[ { "zh": "一个时辰", "en": "One Shi", "def": "Two hours. Long enough for a battle, short enough to be a deadline.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "一击", "en": "Single Strike", "def": "One blow, meant to decide everything. The genre's preferred unit of resolution.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "一击必杀", "en": "One-Hit Kill", "def": "A single blow meant to end a life. Announced as a threat it is usually a bluff; performed without announcement it is usually not.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "一刻钟", "en": "One Quarter Hour", "def": "Fifteen minutes, borrowed from the old hour system. Precise, and therefore used for escapes.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "一口价", "en": "Buyout Price", "def": "The number that ends the bidding. Reveals how badly the owner wants something gone.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "一口鲜血喷出", "en": "Blood Sprayed from the Mouth", "def": "Serious internal injury. Visually reliable, medically absurd, narratively necessary.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "一品", "en": "First Grade", "def": "Either the top of a numbered ranking or simply grade one. Context decides the direction.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/first-grade/", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "一品丹", "en": "First-Grade Pill", "def": "The lowest usable grade. Cheap, common, and the reason ordinary disciples can advance at all.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "一品至九品官职", "en": "Official Rank", "def": "Court ranks, borrowed into cultivation fiction for imperial and sect administration. Nine one way or the other, depending on dynasty.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "一哄而散", "en": "Scatter in a Panic", "def": "A crowd dissolving in every direction at once. Used for onlookers, hired hands, and disciples who never signed up for this.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "一家三口", "en": "A Family of Three", "def": "Domestic unit. When it appears in the middle of a war book, someone is about to die.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "一山还有一山高", "en": "There Is Always a Higher Mountain", "def": "The full idea in one line. Used as a lesson or as a threat.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "一往情深", "en": "Deep Devotion", "def": "Love that does not negotiate. It ends well or it ends badly, never in between.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "一心向道", "en": "Single-Minded Toward the Dao", "def": "Total commitment, with everything else in life sacrificed to it.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "一息", "en": "One Breath", "def": "A few seconds. Used for feats described as 'in a single breath', which is the genre's way of saying instant.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "一战成名", "en": "Fame in One Fight", "def": "A single match that puts your name in every mouth in the sect. The standard turning point of a comeback arc.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "一手遮天", "en": "One Hand Covers the Sky", "def": "Describes a person whose influence reaches everything. Said with resentment.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "一招", "en": "One Move", "def": "A single exchange. 'Defeated in one move' is the standard measure of humiliation in a duel, and the line every crowd repeats afterwards.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/single-move/", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "一步登天", "en": "One Step to Heaven", "def": "The shortcut. Always available and always with a hidden price.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "一流宗门", "en": "First-Rate Sect", "def": "Top tier. Has an ascended ancestor somewhere in the family tree.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "一炉", "en": "A Batch", "def": "One cauldron's worth. Alchemists are judged by how many usable pills come out of one.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "一炷香", "en": "The time it takes to burn a stick of incense", "def": "About half an hour. Used as a deadline: 'kneel for one stick of incense.'", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "一片死寂", "en": "Dead Silence", "def": "A crowd realising something at the same time. The sound of nobody breathing.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "一盏茶", "en": "The time it takes to drink a cup of tea", "def": "A short while, maybe ten minutes. Looser and more casual than one stick of incense.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "一票否决", "en": "Veto", "def": "The right to overrule everyone else. Held by whoever founded the place.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "一网打尽", "en": "Net Them All", "def": "Taking everyone at once so nobody escapes to report.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "一袭青衫", "en": "A Plain Blue Robe", "def": "The scholar-cultivator look. Quiet, and associated with old sects.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "一见钟情", "en": "Love at First Sight", "def": "Instant and permanent. In this genre, usually a plot device with a sword.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "一言为定", "en": "It Is Settled", "def": "Sealing a verbal agreement. In this genre, usually the setup for a betrayal.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "一诺", "en": "One Promise", "def": "A promise that outlasts a war. The genre's most durable plot device.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "一路顺风", "en": "Fair Winds", "def": "A send-off for a journey. The standard, and slightly ominous if the journey is dangerous.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "一身白衣", "en": "All in White", "def": "The visual shorthand for a swordsman with a reputation. Also for ghosts.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "一转丹", "en": "One-Turn Pill", "def": "Single-pass pill. Ordinary quality, ordinary price, no shame in it.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "一边倒", "en": "One-Sided", "def": "The mismatch. Used before the reversal, never after.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "一雪前耻", "en": "Wipe Out the Old Shame", "def": "Settling a humiliation from earlier in the story, in front of the same witnesses, in the same place.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "一飞冲天", "en": "Soar in One Bound", "def": "A jump in status or realm that skips the expected ladder. Usually the payoff chapter, and usually watched by the people who laughed.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "一鸣惊人", "en": "Stun with a Single Cry", "def": "One appearance that erases every earlier mockery. The bird that never sang, then sang once.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/stun-with-a-single-cry/", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "一鼓作气", "en": "First Drum, Full Effort", "def": "The classical line about momentum. Quoted before a charge.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "七七四十九天", "en": "Forty-Nine Days", "def": "A ritual or refining period, drawn from Buddhist practice. Comfortably long for an author to cut away from.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "七十二变", "en": "Seventy-Two Transformations", "def": "The greater art, taught on Mount Fangcun. Games implement it as a morph ability with a cooldown; the text treats it as a complete change of body.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "七宝林", "en": "The Seven Treasures Grove", "def": "The forest outside the heavenly courts. Everything in it is worth money, which is a trap.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "七星剑", "en": "Seven-Star Sword", "def": "A sword keyed to the seven stars of the dipper. Its strikes follow a sequence, so the defence is recognising the pattern.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "七星灯", "en": "Seven-Star Lamp", "def": "The lamp that keeps a dying life going if the flame holds. Wind is the enemy in every such scene.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "七星镯", "en": "Seven-Star Bracelet", "def": "A bracelet that binds the wrists. Small object, disproportionate effect.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "万妖岭", "en": "Beast Ridge", "def": "A mountain range ruled by beasts. Humans pass at their own risk and their own price.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "万寿山", "en": "Mount Wanshou", "def": "The mountain the temple sits on. Its name is a promise the fruit keeps.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "万年灵药", "en": "Ten-Thousand-Year Herb", "def": "Mythic tier. Usually guarded by something that eats challengers.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "万念俱灰", "en": "All Hope Gone", "def": "Every plan abandoned at once. What remains is either surrender or a very bad idea.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "万里", "en": "Ten Thousand Li", "def": "The measure of an empire or a journey arc. Not literal, but not entirely figurative either.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "丈", "en": "Zhang", "def": "A unit of length, roughly three metres. 'Thirty zhang tall' is how big monsters get described.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "三不管", "en": "Nobody's Territory", "def": "The colloquial version. Same lawlessness, less paperwork.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "三光神水", "en": "Water of Three Lights", "def": "Sun, moon and star water combined. The highest tier of healing liquid, and it comes in three separate containers.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "三十三天", "en": "Thirty-Three Heavens", "def": "The higher heavens of the older cosmology, each with its own ruler. Using the full count gives a novel a very long ladder.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/thirty-three-heavens/", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "三十三重天外", "en": "Beyond the Thirty-Three Heavens", "def": "The phrase used to place something above the sky. Novels use it for the final boss's address.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "三十六变", "en": "Thirty-Six Transformations", "def": "The lesser count, held by Zhu Bajie. Fewer forms, more jokes, and a running gag about the pig choosing a bad shape.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "三十年太久", "en": "Thirty Years Is Too Long", "def": "Said when revenge cannot wait. Cuts off the classic proverb on purpose.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "三十年河东，三十年河西", "en": "Thirty Years East of the River", "def": "'Things turn around.' A warning aimed at whoever is winning right now.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "三千世界", "en": "Three Thousand Worlds", "def": "The total of everything. Used to make a conflict feel small, or a character feel large.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "三千大道", "en": "Three Thousand Daos", "def": "The enumerated routes to the top. The number is decorative; the point is that every talent has a path.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "三味真火", "en": "Three-Flavour True Fire", "def": "A fire that burns without fuel and cannot be put out by water. Alchemy's premium heat source, and a common reward mid-book.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "三头六臂", "en": "Three Heads, Six Arms", "def": "The combat form. Games render it as a second hitbox phase, because that is what it is.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "三媒六聘", "en": "Formal Betrothal Rites", "def": "The full traditional procedure. Used to show that a family takes the match seriously.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "三宝玉如意", "en": "Three-Treasure Ruyi Sceptre", "def": "A sceptre that ends arguments. In adaptations it is the item a senior figure raises before the scene cuts away.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "三尖两刃刀", "en": "Three-Point Double-Edged Blade", "def": "The polearm carried by Erlang Shen. Two cutting edges and a point, heavy, used with a sweeping style.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "三年之约", "en": "Three-Year Pact", "def": "The duel everyone agrees to and nobody forgets. Its structure is so fixed that readers know the outcome at the announcement.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "三招之内", "en": "Within Three Moves", "def": "The bet. The number is always an underestimate.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "三日", "en": "Three Days", "def": "The standard grace period. Anything promised in three days happens on the third night.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "三星洞", "en": "Three Stars Cave", "def": "The other half of the same name. Together they form the character for heart.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "三昧真火", "en": "Samadhi Fire", "def": "The fire that burns without fuel. Red Boy's version, and the reason water does not help.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "三流宗门", "en": "Third-Rate Sect", "def": "Small, poor, and loud about its history. Where protagonists start.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "三清", "en": "The Three Pure Ones", "def": "The three highest deities of the Daoist pantheon, treated in fiction as three brothers who disagree. Their disagreements usually become the plot of an entire arc.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "三灵根", "en": "Triple Spirit Root", "def": "Three attributes instead of one. Better than mixed, worse than single, and never any master's first choice.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "三生有幸", "en": "Fortune of Three Lives", "def": "Overwhelming honour at meeting someone. Grander than it needs to be.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "三生石", "en": "Three Lives Stone", "def": "The stone that records a person's three lives. Reading it is a service, and it always upsets someone.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "三界", "en": "Three Realms", "def": "The classic division: heaven, the mortal world, and the underworld.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "三百六十五路正神", "en": "The 365 Orthodox Gods", "def": "The full roster of heavenly offices, filled by decree after a war. Novels use it to explain where all the minor gods came from.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "三而竭", "en": "Third Drum, Spent", "def": "The completion. The moment to counterattack.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "三足金蟾", "en": "Three-Legged Toad", "def": "The wealth beast. Merchants keep one on the counter, and in this genre it occasionally eats someone.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "三跪九叩", "en": "Nine Kowtows", "def": "The full imperial prostration. Used to show absolute submission, or mock it.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "三转丹", "en": "Three-Turn Pill", "def": "Three rounds of refinement. The realistic ceiling for a good alchemist.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "上中下三品", "en": "Upper, Middle, Lower", "def": "The simplest grading scheme. Found in older texts and in sects that dislike bureaucracy.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "上丹田", "en": "Upper Dantian", "def": "The seat in the forehead, tied to spirit and perception. Where divine sense is generated.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "上仙", "en": "Exalted Immortal", "def": "The word a kneeling mortal uses. It ends the negotiation before it starts.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "上元节", "en": "Lantern Festival", "def": "The lantern night. Crowds, masks, and the best night of the year for an ambush.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "上古凶兽", "en": "Ancient Fierce Beast", "def": "Something that was sealed rather than killed. Every seal eventually weakens.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "上古遗迹", "en": "Ancient Ruin", "def": "Left behind by a dead civilisation. Loot, traps, and unfinished business.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "上品", "en": "High Grade", "def": "Genuinely good. Worth guarding, and worth stealing.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "上品灵石", "en": "High-Grade Spirit Stone", "def": "Worth a hundred mid-grade. Rarely spent, mostly hoarded.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "上座", "en": "Seat of Honor", "def": "The head seat, facing the door. Sitting in it uninvited is a challenge.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "上界", "en": "Upper Realm", "def": "Said by people in the lower one. Carries envy.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "上盘", "en": "Upper Body", "def": "Torso, arms and head. Where the visible fight happens.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "下下品", "en": "Lowest Grade", "def": "The bottom of a four-step scale. Still usable, barely.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "下丹田", "en": "Lower Dantian", "def": "The one people mean when they say dantian without qualification. Core storage.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "下品", "en": "Low Grade", "def": "The bottom rank of an item. Cheap, and it shows.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "下品灵石", "en": "Low-Grade Spirit Stone", "def": "The copper coin of cultivation. What disciples are paid in.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "下帖子", "en": "Issue a Challenge", "def": "Formally inviting someone to a duel. Refusing in public costs face.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "下狠手", "en": "Strike to Kill", "def": "No longer holding back. The line where conversation ends.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "下界", "en": "Lower Realm", "def": "Said by people in the upper one. Carries contempt.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "下盘", "en": "Lower Body", "def": "Legs and footing. What a master attacks first, and what a novice forgets.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "不为瓦全", "en": "Than to Be Whole Clay", "def": "The second half. Rarely spoken; the speaker is usually dead before it.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不入流", "en": "Unranked", "def": "Below the lowest grade. Said of items, techniques and occasionally people, with the same tone.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "不动声色", "en": "Without Changing Expression", "def": "Hiding a reaction. Used for the most dangerous people in the room.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "不动如山", "en": "Unmoving as a Mountain", "def": "The defensive posture. Also a description of a formation nobody can break.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "不可一世", "en": "Insufferably Arrogant", "def": "Behaving as though no one in the world is your equal. In this genre, a countdown rather than a description.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "不周山", "en": "Mount Buzhou", "def": "The pillar of heaven that Gonggong broke. Its stump is still the reason the sky leans, and every map has to account for it.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "不周山巅", "en": "The Summit of Buzhou", "def": "The broken pillar. Its remaining height is the reason the sky is tilted.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "不寒而栗", "en": "Shiver", "def": "Cold dread with no visible cause. Felt in the body, not named in the mind.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "不必了", "en": "That Won't Be Necessary", "def": "Refusing an offer with the edge left on it. Often the last thing said before a fight.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "不必再说", "en": "Say No More", "def": "The same, colder. Usually followed by a drawn weapon.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不忘初心", "en": "Remember the Beginning", "def": "Holding on to why you started. The line that marks a character who will not be corrupted.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "不怒自威", "en": "Authority Without Anger", "def": "Commanding without effort. The standard description of a sect head.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "不怕没柴烧", "en": "There Will Be Firewood", "def": "The second half. The acceptance of a temporary loss.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不急不躁", "en": "Neither Rushed nor Agitated", "def": "Refusing to be pushed by other people's clocks. The one trait that separates a protagonist from the genius beside him.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "不成敬意", "en": "Barely Worth Your Notice", "def": "Same idea, more elaborate. The more elaborate, the more valuable the gift.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不才", "en": "This Untalented One", "def": "Formal self-deprecation, usually right before offering an opinion or a service.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "不敢当", "en": "I Do Not Deserve It", "def": "Formal refusal of praise. Said while accepting it.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不是不报", "en": "It Is Not That There Is No Reckoning", "def": "The opening of the most quoted line about delayed justice. Never finished because everyone knows it.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不死", "en": "Undying", "def": "Cannot be killed by ordinary means. Usually comes with something worse attached.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "不死不休", "en": "Not Until One Is Dead", "def": "No terms. Said by characters with nothing left.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "不死药", "en": "Elixir of Immortality", "def": "The single-use exemption from death. Acquiring it is never the end of a story, because someone always takes it away.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "不灭", "en": "Indestructible", "def": "Cannot be destroyed, only sealed. Said of high-level souls and artifacts.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "不甘", "en": "Unwilling to Accept", "def": "The refusal to admit the result was fair. What a defeated genius says instead of surrender, and what keeps a protagonist going for three hundred years.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "不知天高地厚", "en": "Knows Not the Height of Heaven", "def": "Said to someone who has picked the wrong enemy. Very reliable predictor of a beating.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不知好歹", "en": "Cannot Tell Good from Bad", "def": "Said when a kindness is refused. The speaker is usually the problem.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不知悔改", "en": "Unrepentant", "def": "Refusing to learn. What an elder says before washing their hands of a disciple.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "不知死活", "en": "Does Not Know Death", "def": "Contempt for someone walking into their own end without noticing.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不知死活的東西", "en": "A Thing That Does Not Know Death", "def": "Heavier contempt. Used by someone who plans to end the conversation here.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "不离不弃", "en": "Never Leave, Never Abandon", "def": "The vow in ordinary words. Used ironically by characters about to be abandoned.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "不置可否", "en": "Neither Confirm nor Deny", "def": "The response that keeps options open. Used by characters who intend to betray someone.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "不胜荣幸", "en": "Overwhelmed with Honor", "def": "Formal delight. Used in front of superiors and enemies alike.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不自量力", "en": "Overestimating Yourself", "def": "'You do not know your own limits.' Aimed at someone who picked a fight above their level.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "不识抬举", "en": "Cannot Read a Compliment", "def": "Too stupid to recognise a favour. Slightly more formal than the previous one.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "不败", "en": "Undefeated", "def": "The claim. Always tested by the end of the arc.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "不过如此", "en": "Nothing Special", "def": "'So that is all you have.' Said after surviving someone's best move.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "不送", "en": "I Will Not See You Out", "def": "Dismissive courtesy. Doing it with a smile is worse.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "不鸣则已", "en": "Silent Until It Sings", "def": "The first half of the idiom. Never finished, because the second half is the reveal.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "与世无争", "en": "Contend with No One", "def": "Not competing for rank, resources, or attention. Either genuine detachment or the best camouflage in the sect.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "世仇", "en": "Blood Feud", "def": "A grudge inherited across generations. Nobody remembers the original insult; everybody keeps the rules.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "世俗", "en": "Secular World", "def": "The ordinary social world: family, money, reputation. What a cultivator is supposed to leave behind.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "世家", "en": "Great Clan", "def": "An old, wealthy clan with several generations of power behind it.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "丘陵", "en": "Hills", "def": "Where small sects survive. Too poor to invade, too annoying to wipe out.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "业力", "en": "Karma", "def": "The debt created by what you have done. It always collects, usually late.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "业火", "en": "Karmic Fire", "def": "The fire that burns off accumulated debt. Painful, and considered a blessing by monks.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "东山再起", "en": "Rise Again from the Eastern Mountain", "def": "The formal idiom for a comeback. Used in narration, not dialogue.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "东海龙宫", "en": "East Sea Dragon Palace", "def": "The palace under the eastern sea, full of pillars and treasure. Taking something from it is how several protagonists begin.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "东皇太一", "en": "Donghuang Taiyi", "def": "The supreme god of the ancient Chu hymns, later folded into the primordial hierarchy as its first emperor. Novels that need a power above the three pure ones use him.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "东胜神洲", "en": "Aparagodaniya", "def": "One of the four continents of Buddhist cosmology, the one where the monkey king was born. Novels set their starting region here when they want mythic weight.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "东荒", "en": "Eastern Wasteland", "def": "Wild, poor in qi and rich in old things. Where protagonists go to grow.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "两", "en": "Tael", "def": "A unit of silver weight. Used for mortal-world prices, and for contrast with spirit stones.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "两地距离", "en": "Distance", "def": "Stated in li and then ignored by characters who can fly. Translators sometimes need to keep the number anyway.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "两小无猜", "en": "Innocent Together", "def": "The same thing before anything complicated happened.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "两虎相争", "en": "Two Tigers Fighting", "def": "The opening of a proverb about a third party profiting. Never stated in full.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "两败俱伤", "en": "Mutual Destruction", "def": "Both sides ruined. Sometimes the only way a weaker party can win.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "丧家之犬", "en": "Like a Masterless Dog", "def": "The look of someone who has lost their backing and is running. The insult is about losing a home, not about courage.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "丧礼", "en": "Funeral", "def": "Rite for the dead. The absence of a body is always noted.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "中丹田", "en": "Middle Dantian", "def": "The chest centre, tied to breath and blood. Rarely mentioned, always damaged.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "中品", "en": "Middle Grade", "def": "Functional grade. What a working cultivator can actually afford.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "中品灵石", "en": "Mid-Grade Spirit Stone", "def": "Worth a hundred low-grade. What real treasures are priced in.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "中州", "en": "Central Continent", "def": "The middle of the map, where the strongest sects are and the weather is best.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "中期", "en": "Middle Stage", "def": "The middle slice of a realm. Where most characters spend most of the story.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "丹云", "en": "Pill Cloud", "def": "The cloud that forms over a furnace when something exceptional is refined. Attracts visitors, which is not always welcome.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹会", "en": "Alchemist Convention", "def": "A public contest of pill makers. Reputation is decided in an afternoon.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹劫", "en": "Pill Tribulation", "def": "Lightning called down by a pill of the highest grade. Proof the pill has touched the Dao.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹堂长老", "en": "Alchemy Elder", "def": "Runs the pill hall. Can be rude to everyone, and is.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "丹宗", "en": "Alchemy Sect", "def": "A sect built on pills. Nobody likes them; everybody needs them.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "丹尊", "en": "Pill Venerable", "def": "An alchemist whose name is worth more than his pills.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "丹市", "en": "Pill Market", "def": "Where alchemy products change hands. Prices swing with the latest news of a war.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "丹成", "en": "Pill Formed", "def": "The moment the batch succeeds. Usually announced by scent or a flash of light.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹房", "en": "Pill Chamber", "def": "Where pills are made. Always fireproofed, never quiet.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹方", "en": "Pill Formula", "def": "The recipe. In practice the actual secret being protected, not the finished pills.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹方品阶", "en": "Recipe Grade", "def": "Recipes are graded too. The gap between a grade two and a grade four pill is usually the difference between a chapter and an arc.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹方残页", "en": "Formula Fragment", "def": "One torn page of a pill formula. Enough to attempt, never enough to be sure.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹毒", "en": "Pill Toxicity", "def": "Residue left in the body by cheap or overused pills. Too much and you stop improving at all.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/pill-toxicity/", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹炉", "en": "Pill Cauldron", "def": "The vessel pills are refined in. A better cauldron means fewer ruined batches.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹炉品阶", "en": "Furnace Grade", "def": "Furnaces are graded like everything else. A high-grade pill in a low-grade furnace fails for reasons that have nothing to do with the alchemist.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹王", "en": "Pill King", "def": "The best alchemist in a region. A political position as much as a skill title.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹田", "en": "Dantian", "def": "The energy centre below the navel. Where qi is stored and where the core forms.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/dantian/", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "丹田破碎", "en": "Shattered Dantian", "def": "The injury that ends a cultivation career. Every comeback plot starts with this sentence.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/shattered-dantian/", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "丹纹", "en": "Pill Pattern", "def": "The lines on a finished pill. More lines, higher grade, higher price.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹药", "en": "Medicinal Pill", "def": "Anything refined into pill form that does something to a body: heal, boost, or force a breakthrough.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/medicinal-pill/", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹药副作用", "en": "Pill Side Effects", "def": "The cost after the benefit: dependence, impurity, or a body that resists further pills.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹药品相", "en": "Pill Quality", "def": "How clean a pill came out. Decides whether it heals you or quietly damages you.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹药品级", "en": "Pill Grade", "def": "The scale that decides who can take the pill without dying. Grades one through nine, with mistakes at the top of the list.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹药配伍", "en": "Ingredient Pairing", "def": "What goes with what. Half of alchemy scenes are an argument about pairing.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹药铺", "en": "Pill Shop", "def": "The market stall where pills are sold. Prices move with the war.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹衣", "en": "Pill Coating", "def": "The glaze that keeps the contents from escaping. Cracked coating means the pill is losing potency by the hour.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹道", "en": "Alchemy Dao", "def": "The discipline of refinement, treated as a path in its own right. Alchemist protagonists are a whole subgenre.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "丹霞", "en": "Pill Radiance", "def": "The glow when the cauldron opens. The first thing a buyer looks at.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "丹香", "en": "Pill Aroma", "def": "How far the smell travels. Also how far away people can tell you just succeeded.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "为师", "en": "Your Master", "def": "How a teacher refers to himself when speaking to a disciple.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "主仆契", "en": "Master-Servant Pact", "def": "The standard beast contract: obedience in exchange for protection. Read the clauses carefully.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "主修", "en": "Primary Art", "def": "The one technique you build your cultivation on. Choose wrong and you pay for it for a lifetime.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "举案齐眉", "en": "Equal Partners", "def": "The classical image of a marriage of mutual respect.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "举重若轻", "en": "Lift Heavy, Look Light", "def": "Effortless power. The description that sells a master without a demonstration.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "久久无言", "en": "Silent for a Long While", "def": "The pause that says more than the argument would have.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "久仰大名", "en": "Long Heard of You", "def": "First line of any formal meeting. Sometimes true.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "义兄", "en": "Sworn Brother", "def": "The one you bound yourself to. Expected to die for you, and often does.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "义妹", "en": "Sworn Sister", "def": "The same bond, female. In this genre, usually the one who survives to avenge.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "义气", "en": "Loyalty Between Men", "def": "Loyalty to friends rather than to rules. The virtue that makes bad decisions look noble.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "乌鸡国", "en": "Kingdom of Wuji", "def": "A kingdom whose king was murdered and replaced by a demon wearing his face. The template for every impostor arc.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "九九八十一天", "en": "Eighty-One Days", "def": "The longer variant. Used for refining something the plot needs urgently.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "九九重劫", "en": "Eighty-One-Fold Tribulation", "def": "Eighty-one strikes, the highest tier in most systems. Happens once in a book, if at all.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "九叶草", "en": "Nine-Leaf Grass", "def": "Count the leaves to know the age. Nine is the standard shorthand for 'almost ready'.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "九叶莲", "en": "Nine-Leaf Lotus", "def": "Lotus with nine leaves rather than three. Each extra leaf is a realm of difference in price.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "九品丹", "en": "Ninth-Grade Pill", "def": "The top of the scale. A single one can support an entire clan.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "九品制", "en": "Nine-Tier System", "def": "Ranks one to nine, where nine is ambiguous: highest in some systems, lowest in others. Check before translating a number.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "九天", "en": "Nine Heavens", "def": "The stacked layers of heaven above the mortal world. Each is a place, and sometimes a realm.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "九头虫", "en": "Nine-Headed Insect", "def": "A monster on the pilgrimage route, part insect and part bird. Adaptations give it wings that the original barely mentions.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "九婴", "en": "Jiuying", "def": "A nine-headed water-fire monster killed by Houyi. Two elements at once, which makes it a boss rather than a beast.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "九宫阵", "en": "Nine Palaces Array", "def": "Nine cells, one of them false. Solving it is a puzzle, not a fight.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "九尾狐", "en": "Nine-Tailed Fox", "def": "The fox spirit of a thousand stories, devious in some and tragic in most. Cultivation novels split hard between the two readings, so check the tone of the book.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "九州", "en": "Nine Provinces", "def": "The old name for the known world. Sounds grand and slightly antique.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "九幽", "en": "Nine Hells", "def": "The deepest layer of the underworld. Used as an oath and as a threat.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "九幽玄铁", "en": "Dark Iron of the Nine Darknesses", "def": "Metal mined below the underworld. Absorbs energy, which makes it ideal for demonic weapons.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "九幽血旗", "en": "Blood Banner of the Nine Darknesses", "def": "A demonic standard. Raising it is how an army announces it has stopped pretending.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "九死一生", "en": "Nine Deaths, One Life", "def": "A near-certain death survived. Used for tribulations and for impossible odds.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "九色鹿", "en": "Nine-Coloured Deer", "def": "A benevolent beast from an older tale. Appears in the genre as a healer and as a moral test.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "九转丹", "en": "Nine-Turn Pill", "def": "Refined nine times over. Each turn removes impurity and adds a layer of danger to the process.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "九转金丹", "en": "Nine-Turn Golden Elixir", "def": "The highest grade of alchemical pill, refined through nine cycles. Everything in the body is repaired, including things the taker did not know were broken.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/nine-turn-golden-elixir/", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "九重天", "en": "The Nine Heavens", "def": "The layered sky above the mortal world, each layer ruled by a different court. Ascension plots count their progress by which heaven they can reach.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "九重雷劫", "en": "Nine-Layered Lightning Tribulation", "def": "Nine waves of lightning. The highest grade, and the one that ends legends.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/ninefold-tribulation/", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "九鼎", "en": "The Nine Cauldrons", "def": "The ritual vessels of the ancient kings, whose possession meant the mandate to rule. Fiction uses them as keys to authority.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "九齿钉耙", "en": "Nine-Toothed Rake", "def": "The rake Zhu Bajie carries. Nine teeth, absurdly heavy, and used with farming motions that the text plays for laughs.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "九龙岛香炉", "en": "Incense Burner of the Nine Dragon Isle", "def": "Continuously produces medicinal smoke. A support item that defines a healer's kit.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "九龙沉香辇", "en": "Nine-Dragon Sandalwood Carriage", "def": "A cart pulled by dragons, used by only one figure. Its arrival means the doctrine has decided.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "九龙神火罩", "en": "Nine-Dragon Divine Fire Cover", "def": "A cover that drops over a target and burns it with nine dragon fires. Escape requires breaking the cover, which is the point.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "乞丐", "en": "Beggar", "def": "Adult version. Sometimes an organisation with rules and a leader nobody suspects.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "乞儿", "en": "Beggar Child", "def": "Street kid. Ignored by everyone, which makes them the best observers in the book.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "乞巧节", "en": "Weaver Festival", "def": "The seventh-night festival for young women. Wishes written and floated.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "也敢放光", "en": "Daring to Shine", "def": "The second half. Delivered as a complete sentence, which is why translators keep it short.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "也配", "en": "You Qualify?", "def": "Two characters that dismiss a person entirely. Usually followed by someone agreeing.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "乡绅", "en": "Gentry", "def": "The local landowner who speaks for the village. Not an official, but treated like one.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "乡野", "en": "Countryside", "def": "Farms, dirt roads and no sect for a hundred li. Where protagonists come from when the book wants humility.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "书签", "en": "Bookmark", "def": "Marks a page. In one famous case, the bookmark is the treasure and the book is ordinary.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "乾元山", "en": "Mount Qianyuan", "def": "The mountain holding the golden light cave, home ground of the Nezha cycle. Adaptations place his revival here.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "乾坤圈", "en": "Universe Ring", "def": "A golden ring thrown to strike, then returned to the hand. Nezha's version is the one everyone copies.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/universe-ring/", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "乾坤弓", "en": "Universe Bow", "def": "A bow that shoots without an arrow, producing a light shaft. Precise, and useless once the target closes in.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "乾坤戒", "en": "Heaven and Earth Ring", "def": "A storage ring with a much larger interior. Sometimes has a spirit inside, which is how it becomes a character.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/heaven-earth-ring/", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "乾坤袋", "en": "Universe Bag", "def": "A bag that swallows troops and holds them. Different from a storage ring: this one captures people.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "乾坤鼎", "en": "Universe Cauldron", "def": "A refining vessel the size of a room. Used for artifacts too large for a furnace.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "二小姐", "en": "Second Miss", "def": "The second daughter. Free of the expectations and the protection.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "二郎神", "en": "Erlang Shen", "def": "The three-eyed god with a dog and a blade, nephew of the Jade Emperor. Game adaptations give him the most elaborate attack animations.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "云中子", "en": "Yunzhongzi", "def": "A wandering immortal who delivers warnings and refuses posts. The character who is always right and never in charge.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "云淡风轻", "en": "Light as Cloud, Soft as Wind", "def": "Absolute calm in a situation that does not permit it. The most reliable warning sign in the entire genre.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/light-as-cloud-soft-as-wind/", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "五庄观", "en": "Wuzhuang Temple", "def": "The temple with the ginseng fruit tree. Every visitor is offered one, and every visitor mishandles it.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "五感", "en": "Five Senses", "def": "Normal sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch. What a cultivator improves first.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "五火七禽扇", "en": "Five-Fire Seven-Bird Fan", "def": "A fan built from five fires and seven birds. Each wave produces a different fire, which makes it a puzzle item.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "五色神光", "en": "Five-Coloured Light", "def": "A power rather than an object. Stops anything of a given element, which makes it a puzzle.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "五行", "en": "Five Phases", "def": "Metal, wood, water, fire and earth. The Chinese cosmological set, not the Western four elements.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/five-phases/", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "五行俱全", "en": "All Five Elements", "def": "Having every element at once. Traditionally means mediocre at all of them, until someone finds the trick.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "五行山镇压", "en": "Imprisonment Under Five Elements Mountain", "def": "The punishment that works by weight and seal rather than by force. The source's model for every sealed villain.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "五行灵根", "en": "Five-Element Spirit Root", "def": "All five elements, none of them strong. Common, and painfully slow.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/five-element-spirit-root/", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "五行遁术", "en": "Five-Element Escape Arts", "def": "Travelling through wood, fire, earth, metal or water. Each has a counter, so fights become element puzzles.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "五行阵", "en": "Five-Element Formation", "def": "Built on the five phases. Balanced, stable, and hard to break without understanding it.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "井底之蛙", "en": "Frog in a Well", "def": "Someone whose whole world is the bottom of a hole. The standard insult for a sheltered sect genius.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "亡羊补牢", "en": "Mend the Pen After a Sheep is Lost", "def": "Fixing a problem late. Never said approvingly in this genre.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "交任务", "en": "Turn In a Mission", "def": "Reporting back to collect the reward. Also the moment merit gets quietly reassessed.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "交梨火枣", "en": "Pear and Jujube of Immortality", "def": "The fruit course at a heavenly banquet. Delicious, and the reason guests queue.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "交界处", "en": "Borderland", "def": "Where two powers meet and neither enforces anything. Smuggling country.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "亲传弟子", "en": "Direct Disciple", "def": "Taken personally by a master. The highest standing a young member can hold.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "人仙", "en": "Human Immortal", "def": "The lowest immortal rank. Long-lived, but still tied to the mortal world.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/human-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "人兽混血", "en": "Half-Beast Lineage", "def": "One human parent, one beast. The genre treats it as a permanent social problem and a combat advantage.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "人剑合一", "en": "Man and Sword as One", "def": "The sword stops being a tool. Adaptations show it as the blade glowing; the text mostly shows the face.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "人参", "en": "Ginseng", "def": "Ordinary ginseng, or a spirit version worth more than a house.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "人参果", "en": "Ginseng Fruit", "def": "The fruit that looks like a newborn and tastes like everything. Falling off the tree means it becomes worthless, which is the joke.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/ginseng-fruit/", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "人参果树", "en": "Ginseng Fruit Tree", "def": "The tree whose fruit looks like a baby. Knock one off and it becomes worthless, which is the whole joke.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "人外有人", "en": "There Are People Beyond People", "def": "The first half of a warning about stronger opponents. Usually said to someone who then meets one.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "人形兽心", "en": "Human Form, Beast Mind", "def": "Dangerous in a specific way: it looks like a person and does not think like one.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "人海战术", "en": "Human Wave", "def": "Numbers against quality. Cheap, and occasionally works.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "人界", "en": "Human Realm", "def": "What everyone calls the world they are trying to leave.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "人皇旗", "en": "Banner of the Human Sovereign", "def": "A standard that commands human qi. In novels it is the counter to anything that draws on the heavens.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "人皮面具", "en": "Skin Mask", "def": "A face taken from someone. The most disturbing disguise in the genre.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "人贩子", "en": "Slaver", "def": "Someone who trades in people. Despised even by bandits.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "什么东西", "en": "What Are You", "def": "A demand disguised as a question. The point is that the answer does not matter.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "今日之辱", "en": "Today's Humiliation", "def": "The opening of a revenge vow. Completed in the last arc.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "从容", "en": "Composed and Unhurried", "def": "The pace of someone who is not worried. Usually correct to be.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "他日必报", "en": "Repaid Another Day", "def": "The completion. Always means the speaker survives.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "仙丹", "en": "Immortal Pill", "def": "The general term for a pill that extends life. What it costs varies; who it works on varies more.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "仙器", "en": "Immortal Artifact", "def": "An artifact from the upper realms. One is enough to make a sect untouchable.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "仙子", "en": "Fairy", "def": "A respectful address to a female cultivator. Complimentary, not literal.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "仙山", "en": "Immortal Mountain", "def": "A mountain said to hold something no one has found yet. Pilgrims die trying.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "仙师", "en": "Immortal Master", "def": "What a mortal calls a cultivator. Flattering, and slightly afraid.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "仙界", "en": "Immortal Realm", "def": "The realm above. The destination of the entire genre, and almost never shown.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "仙童", "en": "Immortal Attendant", "def": "The flattering version. Used for attendants whose master is worth flattering.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "仙草", "en": "Immortal Herb", "def": "A herb above mortal grade. Usually guarded by something that eats intruders.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "仙长", "en": "Immortal Elder", "def": "More respectful than immortal master. Used by mortals who want something.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "仙风道骨", "en": "Immortal Bearing", "def": "The look of an old practitioner: white hair, straight back, thin frame.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "代掌门", "en": "Acting Sect Head", "def": "In charge while the real one is absent. Always the person who does not want the job, or wants it too much.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "代理宗主", "en": "Acting Sect Master", "def": "Holds the seat while the real one is gone. Everyone counts the days.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "令尊", "en": "Your Honored Father", "def": "Formal, and slightly stiff. Usually said before delivering bad news.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "令师", "en": "Your Honored Master", "def": "Polite reference to someone else's teacher. Compliments two people at once.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "令徒", "en": "Your Honored Disciple", "def": "Praising someone's student, usually in front of that student.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "以一敌百", "en": "One Against a Hundred", "def": "The setup for every public display of overwhelming power.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "以假乱真", "en": "Fake Passes as Real", "def": "A forgery good enough to be used. Common with techniques, treasures and people.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "以力破巧", "en": "Force Breaks Skill", "def": "The counter to the counter. Used to show that raw power beats cleverness.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "以卵击石", "en": "Egg Against Stone", "def": "A prediction of failure. The genre's way of announcing a reversal.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "以命换命", "en": "A Life for a Life", "def": "The trade. Sometimes literal, sometimes a threat.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "以命燃灵", "en": "Burn Life for Power", "def": "Burning years of lifespan to force a temporary surge in strength. A demonic shortcut: real power now, real decay afterwards.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "以大欺小", "en": "Might Against the Small", "def": "The accusation used to justify revenge. Legitimate, in this universe.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "以少胜多", "en": "Few Against Many", "def": "The tactical victory. Usually attributed to terrain or to a formation.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "以巧破力", "en": "Skill Breaks Force", "def": "The counter. What a weaker, better-trained character does.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "以弱胜强", "en": "The Weak Beating the Strong", "def": "The same thing as a claim. Used in the last line of an arc.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "以正压邪", "en": "Orthodox Suppresses the Heterodox", "def": "The official policy. Enforced unevenly and applied to whoever is inconvenient.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "以物抵债", "en": "Settle with Goods", "def": "Paying a debt in items. The valuation argument is the scene.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "以物易物", "en": "Barter", "def": "Trading goods for goods. Common between cultivators because some things cannot be priced.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "以身合道", "en": "Fuse Body with the Dao", "def": "The final step some techniques demand: the body stops being separate from the law it follows.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "以身试药", "en": "Test Medicine on Yourself", "def": "Swallowing something unverified to see what it does. Alchemists do this once per arc and regret it twice.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "以逸待劳", "en": "Rest While They March", "def": "Letting the other side exhaust itself on the way to you.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "仰天大笑", "en": "Laughing at the Sky", "def": "Theatrical triumph before a reversal. Genre-required.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "价高者得", "en": "Highest Bidder Wins", "def": "The auction's premise. Overridden in practice by whatever the strongest person in the room says.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "任务", "en": "Mission", "def": "Posted work: kill a beast, guard a caravan, fetch a herb. The standard plot engine.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "任务堂", "en": "Mission Hall", "def": "Where missions are handed out and rewards settled.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "任脉", "en": "Conception Vessel", "def": "The front channel running up the body's midline. Half of the core circuit.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "伏击", "en": "Ambush", "def": "Waiting concealed for a target to pass. Happens at valley mouths, at secret realm exits, and on the road home.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "伏击圈", "en": "Ambush Ring", "def": "The sealed area. Entering it is always described before it closes.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "伏羲", "en": "Fuxi", "def": "The first of the three sovereigns, credited with the trigrams. Any divination system in a novel traces back to him, often through a diagram nobody can read.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "伐毛洗髓", "en": "Scour the Hair and Marrow", "def": "The full-body version, usually triggered by a rare pill. The scene is always the same: black sludge, then a bath.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "休得无礼", "en": "Mind Your Manners", "def": "The older version. Used by officials and by anyone with a protocol.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "休要猖狂", "en": "Stop Acting Tough", "def": "'Do not get cocky.' Used to cut down someone's momentum mid-speech.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "众叛亲离", "en": "All Betray Him", "def": "The isolation. Usually the low point before a comeback.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "众矢之的", "en": "Target of All", "def": "The one everybody is allowed to hit. Usually the price of a sudden rise in status.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "伙计", "en": "Shop Hand", "def": "A hired worker in a shop or inn. Sees customers come and go.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "会盟", "en": "Grand Council", "def": "A gathering of sect leaders. Where wars are declared politely.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "伞", "en": "Umbrella", "def": "An umbrella artifact. Opens and blocks almost anything for as long as the qi holds.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "传功", "en": "Pass Down the Art", "def": "Teaching a technique hand to hand instead of handing over a manual. That difference is what makes it inheritance.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "传功堂", "en": "Transmission Hall", "def": "Where the sect's core methods are handed down. Only a few disciples ever enter.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "传功长老", "en": "Technique Elder", "def": "Teaches the sect's arts to inner disciples. Controls who learns what, and therefore who matters.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "传唤", "en": "Summon", "def": "Being called by an elder. Ignoring it is not an option, and arriving early does not help.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "传国玉玺", "en": "Imperial Jade Seal", "def": "The seal of the realm. Its possession is the political version of a magic artifact, and every dynasty fakes one.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "传承", "en": "Inheritance", "def": "A technique or legacy handed down from a dead master. Usually comes with strings attached.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "传承丹方", "en": "Inherited Recipe", "def": "A formula held by one family or sect. Reproducing it is the plot of at least one arc per generation.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "传承塔", "en": "Legacy Tower", "def": "Where a sect keeps its arts and tests who deserves them.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "传法阁", "en": "Method Library", "def": "The collection of manuals. Loosely guarded, which is how theft plots begin.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "传讯", "en": "Send Word", "def": "Passing a message along the fastest route. Speed is the whole point.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "传讯玉", "en": "Message Jade", "def": "Two halves, one carried by each party. Works once, which makes it dramatic.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "传讯符", "en": "Transmission Talisman", "def": "A talisman that carries a short message. Burns up after one use.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "传送符", "en": "Teleport Talisman", "def": "A talisman that moves you to a fixed point. One use, and it only goes where it was made for.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "传送阵", "en": "Teleportation Formation", "def": "Moves people across distance instantly. Fixed points, not free travel.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "传音", "en": "Voice Transmission", "def": "Speaking mind to mind. Private, and impossible to overhear.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "传音入密", "en": "Secret Sound Transmission", "def": "The tighter version: no visible lip movement. Used for conspiracy inside a crowded hall.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "传音符", "en": "Message Talisman", "def": "A paper talisman that carries a voice. Short range, single use.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "伤未痊愈", "en": "Wounds Not Healed", "def": "The handicap that makes a fight fair.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "伪品", "en": "False Grade", "def": "Rated high and performing low. A con, or a decayed original.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "伪婴", "en": "Pseudo Nascent Soul", "def": "An infant soul built from borrowed or stolen resources. Powerful on the surface, unstable in everything that matters.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "伪灵根", "en": "Pseudo Spirit Root", "def": "Looks like a spirit root and is not one. Either a fake reading or a broken gift.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "伪装修为", "en": "Disguise the Cultivation", "def": "Presenting a false level. Easy against strangers, hard against anyone who has fought you before.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "估价", "en": "Appraise", "def": "Work out what a thing is worth. Done by a professional, always interrupted by a better offer.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "佃户", "en": "Tenant Farmer", "def": "Works land he does not own. The first casualty of any regional conflict.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "低眉顺眼", "en": "Meek and Downcast", "def": "Eyes low, shoulders in, no challenge offered. The posture of someone who has learned what speaking costs.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "低调", "en": "Low Profile", "def": "Not showing what you have. A survival strategy in any sect where talent gets poached or removed.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "住口", "en": "Hold Your Tongue", "def": "More formal. Used when a junior says something true.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "住手", "en": "Stop", "def": "The shout that cuts a fight in half. Whoever shouts it is assumed to be able to enforce it.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "体修之路", "en": "The Body Cultivator's Path", "def": "Cultivation without spirit roots. Rare, physical, and used to let a character succeed outside the system.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "体宗", "en": "Body Sect", "def": "A sect that refines flesh instead of qi. Sneered at, then avoided.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "体质", "en": "Constitution", "def": "The general term for body type. The category heading every other term on this page belongs to.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "体魄", "en": "Physique", "def": "Raw physical constitution. What a body refiner brags about.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "何须多言", "en": "What More Is There to Say", "def": "Ending a negotiation. Consistent with the short English version.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "何首乌", "en": "Fleeceflower Root", "def": "Aged root prized for restoration. Old specimens in fiction are almost always sentient.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "佛珠", "en": "Buddhist Rosary", "def": "The proper name for the same object. Used in exorcism scenes.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "佛门", "en": "Buddhist Order", "def": "Cultivators of the Buddhist path. Calm, slow, and extremely hard to kill.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "作揖", "en": "Bowing Salute", "def": "A deep bow with hands clasped. Formal, and used for superiors.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "你可知罪", "en": "Do You Admit Your Crime", "def": "The formal accusation. Precedes a sentence that has already been decided.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "你可知道我是谁", "en": "Do You Know Who I Am", "def": "The young master's line. Predicting the outcome requires no skill.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "佣金", "en": "Commission", "def": "A middleman's cut. Somebody always takes one.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "侍女", "en": "Maidservant", "def": "Serves inside the house. Half servant, half witness.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "供奉", "en": "Retainer", "def": "A powerful cultivator kept fed and housed with no duties attached. He is expected to appear on the day the sect is dying.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "供奉俸禄", "en": "Patron's Salary", "def": "Paid to a powerful guest who does not take orders. Expensive insurance.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "供奉团", "en": "Retainer Corps", "def": "The paid experts a sect keeps on hand. Loyal to the stipend, which is honest of them.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "侠客", "en": "Swordsman", "def": "A wandering fighter who lives by a personal code. Admired in the mortal world, ignored by cultivators.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/swordsman/", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "侧身", "en": "Turn Sideways", "def": "Presenting a narrow profile. Less target, less power.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "侧闪", "en": "Sidestep", "def": "The smallest possible movement that avoids the blow. Efficient to the point of insult.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "保存方法", "en": "Preservation", "def": "Jade boxes, spirit liquid, or a living spiritual field. Getting this wrong wastes the arc's loot.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "保长", "en": "Neighbourhood Head", "def": "One step above nothing. Collects taxes and reports troublemakers.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "信物", "en": "Token of Promise", "def": "An object that stands for a vow. Returning it cancels the vow, which is a whole scene.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "修为", "en": "Cultivation Base", "def": "How much cultivation someone has built up. Spoken of as something you can feel from them.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/cultivation-base/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "修为基础", "en": "Foundation Level", "def": "The actual level of practice, as distinct from reputation.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "修为跌落", "en": "Cultivation Regression", "def": "Losing stages, not merely strength. The cruelest punishment in the genre, because no pill can buy it back.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "修炼资源", "en": "Cultivation Resources", "def": "Pills, spirit stones, spirit veins, techniques. Talent plateaus without them, and most plots start with somebody taking them away.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "修炼速度", "en": "Cultivation Speed", "def": "The only number the outside world cares about: years per stage. The entire social hierarchy of a sect is built on it.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "修蛇", "en": "Xiushi", "def": "The giant snake that swallowed an elephant. Used as the measure of a monster's appetite.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "修补", "en": "Repair", "def": "Fixing an artifact. Requires the original material, which is the actual plot.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "倒吸一口凉气", "en": "Suck In a Breath", "def": "The standard reaction to seeing something impossible. Involuntary and audible.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/suck-in-a-breath/", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "倒退三步", "en": "Staggering Back Three Steps", "def": "The standard measurement of shock. Always three.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "借光", "en": "Borrowing Your Light", "def": "Riding someone else's reputation for a moment. Said with a bow.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "借刀杀人", "en": "Borrow a Knife to Kill", "def": "Getting someone else to do it. The foundational tactic of the demonic path.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "借力", "en": "Borrow Force", "def": "Using the opponent's own momentum against them. The cheapest way to win.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "借力打力", "en": "Use the Enemy's Force", "def": "Redirecting. A soft-style technique and a common taiji reference.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "借据", "en": "I Owe You", "def": "A written debt. In this genre, an IOU from the right person is a weapon.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "债主", "en": "Creditor", "def": "The person owed. Powerful, patient, and occasionally a sect.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "值守", "en": "Stand Watch", "def": "Holding a post for a fixed shift. What gets abandoned when real danger arrives.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "假丹", "en": "False Core", "def": "A core forced into shape without the foundation to hold it. Looks like a breakthrough, breaks like glass.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/false-core/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "假灵石", "en": "Fake Stone", "def": "Filled with ordinary stone and glazed. Discovered shortly before payment.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "偷渡天劫", "en": "Smuggling Past Tribulation", "def": "Getting someone else to advance without a trial. Attracts attention, which is the downside.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "偷袭", "en": "Sneak Attack", "def": "Striking with no declaration and no warning. In a world obsessed with face, this is the most contemptible tactic and the most effective one.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/sneak-attack/", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "偷鸡不成蚀把米", "en": "Fail to Steal the Chicken, Lose the Rice", "def": "Same structure, more comic. Frequent in low-tier arcs.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "傀丝", "en": "Puppet Thread", "def": "The threads that control a puppet. Cut them and the puppet is furniture.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "傀儡", "en": "Puppet", "def": "A body driven by someone else's will. Also the word for a person being used politically.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "傀儡术", "en": "Puppet Art", "def": "Animating a body or an effigy. Used for infiltration more often than for fighting.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "傀儡符", "en": "Puppet Talisman", "def": "Drives a body that has no will left in it. Forbidden for the obvious reason.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "储灵", "en": "Store Energy", "def": "Pre-charging an artifact for later use. Otherwise a fight begins with an empty weapon.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "储灵戒", "en": "Qi Storage Ring", "def": "A ring for storing qi rather than objects. A battery, in a world with no electricity.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "储物戒", "en": "Storage Ring", "def": "A ring with a space inside. Smaller and more expensive than a storage pouch.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/storage-ring/", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "储物空间", "en": "Storage Space", "def": "The interior of a ring or a bag. Living things go in only if nobody is watching.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "储物袋", "en": "Storage Pouch", "def": "A bag bigger on the inside. Every cultivator has one; losing it is a crisis.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "催熟", "en": "Force Ripening", "def": "Accelerating growth with energy or with time arrays. Fast, and the quality drops.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "僧人", "en": "Monk", "def": "A practising monastic. In this genre, either a healer or an exceptionally calm killer.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "僵持", "en": "Stalemate", "def": "Neither side able to finish. The point where politics replaces technique.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "元凤", "en": "Primal Phoenix", "def": "The first phoenix, and the origin of rebirth techniques. Its feathers are the standard high-tier crafting material.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "元君", "en": "Primordial Lord", "def": "An honorific for a powerful female cultivator. Grander than fairy, colder than master.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "元始天尊", "en": "Yuanshi Tianzun", "def": "One of the three pure ones, associated with the beginning and with authority. In sect fiction he is claimed as founder by sects that want to sound older than they are.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "元婴", "en": "Nascent Soul", "def": "A second self born out of the core. It can leave the body and survive the body being destroyed.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/nascent-soul/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "元婴出窍", "en": "Soul Projection", "def": "Sending the infant soul out to fight. Enormous reach, and a body left undefended.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/soul-projection/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "元婴期", "en": "Nascent Soul Stage", "def": "When the soul can leave the body and keep fighting. The classic turning point where a protagonist stops being killable by ordinary means.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "元气", "en": "Primordial Qi", "def": "The body's original store of vitality. Damage it and no pill will help.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "元神", "en": "Primordial Spirit", "def": "The core self, deeper than the body. What survives death if anything does.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "元神之眼", "en": "Eye of the Primal Spirit", "def": "Perception that does not use eyes. Used to explain how a blind character still fights.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "元神出窍", "en": "Soul Projection", "def": "Leaving the body on purpose. The body is defenceless while you are out.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "元魂", "en": "Primal Soul", "def": "The core of the soul, smaller and more fragile. Destroying it means no reincarnation.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "先天", "en": "Innate Realm", "def": "The stage where the body starts producing its own energy. Nothing dramatic happens except that everything gets easier.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "先天之气", "en": "Innate Qi", "def": "The breath a person is born with. Spending it is easy; getting it back is not.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "先天境", "en": "Innate Stage (Jing)", "def": "The named level used by systems that label stages one way rather than another. Same thing with more ceremony.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "先天灵体", "en": "Innate Spirit Body", "def": "A body born already suited to cultivation. No training needed to make it work.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "先天灵宝", "en": "Innate Spirit Treasure", "def": "A treasure that existed before anything made it. In power terms, one tier above everything crafted.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "先天灵根", "en": "Innate Spirit Root", "def": "A plant older than cultivation. Its fruit is the top prize in any sky-realm heist.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "先天真气", "en": "Innate True Qi", "def": "True qi present at birth. An unfair advantage in the first realm, and a burden later.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "先天道体", "en": "Innate Dao Body", "def": "A body born already aligned with the Dao. Legendary, and anyone who hears of it wants it.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "先师", "en": "My Late Master", "def": "Same, for a dead teacher. Often followed by a promise.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "先手", "en": "First Move", "def": "Initiative. Whoever holds it sets the terms of the fight.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "先生", "en": "Sir", "def": "Respectful, scholarly, and slightly formal. Used for teachers and for people you want to flatter.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "先过我这一关", "en": "You Go Through Me First", "def": "Standing in the way. Used by guards, friends and the occasional old master.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "光灵根", "en": "Light Spirit Root", "def": "Light affinity: rare, pure, and heavily recruited by righteous sects.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "兑换", "en": "Exchange", "def": "Trading points for goods. Prices are set by the sect and are not generous.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "兜率宫", "en": "Tushita Palace", "def": "Laozi's palace and the alchemy furnace inside it. The furnace produces both pills and, in one famous case, a monkey with better eyes.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "兜率宫中", "en": "Inside the Tushita Palace", "def": "The furnace room. Hot, cramped, and the reason several characters have unusual eyes.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "入世", "en": "Enter the World", "def": "Going down the mountain to live among people. Where most plots start.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "入关", "en": "Enter Seclusion", "def": "The scene where the door closes. Nine times out of ten the next chapter is five years later.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "入口开启", "en": "The Gate Opens", "def": "The event. Crowds, tension, and usually a queue with rules nobody follows.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "入定", "en": "Enter Deep Meditation", "def": "Going so deep you stop noticing the room. Interrupting it is dangerous for both parties.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "入药", "en": "Ready for the Furnace", "def": "Saying a herb's preparation is finished. Three words that move an alchemy scene along.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "入道", "en": "Enter the Dao", "def": "The moment the method becomes intuitive. After this the character no longer needs the manual.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "入门", "en": "Join the Sect", "def": "Passing the entrance test. The usual opening of a cultivation story.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "入门考核", "en": "Entry Test", "def": "The test to get in. Talent, temperament, or simply being able to stand still for a day.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "入阵", "en": "Enter the Array", "def": "Walking in on purpose. Every such scene begins with the character knowing it is a trap.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "入魔", "en": "Fall to Demons", "def": "Losing control of your own cultivation until the inner demon takes the wheel. It happens to the impatient, and it happens fast.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "入魔之兆", "en": "Signs of Falling", "def": "Early warnings before the transformation. A useful indicator for the reader.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "全力一击", "en": "Full-Power Strike", "def": "Everything in one blow, with nothing held back for defense. If it fails, the attacker has nothing left.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "八九玄功", "en": "Eight-Nine Mysterious Art", "def": "Yang Jian's body-hardening method, which survives decapitation. Game adaptations give it a revive passive.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "八卦炉", "en": "Eight Trigrams Furnace", "def": "The furnace that refines pills and, occasionally, people. Being thrown into it is traditionally an upgrade rather than a death.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "八卦阵", "en": "Eight Trigrams Array", "def": "Eight positions, rotating. The reference design that every later array copies.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "八字", "en": "Birth Characters", "def": "The hour and date of birth used to read a fate. Also used to bind a marriage.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "八德池", "en": "Pool of Eight Virtues", "def": "A bathing pool with restorative properties. Used when the author needs a character healed without an alchemist.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "八拜之交", "en": "Eight Bows", "def": "The weightiest form of sworn friendship. Eight bows, one lifetime of obligation.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "公子", "en": "Young Master", "def": "Address to a young man of good family.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "六亲不认", "en": "Disowns All Kin", "def": "Cut off everyone. Used for ascetic characters and for those who have been betrayed.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "六大门派", "en": "Six Great Sects", "def": "The six that matter in a region. Everyone else measures themselves against the list.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "六根清净", "en": "Senses Purified", "def": "No craving, no aversion. The Buddhist standard, and a prerequisite for some paths.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "六神无主", "en": "Scattered Wits", "def": "Panic so complete that nobody can decide anything.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "六耳猕猴", "en": "Six-Eared Macaque", "def": "The fake monkey king who can hear everything and copy anything. A fight that cannot be won by skill, only by proof of identity.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "六道", "en": "Six Paths of Rebirth", "def": "The six destinations of a soul. Which one you get depends on what you did.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "六魂幡", "en": "Six-Soul Banner", "def": "A banner that targets souls directly. One of the few items that bypasses defence entirely.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "共工", "en": "Gonggong", "def": "The water god who rammed the pillar of heaven and tilted the sky. Every map in this tradition has a southeast that is slightly lower because of him.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "关卡", "en": "Checkpoint", "def": "A guarded barrier on the road. Where identity papers and bribes both get used.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "关门弟子", "en": "Last Disciple", "def": "The final student a master takes. The title carries the inheritance.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "兵刃相接", "en": "Weapons Meeting", "def": "Close combat. The sound is described, the mechanics are not.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "兵解", "en": "Shedding the Body", "def": "Dying by the sword, sometimes by choice, to escape a worse fate.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/shedding-the-body/", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "典当", "en": "Pawn", "def": "Trading an item for cash and the right to buy it back. Always at a loss.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "养尸", "en": "Raise a Corpse", "def": "Keeping one fed and growing. The feeding is the problem.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "兼修", "en": "Dual Practice", "def": "Running two arts at once. Doubles the ceiling and the risk of tearing yourself apart.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "兽卵", "en": "Beast Egg", "def": "An egg waiting to hatch. Value depends entirely on what comes out.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽吼", "en": "Beast Roar", "def": "A roar with force behind it. Shatters eardrums, and calls everything nearby.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽契", "en": "Beast Contract", "def": "The written or blood agreement behind the bond. Terms matter, and so do loopholes.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽宠", "en": "Beast Pet", "def": "The affectionate term. A beast pet in this genre is either comic relief or the strongest thing in the room.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽巢", "en": "Beast Nest", "def": "Where beasts gather and breed. Eggs, herbs and corpses, all in one place.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽栏", "en": "Beast Pen", "def": "Where a sect keeps its animals. The smell is mentioned exactly once per visit.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽核", "en": "Beast Core", "def": "The harvested core, sold by grade. Fuel for pills and artifacts alike.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽潮", "en": "Beast Wave", "def": "A wave of beasts flooding out of a region. A natural disaster with teeth.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/beast-wave/", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽火", "en": "Beast Fire", "def": "Flame taken from a demon beast's core. Hotter than earth fire, and harder to control.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "兽王", "en": "Beast King", "def": "The strongest beast in a region. Killing it usually ends the tide.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽皮", "en": "Beast Hide", "def": "Hide taken from a beast. Turns blades, and makes the best talisman paper.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽群", "en": "Beast Pack", "def": "Beasts hunting together. Dangerous to a cultivator two realms above any single member.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽蜕", "en": "Beast Shedding", "def": "Material left behind when a beast advances. Sold as forging stock.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽血", "en": "Beast Blood", "def": "Used to bind or temper materials. The stronger the beast, the better the result.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "兽血浴", "en": "Beast Blood Bath", "def": "Bathing in beast blood to strengthen the body. Warm, unpleasant, effective.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽语", "en": "Beast Speech", "def": "The ability to speak with beasts. Rare, unglamorous, and worth a kingdom in a forest.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽骨", "en": "Beast Bone", "def": "Bone from a demon beast. The default material for anything that needs to hold power.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "兽魂", "en": "Beast Soul", "def": "What remains of a beast after death. Bound into artifacts, or into someone else.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "内丹", "en": "Inner Core", "def": "The core a beast forms inside its own body. The reason people hunt them.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "内务长老", "en": "Internal Affairs Elder", "def": "Handles the sect's own people. The one who decides who gets punished quietly.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "内奸", "en": "Mole", "def": "The person inside who opens the door. Almost always discovered after the damage is done, and almost always someone the sect trusted for years.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "内定", "en": "Pre-Arranged", "def": "The outcome decided before the sale. Common in any auction run by a sect.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "内应", "en": "Inside Man", "def": "A collaborator inside the walls. The reason every siege succeeds.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "内息", "en": "Inner Breath", "def": "The breath felt inside the body rather than the air outside. What a martial artist listens to.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "内甲", "en": "Inner Armor", "def": "Soft armour worn under the robes. Nobody knows about it until the blade fails to go in.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "内视", "en": "Inner Vision", "def": "Looking inside your own body with divine sense. How a cultivator checks for damage or poison.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "内门", "en": "Inner Sect", "def": "The core membership, with real resources and real techniques.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "内门弟子", "en": "Inner Disciple", "def": "A member of the core. Gets pills, gets taught, gets sent on real missions.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "再接我一招", "en": "Take Another Strike", "def": "The escalation. Announcing it is a courtesy nobody needs.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "再敢踏入一步", "en": "Take One More Step", "def": "The boundary warning. The next paragraph is the step.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "再而衰", "en": "Second Drum, Fading", "def": "The second half. Said by the cleverer commander.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "冤案", "en": "Miscarriage", "def": "A wrongful conviction. The wronged party always comes back.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "冥顽不灵", "en": "Stubborn Beyond Reason", "def": "So dense that explanation is wasted. Almost always said about someone about to be hit.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "冰凰", "en": "Ice Phoenix", "def": "The cold variant. Rarer, and used for female characters with a temper.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "冰原", "en": "Ice Field", "def": "Cold enough to kill a mortal in an hour. Cultivators last a day.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "冰灵根", "en": "Ice Spirit Root", "def": "A mutated root. Slows and freezes instead of burning.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "冰锥符", "en": "Ice Shard Talisman", "def": "Fires a volley of ice. Popular against crowds and wooden doors.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "冲不破", "en": "Cannot Break Through", "def": "The state of being stuck. Used to attach a character to a new plot.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "冲关", "en": "Break a Checkpoint", "def": "Forcing a blocked point open. Loud, painful, and often done behind closed doors.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "决赛", "en": "Final", "def": "The last match. Structurally always against the person who insulted the protagonist in chapter one.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "冷哼一声", "en": "A Cold Snort", "def": "Contempt, compressed. The genre's most frequent two-character stage direction.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "冷嘲热讽", "en": "Mockery and Sneers", "def": "The background noise of a sect: polite on the surface, cutting underneath. The thing the protagonist never bothers to answer.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "冷战", "en": "Cold War", "def": "A standoff between partners. In this genre, usually resolved by a fight with a common enemy.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "冷汗涔涔", "en": "Drenched in Cold Sweat", "def": "Terror that shows. Used on people trying to look calm.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "冷汗直冒", "en": "Cold Sweat", "def": "Sudden fear of someone standing right behind you.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "冷笑", "en": "Sneer", "def": "Contempt with a smile. The most frequently used reaction in the genre.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "冷笑一声", "en": "A Cold Laugh", "def": "The snort with more effort. Usually a villain, and usually about to be corrected.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "冷笑连连", "en": "Laughing Coldly, Repeatedly", "def": "Overdone contempt. The author is signalling that this character will not survive the arc.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "冷箭", "en": "Stray Arrow", "def": "A shot from an unengaged position. Also used figuratively for betrayal.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "冷血", "en": "Cold-Blooded", "def": "A description, not quite an insult. In this genre, sometimes a compliment.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "准提道人", "en": "Cundi Daoist", "def": "A figure from the western side of the pantheon who intervenes without being asked. The plot armour of the orthodox side.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "凌霄宝殿", "en": "Lingxiao Hall", "def": "The main throne hall of the heavenly palace, where the Jade Emperor sits. Every rebellion arc ends with a fight in this room.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "凌霄殿前", "en": "Before the Lingxiao Hall", "def": "The throne room's forecourt. Where every rebellion scene ends.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "凝实", "en": "Compressed Solid", "def": "Qi packed so tightly it behaves like matter. The opposite of a large, loose, impressive-looking aura.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "凝气", "en": "Condense Qi", "def": "Packing loose qi into something dense enough to use.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "凝神丹", "en": "Mind-Focusing Pill", "def": "Steadies the mind before a breakthrough. The one pill a cautious cultivator never runs out of.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "凝血丹", "en": "Blood-Clotting Pill", "def": "Stops the bleeding so the fight can continue. The battlefield standard.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "凡人", "en": "Mortal", "def": "Someone who cannot cultivate at all. Used as a class label more often than a description.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/mortal/", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "凡人城镇", "en": "Mortal Town", "def": "No cultivators by design. Useful for showing what ordinary life looks like before an arc destroys it.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "凡人境", "en": "Mortal Realm", "def": "Level zero, named for contrast. Novels that use it are usually about the climb rather than the summit.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "凡器", "en": "Mortal Weapon", "def": "Made by a blacksmith, not a refiner. Breaks against anything with energy in it.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "凡界", "en": "Mortal Plane", "def": "The world without cultivation, or the parts of this one that have none.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "凡间", "en": "Mortal World", "def": "The ordinary world. The starting map, and the place cultivators look down on.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "凤仙郡", "en": "County of Fengxian", "def": "A county under a drought caused by an insult to heaven. The rain arrives only after the insult is mended.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "凤凰", "en": "Phoenix", "def": "Rebirth and flame in one creature. Killing it is only ever temporary.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "凤凰涅槃", "en": "Phoenix Rebirth", "def": "Dying in flame and returning. In novels it is a technique, and takes a chapter of preparation.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "凤凰涅槃火", "en": "Phoenix Rebirth Flame", "def": "A flame that reconstructs what it burns. The only reliable way back from total destruction.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "凤凰羽", "en": "Phoenix Feather", "def": "Regrowth material. Properly used, it turns a mortal wound into a scar.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "凤凰翎", "en": "Phoenix Plume", "def": "A feather that carries rebirth fire. Consumed on use, which makes it a decision.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "凤凰血", "en": "Phoenix Blood", "def": "Rebirth material. Where it exists, a character can plausibly come back from being destroyed.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "凤格", "en": "Phoenix Chart", "def": "A fate indicating high status, usually female, usually contested.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "凤髓", "en": "Phoenix Marrow", "def": "Rebirth material in liquid form. Required for the highest grade of body repair.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "凭你", "en": "You?", "def": "The shortest possible insult. Just the pronoun, with contempt attached.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "凯旋", "en": "Return in Triumph", "def": "Coming back after a win. Short, and always followed by bad news.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "凶兽", "en": "Fierce Beast", "def": "A beast that kills for no reason. No core worth taking, just danger.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "凶兽谷", "en": "Valley of Beasts", "def": "A place where the animals decide the rules. Used for low-level training arcs.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "凶名", "en": "A Fearsome Name", "def": "Reputation for violence. Functions as armour until someone tests it.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "凶地", "en": "Ominous Land", "def": "Bad feng shui, bad luck, and things that grow in it. A regular source of missions.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "出世", "en": "Leave the World", "def": "Going up the mountain and staying there. Where most plots end.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "出人头地", "en": "Rise Above the Crowd", "def": "Being visibly better than everyone you grew up beside. Often what a mortal parent wants more than the cultivator does.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "出任务", "en": "Take a Mission", "def": "Accepting a sect assignment in exchange for contribution points. The main income of anyone without a rich master.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "出关", "en": "Leave Seclusion", "def": "Coming out after a longseclusion. Usually means a power jump and a changed world.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "出其不意", "en": "Strike Unexpectedly", "def": "The tactical principle. Used to explain why the weaker side wins.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "出定", "en": "Exit Stillness", "def": "Withdrawing from meditation. Usually followed by checking how much time passed.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "出师", "en": "Leave the Master", "def": "Finishing your training. You may go, and after that you are on your own.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "出征", "en": "March Out", "def": "Leaving for a campaign. Rows of people, ranged by rank.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "出手", "en": "Strike Out", "def": "The moment of committing to an attack. Once done, no more talk.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "出殡", "en": "Funeral Procession", "def": "Carrying the coffin to the grave. Public, and impossible to hide from.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "出神", "en": "Rapt", "def": "The mind wandered off without permission. In combat, fatal.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "出窍", "en": "Soul Departure", "def": "The act of leaving the body in the soul form. The soul is weaker than the body, which keeps it from being a free win.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "击鼓", "en": "Sound the War Drum", "def": "The war call. Short, and it ends conversations.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "击鼓鸣冤", "en": "Beat the Drum", "def": "Striking the drum outside the yamen to demand a hearing. Loud, public, and dangerous.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "刀势", "en": "Blade Momentum", "def": "The weight a blade carries before it swings. What people mean by a dominating style.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "刀意", "en": "Blade Intent", "def": "The will of the blade made external. Differs from sword intent in temperament, not in principle.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "刀来剑往", "en": "Blades Exchanging", "def": "The rhythm of a duel. A four-character phrase doing the work of a paragraph.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "刀气", "en": "Blade Qi", "def": "The cutting force thrown past the edge of the blade itself. It reaches further than the arm does.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "刀罡", "en": "Blade Astral Qi", "def": "The blade equivalent of sword astral qi. Heavier, slower, harder to stop.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "刀道", "en": "Saber Dao", "def": "The same commitment, with less literature and more force.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "分舵", "en": "Branch", "def": "A regional office. Far from the main sect, and therefore flexible about the rules.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "分账", "en": "Split the Take", "def": "Dividing proceeds. The percentages are the plot.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "分身", "en": "Clone", "def": "A copy that fights for a while, then dissolves. The longer it lasts, the more it costs.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "分身术", "en": "Clone Technique", "def": "The generic version used by everyone else. Weaker copies, more of them.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "分身法", "en": "Self-Division Art", "def": "Plucking hairs and turning them into copies. The copies are stupid, which is why the trick works only once.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "刑场", "en": "Execution Ground", "def": "Where sentences are carried out in front of a crowd. Always at noon.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "刑天", "en": "Xingtian", "def": "The headless warrior who keeps fighting with his face on his torso. He shows up whenever a scene needs to prove that losing your head is not the end of a fight.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "刑部", "en": "Ministry of Justice", "def": "Handles prosecutions. Its authority over cultivators is a recurring argument.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "列位", "en": "All Present", "def": "The older, stiffer version. Used in formal settings and mock-formal threats.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "列祖列宗", "en": "Ancestors of the Line", "def": "The full roster, invoked in speeches. The genre's way of giving a character an audience of ghosts.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "初期", "en": "Early Stage", "def": "Used after a realm name: early stage of Core Formation. The weakest slice of that realm.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "判官", "en": "Judge of the Dead", "def": "The one who actually reads the ledger. Bribable, in stories.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "判官笔", "en": "Judge's Brush", "def": "The brush used to amend the book. A character with one can rewrite a death, which is never a small act.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "判词", "en": "Verdict", "def": "The magistrate's written ruling. One line can end a family.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "别怪我心狠", "en": "Do Not Blame Me for Being Cruel", "def": "The polite warning before a disproportionate response.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "刻舟求剑", "en": "Marking the Boat to Find a Sword", "def": "Insisting on an outdated plan. Said by the young to the old, and sometimes justified.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "前倨后恭", "en": "Cold Before, Courteous After", "def": "Contempt while you were weak, deference once you were strong. The exact arc of every sect elder in a comeback story.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "前辈", "en": "Senior", "def": "Anyone clearly older or stronger. Used before a name or alone. The safe address when you know nothing.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "前辈谬赞", "en": "You Flatter Me, Senior", "def": "Deflecting a compliment. Required politeness, never sincere.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "剑体", "en": "Sword Physique", "def": "A body that channels blade energy. Comes with a personality type in most books.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "剑冢", "en": "Sword Tomb", "def": "Where dead swords are buried. Sword cultivators come to listen, and some never leave.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "剑势", "en": "Sword Momentum", "def": "Pressure that builds before the blade moves. A good swordsman wins here first.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "剑匣", "en": "Sword Case", "def": "A case holding several swords. Opening it is always dramatic and usually excessive.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "剑域", "en": "Sword Domain", "def": "A region where every blade answers to one person. Step inside and the fight is already decided.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "剑宗", "en": "Sword Sect", "def": "A sect built entirely on one weapon. Narrow, arrogant, and very hard to beat.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "剑尊", "en": "Sword Venerable", "def": "A title earned by sword cultivators who have nothing left to prove.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "剑心通明", "en": "Clear Sword Heart", "def": "A swordsman's state where nothing is in the way. Written as one sentence and a change in posture.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "剑意", "en": "Sword Intent", "def": "The will behind the blade, felt before the blade moves. What separates a swordsman from a thug.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/sword-intent/", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "剑招", "en": "Sword Move", "def": "A named technique inside a sword art. Names matter; they announce what is coming.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "剑气", "en": "Sword Qi", "def": "The sharpened force thrown off by a sword. It cuts at a distance, and it shows how deep the sword intent runs.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/sword-qi/", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "剑罡", "en": "Sword Astral Qi", "def": "Condensed sword aura hard enough to block a weapon. The mark of a serious sword cultivator.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "剑芒", "en": "Sword Radiance", "def": "The visible light on the edge of a blade, condensed until it is almost solid. The brighter it is, the denser it is.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "剑诀", "en": "Sword Art", "def": "A sword technique with fixed moves and a matching intent.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "剑道", "en": "Sword Dao", "def": "Sword practice as a philosophical commitment. Once a character names it, the sword stops being optional.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "剑阵", "en": "Sword Formation", "def": "Several flying swords arranged into a killing pattern. The signature move of anyone who fights with swords and nothing else.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "副宗主", "en": "Vice Sect Master", "def": "Second in command, first in blame. Often the one who wants the top seat.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "副掌门", "en": "Deputy Head", "def": "Runs the sect in practice. Resented for it.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "劈山斧", "en": "Mountain-Splitting Axe", "def": "The generic version. Used when a plot needs a shortcut through geography.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "功勋", "en": "Sect Merit", "def": "Accumulated points from service. The currency that has no value outside the walls.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "功德", "en": "Merit", "def": "Good deeds accumulated and weighed. Can be spent, and can be stolen.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "功德殿", "en": "Merit Hall", "def": "Where contribution points are recorded and spent.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "功德金光", "en": "Merit Radiance", "def": "Visible merit, usually as a golden aura. Stops demons and shuts villains up mid-speech.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "功德金莲", "en": "Golden Lotus of Merit", "def": "A lotus that blooms with accumulated good deeds. Defencive, and infuriating to fight against.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "功法", "en": "Cultivation Technique", "def": "The method itself: what to move, where, and in what order.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/cultivation-technique/", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "功法反噬", "en": "Art Backlash", "def": "The technique biting back. Slower and more patient than a forbidden art, and no easier to fix.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "功法品级", "en": "Technique Grade", "def": "The Heaven–Earth–Mystic–Yellow ladder. It sets the ceiling of everything you can become.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "功法残缺", "en": "Incomplete Art", "def": "Only half the manual survived. Practised anyway, out of ambition or despair.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "加价", "en": "Raise the Bid", "def": "The mechanic of the auction scene. Escalation is the whole point.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "劣徒", "en": "My Worthless Disciple", "def": "How a master complains about his own student. Affectionate code for pride.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "劫云", "en": "Tribulation Cloud", "def": "The cloud that gathers before a strike. Its size is the difficulty rating, stated in chapters.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "劫匪", "en": "Robber", "def": "Anyone who takes things. The word is flexible.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "劫数", "en": "Tribulation", "def": "Loosely, any unavoidable disaster. 'His tribulation has arrived.'", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "劫镖", "en": "Ambush the Escort", "def": "To attack a guarded shipment. The fastest way for a nobody to become a somebody.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "劫雷", "en": "Tribulation Lightning", "def": "The individual bolt. The count matters; the first is a test, the ninth is the verdict.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "劳宫", "en": "Palm Center", "def": "The point in the middle of the palm. Where a technique is released from.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "势力", "en": "Faction", "def": "Any group with power. The neutral word used before you know who they are.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "势力平衡", "en": "Balance of Powers", "def": "What keeps peace. Everyone is either enforcing it or quietly breaking it.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "势均力敌", "en": "Evenly Matched", "def": "An actual contest. Rarer than it sounds, and always expensive.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "勃然大怒", "en": "Flew into a Rage", "def": "Sudden, loud, and usually a mistake. The reaction a provocation was aiming for.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "勾魂", "en": "Reap a Soul", "def": "To take a life on behalf of the underworld. Invoked as a threat.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "包围圈", "en": "Encirclement", "def": "The wider version. Consolidates over several paragraphs.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "包场", "en": "Book the House", "def": "Renting an entire venue for a private sale. Reserved for the very rich or the very secretive.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "匕首", "en": "Dagger", "def": "The weapon that appears when everything else has failed.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "化力", "en": "Neutralize Force", "def": "Turning an attack into nothing without meeting it. The highest form of defense.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "化劲", "en": "Dissolving Force", "def": "Neutralising an incoming blow instead of blocking it. Looks like losing, ends as winning.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "化婴丹", "en": "Nascent Soul Pill", "def": "The pill for forming an infant soul. One of them is worth roughly ten years.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "化形", "en": "Taking Human Form", "def": "A beast strong enough to wear a human shape. Usually marks it as a real threat.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/human-form/", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "化形劫", "en": "Transformation Tribulation", "def": "The tribulation a beast faces before it can wear a human shape. Many do not survive it.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "化形期", "en": "Transformation Stage", "def": "The stage where a beast can take human form. Everything before it is a monster, everything after is a person.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "化气", "en": "Dissolve Qi", "def": "Turning qi into something else: force, light, a blade.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "化气期", "en": "Qi Transformation Stage", "def": "Early, before a core exists. Most novels skip it or fold it into Qi Refining.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "化用", "en": "Adapt the Technique", "def": "Taking a move and rebuilding it for your own element. What geniuses do on the page.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "化神", "en": "Spirit Severing", "def": "The soul is tempered until it can touch the world without a body. Very few reach this realm.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spirit-severing/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "化神期", "en": "Spirit Severing Stage", "def": "The soul hardened enough to act without the body for long periods. Extremely few characters in any given novel reach it.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "化蛇", "en": "Huashe", "def": "A winged snake that brings floods. Weather as a monster.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "化血丹", "en": "Blood-Melting Pill", "def": "Dissolves blood qi into raw power. A demonic shortcut with a short shelf life.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "化音成线", "en": "Thread the Voice", "def": "Compressing speech into a line of sound aimed at one person. Same function, more expensive.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "北漠", "en": "Northern Desert", "def": "Cold and empty. What lives there has adapted, and resents visitors.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "匪首", "en": "Bandit Chief", "def": "The leader of a gang. Usually has a grudge and a nickname.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "区区", "en": "This Trifling One", "def": "Same idea with more irony. Very close to a brag wearing a bow.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "医馆", "en": "Clinic", "def": "Where a wounded character gets stitched up before reaching a sect.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "十二正经", "en": "The Twelve Principal Meridians", "def": "The standard channel system, borrowed from acupuncture. Damage to any one of them is named specifically.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "十八层地狱", "en": "The Eighteen Hells", "def": "The layered punishments of the underworld, graded by crime. Adaptations love the visual, which writes itself.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "十大宗门", "en": "Ten Great Sects", "def": "A larger version of the same list. Slower to change, harder to enter.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "十年之期", "en": "Ten-Year Term", "def": "The longer version, usually between master and disciple. Comes due in the last act.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "十招之约", "en": "A Ten-Move Pact", "def": "The longer variant, used to make a duel last a chapter.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "十里", "en": "Ten Li", "def": "Five kilometres. The standard radius for 'everyone in the region felt it'.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "千年灵芝", "en": "Thousand-Year Lingzhi", "def": "An old, expensive fungus used as a main ingredient. The age is the price.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "千年灵药", "en": "Thousand-Year Herb", "def": "Rare enough that its appearance starts a conflict. Stored in jade, never in cloth.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "半个时辰", "en": "Half a Shi", "def": "One hour. The most common unit for a fight that is going badly.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "半决赛", "en": "Semifinal", "def": "The round before the final. Where the actual rival is fought.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "半刻", "en": "Half a Quarter", "def": "Seven or eight minutes. The unit of a desperate dash.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "半品", "en": "Half Grade", "def": "A flawed item sitting between two grades. Sold as the higher one by dishonest merchants.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "半妖", "en": "Half-Demon", "def": "Human and beast in one body. Rejected by both sides, and usually stronger than they expect.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "半步金丹", "en": "Half-Step Core", "def": "Not yet Core Formation but close. Enough to bully everyone below it.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "卑职", "en": "This Lowly Official", "def": "Bureaucratic self-reference. Used in courts, and sarcastically everywhere else.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "单挑", "en": "One on One", "def": "The formal duel. Status is on the line as much as survival.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "单灵根", "en": "Single Spirit Root", "def": "One pure element. Rare, fast, and highly sought after by sects.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "卖身契", "en": "Bond of Sale", "def": "A contract selling a person into servitude. In this genre, always a plot device.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "南天门", "en": "Southern Heavenly Gate", "def": "The front door of heaven, guarded by soldiers who always lose. Fights at the gate are the genre's standard sign that someone has gone too far.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "南天门下", "en": "Below the Southern Heavenly Gate", "def": "Where armies gather before entering heaven. The last place where violence is still polite.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "南疆", "en": "Southern Frontier", "def": "Warm, poisonous, and full of things that bite. Home of gu and beast taming.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "卜卦", "en": "Cast a Hexagram", "def": "Divination with the trigrams. Reliable in narrative terms, vague in dialogue.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "卡关", "en": "Stuck at the Barrier", "def": "Being unable to advance. The genre's standard explanation for a protagonist who is losing.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "卦象", "en": "Hexagram", "def": "The pattern cast in divination. Read as a warning, not a schedule.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "卧底", "en": "Undercover", "def": "The active version. Infiltrates, reports, and usually develops feelings about the target.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "卧薪尝胆", "en": "Sleep on Brushwood, Taste Gall", "def": "Enduring humiliation on purpose while preparing the reversal. From a historical revenge story every Chinese reader already knows by heart.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "印", "en": "Seal", "def": "A seal artifact that drops like a mountain. Slow, obvious, and almost impossible to block.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "印堂", "en": "Brow Point", "def": "The point between the eyebrows. Turns dark when a person is doomed.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "却之不恭", "en": "Rude to Refuse", "def": "Accepting a gift while pretending not to want it. The standard formula.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "卷土重来", "en": "Return with the Dust", "def": "Coming back after a total defeat. Requires resources and a grudge.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "卷宗", "en": "Case File", "def": "The sect's written record of an incident. Whoever edits it controls the story.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "卸力", "en": "Shed Force", "def": "Letting a strike pass through without taking it. Requires more skill than armour.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "历劫", "en": "Undergo Tribulation", "def": "Living through the trial rather than just the lightning. Something is supposed to be learned.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "历练归来", "en": "Return from Training", "def": "Coming back stronger than when leaving. The scene where rivals' faces are described.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "压价", "en": "Haggle", "def": "Talking the price down. Expected behaviour, and a test of nerve.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "压制", "en": "Suppress", "def": "Holding someone down without killing them. Usually the prelude to terms.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "压制修为", "en": "Suppress Cultivation", "def": "Hiding how strong you are. The standard move before walking into someone else's territory.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "压箱底", "en": "Bottom of the Chest", "def": "Goods saved for later. The item that saves an arc.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "压阶", "en": "Suppress a Tier", "def": "Forcing your power down to a lower grade. A disguise, or an insult.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "厚土之力", "en": "Strength of Thick Earth", "def": "The earth-attribute version of a deep foundation. Slow, immovable, and hard to kill.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "厚积薄发", "en": "Store Deep, Release Thin", "def": "Accumulate for a very long time, then spend it in one small decisive act. The philosophy behind every slow cultivator who wins.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "县令", "en": "Magistrate", "def": "The county judge. Holds power of life and death over ordinary people.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "县衙", "en": "County Office", "def": "The lowest seat of imperial authority. Corrupt, slow, and everywhere.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "参悟", "en": "Study Until It Yields", "def": "Long quiet effort on a single line of text. The genre's favourite montage.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "双修", "en": "Dual Cultivation", "def": "Two cultivators advancing together through intimacy. Can be mutual, or one-sided and predatory.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/dual-cultivation-lite/", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "双修功法", "en": "Dual Cultivation Art", "def": "A technique practised by two people. Effective, and the source of every misunderstanding.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "双修法宝", "en": "Dual Treasure", "def": "A treasure bound to two people. Powerful together, useless the moment the pair splits.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "双剑", "en": "Twin Swords", "def": "One in each hand. Doubles the attack and halves the defence.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "双手背在身后", "en": "Hands Behind the Back", "def": "The posture of someone who expects to win. Also a convenient way to hide shaking hands.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "双灵根", "en": "Dual Spirit Root", "def": "Two elements. Slower than a single root, still good enough to be worth recruiting.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "双目赤红", "en": "Eyes Blood-Red", "def": "Rage or corruption. The visual for both, which is why context matters.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "双眸微眯", "en": "Eyes Narrowing", "def": "Reassessment. The person doing it has just changed their plan.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "双腿发软", "en": "Legs Went Weak", "def": "The moment the body refuses to stand.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "反噬", "en": "Backlash", "def": "The price arriving after the borrowed power: ruptured meridians, dropped realm, ruined foundation. Always delayed just long enough to feel safe.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "反噬之苦", "en": "The Pain of Backlash", "def": "The after-effect of a forbidden method. Written as internal damage rather than visible wounds.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "反攻", "en": "Counterstrike", "def": "Turning defence into attack in one motion. The best moment in any fight.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "发力", "en": "Exert Force", "def": "The instant the stored power is let out. One word, one moment.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "发簪", "en": "Hairpin", "def": "A woman's ornament that is also a needle, a key, or a dagger.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "受宠若惊", "en": "Startled by Favor", "def": "Unused to being treated well, and visibly thrown by it.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "受死", "en": "Die", "def": "'Accept death.' The last two words before the killing blow.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "受死吧", "en": "Prepare to Die", "def": "The fuller version. Always followed by a technique name.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "受礼", "en": "Accept the Greeting", "def": "The master drinking the tea. His silence before that moment means something.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "变化之术", "en": "Transformation Art", "def": "The category term for the two counted arts. Translators should keep the distinction between the count-based versions and the generic word.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "变异灵根", "en": "Mutated Spirit Root", "def": "A root outside the five elements: lightning, ice, wind. Rare and hard to counter.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "变招", "en": "Change the Move", "def": "Switching mid-strike. The difference between a trained fighter and a copyist.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "叛主", "en": "Turn on Its Master", "def": "What tamed beasts do at the first sign of weakness. The reason contracts exist.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "叛出", "en": "Defect", "def": "Leaving a sect to join another. In this genre, always followed by a chase.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "叛出宗门", "en": "Break with the Sect", "def": "Leaving violently. A permanent enemy, and occasionally a hero.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "叛徒", "en": "Traitor", "def": "One who betrays the sect from inside. The most hated word in any organization.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "口供", "en": "Testimony", "def": "A statement taken from a suspect. Often written before it is given.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "口出狂言", "en": "Speaking Wildly", "def": "The charge. Often brought before a duel by a third party.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "口碑", "en": "Word of Mouth", "def": "What people say about you when you are not in the room. Decides who will trade with you.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "口诀", "en": "Incantation", "def": "The spoken formula that goes with a technique. Said aloud to trigger it.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "口说无凭", "en": "A Spoken Word Has No Weight", "def": "The variation that appears in legal scenes.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "古战场", "en": "Ancient Battleground", "def": "Where a great war ended. Artifacts, bones, and things that never stopped fighting.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "古法", "en": "Ancient Method", "def": "Older than the current system, usually stronger and much slower to learn.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "古老世家", "en": "Ancient Clan", "def": "A clan older than the sects around it. Knows where the bodies are buried, sometimes literally.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "叨扰", "en": "Pardon the Intrusion", "def": "Said when entering someone's home or sect. The standard opening of a visit.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "召雷", "en": "Summon Lightning", "def": "Calling down a strike. Slow to start, impossible to dodge once it is committed.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "吃人", "en": "Man-Eating", "def": "Literal, and used to establish that a sect has crossed a line nobody argued about.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "吃醋", "en": "Jealousy", "def": "The domestic version. Used for comedy and, occasionally, for a poisoning plot.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "各个击破", "en": "Defeat in Detail", "def": "Taking enemies one at a time instead of all at once. Logistics disguised as strategy.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "合体", "en": "Body Integration", "def": "Body and soul fuse into one being. Ordinary wounds stop being a serious threat.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/body-integration/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "合体期", "en": "Integration Stage", "def": "Body and soul merging into one unit. Damage to either stops being separate.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "合击", "en": "Combined Strike", "def": "Two or more attacking together. Formation-adjacent, and used by monsters.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "合并宗门", "en": "Sect Merger", "def": "Two organisations becoming one. Someone always loses rank.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "合籍", "en": "Joint Register", "def": "The formal pairing recorded by a sect. Administrative, and treated as marriage.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "合道", "en": "Merge with the Dao", "def": "Becoming part of a law instead of using it. The last step before ascension.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "吊唁", "en": "Condolence", "def": "Paying respects to the bereaved. What enemies do to watch a family's face.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "同归", "en": "Go Down Together", "def": "The mutually destructive ending. A legitimate tactical goal.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "同归于尽", "en": "Die Together", "def": "Dragging the enemy down with you. The threat that ends most last stands.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "同心结", "en": "Knot of Shared Heart", "def": "A token given at betrothal. Also a minor artifact in some books.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "同门", "en": "Fellow Disciple", "def": "Anyone from the same sect. Covers people you love and people you cannot stand.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "同门相残", "en": "Killing Within the Sect", "def": "The forbidden act. When it happens, the sect splits down the middle.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "同阶", "en": "Same Tier", "def": "Opponents of equal rank. The only fair fight, and the rarest.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "名册", "en": "Roster", "def": "The list of members. Adding or removing a line changes a life.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "名声", "en": "Reputation", "def": "The invisible currency that arrives before you do. Often worth more than a realm.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "名声在外", "en": "Known Far and Wide", "def": "The phrase that precedes a meeting with someone who has heard of you.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "名声大噪", "en": "Sudden Fame", "def": "Achieved in one public fight. Brings attention and enemies in equal measure.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "名头", "en": "Title", "def": "A name with weight behind it. Used as a noun in arguments.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "名帖", "en": "Calling Card", "def": "A formal card left when visiting. Its thickness tells a host how much to worry.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "名扬四海", "en": "Famous Across the Four Seas", "def": "Larger again. Usually used ironically about a minor character.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "名扬天下", "en": "A Name Known Everywhere", "def": "Fame that reaches past the region. Usually arrives after the character has stopped wanting it.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "名额", "en": "Allotted Slot", "def": "A fixed number of places in the inner sect, in a tournament, or under a master. Most sect politics is a fight over who occupies one.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "后会有期", "en": "Until We Meet Again", "def": "Standard farewell to a rival. Usually means the opposite of what it says.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "后发先至", "en": "Start Late, Arrive First", "def": "The logical outcome of the above. Quoted at the moment of victory.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "后天", "en": "Acquired Realm", "def": "Before the innate threshold. Where the protagonist spends the first fifty chapters.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "后天之气", "en": "Acquired Qi", "def": "Everything gained after birth. Weaker, unlimited, and what most characters actually use.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "后天灵体", "en": "Acquired Spirit Physique", "def": "The version made by pills or by surviving something. Less prestigious, more interesting.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "后天灵宝", "en": "Acquired Spirit Treasure", "def": "A treasure made later, by someone, on purpose. Slightly less impressive, far more numerous.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "后手", "en": "Second Move", "def": "Letting the opponent act first so you can read them. Risky, and often correct.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "后撤", "en": "Fall Back", "def": "Stepping back to reset. Read as weakness until it wins the fight.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "后期", "en": "Late Stage", "def": "The top slice before the peak. Usually enough to be a local threat.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "后生可畏", "en": "The Young Are Formidable", "def": "Praise from an elder with a blade behind it. Half admiration, half warning.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "后羿", "en": "Houyi", "def": "The archer who shot down nine suns and kept one. Bow artifacts in novels are almost always his, or claim to be.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "后辈", "en": "Younger Generation", "def": "Neutral in tone, and quietly final. Sits between junior and child.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "后颈", "en": "Nape", "def": "The back of the neck. One strike here and the body stops answering.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "吐纳", "en": "Breath Work", "def": "Controlled breathing used to draw qi in and push impurities out.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/breath-work/", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "听讲", "en": "Attend a Lecture", "def": "Sitting through a teaching session. The genre uses it to explain mechanics without a lecture-shaped scene.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "吸灵", "en": "Draw Spirit", "def": "Pulling ambient qi into the body. The intake that makes cultivation possible.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "吾", "en": "I", "def": "The classical first person. Sounds archaic and final in a modern scene.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "吾辈", "en": "We of This Generation", "def": "Collective with ambition attached. The rally-a-group pronoun.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "呆若木鸡", "en": "Frozen Stiff", "def": "Shock that stops the body entirely.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "告示", "en": "Notice", "def": "A public proclamation pasted on a wall. The cheapest way to spread news.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "告辞", "en": "Taking My Leave", "def": "Clean exit line. Ends a conversation without conceding anything.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "周天", "en": "Full Circulation", "def": "One complete run of qi through the body's channels. Counted when describing long sessions.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "周天星斗阵", "en": "Star Circuit Array", "def": "Mapped onto the sky. Its scope is a province, and its cost is a war.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "周天阵", "en": "Circulation Formation", "def": "A formation that runs itself. Set it once and it works for centuries.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "呼吸一滞", "en": "Breath Caught", "def": "One beat where the body forgets to breathe. Used at reveals.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "呼风唤雨", "en": "Call Wind and Rain", "def": "Weather as an ability. The dragon kings do it officially and resent anyone else trying.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "命格", "en": "Fate Pattern", "def": "The shape of a life, fixed at birth and readable by experts. Also editable, at a price.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "命里无时莫强求", "en": "What Is Not Destined Cannot Be Forced", "def": "The second half. The moral the protagonist routinely ignores.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "命里有时终须有", "en": "What Is Destined Will Come", "def": "Resignation, spoken by an old character. The young never agree.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "命门", "en": "Gate of Life", "def": "The point on the lower back that anchors vitality. A favorite target in assassination.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "和离", "en": "Amicable Separation", "def": "Dissolving a marriage formally. Rare, and used to make a character free.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "咒术", "en": "Curse Art", "def": "Formalised cursing, with rules and costs. Every curse has a counter, and everybody knows it.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "咬牙切齿", "en": "Gritting Teeth", "def": "Fury held in the jaw. The last stage before someone does something stupid.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "品阶", "en": "Grade", "def": "An item's rank, usually one to nine. Decides who can even use it without being hurt.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "响马", "en": "Raider", "def": "Mounted bandits who strike fast and vanish. Feared on the northern roads.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "哑口无言", "en": "Left Speechless", "def": "The reaction to being proved wrong in front of an audience. The core beat of a face-slapping scene.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "哗然", "en": "Uproar", "def": "The crowd erupts. Used for public humiliation and public reveals.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "哪吒", "en": "Nezha", "def": "The lotus-bodied boy god, rebuilt after destroying his own body. Games give him fire, wheels and a spear; the original gives him grief and a grudge.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "哮天犬", "en": "Howling Celestial Dog", "def": "The dog that fights alongside Erlang Shen and bites gods. Comic relief that is genuinely dangerous in every adaptation.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "唐三藏", "en": "Tang Sanzang", "def": "The monk who leads the westward journey, known for being helpless and stubborn. Game adaptations make him the escort target, not the fighter.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "唐僧", "en": "Tang Monk", "def": "The informal name, used by everyone who wants him to shut up. Monsters call him this before they try to eat him.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "唤兽笛", "en": "Beast-Calling Flute", "def": "An instrument that summons animals. The tune is a skill check.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "商会", "en": "Merchant Guild", "def": "An organisation that trades across regions. Sometimes a source of allies, always a source of pressure.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "商队", "en": "Caravan", "def": "Goods moving between cities. A travelling cast in miniature.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "啖魂", "en": "Devouring Souls", "def": "Eating the immaterial part. The genre's clearest sign that dialogue is over.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "啪啪打脸", "en": "Slap After Slap", "def": "The repeated version. Used when several people have been wrong at once.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "善有善报", "en": "Good Deeds Are Rewarded", "def": "Half a proverb. The genre tests this claim repeatedly and does not always pass.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "喜宴", "en": "Wedding Feast", "def": "The banquet after. Fights at weddings are a genre convention.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "喜怒不形于色", "en": "No Feeling on the Face", "def": "The court discipline. Makes the character unreadable and hard to write.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "喷出一口鲜血", "en": "Coughed Up Blood", "def": "The same event at a smaller scale. Used so often it reads as punctuation.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "嗤之以鼻", "en": "Snorted At", "def": "The literary form. Used in narration about someone else's idea.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "嗤笑", "en": "Snort", "def": "A dismissive laugh. Shorter and ruder than.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "嘴角微扬", "en": "Lips Curving Slightly", "def": "Amusement, mostly at someone else's expense. Almost always a stronger character.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "嘴角抽搐", "en": "A Twitch at the Corner of the Mouth", "def": "Contained disbelief. The most reliable comedy beat in the genre.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "器劫", "en": "Artifact Tribulation", "def": "Lightning sent to test a treasure at the moment of completion.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "器堂长老", "en": "Forge Elder", "def": "Runs the artifact hall. Sits on more precious metal than the sect treasury.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "器宗", "en": "Forge Sect", "def": "A sect built on artifacts. Loud, sooty, and always well armed.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "器成", "en": "Forging Complete", "def": "The moment the item leaves the workshop. Usually accompanied by a sound the neighbours hear.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "器灵", "en": "Item Spirit", "def": "A consciousness inside a treasure. Sometimes helpful, always with its own agenda.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "器灵沉睡", "en": "Dormant Item Spirit", "def": "The spirit is present but inactive. Waking it usually requires something expensive.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "器胚", "en": "Artifact Blank", "def": "An unformed vessel waiting to be worked. The quality of the blank decides the ceiling.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "器道", "en": "Artifact Dao", "def": "Forging and refining tools. Smiths in this genre are always underestimated until the final act.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "噬主", "en": "Devour the Master", "def": "A treasure turning on its owner. Always the result of an item spirit raised badly.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "噬灵虫", "en": "Qi-Eating Bug", "def": "Consumes energy. A swarm of them is a hard counter to every technique.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "噬灵阵", "en": "Qi-Devouring Formation", "def": "Eats the qi of anyone inside. A demonic design that everyone pretends not to know.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "囚牛", "en": "Qiuniu", "def": "The music-loving beast carved on instruments. Its appearance in a scene means someone is about to play something.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "四两拨千斤", "en": "Four Ounces Moves a Thousand Pounds", "def": "The phrase for the same principle. Almost always quoted in full.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "四大部洲", "en": "The Four Continents", "def": "The four landmasses of Buddhist cosmology, arranged around Mount Sumeru. Using the real names gives a world map that is already structured.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "四灵根", "en": "Quad Spirit Root", "def": "Four attributes. Rarely produces anything except a slow, stubborn cultivator who is hard to kill.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "四象阵", "en": "Four Symbols Array", "def": "Four beasts, four quarters. Defensive, balanced, and slow to break.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "回帖", "en": "Reply Card", "def": "The formal answer to a visiting card. Its wording sets the tone of the meeting.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "回气", "en": "Catch Breath", "def": "Stealing a moment to restore qi. Everyone can see it, and everyone attacks during it.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "回气丹", "en": "Qi Recovery Pill", "def": "Restores spiritual power mid-fight. The most consumed pill in the genre.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "回马枪", "en": "Turn and Strike", "def": "The counterattack during a retreat. The genre's favourite reversal.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "因果", "en": "Cause and Effect", "def": "The chain linking an action to its consequence, sometimes across lifetimes.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "因果债", "en": "Karmic Debt", "def": "Consequences owed and not yet paid. Comes due at the worst possible moment.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "因果循环", "en": "Karma Comes Around", "def": "Said over a fallen enemy. Almost always true in these books.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "因果缠身", "en": "Tangled in Karma", "def": "Carrying debts from an earlier deed or an earlier life that keep dragging you into the same trouble.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "困兽阵", "en": "Beast-Trapping Formation", "def": "Built to hold something large and angry. Usually installed badly, and usually late.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "困阵", "en": "Trapping Formation", "def": "Keeps people in. The standard opening move of an ambush.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "困阵之内", "en": "Inside the Trap", "def": "The state of being sealed. Used as a scene heading in some translations.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "围三阙一", "en": "Encircle Three Sides, Leave One Open", "def": "The standard siege. The open side is where the ambush is.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "围攻", "en": "Besiege", "def": "Surrounding. The numerical advantage that cultivation exists to overcome.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "围杀", "en": "Encirclement Kill", "def": "Several cultivators closing a ring on one target with the intent to finish it. Numbers are supposed to beat realm here, and usually do not.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/encirclement-kill/", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "围点打援", "en": "Besiege and Ambush Relief", "def": "Surround one target so the rescue force walks into the real trap.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "固元丹", "en": "Origin-Solidifying Pill", "def": "Packs down what a breakthrough left loose. Tastes like chalk and prevents a hundred future problems.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "固本", "en": "Consolidate the Root", "def": "After a breakthrough, spend time packing the new realm solid before pushing on. The habit that separates a survivor from a shooting star.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "国师", "en": "State Preceptor", "def": "A cultivator advising a mortal throne. The throne is usually the junior partner.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "国运", "en": "Fate of the Realm", "def": "A kingdom's collective fortune. Sacrificing it for personal gain is the villain's favourite deal.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "圆满", "en": "Peak Stage", "def": "Finished the realm, one push from the next. Often a plateau that traps people for decades.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "土匪", "en": "Brigand", "def": "The same, less organised. Occasionally recruited into something worse.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "土灵根", "en": "Earth Spirit Root", "def": "Earth affinity: slow, solid, almost impossible to knock down.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "土行孙", "en": "Tuxingsun", "def": "The short-statured earth traveller. Movement through soil as a personality trait.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "土鸡瓦狗", "en": "Chickens and Clay Dogs", "def": "A crowd of nobodies. Used to describe an army about to win anyway.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "圣主", "en": "Holy Sovereign", "def": "The head of a holy sect. Sounds righteous; usually is not.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "圣体", "en": "Sacred Body", "def": "Top-tier constitution. Announced in public, it becomes a reason to kill you before you grow up.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "圣女", "en": "Holy Maiden", "def": "A young woman kept as the sect's living symbol: honoured publicly, restricted privately, and rarely allowed to choose anything.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "圣子", "en": "Holy Son", "def": "The male version. Less common and more often a villain.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "在下", "en": "This One", "def": "A modest, jianghu-flavoured 'I'. Used with strangers when you want to seem harmless.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "在下不才", "en": "This One Is Untalented", "def": "A stacked humble opening. The longer the self-deprecation, the more dangerous the speaker usually is.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "在下告辞", "en": "I Take My Leave", "def": "Formal exit. Refusing to accept it is a declaration.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "地下世界", "en": "Underground World", "def": "A separate realm beneath. Has its own races, its own rules, and no sunlight.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "地下城", "en": "Undercity", "def": "A city built below ground. Smuggling routes pass through, and the law does not.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "地主", "en": "Landowner", "def": "Rents land to tenants. The mortal version of a low-tier sect head.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "地仙", "en": "Earth Immortal", "def": "An immortal tied to a piece of land: near-unbeatable on it, ordinary away from it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/earth-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "地图残片", "en": "Map Fragment", "def": "Part of a map. Three pieces, three arcs.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "地契", "en": "Deed", "def": "The document that proves land ownership. Burn it and the land changes hands.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "地府", "en": "The Underworld", "def": "The bureaucracy that handles the dead. Understaffed, corrupt, and functional.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "地火", "en": "Earth Fire", "def": "Fire drawn from the earth's veins. Steady, free, and the reason sects build where they build.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "地狱", "en": "Hell", "def": "The punishment tier. Borrowed wholesale from Buddhism, then reskinned by every author.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "地盘", "en": "Territory", "def": "Ground the sect claims. Fought over constantly and never legally settled.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "地阶", "en": "Earth Rank", "def": "Below heaven rank. What a strong regional sect might own one of.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/earth-rank/", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "地阶功法", "en": "Earth-Rank Technique", "def": "Second tier. Strong enough to make a small sect dangerous.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "坊市", "en": "Market", "def": "A town where cultivators trade. Neutral ground, with rules enforced by whoever is strongest.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/market/", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "坊市归属", "en": "Market Ownership", "def": "Who runs the market and takes the cut. Tells you who actually governs the region.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "坊市规矩", "en": "Market Rules", "def": "No fighting inside the boundary. Enforced by whoever owns the market, which is usually a sect that does not care about anything else.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "坐化", "en": "Pass Away in Meditation", "def": "Dying peacefully while seated. The dignified death in this genre.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "坛主", "en": "Altar Master", "def": "Runs a ritual site for a demonic cult. Short-lived, historically.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "坠入轮回", "en": "Fall into Rebirth", "def": "Being forced back into the cycle. Losing memory is the punishment.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "埋骨地", "en": "Bone Field", "def": "Ground made of what was left. Sometimes it moves.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "城主", "en": "City Lord", "def": "Runs a city. Answers to whichever sect holds the city.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "城池", "en": "City", "def": "A walled town. The unit of mortal geography, and of sieges.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "城门守卫", "en": "Gate Guard", "def": "Checks everyone entering. Bribable, and occasionally genuinely brave.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "培元丹", "en": "Origin-Nurturing Pill", "def": "The cheap pill everyone starts on. Slow, safe, and despised by anyone with talent.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "堂主", "en": "Hall Master", "def": "Runs one hall: discipline, alchemy, or missions. Real power at ground level.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "堂口", "en": "Branch Hall", "def": "A sub-hall with its own head and its own agenda. The source of most internal plots.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "堕魔", "en": "Fall to Demon", "def": "Choosing the demonic path on purpose. Faster progress, and everyone can see it.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "境界", "en": "Realm", "def": "The named level of power someone has reached. Also used loosely for 'level' in general.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "境界压制", "en": "Realm Suppression", "def": "A higher realm pressing on a lower one until technique stops mattering. The reason nobody below the fight dares to step in.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "增援", "en": "Reinforce", "def": "The verb. Used in planning scenes rather than during fights.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "墨斗", "en": "Ink Line", "def": "A carpenter's marking tool. In formation work, it draws straight lines that hold energy.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "士可杀不可辱", "en": "A Gentleman May Be Killed, Not Insulted", "def": "A duel justification. Occasionally said by someone about to be both.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "士气", "en": "Morale", "def": "The collective nerve of a group. The reason a formation holds or does not.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "声东击西", "en": "Feint East, Strike West", "def": "Drawing attention one way, attacking the other. Old, cheap, still works.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "声名狼藉", "en": "Name in Ruins", "def": "A reputation so bad that nobody will stand next to you in public.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "复合阵", "en": "Composite Formation", "def": "Several formations stacked in one place. Break the outer layer and you have only started.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "外事长老", "en": "External Affairs Elder", "def": "Handles other sects. Diplomatic, patient, and ruthlessly well informed.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "外出历练", "en": "Field Training", "def": "Leaving the sect to gain experience. The excuse for a whole arc.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "外息", "en": "Outer Breath", "def": "Ordinary breathing. In a fight it gets used as the timing cue for everything else.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "外门", "en": "Outer Sect", "def": "The outer tier: labour, chores, and whatever techniques are left over.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "外门弟子", "en": "Outer Disciple", "def": "The bottom of the sect. Does chores and hopes for promotion.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "多谢前辈", "en": "Thank You, Senior", "def": "Formulaic gratitude to someone stronger. Correct, and slightly cold.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "夜郎自大", "en": "Overestimating a Small Kingdom", "def": "Provincial arrogance. Said of sects that have never been outside their own valley.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "够了", "en": "Enough", "def": "Said to end either a conversation or a beating. The tone decides which one.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "大世界", "en": "Greater World", "def": "A higher plane of existence. What ascension leads to.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "大乘", "en": "Great Ascension", "def": "The last realm before the tribulation. Strength enough to shake a whole region.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/great-ascension/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "大乘期", "en": "Great Vehicle Stage", "def": "The last human stage before tribulation. Characters here no longer appear in ordinary scenes.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "大人", "en": "Lord", "def": "Address to an official or person of rank, usually in the mortal world.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "大公子", "en": "Eldest Young Master", "def": "The heir's formal style. Used to establish that he has never been refused anything.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "大典", "en": "Grand Ceremony", "def": "A sect's highest occasion: installing a master, opening the gates, honouring the founders. Everyone who matters is watching.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "大势已去", "en": "The Tide Has Turned", "def": "The moment it becomes clear the battle cannot be won. Said by the losing side, usually seconds before they run.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "大喜", "en": "Overjoyed", "def": "Good news, immediately followed by a complication.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "大器晚成", "en": "Late-Finished Great Vessel", "def": "Greatness that arrives late. Offered as consolation, and turns out to be a warning.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "大域", "en": "Great Region", "def": "A named area of the world with its own powers and rules. There are usually nine.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "大天劫", "en": "Great Heavenly Tribulation", "def": "The tribulation at a major threshold rather than a minor one. Wipes out bystanders by default.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "大婚", "en": "Wedding", "def": "Political more often than romantic. The seating chart is the plot.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "大婚之日", "en": "On the Wedding Day", "def": "The phrase that precedes an interruption. A genre institution.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "大小姐", "en": "Eldest Miss", "def": "The daughter of a major house. What the servants say, and what enemies say to wound.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "大巧若拙", "en": "Great Skill Looks Clumsy", "def": "The highest craft resembles no craft. The line that explains why a plain strike beats an elaborate one.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "大师兄", "en": "Eldest Senior Brother", "def": "The head of the younger generation. Runs the disciples, answers for them, and gets blamed for them.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "大悲咒", "en": "Great Compassion Mantra", "def": "The long chant. Its length is the mechanic: it takes time to finish.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "大比", "en": "Grand Tournament", "def": "A sect-wide competition. Rankings, resources, and grudges all get settled here.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "大理寺", "en": "Court of Judicial Review", "def": "The high court. Where a case becomes political.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "大罗天", "en": "Daluo Heaven", "def": "The highest of the heavens, and also a rank: a Daluo golden immortal is above the ordinary ladder entirely.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/daluo-heaven/", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "大罗金仙", "en": "Great Luo Golden Immortal", "def": "The ceiling of the immortal ladder in mythic settings. Free of the cycle of rebirth.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/great-luo-golden-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "大胆", "en": "How Dare You", "def": "Outrage at someone breaking rank. Sharper and more personal than.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/how-dare-you/", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "大言不惭", "en": "Shameless Boasting", "def": "The response to a threat you intend to humiliate.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "大赦", "en": "Amnesty", "def": "A general pardon issued by the throne. Erases sentences, not memories.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "大道", "en": "The Great Dao", "def": "The totality of how things work. Characters speak of it the way people speak of physics: as a fact nobody is responsible for.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "大道至简", "en": "The Great Dao Is Simple", "def": "Truth is plain; complexity is a symptom of incompleteness. Said when a master does something that looks like nothing at all.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "大长老", "en": "Grand Elder", "def": "The head of a sect's council of elders. Ranks above an ordinary elder and below the ancestors.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/grand-elder/", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "大难不死", "en": "Survived a Great Calamity", "def": "The first half of a proverb promising later fortune. The genre treats it as a mechanic.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "大雷音寺", "en": "Great Thunder Sound Temple", "def": "The full name of the temple, used when a scene wants to sound official. Fake temples along the road borrow the name to trap pilgrims.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "大鹏金翅雕", "en": "Golden-Winged Roc", "def": "The demon bird that outpaces the monkey king in flight. Its presence proves there is always someone faster.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/golden-winged-roc/", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "天人五衰", "en": "Five Signs of Heavenly Decay", "def": "The marks that appear when an immortal is dying. Sweat, dirty clothes, wilting flowers, and two more nobody remembers.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "天人合一", "en": "Heaven and Man as One", "def": "The highest recognised state. The world acts with you rather than against you.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "天仙", "en": "Heaven Immortal", "def": "An immortal of the upper realms, able to cross between worlds at will.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/heaven-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "天价", "en": "Sky-High Price", "def": "The number that makes a room go quiet. Usually attached to something the protagonist needs.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "天劫", "en": "Heavenly Tribulation", "def": "Heaven's test at a breakthrough. Lightning, fire, or something worse aimed at the person.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/heavenly-tribulation/", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "天命", "en": "Destiny", "def": "The fate assigned at birth. The thing protagonists spend the whole book refusing.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天命之子", "en": "Child of Destiny", "def": "Someone heaven favours. Usually the protagonist's rival, and always insufferable.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "天地变色", "en": "The Sky Changes Color", "def": "Set description for a strike at the highest tier. The weather reacts; the point is that the world itself acknowledges the blow.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "天地异象", "en": "Heavenly Omen", "def": "Strange weather announcing a breakthrough. The genre's version of a press release.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "天地灵气", "en": "Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy", "def": "The ambient qi of a world. When it thins, everyone's cultivation gets harder.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天地玄黄", "en": "Heaven, Earth, Dark, Yellow", "def": "The classic four-tier ordering, from best to worst. Borrowed from the Thousand Character Classic, which most readers no longer recognise.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "天地规则", "en": "Rules of Heaven and Earth", "def": "The constraints of a world. Strong characters bend them; the strongest rewrite them.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天堑", "en": "Natural Barrier", "def": "A mountain range, a gorge, a river of fire. Geography doing the work of an army.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "天外天", "en": "Beyond the Heavens", "def": "The layer above the nine heavens, where the older powers live. It exists so that a stronger enemy can always be found.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/beyond-the-heavens/", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "天外有天", "en": "There Are Heavens Beyond Heaven", "def": "The second half. The genre's favourite de-escalation.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "天宫", "en": "Heavenly Palace", "def": "The celestial court, bureaucracy included. Comedy in the genre usually happens here, because a divine government is funny by default.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "天尊", "en": "Heavenly Venerable", "def": "The highest honorific in common use. A book has two of these at most.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "天师", "en": "Celestial Master", "def": "A hereditary title with real-world history. In fiction, an office with magic attached.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "天意", "en": "Heaven's Will", "def": "What heaven wants to happen. Invoked to justify an outcome nobody can change.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天才陨落", "en": "The Prodigy Falls", "def": "The inverse. Used for characters who peak early and become antagonists.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "天机", "en": "Heavenly Mechanism", "def": "The hidden pattern behind events. Peeking at it is possible, and always costs something.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天机不可泄露", "en": "The Heaven's Secret Cannot Be Told", "def": "The polite refusal to answer a question. Used by every diviner before a bad prediction.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天材地宝", "en": "Heavenly Treasure", "def": "A natural material rare enough to start a war. Not made, found.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "天条", "en": "The Heavenly Decrees", "def": "The laws binding gods. Breaking one turns a god into a convict with a very long sentence.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天河", "en": "The Celestial River", "def": "The Milky Way, treated as an actual river with a navy. Its far bank is where the separated lovers wait.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "天河之畔", "en": "The Banks of the Celestial River", "def": "Where the separated lovers meet once a year. Bridging it requires birds, which is the mechanic.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "天河水", "en": "Water of the Celestial River", "def": "Used to wash away corruption. Requires a trip that nobody has time for.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "天河水军", "en": "Celestial River Navy", "def": "The heavenly fleet that patrols the Milky Way, commanded by Marshal Tianpeng before his demotion. Space and river are the same thing here.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "天涯海角", "en": "Ends of the Earth", "def": "As far apart as it is possible to be. The distance a character will cross anyway.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "天灵根", "en": "Heavenly Spirit Root", "def": "A one-in-ten-thousand gift. Draws qi fast enough to skip years of work.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/heavenly-spirit-root/", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "天煞孤星", "en": "Lone Star of Misfortune", "def": "A horoscope indicating the bearer brings disaster to everyone nearby. The genre's favourite lonely backstory.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天生神力", "en": "Innate Strength", "def": "Strong before cultivation even begins. Terrifying for ten chapters, then merely useful.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "天界", "en": "Heavenly Realm", "def": "Where the ascended go. Nobody sends postcards.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "天真", "en": "Naive", "def": "Said to an enemy, it is not an observation but a sentence.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "天眼通", "en": "Divine Sight", "def": "Seeing across distance and through illusion. Standard equipment for gods with three eyes.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "天空之城", "en": "Sky City", "def": "A city above the clouds. Almost always the home of whoever is currently winning.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "天竺国", "en": "Kingdom of Tianzhu", "def": "The destination kingdom. Its court scenes exist to show how far the road has come.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "天网恢恢", "en": "Heaven's Net Is Wide", "def": "The first half of a proverb about nothing escaping. Said by officials, and by anyone closing a trap.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "天罚", "en": "Heavenly Punishment", "def": "Heaven intervening directly, above the tribulation system. No technique defends against it.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天罡地煞", "en": "Thirty-Six and Seventy-Two", "def": "The pair of numbered arts, named after the stars. Novels use the numbers as a power scale without explaining either.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "天要亡我", "en": "Heaven Is Ending Me", "def": "Said at the moment a character understands he has lost.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "天赋异禀", "en": "Exceptional Talent", "def": "The description applied to anyone who outpaces expectations.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "天道", "en": "The Heavenly Dao", "def": "The impersonal law that runs the world. Not a god: it does not negotiate and cannot be argued with.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/heavenly-dao/", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天道压制", "en": "Heavenly Suppression", "def": "Heaven leaning against you specifically. Everything is harder for no visible reason.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天道无情", "en": "The Dao Is Pitiless", "def": "Heaven does not take sides, reward the good or punish the wicked. Said to console, and equally used to justify.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "天道筑基", "en": "Heavenly Dao Foundation", "def": "The current web-novel term for a perfect foundation. A grade rather than a method, and hearing it said about a character re-prices them in every sect in the scene.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/heavenly-dao-foundation/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "天道誓言", "en": "Oath to Heaven", "def": "The heaviest version. There is no enforcement mechanism in sight, and yet everyone dies anyway.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "天道酬勤", "en": "Heaven Rewards Diligence", "def": "Effort is repaid eventually by the order of things. The thesis statement of every slow-protagonist novel.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "天阶", "en": "Heaven Rank", "def": "The highest tier of techniques and treasures. Named after heaven, priced like it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/heaven-rank/", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "天阶功法", "en": "Heaven-Rank Technique", "def": "The top tier. The kind of manual a whole sect goes to war over.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "天雷", "en": "Heavenly Lightning", "def": "Plain lightning called down by heaven, as opposed to a person's technique.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "天骄", "en": "Heaven's Chosen", "def": "The sect's anointed genius. Public, protected, and doomed to be surpassed.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "太上老君", "en": "Tai Shang Lao Jun", "def": "The deified Laozi, keeper of the alchemy furnace in the heavenly palace. Every adaptation puts a pill in that furnace that somebody steals.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "太上长老", "en": "Supreme Elder", "def": "An elder above the elders. Usually in seclusion until something goes badly wrong.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/supreme-elder/", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "太乙玉", "en": "Taiyi Jade", "def": "A refined jade used to store qi without loss. Containers for dangerous energy are usually made from it.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "太乙真人", "en": "Taiyi Zhenren", "def": "Nezha's master, who rebuilds him from lotus root. Every revival scene in the genre borrows from this one.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "太乙金仙", "en": "Primordial Immortal", "def": "An exalted rank above Golden Immortal, common in mythic and Honghuang-style settings.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/primordial-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "太初之气", "en": "The Qi of the First Beginning", "def": "The first breath after the split. Too strong to breathe; it has to be stored and siphoned.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "太初石", "en": "Stone of the First Beginning", "def": "Material that predates matter. Exists in one arc and defines it.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "太岁", "en": "Tai Sui", "def": "The yearly deity you must not offend, and also a fungus sold as medicine. Both readings show up in fiction, sometimes in the same chapter.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "太师祖", "en": "Great Grandmaster", "def": "One generation further up. Usually a name in a book rather than a person.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "太极图", "en": "Taiji Diagram", "def": "A diagram that separates yin from yang and thereby unmakes whatever is inside. Its use is closer to physics than to combat.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "太白金星", "en": "Venus of the White Star", "def": "The heavenly court's envoy and professional persuader. He is the one who books the monkey king a job to keep him quiet.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "太监", "en": "Eunuch", "def": "Court official. In this genre, either comic relief or the most dangerous person in the palace.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "太阳穴", "en": "Temple", "def": "A weak point on the skull. The first thing anyone guards in a real fight.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "失敬", "en": "Pardon My Ignorance", "def": "The apology after realising who you just spoke to rudely.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "失礼", "en": "Breach of Courtesy", "def": "A failure of manners. Minor on its own, fatal when given as an excuse.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "头七", "en": "Seventh Night", "def": "The seventh night after a death, when the spirit is said to return.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "头皮发麻", "en": "Scalp Tingled", "def": "Fear registered physically before it is understood.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "夸父", "en": "Kuafu", "def": "The giant who chased the sun and died of thirst. In fiction he is the standard reference for ambition that is larger than the body carrying it.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "夺功", "en": "Seize the Cultivation", "def": "Taking someone else's progress directly. Fast, and leaves no witnesses.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "夺取气运", "en": "Seize Fortune", "def": "Taking luck from someone else. Leaves the victim merely unlucky rather than dead, which is worse.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "夺寿", "en": "Steal Years", "def": "Taking lifespan from others. Efficient, addictive, and the cleanest way to write a monster.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "夺灵根", "en": "Spirit Root Theft", "def": "The crime behind half the disappearances in this genre.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spirit-root-theft/", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "夺舍", "en": "Body Possession", "def": "Moving your soul into someone else's body. Condemned by everyone, done by many.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/body-possession/", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "夺运", "en": "Steal Fortune", "def": "The art of taking another person's luck. Forbidden everywhere, practised everywhere.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "夺魁", "en": "Take First Place", "def": "Winning the whole tournament. The prize is resources, and the real prize is attention.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "夺魂", "en": "Soul Snatch", "def": "Removing a soul intact. Used for interrogation and for storage.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "夺魄", "en": "Seize the Spirit", "def": "Stealing the wilful part of the soul. Leaves the body alive and empty.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "奇才", "en": "Prodigy", "def": "Genuine talent. Said with respect, and used sparingly.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "奇经八脉", "en": "Eight Extraordinary Meridians", "def": "The deeper channel network most people never open. Opening them changes a life.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "奈何桥", "en": "Bridge of Helplessness", "def": "The bridge over the river. The name is the whole story.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "奈何桥头", "en": "The Head of the Bridge of Helplessness", "def": "Where the queue forms. Short scenes set here are always about the last conversation.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "奉茶", "en": "Serve Tea", "def": "Offering tea as a host. In a formal setting it signals the meeting is about to end.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "契约兽", "en": "Contract Beast", "def": "A beast bound by formal contract rather than affection. Reliable until the terms are tested.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "套装法宝", "en": "Treasure Set", "def": "Several pieces designed as one. Complete sets multiply; a broken set is scrap.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "女儿国", "en": "Kingdom of Women", "def": "The kingdom with no men, entered by accident on the pilgrimage. Modern adaptations read it as romance; the original reads it as a test.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "女儿国子母河", "en": "Mother-Child River", "def": "The river that makes anyone who drinks it pregnant. Used for comedy in the source and for body horror in some adaptations.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "女娲", "en": "Nuwa", "def": "The goddess who patched the sky and made people out of clay. Cultivation fiction keeps her as a background figure whose leftover stones become treasures.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "女子", "en": "This Woman", "def": "Plain female self-reference. Used in formal settings when the speaker will not humble herself.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "奴家", "en": "This Slave Girl", "def": "An old-fashioned, softer female self-reference. Reads as period drama to a modern ear.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "好胆量", "en": "How Bold", "def": "Grudging praise for someone who dared to defy you. Usually precedes punishment.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "好自为之", "en": "Take Care of Yourself", "def": "Warm on the surface, a warning underneath.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "好言相劝", "en": "A Word of Advice", "def": "The opening of a threat. Anyone who says this has already decided to use force.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "如坠冰窖", "en": "As If Fallen into an Ice Pit", "def": "Cold dread. Used before the character realises he has been set up.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "如意算盘", "en": "Wishful Calculation", "def": "An assumption of success that will not survive the next page.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "如意金箍棒", "en": "Ruyi Golden Cudgel", "def": "The full name, meaning the staff that obeys its owner's wish. The 'as you like it' part is a size control, not a personality trait.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "如遭雷击", "en": "Struck by Lightning", "def": "The reaction to a single sentence that changes everything.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "如雷贯耳", "en": "Thunder in the Ear", "def": "Praising someone's reputation to their face. Standard flattery, still effective.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "妖丹", "en": "Beast Core", "def": "The core taken from a demonic beast. Used in pills and artifacts alike.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/beast-core/", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "妖修", "en": "Demon Cultivator", "def": "A beast that cultivates. Progress is slower and the shape is usually kept.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖兽", "en": "Demonic Beast", "def": "A beast twisted by qi. Hostile by default, and its core is worth money.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/demonic-beast/", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖兽化形", "en": "Beast Transformation", "def": "A sufficiently advanced beast taking human form. When it happens mid-arc, expect a romance subplot.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖兽等级", "en": "Beast Grade", "def": "Beasts are ranked one to nine, matching human stages. Encountering a grade above your own is the standard threat.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖兽血脉", "en": "Beast Bloodline", "def": "Commoner tier of the same mechanic. Used for characters who fight with teeth.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "妖域", "en": "Beast Domain", "def": "Territory held by demon beasts, where human law does not apply.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "妖孽", "en": "Monster Prodigy", "def": "Talent so abnormal it is treated as a threat rather than a gift.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "妖将", "en": "Demon General", "def": "A commander under the demon king. The one who actually arrives first.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖尊", "en": "Beast Venerable", "def": "A demon beast that has become a power in its own right.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "妖族", "en": "Yaoguai", "def": "Beasts and spirits organised as a people, with their own lords and long grudges.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/yaoguai/", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "妖木", "en": "Demon Wood", "def": "A tree that cultivates. Stationary, patient, and lethal to anyone who camps in it.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "妖植", "en": "Demonic Plant", "def": "A plant that hunts. Technically a herb, practically a beast.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖气", "en": "Demonic Aura", "def": "The natural aura of a beast. Mortals get sick from it; cultivators use it to track.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖火", "en": "Beast Flame", "def": "Fire a beast carries inside it. Hotter than anything a fire cultivator produces at the same realm.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖王", "en": "Demon King", "def": "Ruler of a region's demon beasts. His word is a border treaty nobody wants to test.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "妖界", "en": "Beast Realm", "def": "Where demon beasts rule. Humans there are either guests or food.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "妖血墨", "en": "Beast Blood Ink", "def": "Ink mixed with demon beast blood. Holds power longer, and smells like a butchery.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "妲己", "en": "Daji", "def": "The fox spirit who destroys a dynasty through a king. She is the prototype for every femme-fatale antagonist in the genre.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "妾身", "en": "This Concubine", "def": "How a married woman refers to herself before her husband or a superior. Marks status, not humility.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "始麒麟", "en": "First Qilin", "def": "The original auspicious beast. Its appearance is treated as a political endorsement.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "姑娘", "en": "Miss", "def": "Address to a young woman. Polite and neutral, works in almost any setting.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "姜子牙", "en": "Jiang Ziya", "def": "The strategist who runs the war against the Shang. He is old, unhurried and never the strongest person in the room.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "姻缘", "en": "Marriage Destiny", "def": "A match fated rather than chosen. Used in both blessing and curse.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "威严", "en": "Sternness", "def": "The bearing that stops arguments. Not the same thing as strength.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "威压", "en": "Aura Pressure", "def": "Realm made physical: an invisible weight that forces weaker cultivators to their knees. The polite way to end an argument.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/aura-pressure/", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "威名", "en": "Renown", "def": "The positive version. Bought with a public fight.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "威望", "en": "Prestige", "def": "The standing that makes an order obeyed without argument.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "婚书", "en": "Marriage Writ", "def": "The contract of a mortal wedding. Signed by both families, not the couple.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "婚约", "en": "Betrothal", "def": "A contract between families. Signed by people who were not consulted.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "婢女", "en": "Bondmaid", "def": "Below maidservant. Owned rather than employed, which the story tends to notice.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "媒人", "en": "Matchmaker", "def": "The go-between for a marriage. Paid by both sides and trusted by neither.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "嫁妆", "en": "Dowry", "def": "What the bride's family brings. In this genre, sometimes a hidden treasure.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "嫁接", "en": "Grafting", "def": "Joining two plants to combine traits. Horticulture, but the results can be alarming.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "嫡系", "en": "Main Line", "def": "The direct bloodline. Gets the pills first, the techniques first, and the protection first.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "嫦娥", "en": "Chang'e", "def": "The woman who drank the elixir and floated to the moon. Moon palace scenes in cultivation novels are her house, whether or not she appears in them.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "子母蛊", "en": "Mother and Child Gu", "def": "One gu controls another. Whoever holds the mother holds the victim.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "孙行者", "en": "Sun the Pilgrim", "def": "The monastic name he takes when he joins the pilgrimage. Used by the other pilgrims, never by his enemies.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "孟婆", "en": "Old Woman of Forgetting", "def": "The one who hands out the soup that erases memory before rebirth.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "孟婆汤", "en": "Soup of Oblivion", "def": "The drink that ends memory. A single bowl, no refills.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "孤本", "en": "Only Surviving Copy", "def": "One copy left in the world. Ownership becomes a political problem immediately.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "孤注一掷", "en": "All In", "def": "Everything on one throw. Used by characters with nothing left to lose.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "孤身一人", "en": "Alone", "def": "No sect, no companion, no backup. The state that makes a protagonist interesting.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "孵化", "en": "Hatch", "def": "Bringing an egg to term. The first thing it sees becomes its whole world.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "孽障", "en": "Wicked Creature", "def": "What an elder calls a junior who has done something unforgivable. Also aimed at demons.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "宁为玉碎", "en": "Better to Be Broken Jade", "def": "The opening of a proverb about refusing to be whole clay. Said before an unnecessary stand.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "宇宙洪荒", "en": "Space, Time, Flood, Desolation", "def": "The other classic four, used when an author wants to sound archaic. Same structure, different words.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "守墓兽", "en": "Tomb Guardian", "def": "Bound to a burial site. Older than the tomb it guards, usually.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "守宫", "en": "Palace Guardian", "def": "A beast bound to a building. Wakes only when the threshold is crossed.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "守山兽", "en": "Mountain Guardian Beast", "def": "Bound to a gate, unable to leave. Older than most of the sect it guards.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "守岁", "en": "Night Watch", "def": "Staying awake through the last night of the year. A family custom, not a vigil.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "守株待兔", "en": "Wait by the Tree for Hares", "def": "Waiting for luck instead of working. The criticism made of unambitious characters.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "守灵", "en": "Wake", "def": "Watching through the night beside the coffin. The last duty of the living.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "完胜", "en": "Complete Victory", "def": "No damage taken. Used to establish a threat level.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "宗主令", "en": "Sect Master's Token", "def": "A tablet carrying the master's authority. Seeing it counts as seeing him.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "宗主夫人", "en": "Sect Master's Wife", "def": "A title with real weight. Often runs the household politics the master ignores.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "宗子", "en": "Sect Heir", "def": "The designated successor to the sect master. The title outranks most elders, and everyone treats him accordingly — including the people who want him dead.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "宗庆", "en": "Sect Anniversary", "def": "The founding date. Sects invite enemies to prove they should not be attacked.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "宗祠", "en": "Clan Shrine", "def": "The larger version. Where the clan gathers for decisions and for funerals.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "宗门", "en": "Sect", "def": "A cultivation organisation with its own mountain, rules, hierarchy, and enemies.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/sect/", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "宗门之耻", "en": "The Sect's Disgrace", "def": "The label given to a disciple who drags down the sect's name. Not an insult shouted in anger but a verdict repeated quietly for decades.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "宗门体制", "en": "Sect Structure", "def": "The organisational chart: head, elders, hall masters, disciples. Most novels follow it exactly.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "宗门后山", "en": "Back Mountain", "def": "The area behind a sect, off-limits to outer disciples. Contains a training area, a secret, or both.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "宗门大会", "en": "General Assembly", "def": "Everyone gathers, someone is accused. The formal setting for the book's biggest reveal.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "宗门排名", "en": "Sect Ranking", "def": "How the sects of a region rank against each other. It changes when a war ends, and sometimes when one elder dies.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "宗门覆灭", "en": "Fall of a Sect", "def": "The walls come down. Very often the end of an arc, and the start of a revenge plot.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "官兵", "en": "Soldiers", "def": "State troops. Decent against bandits, helpless against cultivators.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "官府", "en": "Officials", "def": "The state apparatus. Usually corrupt in these stories, and usually bribed.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "官道", "en": "Imperial Highway", "def": "The official road. Safe by day, watched at all hours.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "定海珠", "en": "Sea-Settling Pearl", "def": "Twenty-four pearls that hold the sea in place. Also used as a throwing weapon, absurdly.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "定海神功", "en": "Sea-Calming Art", "def": "The technique connected to the pillar. Rare, and used to explain why one person can hold a shoreline.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "定海神针", "en": "Sea-Calming Pillar", "def": "What the cudgel was before anyone picked it up: a measuring rod holding the sea floor steady. Removing it is why the sea floods in some tellings.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "定身法", "en": "Immobilisation Art", "def": "A spoken command that freezes a target. Short, and always broken by someone stronger.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "定身符", "en": "Holding Talisman", "def": "Freezes a target for a few seconds. Short duration, decisive timing.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "定金", "en": "Deposit", "def": "Money paid up front to hold a deal. Losing it is cheaper than losing face.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "定颜珠", "en": "Beauty-Preserving Pearl", "def": "Stops ageing without extending life. The object behind every hundred-year-old character who looks twenty.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "定风丹", "en": "Wind-Calming Elixir", "def": "Cancels wind attacks. The counter item for the fan, which is why both appear in the same arc.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "定风珠", "en": "Wind-Calming Pearl", "def": "Cancels wind attacks outright. Boring until the scene is entirely wind, at which point it is the whole plot.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "定魂珠", "en": "Soul-Anchoring Pearl", "def": "Holds a soul inside its body after death. The standard method for keeping a dead character available for conversation.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "定魂钉", "en": "Soul-Fixing Nail", "def": "A nail that pins a soul in place. Stops possession, and stops escape.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "宝器", "en": "Treasure Tool", "def": "Rare, named, and owned by one person at a time.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "宝塔", "en": "Pagoda Treasure", "def": "A tower artifact used to suppress and capture. Once it covers you, the fight is over.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "宝库", "en": "Treasure Vault", "def": "A sect's stockpile of pills, artifacts, and spirit stones. Always the real objective when an army climbs the mountain.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "宝物认主", "en": "Treasure Recognition", "def": "An item choosing its owner. Convenient, and the reason a weaker character can win an auction by accident.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "实招", "en": "Real Strike", "def": "The blow behind the feint. Usually delivered while the opponent is still admiring the first.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "宠辱不惊", "en": "Unmoved by Praise or Shame", "def": "Indifferent to both flattery and insult. The mark of someone who has already decided.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "客卿", "en": "Guest Elder", "def": "An elder in name only: paid, respected, not bound by sect rules, free to walk away.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/guest-elder/", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "客卿身份", "en": "Guest Advisor", "def": "An outsider with standing. Neither disciple nor stranger, which is politically useful.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "客座长老", "en": "Visiting Elder", "def": "An elder from elsewhere, present as a courtesy. Listens more than speaks.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "客栈", "en": "Inn", "def": "Where travellers stay and information changes hands. Every plot stops at one eventually.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "客气", "en": "You're Too Kind", "def": "Deflecting a compliment or an offer. Rarely meant, always said.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "宫女", "en": "Palace Maid", "def": "Serves in the inner court. Sees everything, says nothing, is asked by the protagonist.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "家仆", "en": "House Servant", "def": "Servants of a clan rather than a sect. They hear everything and are counted as furniture.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "家师", "en": "My Master", "def": "How you refer to your own teacher to an outsider. Humble by default.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "家族", "en": "Clan", "def": "A bloodline organisation. Loyalty by birth rather than by oath.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "家法", "en": "House Law", "def": "Rules inside a family. Enforcement is physical and no one intervenes.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "宿命", "en": "Fate", "def": "The ending already written. Differs from mainly in how the character reacts to it.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "宿敌", "en": "Sworn Enemy", "def": "The opponent you are expected to meet again. Killing them is a plot event, not a fight.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "寄魂", "en": "Soul Parasitism", "def": "Attaching to a host without displacing them. Coexistence, and a very annoying inner voice.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "密信", "en": "Sealed Letter", "def": "A letter that should not be read by the wrong person. Every courier plot depends on it.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "密探", "en": "Informant", "def": "A paid source inside another power. Cheap, unreliable, and necessary.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "密林深处", "en": "Deep Forest", "def": "Further in than the maps go. The place where a beast you should not fight lives.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "寒潭", "en": "Cold Pool", "def": "A deep pool that stays cold year-round. Used for tempering bodies and for hiding things.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "寒玉髓", "en": "Cold Jade Marrow", "def": "Not a plant but a mineral fluid. Stores cold energy and is collected with care.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "寒铁", "en": "Cold Iron", "def": "Iron that holds cold. Standard for water-attribute weapons.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "寒髓草", "en": "Cold Marrow Grass", "def": "Grows in ice. The base for cold-attribute pills and a hundred poisons.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "寡不敌众", "en": "Outnumbered", "def": "Numbers mattering at last. The excuse of everyone who lost an unwinnable fight.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "寡人", "en": "This Lone One", "def": "The ruler's self-reference. Signals a court scene, and the presence of someone who can order executions.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "寨主", "en": "Stronghold Chief", "def": "Head of a mountain stronghold. Usually a failed cultivator with good terrain.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "寸", "en": "Cun", "def": "About three centimetres. Where a sword stops short.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "寸劲", "en": "Short Force", "def": "Full power delivered from a distance of one inch. Looks like nothing happened.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "对轰", "en": "Exchange Blasts", "def": "Firing techniques at each other until one side collapses. Pure arithmetic.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "寿元", "en": "Lifespan", "def": "The years a cultivator has left, spent like currency. Every realm adds more; every forbidden art takes some back.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "寿元将尽", "en": "The Years Are Running Out", "def": "The diagnosis. Triggers every desperate final act in the book.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "寿宴", "en": "Birthday Banquet", "def": "An elder's milestone. Where gifts are graded and insults are given politely.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "封印之地", "en": "Sealed Land", "def": "A place deliberately shut. Something inside wanted out.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "封印修为", "en": "Seal the Cultivation", "def": "Locking your own power shut, sometimes with a talisman. Being unsealed later is a one-chapter event.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "封印松动", "en": "The Seal Is Weakening", "def": "The sentence that starts the third act.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "封印阵", "en": "Sealing Array", "def": "Holds something in rather than out. Older sects are usually built around one.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "封山", "en": "Seal the Mountain", "def": "Closing the sect to all traffic, during a retreat or a war. Nobody enters, nobody leaves, no exception.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "封神榜", "en": "Investiture of the Gods", "def": "The list that turns dead heroes into gods, assigning each a post. Being on it is both a promotion and a sentence to bureaucracy forever.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "封神演义", "en": "Investiture of the Gods (novel)", "def": "The Ming novel that most cultivation fiction quietly raids for characters. If a reader recognises a name vaguely, it usually came from here.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "封禅", "en": "Imperial Sacrifice", "def": "The emperor's rite at a sacred mountain. In fiction, a claim to legitimacy that cultivators watch closely.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "封穴", "en": "Seal the Points", "def": "Blocking the flow at its nodes so the opponent cannot use power.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "尊品", "en": "Honoured Grade", "def": "Above the scale, reserved for imperial gifts. Rare enough to be a plot point.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "尊者", "en": "Venerable", "def": "High respectful title, used for the top of the hierarchy. Also used ironically by villains.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "尊驾", "en": "Your Esteemed Self", "def": "An arm's-length honorific. Used toward someone you do not quite trust.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "小世界", "en": "Lesser World", "def": "A pocket plane, or a lower world. Where the story usually starts.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "小僧", "en": "This Young Monk", "def": "Junior monk's self-reference. Humble, and frequently a lie.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "小厮", "en": "Errand Boy", "def": "Runs messages and carries things. Disposable, and knows everyone's secrets.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "小友", "en": "Little Friend", "def": "How a senior addresses a much younger cultivator. Patronising, not hostile.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "小可", "en": "This Small One", "def": "Self-deprecating, slightly comic. Used by ordinary merchants and by people pretending to be.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "小女子", "en": "This Little Woman", "def": "A young woman referring to herself modestly, usually when asking for help.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "小宗门", "en": "Minor Sect", "def": "A sect of one mountain and forty people.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "小师叔", "en": "Little Martial Uncle", "def": "High in the line, young in years. Nobody knows whether to bow or to scold.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "小师妹", "en": "Youngest Junior Sister", "def": "The youngest girl in the line. Protected by everyone, and underestimated by everyone outside.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "小洞天", "en": "Lesser Grotto-Heaven", "def": "A pocket world small enough to carry. The most useful thing a protagonist can own.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "小王爷", "en": "Young Prince", "def": "Imperial relative, junior. Arrogant in every appearance, and connected enough to get away with it.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "小辈", "en": "Junior", "def": "Half an insult. It means the speaker has decided the conversation is concluded.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "小道", "en": "This Little Daoist", "def": "A very modest self-reference from a young Daoist. Bait, usually.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "少主", "en": "Young Heir", "def": "The heir of a clan or a sect, addressed this way by retainers. Softer than a formal title, and slightly more dangerous.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "少夫人", "en": "Young Madam", "def": "The wife of an heir. Addressed by servants, feared by rivals.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "少宗主", "en": "Young Sect Master", "def": "The heir to a sect. Handed authority he has not yet earned, and enemies with it.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "少林寺", "en": "Shaolin Temple", "def": "The monastery of external martial arts. In crossover fiction it is the martial counterpart to a sect.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "少爷", "en": "Young Lord", "def": "What servants call the heir of a house. Also sarcastic when aimed at a spoiled brat.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "尔等", "en": "You All", "def": "Addressing a group from above. Contemptuous or commanding; never neutral.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/you-all/", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "尘埃落定", "en": "Settled", "def": "Everything resolved. Used at the end of an arc, and said by whoever survived.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "尘缘未了", "en": "Ties Unfinished", "def": "Worldly attachments still pulling. The reason a promising cultivator stalls.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "就凭你", "en": "You, of All People", "def": "Stronger than the bare pronoun, and usually said in front of witnesses.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "就此别过", "en": "We Part Here", "def": "A final-sounding goodbye. Brings the other party back within ten chapters.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "就这点本事", "en": "Is That All", "def": "Contempt after the first exchange. Rewarded, in this genre, within two pages.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "尸修", "en": "Corpse Cultivator", "def": "Animates dead tissue as a body. The genre's least pleasant protagonist option.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "尸傀", "en": "Corpse Puppet", "def": "A body driven by another's will. Cheap, obedient, and recognisable.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "尸山", "en": "Mountain of Corpses", "def": "Hyperbole that the genre takes literally. Usually a demonic sect's front yard.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "尸横遍野", "en": "Bodies Across the Field", "def": "The aftermath. Written in five characters, translated in about the same.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "尸毒", "en": "Corpse Poison", "def": "Contact poison from refined bodies. Slow to cure and easy to trace.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "尸解", "en": "Corpse Liberation", "def": "Shedding the body like a shell in order to continue as a spirit.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "尸解成仙", "en": "Corpse Deliverance into Immortality", "def": "Leaving the body as an empty shell and continuing as an immortal. The shell is buried and mourned.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "尸魔", "en": "Corpse Demon", "def": "A corpse that kept cultivating. Does not tire, does not negotiate.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "尺", "en": "Chi", "def": "About a third of a metre. Used for blade lengths and for very close escapes.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "尾款", "en": "Balance", "def": "The remaining payment on delivery. Withheld when the goods disappoint.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "层", "en": "Layer", "def": "Small steps inside one realm: third layer of Qi Refining. Sounds minor, decides who wins fights.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "层次", "en": "Tier", "def": "A level within a grade. Small differences that decide fights.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "居士", "en": "Lay Cultivator", "def": "Someone who cultivates without joining a sect. Respected, underestimated, and hard to find.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "居高临下", "en": "Looking Down From Above", "def": "Condescension built into the angle of address. The default tone of a senior toward a junior, courteous or not.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "屈打成招", "en": "Extracted Confession", "def": "A confession beaten out of an innocent person. The standard miscarriage of justice.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "屏息", "en": "Hold Breath", "def": "Stopping the breath entirely. Used to hide, or to survive poison gas.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "属下", "en": "Subordinate", "def": "How a sect member names himself to a superior. Deferential, and noticeably colder than calling yourself a disciple.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "屠城", "en": "Massacre a City", "def": "Larger version. Used to establish the antagonist's position on restraint.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "山村", "en": "Mountain Village", "def": "A village in the hills. Always has one old woman who knows what a cultivator is.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "山水有相逢", "en": "Mountains and Rivers Will Meet Again", "def": "Warning disguised as courtesy. Usually said just before letting someone leave alive.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "山河扇", "en": "Fan of Mountains and Rivers", "def": "A fan whose opening changes the terrain. Games implement it as a map editor with a cooldown.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "山河社稷图", "en": "Map of Mountains and Rivers", "def": "A scroll containing a world. Trapping someone inside it is the polite version of killing them.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "山河鼎", "en": "Cauldron of Mountains and Rivers", "def": "A cauldron that contains a landscape, used to refine things too large for a normal furnace.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "山脉", "en": "Mountain Range", "def": "Distance and natural walls. Where the map gets bigger.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "山脉走向", "en": "Mountain Line", "def": "The ridge direction. In feng shui terms, this is where the energy runs, and therefore where sects build.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "山贼", "en": "Bandit", "def": "A highway robber. Weak individually, dangerous in numbers.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "山门", "en": "Mountain Gate", "def": "The sect's front door and its first line of defence.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "山门大比", "en": "Sect Tournament", "def": "The open contest that decides rank, resources and marriages. Held every few years, and every few years somebody dies.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "山门阵", "en": "Gate Formation", "def": "The first line at the mountain gate. Usually decorative until the day it is not.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "岂敢", "en": "I Wouldn't Dare", "def": "Polite refusal, or polite agreement. The tone decides.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "岂有此理", "en": "Outrageous", "def": "Real indignation, said when a rule has been broken in public.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/outrageous/", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "岛主", "en": "Island Master", "def": "Rules an island. Unreachable, and therefore very confident.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "峡谷", "en": "Gorge", "def": "Narrow, defensible, and used for ambushes. Most battles in the genre include one.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "峰主", "en": "Peak Master", "def": "Runs one mountain of a multi-peak sect. A lord in miniature.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "巅峰状态", "en": "Peak Condition", "def": "Full strength, fully rested. Rare, and always announced.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "巡山", "en": "Patrol", "def": "Walking the sect's perimeter on watch. The job given to whoever is being punished.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "巢穴", "en": "Nest", "def": "Where the beast sleeps. Fights inside a nest are always written in tight spaces.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "巢穴清理", "en": "Clearing a Nest", "def": "The sect mission that appears in every early arc. Low reward, high survival rate, sometimes not.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "巫术", "en": "Witchcraft", "def": "Older than cultivation and less polite. Still works.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "布阵", "en": "Set Up a Formation", "def": "Laying one out in advance. The reason nobody attacks a prepared cultivator.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "师伯", "en": "Senior Martial Uncle", "def": "Your master's older male peer. Higher than junior uncle-master, and the difference decides who speaks first.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师侄", "en": "Nephew Disciple", "def": "Your senior brother's student. One step down in the line, and the step decides who bows first.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师侄女", "en": "Niece Disciple", "def": "The same relation, female. Used with more care, because the senior brother is listening.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师兄", "en": "Senior Brother", "def": "A male disciple of the same generation who joined earlier. Also used loosely outside the sect.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/senior-brother/", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师兄大人", "en": "Honoured Senior Brother", "def": "The flattering form. Used by characters who want something.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师兄妹之争", "en": "Rivalry Within a Line", "def": "Siblings with swords. Escalates until one leaves the sect.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "师兄妹情", "en": "Senior and Junior Affection", "def": "The sect's most common romantic setup. Structural, and predictable.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "师兄我", "en": "Your Senior Brother Here", "def": "Referring to yourself as the senior. Pulls rank while sounding warm.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "师兄（同门）", "en": "School Brother", "def": "The martial-arts usage of the same term, from wuxia rather than cultivation fiction.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师叔", "en": "Martial Uncle", "def": "Your master's younger male peer. A family term holding a sect meaning.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师叔祖", "en": "Junior Grand-Uncle", "def": "Your master's master's junior peer. The hierarchy gets deep fast.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师太", "en": "Daoist Abbess", "def": "Address for a senior nun cultivator. Respectful, with an edge of caution.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师妹", "en": "Junior Sister", "def": "A female disciple who joined later.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师姐", "en": "Senior Sister", "def": "A female disciple who joined earlier. Address and title at once.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师尊", "en": "Honored Master", "def": "Formal, heavy address to your own teacher. More solemn and more distant than.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师弟", "en": "Junior Brother", "def": "A male disciple who joined later. The word itself puts him below you.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师徒之名", "en": "Master and Student", "def": "The relationship itself, which outranks most blood ties in these books.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "师父", "en": "Master", "def": "The everyday word for a teacher. Warm, used in speech rather than on documents.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "师祖", "en": "Grandmaster", "def": "Your master's master. Addressed with the flattest possible respect.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "帝俊", "en": "Dijun", "def": "An early sky sovereign, largely forgotten outside myth. His ten sun sons are the reason the sun-shooting story exists.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "帝江", "en": "Dijiang", "def": "The faceless, six-legged bird of the western mountains. Its appearance is closer to a warning than a character.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "帝流浆", "en": "Imperial Sap", "def": "Moonlight collected by beasts on a specific night. The mechanic behind animals becoming monsters.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "帝都", "en": "Imperial Capital", "def": "The centre of mortal power. Cultivators here are guests, and it shows.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "帮主", "en": "Gang Leader", "def": "Head of a martial gang in the mortal world. Rich, and brittle.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "幌金绳", "en": "Golden Rope", "def": "A rope that binds anyone who is not already stronger than its owner. The loophole is written into it.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "幡", "en": "Banner", "def": "A banner artifact for gathering souls or killing intent. Demon sects carry them in procession.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "干净利落", "en": "Clean and Sharp", "def": "The execution. No hesitation, no explanation after.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "平原", "en": "Plain", "def": "Open ground. Bad for hiding, good for cavalry and for waiting.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "平局", "en": "Draw", "def": "Neither side wins. In this genre, it means somebody was holding back.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "平等契", "en": "Equal Pact", "def": "A contract of equals. Almost never offered, and a sign the beast considers you worth its time.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "平顶山", "en": "Flat-Top Mountain", "def": "The mountain of the two horned kings. The gourd, the rope and the name-calling all happen in one valley.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "年关", "en": "Year End", "def": "The last days before the new year. Debts are collected now, not later.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "年货", "en": "New Year Goods", "def": "Supplies bought for the festival. Running out of money in this season is a disaster.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "幸会", "en": "Fortunate to Meet", "def": "Neutral greeting between strangers of equal standing.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "幻境", "en": "Illusory Realm", "def": "A place that shows you what you want. Most deaths inside are self-inflicted.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "幻术", "en": "Illusion Art", "def": "Manufactured perception. In this genre it is almost always a trap with a tell.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "幻阵", "en": "Illusion Formation", "def": "Makes people see and fight things that are not there.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "幽冥", "en": "Netherworld", "def": "The general term for the land of the dead. Rarely visited, always remembered.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "幽冥花", "en": "Underworld Flower", "def": "Blooms only in places where things died. Yin-attribute, and it attracts ghosts.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "幽荧", "en": "Youying", "def": "The other half, whose gaze makes night. Together they explain why the world has days at all.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "幽闭", "en": "Deep Confinement", "def": "Seclusion stricter than ordinary closed-door cultivation: no contact, no exit until the breakthrough.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/deep-confinement/", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "广寒宫", "en": "Palace of Vast Coldness", "def": "The moon palace. Empty, silver, and occupied by one person who would prefer visitors.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "广寒殿前", "en": "Before the Palace of Vast Coldness", "def": "The moon's front door. Where visitors wait to be told there are no visitors.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "庆典", "en": "Celebration", "def": "Good news, performed publicly. The guest list matters more than the event.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "库房", "en": "Storehouse", "def": "Where supplies and treasures are kept. Guarded more heavily than the library.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "应战", "en": "Accept the Challenge", "def": "Taking up a written challenge in front of witnesses. Declining there is the same as losing.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "应龙", "en": "Yinglong", "def": "The winged dragon that helped defeat Chiyou and then drained the flood with its tail. Rain-making in this tradition starts with it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/yinglong/", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "底牌", "en": "Hidden Card", "def": "The last thing you have and the last thing you show. Characters die by revealing it early.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "底蕴", "en": "Accumulated Depth", "def": "Everything a sect or a person has stored up over centuries: techniques, pills, hidden elders, old debts. What actually decides a war, not the current headcount.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "底蕴深厚", "en": "Deep Resources", "def": "More than the level suggests. Used for old sects and old characters.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "店小二", "en": "Waiter", "def": "The inn servant who sees everything and remembers who paid him. A cheap source of rumours.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "庙会", "en": "Temple Fair", "def": "The market that gathers around a shrine on festival days. Crowded and convenient.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "庙祝", "en": "Shrine Keeper", "def": "Tends a small temple. Usually knows more about the local god than the priests do.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "废丹", "en": "Failed Pill", "def": "A batch that came out wrong. Worthless, or actively poison.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "废了你", "en": "Cripple You", "def": "The threat specific to cultivation: destruction of the core. Considered worse than killing.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "废人", "en": "Cripple", "def": "Someone whose cultivation has been destroyed. In this genre that is a fate, not a medical condition.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "废体", "en": "Waste Physique", "def": "A body that cannot cultivate at all. Every novel about proving the assessments wrong starts here.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "废灵根", "en": "Crippled Spirit Root", "def": "A root so weak it may as well not exist. The usual starting point of a comeback story.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/crippled-spirit-root/", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "废物", "en": "Useless", "def": "What a master calls a disappointing disciple. Cruel precisely because it is casual.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "废物逆袭", "en": "Waste Becomes Champion", "def": "The structural template. The label applied to the protagonist at the start and removed by the end.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "废话少说", "en": "Cut the Crap", "def": "'Enough talk.' Ends every negotiation scene in the genre.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "废除修为", "en": "Strip the Cultivation", "def": "Destroying a person's power as punishment. A living death in this genre.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "庶出", "en": "Born of a Concubine", "def": "A child of the secondary household. In cultivation fiction this is less a fact than a permanent handicap.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "庸才", "en": "Mediocre", "def": "The polite form of useless.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "延寿", "en": "Extend the Lifespan", "def": "Buying more years. Everything else in the story is a means to this.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "开光", "en": "Consecrate", "def": "Blessing an object so it works. Before this, a treasure is just metal.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "开坛", "en": "Open the Altar", "def": "Beginning a formal teaching session. Old-fashioned, and used for weight.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "开天斧", "en": "World-Splitting Axe", "def": "The axe that separated heaven and earth. In games it is a one-use item, which is accurate.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "开宗立派", "en": "Establish a School", "def": "The same act, with more ceremony and better invitations.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "开山", "en": "Found a Sect", "def": "Establishing a sect of your own. Almost always follows leaving one, or being driven out of one.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "开山门", "en": "Open the Gates", "def": "Reopening after a sealing, or opening for a new intake of disciples. Either way, an announcement.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "开明兽", "en": "Kaiming Beast", "def": "The nine-headed guardian of the gate to Kunlun. Nine heads means nine questions before entry, in some versions.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "开智", "en": "Awakened Mind", "def": "The moment a beast starts thinking like a person. From here it can learn, lie and resent.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "开锋", "en": "First Edge", "def": "The final grinding that makes a blade usable. Traditionally done by the owner.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "异兽", "en": "Aberrant Beast", "def": "A beast belonging to no known line. Nobody can predict what it will do.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "异想天开", "en": "Wild Imagination", "def": "Disbelief at a bold plan. Sometimes admiration.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "异火", "en": "Strange Fire", "def": "Fire that occurs naturally in the world and can be tamed. Owning one changes an alchemist's rank.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "异议", "en": "Objection", "def": "Formal disagreement in a council. Stating it is a career decision.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "弓", "en": "Bow", "def": "A bow artifact for killing at range. One arrow, one decision.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "引兽出洞", "en": "Draw the Beast Out", "def": "Tactics, part one. Someone has to be bait.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "引气入体", "en": "Draw Qi In", "def": "The first skill a beginner learns: pulling ambient qi into the body.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "引蛇出洞", "en": "Lure the Snake from its Hole", "def": "The tactic that is accused of the above line. Both get used in the same chapter.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "引雷入体", "en": "Draw Lightning In", "def": "Taking a tribulation strike inside the body on purpose to temper it. Either a genius move or a death, and the prose usually commits late.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "引雷阵", "en": "Lightning-Drawing Formation", "def": "Pulls lightning down. Used to attack, and used to give a disciple a controlled tribulation.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "弟子", "en": "Disciple", "def": "How a disciple names himself before his master, or how others label him.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "弱水", "en": "Weak Water", "def": "Water that sinks anything, including feathers and boats. Crossing it requires a specific exemption, which is the plot.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "弱水之滨", "en": "The Bank of Weak Water", "def": "Where boats sink and feathers drown. Crossing requires a specific exemption, which is the quest.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "弹指", "en": "Flick", "def": "One flick of a finger. The gesture that says the opponent was never worth standing up for.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "强中自有强中手", "en": "Among the Strong There Is Always Stronger", "def": "The formal version. Sounds like a saying because it is one.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "强弩之末", "en": "The End of a Crossbow's Flight", "def": "Something powerful that has spent itself. Used to explain why the charge failed.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "强攻", "en": "Full Assault", "def": "Committing everything. Decisive when it works and fatal when it does not.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "强攻不下", "en": "Assault Stalled", "def": "The attack loses momentum. The point where the defender starts to win.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "弼马温", "en": "Keeper of the Celestial Horses", "def": "The lowest heavenly post, offered to insult him. He discovers the insult in the same chapter he accepts it.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "归墟", "en": "Guixu", "def": "The bottomless abyss where all water goes and does not come back. Novels use it as the terminal point of the world, and of some characters.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "归墟之眼", "en": "The Eye of Guixu", "def": "The centre of the abyss. Water goes in and nothing returns, including characters who are told not to jump.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "归息", "en": "Return the Breath", "def": "Coming out of a deep practice session. Used as the chapter's exit cue.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "当值", "en": "On Duty", "def": "The disciple assigned to watch or serve today. Boring until it is not.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "当铺", "en": "Pawnshop", "def": "Where a desperate man trades his heirloom. The pawnbroker always knows what it is worth.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "当铺老板", "en": "Pawnbroker", "def": "The one profession that survives every war. Always knows what you brought.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "形神俱灭", "en": "Body and Spirit Annihilated", "def": "Nothing left to reincarnate. The one death no later plot device can undo.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "影卫", "en": "Shadow Guard", "def": "The formal unit. Exists on no roster and in every sect master's confidence.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "影子", "en": "Shadow", "def": "The guard who follows without being seen. Announced only by their failure.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "彼岸花海", "en": "Sea of Spider Lilies", "def": "Flowers at the underworld's edge. Visual shorthand for death, and the most photographed scene in any adaptation.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "往生", "en": "Passing On", "def": "Sending a soul to rebirth. The action is usually performed by a monk, in public, with incense.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "往生咒", "en": "Rebirth Chant", "def": "Sung for the dead. In ghost scenes it is a weapon as much as a comfort.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "徒孙", "en": "Grand-Disciple", "def": "Your disciple's disciple. The word that makes a character realise how old they are.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "得寸进尺", "en": "Give an Inch, Take a Yard", "def": "Accusation against someone who keeps asking. Accurate about the antagonist.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "御兽术", "en": "Beast Command Art", "def": "Directing animals by will or contract. Companion beasts are the genre's softest subplot.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "御兽袋", "en": "Beast Satchel", "def": "Carries an animal without the animal knowing. Dimensional space, so the animal ages slower.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "御剑", "en": "Sword Flight", "def": "Riding a flying sword. The signature of sword cultivators, and the reason they always arrive first.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "御剑术", "en": "Sword Control Art", "def": "Commanding a blade at distance. The default ranged attack of every sword sect.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "御剑飞行", "en": "Fly on the Sword", "def": "Standing on a blade and going. The genre's most photographed shot, and the one every adaptation gets wrong.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "御器", "en": "Control the Artifact", "def": "Directing a weapon or tool by will. The basic skill behind every flying weapon.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "御气", "en": "Command Qi", "def": "Moving qi outside the body without a treasure. The line between journeyman and master.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "御空", "en": "Sky Walking", "def": "Standing on air without a treasure. Proof of realm rather than skill; below a certain stage it is simply impossible.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "御风", "en": "Ride the Wind", "def": "Flying low and fast without a tool. Cheaper than a sword, and it looks better.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "循序渐进", "en": "Advance in Order", "def": "The orthodox method: no stage skipped, no stage rushed. Boring, and the reason orthodox cultivators rarely lose their minds.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "微微颔首", "en": "A Slight Nod", "def": "Approval without words. The most common gesture in any sect hall.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "德高望重", "en": "Elder of Great Virtue", "def": "The description for a sect head who is not the villain. Increasingly rare in the genre.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "心上人", "en": "Beloved", "def": "The person someone is thinking about instead of cultivating.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "心中一凛", "en": "A Chill in the Heart", "def": "The realisation of danger. Written as a physical cold, not as a thought.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心中一喜", "en": "Heart Lifting", "def": "The good news. Signals that the next scene is a trap.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心中一惊", "en": "Heart Skipped", "def": "An internal jolt that never reaches the face. Keeps the camera inside the character.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心口不一", "en": "Saying One Thing, Meaning Another", "def": "How villains pass for allies. Detected by the protagonist at a fixed pace.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心境", "en": "State of Mind", "def": "The mental condition someone cultivates in. A steady is a tactical advantage.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心境不稳", "en": "Unstable Mind", "def": "Close to deviation. Symptoms are loudness and bad gambling.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心境圆满", "en": "Perfected State of Mind", "def": "The inner condition required before a major realm. Nothing on any record shows it.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心境提升", "en": "Elevated State of Mind", "def": "A step up in inner quality rather than power. Nothing visible changes, and everything does.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心境突破", "en": "Mental Breakthrough", "def": "An increase in composure rather than power. Shows up as fewer mistakes.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心境资质", "en": "Mental Aptitude", "def": "Resistance to pressure and illusion. Low values are how the author gets a character to break at the right moment.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "心头一沉", "en": "Heart Sinking", "def": "The bad news landing. Signals that the next scene is worse.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心头一紧", "en": "Chest Tightened", "def": "Dread arriving before understanding does.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心头一震", "en": "Heart Jolted", "def": "The internal shock when something changes everything. Written before the face reacts.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心如死灰", "en": "Heart Like Dead Ash", "def": "Apathy after loss. The state that makes a character dangerous rather than broken.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心性", "en": "Temperament", "def": "The cast of a person's mind: patient or impatient, steady or greedy. In this genre it outweighs talent and is never written on any record.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "心惊肉跳", "en": "Heart Pounding", "def": "The body's alarm going off without a clear reason.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心无旁骛", "en": "Single-Minded", "def": "Nothing competing for attention. What every seclusion is trying to achieve.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心无杂念", "en": "No Distractions", "def": "A cleaner version of the same state. Necessary before a serious attempt.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心法", "en": "Cultivation Method", "def": "The part you memorize rather than practice. The operating manual behind a technique.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/cultivation-method/", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "心法口诀", "en": "Core Incantation", "def": "The key lines of an art. One wrong character and the whole thing runs backwards.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "心浮气躁", "en": "Impatient and Agitated", "def": "The single most common cause of a failed breakthrough.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心狠手辣", "en": "Ruthless", "def": "Willing to do the ugly thing and pay the ugly price. Usually a warning, occasionally admiration.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "心神一荡", "en": "Mind Swayed", "def": "Attention broken by beauty or by an illusion. The failure mode of every male lead.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "心神不宁", "en": "Restless Mind", "def": "Something is wrong and the body knows before the mind admits it.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心神合一", "en": "Mind and Spirit as One", "def": "Thought and power aligned. The difference between technique and instinct.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心结", "en": "Knot in the Heart", "def": "A specific unresolved thing. Usually a dead sibling, which is why the power-up takes so long.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心脉", "en": "Heart Meridian", "def": "The channel that carries blood and qi together. Severed, it kills within moments.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "心静如水", "en": "Mind Like Still Water", "def": "Nothing moves the surface. The state that lets a breakthrough happen.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心魔", "en": "Inner Demon", "def": "The worst version of yourself, grown inside your own mind. Speaks at every weak moment.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/inner-demon/", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "心魔入侵", "en": "Inner Demon Invasion", "def": "The inner demon getting in, rather than merely surfacing. From here the character is no longer entirely in charge.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "心魔劫", "en": "Inner Demon Tribulation", "def": "The tribulation turns inward and attacks with your own memories.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/inner-demon-tribulation/", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "心魔已生", "en": "The Heart Demon Has Taken Root", "def": "The diagnosis. After this line nothing goes well for the character.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心魔滋生", "en": "Inner Demon Breeding", "def": "The slow growth of something that will eventually speak in your voice.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心魔缠身", "en": "Haunted by Heart Demons", "def": "The persistent version. Symptoms are insomnia, then paranoia, then a scene nobody wants to write.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "心魔衍生", "en": "Heart Demon Growth", "def": "The avoided thing getting stronger. It eats attention and attention is finite.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "心魔誓", "en": "Inner Demon Oath", "def": "The heaviest oath available: break it and the inner demon comes collecting. Used when both sides want certainty.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/inner-demon-oath/", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "必有后福", "en": "Must Have Fortune After", "def": "The second half. Deployed right before the next disaster.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "忌惮", "en": "Wary Respect", "def": "Not fear exactly: the caution of someone who has done the arithmetic and does not like the total. Why villains negotiate instead of attacking.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "忍气吞声", "en": "Swallow It Whole", "def": "Taking the insult without a word. Differs from only in that the humiliation itself is the point.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "志得意满", "en": "Smug and Satisfied", "def": "Pleasure in one's own success, visible and slightly obscene. Always placed one page before the reversal.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "忘川", "en": "River of Forgetfulness", "def": "The river that takes memory before rebirth. Characters try to avoid it, and fail.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "忘川河畔", "en": "The Bank of the River of Forgetfulness", "def": "Where the memory is lost. Scenes on this bank are always brief.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "忘年交", "en": "Friend Across Generations", "def": "Two people of very different ages who get along anyway. Rare, and useful.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "忘情", "en": "Forgetting Love", "def": "Deliberate erasure of attachment to advance. Written as a choice, not a cure.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "忘我", "en": "Self-Forgetting", "def": "Losing yourself in the work. Smaller than no-self, and happens by accident.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "念珠", "en": "Prayer Beads", "def": "Counting beads. Each bead can store a chant, which makes them a magazine.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "怒不可遏", "en": "Beyond Anger", "def": "Past the point of control. The moment the aura leaks.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "怒极反笑", "en": "Laughing in Rage", "def": "So angry that laughter comes out instead. Always more frightening than shouting.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "思过", "en": "Reflect on Faults", "def": "Confinement ordered as discipline. A polite name for being locked up.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "急功近利", "en": "Rushing for Results", "def": "The temptation. Always punished within ten chapters.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "怨魂", "en": "Vengeful Spirit", "def": "Souls of the wrongfully killed, held back from reincarnation and used as fuel. The signature material of demonic artifacts and blood banners.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "恕不奉陪", "en": "I Will Not Be Keeping You Company", "def": "Refusing to stay or to fight, said politely. A disguised insult.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "恕不远送", "en": "I Won't See You Out", "def": "Cold courtesy. The host is done with you, politely.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "恕罪", "en": "Pardon My Offense", "def": "A formula for excusing yourself after a breach: speaking out of turn, arriving late, or surviving when others did not.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "恩怨两清", "en": "Debts Both Ways Settled", "def": "Ending a feud by force. The genre's preferred resolution.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "恩怨分明", "en": "Clear on Debt and Gratitude", "def": "Kindness repaid, injury repaid, both in full. About the highest praise jianghu ethics has.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "恭候大驾", "en": "Awaiting Your Arrival", "def": "Elaborate courtesy with pressure underneath. You are expected.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "恶名", "en": "Notoriety", "def": "The negative version. In this genre, sometimes a compliment.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "恶名昭彰", "en": "Infamous", "def": "The fullest negative. Used of sects more often than people.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "恶有恶报", "en": "Evil Deeds Are Repaid", "def": "The other half, said grimly. Works as a threat.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "悔恨", "en": "Regret", "def": "The engine of most second acts. Written as a remembered detail, not as an emotion word.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "悟性", "en": "Comprehension", "def": "How fast someone understands what they are taught. Worth more than a good root, and rarer.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "悟性不足", "en": "Not Enough Comprehension", "def": "The polite description of being untalented. Used to explain a stalled antagonist.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "悟空", "en": "Wukong", "def": "The name the monkey king is given on ordination, meaning awakened to emptiness. In most adaptations he uses it only when he is being serious.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "悟道", "en": "Comprehend the Dao", "def": "Deeper than insight: direct contact with a law. Usually arrives with weather.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "悟道之难", "en": "The Difficulty of Understanding", "def": "The reason the genre's middle third is long. Stated, then demonstrated.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "悟道石", "en": "Enlightenment Stone", "def": "A stone people sit on to think. Owning one starts wars quietly.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "悟道茶", "en": "Enlightenment Tea", "def": "Tea that loosens the mind toward insight. Priced accordingly.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "悬崖勒马", "en": "Pull Back from the Edge", "def": "Stopping just in time. The moral beat before a redemption.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "悬案", "en": "Unsolved Case", "def": "A case nobody could close. Files rot, but the families do not forget.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "悬赏", "en": "Bounty", "def": "A posted reward for a person or a beast. The usual way a broke cultivator eats.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "悬赏榜", "en": "Bounty Board", "def": "Where missions are posted. Reading it is how a broke disciple finds a story.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "情丝", "en": "Threads of Affection", "def": "Attachment that has already taken hold. A warning in this genre, not a compliment.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情义", "en": "Bond of Feeling", "def": "The obligation that comes from shared feeling. Weaker than duty, harder to refuse.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情伤", "en": "Love Wound", "def": "The injury left by a relationship. It slows the cultivation and never quite closes.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情劫", "en": "Fated Romance Tribulation", "def": "A romantic attachment that becomes an obstacle to the Dao. Killing the person is a common solution.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/fated-romance-tribulation/", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情劫未了", "en": "Romantic Tribulation Unfinished", "def": "An old attachment left unresolved. Returns at the worst moment.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情投意合", "en": "Of One Mind and Heart", "def": "Two people who agree without negotiating. Dangerous to everyone else.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情报网", "en": "Intelligence Network", "def": "The whole apparatus. Its existence is why anyone knows anything.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "情敌", "en": "Rival in Love", "def": "Usually a more senior cultivator with better resources. The genre's favourite method of humbling a protagonist.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情根", "en": "Root of Feeling", "def": "The first attachment. The genre treats it as a vulnerability that can be cut out.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情根深种", "en": "Love Rooted Deep", "def": "Attachment that has already grown in too far to remove. Said with sympathy, or as a diagnosis.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情毒", "en": "Love Poison", "def": "Love written as an ailment with symptoms. Treatable, and the treatment is the arc.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情种", "en": "Lovesick Fool", "def": "Someone who keeps falling in love. Said with pity, or with contempt.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "情蛊", "en": "Love Gu", "def": "A gu that enforces attachment. The genre's darkest romance device.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "惜败", "en": "Narrow Defeat", "def": "Losing by a hair. The setup for a rematch, which readers expect.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "惨烈", "en": "Brutal", "def": "The assessment of a battle. Used to justify a character's later silence.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "惨败", "en": "Crushing Defeat", "def": "Losing badly enough that the survivors change their plans for decades.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "惶恐", "en": "Terrified", "def": "Fear mixed with guilt. The standard state of anyone summoned by a superior.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "惶恐不安", "en": "Uneasy", "def": "Fear without a name yet. The state before bad news arrives.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "意气用事", "en": "Acting on Feeling", "def": "The mistake. Treated as a young character's flaw.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "意气风发", "en": "High-Spirited", "def": "Young, brilliant, certain of the future. Used to describe someone the reader will later watch break.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "意难平", "en": "Unsettled Feeling", "def": "A lingering regret about a relationship. Used at the end of an arc, quietly.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "愚兄", "en": "This Foolish Brother", "def": "Friendly self-deprecation between equals. Softer than it sounds.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "感悟", "en": "Comprehend", "def": "The moment something clicks. Not taught, only caught.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "愧不敢当", "en": "I Dare Not Accept", "def": "Refusing praise out of humility. Also the polite way to decline a dangerous honour.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "慈悲", "en": "Compassion", "def": "Treated as a weakness in most cultivation books, and as a superpower in the better ones.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "慈航净瓶", "en": "Guanyin's Pure Bottle", "def": "The vase with the healing water. In games it is the party's only revive item.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "慈航道人", "en": "Cihang Daoist", "def": "One of the figures who later becomes associated with Guanyin. Adaptations use the overlap to explain why a Daoist story has a Buddhist saviour.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "慢走", "en": "Take Your Time", "def": "What you say to someone leaving. Entirely neutral, which is why it can sting.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "成交", "en": "Done", "def": "The handshake. The point where the market scene ends.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "我命由我不由天", "en": "My Fate Is Mine", "def": "The genre's signature defiance line. Said at the exact moment destiny is refused.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/my-fate-is-mine/", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "我认输", "en": "I Concede", "def": "Yielding formally. Stops the fight and starts the humiliation.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "我辈", "en": "We of This Kind", "def": "'People like us.' Includes the speaker and everyone in the same trade or realm.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "戒律", "en": "Precepts", "def": "Religious rules layered on top of sect rules. Breaking these is worse.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "戒律长老", "en": "Discipline Elder", "def": "Runs the punishment hall. Feared more than the sect master, and knows why.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "戒指", "en": "Ring", "def": "Storage, signet, or both. Which one it is becomes clear at a bad moment.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "戒骄戒躁", "en": "Guard Against Pride and Haste", "def": "The advice every master gives, and every student ignores.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "战书", "en": "Written Challenge", "def": "The written form of that invitation, phrased with elaborate courtesy and delivered in public.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/written-challenge/", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "战体", "en": "Battle Body", "def": "A body built to fight: stronger the longer a fight lasts, and unable to stop wanting one.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "战利品", "en": "Spoils", "def": "The loot. Usually better than the stated reason for the fight.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "战力", "en": "Combat Power", "def": "The practical measure. Usually given as a number in litRPG-adjacent works.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "战场遗迹", "en": "Battlefield Ruins", "def": "Older and picked over. Worth very little except to historians and desperate people.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "战宠", "en": "Battle Beast", "def": "A beast bred and trained to fight beside its owner. Expensive to keep, impossible to replace.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "战战兢兢", "en": "Trembling", "def": "Fear that cannot be hidden. Used for servants and for anyone facing an elder.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "戟", "en": "Halberd", "def": "A halberd artifact. Heavy, awkward, and devastating in the hands of someone strong enough.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "截教四剑", "en": "The Four Swords of Jieism", "def": "The sibling set to the orthodox swords. Novels use the split to explain why two schools of technique look similar and hate each other.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "户籍", "en": "Household Register", "def": "Official record of who lives where. A useful way to prove a character does not exist.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "房契", "en": "Title Deed", "def": "Proof of owning a house. What a family sells last.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "扇", "en": "Fan", "def": "A fan artifact for wind and fire. Elegant until it is used.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "扇子", "en": "Folding Fan", "def": "A scholar's accessory. In a fight, it hides needles or hides nothing and is simply metal.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "手下留情", "en": "Show Mercy", "def": "Asking a stronger party not to go all out. Also used flatly after a one-sided beating, as an accusation dressed as courtesy.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "手下败将", "en": "A Former Loser", "def": "How winners address the defeated. The most reliable opening insult in a rematch.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "手足冰凉", "en": "Hands and Feet Cold", "def": "Blood leaving the extremities. The body deciding to run.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "扎实", "en": "Solid", "def": "Describes a firm foundation. The highest praise an elder gives.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "扎马", "en": "Horse Stance", "def": "The low, wide stance every martial student hates. The foundation of everything else.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "打坐", "en": "Sitting Meditation", "def": "Sitting cross-legged to gather qi or stabilize a realm. The default state of any cultivator between scenes.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/sitting-meditation/", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "打尖", "en": "Rest Stop", "def": "To stop and eat on the road, not to stay the night. What a driver calls a short halt.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "打扫战场", "en": "Clean the Battlefield", "def": "Looting. Where the reward for surviving arrives.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "打扰", "en": "Disturbing You", "def": "Lighter than the previous one. Used for brief interruptions.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "打断你的腿", "en": "Break Your Legs", "def": "Threat from a senior. In a real fight, a modest ambition.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "打磨", "en": "Polish", "def": "Repeated practice. The unglamorous work that the prose usually skips.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "打神石", "en": "God-Striking Stone", "def": "A projectile that only works on divinely ranked targets. The genre's way of humbling bureaucrats.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "打神鞭", "en": "God-Beating Whip", "def": "A whip that only works on gods and mortals who have been ranked. It is the bureaucratic kind of power: it hits titles, not bodies.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "打脸", "en": "Face-Slapping", "def": "Humiliating someone who underestimated you, in public, using the exact words they used. The genre's central pleasure, and the reason chapters end where they do.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/face-slap/", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "打脸不成", "en": "Failed Face-Slap", "def": "The reversal. When the protagonist attempts it and loses, which readers treat as a betrayal.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "打草惊蛇", "en": "Beat the Grass, Alarm the Snake", "def": "A warning about acting too early. Precisely what the protagonist is accused of.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "托", "en": "Shill", "def": "A fake bidder working for the house. Every auction scene has one, and someone always notices.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "托塔李天王", "en": "Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King", "def": "The commander of the heavenly armies. His pagoda is a binding artifact, and his son is the one who actually fights.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "托福", "en": "Thanks to You", "def": "Credit given away to the other person. Gracious, and slightly old-fashioned.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "执事", "en": "Steward", "def": "Runs the sect's business. Bureaucratic power, which inside a sect is still power.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "执剑问心", "en": "Ask the Heart with a Sword", "def": "A swordsman's inner dialogue. Turns every fight into a confession.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "执念", "en": "Obsession", "def": "A fixation that drives you and blinds you. Usually what an inner demon grows out of.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "执念太深", "en": "Obsession Too Deep", "def": "Wanting something past reason. Powers a character and ruins a plot, often in the same chapter.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "执念消散", "en": "Obsession Dissolves", "def": "The release that follows a breakthrough. Quiet, and often underwritten.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "执法堂", "en": "Discipline Hall", "def": "The sect's police. Everyone lowers their voice near the door.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "执法弟子", "en": "Disciplinary Disciple", "def": "A student with a badge and a grudge. The genre's most reliable antagonist before the real one arrives.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "执迷不悟", "en": "Blindly Persisting", "def": "Clinging to a mistake. A last warning disguised as a sigh.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "扩脉", "en": "Widen the Meridians", "def": "Stretching the channels to carry more. Painful, permanent, and worth it.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "扬眉吐气", "en": "Breathe Out at Last", "def": "The release after years of held breath. Not triumph exactly, closer to relief, and it reads as more earned than victory.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "扮可怜", "en": "Look Pitiful", "def": "The social version of hiding strength. Works once on anyone.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "扮猪吃虎", "en": "Play the Pig, Eat the Tiger", "def": "Deliberately acting weak so the strong lower their guard. The reader always knows; only the characters in the room do not.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/play-the-pig-eat-the-tiger/", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "找死", "en": "Seeking Death", "def": "'You are asking for death.' A sneer thrown before a fight, never a genuine question.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/seeking-death/", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "找死不成", "en": "Are You Tired of Living", "def": "A rhetorical question, angrier than. Demands an answer nobody should give.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "找死！（不信）", "en": "Asking for It", "def": "The same intent in a flatter register. Used when the speaker is genuinely annoyed rather than theatrical.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "承让", "en": "Thanks for Going Easy", "def": "What the winner says to the loser. Insufferable by design.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "承负", "en": "Inherited Burden", "def": "Consequences carried by descendants for an ancestor's act. The genre's easiest justification for a feud.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "抄家", "en": "Confiscation", "def": "Seizing a family's entire property. What happens after the guilty verdict.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "抄本", "en": "Hand Copy", "def": "A reproduction, usually with errors. The errors are how the enemy tracks you.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "投名状", "en": "Loyalty Token", "def": "Proof of commitment handed to a new master, usually a head, a stolen treasure, or a betrayal of your own people. The point is not the gift but the fact that there is no way back.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "投帖", "en": "Send a Card", "def": "Sending a formal name card ahead of a visit. Refusing it is a message.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "折算", "en": "Exchange Rate", "def": "Converting one currency into another. Every merchant rounds it in his own favor.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "抚掌大笑", "en": "Clapping and Laughing", "def": "Genuine delight, always at a misfortune.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "抢攻", "en": "Seize the Initiative", "def": "Attacking first, before the other side settles. Half of all fights are decided here.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "抢身", "en": "Close the Distance", "def": "Getting inside the opponent's reach. Where long weapons become useless.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "护体灵光", "en": "Protective Qi Light", "def": "The layer of spiritual light shielding the body. When it shatters, the fight is already decided, whatever the two sides say next.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "护体灵衣", "en": "Spirit Robe", "def": "Clothing that hardens on impact. Expensive, and ruined without drama.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "护体罡气", "en": "Protective Aura", "def": "A shell of energy around the body. Absorbs the first hit, then needs rebuilding.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "护山大阵", "en": "Mountain-Protecting Formation", "def": "A sect's last defence, powered by the spirit vein under the mountain.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "护山神兽", "en": "Divine Guardian", "def": "The high-end version. Its presence is why a sect has not been attacked in five hundred years.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "护心镜", "en": "Heart Guard", "def": "A mirror or plate worn on the chest. Blocks the first strike that would have killed.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "护教法王", "en": "Dharma Protector", "def": "A senior figure of a cult. Religious title, military job.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "护法", "en": "Guardian", "def": "A sworn protector of the sect or of one person. Armed, and usually silent.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "护犊子", "en": "Protects the Calf", "def": "The warmer version. Used of masters who defend hopeless disciples.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "护甲", "en": "Protective Armor", "def": "Artifact-grade armour. It takes one hit from someone of your own realm, which is usually the hit that mattered.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "护短", "en": "Shields His Own", "def": "His people may be wrong; outsiders may not touch them. The default temperament of every sect elder.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/shields-his-own/", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "护腕", "en": "Bracer", "def": "Worn on the forearm. In forging scenes, it has a formation sewn inside.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "护身法宝", "en": "Defensive Treasure", "def": "Something that protects passively. Everyone who lives long enough owns at least one.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "护身符", "en": "Protective Charm", "def": "A small talisman worn on the body. Stops one hit, then crumbles.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "护道人", "en": "Dao Protector", "def": "A hidden guardian assigned to keep a gifted disciple alive until they can keep themselves alive. Rarely seen, always close.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "护院", "en": "House Guard", "def": "Guards a mortal household. Brave, badly paid, and the first to die.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "报应", "en": "Retribution", "def": "What comes back around. In this genre it is delivered by a person, not by heaven.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "抬价", "en": "Bid Up", "def": "Raising a price by pretending to want it. Old trick, still works.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "抱拳", "en": "Fist-in-Palm Salute", "def": "Right fist covered by the left hand with a short nod of the head. The standard greeting between cultivators who are not close.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "抵债", "en": "Settle in Kind", "def": "Paying a debt with goods or service. What desperate people do with heirlooms.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "抵押", "en": "Collateral", "def": "Something left against a debt. The genre's most reliable way to create urgency.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "抽丝剥茧", "en": "Draw the Thread", "def": "Separating one strand of a tangled inner energy from the rest. Painful, precise work, rarely filmed well.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "抽签", "en": "Draw Lots", "def": "Determining the bracket. The draw is always suspicious.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "拂尘", "en": "Horsetail Whisk", "def": "The Daoist's brush. In a fight it is a soft weapon that redirects rather than blocks.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "拂尘柄", "en": "Whisk Handle", "def": "The business end of a horsetail whisk. Usually the part that is actually a weapon.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "拆招", "en": "Break the Move", "def": "Analysing an opponent's technique mid-fight. Written as short declarative sentences.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "拍卖会", "en": "Auction", "def": "Where rare things surface. Prices are set by whoever wants it most and can afford to say so.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/auction/", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "拍卖行", "en": "Auction House", "def": "The venue. Always has a private room on the second floor for whoever is really buying.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "拍品", "en": "Lot", "def": "The item being sold. The description is written by the house, which means it is accurate and incomplete.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "拍案而起", "en": "Slamming the Table and Rising", "def": "Anger in a formal setting. Breaks the meeting's protocol and its patience.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "拖延", "en": "Stall for Time", "def": "Buying time. The tactic of anyone waiting for reinforcements.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "拖战", "en": "Drag It Out", "def": "Deliberately prolonging the fight until qi runs out. Cold, patient, and hard to counter.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "拖时间", "en": "Buy Time", "def": "The plainer version. What a weaker character does while talking.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "拙荆", "en": "My Clumsy Wife", "def": "A man's humble reference to his own spouse. Old-fashioned, and a reminder that she is not present.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "招供", "en": "Confess", "def": "To admit guilt under interrogation. What the magistrate wanted to hear.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "招募", "en": "Recruitment", "def": "Sects taking new members. Talent matters; what the recruiter wants matters more.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "招式老", "en": "Played Out", "def": "A move carried past its end, with nothing left to adjust. The moment a fight turns.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "招揽", "en": "Courting a Talent", "def": "Persistence plus offers. Declining politely is a skill.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "拜堂", "en": "Bow Ceremony", "def": "The three bows that complete a wedding. Heaven, parents, then each other.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "拜山", "en": "Mountain Call", "def": "An outsider presenting himself at the gate and asking to be received. Skipping the courtesy is already a declaration of hostility.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "拜师", "en": "Accepting a Master", "def": "The formal ceremony of becoming someone's disciple. Changes your standing overnight.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/accepting-a-master/", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "拜师礼", "en": "Master Acceptance Rite", "def": "The ceremony of taking a master: three kowtows, a cup of tea, a name entered in the rolls. It binds both sides for life.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/master-acceptance-rite/", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "拜帖", "en": "Visiting Card", "def": "The version used to request an audience. Refusing to accept one is a declaration of hostility.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "拭目以待", "en": "We Shall See", "def": "Waiting to watch the outcome. Neutral in form, a challenge in practice.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "拱手", "en": "Cupped Hands", "def": "The scholar's salute, hands together and raised. Politeness, not deference.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "拳劲", "en": "Fist Force", "def": "The penetrating force behind a punch, aimed at what is inside rather than what is visible.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "拳意", "en": "Fist Intent", "def": "The will behind a punch, projected ahead of contact. A bare-handed cultivator's answer to sword intent.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "拳罡", "en": "Fist Astral Qi", "def": "Force pushed out past the knuckles. Punches that land without contact.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "拳风", "en": "Fist Wind", "def": "The air pressure ahead of a punch. The warning before the impact.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "拼了", "en": "To Hell with It", "def": "A short decision to fight despite the odds. The genre's most human line.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "拼命", "en": "Fight for Your Life", "def": "The mode rather than the shout. Used to describe the last stage of a losing battle.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "拿命来", "en": "Give Me Your Life", "def": "What a cultivator says as the attack begins. Formulaic, and always sincere.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "指剑", "en": "Finger Sword", "def": "Two fingers used as a blade. The least armed a swordsman can look while still armed.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "指劲", "en": "Finger Force", "def": "Force concentrated into a single point. Small, precise, and lethal at short range.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "指法", "en": "Finger Technique", "def": "Precision strikes to a point. Often used to hit acupoints or pierce a single layer of defence.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "按兵不动", "en": "Hold Position", "def": "Keeping troops still while everyone else commits. Political as much as military.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "挑战", "en": "Challenge", "def": "A formal invitation to fight, usually from below to above. Refusing costs face, accepting costs blood.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "挑衅", "en": "Provoke", "def": "Pushing someone into striking first, so the blame lands on them.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "捆仙索", "en": "Immortal-Binding Cord", "def": "A cord that finds its target. The harder the target struggles, the more it tightens.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "捆仙绳", "en": "Immortal-Binding Rope", "def": "A rope that tightens by itself once thrown. No known counter except being stronger at the moment it lands.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "捕快", "en": "Constable", "def": "Mortal law enforcement. Brave, underpaid, and completely out of their depth.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "捡漏", "en": "Bargain Find", "def": "Buying something underpriced because the seller did not know. The genre's favourite small victory.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "换岗", "en": "Change Shift", "def": "Handing a post to the next person. The gap between shifts is the gap in the defense.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "换气", "en": "Change Breath", "def": "The single breath taken between long exhalations underwater or in a fight.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "换血", "en": "Blood Replacement", "def": "Swapping out mortal blood for something better. Unpleasant to watch, effective within three chapters.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "授业", "en": "Teach the Trade", "def": "Formal instruction. The word implies obligation on both sides.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "授功", "en": "Bestow a Technique", "def": "Teaching the method itself rather than the energy. Formal, witnessed, and politically loaded.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "掌力", "en": "Palm Force", "def": "The driving force behind an open-hand strike. Wide, heavy, hard to dodge.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "掌教", "en": "Sect Patriarch", "def": "The head, usually old and usually absent until the crisis.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "掌柜", "en": "Shopkeeper", "def": "The proprietor. Polite to his face, ruthless behind the counter.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "掌法", "en": "Palm Technique", "def": "Open-hand strikes that push rather than cut. Preferred by characters who want to humiliate rather than kill.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "掌门", "en": "Sect Master", "def": "The one in charge. A title people use instead of a name.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/sect-master/", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "掌门之位争夺", "en": "Succession Fight", "def": "The contest for who leads next. Public in theory, decided by whatever actually works.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "掌风", "en": "Palm Wind", "def": "The pressure wave pushed ahead of a palm strike. It arrives before the hand does.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "排名", "en": "Ranking", "def": "The published order of disciples, which decides what each of them is given. Most sect cruelty happens quietly here.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "探子", "en": "Scout", "def": "Forward reconnaissance. Gets mentioned in every battle plan and rarely survives.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "接引道人", "en": "Jieyin Daoist", "def": "The other western intercessor. Between him and the previous one, the orthodox side never loses a war it should lose.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "接招", "en": "Take This", "def": "Announces an attack and gives fair warning, which is itself the insult.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "推演", "en": "Derive the Next Step", "def": "Working out what the manual's author would have written next. The scholar's version of a breakthrough.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "掩息", "en": "Mask the Breath", "def": "Suppressing the body's energy signature. Standard for anyone about to do something improper.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "掩护", "en": "Cover", "def": "Drawing attention or fire so someone else can act. A duty with a short life expectancy.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "掩杀", "en": "Pursue and Slaughter", "def": "Running down a retreating force. The aftermath scene.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "掩耳盗铃", "en": "Covering the Ears to Steal a Bell", "def": "Self-deception that fools nobody. Said about an enemy's plan.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "提纵", "en": "Leap", "def": "A boosted jump, several zhang at a time. The basic escape in any chase.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "揠苗助长", "en": "Pulling Up Seedlings", "def": "Forcing growth. The classical idiom for the same error.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "援军", "en": "Reinforcements", "def": "The arrival. Always timed to the last possible moment.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "搜刮", "en": "Loot", "def": "Stripping a defeated place of everything worth carrying: pills, artifacts, spirit stones, even the furniture. The reason the winner is never poor afterwards.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "摄魂丹", "en": "Soul-Capturing Pill", "def": "Takes a piece of the soul with it. Demonic path only, and everyone can tell afterwards.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "摆摊", "en": "Set Up a Stall", "def": "Selling from a cloth on the ground. Where protagonists dispose of loot and meet the people who will matter later.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "摊主", "en": "Stall Keeper", "def": "The vendor. In this genre either a retired expert or an informant, sometimes both.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "摊位", "en": "Stall", "def": "A single vendor's table. Where fake talismans and real bargains are sold side by side.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "摘下面具", "en": "Remove the Mask", "def": "Literal in theatre arcs, figurative in the rest. The genre likes both at once.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "撒豆成兵", "en": "Scatter Beans into Soldiers", "def": "Throwing beans that become troops. Absurd, and in the right novel absolutely terrifying.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "撤步", "en": "Step Back", "def": "Yielding ground deliberately. Not the same as retreating.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "擂主", "en": "Platform Holder", "def": "The one currently standing on the stage, obliged to keep accepting challengers until somebody beats him.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "擂台", "en": "Dueling Platform", "def": "The raised stage where disputes get settled in public. Whatever happens there becomes the sect's official memory.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/dueling-platform/", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "擂台上", "en": "On the Platform", "def": "The location phrasing that opens tournament scenes. Short, and it sets the rules.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "擂台赌斗", "en": "Arena Wager", "def": "Betting on duels, mostly in spirit stones. Officially banned, and the reason the stands are full.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "擒王", "en": "Seize the Leader", "def": "Taking the head alive. Harder than killing, worth far more.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "擒贼先擒王", "en": "Catch the Thief Before the King", "def": "Actually means catch the leader first. Constant tactical advice, almost never followed.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "收丹", "en": "Collect the Pill", "def": "Taking the finished product out without dropping it. Done with jade tools, because metal contaminates.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "收功", "en": "Close the Exercise", "def": "Ending a session properly. Skipping it is how minor injuries start.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "收尸", "en": "Collect the Bodies", "def": "Aftercare. The scene where the protagonist sees who did not make it.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "收徒", "en": "Take a Disciple", "def": "Formally accepting a student. Requires witnesses and a rite; a private agreement is not the same thing.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "收手", "en": "Call It Off", "def": "Pulling the strike back before it lands. Either mercy or a trap.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "收招", "en": "Recover", "def": "Bringing a technique back under control. Failing to is how good fighters die.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "收敛气息", "en": "Withdraw the Presence", "def": "The act of hiding. Standard before an ambush or a long stay in a city.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "改命", "en": "Change Fate", "def": "Rewriting your own pattern. The genre's favourite sin, and its favourite plot.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "改良", "en": "Improve the Method", "def": "Fixing an old flaw. Less dramatic than discovering a new one, and more useful in the long run.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "攻其不备", "en": "Strike the Unprepared", "def": "The other half of the same principle. Usually paired with the above.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "攻击阵", "en": "Attack Formation", "def": "A formation built to kill whoever walks in. Cheap, obvious, and still effective.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "放下", "en": "Letting Go", "def": "Releasing the obsession. The genre treats it as a power-up, which is one of its better ideas.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "放手一搏", "en": "One All-Out Attempt", "def": "The decision point. Used when there is nothing left to conserve.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "放肆", "en": "Insolent", "def": "'How dare you.' Said by a superior when an inferior steps out of line.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/insolent/", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "放话", "en": "Put Out Word", "def": "A public statement made in order to be repeated. In practice, a threat with witnesses attached.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "故人", "en": "Old Acquaintance", "def": "Warmer than stranger, cooler than friend. Often said with a pause before it.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "救兵", "en": "Rescue Force", "def": "The same with a warmer word. Sent by someone the protagonist helped earlier.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "敖丙", "en": "Ao Bing", "def": "The dragon prince Nezha kills in most versions. Recent adaptations make him a rival rather than a casualty, which changes the whole arc.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "敖广", "en": "Ao Guang", "def": "The East Sea dragon king. He owns the pillar the monkey king steals, and he complains to heaven about it.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "教主", "en": "Cult Master", "def": "Head of a cult, righteous or otherwise. The word itself is a warning.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "敛息珠", "en": "Presence-Hiding Pearl", "def": "Suppresses a cultivator's aura. The genre's standard stealth tool.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "敛息藏形", "en": "Hide Breath and Form", "def": "Full concealment: no sound, no energy, no outline. High-level stealth in the genre.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "敝宗", "en": "Our Humble Sect", "def": "Self-deprecating reference to one's own sect. Manners, not modesty.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "散丹", "en": "Powder Pill", "def": "A pill that failed to hold its shape. Strength remains, dosage becomes guesswork.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "散人", "en": "Free One", "def": "A self-chosen name for a cultivator who answers to nobody. Usually used as a suffix.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "散仙", "en": "Loose Immortal", "def": "An immortal with no sect and no realm behind them. Strong, but completely alone.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/loose-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "散修", "en": "Rogue Cultivator", "def": "No sect, no backing, no safety net. Strong ones are respected; weak ones are prey.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/rogue-cultivator/", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "散修丹方", "en": "Wandering Cultivator's Recipe", "def": "A cheap, unofficial formula passed around because the sect version is unaffordable. Slightly dangerous.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "散功", "en": "Disperse Cultivation", "def": "Giving up your power, usually to survive, to escape, or to start over.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "散功重修", "en": "Scatter and Rebuild", "def": "Deliberately destroying your own foundation to lay a better one. Rare, expensive, and the plot usually rewards it.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "散气", "en": "Disperse the Qi", "def": "Releasing gathered energy. Sometimes a defence, sometimes a concession.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "敬畏", "en": "Awe and Dread", "def": "The mixed respect and fear owed to something far above you. What a sect feels toward its founder's sword.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "敬茶", "en": "Offer Tea", "def": "The gesture that formalises the bond. Kneeling with both hands is the correct form.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "敬酒不吃吃罚酒", "en": "Refusing the Toast", "def": "'You will not take the polite offer, so take the beating.' A very common threat.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "敲钟", "en": "Strike the Bell", "def": "Calling everyone to assemble. The number of strikes tells you how bad it is.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "文殊广法天尊", "en": "Manjushri", "def": "The lion-mounted counterpart. His appearances are short and decisive.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "文火", "en": "Gentle Heat", "def": "The slow flame of alchemy. Rushing here ruins the batch.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "斋戒", "en": "Ritual Fasting", "def": "Abstaining before an important rite. Mechanical, but it slows a character down at a bad moment.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "斗", "en": "Dou", "def": "A measure of grain, used for stipends. The unit that tells you whether a sect pays well.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "斗宝", "en": "Treasure Contest", "def": "Comparing artifacts instead of fighting. Used to settle arguments between people who cannot afford a real fight.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "斗法", "en": "Spell Duel", "def": "A formal exchange between cultivators, treasures and techniques included. The polite word for a fight that will still end badly.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "斗法台", "en": "Test Platform", "def": "Where disputes are settled formally. Cheaper than a war and better attended.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "斗笠", "en": "Bamboo Hat", "def": "Headwear for people who do not want to be recognised. The genre's least subtle disguise.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "斗篷", "en": "Cloak", "def": "Hides the face and the build. Every messenger is wearing one.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "斜月三星洞", "en": "Slanting Moon and Three Stars Cave", "def": "The cave inside Mount Fangcun where the master taught. Read as a character puzzle, the name spells out the word for heart.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "斜月洞", "en": "Slanting Moon Cave", "def": "The shortened name of the cave where he studied. Its full form is a riddle.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "斩三尸", "en": "Severing the Three Corpses", "def": "Cutting away the three attachments that bind a cultivator: to desire, to the body, to the world.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/three-corpuses/", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "斩仙台", "en": "Immortal Execution Platform", "def": "The execution ground of heaven, where even immortals can be killed. Its existence is how heavenly authority enforces sentences.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "斩因果", "en": "Sever Karma", "def": "Cutting the threads that tie you to your past. What high realms do to escape consequences.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "斩情", "en": "Sever Emotion", "def": "Cutting off attachment to grow stronger. It works, and it costs the character their humanity.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "斩情丝", "en": "Sever the Threads", "def": "Performing the erasure. Bloodless, and permanent.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "斩断尘缘", "en": "Sever Worldly Ties", "def": "Cutting every connection to ordinary life. Required by some arts, and by some people.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "斩草除根", "en": "Pull Out the Roots", "def": "Killing the whole line so nothing grows back to take revenge. The cold, practical phrasing of the same idea.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "斩首", "en": "Behead", "def": "Killing the leader to end the force. Fast, and it usually makes things worse for the killer.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "断后", "en": "Hold the Rear", "def": "Staying behind to cover a retreat, knowing you probably will not follow. The moment a minor character becomes worth remembering.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "断臂求生", "en": "Cut the Arm to Survive", "def": "Losing a limb to escape. In this genre the limb is often regrowable, but the shame is not.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "方丈", "en": "Fangzhang Isle", "def": "The third of the eastern isles, and the one most often used as a hermitage. Careful: the same characters also mean the abbot of a temple.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "方士", "en": "Ritual Practitioner", "def": "Someone who does rites rather than cultivation. Slightly disreputable and occasionally indispensable.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "方壶", "en": "Fanghu Isle", "def": "One of the eastern isles, shaped like a vessel. Less famous than Penglai, which makes it useful for hiding things.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "方寸之间", "en": "Within a Square Inch", "def": "The riddle name of the mountain of learning. Also used as a phrase for narrow space, which translators must distinguish.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "方寸山", "en": "Mount Fangcun", "def": "The mountain where Sun Wukong learned his seventy-two transformations, hidden so well that nobody could find it unless they were meant to. Its name means square inch, which is the joke.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "施主", "en": "Benefactor", "def": "How a monk addresses a layperson. Polite, and slightly transactional.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "旁系", "en": "Cadet Branch", "def": "The side branches of a clan. Present at every ceremony, never first in line for anything.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "族谱", "en": "Clan Register", "def": "The record of a family's lineage. Being struck from it is a kind of execution.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "族长", "en": "Clan Head", "def": "The eldest authority in a family clan. His word is law inside the walls.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "无上功法", "en": "Supreme Art", "def": "A technique with no documented limit. Always found rather than bought, and always followed.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "无主之地", "en": "No Man's Land", "def": "Territory no sect claims. Killing here is not a crime, only an inconvenience.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "无事献殷勤", "en": "Keenness Without a Request", "def": "The opening of a proverb about hidden motives. Everyone knows the second half, so it is never said.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "无人问津", "en": "Nobody Comes Asking", "def": "No one asks after you, no one visits, no one recruits. The social form of being written off.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "无劫飞升", "en": "Ascension Without Tribulation", "def": "Skipping the trial entirely. Means the heavens approve, or that someone else is paying.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "无尽之海", "en": "Endless Sea", "def": "The ocean beyond the map. Places that use this term are declaring that the map has an edge.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "无底洞", "en": "Bottomless Cave", "def": "A cave that goes down further than anyone wants to follow. Used for capture arcs.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "无情道", "en": "Dao of Heartlessness", "def": "Cutting off attachment to advance. The genre's most reliable way to make a character unlikeable and then tragic.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "无我", "en": "No-Self", "def": "The absence of the person doing the cultivating. Terrifying to reach, and the point.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "无根之水", "en": "Rootless Water", "def": "Water that has not touched the ground. Rain, only collected at night, only usable before dawn.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "日月金轮", "en": "Sun and Moon Wheels", "def": "A pair of rings thrown like blades. Two of them means two arcs, and the fight is about which returns first.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "日精", "en": "Sun Essence", "def": "The opposite. Ingredient for yang pills, and always in short supply because collecting it hurts.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "旧情", "en": "Old Love", "def": "Something that ended and did not finish.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "时空法则", "en": "Laws of Space and Time", "def": "The last tier. Novels that reach it usually end within twenty chapters.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "时空裂缝", "en": "Rift in Space", "def": "A tear that leads somewhere random. Used to relocate a character to a training arc.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "时辰已到", "en": "The Hour Has Come", "def": "Said by an executioner or a patient duellist. Both readings are intended.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "时辰未到", "en": "The Hour Has Not Come", "def": "The completion. Used to end a chapter with menace.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "昆仑", "en": "Kunlun", "def": "The mountain range that myth treats as the axis of the world, with the immortals living at the top. In cultivation fiction every sect claims a branch of it, and every map puts it northwest.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "昆仑墟", "en": "Ruins of Kunlun", "def": "The abandoned upper reaches of Kunlun, where the old palaces are. Ruin-exploration arcs use it as the standard high-level dungeon.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "昆仑山巅", "en": "The Summit of Kunlun", "def": "Above the clouds, where the old palaces are. The last climb in every mountain arc.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "昆仑山玉虚", "en": "Jade Void of Kunlun", "def": "The orthodox capital, named together with its mountain. Sects quoting the full phrase are making a claim.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "昆仑山玉虚峰", "en": "Jade Void Peak, Kunlun", "def": "The peak above the clouds where the orthodox immortals meet. Reaching it on foot is the standard initiation trial.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "昆仑瑶池", "en": "Kunlun Jade Pool", "def": "The pool at the top of Kunlun, seat of the western goddess. Its water is the origin of several immortality elixirs.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "昊天镜", "en": "Mirror of Heaven", "def": "A mirror that reflects attacks back. Its limit is that it must be facing the attack.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "明劲", "en": "Manifest Force", "def": "Force that announces itself. Loud, honest, and easy to read.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "明心见性", "en": "See the Mind, See the Nature", "def": "The classical phrase for self-understanding. Used before breakthroughs, and usually without explanation.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "明悟", "en": "Realization", "def": "A smaller : the click without the sudden jump in power.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "易筋", "en": "Sinew Change", "def": "Replacing the body's connective tissue with something better. Old and feared.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "易经锻骨", "en": "Change the Tendons and Forge the Bones", "def": "Rebuilding the body for cultivation. Slow, and it explains why a late starter can still win.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "星君", "en": "Star Lord", "def": "A title tied to the constellations. Rare, and always slightly mythological.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "星辰砂", "en": "Star Sand", "def": "Sand that fell from the sky. Keyed to space techniques, and hard to buy legitimately.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "星辰铁", "en": "Starfall Iron", "def": "Metal from a fallen star. Space-attribute, and always in short supply.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "星铁", "en": "Meteoric Iron", "def": "Iron from a fallen star. Rare enough that owning a bar is a political statement.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "春联", "en": "Couplets", "def": "The red strips pasted on either side of a door. Words chosen for luck, not beauty.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "晚辈", "en": "This Junior", "def": "Calling yourself the younger party. Buys you room to speak to a senior without giving offence.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "普贤真人", "en": "Samantabhadra", "def": "One of the twelve, riding an elephant. In games, the mount is always the attack.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "暗劲", "en": "Hidden Force", "def": "Force that enters quietly and does its damage inside. The victim often keeps walking.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "暗器", "en": "Hidden Weapon", "def": "Thrown, spring-loaded, or poisoned. Universally condemned, universally carried.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "暗标", "en": "Sealed Bid", "def": "Written bids, opened at once. Used when the seller wants to hide who is buying.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "暗桩", "en": "Sleeper Agent", "def": "An agent planted years ago and never used. When activated, nobody sees it coming.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "暗灵根", "en": "Dark Spirit Root", "def": "Dark affinity. Powerful, and enough to get a child killed on suspicion.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "暗算", "en": "Plot Against", "def": "Harm arranged in advance and never announced: poison, a rigged formation, a knife from behind. The planner keeps his hands clean in public.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "替劫", "en": "Substitute the Tribulation", "def": "Making something else take the hit. Works once, and the price is always disproportionate.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "月例", "en": "Monthly Allowance", "def": "The pills and stones handed out each month. Cut off as punishment.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "月华", "en": "Moon Essence", "def": "Collected light. Ingredient for yin pills and the reason beasts camp on mountains at night.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "月宫", "en": "Moon Palace", "def": "The common name. Where every moonlit reunion scene happens by tradition.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "月宫之中", "en": "Inside the Moon Palace", "def": "Silver, cold, and almost empty. Used for scenes that need distance from the plot.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "月牙铲", "en": "Crescent Spade", "def": "The monk's spade, half shovel half crescent blade. Used by guards and by anyone who has to bury what they kill.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "有仇报仇", "en": "A Grudge Is Paid", "def": "The first half of a formula. Usually said calmly, at close range.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "有何贵干", "en": "What Brings You Here", "def": "A cool way of asking why someone has turned up. The politeness is the warning.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "有怨报怨", "en": "A Resentment Is Answered", "def": "The second half. Together they sound like a court sentence.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "有情道", "en": "Dao of Attachment", "def": "Keeping feeling and advancing anyway. Rare, and usually the author's argument with the previous one.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "有本事就试试", "en": "Try It If You Can", "def": "The invitation. Always accepted in fiction.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "有点意思", "en": "You Interest Me", "def": "What a strong character says instead of getting angry. Always a bad sign for the other party.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "有眼不识泰山", "en": "Blind to Mount Tai", "def": "'I failed to recognise greatness.' Either an apology or a dying regret.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "有眼无珠", "en": "Blind to What Stands Before You", "def": "Failing to recognize the person in front of you, usually someone you have just insulted. Self-deprecating in apology, lethal as an accusation.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "有缘再见", "en": "If Fate Allows", "def": "A farewell that admits the odds. Softer than goodbye, and sadder.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "服食丹药", "en": "Take the Pill", "def": "Swallowing the prepared pill, then sitting to let it work. The sitting is where the danger is.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "朕", "en": "We", "def": "The emperor's 'I'. In cultivation settings, used by anyone who has taken a throne.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "望乡台", "en": "Homeward Terrace", "def": "The terrace where a ghost looks back at its old home one last time. Short scene, reliable emotional beat.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "望梅止渴", "en": "Look at Plums to Cure Thirst", "def": "A comforting lie that works briefly. Cited approvingly by tacticians.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "朝廷", "en": "Imperial Court", "def": "The government of a mortal kingdom. Powerful here, irrelevant two realms up.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "木匠", "en": "Carpenter", "def": "Builds and repairs. Also the person who notices a door that should not exist.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "木灵根", "en": "Wood Spirit Root", "def": "Wood affinity: healing and growth. The best alchemists come from here.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "木鱼", "en": "Wooden Fish", "def": "A monk's percussion instrument. The rhythm is a meditation aid and, in some books, a sonic attack.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "未战先怯", "en": "Afraid Before Fighting", "def": "Losing the mental exchange first. Recognisable in the first description of a stance.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "末学", "en": "This Late Learner", "def": "An extremely humble self-reference. Used to lower yourself before asking a hard question.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "末将", "en": "This General", "def": "A military self-reference. Short, clipped, and always to a superior.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "末座", "en": "Lowest Seat", "def": "The seat at the far end. Where the person nobody rates is placed.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "本命法器", "en": "Natal Artifact", "def": "Bound to one person for life. If it breaks, so does part of the owner.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "本命法宝", "en": "Life-Bound Treasure", "def": "Bound to one person's life. It grows with them and breaks when they do.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "本命飞剑", "en": "Life-Bound Flying Sword", "def": "The swordsman's version. Grows with the owner, which is why they refuse to replace it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/life-bound-flying-sword/", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "本宫", "en": "This Palace", "def": "Self-reference by a consort or a palace authority. Rare outside court settings.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "本尊", "en": "This Venerable Self", "def": "Grander and more arrogant than this venerable one. Typical of demonic lords and masters who answer to nobody.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "本少爷", "en": "This Young Master", "def": "A rich young man referring to himself. Entitled, and usually about to be humbled.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "本帝", "en": "This Sovereign", "def": "The same imperial claim in a higher register. Usually a final-boss title.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "本座", "en": "This Venerable One", "def": "A sect master or elder referring to himself. Cold and elevated; never said to an equal. The rank is carried by the word, not the sentence.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/this-venerable-one/", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "本源之力", "en": "Source Power", "def": "The raw material behind an element. Whatever a character's speciality is, this is its floor.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "本王", "en": "This Prince", "def": "A royal or demonic lord's self-reference. Carries real authority behind it.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "本皇", "en": "This Emperor", "def": "Imperial self-reference. Whoever says it is claiming a throne.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "朱果", "en": "Vermilion Fruit", "def": "A classic breakthrough fruit. Ripens once every few decades, which is why people wait.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/vermilion-fruit/", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "朱砂", "en": "Cinnabar", "def": "The red ink that carries the effect. Never substitutable.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "朱紫国", "en": "Kingdom of Zhuzi", "def": "A kingdom with a sick king and a stolen queen. The cure is administered by a monkey pretending to be a doctor.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "朱雀", "en": "Vermilion Bird", "def": "The guardian of the south. Fire, summer, and the colour of the sky at the end.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "朱雀羽", "en": "Vermilion Feather", "def": "A feather of the southern fire bird, used to key fire formations. It burns without being consumed.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "机关", "en": "Trap Mechanism", "def": "A mechanical trap. Springs, weights and pressure plates, built by people who cannot fight.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "机缘", "en": "Fortuitous Encounter", "def": "An unplanned meeting with a ruin, an herb, or an old man that changes everything. The engine of the plot, and never something you can schedule.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "朽木", "en": "Rotten Wood", "def": "Unteachable. The harshest thing a master can call a student.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "杀人如麻", "en": "Kills Like Hemp", "def": "Killed uncountably. The idiom for a body count nobody kept track of.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "杀伐果决", "en": "Decisive in the Kill", "def": "A compliment. Means the character does not hesitate and does not lose.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "杀伐果断", "en": "Decisive in Killing", "def": "Saying yes when killing is needed, and not lingering over it afterwards. Praise in this genre, not criticism.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/decisive-in-killing/", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "杀劫", "en": "Slaughter Tribulation", "def": "A tribulation answered with killing instead of endurance. Bloody, and effective.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "杀意", "en": "Killing Intent", "def": "The will to kill made perceptible. A cultivator feels it before any weapon moves, and it can pin a weaker opponent in place.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "杀手组织", "en": "Assassin Guild", "def": "A professional service. Reliable, expensive, and occasionally the protagonist's sideline.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "杀招", "en": "Killing Move", "def": "The one technique held back until holding back is no longer possible. Announced by nobody, remembered by everyone.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "杀机一闪", "en": "A Flicker of Killing Thought", "def": "Intent noticed before it is acted on. The moment the scene turns.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "杀气腾腾", "en": "Killing Intent Rising", "def": "The visible version, usually described as a chill in the room.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "杀道", "en": "Dao of Killing", "def": "Progress through killing. Written as addiction with a body count.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "杀阵", "en": "Killing Formation", "def": "Built to kill rather than to hold. Usually the second layer of a trap.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "杂役", "en": "Chore Disciple", "def": "The bottom of the sect: sweeping, hauling water, counted as a disciple by nobody.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "杂役弟子", "en": "Menial Disciple", "def": "Works rather than trains. The genre's starting point for a protagonist with nothing.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "杂念丛生", "en": "Thoughts Sprouting", "def": "Too many things in the head at once. The reason seclusion lasts years.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "杂灵根", "en": "Mixed Spirit Root", "def": "What most people have. Barely enough to reach Foundation Establishment.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "李靖", "en": "Li Jing", "def": "Nezha's father, and the reason the boy's story is about a family rather than a monster. Their reconciliation is the point.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "杏黄旗", "en": "Apricot-Yellow Banner", "def": "A banner that stops any attack from landing. Defence so absolute that using it is effectively a stalemate.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "村庄", "en": "Village", "def": "The smallest unit of society. Gets threatened in the first chapter and remembered in the last.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "杖责", "en": "Caning", "def": "Beating with a staff as punishment. Public, and shows exactly who has no backing.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "来日方长", "en": "There Will Be Time", "def": "'We will settle this later.' A polite way to leave a fight unfinished.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "杨任", "en": "Yang Ren", "def": "A figure whose eyes were replaced with hands that hold eyes. Adaptations either keep this or cut the character.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "杨戬", "en": "Yang Jian", "def": "Erlang Shen's personal name. He fights for heaven but keeps his own army and answers only when it suits him.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "杨柳枝", "en": "Willow Branch", "def": "The branch Guanyin dips in her vase to sprinkle healing water. The gesture does the work; the branch is just a handle.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "杨柳玉净瓶", "en": "Willow and Jade Vase", "def": "The full name, used in formal scenes. Same object, slower description.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "极品", "en": "Peak Grade", "def": "The best of its tier. Rare enough to be a plot object.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "极品灵根", "en": "Peak-Grade Root", "def": "Above heavenly, if the system bothers to grade further. Exists mostly to make a rival insufferable.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "极品灵石", "en": "Peak Spirit Stone", "def": "Rare enough to buy a small sect. Usually the prize of an entire arc.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "枉死城", "en": "City of Unjust Deaths", "def": "Where those who died wrongly are held. Their grievances are the premise of half the ghost stories in the genre.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "枪", "en": "Spear", "def": "A spear artifact, favoured by anyone who wants reach and does not care about elegance.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "枪意", "en": "Spear Intent", "def": "Reach and refusal. Spear users in this genre are almost always the patient type.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "枷锁", "en": "Cangue", "def": "The wooden collar locked around a prisoner's neck. Heavy, and public by design.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "标价", "en": "Asking Price", "def": "The first number named. Nobody expects to pay it.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "树心", "en": "Heartwood", "def": "The core of an old tree, used for talismans and for staves. Removing it kills the tree, which is sometimes the plot.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "株连", "en": "Kin Punishment", "def": "Punishing a criminal's whole family. The reason people hide their surnames.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "根基", "en": "Foundation Depth", "def": "How much has been packed into each stage, not how many stages you have reached. Never appears on any sect record, and decides every real fight. Distinct from, which is the base itself.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "根基不稳", "en": "Unstable Foundation", "def": "Fast advancement that left gaps underneath. The standard diagnosis for a genius who loses to someone half his speed.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/unstable-foundation/", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "根基之重要", "en": "Why Foundations Matter", "def": "The stated reason weak characters lose late. Repeated in every sect lecture.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "根基受损", "en": "Foundation Damaged", "def": "The injury that ends a career. Recovery takes an arc, if at all.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "根基重塑", "en": "Rebuild the Foundation", "def": "The full project. Requires a rare pill and a long absence from the plot.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "根骨", "en": "Bone Structure", "def": "The body's physical foundation. Decides how much punishment it can take before breaking.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "桃园", "en": "Peach Garden", "def": "The orchard of immortality, guarded and counted. Any theft from it starts a war with heaven.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "档案", "en": "Archives", "def": "The stored records of everything the sect ever did. Rarely opened, always useful.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "梅山", "en": "Mount Mei", "def": "The mountain home of Erlang's six sworn brothers. A private force outside the celestial chain of command.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "梨园", "en": "Theatre Troupe", "def": "Travelling performers. They go everywhere and are welcomed everywhere.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "梼杌", "en": "Taowu", "def": "The stubborn one of the four fiends, a boar-tiger that refuses to be reasoned with. Used for enemies who cannot be talked down.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "棒打鸳鸯", "en": "Beat Apart the Mandarins", "def": "Outside force breaking up a couple. Delivered as a complaint, not a description.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "棺材铺", "en": "Coffin Shop", "def": "A shop that appears in every ghost arc, with a proprietor who does not blink.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "椒图", "en": "Jiaotu", "def": "The shell beast carved on door knockers. Guards the gate, never leaves it.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "欠条", "en": "IOU", "def": "A written promise to pay. Useful leverage, and dangerous to lose.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "欢好", "en": "Intimacy", "def": "The polite word. Roughly what the chapter fades to black on.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "欲言又止", "en": "Wanting to Speak, Stopping", "def": "The hesitation. Always noticed by the other party and always explained later.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "欺人太甚", "en": "Going Too Far", "def": "'You have pushed it too far.' The line right before someone finally fights back.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "歃血", "en": "Blood Oath", "def": "Mixing blood to seal an alliance. Serious, and still breakable.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "正派", "en": "Orthodox Sect", "def": "Approved, traditional, and often wrong about the problem at hand.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "正道", "en": "Righteous Path", "def": "The side that calls itself good. A political label as much as a moral position.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/righteous-path/", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "正道联盟", "en": "Righteous Alliance", "def": "A coalition of orthodox sects. United on paper, competitive every other day.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "此事休要再提", "en": "Drop the Subject", "def": "Closing a topic permanently. Said by someone who will not be argued with.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "此仇不报", "en": "If This Wrong Is Not Answered", "def": "The opening of an oath. Completed only in the last chapter.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "此地无银三百两", "en": "Three Hundred Taels of Silver Are Not Here", "def": "A denial that proves the thing denied. Used to describe clumsy lying.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "步法", "en": "Footwork", "def": "Where the feet go. Decides who is still standing when the technique fails.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "武当山", "en": "Wudang Mountain", "def": "The mountain of internal martial arts and Daoist cultivation. Sword and taiji techniques are attributed here.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "武林", "en": "Martial World", "def": "The community of ordinary martial artists, as opposed to cultivators. One tier below the real thing.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "武火", "en": "Fierce Heat", "def": "The hard flame, used to seal a pill at the end. Too early and the whole thing cracks.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "死关", "en": "Death Seclusion", "def": "Seclusion with no exit until breakthrough or death. A vow, and a gamble the character is not expected to survive.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "死到临头", "en": "Death at the Door", "def": "The moment before it happens, said aloud so the other person hears it.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "死域", "en": "Dead Land", "def": "Nothing grows, nothing lives, and qi does not move. Something happened here once.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "死士", "en": "Deathsworn", "def": "Raised to die on command. No fear, no negotiation, no survivors to question.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "死气", "en": "Death Qi", "def": "Energy of things dead. Nourishes the demonic path and is survivable for everyone else only briefly.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "殉情", "en": "Die for Love", "def": "Choosing death over the loss. Romantic in mortal tales, stupid in this one.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "残次品", "en": "Seconds", "def": "Flawed goods. Sold cheap to people who cannot afford anything else.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "残篇", "en": "Incomplete Manual", "def": "Only part of the technique survived. Practice it wrong and you cripple yourself.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "残部", "en": "Shattered Remnants", "def": "What is left of a force after a defeat. Leaderless, wounded, and usually absorbed by whoever won.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "殿后", "en": "Bring Up the Rear", "def": "The formal version. Slightly less likely to be fatal.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "毒丹", "en": "Poison Pill", "def": "A pill meant to kill. Sometimes handed over with a smile.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "毒功", "en": "Poison Art", "def": "Slow damage delivered by contact. The genre treats poisoners as unglamorous and effective.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "毒箭", "en": "Poisoned Arrow", "def": "The arrow with a payload. Used to even a fight that the archer should lose.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "毒针", "en": "Poison Needle", "def": "A needle with something unpleasant on it. Small enough to be missed in a fight.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "比丘国", "en": "Kingdom of Biqui", "def": "A kingdom where children are being harvested for a king's medicine. The darkest satire in the source.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "比试", "en": "Sparring Match", "def": "A contest with rules and a referee. Killing is forbidden, which is exactly why it settles nothing.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "比试开始", "en": "The Match Begins", "def": "The signal. Everything before this was warm-up dialogue.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "毕方", "en": "Bifang", "def": "The one-legged fire bird. Its appearance in a text is usually a warning that a fire is about to matter.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "气劲", "en": "Qi Force", "def": "The general term for force released from the body. The foundation of everything unarmed.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "气势", "en": "Momentum", "def": "The pressure a fighter puts out. Something that can be built and broken.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气势如虹", "en": "Momentum Like a Rainbow", "def": "Unstoppable. The description at the peak of an arc.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气势汹汹", "en": "Aggressive Momentum", "def": "Coming in hard. Usually punished.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气定神闲", "en": "Calm and Composed", "def": "Nothing is bothering them. Before a fight, this is a threat.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气息", "en": "Presence", "def": "The felt signature of a cultivator's qi. Reading someone's presence is how characters size up a stranger before a single word is exchanged.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气息内敛", "en": "Restrained Presence", "def": "Discipline. Masters look ordinary until they do not.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气息微弱", "en": "Breath Failing", "def": "The clinical description of someone dying. Tells the reader there is exactly enough time for one last sentence.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气息沉稳", "en": "Steady Presence", "def": "The physical signal of someone in control. Detectable before any action.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气息深不可测", "en": "Unfathomable Presence", "def": "The signal of someone hiding their level. The genre's universal tell.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气感", "en": "Sense of Qi", "def": "The first moment a beginner feels energy. Written as a tingling, and it never gets more interesting than that.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "气数已尽", "en": "One's Time Is Up", "def": "The luck has run out. Said of dying dynasties and dying men alike.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "气机", "en": "Qi Signature", "def": "The precise pattern of a person's qi, used to identify, track, or lock onto them. Technical vocabulary, not poetic.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气海", "en": "Qi Sea", "def": "The reservoir of qi below the dantian. Its size decides how long you can keep fighting, not how hard you hit.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "气焰嚣张", "en": "Swaggering", "def": "Arrogance performed loudly, with backup present. Folds instantly when the backup does.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "气血", "en": "Vitality", "def": "Physical life force. What body refiners burn as fuel and what old age drains.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "气血如龙", "en": "Blood Like a Dragon", "def": "Description of a body cultivator's vitality. Audible from across the courtyard.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "气血翻涌", "en": "Blood and Qi Churning", "def": "The pre-vomit warning. Internal damage in progress.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "气运", "en": "Fortune", "def": "Luck treated as a measurable resource. Sects rise and fall on it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/fortune/", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "气运加身", "en": "Favored by Fortune", "def": "Luck thick enough to notice. The polite explanation for a protagonist who should already be dead.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "气运被夺", "en": "Fortune Stolen", "def": "Someone took your luck. From here everything goes wrong and no cause is ever found.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "气门", "en": "Qi Gate", "def": "A weak point where energy enters the body. The thing an assassin aims at.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "水到渠成", "en": "Comes When It Comes", "def": "The result arriving by itself once the groundwork is finished. Used to explain a breakthrough that looked effortless from outside.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "水头", "en": "Water Clarity", "def": "A jade-quality term borrowed for artifact grading. High clarity means high price.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "水帘洞", "en": "Water Curtain Cave", "def": "The cave behind the waterfall on Huaguo, found by jumping through and not dying. It is the first test in the monkey king's story, and the reward is a home.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "水晶宫", "en": "Crystal Palace", "def": "The dragon palace's main hall, all glass and coral. Used for scenes that need wealth and underwater pressure at once.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "水灵根", "en": "Water Spirit Root", "def": "Water affinity: patient, fluid, and quietly hard to hit.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "水道渠成", "en": "The Channel Fills", "def": "The idiom for a natural completion. Deployed right before it happens.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "永生", "en": "Eternal Life", "def": "Never dying at all. Much harder than, and usually the villain's goal.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "求和", "en": "Sue for Peace", "def": "Asking to end a conflict. Says clearly who is losing.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "求婚", "en": "Proposal", "def": "In sect settings this is closer to a treaty than a question.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "求而不得", "en": "Wanted, Never Had", "def": "The classic unrequited structure. Written as a character's habit, not a confession.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "求饶", "en": "Beg for Mercy", "def": "Asking to be spared, usually from the knees. In this genre it buys time far more often than it buys a life.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "汝", "en": "Thou", "def": "An archaic 'you', the exact match for old-fashioned English 'thou'. Used by characters who want to sound ancient.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "江湖", "en": "Jianghu", "def": "The world of wandering fighters and private grudges, outside official law. Untranslatable; keep the pinyin.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/jianghu/", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "沉心静气", "en": "Settle the Mind", "def": "The deliberate act of calming down before doing something irreversible.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "沉肩", "en": "Drop the Shoulder", "def": "Lowering the shoulder to add weight to a strike. An old martial detail.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "沉腰", "en": "Sink the Waist", "def": "Rooting the lower body so the upper body can deliver. What stops a push from moving you.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "沉香斧", "en": "Chenxiang's Axe", "def": "The axe of the boy who split a mountain to free his mother. Every story using it is about a mother.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "沉默片刻", "en": "A Moment of Silence", "def": "The pause before a lie. The genre treats pauses as evidence.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "沐浴更衣", "en": "Bathe and Change", "def": "The ritual before a formal event. Signals that the next scene matters.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "沐浴焚香", "en": "Bathe and Burn Incense", "def": "The fuller ritual before teaching, worship or a duel. Takes a paragraph and sets the tone.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "沙悟净", "en": "Sha Wujing", "def": "The sand general, the quietest of the four. In games he is the tank nobody picks until the boss fight.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "油尽灯枯", "en": "The Lamp Is Dry", "def": "Exhausted at the last moment. The line used before a final stand.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "油灯", "en": "Oil Lamp", "def": "Light in a cave. Rarely mentioned without a reason.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "沼泽", "en": "Swamp", "def": "Wet, slow, and full of ambushes. Nobody wins a battle here, they just leave.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "沿海", "en": "Coast", "def": "Where sea routes start. The military version of a plot hinge.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "泄气", "en": "Leak Qi", "def": "Energy escaping where it should not. A wound, a flaw, or a betrayal.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "法则", "en": "Law", "def": "A rule of reality itself. Higher than a technique: you cannot break one, only understand it.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "法则之上", "en": "Above the Law", "def": "Beyond the rules of the world. The tier where a character stops obeying the setting.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "法则碎片", "en": "Fragment of Law", "def": "A piece of a fundamental rule, usable once. Loot from the highest-tier ruins.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "法力", "en": "Dharma Power", "def": "The spendable fuel. Every technique costs some; running out mid-fight is fatal.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/dharma-power/", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "法器", "en": "Magic Tool", "def": "A basic enchanted item: a sword that cuts deeper, a robe that stops a blade.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/magic-tool/", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "法器品阶", "en": "Artifact Grade", "def": "Ranked from common to immortal. A grade one artifact is a sharp tool; grade nine is a character.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "法天象地", "en": "Heaven-and-Earth Manifestation", "def": "Growing to a size that changes the landscape. Used for one scene per book, and never twice.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "法宝", "en": "Magic Treasure", "def": "A real artifact, bound to one owner and usable at range. What cultivators actually fight with.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/magic-treasure/", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "法宝压制", "en": "Artifact Suppression", "def": "A higher-grade artifact forcing a lower one to stop working. Why picking the right tool matters.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "法宝自爆", "en": "Artifact Detonation", "def": "Pushing an artifact past its limit deliberately. Big explosion, permanent loss.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "法宝轰击", "en": "Artifact Barrage", "def": "Trading blows with flying treasures at range. A contest of qi reserves and artifact grade more than of skill.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "法相", "en": "Dharma Form", "def": "A giant projection of the cultivator, shown at high realms. Once it appears, the fight is settled.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "波澜不惊", "en": "Unmoved", "def": "Nothing produces a reaction. Either great discipline or total exhaustion.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "洗尘丹", "en": "Cleansing Pill", "def": "Removes impurities pushed out by a breakthrough. Practical, and described in unflattering detail.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "洗灵丹", "en": "Spirit-Cleansing Pill", "def": "Flushes impurities out of the body. The first one hurts; the tenth is routine.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "洗髓丹", "en": "Marrow Cleansing Pill", "def": "Flushes impurities out of the body. Painful, and permanently improves the physique.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "洗髓伐骨", "en": "Marrow Cleansing", "def": "The first true rebuild of the body. Agonising, necessary, and impossible to fake.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "洞主", "en": "Cave Master", "def": "Runs a cave complex. Small scale, absolute authority.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "洞天福地", "en": "Grotto-Heaven", "def": "A place where qi gathers so densely it becomes a small world of its own.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/grotto-heaven/", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "洞府", "en": "Cave Residence", "def": "A cultivator's private home, usually cut into a mountain. Status symbol as much as shelter.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "洞府牌", "en": "Cave Token", "def": "The key to a sect-assigned dwelling. Losing it means losing your home, which is a plot in itself.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "洞房", "en": "Bridal Chamber", "def": "The wedding night room. The story usually cuts away here.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "流拍", "en": "Unsold", "def": "No one bid enough. The item is quietly withdrawn, which means someone was watching.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "流放", "en": "Exile", "def": "Banishment to the frontier. A slow death sentence with paperwork.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "流民", "en": "Refugee", "def": "Displaced people. The visible consequence of whichever war the plot has been ignoring.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "流沙河", "en": "Flowing Sands River", "def": "The river on the westward road where Sha Wujing waited. Wide, slow and full of things that eat travellers.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "流沙河底", "en": "The Bed of the Flowing Sands", "def": "Where a general waited, eating travellers. Dredging it is how he joins the pilgrimage.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "浊气", "en": "Turbid Qi", "def": "The heavy half of the primordial split. Poisonous to cultivators, useful to alchemists.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "测灵石", "en": "Spirit Testing Stone", "def": "The stone a child touches to reveal their spirit root. The first scene of most stories.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "测灵碑", "en": "Testing Stele", "def": "A larger version used for crowds. Smaller sects cannot afford one, which is why their disciples are unlucky.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "浑厚", "en": "Deep and Dense", "def": "Description of qi that is thick rather than bright. Reads as slow on the surface, turns out to be immovable.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "浑身一震", "en": "Whole Body Trembling", "def": "The surge from a revelation or a breakthrough. Too convenient, and still effective.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "浮空岛", "en": "Sky Island", "def": "A mountain floating in the air. High-tier, plus a permanent access problem.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "海上仙岛", "en": "Sea Isle", "def": "Offshore and hard to reach. The setting for isolation arcs.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "海岛", "en": "Island", "def": "Any island. Usually the site of a trial with one entrance and a monster at the exit.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "海捕文书", "en": "Wanted Notice", "def": "The formal document ordering an arrest anywhere in the empire.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "海誓山盟", "en": "Vows of Sea and Mountain", "def": "Enormous promises made in private. In this genre, always quoted back later.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "消耗战", "en": "War of Attrition", "def": "Both sides paying. Fights that last a chapter usually get described this way.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "涌泉", "en": "Bubbling Spring", "def": "The point on the sole of the foot. Where a body draws strength from the ground.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "淬体", "en": "Body Tempering", "def": "Beating the body with force, medicine, or lightning until it stops being ordinary.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/temper-the-body/", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "淬体液", "en": "Tempering Liquid", "def": "The bath that hardens a body being refined. Smells terrible, and costs more than the cauldron it is boiled in.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "淬火", "en": "Quench", "def": "The plunge from white heat into cold. The single step where most artifacts die.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "淬炼", "en": "Temper", "def": "Repeatedly heating and striking a material to drive impurities out of it.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "淬骨丹", "en": "Bone-Tempering Pill", "def": "Hardens bone from the inside. Body cultivators buy it by the jar.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "深不可测", "en": "Unfathomable", "def": "Cannot be measured, therefore cannot be safely approached. The standard reading of a hidden master's aura.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/unfathomable/", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "深可见骨", "en": "Wound to the Bone", "def": "Injury description: the cut goes deep enough to show bone. Signals damage that ordinary healing pills cannot close.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "深渊", "en": "Abyss", "def": "A hole with no bottom and a reputation. Things come up out of it.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "深渊裂隙", "en": "Abyssal Rift", "def": "A crack that goes down further than the author plans to explain.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "深藏不露", "en": "Deeply Hidden, Never Shown", "def": "Nothing visible on the surface, everything underneath. Said of old servants, beggars, and anyone the narration is quietly warning you about.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "混元大罗金仙", "en": "Primordial Great Luo Golden Immortal", "def": "The rank above Great Luo, and the point where the ladder stops describing power and starts describing cosmology. Almost nobody writes a protagonist here; it exists so the antagonists can be beyond the protagonist.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/primordial-great-luo-golden-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "混元金斗", "en": "Chaos Golden Dipper", "def": "A container that drops over a target and holds it. Capture, not killing, which makes it worse in a long arc.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "混天绫", "en": "Cosmos Silk Ribbon", "def": "A length of red silk that binds and drags. Looks like cloth, behaves like a rope with a will.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "混沌", "en": "Primordial Chaos", "def": "The undivided state before anything had a shape. Modern novels use it as the ultimate power source; anything called chaos-attribute is automatically the strongest thing in the room.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/primordial-chaos/", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "混沌体", "en": "Chaos Physique", "def": "Suited to everything, which in practice means suited to nothing until the late game.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "混沌兽", "en": "Hundun Beast", "def": "The fourth fiend, a faceless blob of disorder. Chaos-attribute monsters in novels are drawn from it.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "混沌珠", "en": "Chaos Pearl", "def": "A pearl holding a scrap of the undivided world. Inside it, the rules of the local universe stop applying.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/chaos-pearl/", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "混沌青莲", "en": "Chaos Green Lotus", "def": "A plant that grew before the world settled. Every part of it is a treasure, including the root.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "混账", "en": "Bastard", "def": "A general-purpose insult with no specific content. Loud rather than clever.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "添油战术", "en": "Feed in Piecemeal", "def": "Committing troops in small groups. Always criticised and always used.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "清修", "en": "Pure Cultivation", "def": "Cultivating without involvement in anything. Quiet, slow, sustainable.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "清册", "en": "Inventory", "def": "The list of what the sect owns. Audits are where thefts surface.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "清心咒", "en": "Heart-Clearing Chant", "def": "A spoken formula that pushes out external influence. The counter to most illusions.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "清气", "en": "Clear Qi", "def": "The light half of the same split. What the heavens are made of.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "渐悟", "en": "Gradual Enlightenment", "def": "Progress by accumulation. Rarely shown on the page, because it has no scene.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "渔翁得利", "en": "The Fisherman Profits", "def": "The second half. Said quietly by whoever is waiting.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "渡劫", "en": "Tribulation Transcendence", "def": "Surviving heaven's judgement. Fail and the soul scatters on the spot, no reincarnation.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/tribulation-transcendence/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "渡劫失败", "en": "Failed Tribulation", "def": "Not simply death: the body may survive while the soul does not, which is worse.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "渡劫期", "en": "Tribulation Stage", "def": "The waiting room before ascension. Every scene is a countdown.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "渡口", "en": "Ferry Crossing", "def": "A river landing with boats for hire. Quiet places where people disappear.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "渡真气", "en": "Pass the True Qi", "def": "Pushing energy into another body, usually to heal. Intimate, slow, and often the first physical contact between two characters.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "温养", "en": "Nurture", "def": "Feeding power into something slowly over time. How treasures and injuries are handled.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "游侠", "en": "Wandering Hero", "def": "A rogue with principles. Fights what he finds and moves on.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "游斗", "en": "Harass", "def": "Circling and striking without committing. The tactic of the weaker side that wants to live.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "溃散", "en": "Break and Scatter", "def": "An army coming apart and ceasing to be an army. What happens the instant the strongest fighter on your side falls.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "滚", "en": "Scram", "def": "One syllable, total contempt. Never followed by an explanation.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "滚一边去", "en": "Get Lost", "def": "Cruder than get out, and aimed at someone whose opinion nobody asked for.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "滚出去", "en": "Get Out", "def": "Short, final, and rarely repeated.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "滚出来", "en": "Come Out", "def": "The challenge at a door. Frequent in revenge scenes.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "演武场", "en": "Training Ground", "def": "Where disciples spar in public. Reputations are made and destroyed here.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "演法堂", "en": "Hall of Demonstration", "def": "Where elders show a technique to a crowd. Students copy what they can, and the ones at the back copy nothing.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "漫天要价", "en": "Open With an Absurd Price", "def": "The first move of any market negotiation. Haggling is the expected reply.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "濯垢泉", "en": "Bathing Spring", "def": "The spring where the spider spirits wash. The most adapted scene in the entire pilgrimage, for reasons the text is coy about.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "瀛洲", "en": "Yingzhou", "def": "One of the eastern immortal isles, home to herbs and strange birds. Alchemy plots need it for ingredients that cannot be bought.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "灌江口", "en": "Guanjiangkou", "def": "The river mouth where Erlang Shen's temple stands and where he keeps his own army. He answers to heaven but does not obey it.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "灌顶", "en": "Empowerment", "def": "A senior forcing cultivation into a junior. It works, and it costs the senior their own progress.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "火上浇油", "en": "Add Oil to the Fire", "def": "Making an argument worse. Said of anyone who speaks in the middle of a fight.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "火候", "en": "Heat Control", "def": "Timing and temperature. The part of alchemy that cannot be written down, only learned by ruining batches.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "火候失控", "en": "Loss of Heat Control", "def": "The furnace goes hot at the wrong moment. The results are loud.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "火凤", "en": "Fire Phoenix", "def": "The combat variant. Leaves a trail that keeps burning.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "火劫", "en": "Fire Tribulation", "def": "Burning rather than striking. Tests the body's endurance instead of its defence.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "火尖枪", "en": "Fire-Tipped Spear", "def": "The spear Nezha carries, tipped with flame. Spear techniques of fire alignment borrow its name for their final move.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "火山", "en": "Volcano", "def": "Fire-attribute ground. Alchemists want the heat, everyone else wants distance.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "火山口", "en": "Crater", "def": "Heat, ash, and a chance at a fire vein. Alchemy sects build near them on purpose.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "火灵根", "en": "Fire Spirit Root", "def": "Fire affinity: fast, aggressive, and useless in water.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "火焰山", "en": "Flaming Mountains", "def": "The mountain that burns everything, created by a furnace accident. Crossing it needs the fan, which is why the fan exists.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "火焰山脚", "en": "The Foot of the Flaming Mountains", "def": "Where the road ends and the heat begins. Every crossing scene starts here with a temperature.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "火焰符", "en": "Flame Talisman", "def": "A thrown talisman that becomes a wall of fire. Cheap, common, and still frightening.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "火眼金睛", "en": "Fiery Eyes", "def": "The eyes that see through disguises, formed in a furnace. Every adaptation shows them glowing, which the source never says.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "火莲", "en": "Fire Lotus", "def": "Lotus that grows in lava. Fire cultivators pay anything.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灭法国", "en": "Kingdom That Kills Monks", "def": "A kingdom that executes monastics on sight. The pilgrims pass through by pretending to be ordinary travellers.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "灭门", "en": "Wipe Out a House", "def": "Killing an entire clan or sect down to the servants. The standard atrocity that opens a revenge plot and closes a reputation.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "灯会", "en": "Lantern Fair", "def": "Night market with lanterns. Chases through lantern fairs are a genre staple.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "灯笼", "en": "Lantern", "def": "Hangs outside every door at festival. Also the signal that a place is open after dark.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "灰飞烟灭", "en": "Dust and Smoke", "def": "The body and everything in it being erased. Dramatic, and often survivable due to a loophole.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "灵体", "en": "Spirit Physique", "def": "A body type that interacts with energy better than normal. The genre's upgrade over having good roots.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "灵体状态", "en": "Being a Spirit", "def": "Existing as a non-physical entity. Practical for spying and useless for holding a sword.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "灵兽", "en": "Spirit Beast", "def": "A beast that cultivates like a person. Can be contracted; cannot be owned.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spirit-beast/", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵兽园", "en": "Beast Garden", "def": "Where a sect keeps its beasts. Half zoo, half armoury.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵兽市场", "en": "Beast Market", "def": "Where animals are bought and sold. Smelly, noisy, and full of information.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵兽袋", "en": "Spirit Beast Pouch", "def": "A pouch that holds living beasts. Quietly essential for anyone who tames them.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵力", "en": "Spiritual Energy", "def": "The raw energy in the air and in things. What you gather before you can spend it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spiritual-energy/", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "灵力枯竭", "en": "Qi Depleted", "def": "Emptied out. The most dangerous state a cultivator can be in, because it is the one state where numbers start to matter.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "灵厨", "en": "Spirit Chef", "def": "Someone who cooks with ingredients too strong for ordinary people. A niche profession and a reliable comedy device.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵台", "en": "Mind Platform", "def": "An older term for the seat of consciousness. 'Clear mind platform' means a calm, unclouded mind.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "灵台方寸山", "en": "Spirit Terrace, Mount Fangcun", "def": "The full name of the mountain where the monkey was taught. The name is a riddle that resolves into the word for heart.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "灵台清明", "en": "Clear Mind Platform", "def": "A settled, unclouded mind. The state every breakthrough is secretly waiting for.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "灵台蒙尘", "en": "Clouded Mind", "def": "The first symptom of a mind going wrong. Usually noticed by other people first.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "灵器", "en": "Spirit Tool", "def": "The first grade that can hold energy. What a mid-tier disciple carries.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "灵堂", "en": "Funeral Hall", "def": "The room where the dead lie in state. Voices drop and grudges surface.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "灵宝", "en": "Spirit Treasure", "def": "Above a magic treasure: it has its own presence and can act without being swung.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spirit-treasure/", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "灵宠", "en": "Spirit Pet", "def": "A beast raised from the nest rather than bound by contract. Loyal, and useful in ways contracts never are.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵山", "en": "Spirit Mountain", "def": "A mountain saturated with qi. Sects are built on them and wars are fought over them.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵山之上", "en": "Above Spirit Mountain", "def": "Where the scriptures are kept, and where the final accounting happens.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "灵山九重", "en": "Nine Tiers of Spirit Mountain", "def": "The last climb, counted in stages. Each stage is a test the character intends to skip.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "灵山脚下", "en": "The Foot of Spirit Mountain", "def": "The last stage of the westward road. Everyone stops here to be tested one final time.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "灵峰", "en": "Spirit Peak", "def": "A mountain with qi in it. Usually one peak, one master.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵明石猴", "en": "Stone Monkey of Bright Spirit", "def": "The category the monkey king belongs to, born from stone and aware from birth. The other three primates exist to define him by contrast.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "灵晶", "en": "Spirit Crystal", "def": "A purer, denser form of spirit stone. Where high-level arrays get their power.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵智", "en": "Awareness", "def": "The threshold that turns an animal into a character. Everything before it is hunting; everything after is negotiation.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "灵智初开", "en": "Awakening Awareness", "def": "The moment an animal becomes a person. Written as a shift in the eyes.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵材", "en": "Spirit Material", "def": "The blanket term for anything refined into an artifact. Markets price it by grade, not by name.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "灵果", "en": "Spirit Fruit", "def": "Fruit grown on a spirit tree. Eaten fresh or used as a pill catalyst.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵根", "en": "Spirit Root", "def": "The innate channel that decides whether you can cultivate at all, and how fast.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spirit-root/", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "灵根受损", "en": "Spirit Root Damage", "def": "Half destroyed rather than whole. The injury that makes ordinary progress impossible and gives a reason to scheme.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "灵根品质", "en": "Root Quality", "def": "How good the roots are, usually graded from junk to heaven. The single most common stat in the genre.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "灵根属性", "en": "Root Element", "def": "Which element a person leans toward. Determines what techniques they can learn without pain.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "灵根测试", "en": "Spirit Root Test", "def": "The ceremony where a sect checks a child's root and decides whether to take them in.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "灵根移植", "en": "Root Transplant", "def": "Moving a spirit root from one body to another. The donor does not survive it.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "灵植", "en": "Spirit Plant", "def": "A spirit herb grown on purpose instead of found in the wild. Slower, safer, and owned by whoever holds the field.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵植夫", "en": "Spirit Cultivator", "def": "A farmer who grows these plants. A profession the genre treats as humble until someone grows something impossible.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵气潮汐", "en": "Qi Tide", "def": "The slow rise and fall of ambient qi. Decides when seclusion works and when realms open.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "灵泉", "en": "Spirit Spring", "def": "Water with qi in it. Heals, and worth holding.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵洲", "en": "Spirit Continent", "def": "A landmass defined by its qi. Larger than a region, smaller than a world.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵海", "en": "Spirit Sea", "def": "A sea with qi in the water. Crossing it requires a real vessel or a real realm.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵液", "en": "Spirit Liquid", "def": "Refined fluid used as a base for pills and for feeding formations. Sold by the drop.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "灵湖", "en": "Spirit Lake", "def": "A lake of qi-dense water. What lives at the bottom is the local sect's real business.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵溪", "en": "Spirit Stream", "def": "A stream that carries qi downhill. Village-level treasure, sect-level excuse.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵潭", "en": "Spirit Pool", "def": "A small pool, usually at the bottom of a cave, usually guarded.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵狐", "en": "Spirit Fox", "def": "A fox that grows wiser with age. In stories, always smarter than the cultivator.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵猴", "en": "Spirit Monkey", "def": "Smart, quick, and fond of treasure. The comic companion animal.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵猿", "en": "Spirit Ape", "def": "Strong, clever, and quick to learn. The beast most likely to become a person.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵玉", "en": "Spirit Jade", "def": "Jade that holds qi. The standard material for talismans and the standard bribe.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵玉床", "en": "Spirit Jade Bed", "def": "A bed of jade that speeds cultivation while you sleep. The perk that keeps core disciples loyal.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "灵田", "en": "Spirit Field", "def": "Farmland that grows spirit herbs. Guarded like a treasury.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵田契约", "en": "Field Lease", "def": "Paper for a plot of spirit farmland. Boring, and the reason a sect has money.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "灵眼", "en": "Spirit Eye", "def": "Where a spirit vein surfaces. The exact spot every sect wants to build on.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵石", "en": "Spirit Stone", "def": "The currency, and also a power source. Which is why nobody enjoys spending it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spirit-stone/", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵石不足", "en": "Short of Stones", "def": "The phrase that opens the second half of many chapters.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵石之地", "en": "Land of Stones", "def": "A region mined for currency. Wealthy, and therefore guarded and invaded in equal measure.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵石充值", "en": "Top Up Spirit Stones", "def": "Settling an account by weight. Merchants use scales, which tells you what kind of market it is.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵石矿", "en": "Spirit Stone Mine", "def": "Ground that produces spirit stones. The honest reason behind most sect wars.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵石矿脉", "en": "Spirit Stone Vein", "def": "The source of currency. Owning one is the reason sects go to war.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵石袋", "en": "Purse", "def": "Where stones are carried. Weight matters, and so does who can see it.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵矿", "en": "Spirit Ore", "def": "Stone that yields spirit stones. The actual reason sects fight over a mountain.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵砂", "en": "Spirit Sand", "def": "Sand ground from spirit stone, used instead of cinnabar on serious work.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "灵票", "en": "Spirit Note", "def": "A paper promise for stones. Works until somebody needs actual stones.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵米", "en": "Spirit Rice", "def": "Rice grown on spirit veins. What cultivators eat instead of mortal food.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵脉", "en": "Spirit Vein", "def": "An underground river of qi. Whoever holds it holds the region.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spirit-vein/", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵脉之争", "en": "Vein Dispute", "def": "The argument over who owns the energy line. Reasonable cause for a small war.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵脉枯竭", "en": "Depleted Spirit Vein", "def": "The real reason a sect declines. Nobody says it out loud; everyone recruits elsewhere.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵脉节点", "en": "Vein Node", "def": "Where two lines cross. A good place for a hall, a bad place for a bedroom.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵舟", "en": "Spirit Boat", "def": "A flying boat. Transport for people who cannot fly under their own power yet.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "灵舟票", "en": "Boat Ticket", "def": "Paid passage on a sect's flying boat. Cheap seats get a deck and a storm.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "灵船", "en": "Spirit Ship", "def": "A full-size vessel for crossing seas and skies. Owning one makes a sect a power.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "灵芝", "en": "Reishi", "def": "The most familiar medicinal fungus in Chinese practice. In fiction it appears at the humble end of the scale.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵茶", "en": "Spirit Tea", "def": "Tea brewed from spirit leaves. Served to guests, and a quiet display of wealth.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "灵草", "en": "Spirit Herb", "def": "A plant that holds qi. The base material of almost every pill.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spirit-herb/", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵药", "en": "Spirit Medicine", "def": "A herb or material strong enough to matter. Measured by years of age, not size.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵蚕丝", "en": "Spirit Silk", "def": "Thread from a spirit silkworm. Woven into robes that shrug off blades.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵蛇", "en": "Spirit Snake", "def": "A snake with qi in its blood. Fast, quiet, and venom worth more than its hide.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵蜂", "en": "Spirit Bee", "def": "Bees that make spirit honey. The hive is a treasure, and it knows it.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵蜜", "en": "Spirit Honey", "def": "Produced by spirit bees. Heals and replenishes at the same time, which is why it is rationed.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵蝶", "en": "Spirit Butterfly", "def": "A small butterfly used for scouting and messages. Too fragile to keep alive long.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵觉", "en": "Spirit Sense", "def": "The instinct for qi and danger that precedes training. Faster than divine sense, less precise.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "灵识", "en": "Spiritual Sense", "def": "The early, weaker form of spiritual sense. Short range, easy to exhaust.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/spiritual-sense/", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "灵谷", "en": "Spirit Valley", "def": "A valley where qi collects. Easy to defend, hard to leave.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "灵酒", "en": "Spirit Wine", "def": "Alcohol brewed with herbs. Drunk for pleasure, traded for favours.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵银", "en": "Spirit Silver", "def": "Silver that conducts qi. Used where control matters more than force.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "灵食", "en": "Spirit Food", "def": "Food that carries energy. Eaten by rich disciples; complained about by everyone else.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "灵鹤", "en": "Spirit Crane", "def": "A crane of unusual size and dignity. Fast transport, and a status symbol.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵鹫峰", "en": "Vulture Peak", "def": "The mountain where the teaching was given. Used for scenes about scripture rather than combat.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "灵鹿", "en": "Spirit Deer", "def": "Elegant and harmless-looking. Always the first thing to run when a fight starts.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灵龟", "en": "Spirit Tortoise", "def": "Slow, armoured, and the keeper of old information.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "灼烧精血", "en": "Burn the Essence", "def": "Converting lifespan into immediate power. You can see the years come off; the prose describes skin and hair going grey.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "灾荒", "en": "Famine", "def": "Crop failure. The natural explanation for unrest that a villain is exploiting.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "炉火", "en": "Furnace Fire", "def": "The fire inside the furnace, which has to be held at a specific temperature for hours. Most failure is not ingredients but inattention.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "炉鼎", "en": "Cauldron", "def": "A person used as fuel for someone else's cultivation. The genre's darkest recurring image.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "炸开了锅", "en": "The Room Erupted", "def": "Pandemonium breaking out. The mirror image of dead silence.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "炸炉", "en": "Cauldron Explosion", "def": "The batch fails violently. Injures the alchemist and destroys the materials.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "点到为止", "en": "First Touch", "def": "Stop at the first clean hit. Announced by the referee, ignored by whoever is losing.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "点到即止", "en": "Touch and Stop", "def": "The courtesy rule in practice duels. Ignored by whoever is losing.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "点名", "en": "Roll Call", "def": "Checking who is present. Also the moment a missing disciple is noticed.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "点石成金", "en": "Stones into Gold", "def": "Transmutation, usually of metals rather than stone. In alchemy scenes it is a parlour trick and a way to pay for things.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "点穴", "en": "Acupoint Strike", "def": "Hitting a specific point to lock the body. Precise, and impossible to train against quickly.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "炼丹", "en": "Alchemy", "def": "Refining herbs and cores into pills. A profession with its own ranks, tools, and failure rate.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/alchemy/", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "炼丹师", "en": "Alchemist", "def": "A cultivator who refines pills. Often valued higher than a fighter of the same realm.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "炼丹师地位", "en": "An Alchemist's Standing", "def": "High in every sect, and resented for it. Alchemist characters are usually written as arrogant to justify the resentment.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "炼体", "en": "Body Refining", "def": "The branch that trains flesh and bone instead of qi. Sneered at by the mainstream right up until it punches through a shield.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "炼体九重", "en": "Nine Body Realms", "def": "The body refiners' own ladder, running parallel to qi cultivation. Ignored until someone wins with it.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "炼体诀", "en": "Body Refining Formula", "def": "The written method for hardening the flesh. Body refiners quote it like scripture.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "炼器", "en": "Artifact Refining", "def": "Making weapons and tools out of materials that can hold qi.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "炼器师", "en": "Artifact Refiner", "def": "A cultivator who makes artifacts. Rarer than alchemists and harder to replace.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "炼器材料", "en": "Forging Stock", "def": "Ore, hide, bone, wood. The supply chain that makes smiths necessary.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "炼器炉", "en": "Forge Furnace", "def": "The furnace where artifacts are worked. Built to take heat that would melt a house.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "炼尸", "en": "Corpse Refining", "def": "Turning a corpse into a weapon. Slow, illegal, and effective.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "炼气", "en": "Refine the Qi", "def": "The baseline daily task. Ninety percent of cultivation prose is this, described fifty different ways.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "炼神", "en": "Spirit Refining", "def": "The branch that trains the soul rather than the body. Slower, stranger, and devastating to anyone relying on divine sense.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "炼虚", "en": "Void Refining", "def": "The cultivator stops relying on stored qi and starts drawing on the void itself.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/void-refining/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "炼虚期", "en": "Void Refining Stage", "def": "Drawing power from emptiness instead of the surroundings. The first stage that looks like cheating to other characters.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "炼魂", "en": "Soul Refining", "def": "Torturing souls into material or fuel. Considered worse than killing.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "烛九阴", "en": "Zhulong the Ninefold Yin", "def": "The torch dragon's fuller title, used for the version that controls seasons rather than days.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "烛照", "en": "Zhuzhao", "def": "The dragon whose eyes make day. Paired with the next entry as two halves of the same sky.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "烛龙", "en": "Zhulong", "def": "The torch dragon whose open eyes are day and closed eyes are night. Games love him because his design writes itself.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "烟杆", "en": "Tobacco Pipe", "def": "An old character's prop. Long, and used as a short staff if the smoke does not work.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "煞气", "en": "Baleful Qi", "def": "Killing intent accumulated until it stains the air. A sign of how many someone has killed.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "照妖宝镜", "en": "Demon-Seeing Mirror", "def": "Shows a creature's true shape. Wasted on anyone honest, which is the comedy.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "照妖镜", "en": "Demon-Revealing Mirror", "def": "A mirror that shows a monster's true form. Useless in a fight, decisive before one.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "照胆镜", "en": "Mirror of Courage", "def": "A mirror that shows what a person is actually afraid of. Used in trials, not fights.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "熔岩洞", "en": "Lava Cave", "def": "Fire-attribute training ground. Everything inside the cave is trying to kill you, including the floor.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "熬心", "en": "Boiling the Mind", "def": "Long low-grade mental strain. Written as insomnia and a shorter temper.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "熬死对手", "en": "Outlive the Rival", "def": "A legitimate tactic. Requires patience and a better doctor.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "燃寿", "en": "Burn Lifespan", "def": "The short form of the same act. Every use shortens the clock visibly, and everyone present can tell what was just done.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "燃灯道人", "en": "Lamp-Lighting Daoist", "def": "An old figure who intervenes late and solves problems with objects rather than power. The genre's model for the wise backer.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "燃烧精血", "en": "Burn Essence Blood", "def": "Trading lifespan for a short burst of strength. Always a losing trade, sometimes the only one.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "燕雀安知", "en": "How Would a Sparrow Know", "def": "Mockery of someone too small to understand what they are looking at. Usually said just before they do.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "爆体", "en": "Body Burst", "def": "What happens when too much energy goes in. The visual is always the same; the sound effects vary.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "爆炎符", "en": "Flame Burst Talisman", "def": "The cheap offensive option. Thrown, not aimed.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "爆竹", "en": "Firecracker", "def": "Burned to drive off evil. Works on spirits, not on cultivators.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "爪", "en": "Claw Gauntlet", "def": "A claw artifact worn on the hand. Short range, and it never lets go.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "爱徒", "en": "Beloved Disciple", "def": "The one the master actually favours. Everyone in the sect knows who it is.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "牌位", "en": "Memorial Tablet", "def": "The wooden tablet bearing a dead person's name. What a family bows to.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "牙齿打颤", "en": "Teeth Chattering", "def": "Fear audible from across the room.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "牛头马面", "en": "Ox-Head and Horse-Face", "def": "The muscle of the underworld. Sent when the escorts fail.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "牛魔王", "en": "Bull Demon King", "def": "The monster who was once the monkey king's sworn brother. The first big betrayal in the pilgrimage, and still the best written.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "牢狱", "en": "Prison", "def": "The county gaol. Dirty, crowded, and easy to leave if you have money.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "物我两忘", "en": "Self and World Forgotten", "def": "The state in which insight arrives. Cannot be forced, only prepared for.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "特殊体质", "en": "Special Constitution", "def": "A one-off body type with a rule-breaking effect. Usually the reason a character is hunted.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "犬子", "en": "My Dog Son", "def": "A man's humble reference to his own child. Still used by proud fathers.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "状态", "en": "Condition", "def": "Whether the body is at full strength. The variable that explains every upset.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "状纸", "en": "Petition", "def": "The written complaint filed with a magistrate. The format matters as much as the facts.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "狂妄", "en": "Arrogant", "def": "A judgement rather than an insult. Usually the last word before a beating.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "狂妄至极", "en": "Arrogant Beyond Reason", "def": "Escalated. Signals that the speaker has decided to teach a lesson.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "狗眼看人低", "en": "Judging by Dog's Eyes", "def": "Accusation of snobbery. Mostly said by people who are about to prove they were right.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "独守空房", "en": "Alone in an Empty Room", "def": "Waiting for someone who may not return. The image of a love plot in stasis.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "狮驼国", "en": "Kingdom of Shituo", "def": "A kingdom replaced entirely by demons, citizens included. The grimmest single location in the source.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "狮驼岭", "en": "Lion-Camel Ridge", "def": "The ridge ruled by three demon kings who ate a whole kingdom's population. The darkest stretch of the journey, and the one adaptations soften.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "狮驼洞", "en": "Shituo Cave", "def": "The cave of the three demon kings. Its scale is stated in li, which is the point.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "狰", "en": "Zheng", "def": "A five-tailed red leopard with one horn. Aggressive, and always the first thing to attack.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "狻猊", "en": "Suanni", "def": "A lion-like beast that likes smoke and sits on incense burners. Decorative until it is not.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "猪八戒", "en": "Zhu Bajie", "def": "The pig general, demoted for drunkenness and gluttony. He is the one who wants to go home in every single chapter.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "献丑", "en": "Showing My Poor Skill", "def": "Said before demonstrating a technique. The humbler the words, the more dangerous the technique.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "献祭", "en": "Offer Up", "def": "Giving something to something. The wording matters: the giver rarely decides.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "猰貐", "en": "Yayu", "def": "A man-eating beast with a human face. Horror tier, and rarely shown in full.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "玄仙", "en": "Mystic Immortal", "def": "A mid-to-high immortal rank used in the older, more mythic power systems.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/mystic-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "玄武", "en": "Black Tortoise", "def": "The guardian of the north. Patience incarnate; nothing hurries it.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "玄武甲", "en": "Black Tortoise Carapace", "def": "Shell plate of the northern beast, the standard material for a shield nobody can break.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "玄武龟甲", "en": "Black Tortoise Shell", "def": "Divination tool and shield. The two uses are more similar than they look.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "玄铁", "en": "Mystic Iron", "def": "Deep, heavy, black iron. The default material for serious weapons.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "玄阶", "en": "Mystic Rank", "def": "Mid tier. Standard issue for serious inner disciples.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "玄阶功法", "en": "Mystic-Rank Technique", "def": "Third tier. Standard issue for inner disciples of a real sect.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "玄鸟", "en": "Black Bird", "def": "The bird whose egg produced a dynasty's ancestor. Used when a novel wants a founding myth.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "玄黄之气", "en": "Primal Yellow Qi", "def": "The qi of earth before it separated from heaven. Stabilises anything, including worlds.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "玉佩", "en": "Jade Pendant", "def": "Gift, heirloom or tracker. Parentage reveals run on these.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "玉佩信物", "en": "Jade Token", "def": "A jade object that identifies a family. Recognised across provinces, for good or ill.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "玉兔", "en": "Jade Rabbit", "def": "The moon rabbit, mortar and all. In fiction it is a servant with a secret.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "玉兔精", "en": "Jade Rabbit Spirit", "def": "The moon rabbit, working in the mortal world under a false identity. Small-scale deception, played for comedy.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "玉华州", "en": "Prefecture of Yuhua", "def": "Where the three disciples take students. The only arc in the source about teaching anyone.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "玉液琼浆", "en": "Jade Liquid", "def": "The drink served with the peaches. Restores the body faster than most pills.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "玉皇大帝", "en": "Jade Emperor", "def": "The administrator of heaven. He does not fight; he delegates, which in this genre is the scariest trait of all.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "玉石俱焚", "en": "Jade and Stone Burn Together", "def": "The literary version of the above. Often the final line before an explosion.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "玉简", "en": "Jade Slip", "def": "A slip of jade holding a recorded message or technique, read with divine sense.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "玉虚宫", "en": "Jade Void Palace", "def": "Yuanshi Tianzun's residence, the headquarters of the orthodox line. Sects that claim descent from him name their main hall after it.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "玉虚门前", "en": "Before the Jade Void Gate", "def": "The orthodox equivalent. Standing here uninvited is already a statement.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "玉骨", "en": "Jade Bone", "def": "Bone refined until it is hard without being brittle.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "玉鼎真人", "en": "Yuding Zhenren", "def": "Yang Jian's master. A teacher who trains one student and then steps back, which the genre finds suspicious.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "王城", "en": "Royal City", "def": "The seat of a kingdom within the cultivator world. Usually a mid-tier stage for a mid-tier arc.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "王朝", "en": "Dynasty", "def": "A mortal kingdom. Irrelevant to high cultivators, decisive for low ones.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "王母娘娘", "en": "Lady Queen Mother", "def": "Runs the peach orchard and the banquets. Every list of guests excludes someone whose revenge becomes an arc.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "珍重", "en": "Take Care", "def": "The last thing said when people do not expect to meet again.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "琼浆玉液", "en": "Jade Nectar", "def": "The drink served at the heavenly banquets. In novels it is a consumable that repairs the body better than most pills.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "瑶台", "en": "Jade Terrace", "def": "The heavenly terrace used for banquets and audiences. Anyone invited to a banquet here is about to be tested.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "瑶池", "en": "Jade Pool", "def": "The Queen Mother's lake, and by extension her whole court. Peach-banquet scenes are set here, and someone always gets left off the guest list.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "瑶池之畔", "en": "The Shore of Jade Pool", "def": "Where the banquet is held. Sitting too low here is a punishment, and sitting too high is a provocation.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "瑶池仙境", "en": "Jade Pool Paradise", "def": "The Queen Mother's seat in the west, laid out as gardens around a lake. Banquet scenes here are always a test of manners.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "瑶池蟠桃园", "en": "The Peach Orchard at Jade Pool", "def": "Counted, guarded, and always missing one. The setting for the genre's most reliable theft.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "璞玉", "en": "Uncut Jade", "def": "Raw talent nobody has shaped yet. Said by an elder about to take a disciple.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "瓮中捉鳖", "en": "Fish in a Barrel", "def": "The target has nowhere to run. The execution, not the plan.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "瓶颈", "en": "Bottleneck", "def": "Stuck. No amount of qi fixes it; something else in the character has to change.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "甘露", "en": "Sweet Dew", "def": "Purified water used in healing. Ordinary name, extraordinary effect.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "生服", "en": "Eat It Raw", "def": "Consuming an herb without refining it. Effective, wasteful, and considered vulgar.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "生死之交", "en": "Friend unto Death", "def": "A friendship tested past the point where most break.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "生死斗", "en": "Death Match", "def": "A fight with no rules and no rescue. Chosen when both sides want the other gone permanently.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/death-match/", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "生死状", "en": "Death Waiver", "def": "The paper signed before a death match. It exists so nobody can come asking for revenge afterwards.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "生死相依", "en": "Depending on Each Other in Life and Death", "def": "The phrase used after both characters survive something impossible.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "生死相随", "en": "Together in Life and Death", "def": "Following someone into anything. Admirable, and a tactical liability.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "生死簿", "en": "Book of Life and Death", "def": "The ledger that records when everyone dies. Editing it is the ultimate cheat.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "生骨丹", "en": "Bone-Regrowing Pill", "def": "Regrows what was lost. Absurdly expensive, and the reason crippled characters recover.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "生魂", "en": "Living Soul", "def": "The soul of someone still alive, and therefore still attached to a body. Stealing one is a specific crime.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "申公豹", "en": "Shen Gongbao", "def": "Jiang Ziya's rival, and the best line is that he refuses to look back. Every game gives him a hidden phase.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "申冤", "en": "Seek Redress", "def": "To demand justice for a wrong. Usually begins at the bottom and ends at the top.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "画押", "en": "Fingerprint", "def": "The thumbprint that makes a confession or contract binding.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "画符", "en": "Inscribe a Talisman", "def": "Writing a talisman in one unbroken motion. Hesitate once and it is spoiled.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "画舫", "en": "Painted Boat", "def": "A boat used for parties on the water. Where deals are made out of earshot of the city.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "画蛇添足", "en": "Drawing Legs on a Snake", "def": "Ruining something by adding to it. Used about overcautious allies.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "画饼充饥", "en": "Draw a Cake to Cure Hunger", "def": "Empty promises. The line aimed at a corrupt sect head.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "界壁", "en": "World Barrier", "def": "The wall separating worlds. Ascension means breaking through it.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "留下命来", "en": "Leave Your Life Here", "def": "The variation. Slightly older, slightly more theatrical.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "留得青山在", "en": "Keep the Green Mountain", "def": "The first half of a proverb about surviving to fight later. Retreat justified.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "留手", "en": "Hold Back", "def": "Not using everything, usually because killing here would create a worse enemy than losing.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "留步", "en": "Don't See Me Out", "def": "The guest releasing the host from courtesy. Also used to make someone stop walking.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "略表心意", "en": "A Small Token", "def": "Announcing a gift as though it were nothing. The size of the gift contradicts this.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "番天印", "en": "Sky-Flipping Seal", "def": "A seal that drops with the weight of a mountain. It does not slash or burn; it simply arrives.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "疏而不漏", "en": "Sparse but Not Leaking", "def": "The second half. Rarely spoken, often implied.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "疗伤", "en": "Heal", "def": "Treating wounds with pills, qi, or both. Takes time the plot rarely allows.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "疗伤丹", "en": "Healing Pill", "def": "Closes wounds fast. Does not fix broken bones, poison, or damaged foundations.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "疾冲", "en": "Charge", "def": "A straight accelerating run into the enemy. Ends fights quickly, one way or the other.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "痛下杀手", "en": "Deliver a Killing Blow", "def": "Deciding to end the opponent's life, and meaning it.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "痴人说梦", "en": "A Fool's Dream", "def": "The clipped version, aimed at a plan.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "痴情", "en": "Devoted", "def": "Loving someone past all reason. Admirable in stories, fatal in practice.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "瘟疫", "en": "Plague", "def": "Disease spreading. In cultivation fiction, either demonic in origin or a cover for one.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "瘫软在地", "en": "Collapsed", "def": "All strength gone at once. Usually after being spared.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "登门谢罪", "en": "Call to Apologize", "def": "Arriving in person to beg forgiveness. Cannot be done halfway.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "白泽", "en": "Baize", "def": "The beast that knows the name and weakness of every monster. A character who owns a Baize diagram can identify anything, which is a very convenient power.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "白泽图", "en": "Baize's Catalogue", "def": "A book of monsters and their weaknesses, attributed to a beast. Owning it is a shortcut to competence.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "白狼", "en": "White Wolf", "def": "Cold-weather hunter. Loyalty written on the cover.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "白虎", "en": "White Tiger", "def": "The guardian of the west. Associated with killing, and with armies.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "白虎牙", "en": "White Tiger Fang", "def": "A fang of the western war beast, ground into powder to make blades that cut intent.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "白骨夫人", "en": "White Bone Lady", "def": "The demon whose three disguises nearly split the group. Remembered for killing a family that never existed.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "白骨洞", "en": "White Bone Cave", "def": "The cave of the white bone demon, layered with illusions of a family that does not exist. The genre's best early example of a fake reality.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "白鹿", "en": "White Deer", "def": "A mount and an omen. In sect settings, a claim of legitimacy.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "白龙马", "en": "White Dragon Horse", "def": "The horse that is actually a prince. Adaptations rarely let him speak, which is a waste.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "百会", "en": "Crown Point", "def": "The point at the top of the skull. Where spirit qi enters and where souls leave.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "百年灵草", "en": "Century-Old Herb", "def": "The baseline for anything useful. Priced by age, and the age is always the negotiation.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "百步", "en": "A Hundred Paces", "def": "The range where spear beats sword, and where a bow becomes useless. A distance with tactical meaning.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "百毒丹", "en": "Hundred-Poison Pill", "def": "Poison used as medicine, in doses that would kill a mortal. Effective, and not gentle.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "百里", "en": "A Hundred Li", "def": "Fifty kilometres. Used for the scale of a sect's territory or a chase.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "百鸟朝凤", "en": "Hundred Birds Paying Homage", "def": "A pattern, a fan, and a formation. All three appear in different novels, which confuses translators.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "皇城", "en": "Palace City", "def": "The inner district. Entering without a pass is a war.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "皇室", "en": "Imperial House", "def": "The ruling bloodline. In cultivation fiction, either irrelevant or secretly the strongest thing in the region.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "皇族", "en": "Imperial Clan", "def": "The ruling bloodline of a mortal dynasty. Irrelevant to cultivators, useful to them.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "皮膜", "en": "Skin Membrane", "def": "The first layer of body refining: skin hard enough to turn a blade.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "盘丝岭", "en": "Spider Ridge", "def": "The ridge of the spider spirits, all webs and false hospitality. Adaptations make it beautiful on purpose.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "盘丝洞", "en": "Spider Cave", "def": "The webbed cave under Spider Ridge. Physical, sticky, and the reason the group splits.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "盘古", "en": "Pangu", "def": "The giant who split heaven from earth and then died doing it. His body became the landscape, which is why mountains and rivers in this tradition are never just scenery.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/pangu/", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "盘古幡", "en": "Pangu Banner", "def": "A banner that splits things the way the world was split. The highest tier of area attack in the early pantheon.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "盘缠", "en": "Travel Funds", "def": "Money set aside for a journey. Running out of it is how mortals get stranded.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "盘膝", "en": "Cross-Legged Sit", "def": "The default posture: knees out, hands on the thighs. A chapter that opens with someone settling into it is signaling a time skip.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "盟主", "en": "Alliance Leader", "def": "The head of a coalition of sects. Elected, resented, and always blamed.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "盟约", "en": "Pact", "def": "A binding agreement between powers. Written carefully, broken casually.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "目中无人", "en": "No One in His Eyes", "def": "Describes someone who ignores rank. Said behind his back, mostly.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "目光一凝", "en": "Eyes Narrowed", "def": "Attention locking on. The tell that someone has spotted the real threat.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "目光如刀", "en": "A Gaze Like a Knife", "def": "The look that makes weaker characters step back.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "目光如炬", "en": "Eyes Like Torches", "def": "Perception, not threat. Used for someone who sees through a plan.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "目力", "en": "Eyesight", "def": "Acuity of the eye. Sees in the dark, sees through disguises, sees what you hide.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "目眦欲裂", "en": "Eyes Split with Rage", "def": "Rage so extreme the eyes seem about to tear. Usually at a corpse.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "目瞪口呆", "en": "Dumbfounded", "def": "Mouth open, eyes fixed. Comedy or horror depending on who is watching.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/dumbfounded/", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "目露凶光", "en": "A Fierce Look", "def": "Precursor to violence. Blood family scenes use it twice per chapter.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "相思", "en": "Yearning", "def": "Missing someone who is not coming back. In cultivation fiction, usually a weakness with a name.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "相思成疾", "en": "Lovesick", "def": "Missing someone until the body fails. A real illness in this genre, with real consequences.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "相敬如宾", "en": "Respectful as Guests", "def": "A marriage built on courtesy. Either the healthiest thing here or the coldest.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "相柳", "en": "Xiangliu", "def": "The nine-headed snake that ate nine hills and poisoned the land with its blood. Digging up its remains is always a bad idea in fiction.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/xiangliu/", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "盾", "en": "Shield", "def": "A shield artifact held separately from the body. The professional choice for surviving a first strike.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "眉头一皱", "en": "Frowned", "def": "Mild displeasure, or the first sign of suspicion.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "眉头紧锁", "en": "Brows Locked", "def": "Serious concern. Signals that the situation is worse than the dialogue admitted.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "看护药园", "en": "Tending the Garden", "def": "Assigning a character to watch plants. Quiet job, high stakes.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "看招", "en": "Watch This", "def": "A more casual attack call. Almost playful, which makes it worse.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "看破", "en": "See Through", "def": "Understanding something well enough to stop being ruled by it.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "看破红尘", "en": "See Through the World", "def": "No longer fooled by any of it. Sounds peaceful; usually means exhausted.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "真人", "en": "Perfected One", "def": "A title for cultivators past the core stage. Formal, and slightly old-fashioned.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "真仙", "en": "True Immortal", "def": "A high immortal rank in older sects' systems; above Heaven Immortal, below Golden Immortal.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/true-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "真传", "en": "True Transmission", "def": "The real techniques, taught only to a trusted few. Everything else is public.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "真传弟子", "en": "Core Disciple", "def": "Taught the sect's actual inheritance. Usually a handful per generation.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "真元", "en": "True Essence Reserve", "def": "Refined energy, purer than ordinary qi. What high-level techniques run on.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "真君", "en": "True Lord", "def": "An honorific for a powerful cultivator, usually attached to a title.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "真气", "en": "True Qi", "def": "Qi refined inside the body. Denser and more controllable than what is in the air.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/true-qi/", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "真龙", "en": "True Dragon", "def": "The top of the bloodline ladder. A single one can define an era.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "眼中寒芒", "en": "Cold Light in the Eyes", "def": "Killing intent, stated visually. Preparatory, not decorative.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "眼中精光一闪", "en": "A Gleam in the Eye", "def": "Interest, usually in an object. The merchant's reaction to something underpriced.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "眼皮一跳", "en": "Eyelid Twitched", "def": "An omen the body registers before the mind. Always means something bad is coming.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "眼线", "en": "Eyes", "def": "A watcher placed somewhere useful. Usually a servant or a shopkeeper.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "睚眦", "en": "Yazi", "def": "The grudge-bearing beast carved on sword hilts. The reason the word for a small vengeful grudge exists.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "睚眦必报", "en": "Repays Every Slight", "def": "The smallest offence gets settled in full. The reputation that keeps strangers polite.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "督脉", "en": "Governing Vessel", "def": "The back channel running up the spine. The other half of the core circuit.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "睥睨天下", "en": "Looking Down at the World", "def": "The exaggerated version, used in villain dialogue.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "瞠目结舌", "en": "Stunned Speechless", "def": "Eyes wide, mouth open, nothing coming out.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "瞳孔一缩", "en": "Pupils Draw In", "def": "The half-second tell of someone who has just understood the situation. Used for masters and for villains.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "瞳孔骤缩", "en": "Pupils Contract", "def": "The involuntary tell that a cultivator has just understood they are in danger. Written one line before a retreat, a surrender, or a change of tone.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "瞳术", "en": "Eye Technique", "def": "Illusion or pressure delivered by looking. Defence is to look elsewhere, so fights become staring contests.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "知己", "en": "Kindred Spirit", "def": "Someone who understands without being told. In this genre, usually a debt.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "知府", "en": "Prefect", "def": "The official in charge of a prefecture. Pompous to inferiors, terrified of superiors.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "短剑", "en": "Short Sword", "def": "Fast, close, and concealable. The choice of assassins and the paranoid.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "矿脉", "en": "Ore Vein", "def": "A deposit of spirit stone or metal. Owning one starts a war.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "砍柴挑水", "en": "Chop Wood, Carry Water", "def": "The standard chore list. Zen reference, and a reliable way to show three months passing.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "砥砺", "en": "Hone", "def": "Sharpening by friction. What a hard life is supposed to do.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "破关", "en": "Break Seclusion", "def": "Coming out of closed cultivation, either because the stage is done or because a wall has been hit. The chapter where everything outside has changed.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "破境", "en": "Breach a Realm", "def": "Crossing into a new realm rather than a new layer inside one. The event that changes your standing overnight.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "破损", "en": "Damaged", "def": "Not broken, not working properly. The genre's way of giving a character a bad fight.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "破灵梭", "en": "Spirit-Breaking Shuttle", "def": "An artifact built to pierce protective qi. One hit, one hole, no argument.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "破禁符", "en": "Restriction-Breaking Talisman", "def": "Dissolves a seal or a barrier. Thieves consider it a professional expense.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "破绽", "en": "Opening", "def": "A gap in the guard. Small, brief, and the only thing anyone is actually looking for.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "破釜沉舟", "en": "Burn the Boats", "def": "Removing your own way out so nobody can hesitate. Old, brutal, effective.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "破镜重圆", "en": "Broken Mirror Rejoined", "def": "Two people who separated and came back. The mirror keeps the crack.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "破阵", "en": "Break a Formation", "def": "Dismantling one, by force or by finding the eye first.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/break-a-formation/", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "破障丹", "en": "Barrier-Breaking Pill", "def": "Forces a bottleneck open. Works once; after that the body ignores it.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "硬功", "en": "Hard Technique", "def": "Training the body to absorb damage. Unfashionable, and very hard to kill.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "硬抗", "en": "Take It Head-On", "def": "Absorbing a blow instead of dodging, to prove the size of the gap. A display of contempt as much as of strength.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "硬拼", "en": "Trade Blows", "def": "Meeting force with force. Stupid, unless you know you are stronger.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "硬碰硬", "en": "Force Against Force", "def": "No technique, pure power. The exchange that decides whose foundation is better.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "碎丹", "en": "Cracked Core", "def": "A golden core that has been damaged but not destroyed. Recoverable, usually over a long arc.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/cracked-core/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "碎灵石", "en": "Broken Spirit Stone", "def": "Spent fragments of a used stone. What the poor pay with.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "碎银", "en": "Silver Bits", "def": "Silver cut into small pieces for daily purchases. Weighed, not counted.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "碧游宫", "en": "Biyou Palace", "def": "Tongtian's palace on Golden Turtle Island, the headquarters of the heterodox line. Its existence is why every novel has a rival sect with strange methods.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "碧游宫外", "en": "Outside Biyou Palace", "def": "The last place to turn back before joining the heterodox side. Characters often do not.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "碾压", "en": "Crush", "def": "Winning so completely that the fight never becomes a fight. Used when the realm gap is beyond argument and the winner never bothers to posture.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/overwhelming-crush/", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "磕头", "en": "Kowtow", "def": "Kneeling and touching the forehead to the ground. Reserved for masters, ancestors, and begging for your life.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "磨砺", "en": "Honing the Mind", "def": "Deliberate hardship as training. The genre's argument for why suffering is good.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "示弱", "en": "Show Weakness", "def": "Deliberate. Used to invite an attack that can be punished.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "示敌以弱", "en": "Show the Enemy Weakness", "def": "The military advice. Precedes every trap in the book.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "礼数", "en": "Etiquette", "def": "The expected forms of respect. Missing one is an insult with plausible deniability.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "祖坟", "en": "Ancestral Grave", "def": "The family burial ground. Disturbing it is unforgivable.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "祖巫战旗", "en": "War Banner of the Ancestral Shamans", "def": "A relic of the pre-Daoist order. Older than every sect that claims it.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "祖龙", "en": "Ancestral Dragon", "def": "The first dragon, from which every bloodline descends. Characters who meet it are always changed and rarely improved.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "祝融", "en": "Zhurong", "def": "The fire god, and Gonggong's usual opponent. Fire techniques in novels cite him the way sword users cite the Yellow Emperor.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "神兽", "en": "Divine Beast", "def": "A bloodline beast out of myth. Seeing one is a plot event, not an encounter.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "神兽血脉", "en": "Divine Beast Bloodline", "def": "Blood from one of the great beasts. Awakening it changes what a person can become.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "神农", "en": "Shennong", "def": "The divine farmer who tasted hundreds of herbs to find out which ones kill you. Alchemy chapters cite him the way a paper cites a founding study.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "神府", "en": "Spirit Mansion", "def": "The upper region of the sea of consciousness. Where the soul sits, if the system has one.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "神念", "en": "Spiritual Thought", "def": "A single directed probe. Sharper than spiritual sense, and more noticeable.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "神色自若", "en": "At Ease", "def": "Composure that unnerves everyone else. Used before an ambush.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "神行符", "en": "Speed Talisman", "def": "Stuck to the leg for a burst of speed. The standard escape tool of the underpowered.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "神识", "en": "Divine Sense", "def": "The mind's reach: how a cultivator senses what the eyes cannot, and how far.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/divine-sense/", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "神识外放", "en": "Divine Sense Projection", "def": "Pushing awareness outward to scout, track or eavesdrop. Constant at high realms.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "神识扫过", "en": "Sweep with the Spiritual Sense", "def": "A single pass over an area. The standard way to discover that someone is hiding.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "神识攻击", "en": "Divine Sense Attack", "def": "Striking the soul directly. No armour stops it, and few arts teach how to block it.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "神通", "en": "Divine Ability", "def": "A power that breaks normal rules, not just a stronger punch.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/divine-ability/", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "神魂", "en": "Soul", "def": "The spirit itself. Damaged souls do not heal the way bodies do.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "神魂俱灭", "en": "Soul and Spirit Both Destroyed", "def": "The same end with more ceremony. Used when the author wants the reader to be certain.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "神魂受损", "en": "Soul Damage", "def": "Injury to the soul. Heals ten times slower than flesh, sometimes not at all.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "祠堂", "en": "Ancestral Hall", "def": "Where the clan's tablets are kept. Disputes are settled in front of the dead.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "祭品", "en": "Sacrifice", "def": "What a ritual requires. Chosen, or taken.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "祭天", "en": "Rite to Heaven", "def": "Asking for approval. Usually performed before a war that has already been decided.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "祭奠", "en": "Pay Respects", "def": "At a grave or a tablet. Quieter than a funeral and more likely to include a confession.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "祭祀", "en": "Sacrifice Rite", "def": "An offering to ancestors or to the dao. Scale tells you what the sect believes about itself.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "祭祀求生", "en": "Sacrifice to Survive", "def": "Paying with something for another day. Ranges from harmless to a whole village.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "祭祖", "en": "Ancestral Rite", "def": "Honouring the founders before any major decision. Skipping it is itself a statement.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "禁制", "en": "Restriction", "def": "A seal or barrier laid onto an object. Force it and the object may break with it.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "禁区", "en": "Forbidden Zone", "def": "Marked and avoided. Novels put something in it that will be needed in act three.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "禁地", "en": "Forbidden Ground", "def": "Marked off for a reason. Going in is the plot; coming out is the story.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "禁地阵法", "en": "Forbidden Zone Array", "def": "A boundary nobody is meant to cross. The protagonist crosses it in the first ten chapters.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "禁断", "en": "Forbidden", "def": "A taboo phrased as a warning. Ignoring it is how a character gains an ability and loses a family.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "禁术", "en": "Forbidden Art", "def": "A technique banned for what it costs, not for what it does. Always effective, always paid for, and always used by someone who thinks they can afford it.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "禁止入内", "en": "No Entry", "def": "The sign. In this genre it functions as a doorway.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "禁空阵", "en": "No-Fly Formation", "def": "Forbids flight inside its range. Turns an aerial chase into a ground fight.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "禁足", "en": "House Arrest", "def": "Confined to your own cave residence. Lighter than facing the wall, heavier than a fine.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "禁闭", "en": "Confinement", "def": "Locked up. The usual step before expulsion.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "福地", "en": "Blessed Land", "def": "A place with unusually good qi and luck. Small, precious, and always contested.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "离魂", "en": "Soul Separation", "def": "The soul leaving involuntarily. Fragile state, used for out-of-body arcs.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "私奔", "en": "Elope", "def": "Leaving the sect, the clan and the marriage contract in one night.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "秒杀", "en": "One-Shot Kill", "def": "Ended instantly. Used sparingly, and devastating when used.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "秘地", "en": "Hidden Ground", "def": "A place kept off every map. Access is inherited, not discovered.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "秘境", "en": "Secret Realm", "def": "A sealed pocket world that opens on a schedule. The main source of both treasure and death.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/secret-realm/", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "秘境入口", "en": "Secret Realm Entrance", "def": "The door. Opens on a schedule, surrounded by people who have been waiting years.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "秘境关闭", "en": "The Gate Closes", "def": "The countdown. Anyone still inside is trapped, which is where the best arcs start.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "秘境钥匙", "en": "Realm Key", "def": "The object that opens a sealed place. There is always exactly one, and someone else has it.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "秘术", "en": "Secret Art", "def": "A technique a sect keeps to itself. Using it in public identifies where you came from.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "秘籍", "en": "Secret Manual", "def": "A written technique, usually stolen, inherited, or guarded by a sect.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "秘银", "en": "Mithril", "def": "Light, strong, and conducts energy well. Expensive, so it appears in small quantities.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "积累", "en": "Accumulation", "def": "Slow progress. The genre's virtue, and the reason training arcs exist.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "积雷山", "en": "Mount Jilei", "def": "The bull king's second household. The reason he is in trouble at home, and the reason the fan is hard to get.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "移山填海", "en": "Move Mountains, Fill Seas", "def": "The scale of highest-tier power. Used once per book as a demonstration rather than a fight.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "移山阵", "en": "Mountain-Shifting Formation", "def": "Moves earth on a scale that rearranges maps. Takes a sect to power.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "移形换位", "en": "Swap Positions", "def": "Trading places with a decoy or a shadow. Used once per fight, then expected.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "稳如泰山", "en": "Steady as a Mountain", "def": "The defensive composure. Also describes a formation.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "稳扎稳打", "en": "Steady and Sure", "def": "Advancing one verified step at a time and refusing shortcuts. Praised by the narrator, mocked by everyone standing around the character.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "稻草人", "en": "Straw Effigy", "def": "The scarier version, used in curses. Its head always ends up somewhere.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "稽首", "en": "Kneeling Salute", "def": "The deepest bow, head to the ground. Reserved for rulers and ancestors.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "穴位", "en": "Pressure Point", "def": "A specific spot that can be struck to disable. Precision beats force.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "穴道", "en": "Acupoint", "def": "A point on the channel network. Striking one can freeze a limb, which is how non-lethal fights stay interesting.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "穷乡僻壤", "en": "Backwater", "def": "A poor, remote place with no news and no cultivators. Used to mean the end of the world.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "穷奇", "en": "Qiongqi", "def": "A winged tiger that eats the honest and rewards the vicious. Antagonist beasts in the genre are usually this one wearing a different coat.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "穷追不舍", "en": "Relentless Pursuit", "def": "The full commitment. Used when the pursuer has something personal at stake.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "空口无凭", "en": "Words Are No Proof", "def": "Demanding a written promise. The correct reply to the line above.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "空门", "en": "Guard Gap", "def": "A hole built into a technique itself. Every art has one; few admit it.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "空间裂缝", "en": "Spatial Rift", "def": "A tear in space. What enters is not cut, it is divided.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "穿墙术", "en": "Pass-Wall Art", "def": "Walking through a wall. Works exactly once in any given infiltration.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "穿心锁", "en": "Heart-Piercing Lock", "def": "A chain that encircles the chest and tightens on command. Capture tool rather than a killing one.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "穿越", "en": "Transmigration", "def": "Arriving in a different world, or a different era, with modern knowledge. The other half of the subgenre.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "突围", "en": "Breakout", "def": "Cutting a path out of an encirclement. Nearly always costs something: a treasure, a limb, or the people holding the rear.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "突破", "en": "Breakthrough", "def": "Moving up a realm or sub-realm. Always painful, usually risky, sometimes fatal.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "突破失败", "en": "Failed Breakthrough", "def": "The attempt that did not take. The realm drops, the body suffers, and everyone in the sect hears about it.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "突进", "en": "Rush In", "def": "Closing the distance on purpose. Used against ranged fighters and people who talk too much.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "窍穴", "en": "Acupoints", "def": "The nodes on the meridians. Opening more of them means faster recovery and stronger techniques.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "立威", "en": "Establishing Authority", "def": "One public act of force intended to end all future arguments.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/establish-authority/", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "立字为据", "en": "Put It in Writing", "def": "The demand itself. Used before a bet that everyone intends to honour.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "立誓", "en": "Swear an Oath", "def": "Binding yourself by your Dao heart or your inner demon. Breaking it damages the cultivation, not just the reputation.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "竞价", "en": "Bid", "def": "Raising the price in public. Also a way to make an enemy without a word of insult.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "童子功", "en": "Boyhood Art", "def": "A method that requires celibacy from childhood. Explains why some great masters are extremely awkward.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "端茶送客", "en": "Tea Means Leave", "def": "Serving tea a second time as a hint to go. Polite, and completely unambiguous.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "竹篮打水", "en": "Hauling Water with a Bamboo Basket", "def": "Total loss. Used to describe a plan the book has just dismantled.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "笑纳", "en": "Please Accept", "def": "The words that accompany a gift. Humble, and slightly formal.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "符咒", "en": "Incantation Talisman", "def": "A talisman that has to be read aloud. Speech makes it slower and more precise.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符墨", "en": "Talisman Ink", "def": "Ink mixed with a specific material, usually blood or cinnabar. The recipe is the trade secret.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符宝", "en": "Talisman Treasure", "def": "A talisman with artifact-level power and a single use. Carried for one emergency, spent once.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符师", "en": "Talisman Master", "def": "A cultivator who draws talismans. Respected, and rarely good in a straight fight.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符成", "en": "Talisman Complete", "def": "The faint glow when a talisman takes. The only feedback a talisman master ever gets.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符笔", "en": "Talisman Brush", "def": "The brush used to draw talismans, made from beast hair.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符箓", "en": "Talisman", "def": "A paper charm with one stored effect. Crumbles the moment it is used.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/talisman/", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符箓之道", "en": "Talisman Dao", "def": "The discipline of writing effects onto paper. Slow to prepare, fast to use.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "符纸", "en": "Talisman Paper", "def": "The blank. Cheap paper fails; proper paper costs as much as a pill.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符胆", "en": "Talisman Core", "def": "The central stroke of a talisman. Get it wrong and the whole thing is paper.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "符阵", "en": "Talisman Formation", "def": "An array laid out with talismans instead of flags. Fast to set up, gone in a day.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "筋斗云", "en": "Somersault Cloud", "def": "One somersault covers a hundred and eight thousand li. Adaptations show it as flight; the source treats it as a single jump.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "筋骨", "en": "Sinew and Bone", "def": "The second layer: tendons like cable, bones like iron.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "筑基", "en": "Foundation Establishment", "def": "The body is rebuilt into a proper vessel for qi. The real starting line of cultivation; below it you are a mortal.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/foundation-establishment/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "筑基丹", "en": "Foundation Establishment Pill", "def": "The pill that gets someone into Foundation Establishment. Bought, begged for, or killed over.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "筑基失败", "en": "Foundation Failure", "def": "The breakthrough attempted and failed. The injuries heal, the regression often does not, and the ceiling it imposes is usually permanent.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/foundation-failure/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "筑基期", "en": "Foundation Building Stage", "def": "The name for the stage after Qi Refining in most systems. The body is rebuilt; the person is not the same afterwards.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "算你识相", "en": "Smart of You", "def": "Acknowledges a surrender without granting any respect.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "算命", "en": "Fortune Telling", "def": "Reading a person's fate. The honest ones say less than they know.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "算盘", "en": "Abacus", "def": "Counting tool. Merchants use it, and so do diviners, which is funnier.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "管事", "en": "Manager", "def": "The one who actually runs a hall's daily business. Formally unimportant, informally essential.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "箭", "en": "Arrow", "def": "The arrow for such a bow. Usually made to break armour and formations, not flesh.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "籍籍无名", "en": "Unknown", "def": "Nameless. Where every protagonist starts, and where most stay.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "米粒之珠", "en": "A Grain of Rice", "def": "'A grain of rice daring to shine.' Mockery of small talent showing off.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "精卫", "en": "Jingwei", "def": "The bird that fills the sea with pebbles, one at a time. Novels use her as shorthand for pointless persistence that the plot then rewards.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "精神力量", "en": "Mental Power", "def": "The raw quantity behind perception and illusion. Exhausting it causes headaches and bad decisions.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "精血", "en": "Essence Blood", "def": "Blood mixed with life force. Burn it for a burst of power, then pay for it in years.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "紧箍咒", "en": "Headband Spell", "def": "The control mechanism on the monkey king. Reciting it causes pain, which adaptations render as sound.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "紫气东来", "en": "Purple Qi from the East", "def": "The sign that a sage is arriving. Novels use it as a special effect whenever a big character shows up.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "紫气横空", "en": "Purple Qi Across the Sky", "def": "The auspicious version. Means someone important just succeeded.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "紫芝", "en": "Purple Ganoderma", "def": "A superior lingzhi. Used in pills that repair what other pills damaged.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "紫金葫芦", "en": "Purple-Gold Gourd", "def": "A gourd that answers to a name and then swallows whoever responds. The trick is that it must hear the answer, so the counter is to stay silent.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "紫金铃", "en": "Purple-Gold Bell", "def": "A bell whose ring incapacitates. Used by demons more than by gods, which is why the gods keep a copy.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "紫霄宫", "en": "Purple Cloud Palace", "def": "Hongjun's hall above the heavens, where the highest teachings were given. Characters who studied there are automatically ancient.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "紫霄宫中", "en": "Inside Purple Cloud Palace", "def": "Where the highest teaching was given. Anyone who was there is ancient and dangerous.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "紫霄宫大殿", "en": "The Main Hall of Purple Cloud Palace", "def": "Where the highest teachings were given once, to everyone at the same time. Being present is itself a credential.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "红孩儿", "en": "Red Boy", "def": "The bull king's son, who fights with fire and looks like a child. Adaptations love him because he is small and terrifying.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "红尘", "en": "Mortal Dust", "def": "The ordinary world and its attachments. Leaving it is presented as strength, and always costs something.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "红颜", "en": "Confidante", "def": "A beautiful woman close to the protagonist, usually with complications attached.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "红颜知己", "en": "Kindred Friend, Female", "def": "Close without romance, in theory. The genre treats the distinction as a technicality.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "纣王", "en": "King Zhou", "def": "The last Shang king, written as a cautionary tale about listening to the wrong person. His writing scene is where the doom starts.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "纯阳之体", "en": "Pure Yang Body", "def": "Yang without a flaw. Cultivates fire arts at double speed and attracts body-snatchers at triple the rate.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "纯阴之体", "en": "Pure Yin Body", "def": "Yin without a flaw. The ideal vessel for certain arts, and for certain predators.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "纳戒", "en": "Spatial Ring", "def": "A ring that holds a room's worth of things. Worn, not carried.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "纸上谈兵", "en": "Discussing War on Paper", "def": "Criticism of anyone who has read a lot and fought nothing. The genre's favourite insult for young masters.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "纸人", "en": "Paper Figure", "def": "A cut-paper person used as a substitute or a decoy. Cheap and creepy.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "纸钱", "en": "Ghost Money", "def": "Paper money burned for the dead. Some of it is real, in the wrong hands.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "线人", "en": "Contact", "def": "A local who knows the terrain. Used to move a plot through an unfamiliar region.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "练气", "en": "Qi Refining", "def": "The first realm. A mortal learns to pull qi into the body and hold it. Still killable by a plain sword.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/qi-refining/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "细作", "en": "Spy", "def": "Someone sent to gather information. Often the person nobody notices.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "终南山", "en": "Mount Zhongnan", "def": "The traditional retreat of hermits. Characters who want to disappear go here and are found anyway.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "经络", "en": "Channels and Collaterals", "def": "The whole network, big channels and small branches. Used when a technique damages the body globally.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "经脉", "en": "Meridians", "def": "The channels qi travels through. Blocked channels mean a block in power.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/meridians/", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "经脉寸断", "en": "Meridians Severed", "def": "Every channel in the body cut. The clinical way of saying this person will never cultivate again.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "结丹", "en": "Core Formation", "def": "Loose qi is compressed into a hard core in the dantian. Aging slows the moment this succeeds.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "结丹期", "en": "Core Formation Stage", "def": "The stage of compressing energy into a core. Failure is common and rarely fatal.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "结契", "en": "Bond", "def": "The formal joining of two cultivators. Heavier than a wedding: it ties their cultivation together as well.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "结拜", "en": "Sworn Brotherhood", "def": "Becoming brothers by oath rather than blood. Cannot be undone.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "结界", "en": "Boundary Barrier", "def": "A wall of energy. Visible from outside, impassable to most, and a hint that the area matters.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "给脸不要", "en": "Refusing the Face Offered", "def": "Rejecting a courtesy you were lucky to receive. The moment politeness ends.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "绝品", "en": "Peerless", "def": "Beyond grading. A thing that exists once and cannot be replicated.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "绝地", "en": "Death Zone", "def": "Ground where the environment itself kills. Entered on purpose, or not at all.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "绝地反击", "en": "Counterattack from Death Ground", "def": "The tactical version. Requires a formation or a hidden card.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "绝学", "en": "Signature Art", "def": "A sect's defining technique, passed to one or two people at a time. Losing it ends the sect more surely than losing a war.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "续命", "en": "Prolong Life", "def": "The emergency version. Often done by another person's sacrifice, which is the ethical problem.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "续命丹", "en": "Life-Extending Pill", "def": "Buys years. Each one buys fewer than the last, and nobody says so up front.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "续命灯", "en": "Life-Extending Lamp", "def": "A lamp tied to a person's lifespan. Extinguish it and the question of whether you killed someone becomes technical.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "缉拿", "en": "Apprehend", "def": "To hunt down and seize a wanted person. Official word, usually unofficial methods.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "缠斗", "en": "Close Engagement", "def": "Staying inside the opponent's reach. Dirty, exhausting, and effective.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "缩地成寸", "en": "Shrink the Earth", "def": "Crossing li in a single step. A legendary movement art, more often described than witnessed.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "缩地法", "en": "Ground-Shrinking Art", "def": "Folding distance. Cheaper than flight and more suspicious to onlookers.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "缩地阵", "en": "Earth-Shrinking Formation", "def": "A short-range transport array. The poor relative of a teleportation formation.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "缩骨功", "en": "Bone-Shrinking Art", "def": "Compressing the body to fit through gaps. Used for escapes and for comic humiliation.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "网开一面", "en": "Leave a Way Out", "def": "Deliberately leaving one gap in the net, whether from old friendship or because killing everyone would be inconvenient later.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "罗盘", "en": "Compass", "def": "Navigation, and also feng shui. The needle points at energy lines, not north.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "罚俸", "en": "Dock Allowance", "def": "Cutting the monthly allowance. The standard punishment, because it hurts without crippling.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "罚跪", "en": "Kneel as Punishment", "def": "Forced kneeling in a public place. The humiliation matters more than the pain.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "罡劲", "en": "Astral Force", "def": "Hardened qi force. Leaves dents in walls and refuses to disperse.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "罡气", "en": "Astral Qi", "def": "Hard, outward-blasting defensive qi. Crude next to a qi light barrier, and much harder to break through.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "罡风", "en": "Astral Wind", "def": "The wind above the world. It strips flesh, and it is why high travel is dangerous.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "置之亡地然后存", "en": "The Older Variant", "def": "The same doctrine, from an older text. Used when the author wants the speaker to sound learned.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "置之死地而后生", "en": "Place in Death Ground and Live", "def": "The classical doctrine. Quoted by every commander who intends to be reckless.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "羊脂玉净瓶", "en": "Jade Bottle of Guanyin", "def": "The vase that holds enough water to put out a mountain of fire. It is the standard healing item for the highest tier of characters.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "美猴王", "en": "Handsome Monkey King", "def": "His self-given title among the monkeys of Huaguo. In games it is the first costume, the one before the armour.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "群殴", "en": "Gang Beating", "def": "Several against one. The genre's most honest description of a sect's methods.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "羲和", "en": "Xihe", "def": "Mother of the suns, and the charioteer who drives them across the sky. Sun-related techniques often borrow her name for their highest tier.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "翠云山", "en": "Mount Cuiyun", "def": "The bull king's base, and the home of the fan. Getting in requires a disguise.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "翻盘", "en": "Turn the Tables", "def": "Reversing a fight that was already lost. Only believable if the groundwork was laid earlier.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "老友", "en": "Old Friend", "def": "Long acquaintance, no formality left. The only address that lets you skip titles.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "老夫", "en": "This Old Man", "def": "An older cultivator using his age as authority. 'Do not make this old man repeat himself.'", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "老奴", "en": "This Old Servant", "def": "A servant speaking about himself to his master. The humility is the point.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "老娘", "en": "This Old Lady", "def": "The female equivalent of Laozi. Crude, and funnier when it comes from a young woman.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "老子", "en": "Your Daddy", "def": "Crude, aggressive 'I'. Used by thugs, and by protagonists who have stopped being polite.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "老祖", "en": "Founding Ancestor", "def": "The oldest living power in a family or sect. Said quietly, and with fear.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/founding-ancestor/", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "老衲", "en": "This Old Monk", "def": "The same, older and blunter. Expects to be obeyed.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "老身", "en": "This Old Woman", "def": "Female equivalent of the old man's self-reference. Carries the same authority.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "老鹰", "en": "Eagle", "def": "Aerial scouting. The scene where someone is spotted far too early.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "考勤", "en": "Attendance", "def": "The record of who showed up. Petty, and impossible to argue with.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "耳力", "en": "Hearing", "def": "Acuity of the ear. A trained one hears a heartbeat through a wall.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "耳坠", "en": "Earring", "def": "Jewellery, sometimes a communication device.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "联姻", "en": "Political Marriage", "def": "Two families joined for advantage. Nobody involved is expected to be happy.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "联盟", "en": "Alliance", "def": "Sects bound together against a common enemy. It holds exactly as long as the enemy does.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "聘礼", "en": "Betrothal Gift", "def": "What the groom's family sends before a wedding. Its size is the whole conversation.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "聚气", "en": "Gather Qi", "def": "Drawing ambient qi to a single point. The first thing a beginner is taught.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "聚气散", "en": "Qi Gathering Powder", "def": "Cheap powder that speeds up early cultivation. What poor disciples can actually afford.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "聚灵梭", "en": "Qi-Gathering Shuttle", "def": "A mobile gathering formation. A cave residence that follows you around.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "聚灵阵", "en": "Spirit Gathering Formation", "def": "A formation that concentrates ambient qi. Turns a room into a training chamber.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "聚灵阵盘", "en": "Qi-Gathering Array Disc", "def": "A portable formation for training. Two hours inside, two days outside.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "聚魂幡", "en": "Soul-Gathering Banner", "def": "A banner that collects the souls of the dying. Demon-path factions carry these; so do some very orthodox armies.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "肉白骨", "en": "Flesh to Bone", "def": "Healing so complete that it rebuilds what is gone. The highest tier of healing, and rare enough to be a plot.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "肉身", "en": "Physical Body", "def": "The body as opposed to the soul. Body refiners treat it as the real weapon.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "肉身成圣", "en": "Sainthood of the Flesh", "def": "The end of the body path: immortality without a soul to lose. Rarely reached, never forgotten.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "背刺", "en": "Stab in the Back", "def": "Literal betrayal at close range. The genre's most efficient death.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "背包", "en": "Packing Up", "def": "Loading purchases into a storage ring. The genre's equivalent of a satisfying click.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "背手而立", "en": "Hands Behind, Standing", "def": "The same stance, used when the writer is tired.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "背水一战", "en": "Last Stand", "def": "Fighting with no retreat available. Terrifying to face, and easy to plan for.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "背脊发凉", "en": "Spine Went Cold", "def": "Fear travelling up the back. The physical tell of real danger.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "背誓", "en": "Break an Oath", "def": "Going back on a sworn word. The heavens are said to keep score.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "胎息", "en": "Womb Breathing", "def": "Breathing without using the nose or mouth. A sign of advanced attainment, and a party trick in some novels.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "胜之不武", "en": "A Win Without Honour", "def": "Winning by cheating. The accusation that turns a victory into a feud.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "胜负已分", "en": "Decided", "def": "The result is settled even though the fight is not. The line that ends an argument.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "脏腑", "en": "Inner Organs", "def": "The third layer, and the one that kills people. Refining organs hurts in a way flesh does not.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "脱胎换骨", "en": "Reborn Body", "def": "What happens after a major realm: the old body is discarded, not repaired.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "脸色大变", "en": "Face Changed", "def": "The mask drops. How other characters know something has gone wrong.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "脸色苍白", "en": "Face Turning Pale", "def": "Fear or injury. On a young disciple, it is usually the former.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "脸色铁青", "en": "Face Turns Livid", "def": "Rage or dread showing as a blue-grey pallor. Used on people too powerful to shout.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "脸色难看", "en": "A Bad Face", "def": "Plain description of being outplayed. The genre uses it in place of an argument.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "腰带", "en": "Belt", "def": "Holds a robe and, in this genre, a thin sword.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "腹背受敌", "en": "Enemies Front and Back", "def": "Pincer. Causes the blood-spitting reaction in younger characters.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "腿法", "en": "Leg Technique", "def": "Kicks as a system, not a fallback. Rare enough in the genre to be a character trait.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "膻中", "en": "Chest Center", "def": "The point between the lungs where qi gathers before rising. Blocking it stops the breath.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "自作自受", "en": "Made It Yourself, Suffer It Yourself", "def": "Said over a defeated enemy. Structurally, the last line before a chapter ends.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "自创", "en": "Invent Your Own", "def": "Building a technique nobody taught you. Requires a moment of insight plus a chapter of practice.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "自取其辱", "en": "Asking for Humiliation", "def": "Walking into an insult you arranged yourself. The preferred phrasing of a victor.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "自寻死路", "en": "Walking Into Death", "def": "Choosing the path that kills you. Said with contempt, not pity.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "自损名头", "en": "Damaging Your Own Name", "def": "Losing face in public. The event that starts a feud.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "自断经脉", "en": "Sever the Meridians", "def": "Permanent self-destruction as a refusal. The character survives, usually, and is never the same.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "自爆", "en": "Self-Detonation", "def": "Blowing yourself up. The last move of someone with nothing left to lose.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "自立门户", "en": "Found Your Own Sect", "def": "Starting a rival. A mid-book escalation that usually ends the old sect's monopoly.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "臭名远扬", "en": "Notorious Far Away", "def": "The comic version. Used when the character does not deserve it.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "至死不渝", "en": "Unchanging unto Death", "def": "The vow that outlasts the person making it. Frequently tested literally.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "舍利子", "en": "Relic", "def": "What remains after a holy death. In fiction, the only thing that reliably hurts demonic beings.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "舵主", "en": "Helm Master", "def": "Runs one branch of a large gang. Answers to the gang leader, ignores everyone else.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "芭蕉扇", "en": "Banana-Leaf Fan", "def": "One wave puts out fire, another raises wind, a third brings rain. A weapon that works through weather rather than impact.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/banana-leaf-fan/", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "芭蕉洞", "en": "Banana Cave", "def": "The cave where the fan is kept. Its owner does not lend things out.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "花果山", "en": "Mount Huaguo", "def": "The Flower-Fruit Mountain, home of the monkey king and his stone. Adaptations treat it as a kingdom; some novels later treat it as occupied territory.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "花果山水帘洞", "en": "Water Curtain Cave, Mount Huaguo", "def": "The full address of the monkey king's home. Adaptations treat the cave as a throne room with a waterfall for a door.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "花果山福地", "en": "The Blessed Land of Huaguo", "def": "The full formulaic name of the monkey king's mountain. Used in formal scenes, almost never in dialogue.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "花果山福地水帘洞洞天", "en": "The Full Address of Huaguo", "def": "The formal twelve-character address. Used once, in a scene that wants to sound official.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "花轿", "en": "Bridal Sedan", "def": "The decorated chair that carries a bride to her wedding. Never travels at night.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "花魁", "en": "Courtesan", "def": "The most sought-after performer in a brothel. Often sharper than her clients.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "苟住", "en": "Lay Low", "def": "A modern internet-flavoured word for hiding and waiting. Common in recent serials.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "苟到最后", "en": "Lay Low to the End", "def": "The strategy of a character who intends to survive everyone. Sometimes played for comedy.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "若有所思", "en": "Lost in Thought", "def": "The look that precedes a deduction or a betrayal.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "苦笑", "en": "Bitter Smile", "def": "Amused and resigned at the same time. What people do when the situation is hopeless.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "苦行", "en": "Austere Practice", "def": "Deliberate hardship as a method. Painful, and it works.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "英招", "en": "Yingzhao", "def": "The horse-tiger bird that tends the divine gardens. Minor, but useful for a scene that needs a caretaker with teeth.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "茶馆", "en": "Teahouse", "def": "Where news is traded before it is printed. Cheaper than an inn, louder than a market.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "茶馆说书", "en": "Tales in the Teahouse", "def": "The framing device where the novel's own plot is retold by a stranger. Old technique, still effective.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "荒漠", "en": "Desert", "def": "Distance as an enemy. Any journey arc that begins here becomes about water.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "荒野", "en": "Wilderness", "def": "Land outside the reach of any magistrate. Anything can happen and no one records it.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "药力", "en": "Potency", "def": "The amount of usable effect inside a pill. Diminishes with age and with every opening of the container.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "药力残留", "en": "Residual Potency", "def": "What is left after the main effect is used. Small, and the reason characters are reluctant to share.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "药园", "en": "Herb Garden", "def": "Where a sect grows its own materials. Quietly the most valuable land it owns.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "药引", "en": "Catalyst", "def": "The one ingredient that makes the rest of the formula work. First thing to go missing.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "药性", "en": "Herb Nature", "def": "Whether a herb is cold, hot, warm or cool. Mix them wrong and the pill becomes poison.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "药性相克", "en": "Clashing Nature", "def": "Two ingredients that cancel each other out or worse. The reason recipes are secrets.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "药渣", "en": "Herb Dregs", "def": "What is left after refining. Sold cheap to people who cannot afford the real thing.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "药王谷", "en": "Herb King Valley", "def": "A valley of alchemists. Rich, neutral on paper, and impossible to attack profitably.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "药理", "en": "Herb Logic", "def": "The grammar of combining herbs. Learned from books, proven by explosions.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "药田巡守", "en": "Field Patrol", "def": "The job of guarding a herb garden. Routine until it is not.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "药童", "en": "Herb Boy", "def": "The disciple who tends the herb garden. Sees everything, is asked nothing.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "药铺", "en": "Apothecary", "def": "Sells herbs to ordinary people. The place where a poison is traced back to.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "莫欺少年穷", "en": "Do Not Mock the Young and Poor", "def": "The genre's founding line. Any character who hears it has just made an enemy.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/do-not-mock-the-young-and-poor/", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "莫要自误", "en": "Do Not Ruin Yourself", "def": "An offer of retreat, phrased as courtesy. Declining it is the accepted signal to begin.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "菩提子", "en": "Bodhi Seed", "def": "Enlightenment in a bead. Worn by monks and by anyone who wants to look like one.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "萤火之光", "en": "Firefly's Light", "def": "'A firefly comparing itself to the moon.' The same insult, dressed more poetically.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "落宝金钱", "en": "Treasure-Falling Coin", "def": "A coin that knocks any flying treasure out of the air. Against weapons it does nothing, which is the balance.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "落成", "en": "Opening Ceremony", "def": "A new hall or gate, formally opened. Someone attacks on the day.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "落针可闻", "en": "A Pin Could Drop", "def": "Quiet so complete that a falling needle would be heard. The genre's favourite crowd reaction.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "落霞谷", "en": "Sunset Valley", "def": "A pretty name for a place that has killed a lot of people.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "落魂幡", "en": "Soul-Dropping Banner", "def": "A banner that pulls the will out of everyone facing it. Countered by closing your eyes, which nobody does in time.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "落魂钟", "en": "Soul-Dropping Bell", "def": "A bell whose ring pulls the soul loose. Countered by plugging the ears, so scenes using it are about reaction time.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "蒙汗药", "en": "Sleeping Drug", "def": "Knockout powder slipped into wine. The oldest trick in the mortal world.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "蒲牢", "en": "Pulao", "def": "The beast whose voice is the bell. Every temple bell in the genre is its throat.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "蓄力", "en": "Build Power", "def": "Holding force back to release it all at once. Obvious, and still works.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "蓑衣", "en": "Straw Rain Cloak", "def": "Worn by wanderers and fishermen. Signals a character who has given something up.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "蓬荜生辉", "en": "My Hut Is Honored", "def": "Said when a distinguished guest arrives. Self-deprecating by convention.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "蓬莱", "en": "Penglai", "def": "The island of the immortals in the eastern sea, visible but unreachable. Any novel with a sea voyage has someone looking for it.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "蓬莱仙岛", "en": "Penglai Immortal Island", "def": "The eastern isle, usually described through mist. Reaching it is proof of cultivation, not navigation.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "蕴神玉", "en": "Soul-Nurturing Jade", "def": "Jade that feeds the soul. Alchemists and ghost cultivators both refuse to share.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "薄情", "en": "Cold-Hearted", "def": "Capable of ending a relationship without regret. Usually said about someone still missed.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "藏书阁", "en": "Book Pavilion", "def": "A smaller library. Where a character with a question finds an answer at the last minute.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "藏宝阁", "en": "Treasure Pavilion", "def": "The building holding a sect's artifacts. Guarded twice: by formation, and by an elder.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "藏拙", "en": "Hide One's Clumsiness", "def": "Pretending to be worse than you are. A survival tactic in any sect where talent gets either recruited or removed.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "藏经楼", "en": "Scripture Tower", "def": "The restricted library. Each floor requires a higher clearance, which is a whole map.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "藏经阁", "en": "Scripture Pavilion", "def": "The library. Techniques inside, and the reason people sneak around at night.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/scripture-pavilion/", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "藤蔓", "en": "Vine", "def": "Often the ingredient that fights back. Harvest scenes are frequently ambushes.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "虚丹", "en": "Void Core", "def": "A core that has not solidified. Halfway between Qi Refining and Core Formation, and usually omitted.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "虚张声势", "en": "Bluff", "def": "Looking stronger than you are. Works once, then becomes a death sentence.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "虚招", "en": "Feint", "def": "A committed strike that was never meant to land. Its only job is to make the real one work.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "虚浮", "en": "Hollow", "def": "The opposite. Fast progress with nothing underneath, and a guaranteed reversal.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "虚空", "en": "The Void", "def": "The emptiness between worlds. Falling in is not death exactly, and nobody comes back.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "虫兽", "en": "Insect Beast", "def": "Small, numerous, and the cause of a swarm arc. Individually harmless.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "虬龙", "en": "Qiulong", "def": "A dragon with a single horn, associated with restraint. Its scales are a smithing material.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "蚩尤", "en": "Chiyou", "def": "The rebel chieftain defeated by the Yellow Emperor, later remembered as a war god. Novels that want a sympathetic villain reach for him first.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "蛇涎果", "en": "Snake-Saliva Fruit", "def": "Fruit grown where serpents nest. Poison base, and a fortune if you can pick it.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "蛊术", "en": "Gu Sorcery", "def": "The art of breeding and deploying such insects. Associated with the southern frontier.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "蛊毒", "en": "Gu Poison", "def": "Insect-based poison. Slow, specific, and used to control rather than kill.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "蛊虫", "en": "Gu Insect", "def": "A insect bred to live inside a body. The horror is how small it is.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "蛊雕", "en": "Gudiao", "def": "A horned bird that cries like a baby. The genre's most effective ambush monster.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "蛟珠", "en": "River-Dragon Pearl", "def": "A pearl from a lesser dragon. Cheaper than a dragon pearl and almost as useful.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "蛟龙", "en": "Flood Dragon", "def": "A dragon that has not yet become one. Vain, violent, and one step from something worse.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "蜀山", "en": "Mount Shu", "def": "The sword-immortal mountain, all peaks and flying blades. Any novel with sword sects flying between peaks owes it to this.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "蜂王浆", "en": "Royal Jelly", "def": "The concentrated version. One spoon is worth a month of ordinary cultivation.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "蜂群", "en": "Swarm", "def": "Numbers with wings. Fights against swarms are about area attacks.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "蜃珠", "en": "Mirage Pearl", "def": "Produces illusions of cities and water. Used to lead armies astray.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "蜈蚣精", "en": "Centipede Demon", "def": "The hundred-eyed demon whose glare emits golden light. Beaten by a specific counter, like most of the pilgrimage monsters.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "蜘蛛精", "en": "Spider Spirit", "def": "The weavers of Spider Ridge. Their webs trap, their hospitality poisons, and their bathhouse scene is the most adapted in the pilgrimage.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "蝎子精", "en": "Scorpion Demon", "def": "The demon that wounded the Buddha with a sting and later the monkey. One hit, lasting damage, no second attempt.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "蝼蚁", "en": "Ants", "def": "What the strong call the weak. 'You are all ants to me.'", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "融合", "en": "Merge Two Arts", "def": "Combining methods into one. Dangerous, because the two systems usually disagree.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "螭吻", "en": "Chiwen", "def": "The roof-ridge beast that swallows fire. Explains why temple roofs survive lightning.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "螭龙", "en": "Chilong", "def": "A hornless young dragon, often carved on roof ridges. Decorative in life, dangerous when it turns out to be alive.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "螳臂当车", "en": "Mantis Blocking a Cart", "def": "Trying to stop something vastly stronger. Said as mockery, or as a warning.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "螺旋劲", "en": "Spiral Force", "def": "Force that twists as it travels. Bores through armor instead of pushing it.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "蟠桃", "en": "Peach of Immortality", "def": "The peach that adds centuries of life. Three grades in most tellings, and the theft of one is the start of a war.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "蟠桃园仙桃", "en": "Peach from the Immortal Orchard", "def": "Graded by age. Three thousand years for one effect, six for another, nine for the one nobody has eaten.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "蟠桃园内", "en": "Inside the Peach Orchard", "def": "Counted, guarded and quiet. The quiet is the part nobody can maintain.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "蟠龙", "en": "Panlong", "def": "A dragon coiled without ascending. Pillars and seals carry it; so do the more patient villains.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "血云压顶", "en": "Blood Cloud Overhead", "def": "The opposite. Means the tribulation is angry, or the character has been cheating.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "血卫", "en": "Blood Guard", "def": "A demonic sect's personal guard. Bound by blood, so their loyalty is not a choice.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "血参", "en": "Blood Ginseng", "def": "Ginseng with red roots. Replenishes blood and qi at once, which is why it is always sold young.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "血咒", "en": "Blood Curse", "def": "A curse bound by blood. Cannot be lifted without the original blood.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "血契", "en": "Blood Contract", "def": "A binding contract with a beast. Break it and both sides pay.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/blood-contract/", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "血案", "en": "Blood Case", "def": "A murder case with bodies. The word itself implies more than one.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "血气", "en": "Blood Vigour", "def": "The sharper version, closer to aggression. High values are visible as a red aura.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "血池", "en": "Pool of Blood", "def": "A demonic cultivation site. Used to advance, and to explain where a town went.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "血池淬体", "en": "Tempering in the Blood Pool", "def": "The immersion. Efficient, and the character never looks the same afterwards.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "血河", "en": "River of Blood", "def": "Either a massacre site or a demonic formation's fuel line. Both are bad news.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "血洗", "en": "Wash in Blood", "def": "A massacre described as cleaning. The word choice is the horror: it frames slaughter as housework.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "血流成河", "en": "Rivers of Blood", "def": "The same scene, wetter. Frequent enough to be a cliché translators occasionally keep.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "血灵芝", "en": "Blood Lingzhi", "def": "Lingzhi grown on corpses. Restores qi fast, and leaves a taste nobody forgets.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "血炼", "en": "Blood Refining", "def": "Binding an artifact with your own blood. Faster, and it hurts twice as much when it breaks.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "血祭", "en": "Blood Sacrifice", "def": "Killing living things to power something. The clearest moral line in the genre.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "血祭阵", "en": "Blood Sacrifice Array", "def": "Powers something by killing inside it. Demon path material, and the reason a village disappears.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "血窍", "en": "Blood Orifice", "def": "A point where blood can be drawn or sealed. Demon path techniques target these.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "血符", "en": "Blood Talisman", "def": "Drawn with the caster's own blood. Twice the power, and it shortens the life that drew it.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "血纹", "en": "Blood Pattern", "def": "Patterns carved with the maker's own blood. How a treasure learns whose it is.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "血脉", "en": "Bloodline", "def": "Power inherited rather than trained. Latent until something wakes it up.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "血脉压制", "en": "Bloodline Suppression", "def": "A higher bloodline forcing a lower one to submit. No fight, just knees.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "血脉觉醒", "en": "Bloodline Awakening", "def": "The event itself. Usually comes with a beast mark and a sudden appetite.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "血誓", "en": "Sanguine Oath", "def": "Sworn with blood. Enforced by something, though the text is usually vague about what.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "血遁", "en": "Blood Escape", "def": "Burning essence blood to vanish on the spot. Works every time, and costs a stage of cultivation every time.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "血阵", "en": "Blood Formation", "def": "Drawn in blood instead of ink. Stronger, cheaper, and it takes something back.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "血食", "en": "Blood Feeding", "def": "Beasts that eat people specifically. The genre's shorthand for a monster that has to be stopped.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "血魔", "en": "Blood Demon", "def": "A demonic cultivator built on blood. Hard to kill because they keep refilling.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "行云流水", "en": "Flowing Like Clouds", "def": "The movement quality in a good technique. Used for swordplay, calligraphy, and escape.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "行功", "en": "Work the Qi", "def": "Running the technique in steady rotation. Slower than circulating qi, deeper.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "衙门", "en": "Yamen", "def": "The magistrate's office in the mortal world. Irrelevant to cultivators, until the day it is not.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "衣钵", "en": "The Mantle", "def": "A master's entire legacy passed to one disciple: technique, artifacts, obligations. Rarely given to the most talented, often to the most trusted.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "补全", "en": "Complete the Manual", "def": "Finding the missing pages. The reward is not power but permission.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "补天丹", "en": "Sky-Mending Pill", "def": "Legendary pill that repairs a broken foundation. Exists mostly in rumours and dying masters.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "补气", "en": "Replenish Qi", "def": "Refilling after depletion. Slower than it sounds and never fast enough in a fight.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "表决", "en": "Vote", "def": "A formal show of hands. Rare, and usually already decided.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "袖箭", "en": "Sleeve Arrow", "def": "A short bolt fired from the sleeve. Only useful once, which is all it needs.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "装死", "en": "Play Dead", "def": "A real option in this genre, and occasionally the smartest one.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "西域", "en": "Western Region", "def": "Distant, strange, and full of foreign cultivation paths.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "西天路上", "en": "On the Western Road", "def": "The journey itself, used as a set phrase. Novels borrow it for any long difficult trip.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "西游", "en": "Journey to the West", "def": "The westward pilgrimage story, endlessly adapted. Modern novels use it as a shared backstory that readers already know the ending of.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "西王母", "en": "Queen Mother of the West", "def": "The goddess of the western paradise and keeper of the peaches of immortality. Every immortality plot owes her something, whether or not she appears.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "见机行事", "en": "Play It by Ear", "def": "No plan fixed in advance. What subordinates say when the plan has already failed.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "见礼", "en": "Exchange Greetings", "def": "The formal bowing ritual on meeting. Skipping it is a declaration.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "见笑", "en": "You Must Be Laughing", "def": "Self-deprecation before showing something. Lowers expectations on purpose.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "观想", "en": "Visualisation", "def": "Holding a fixed image in the mind to stabilise practice. Details matter less than the character's patience.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "观音院", "en": "Guanyin Monastery", "def": "A monastery whose abbot covets a robe. The lesson is that robes cause more trouble than demons.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "觉醒", "en": "Awakening", "def": "The moment a bloodline or constitution switches on. Usually involuntary, always public.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "解毒丹", "en": "Antidote Pill", "def": "Generic antidote. Works on everything common and nothing interesting.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "解穴", "en": "Release the Point", "def": "Undoing a point strike. Needs the same knowledge that applied it.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "解阳山", "en": "Mount Xieyang", "def": "The mountain with the spring that undoes pregnancy. The scene exists because the author thought it was funny.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "解除契约", "en": "Break the Bond", "def": "Severing the tie. Painful for both parties, and the artifact often keeps a grudge.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "誓师", "en": "Rally Before Battle", "def": "Speeches, then departure. The genre's standard end-of-chapter beat.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "讙", "en": "Huan", "def": "A one-eyed beast that imitates voices. Used for scenes where a character hears themselves called.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "订金", "en": "Down Payment", "def": "Money to hold an item. Refunding it is named a specific crime in most markets.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "认主", "en": "Bind to a Master", "def": "Making a treasure accept one owner. Almost always requires blood.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "认主失败", "en": "Failed Binding", "def": "The cost of forcing a bond. Backlash, injury, or a corpse still holding the hilt.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "认栽", "en": "Take the Loss", "def": "Conceding without excuses. In this genre it buys respect, and sometimes a life.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "认祖归宗", "en": "Return to the Lineage", "def": "Claiming descent after years away. Requires proof, and provokes whoever wanted the claim to stay empty.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "认负", "en": "Concede", "def": "Declaring defeat before being knocked down. Sensible at the lower ranks, unforgivable at the top.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "认输", "en": "Yield", "def": "The clipped version, used when the loser cannot speak in full sentences.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "讨债", "en": "Collect a Debt", "def": "Demanding payment. Usually done with backup.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "让你知道厉害", "en": "Show You What Real Power Is", "def": "The promise before the demonstration.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "让对方先出手", "en": "Let Them Strike First", "def": "The etiquette-based version. Also a legal advantage if witnesses are present.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "让我来", "en": "Let Me Handle This", "def": "Stepping in front of the group. Establishes hierarchy in one line.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "议事", "en": "Council", "def": "The meeting where elders decide. Decisions are made before the meeting starts.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "议和", "en": "Negotiate Peace", "def": "Talks to end a war. Both sides arrive already planning the next one.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "记仇", "en": "Holds a Grudge", "def": "Keeps the account open for decades. In a world where people live for centuries, that is a real threat.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "记功", "en": "Record Merit", "def": "Having a deed written into the sect ledger. The only way most disciples ever receive anything.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "记名弟子", "en": "Nominal Disciple", "def": "On the list, not in the family. No resources, no protection.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "记过", "en": "Record Demerit", "def": "Having a fault written into that same ledger. Enough of them and the sect writes you out of it.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "讲道", "en": "Sermon on the Dao", "def": "An elder teaching publicly. Attendance is political.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "论道", "en": "Debate the Dao", "def": "Formal argument between cultivators about the Dao. Can turn into a fight without anyone moving.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "证道", "en": "Prove the Dao", "def": "The moment a cultivator's understanding is confirmed by reality.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "识海", "en": "Sea of Consciousness", "def": "The inner space where the mind lives. Where soul attacks land.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "识相的就滚", "en": "Leave If You Have Sense", "def": "The offer made to a crowd. Half of them leave.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "诈败", "en": "Feigned Defeat", "def": "Pretending to lose. Effective exactly once per book.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "诏书", "en": "Imperial Edict", "def": "An order from the throne. Obeyed fast, and often forged.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "试丹", "en": "Test the Pill", "def": "Having someone else take it first. The someone else is usually a servant or a prisoner.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "试探", "en": "Probe", "def": "A strike at three-tenths strength, to learn what the other side is. Every serious fight starts with one.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "试探性一击", "en": "Probing Strike", "def": "The specific hit used to gauge defence. Lighter than it looks.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "试炼", "en": "Trial", "def": "A supervised dangerous task meant to test disciples. Some do not come back.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "试炼塔", "en": "Trial Tower", "def": "A tower of staged fights used as an examination. The higher the floor, the fewer the survivors.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "诛仙剑", "en": "Immortal-Slaying Sword", "def": "One of four swords set in a formation that kills anything that enters. The sword matters less than the array it belongs to.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "诛仙剑阵", "en": "Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation", "def": "The four-sword array that requires four masters to break. It is the benchmark for 'impossible to defeat' in the genre.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "诛仙四剑", "en": "The Four Immortal-Slaying Swords", "def": "Four swords that only work together. Separated, each is merely very good.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "诛仙阵图", "en": "Diagram of the Immortal-Slaying Array", "def": "The plan rather than the swords. Owning the diagram is worth more than owning any single blade.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "该死", "en": "Damn It", "def": "Ordinary frustration. Works in any scene, at any rank.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "诱敌深入", "en": "Lure In Deep", "def": "Letting the enemy advance into ground you chose years ago.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "说不出话", "en": "Lost for Words", "def": "The silence after an impossible reveal.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "说书人", "en": "Storyteller", "def": "The man in the teahouse who narrates legends. Half of what the world believes starts here.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "请君入瓮", "en": "Into the Jar", "def": "Arranging things so the target steps into the trap willingly.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "请留步", "en": "Please Wait", "def": "A courteous way to stop someone from leaving. What follows is rarely courteous.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "请罪", "en": "Plead Guilty", "def": "Reporting to the discipline hall before you are summoned. The lower the posture, the lighter the sentence.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "诸位", "en": "Everyone", "def": "How you address a room. Opens a speech or ends a discussion.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "调停", "en": "Mediate", "def": "Stepping between two sides to stop a fight. Only works if you are stronger than both.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "调息", "en": "Regulate Breathing", "def": "Settling your breathing to recover. Short rest, not full healing.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "调虎离山", "en": "Lure the Tiger Off the Mountain", "def": "Drawing the strongest defender away from the thing he is defending.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "谷主", "en": "Valley Master", "def": "Head of a valley sect. Sounds pastoral, usually is not.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "豪门", "en": "Powerful Clan", "def": "The same idea with money visible. The genre's default source of unpleasant rivals.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "貔貅", "en": "Pixiu", "def": "The beast that eats treasure and never releases it. The standard ornament for anyone collecting things.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "负心", "en": "Betrayer of Love", "def": "The one who left. Used as a noun, which tells you how the story feels about it.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "负手而立", "en": "Standing with Hands Clasped Behind", "def": "The classic master's pose. On a roof, in the rain, for no reason.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "负荆请罪", "en": "Bear Thorns", "def": "Presenting yourself for punishment, thorns on your back. The old style of apology.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "贡献点", "en": "Contribution Points", "def": "The sect's internal currency, earned by missions. What disciples actually compete for.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/contribution-points/", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "财大气粗", "en": "Filthy Rich", "def": "Rich enough that money itself becomes an argument. Usually said with contempt.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "责罚", "en": "Punishment", "def": "Fine, labour, confinement, or death. Which one depends on who you offended.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "贤侄", "en": "Worthy Nephew", "def": "How an elder addresses a friend's son. Polite, with distance built in.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "贤弟", "en": "Worthy Brother", "def": "The matching term of address. Warm, and slightly formal.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "败北", "en": "Defeat", "def": "The formal word. Used in narration, never in dialogue.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "账房", "en": "Bookkeeper", "def": "The man who keeps the ledger. Quietly the second most powerful person in any household.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "账本", "en": "Ledger", "def": "The sect's books. Stealing it is a smarter plan than stealing the treasury.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "货郎", "en": "Peddler", "def": "Sells small goods town to town. The genre's cheapest source of rumour.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "贫僧", "en": "This Poor Monk", "def": "Buddhist self-reference. Calm on the surface, lethal underneath.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "贫尼", "en": "This Poor Nun", "def": "The female equivalent, and rarer than it should be.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "贫道", "en": "This Poor Daoist", "def": "A Daoist cultivator's humble self-reference. Humble in form only; often said by someone about to kill you.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/this-poor-daoist/", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "贵宗", "en": "Your Esteemed Sect", "def": "The matching compliment. The more elaborate, the less sincere.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "贺寿", "en": "Offer Birthday Greetings", "def": "The formal phrase. Saying it to the wrong person is a mistake with consequences.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "贺礼", "en": "Congratulatory Gift", "def": "What you send when a sect celebrates or a disciple breaks through. The size of the gift states your position.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "资源分配", "en": "Resource Allocation", "def": "Who gets what. The sect's real politics, and the reason every arc has a grudge.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "资质", "en": "Aptitude", "def": "The general word for how good someone's raw material is. What elders judge before taking a disciple.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "资质平平", "en": "Ordinary Aptitude", "def": "The middle of the sect: not hopeless, not chosen. Where most stories start.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "资质的差距", "en": "The Talent Gap", "def": "Where one character can learn in a day what another takes a decade for. Used to make rivals legitimate.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "赊账", "en": "Buy on Credit", "def": "Taking goods now and paying later. Only works if the seller is afraid of you.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "赌坊", "en": "Gambling House", "def": "Where fortunes change hands nightly. Owned by someone you do not want to owe.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "赎当", "en": "Redeem a Pawned Item", "def": "Coming back to recover it. The threshold has passed and the price has gone up.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "赐座", "en": "Grant a Seat", "def": "Letting a visitor sit. The seat's position tells them exactly where they stand.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "赔了夫人又折兵", "en": "Lose the Wife and the Troops", "def": "A historic humiliation turned proverb. Used when a scheme fails in front of witnesses.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "赔罪", "en": "Make Amends", "def": "A formal apology with a gift attached. The gift says how serious it is.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "赖账", "en": "Welsh", "def": "Refusing to pay what you owe. A fast way to lose more than money.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "赤尻马猴", "en": "Red-Rumped Horse Monkey", "def": "The primate that knows the past and future and avoids death. The cleverest of the four, and the least used.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "赤铜", "en": "Red Copper", "def": "Warm-conducting copper. Common in fire-attribute artifacts.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "赤霄剑", "en": "Red Sky Sword", "def": "A sword associated with the founding of the Han, used in fiction as proof of destiny.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "赫赫威名", "en": "Towering Renown", "def": "The amplified version. Used for old enemies before they are introduced.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "走火", "en": "Internal Fire Deviation", "def": "The milder stage, usually caught early. Manifests as a fever that will not break.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "走火入魔", "en": "Qi Deviation", "def": "A technique gone wrong inside the body. Crippling at best, insane and murderous at worst.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/qi-deviation/", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "走火入魔之兆", "en": "Signs of Demonic Deviation", "def": "The early symptoms: aggression, hearing things, an unhealthy interest in the moon.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "走火入魔前兆", "en": "Signs of Deviation", "def": "Early warnings: ringing ears, hot palms, dreams that repeat. Used to build dread before a fight.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "走着瞧", "en": "We Will See", "def": "A threat wearing the clothes of a shrug.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "走神", "en": "Distracted", "def": "A smaller version, and the usual reason a technique fails.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "走货", "en": "Ship Goods", "def": "Moving merchandise. Requires guards, which is where escorts enter the plot.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "走镖", "en": "Run an Escort", "def": "To take a guarded shipment on the road. Long, dull, and occasionally lethal.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "赶尽杀绝", "en": "Hunt Them to the Last", "def": "Refusing to leave a single survivor, including servants and children. Considered excessive even by villains, and a reliable signal of what the winner is.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "赶路", "en": "On the Road", "def": "Travelling hard without pause. Said of anyone in a hurry and unwilling to explain why.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "赶集", "en": "Market Day", "def": "The weekly market. Everyone shows up, including whoever is hunting someone.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "起拍价", "en": "Opening Bid", "def": "Less than anyone expects to pay. Exists to start the room.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "起死回生", "en": "Raise the Dead", "def": "Bringing back someone who is actually dead. The price is always named and always steep.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "超品", "en": "Beyond Grade", "def": "An item that does not fit the scale. Shorthand for 'this arc will be about this thing'.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "超度", "en": "Release a Soul", "def": "The same act as a service. Refusing to release something is how a haunting starts.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "超级宗门", "en": "Super Sect", "def": "Beyond first rate. Its elders are the region's weather.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "超阶", "en": "Beyond Tier", "def": "Anything that does not fit. The author's way of saying the scale is done.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "越级", "en": "Cross Levels", "def": "Fighting above your stage. Requires a reason that the text supplies in the same paragraph.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "越阶", "en": "Fight Above One's Realm", "def": "Beating someone at a higher cultivation stage. Rare enough that one case becomes the talk of a whole region.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "越阶而战", "en": "Fighting Above Your Level", "def": "The genre's central fantasy. Explained by technique, artifact, or luck.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "足下", "en": "You", "def": "An old formal 'you' between equals. Sounds classical and slightly stiff.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "跌落神坛", "en": "Fallen from the Altar", "def": "Losing status publicly. The setup for a comeback arc.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "跪倒在地", "en": "Dropped to Knees", "def": "Collapsing under pressure rather than choosing to kneel. Aura does the work.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "路引", "en": "Travel Permit", "def": "The pass a commoner needs to cross a checkpoint. Cultivators usually just fly over.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "跳阶", "en": "Jump a Tier", "def": "Advancing two grades at once. Impossible for most, routine for the protagonist.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "踏云", "en": "Tread the Clouds", "def": "Cloud walking, the older method. Slower, quieter, and used by people who want to be seen arriving.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "踏空", "en": "Walk the Air", "def": "Stepping on nothing. The basic tell of anyone above a certain level.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "身份令牌", "en": "Identity Token", "def": "A jade or metal token proving which sect you belong to. Lose it and you are nobody.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "身法", "en": "Movement Art", "def": "A technique trained purely for speed and evasion. Decides who gets to leave a fight they cannot win.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "躬身", "en": "Bow Low", "def": "A bend at the waist, with the depth calibrated to the status gap. Getting the depth wrong is itself a statement.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "车轮战", "en": "Gauntlet", "def": "One fighter against a rotating line of opponents. A way to wear down someone stronger without ever beating them outright.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "车迟国", "en": "Kingdom of Chechi", "def": "The kingdom where three animal immortals run the court and suppress Buddhists. A satire of court religion that still reads.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "轩辕", "en": "Xuanyuan", "def": "The Yellow Emperor, ancestor of the human line and namesake of countless swords. A sword called Xuanyuan in a novel always means the owner has a claim on legitimacy.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "轩辕剑", "en": "Xuanyuan Sword", "def": "The Yellow Emperor's sword, a symbol of legitimate rule rather than a weapon. Whoever holds it is arguing about government.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "转世", "en": "Reincarnation", "def": "Being born again, usually without memory. The setup for a revenge plot.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/reincarnation/", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "转修", "en": "Switch Arts", "def": "Abandoning your art for another. The old progress is not lost, it simply stops counting.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "转换阵", "en": "Conversion Array", "def": "Changes one kind of energy into another. Rare, and the basis of a lot of cheating.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "转气", "en": "Cycle Qi", "def": "Sending energy around the meridians in a loop. Repetition is the whole method.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "轮回", "en": "Reincarnation", "def": "The cycle of death and rebirth. What cultivation is ultimately trying to escape.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "轮回台", "en": "Wheel of Rebirth", "def": "Where souls are sent back. Standing on it means everything before is finished.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "轮回大道", "en": "Great Dao of Reincarnation", "def": "Control over what comes back. The top of most power systems, and almost never fully achieved on the page.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "轮回盘", "en": "Wheel of Reincarnation", "def": "The mechanism that sorts souls. Tampering with it is the genre's highest crime.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "轮回道", "en": "Path of Rebirth", "def": "The route souls take. Tampering with it is the only crime everyone agrees on.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "轮回镜", "en": "Mirror of Rebirth", "def": "Shows past lives. Useful for identity reveals, entertaining for everyone else.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "轮空", "en": "Bye", "def": "Advancing without fighting. Resented by everyone in line.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "软剑", "en": "Soft Sword", "def": "A blade that coils around the waist and makes no sound coming out.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "软功", "en": "Soft Technique", "def": "Training the body to bend and yield. Beats hard technique on a good day.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "轻功", "en": "Light Body Skill", "def": "Running on walls and rooftops. Mortal-world staple, still useful at low realms.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "辅修", "en": "Secondary Art", "def": "A supporting technique, taken to cover a weakness the main art leaves open.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "辟水珠", "en": "Water-Warding Pearl", "def": "The underwater version. Why some characters can fight in a lake and others cannot.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "辟火珠", "en": "Fire-Warding Pearl", "def": "Lets the holder walk through flame. Necessary equipment for exactly one arc.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "辟谷", "en": "Grain Avoidance", "def": "Living on qi instead of food. Quiet proof that someone is past a certain level.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "边关", "en": "Frontier Pass", "def": "A garrison between two powers. Everyone here is tense by profession.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "边界", "en": "Border", "def": "Where a sect's authority ends. Legal in theory, lawless in practice.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "边荒", "en": "Border Wastes", "def": "Where the map stops being accurate. Rules weaken with distance from the centre.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "过了这条线", "en": "Cross This Line", "def": "The same, with a literal line. Reliable and always crossed.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "过奖", "en": "Overpraising", "def": "Modest deflection of praise. Delivered with a small smile.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "迎客", "en": "Receive Guests", "def": "The disciples sent to meet visitors. Their manners are the sect's first test.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "运功", "en": "Circulate Qi", "def": "Actively driving qi through the meridians. What you do to heal, to resist, or to strike.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "运劲", "en": "Channel Strength", "def": "Moving force through the muscles in a specific path. A martial technique, not a spell.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "运势", "en": "Current Fortune", "def": "The short-term version. Fades with circumstances and is always read by diviners before a fight.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "运气", "en": "Move the Qi", "def": "Directing energy to a specific place. What a healer does before touching a wound.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "返璞归真", "en": "Return to the Uncarved", "def": "Stripping away ornament until only essence remains. The last stage of mastery, and the reason old monsters dress like beggars.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "返祖", "en": "Atavism", "def": "Blood reaching back past the human line to something older. Terrifying, and hard to control.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "返虚", "en": "Return to Nothing", "def": "A broken artifact losing its power. What happens to everything the protagonist outgrows.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "还价", "en": "Counter-Offer", "def": "The first reply. Always half of the asking price.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "还差得远", "en": "Not Even Close", "def": "The master's verdict. Delivered while holding back.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "还阳", "en": "Return to Life", "def": "Coming back from death. In this genre, rarely voluntary.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "还魂", "en": "Soul Return", "def": "A soul coming back to its own body. Limited window, and a strong chance of being someone else's.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "进货", "en": "Restocking", "def": "Buying goods to resell. The supply chain that explains why a market is or is not full.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "连招", "en": "Chained Moves", "def": "Techniques strung together so the end of one is the start of the next. No gaps, no breath.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "连环阵", "en": "Linked Array", "def": "Several formations working as one. The standard defence of any serious sect.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "连胜", "en": "Winning Streak", "def": "The tally. Used to build a reputation in three paragraphs.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "连退数步", "en": "Staggering Back Several Steps", "def": "The vaguer version, used when the author wants flexibility.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "迷阵", "en": "Maze Formation", "def": "A formation that does not hurt you, only refuses to let you leave. The cruelty is the patience.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "迷雾森林", "en": "Misty Forest", "def": "Limited visibility, limited escape. The genre's standard low-tier danger zone.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "迷魂丹", "en": "Soul-Bewildering Pill", "def": "Dulls the will and loosens the tongue. Banned in every righteous sect, sold in all of them.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "追击", "en": "Pursue", "def": "Chasing a broken enemy. The phase where most casualties happen.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "追悼", "en": "Memorial", "def": "Remembrance without a funeral. Used when the character may not be dead.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "退下", "en": "Stand Down", "def": "A superior dismissing a subordinate, or a stronger cultivator dismissing a crowd. An order, never a suggestion.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "退婚", "en": "Break the Betrothal", "def": "Calling off an arranged match. In this genre, the single most reliable opening chapter.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "退货", "en": "Return", "def": "Refusing the goods. In a market without consumer law, a form of violence.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "退赛", "en": "Forfeit", "def": "Leaving a tournament before the bracket reaches you. Rare, and read as guilt.", "cat": "Duels and Tournaments" }, { "zh": "退走", "en": "Withdraw", "def": "Leaving a fight you cannot win. In this genre, a sign of experience rather than cowardice.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "送客", "en": "See Off Guests", "def": "Escorting visitors out. Said coldly, it means do not come back.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "逃跑", "en": "Flee", "def": "Leaving. Not a loss in this genre, merely a delay.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "逆天", "en": "Defy Heaven", "def": "Refusing the fate heaven assigned. The genre's central gesture.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "逆天改命", "en": "Defy Heaven, Change Fate", "def": "The dramatic version. Used on covers more than in chapters.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "逆天资质", "en": "Heaven-Defying Talent", "def": "Talent so far above the scale that the scale stops applying. Always attached to a character who cannot use it yet.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "逆练", "en": "Reverse Practice", "def": "Running a technique backwards. Faster results, worse consequences.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "逆行经脉", "en": "Reverse the Meridians", "def": "Forcing energy backwards through the body. A suicide technique that sometimes promotes the user.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "逆袭", "en": "Counterattack", "def": "The weak overturning the strong. A whole subgenre in two characters.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "逆运真元", "en": "Reverse the Cycle", "def": "Running the energy in reverse on purpose. Buys a burst of power and takes years off a life.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "透支", "en": "Overdraw", "def": "Spending future strength now. The bill arrives at the worst possible time.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "逐出宗门", "en": "Banished from the Sect", "def": "The institutional version, applied formally with witnesses. The exiled character usually returns.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "逐出师门", "en": "Expelled from the Sect", "def": "Thrown out and disowned. For a weak disciple, in practice a death sentence.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/expelled-from-the-sect/", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "逐鹿", "en": "Contest for Power", "def": "Several factions competing openly. Usually phrased as several deer in chase.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "递战书", "en": "Deliver a War Letter", "def": "Sending the formal declaration of war. Now everyone is watching.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "通传", "en": "Announce", "def": "Carrying a visitor's name in to the people inside. A small duty that decides how long the visitor waits.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "通天教主", "en": "Tongtian Jiaozhu", "def": "The third of the three pure ones, patron of the heterodox. Novels use him whenever a character needs a respectable ancestor for an unrespectable method.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "通天河", "en": "The River to Heaven", "def": "Wide, cold, and crossed on a turtle in one famous version. The crossing is the point.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "通灵", "en": "Sentient", "def": "The threshold where a treasure starts having opinions. Charming in a sword, fatal in a banner.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "通缉", "en": "Wanted", "def": "An official search for a criminal. The portrait never looks like anyone.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "通脉", "en": "Open the Meridians", "def": "Clearing the channels so qi can move. The first practical step every cultivator takes.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "通臂猿猴", "en": "Long-Armed Ape", "def": "One of the four spiritual primates, with arms long enough to reach the other side of a fight. Frequently a rival, rarely a friend.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "通行证", "en": "Pass", "def": "Permission to enter a restricted area. Usually counterfeit in act two.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "通讯玉简", "en": "Communication Jade Slip", "def": "Messages stored in jade, passed hand to hand. Slower than a talisman and untraceable.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "速战", "en": "End It Fast", "def": "Finishing before the other side can adapt. The counter to anyone stronger.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "速战速决", "en": "End It Quickly", "def": "The decision to stop conserving. Usually spoken aloud, which is a mistake.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "造化", "en": "Fortune's Handiwork", "def": "What fate or nature has made of you, for good or ill. Usually said with a sigh: such fortune, or what a fate.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "造化之力", "en": "Power of Creation", "def": "The ability to make rather than mend. The rarest thing in the setting and the least used.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "造化玉牒", "en": "Jade Disc of Creation", "def": "The record of how the world was made. Reading it is not allowed; every plot involving it is somebody trying.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "造化鼎", "en": "Cauldron of Creation", "def": "A refining vessel that can produce things rather than merely improve them. Rare, and always guarded.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "遁入空门", "en": "Enter the Monastery", "def": "Leaving the world entirely. The ending some characters get instead of dying.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "遁地", "en": "Earth Escape", "def": "Sinking through soil and travelling below. Blocked by stone foundations, which matters in sieges.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "遁地符", "en": "Earth Escape Talisman", "def": "Sinks the user and moves them below ground. The standard escape for anyone outmatched.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "遁术", "en": "Evasion Art", "def": "The family of techniques for getting out alive: earth, water, light, blood. Unglamorous, and the reason some old cultivators are still alive.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "遁法", "en": "Escape Method", "def": "Any of the five-element travel methods. The counter is a barrier, so pursuit scenes are puzzles.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "遁符", "en": "Escape Talisman", "def": "Moves the user a short distance instantly. The standard way out of a losing fight.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "遁走", "en": "Escape by Art", "def": "Leaving via a technique. Respectable in a way that running is not.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "道", "en": "Dao", "def": "The word every other term borrows. Translators usually keep it as a proper noun and let the reader build a meaning.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "道体", "en": "Dao Physique", "def": "A body suited to one specific principle. Narrow, and unbeatable inside that narrowness.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "道侣", "en": "Dao Companion", "def": "A partner in cultivation and in life. More formal than a lover, more intimate than an ally.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/dao-companion/", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "道侣大典", "en": "Companion Ceremony", "def": "The wedding equivalent. Public, political, and attended by rivals.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "道兄", "en": "Daoist Brother", "def": "Warmer than Fellow Daoist. Implies mutual respect between peers.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "道则", "en": "Dao Principle", "def": "A specific rule inside the larger system, usable as a technique. Narrow, absolute, and rarely fully explained.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "道友", "en": "Fellow Daoist", "def": "The default polite address between cultivators. Works whether or not they share a sect.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/fellow-daoist/", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "道号", "en": "Dao Name", "def": "The name a cultivator takes on entering the path. Using it instead of the birth name is a mark of respect.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "道基", "en": "Dao Foundation", "def": "The structural base under everything a cultivator builds. Damage it and nothing else matters.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "道基受损", "en": "Damaged Dao Foundation", "def": "Damage below the realm itself. No pill fixes it, no rival can be blamed for it, and it never quite heals.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "道姑", "en": "Daoist Nun", "def": "Female Daoist, usually unaffiliated. Neutral to slightly dismissive.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "道尊", "en": "Dao Venerable", "def": "A title for someone whose understanding has become law. Almost never spoken aloud.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "道心", "en": "Dao Heart", "def": "The core conviction that keeps someone cultivating. Break it and the realm collapses with it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/dao-heart/", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "道心不坚", "en": "Unsteady Dao Heart", "def": "Notible weakness. Used to make a strong character lose a fight they should have won.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "道心不稳", "en": "Shaky Dao Heart", "def": "Doubt has set in. A warning sign to allies, and an opening to enemies.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "道心坚定", "en": "Unshaken Dao Heart", "def": "Nothing external moves it. The virtue that carries a slow character through three hundred years.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "道心破碎", "en": "Dao Heart Shattered", "def": "Loss of whatever held the character together. Recovers slowly, and never completely.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "道心破裂", "en": "Shattered Dao Heart", "def": "Past the point of repair. The body keeps living, and the cultivation stops forever.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "道心种魔", "en": "Plant a Demon in the Dao Heart", "def": "A technique that installs a second self inside an enemy. Subtle, and slow to kill.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "道消身死", "en": "Dao Fades, Body Dies", "def": "The complete end: the body dies and the accumulated Dao goes with it. Worse than death, in the way that matters here.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "道祖", "en": "Ancestor of the Dao", "def": "The title given to Hongjun in the creation epics, and the highest rank anyone can hold. In game adaptations he is usually the final NPC who gives out endings.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/ancestor-of-the-dao/", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "道童", "en": "Daoist Attendant", "def": "The child who carries the master's things. Sees everything, says nothing.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "道纹", "en": "Dao Mark", "def": "Visible lines of comprehension on skin or stone. Proof that understanding happened.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "道统", "en": "Lineage of the Dao", "def": "The unbroken chain of teaching from founder to heir. To break it is worse than to die, because dying ends one person and this ends everyone after.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "道统断绝", "en": "Lineage Broken", "def": "No one left who knows the method. The genre's quiet tragedy.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "道袍", "en": "Daoist Robe", "def": "The loose blue robe. Recognisable at distance, and it hides a lot.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "道长", "en": "Daoist Priest", "def": "General address to a practitioner. Also the correct word for a temple's head.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "道门", "en": "Daoist Order", "def": "The orthodox mainstream. Most sects claim to belong to it.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "道韵", "en": "Dao Rhythm", "def": "The felt pattern inside a technique or an object. A master senses it; a beginner cannot.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "遗种", "en": "Lingering Bloodline", "def": "A beast descended from something much older. Usually looks ordinary until it does not.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "避尘珠", "en": "Dust-Repelling Pearl", "def": "Small, practical, and always in a rich character's possession.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "避雷针", "en": "Lightning Rod", "def": "A literal object or artifact that diverts the strike. Considered vulgar, used constantly.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "邓婵玉", "en": "Deng Chanyu", "def": "A female general who fights with stones and wins against stronger opponents. Rare in the source, and useful for a translator.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "邪佛", "en": "Heretical Buddha", "def": "The same idea from outside. Used for villains with stolen teachings.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "邪修", "en": "Evil Cultivator", "def": "Someone who cultivates by harming others. A legal category: once labelled, no one protects you.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "邪术", "en": "Evil Art", "def": "Any forbidden technique. Broad, and used as an accusation as much as a description.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "邪气入体", "en": "Heterodox Qi Entering the Body", "def": "Contamination. Slow, and survivable only with the right medicine.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "邪派", "en": "Heterodox Sect", "def": "Not approved. Range from genuinely monstrous to merely unauthorised.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "邪神", "en": "Evil God", "def": "Something worshipped rather than fought. Its attention is the price.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "邪祭", "en": "Heterodox Ritual", "def": "A rite that costs lives. The scale is usually stated in villages.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "郎中", "en": "Physician", "def": "Mortal doctor. Compared to alchemists in every scene that has both.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "郡城", "en": "Provincial City", "def": "Bigger than a town, ruled by officials. Where a cultivator's presence causes diplomatic trouble.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "鄙人", "en": "This Humble Person", "def": "Old-fashioned polite 'I'. Bookish; used by merchants and scholars.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "酆都", "en": "Fengdu", "def": "The ghost city, and in some tellings the seat of the underworld bureaucracy. Real place, mythical function.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "酒楼", "en": "Tavern", "def": "A larger drinking house with private rooms upstairs. Where deals are struck.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "酒肆", "en": "Wineshop", "def": "A place to drink and talk too much. Every rumour has a table here.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "酒肉朋友", "en": "Fair-Weather Friend", "def": "Present for the feast, absent for the fight. The genre's most common relationship.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "酒葫芦", "en": "Wine Gourd", "def": "A gourd for liquor, hung at the waist. Usually contains something better than wine.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "酸与", "en": "Suanyu", "def": "A snake-bird whose appearance predicts disaster. Aesthetic, and always accurate.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "醋坛子", "en": "The Vinegar Jar", "def": "Slang for someone easily jealous. Common description for a companion beast, oddly.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "采摘时机", "en": "Harvest Timing", "def": "Some herbs are only useful for a few hours. This is why the scene is always rushed.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "采补", "en": "Essence Draining", "def": "Taking another person's essence to extend your own life. Predatory by definition.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "里应外合", "en": "Strike from Within and Without", "def": "An attack timed with someone already inside the gate. The outside force is only the noise; the real breach comes from the traitor.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "里正", "en": "Village Head", "def": "The local official nobody respects and everybody needs.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "重修", "en": "Start Again", "def": "Rebuilding from a damaged base. Slower the second time and better.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "重剑", "en": "Heavy Sword", "def": "A sword built on weight rather than technique. Slow, and it does not need to be fast.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "重明鸟", "en": "Chongming Bird", "def": "The double-pupil bird that drives off evil. Temple carvings use it as a ward, and so do defensive formations.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "重生", "en": "Rebirth in a Past Life", "def": "Waking up in one's own earlier body with memory intact. The entire premise of a subgenre.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "重铸", "en": "Reforge", "def": "Melting down and starting again. Loses history, keeps material.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "量天尺", "en": "Heaven-Measuring Rule", "def": "A rod used to measure the sky, and to hit things accurately at range. Precision as a weapon.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "金丹", "en": "Golden Core", "def": "The core itself, and the proof that Core Formation worked. Usually the thing everyone is fighting over.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/golden-core/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "金丹大道", "en": "Great Way of the Golden Elixir", "def": "The internal alchemy path, named in the source as what the monkey king learns. It is also a real historical term, so the register matters.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "金丹期", "en": "Golden Core Stage", "def": "The stage most novels use as their mid-game benchmark. A character at this level can fly for hours and shrug off a sword.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "金乌", "en": "Golden Crow", "def": "The sun bird, ten of which once existed. Fire techniques borrow it for their top tier.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "金仙", "en": "Golden Immortal", "def": "A top-tier immortal. In mythic settings, one step from ruling a heaven.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/golden-immortal/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "金光咒", "en": "Golden Light Incantation", "def": "A ward, recited while a golden field spreads. Real liturgy, borrowed whole.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "金光洞", "en": "Golden Light Cave", "def": "The cave of the immortal Taiyi Zhenren, where Nezha was rebuilt. Rebuilding scenes happen in caves like this one.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "金兜山", "en": "Golden Helmet Mountain", "def": "Where the bull's ring swallows every weapon thrown at it. A whole chapter of heroes losing their gear.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "金兰", "en": "Sworn Bond", "def": "The formal name for that brotherhood. Old-fashioned, and taken seriously.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "金刚杵", "en": "Vajra Pestle", "def": "The ritual counterpart to the above. In fiction it breaks illusions rather than bones.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "金刚符", "en": "Diamond Talisman", "def": "Temporary body protection. Lasts one hit, which is usually the hit that mattered.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "金刚经", "en": "Diamond Sutra", "def": "A text, not a spell, but chanting it is treated as one. The genre's most quoted scripture.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "金平府", "en": "Prefecture of Jinping", "def": "A city whose lantern festival is eaten by demons every year. Festival scenes with teeth.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "金灵根", "en": "Metal Spirit Root", "def": "Metal affinity: the natural sword root, and the least forgiving temperament.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "金砖", "en": "Golden Brick", "def": "Literally a brick, thrown at the head. The genre's favourite reminder that dignity does not protect anyone.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "金箍棒", "en": "Golden Cudgel", "def": "The pillar from the dragon king's palace that shrinks to a needle behind the ear and weighs eight tons. Games give it a spin attack because the source material already does.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/golden-cudgel/", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "金蛟剪", "en": "Golden Flood Dragon Shears", "def": "A pair of scissors that turn into two dragons and cut anything. Absolute, and famously hard to aim.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "金蝉脱壳", "en": "Slip Away", "def": "Leaving a convincing shell behind and walking out in another direction.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "金角大王", "en": "Great King Gold-Horn", "def": "One of two demon brothers with a gourd and a rope. The gourd scene is the most quoted trap in the whole book.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "金身", "en": "Golden Body", "def": "The signature achievement of body refining: a frame that will not break.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "金钟罩", "en": "Golden Bell Cover", "def": "The peak of external hard technique. Unbreakable from outside, and no help at all inside.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "金鳌岛", "en": "Golden Turtle Island", "def": "The island where the heterodox court sits, offshore and hard to reach. Sea-route arcs use it as the place you should not sail to.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "金鳌岛碧游", "en": "Biyou of Golden Turtle Island", "def": "The heterodox capital, named the same way. The two phrases are the setting's two political poles.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "釜底抽薪", "en": "Remove the Fuel from Under the Pot", "def": "Cut the root cause. The clever solution an elder proposes.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "鉴宝", "en": "Identify a Treasure", "def": "Same skill at a higher level. The scene exists to reveal that the object in hand is absurdly valuable.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "钟", "en": "Bell", "def": "A bell artifact. One strike scatters the mind, and the second scatters the formation.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "钟声", "en": "Sound of the Bell", "def": "The sect bell that marks assemblies and alarms. Three strikes means everyone comes.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "钦差", "en": "Imperial Envoy", "def": "An official sent directly by the emperor. Everyone kneels and no one relaxes.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "钱庄", "en": "Money House", "def": "The old bank. Holds deposits, issues notes, and asks no questions for a fee.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "铁匠", "en": "Blacksmith", "def": "Works metal. A real source of information about who bought weapons recently.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "铁布衫", "en": "Iron Shirt", "def": "External hard training for the torso. Turns blades aside, does nothing against internal injury.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "铁扇公主", "en": "Princess Iron Fan", "def": "The owner of the fan and the bull king's wife. Getting the fan requires negotiating with her, which is the actual plot.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "铁木", "en": "Ironwood", "def": "Wood as hard as iron. The cheap structural material of every formation platform.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "铁砂掌", "en": "Iron Sand Palm", "def": "Hands trained in heated sand until they can break stone. Strikes that damage from within.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "铜钱", "en": "Copper Coin", "def": "The smallest unit of mortal money. Cupped in the palm, counted twice.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "铜镜", "en": "Bronze Mirror", "def": "Ordinary object, extraordinary uses: scrying, warding, or showing the truth of a face.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "铤而走险", "en": "Risk Everything", "def": "Taking the dangerous route because the safe ones are closed.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "铭文", "en": "Inscription", "def": "Carved patterns that carry the effect. Damaged inscription, dead artifact.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "银票", "en": "Silver Note", "def": "Paper money backed by a money house. Easier to carry than silver and easier to steal.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "银角大王", "en": "Great King Silver-Horn", "def": "His brother, the one who does the talking. Together they are the benchmark for a two-boss dungeon.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "铸基丹", "en": "Foundation-Casting Pill", "def": "Taken at the foundation stage to thicken what is already there. Expensive insurance.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "铸魂", "en": "Soul Forging", "def": "Giving an artifact or a corpse a beast's soul. Common in demon path work.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "锁灵阵", "en": "Qi-Sealing Formation", "def": "Seals the qi inside a person. A cultivator who steps in becomes a mortal with better posture.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "锁魂阵", "en": "Soul-Locking Formation", "def": "Keeps a soul from leaving the body or the place. Used in interrogation, and in prisons.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "错身", "en": "Pass By", "def": "Two fighters crossing past each other, strike already landed. The scene ends here.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "锤", "en": "Hammer", "def": "A hammer artifact built to break defences. No subtlety, no counters.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "锤打", "en": "Hammering", "def": "Beating the blank into shape. Literally a thousand strikes, and everyone can hear you doing it.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "锦上添花", "en": "Flowers on Brocade", "def": "Help for someone who does not need it. Usually said with contempt.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "锦囊", "en": "Silk Pouch", "def": "A small bundle, sometimes with instructions to open at a specific moment. The instructions are always right.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "锭", "en": "Ingot", "def": "A cast block of silver or gold. The shape itself says how much it is worth.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "锻体期", "en": "Body Tempering Stage", "def": "The first stage in body-refining systems. No energy, just damage and repetition.", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "镇压气运", "en": "Anchor the Fortune", "def": "Stabilising a house's luck with an object or a formation. The reason old clans own a very large urn.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "镇宗之宝", "en": "Sect-Suppressing Treasure", "def": "The single artifact a sect would rather die than lose, and the thing enemies target first. Its destruction marks the end of a sect more clearly than any body count.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "镇尸符", "en": "Corpse-Restraining Talisman", "def": "Sticks to a forehead and keeps the body still. The first tool of anyone dealing with the undead.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "镇纸", "en": "Paperweight", "def": "A heavy object on a scholar's desk. Occasionally a concealed weapon, always a good one.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "镇魂符", "en": "Soul-Calming Talisman", "def": "Settles a soul that will not stay put. Used on the dying and on the possessed.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "镖局", "en": "Escort Agency", "def": "A mortal company that moves goods with armed guards. The usual cover for cultivators travelling quietly.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "镖师", "en": "Escort Guard", "def": "The martial artist hired to protect a shipment. Usually a failed cultivator.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "镜", "en": "Mirror", "def": "A mirror artifact that reveals illusions and hidden things. Every elder keeps one.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "长剑", "en": "Longsword", "def": "The default weapon of anyone who has no reason to choose otherwise.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "长寿", "en": "Long Life", "def": "Extended lifespan without true immortality. The realistic goal, and the one that drives most plots.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "长年闭关", "en": "Years-Long Seclusion", "def": "Closed-door cultivation measured in decades rather than months. The character comes back changed.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/years-long-seclusion/", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "长生", "en": "Longevity", "def": "Living a very long time. The first goal of every cultivator, and the least interesting one.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/longevity/", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "长生不老术", "en": "Art of Undying Youth", "def": "What the protagonist of the source sets out to find. Every game gives it as a permanent buff.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "长老", "en": "Elder", "def": "A senior who holds power without running the sect day to day.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/elder/", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "长老会", "en": "Council of Elders", "def": "The body that outranks the sect master on paper and can remove him in practice.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "长老会议", "en": "Elder Council", "def": "The ruling body of several elders. Slow, and impossible to outvote from outside.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "长老院", "en": "Elder Assembly", "def": "Where decisions are made slowly. The scene where the protagonist is sentenced.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "长跪", "en": "Long Kneel", "def": "Kneeling and refusing to rise until a request is granted. Pressure by persistence.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "长身玉立", "en": "Tall and Upright", "def": "The description for a young man of consequence. Deployed in the first paragraph about any important character.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "长长吐出一口气", "en": "A Long Exhale", "def": "Relief after a near miss. The close of a tense sequence.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "门主", "en": "Gate Master", "def": "Head of a small sect. Grander title, smaller mountain.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "门人", "en": "Sect Member", "def": "Anyone counted as belonging to the sect, disciples and staff alike. Broader and cooler than.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "门规", "en": "Sect Rules", "def": "The written law of the sect. Broken in private, punished in public.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "闪身", "en": "Dodge Aside", "def": "Slipping out of the line of an attack. The most used verb in any fight.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "闪避", "en": "Evade", "def": "Getting out of the way. Unglamorous, and the reason old fighters are old.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "闭关", "en": "Closed-Door Cultivation", "def": "Sealing yourself away for months or decades. The world is expected to continue without you, and generally does something regrettable.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/closed-door-cultivation/", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "闭关密室", "en": "Seclusion Chamber", "def": "A sealed room for long cultivation. Entering one means disappearing for months.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "闭嘴", "en": "Shut Up", "def": "Flat and rude. Cuts into someone mid-sentence.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "闭气", "en": "Retain Breath", "def": "Holding breath underwater or in a sealed place. Tested by how long.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "闭目", "en": "Close the Eyes", "def": "The half-second gesture before a decisive move. Almost always followed by a strike.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "问心无愧", "en": "A Clear Conscience", "def": "The mental state that lets an old character survive a trap aimed at guilt.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "问责", "en": "Call to Account", "def": "An elder publicly examining a disciple's failure. The audience is the point, not the punishment.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "问道", "en": "Seek the Dao", "def": "Asking for guidance, or the polite phrase for visiting a master.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "闻仲", "en": "Wen Zhong", "def": "The Shang general with a third eye and a whip. Loyal to a doomed side, which makes him the honourable antagonist.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "闾山", "en": "Mount Lü", "def": "A mountain associated with ritual specialists and thunder rites. Novels use it for the practical, slightly shady side of Daoism.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "阁下", "en": "Your Excellency", "def": "Formal address to someone you do not know and cannot afford to offend.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "阁主", "en": "Pavilion Master", "def": "Keeper of a library or treasure pavilion. Knows where everything is, and who asked.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "阎王", "en": "King Yama", "def": "The judge of the dead. Appears in court scenes, not fight scenes.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "阎罗", "en": "Yama", "def": "The judge of the dead. Terrifying to mortals, a civil servant to anyone above a certain realm.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "阎罗殿", "en": "Hall of Yama", "def": "The courtroom of the underworld, where a life is reviewed. Every isekai plot that starts with a death ends up here.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "阎罗殿上", "en": "Before the Court of Yama", "def": "Where a life is reviewed. Every isekai death scene is set here.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "防御阵", "en": "Defense Formation", "def": "A formation built to keep people out. Every sect gate has one; most are older than the sect.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阳宅", "en": "Dwelling Site", "def": "Where people live. Chosen by feng shui, and by whoever already owns the good ground.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "阳寿", "en": "Allotted Years", "def": "The total lifespan assigned at birth. Modifying it is possible and always audited.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "阳气", "en": "Yang Qi", "def": "Warm, gathered in sunlight and crowds. The standard counter to anything undead.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "阴兵", "en": "Yin Soldiers", "def": "An army of the dead, marched by a living officer. No morale problems, no survivors.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "阴司", "en": "Underworld Court", "def": "The bureaucracy of death. Judges, ledgers, and no appeals.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "阴宅", "en": "Burial Site", "def": "Where people are buried. The genre puts treasures in them, which is why grave robbing exists in the setting.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "阴德", "en": "Hidden Merit", "def": "Merit earned silently. Usually paid out as a last-minute rescue.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "阴木", "en": "Yin Wood", "def": "Wood grown in lightless places. Cheap for demonic work, expensive for everyone else.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "阴气", "en": "Yin Qi", "def": "The cold, slow counterpart to living qi. Gathers where things died.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "阴阳二气瓶", "en": "Bottle of Yin and Yang Qi", "def": "A bottle that dissolves whatever is put inside. The counter is to be invulnerable, which is the joke.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "阴阳相隔", "en": "Separated by Death", "def": "One alive, one not. The distance nothing in the story can close.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "阴阳镜", "en": "Yin-Yang Mirror", "def": "A mirror that kills on one face and revives on the other. It turns every fight into a question of which side is showing.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "阴阳阵", "en": "Yin-Yang Formation", "def": "Two halves that feed each other. Break one and the other takes the damage.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵中阵", "en": "Array Within an Array", "def": "A hidden second layer. The classic twist in a boundary arc.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵图", "en": "Formation Diagram", "def": "The blueprint of an array. Leak one page and the sect loses a war.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵基", "en": "Formation Base", "def": "The anchor stones under a formation. Break them and the whole array collapses, however elegant the pattern.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵宗", "en": "Formation Sect", "def": "A sect built on arrays. Their mountain has never been taken.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "阵师", "en": "Formation Master", "def": "Someone who specialises in arrays. Rarer than alchemists, and priced accordingly.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵心", "en": "Array Heart", "def": "The centre. Sometimes the source, sometimes the exit.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵旗", "en": "Formation Flag", "def": "A physical anchor holding a formation up. Pull them out to weaken it.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵旗手", "en": "Flag Bearer", "def": "The disciple who carries and plants the flags. Strategically, a casualty.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵法", "en": "Formation", "def": "A pattern that turns terrain into a trap, a shield, or a weapon.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/formation-array/", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵法反噬", "en": "Formation Backlash", "def": "A mistake in the array turning on the caster. Often fatal, always embarrassing.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵灵", "en": "Formation Spirit", "def": "A formation that has developed awareness. It reacts, adapts, and remembers who attacked it.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵盘", "en": "Formation Plate", "def": "A pre-carved portable formation. Expensive, and usually one use only.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵眼", "en": "Formation Eye", "def": "The core of a formation. Find it and the whole thing collapses.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵眼移位", "en": "Shifting Formation Eye", "def": "The formation's weak point moves. The reason breaking one can take days.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵纹", "en": "Formation Pattern", "def": "The engraved lines that carry a formation's logic. Readable, copyable, and worth killing over.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵纹师", "en": "Pattern Scribe", "def": "The craftsman who engraves array patterns. Never famous, always indispensable.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "阵道", "en": "Formation Dao", "def": "The study of arranged energy. Formation masters fight by terrain.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "附庸", "en": "Vassal", "def": "A smaller sect under a larger one's protection. Protection is the invoice.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "附议", "en": "Second the Motion", "def": "Publicly backing someone's proposal. Cheap support, and remembered.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "附身", "en": "Possession", "def": "Temporary control of a body. The host remembers everything afterwards, which matters.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "陆压道人", "en": "Luya Daoist", "def": "A figure with an ominous artifact and no explanation. Used when a war needs an unfair ending.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "陆吾", "en": "Luwu", "def": "The tiger-bodied guardian of the Kunlun gardens. He is the gate check for anyone trying to walk into a sacred mountain.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "陈塘关", "en": "Chentang Pass", "def": "The garrison town where Nezha was born and where he caused his first catastrophe. The genre's model for a hero whose origin is a disaster.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "降头", "en": "Curse Magic", "def": "Harm at a distance through a link: hair, blood, a name.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "降妖宝杖", "en": "Demon-Subduing Staff", "def": "Sha Wujing's weapon, a staff with a crescent at each end. The least famous of the pilgrimage weapons, and the most practical.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "降魔杵", "en": "Demon-Subduing Pestle", "def": "A weighted club carried by guardian figures. Plain, heavy, and effective against anything that needs hitting.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "除名", "en": "Struck Off", "def": "Removing a name from the sect register. Quiet, permanent, and total.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "险地", "en": "Perilous Ground", "def": "Dangerous but survivable. The standard destination of anyone who needs a shortcut.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "险胜", "en": "Narrow Victory", "def": "Winning by a margin nobody wants to examine too closely.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "随你", "en": "As You Wish", "def": "Indifference dressed up as permission. Usually means the speaker has stopped caring what happens to you.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "随手一挥", "en": "Careless Wave", "def": "A flick of the hand that ends the exchange. The gesture matters more than the technique: the opponent was not worth a stance.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "随身空间", "en": "Pocket Realm", "def": "A private space attached to a person. Time inside need not match time outside.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "隐世家族", "en": "Hidden Clan", "def": "A clan that withdrew from the world and kept its power. The reveal nobody expects.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "隐匿符", "en": "Concealment Talisman", "def": "Hides a presence. Works on the eye, not on divine sense, which is why it fails at the worst moment.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "隐忍", "en": "Endure in Silence", "def": "Absorbing provocation without response, deliberately. Read as cowardice by everyone present and as discipline by the reader.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "隐忍多年", "en": "Endured for Years", "def": "The interval. Usually stated as a number at the start of a chapter.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "隐灵根", "en": "Hidden Root", "def": "Present but undetectable at first assessment. The standard setup for a late bloomer.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "隐藏修为", "en": "Hide One's Cultivation", "def": "Staying deliberately unreadable so others cannot judge you at a glance.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "隐身", "en": "Vanish from Sight", "def": "Ordinary invisibility. Useless against spiritual sense, which is why it fails hilariously.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "隐身法", "en": "Invisibility Art", "def": "Vanishing from sight. Wearing off at the worst moment is the entire genre convention.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "隔山打牛", "en": "Through the Mountain", "def": "Hitting the front target to injure the one behind it. Old trick, still impressive.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "隔岸观火", "en": "Watch the Fire from the Far Bank", "def": "Doing nothing while allies burn. Sometimes wisdom, usually betrayal.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "隔空取物", "en": "Grasp at a Distance", "def": "Pulling an object through the air. Small trick, large humiliation when used on a weapon.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "隔音阵", "en": "Sound-Blocking Formation", "def": "Keeps a conversation private. Installed in every meeting room worth scheming in.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "雅间", "en": "Private Room", "def": "A curtained room upstairs. What people pay for is not the food.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "集市", "en": "Market Square", "def": "The town market. Where rumours cost less than a copper coin.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "集镇", "en": "Market Town", "def": "A town with a market. Where the first bit of information arrives.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "雪中送炭", "en": "Charcoal in Snow", "def": "Help at the worst moment. Recognised instantly by everyone in the room.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "雪原", "en": "Snow Field", "def": "Cold, flat, and good for long shots. Beasts here are always white.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "雪山冰心", "en": "Snow Heart", "def": "A cold-natured spirit body. Resistant to emotional arts and terrible at romance.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "雪耻", "en": "Wash Away the Shame", "def": "The purpose of the return. Stated before and performed after.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "雪莲", "en": "Snow Lotus", "def": "Grows on a cliff in the cold. Ice-attribute, and fetching one is a whole scene.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "雷体", "en": "Thunder Physique", "def": "A body that holds lightning. The tribulation at the end of the book is always personal.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "雷击木", "en": "Lightning-Struck Wood", "def": "Wood that survived a strike. The best talisman material there is, and half of it is fake.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "雷劫", "en": "Lightning Tribulation", "def": "The most common form: bolts aimed at the cultivator, not the landscape.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/lightning-tribulation/", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "雷劫台", "en": "Tribulation Platform", "def": "The prepared site where disciples face lightning. Every sect maintains one, and nobody wants theirs used.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "雷池", "en": "Thunder Pool", "def": "Where tribulation lightning collects. Standing in it is either suicide or the best training available.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "雷灵根", "en": "Lightning Spirit Root", "def": "A mutated root. Attacks hit harder and faster than an ordinary cultivator's.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "雷竹", "en": "Thunder Bamboo", "def": "Bamboo that grows where lightning strikes. Arrows, rods, and talisman frames.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "雷符", "en": "Lightning Talisman", "def": "Calls a single bolt. Expensive, and the only talisman that reliably hurts a body cultivator.", "cat": "Formations and Talismans" }, { "zh": "雷霆淬体", "en": "Lightning Tempers the Body", "def": "Using tribulation strikes to strengthen rather than survive. Popular, and fatal for everyone who tries it badly.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "雷震子", "en": "Leizhenzi", "def": "The winged thunder figure. In games he is a mobility pick, which matches the source better than it sounds.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "雷音宝刹", "en": "The Precious Monastery of Thunder Sound", "def": "The destination temple. Its description takes a page, and it is always the same page.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "雷音寺", "en": "Thunder Sound Temple", "def": "The temple at the end of the westward journey. In fiction it is both the destination and the thing that turns out to be a test.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "雷音寺门前", "en": "Before the Thunder Sound Temple", "def": "The threshold. What happens on this step decides whether the story has a moral.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "震劲", "en": "Shock Force", "def": "Force that shivers into the target. Damages what is inside, not what is outside.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "震惊", "en": "Shocked", "def": "Plain surprise at something that should not be possible.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/shocked/", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "震慑", "en": "Awe into Submission", "def": "Making a crowd unable to move or speak without striking anyone. The actual purpose of displaying your aura in public.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "霸下", "en": "Baxia", "def": "The turtle-dragon that carries steles. Strength as a permanent job.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "青出于蓝", "en": "Bluer Than the Indigo", "def": "The student surpassing the teacher. Said publicly, it is also a jab at the teacher.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "青城山", "en": "Mount Qingcheng", "def": "A Daoist mountain used for hermits and for sects that keep to themselves. Quiet, which in this genre is suspicious.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "青山不改", "en": "The Green Hills Do Not Change", "def": "The first half of a farewell proverb. Said by a character who intends to come back.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "青山不改，绿水长流", "en": "The Green Hills Stay", "def": "A formal, faintly theatrical goodbye. Popular with wanderers and old men.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "青梅竹马", "en": "Childhood Sweethearts", "def": "Grew up together and never quite got over it.", "cat": "Dao Companions and Romance" }, { "zh": "青楼", "en": "Brothel", "def": "The entertainment house of the old city. Also where secrets are sold.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "青筋暴起", "en": "Veins Bulging", "def": "Strain made visible: a lost temper, or a full-force effort that is not working.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "青鸾", "en": "Qingluan", "def": "The blue phoenix, a messenger. Letters carried by one arrive at the worst moment.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "青龙", "en": "Azure Dragon", "def": "The guardian of the east. One of the four that hold the world steady.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "静候佳音", "en": "Awaiting Good News", "def": "Polite closing. Used when the other party has no choice but to deliver.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "静养", "en": "Rest and Recover", "def": "Slower healing without technique. Used to buy time for other characters to act.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "静坐", "en": "Quiet Sitting", "def": "Sitting still without the ambition of samadhi. Used when a character is thinking rather than advancing.", "cat": "Cultivation Actions" }, { "zh": "静心丹", "en": "Calming Pill", "def": "Quiets the heart. Used before tribulation, before battle, and before bad decisions.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "静心诀", "en": "Calming Formula", "def": "The shorter version, used before breakthroughs.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "静若处子", "en": "Still as a Maiden", "def": "The first half of a classical pair about stillness and motion. Used to describe someone waiting.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "静观其变", "en": "Watch and Wait", "def": "Doing nothing on purpose. In this genre, the most underrated tactic.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "靠名头吃饭", "en": "Living on the Name", "def": "Relying on reputation instead of ability. Said with contempt.", "cat": "Reputation" }, { "zh": "面不改色", "en": "Face Unchanged", "def": "The same skill under pressure. In a fight, it means the character has a plan.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "面具", "en": "Mask", "def": "Covers the face. In this genre, the villain's mask is a promise of a later reveal.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "面壁", "en": "Face the Wall", "def": "Standing or kneeling facing a wall as punishment. Looks mild; lasts for months.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "面色一僵", "en": "Expression Freezes", "def": "The face before the recovery. Usually a senior being contradicted.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "面面相觑", "en": "Exchange Glances", "def": "Everyone looks at everyone. Signals that nobody in the room has a plan.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "鞭", "en": "Whip", "def": "A whip artifact built to bind rather than cut. Holds a target in place for the killing blow.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "鞭刑", "en": "Flogging", "def": "A harsher public beating. Used for offenses that are too embarrassing to explain.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "韬光养晦", "en": "Keep the Light Covered", "def": "Suppressing your own brilliance on purpose while you build up. The long game of someone who expects to be underestimated for a while.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "音波功", "en": "Sound Wave Art", "def": "Attacking with voice or instrument. Ignores armour, which makes it a hard counter to defensive builds.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "顺其自然", "en": "Let It Come Naturally", "def": "The advice given to someone stuck. Occasionally works.", "cat": "Foundation and Depth" }, { "zh": "顺天", "en": "Follow Heaven", "def": "The other choice. Rarely a compliment in these books.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "顺应天道", "en": "Follow the Heavenly Dao", "def": "Going with the law rather than against it. Slower, safer, and less interesting.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "须弥山", "en": "Mount Sumeru", "def": "The mountain at the centre of the Buddhist cosmos, with the heavens stacked above it. It gives a novel a sky ladder that is already on record.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "须弥山顶", "en": "The Summit of Mount Sumeru", "def": "The axis of the Buddhist cosmos. Every layer of heaven above it is a separate arc.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "须弥芥子", "en": "Sumeru in a Mustard Seed", "def": "The phrase for a container bigger than its outside. The genre's explanation for every storage ring.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "顿悟", "en": "Enlightenment", "def": "The moment something clicks and power follows. Cannot be forced, only waited for.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "顿悟之机", "en": "The Moment of Insight", "def": "The instant before understanding. Written as a still scene, then a chapter break.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "顿悟前夜", "en": "The Night Before Insight", "def": "The scene before the scene. Always raining, for some reason.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "风劫", "en": "Wind Tribulation", "def": "A wind that strips flesh from bone. Rare, and used when the author wants a quieter horror.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "风水", "en": "Geomancy", "def": "Reading the land for auspicious placement. Taken seriously by mortals and cultivators alike.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "风水轮流转", "en": "The Wheel Turns", "def": "The second half of the same idea, used alone. Short, and always a threat.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "风火轮", "en": "Wind-Fire Wheels", "def": "The wheels under Nezha's feet that carry him faster than running. The genre's earliest flight item, and still the most recognisable.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "风灵根", "en": "Wind Spirit Root", "def": "A mutated root prized for speed above everything else.", "cat": "Aptitude and Spirit Roots" }, { "zh": "风轻云淡", "en": "The Same, Inverted", "def": "An equally common ordering. Translators should pick one and keep it.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "飞剑", "en": "Flying Sword", "def": "A sword flown and controlled at a distance. The signature weapon of the genre.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/flying-sword/", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "飞剑传书", "en": "Sword Message", "def": "Sending a letter on a flying sword. Fast, showy, and expensive.", "cat": "Sect Daily Life" }, { "zh": "飞升", "en": "Ascension", "def": "Leaving the mortal world for a higher one. The ending most of these stories are heading toward.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/ascension/", "cat": "Realms" }, { "zh": "飞升雷劫", "en": "Ascension Tribulation", "def": "The last tribulation, fought at the very top of the ladder.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "飞梭", "en": "Flying Shuttle", "def": "A small, fast transport artifact. Faster than a boat, and far less comfortable.", "cat": "Artifacts and Magic Tools" }, { "zh": "飞舟", "en": "Sky Skiff", "def": "Smaller and faster than a spirit boat. Personal craft, usually owned by someone insufferable.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/sky-skiff/", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "饕餮", "en": "Taotie", "def": "The glutton of the four fiends, a mouth with no body that eats everything. Treasure-devouring artifacts get named after it, always with a warning attached.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "饶你不死", "en": "Spare Your Life", "def": "Mercy announced as a favour. The tone makes it worse than the killing.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "饶命", "en": "Spare My Life", "def": "The actual words of surrender, short and repeated. Always said to someone who has already decided, which is why the answer is a pause.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "首席长老", "en": "First Elder", "def": "The senior elder, first among equals. Decides what the council votes on.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "首座", "en": "Head Seat", "def": "The senior figure of one peak or one hall. Answers to the master, decides for everyone below.", "cat": "Rites and Ceremonies" }, { "zh": "香主", "en": "Incense Master", "def": "A mid-level gang leader. The one who actually collects the money.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "香火", "en": "Incense", "def": "Offerings burned at an altar. Also means a family line that continues.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "香炉", "en": "Incense Burner", "def": "Holds the incense used for focus and for offerings. Some are artifacts that produce specific smoke.", "cat": "Utility Items" }, { "zh": "驭兽", "en": "Beast Taming", "def": "The craft of controlling beasts. A specialisation, not a default skill.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "驭兽师", "en": "Beast Tamer", "def": "A cultivator who works through beasts. Weak alone, and never alone.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "驮兽", "en": "Pack Beast", "def": "Cargo animal. The genre's explanation for how sects move supplies.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "驯服", "en": "Tame", "def": "Beaten into obedience rather than bound by pact. Holds exactly as long as you keep winning.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "驯鹰人", "en": "Falconer", "def": "The role, not the bird. Common among scouts and scouts' enemies.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "驻颜丹", "en": "Youth-Preserving Pill", "def": "Keeps the face young. The single best-selling pill in any market.", "cat": "Alchemy and Pills" }, { "zh": "驾云", "en": "Ride the Clouds", "def": "Ordinary cloud travel. Slower than the somersault, and used when the author wants someone to arrive late.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "驿站", "en": "Relay Station", "def": "Where horses are changed. Its distance from a battle tells you how long the news will take.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "驿道", "en": "Post Road", "def": "The main government road between cities. Wide, patrolled, and boring.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "驿馆", "en": "Post House", "def": "Government lodging for couriers. Faster routes for messages than for people.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "骇然", "en": "Appalled", "def": "Shock with fear underneath it. Stronger and more physical than.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "验灵石", "en": "Assay Stone", "def": "Tests whether a spirit stone is genuine. Counterfeit stones are a recurring scam.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "验货", "en": "Inspect the Goods", "def": "Checking before paying. The moment when the deception is usually revealed.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "骑乘兽", "en": "Mount", "def": "Any beast trained to carry a person. Status symbol, and a way to keep a journey interesting.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "骨髓", "en": "Marrow", "def": "Where blood is made, and in this genre the deepest reserve of the body. Refining it is a late-stage upgrade.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "骨魔", "en": "Bone Demon", "def": "A practitioner who replaced their own frame with something better. Grim to fight.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "高下立判", "en": "Difference Obvious", "def": "One exchange is enough to see who is stronger. Usually followed by silence.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "高人", "en": "Esteemed One", "def": "Not self-reference but how others describe someone with power. Its absence is also telling.", "cat": "Self-Reference" }, { "zh": "高徒", "en": "Your Excellent Disciple", "def": "Stronger praise. Said publicly, it is a compliment aimed at the teacher.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "高深莫测", "en": "Deep and Unfathomable", "def": "The description applied to old masters and to old enemies.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "高老庄", "en": "Gao Village", "def": "The village where Zhu Bajie worked as a son-in-law before being exposed. Domestic comedy in the middle of an epic.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "鬼修", "en": "Ghost Cultivator", "def": "Someone who died and kept going. Exists without a body, and wants one.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "鬼域", "en": "Ghost Domain", "def": "Land where the dead outnumber the living. Entering requires an invitation or a death wish.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "鬼火", "en": "Ghost Fire", "def": "Cold flame from the dead. Light without heat, and it follows.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "鬼门关", "en": "Gate of Ghosts", "def": "The checkpoint between the living world and the underworld. Officials here take bribes, which is a running joke.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "魂不守舍", "en": "Soul Elsewhere", "def": "Physically present, mentally gone. The look after terrible news.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "魂体", "en": "Soul Form", "def": "What a soul looks like without a body. Recognisable, semi-material, and unable to affect much.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "魂木", "en": "Soul Wood", "def": "Wood that nourishes souls. Ghost cultivators guard these trees personally.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "魂飞魄散", "en": "Soul Scatter", "def": "Complete erasure: no death, no rebirth, no remnant. The actual threat behind most threats.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/soul-scatter/", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "魂魄", "en": "Hun and Po Souls", "def": "The two-part soul of the old texts: the heavenly hun, the earthly po. Ghost stories run on the split.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "魔佛", "en": "Demon Buddha", "def": "A corruption of monastic practice. Terrifying, because it keeps the ritual and drops the restraint.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔修", "en": "Demonic Cultivator", "def": "Practises using demonic energy directly. Progress is fast and the body shows it.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/demonic-cultivator/", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔功", "en": "Demonic Art", "def": "A technique that advances by consuming others. Fast results, visible cost.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔功反噬", "en": "Demonic Backlash", "def": "The method turning on its user. Inevitable, and used as the climax of a demonic arc.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔劫", "en": "Demonic Tribulation", "def": "Demons invade during the breakthrough. The genre's way of staging a siege inside a single room.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "魔化", "en": "Demonization", "def": "Halfway to something that is no longer a person. Usually the last stage before the fall.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔头", "en": "Demon Lord", "def": "A notorious evil cultivator. The word carries reputation, not species.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔宗", "en": "Demon Sect", "def": "A sect on the demonic path. Publicly condemned, privately hired.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "魔尊", "en": "Demon Venerable", "def": "The title a demonic overlord gives himself. Everyone else uses it too, carefully.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "魔帝", "en": "Demon Emperor", "def": "Above the demon lords, and below nobody. Usually asleep, always a threat.", "cat": "Forms of Address" }, { "zh": "魔念", "en": "Demonic Thought", "def": "The voice that offers the efficient solution. It is always right, and always costs something.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔怔", "en": "Obsessive Fixation", "def": "A state of refusal to move on. In this genre, dangerous and occasionally correct.", "cat": "Mind and Insight" }, { "zh": "魔性", "en": "Demonic Nature", "def": "The character trait that comes with the transformation. Irritability first, then appetite.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔教", "en": "Demonic Cult", "def": "The big evil organisation. Has better uniforms than the orthodox ones.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "魔气", "en": "Demonic Qi", "def": "Corrupted spiritual energy. Corrodes the body and the mind, and is very fast.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔焰", "en": "Demonic Flame", "def": "Black fire that burns qi rather than wood.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔界", "en": "Demon Realm", "def": "The realm below. Invading it is either the climax or the mistake.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "魔瞳", "en": "Demonic Eye", "def": "An eye technique that takes over the will. Beaten by not looking, which is harder than it sounds.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔纹", "en": "Demonic Pattern", "def": "Carved into the body rather than drawn. The price is visible and permanent.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔血", "en": "Demonic Blood", "def": "Blood infused with demonic energy. In a human, it is a slow conversion.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔道", "en": "Demonic Path", "def": "The side that takes what it wants and admits it. Often better organised than the righteous one.", "url": "https://cultivationnovel.com/glossary/term/demonic-path/", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔道之争", "en": "The Orthodox-Demonic Conflict", "def": "The genre's standing war. Neither side is reliably right.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔道联盟", "en": "Demonic Alliance", "def": "The same thing on the other side. Holds together only while it is winning.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "魔障", "en": "Demonic Obstacle", "def": "A mental block that feels like an outside attack but comes from inside.", "cat": "Tribulation and Inner Demons" }, { "zh": "魔音", "en": "Demonic Sound", "def": "Sound used as an attack. Bypasses armour and goes straight for the mind.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "魔骨", "en": "Demonic Bone", "def": "Strengthened by the demonic path. Harder than anything forged.", "cat": "The Demonic Path" }, { "zh": "鱼死网破", "en": "Fish Dies, Net Breaks", "def": "Mutual destruction promised. Occasionally carried out.", "cat": "Taunts and Threats" }, { "zh": "鲲鹏", "en": "Kunpeng", "def": "The fish that becomes a bird, from a line in Zhuangzi. Movement techniques and sect names borrow it constantly because it implies a transformation nobody can follow.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "鳞甲", "en": "Scale Armour", "def": "Hide and plates, sold as material. The grade of the beast sets the grade of the armour.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "鸦群", "en": "Crow Flock", "def": "Omen and reconnaissance. Always appears before something bad.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "鸦雀无声", "en": "Not a Sound", "def": "Total quiet where noise is expected. Stronger than silence, because it was chosen.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "鸿蒙灵石", "en": "Primal Spirit Stone", "def": "A stone holding a fragment of the first world. In games it is the currency of the endgame shop.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "鸿蒙紫气", "en": "Primal Purple Qi", "def": "The breath of the world before it split, caught in a strand. Acquiring one makes a character into a mythic being by definition.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "鸿钧", "en": "Hongjun", "def": "The teacher of the three pure ones, and by extension the teacher of everyone. He almost never fights; he explains the rules and then watches them get broken.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "鹊桥", "en": "Magpie Bridge", "def": "The bridge of birds that forms once a year. Used for the one reunion scene a romance subplot is allowed.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "鹏鸟", "en": "Peng Bird", "def": "The bird half of the kunpeng pair, whose wingspan covers a horizon. Flight techniques borrow it for their top speed tier.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "鹤发童颜", "en": "White Hair, Child's Face", "def": "The same person, described by the contradiction. A reliable cue for high cultivation.", "cat": "Bearing and Presence" }, { "zh": "鹰愁涧", "en": "Eagle Grief Ravine", "def": "A gorge where the white horse is lost. Named for the sound, which the prose always mentions.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "鹰爪功", "en": "Eagle Claw", "def": "A gripping and tearing technique. Once it closes, it does not open.", "cat": "Combat and Conflict" }, { "zh": "鹿蜀", "en": "Lushu", "def": "A striped horse-like beast from the old bestiaries. Its cry is beautiful, which the prose cannot resist mentioning.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "麒麟", "en": "Qilin", "def": "A beast that appears only in prosperous ages. Its presence is read as a verdict on the ruler.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "麒麟血", "en": "Qilin Blood", "def": "The blood of the auspicious beast, used to bless weapon refining. It does not make a blade stronger, it makes it legitimate.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "黄泉", "en": "Yellow Springs", "def": "The road the dead take. Saying it aloud in a room full of cultivators ends the conversation.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "黄泉路", "en": "The Yellow Springs Road", "def": "The route to the underworld. Described as dim and crowded, which is the joke.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "黄精", "en": "Polygonatum", "def": "A real herb, common in the genre's alchemy as a base. Boring, reliable, always in stock.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "黄阶", "en": "Yellow Rank", "def": "The lowest tier. Starting equipment.", "cat": "Grades and Measures" }, { "zh": "黄阶功法", "en": "Yellow-Rank Technique", "def": "The lowest tier. What outer disciples are handed on day one.", "cat": "Techniques and Manuals" }, { "zh": "黄飞虎", "en": "Huang Feihu", "def": "The general who defects after his family is destroyed. The moral turning point of the Investiture war.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "黄鼠狼给鸡拜年", "en": "Weasel Wishing the Chicken a Happy New Year", "def": "A whole proverb about disguised malice. Delivered with relish.", "cat": "Stock Phrases" }, { "zh": "黑市", "en": "Black Market", "def": "Where stolen and forbidden things are sold. No rules, no refunds.", "cat": "Market and Currency" }, { "zh": "黑店", "en": "Den", "def": "An inn that robs or kills its guests. The lantern is always lit and the price always low.", "cat": "The Mortal World" }, { "zh": "黑白无常", "en": "Soul Escorts", "def": "Two figures who come for the dying. Feared by mortals, and occasionally fought off.", "cat": "Life, Death and the Soul" }, { "zh": "黑衣人", "en": "Man in Black", "def": "The visual shorthand for an assassin. The genre never tires of it.", "cat": "Sects and Hierarchy" }, { "zh": "黑豹", "en": "Black Panther", "def": "A stealth companion. Used for assassins.", "cat": "Beasts and Spirit Animals" }, { "zh": "黑风山", "en": "Black Wind Mountain", "def": "A dark mountain run by a bear demon. The first place in the journey where theft turns into a siege.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "黑风岭", "en": "Black Wind Ridge", "def": "Bandit country with a permanent storm. The name is the warning.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "默然不语", "en": "Silent", "def": "The reaction that says more than a speech. Used by characters with something to hide.", "cat": "Reactions and Expressions" }, { "zh": "默默无闻", "en": "Unheard Of", "def": "No name, no record, no visitors. The state most protagonists spend their first hundred chapters in, by choice or otherwise.", "cat": "Comeback and Face" }, { "zh": "鼻息", "en": "Sense of Smell", "def": "Tracking by scent. Underrated, and hard to lie to.", "cat": "Body and Qi" }, { "zh": "齐天大圣", "en": "Great Sage Equal to Heaven", "def": "The title he demands and heaven grudgingly grants as a joke. Every adaptation puts it on the rebellion's banner.", "cat": "Primordial Myth" }, { "zh": "龙", "en": "Dragon", "def": "In this tradition, a river or sea administrator with a bureaucracy and a temper. Not a monster to be slain but a landlord to be negotiated with.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "龙威", "en": "Dragon Might", "def": "The pressure a dragon exerts on everything nearby. Mechanical version of terror, and stackable with other aura effects.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "龙息", "en": "Dragon Breath", "def": "The breath of a dragon, usually fire or water depending on the river it lives in. Range is short; effect is final.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "龙格", "en": "Dragon Chart", "def": "The imperial fate. Anyone bearing it is either the ruler or a threat to the ruler.", "cat": "Heavenly Dao and Fate" }, { "zh": "龙泉剑", "en": "Longquan Sword", "def": "The famous forging site, and the blades made there. Any well-made sword in a novel is from here or claims to be.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "龙涎", "en": "Dragon Saliva", "def": "Ingredient that fixes whatever the pill got wrong. Collected without asking, which is the problem.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "龙涎草", "en": "Dragon Saliva Grass", "def": "A herb named for what it grows in. Extremely valuable, extremely unpleasant to harvest.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "龙涎香", "en": "Ambergris", "def": "Whale product in the real world, dragon saliva in fiction. Used in pills that need to smell expensive.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "龙珠", "en": "Dragon Pearl", "def": "The accumulated essence of a dragon, and the item everyone wants to steal. Swallowing one is a fast, risky shortcut.", "cat": "Ancient Beasts" }, { "zh": "龙筋", "en": "Dragon Sinew", "def": "Bowstring material. Pulling one is a statement about the archer.", "cat": "Heavenly Treasures" }, { "zh": "龙脉", "en": "Dragon Vein", "def": "The strongest line of earth energy. Possessing one justifies a dynasty, which is why they get fought over.", "cat": "Geography and Secret Realms" }, { "zh": "龙虎山", "en": "Dragon-Tiger Mountain", "def": "The seat of the Zhengyi tradition, still a real place. Fiction borrows it for orthodox talisman work.", "cat": "Immortal Realms and Sacred Sites" }, { "zh": "龙血草", "en": "Dragon Blood Grass", "def": "Grass said to grow where dragon blood fell. Strengthens the body beyond its realm.", "cat": "Herbs and Materials" }, { "zh": "龙鳞甲", "en": "Dragon Scale Armour", "def": "Armour from a real dragon, and therefore a diplomatic problem as much as a defence.", "cat": "Divine Weapons" }, { "zh": "龟息", "en": "Tortoise Breathing", "def": "Slowed breathing to survive with almost no air. Used for hiding underwater or under rubble.", "cat": "Body and Qi" } ]