take place. This technique let Yecheng perceive them. At the height of his power, he was told to have a sixth sense, able to tell the future, perceive danger and read minds.

Now this power is barely enough to replace Yecheng's sense of sight, giving him an inaccurate sense of his surroundings, and able to warn him only of strong emotions of those around him.

Treasures

Lost or seized, even the clan inheritance.

Companions

Killed in combat, assassinated or executed.

Complications

Insidious Cult
Ghost Domain
Stars of Destiny
Destroyed Clan
Clan Enmity (Xun)
Hunted
Rival (Patriarch of Xun)

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Pub: 28 Dec 2025 00:50 UTC

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