#yuding

[mythologyfolklore]

I made more memes. :)

[artistmitchy]

They both felt cute. 🌟

[imagescuisantes]

Yude Pan

[incorrectjttw]

Yùdĭng Zhénrēn: What do you want for breakfast? Erlang Shen: I WISH TO DEVOUR THE UNBORN. Golden Cicada: Golden Cicada: They want eggs.

Yáng Jiăn's and Yáng Chán's teenage years are a wild time for everybody.

Yùdĭng Zhénrēn and Golden Cicada are tired.

[the-monkey-ruler]

New Gods: Yang Jian (2022) 新神榜：杨戬

Director: Zhao Ji Screenwriter: Wang Wei Starring: Wang Kai / Ji Guanlin / Li Lihong / Li Lanling / Zhao Yi / Liu Xiaoyu / Wen Jingyuan / Tang Shuiyu / Xingchao / Qiu Qiu / Yang Tianxiang / Meng Yu / Yang Mo / Zhao Mingzhou / Li Nan / Lin Qiang / Liu Cong / Jin Li / Shen Liangjun / Zhao Ji / Hu Yajie / Han Le Genre: Action / Animation / Fantasy / Adventure Country/Region of Production: Mainland China Language: Mandarin Chinese Date: 2022-08-19 (Mainland China) Duration: 127 minutes Also known as: New Gods: Yang Jian IMDb: tt19757204 Type: Reimanging

Summary:

Fifteen hundred years after the War of Shang and Zhou, the world of heaven declined, and Yang Jian, who had been wronged and downtrodden, made a living as a bounty hunter. One day, Yang Jian accepted a reward from a mysterious visitor to hunt down a young man, and unexpectedly discovered that the young man was his nephew Liu Chenxiang. Chenxiang is determined to find the lotus lantern and cut down the mountain to save her mother, but this will lead to a catastrophe. Yang Jian embarks on a journey to find Chenxiang and uncover the dusty past...

Source: https://en.hkcinema.ru/film/47909

Link: https://www.dandanzan.com/dianying/108153.html

[variable2005]

[jiwoneiric]

giggling, rolling around with my yuding in arms oh god

wrong number smau ➝ late night calls (full written)

synopsis ➝ peer pressured by your group members, you ask a fellow idol for her number. but when you texted her that night, you realised that she wasn’t the person you were texting. what you didn’t know was that she gave karina’s, aepsa’s hotshot visual and leader, number to you.

bonus ➝ late night calls

you couldn’t help the small smile that formed on your face when karina’s sleepy grin slowly filled your phone screen.

“hey, you.” her sleepy voice was raspier than normal and it made you feel things - things that you did not want to feel but the heart wants what it wants, right?

“tell me you didn’t just quote joe goldberg.”

“who’s that?” you narrowed your eyes at your phone, watching as karina tried to muffle her snicker.

“…”

“y/n?”

“karina. are you telling me you don’t know who joe goldberg is?” you slowly said, making sure to enunciate every single syllable.

“am i supposed to..?”

“yes! how do you live being so uncultured?” you spluttered out, and you were sure you looked ridiculous by the way karina wasn’t even hiding her laugh at this point - and if you saw yourself, you would see how your eyes twinkled with admiration. she looked so much prettier when she was laughing.

“i’m sorry, i’m sorry!” her laughter died down as you both stared at each other from your screens. you don’t know how long you both stayed silent, but what you do know was that it was you who broke it.

“you know, i never apologised for that one time i went out with ryujin when i said i would buy you food. but i promise it was seriously-“

“i know. yeji explained everything to me.” karina cut you off, with a soft look in her eye you couldn’t get enough of.

“oh. and you’re not mad?”

“there’s no reason for me to be.”

“but there is! i just left our plans to go with someone else.” you whisper-yelled, well aware that your group mates were sleeping, as karina giggled at you.

“you told me beforehand, i was just being stupid and petty. that was on me, my own problem. not yours, dork.” there was a teasing tone to her voice, but you knew she was serious nonetheless.

“i’m still sorry though.” you furrowed your eyebrows, still feeling guilty.

“you shouldn’t be. but if it makes you feel better, i forgive you.”

“that does make me feel better.”

“good, so sleep.” and with that, karina turned away from the screen and you stayed silent for a while. you watched as she occasionally went out of frame, and pop back in with the shuffling that you could hear in the background.

“can you sing for me?” you suddenly blurted out, wanting to hear her voice again.

“really? how old are you? six?” karina slowly turned her head to look at her phone, with an eyebrow raised.

“yes, i am.”

“what song would you like?” she shook her head, giggling - you could listen to that sound for forever, you thought.

“anything.” as long as it was you who was singing, you wanted to say. but that was too bold wasn’t it?

“hmm, okay.”

“wise men say

only fools rush in

but i can’t help

falling in love with you.”

karina’s normal raspiness translated to a much deeper tone in her singing voice - something your insomnia appreciated very much, her singing already lulling you to sleep.

“can’t help falling in love? cheesy. what a loser.” you mumbled out sleepily, well aware of the childish grin that now donned on your face.

“shut up and let me sing.” you promptly shut your mouth and laid your phone next to your head.

“shall i stay?

would it be a sin

if i can’t help

falling in love with you?

like a river flows..”

and you weren’t sure if karina stopped singing, or if you fell asleep, but that was the last thing you remembered hearing that night.

soft ynrina hours 😫 but this is the last update before i get busy so enjoy!

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[ryin-silverfish]

Ask/Writing Masterlist (irregularly updating)

Ryin(阿璎), 23. She/They. First Gen Chinese student. Ryin_Silverfish on AO3. Currently hyperfixating on old Chinese novels. casual Zhiguai tales and LMK enjoyer.

Investiture of the Gods/FSYY:

Why are the Daoist immortals fighting?

Did Yuanshi Tianzun manipulate Shen Gongbao?

Chan, Jie, and possible prejudice against yaoguai

Azure Lion and the other Bodhisattvas' steeds in FSYY

Daji's fox form in FSYY Pinghua

The historical Su Daji

Is Shen Gongbao a yaoguai?

Are all yaoguai irredeemable monsters in FSYY?

Ao Bing and the dragons Nezha fought

Does deification wipe your memory and personality?

Bi Gan and the Great Fox Massacre

More discussion about prejudice against yaoguai

How old was Su Daji the human when she died?

Differences between FSYY novel and Pinghua

Musing on FSYY's view of fate and its possible effects on Yang Jian

Master Yuding

The messy marriages of FSYY

Is Daji a goddess in the novel?

Names of immortal masters in FSYY

Just for fun: the FSYY drinking game

Nezha's age in FSYY

Nezha's death and resurrection in FSYY

What happened to the original Daji?

Lady Shiji aka the Rock Demoness

Chinese Fox Spirits:

Auspicious/Demonic Foxes

More on fox spirits

The inner core of foxes

Foxes and their association with Fire

Notable fox spirits

The foxes of 狐狸缘全传

Has Daji ever been worshipped as a goddess?

Fox masks

The foxes of Liaozhai

Weaknesses and abilities of fox spirits

Three resource collections on Chinese fox spirits: 1, 2, 3

Human-fox hybrids

Can foxes and their descendents magically know if someone's telling the truth?

The magical properties of fox saliva

Fox exams and Heavenly Foxes

Are male foxes more malicious?

More on fox exams

Offerings to fox spirits

The "Lady Fox Immortal"

Chinese Mythos in General:

The Precious Scroll of Erlang

Into the Erlang-verse: Li, Zhao, Yang

Can immortal masters romance their students?

Why we don't power-rank characters in God-Demon novels

A brief overview of Chang'e

On Chinese Religion and "Respect"

The 28 Lunar Mansions

Can the Heavenly Emperor be replaced + a primer on dynastic successions

A Guide to the Chinese Underworld (and what it isn't)

Is Nüwa JE's daughter?

Weaver Girl

Can yaoguais a/o their descendents enter the Celestial Bureaucracy?

Queen Mother of the West and her husband(s)

Bixia Yuanjun, Lady of Mt. Tai

Erlang's dad

The story that gives us the name "Yang Jian"

On the transformation of Erlang's image (and his relationship with JE in JTTW)

Erlang's mom, Lotus Lantern, and a neat little discovery

Erlang cameos in other stories and Zajus

Erlang's mom-saving story in Chinese operas

Child Manjushri, or: the absurdity of pinning a definitive age on gods

The strange modern ship of Mengpo/Yuelao, and Mengpo's myths

The half-beast form of QMoW

Does Erlang have a wife/love interest?

Nezha's mom

A overview of Gonggong and his mythos

Some introductory sources on the Chinese Underworld

A side-by-side comparison of Nezha's backstory in JTTW and FSYY

Mythos-inspired Worldbuilding:

Dragons of the Four Seas

LMK S5 and a possible "Celestial Council of Regents" AU

LMK S5 Fix-it: the Four Divine Beasts

Character/Story Analysis (JTTW + LMK)

Heart and Mind: Tripitaka

Local Lion Uncle enjoyer goes on a rant

On SWK and his fear of death

Why the Dead People Supreme Court?

No, seriously, why?

Chinese Underworld =/= Christian Hell

LMK S4, Havoc in Heaven, and revolutions

Why I dislike the "class warfare" reading of Havoc in Heaven

In Defence of Li Jing...ha, as fucking if

On Yin-Yang, Chaos/Order, and the Harbringer

JTTW's view on the Three Religions

Disjointed S5 Reactions

"Chaos doesn't work that way in traditional Chinese Cosmology"

Xiangliu, the Nine-headed Bird, and Jiutou Chong

Lotus Lantern: The Summaries

Part 1: Precious Scroll of Chenxiang

Part 2: The Epic of Prince Chenxiang

Part 3: Lotus Lantern 1.0 + 2.0

Part 4: Chenxiang and the Male-Female Swords

My Fanfics:

Climbing the Sky

The Wild Son

Bodhicitta

The Serpent and the Deluge

South Seas Sojourn

Journey of the Gods AU sideblog

[jttwconfessions]

Lmk Western fandom doesn't know how some things work when it comes to Chinese mythology (few know what cultivation is or how the whole thing about obtaining powers or Taoist magic works). The relationship of a mentor with their student is like a symbolic adoption or someone who must watch over you, not just teach you. The mentor must take care of their student, and support them (as we see with Taiyi sometimes being portrayed as a father figure to Nezha, Yuding Zhenren to Erlang, and SWK to Chenxiang). It feels almost like a family. The mentor takes responsibility, and even takes risks to help their student even though it may not be allowed by Heaven. There is NOT, to my knowledge, a story where a mentor and a student have had a relationship beyond the platonic. It's strictly platonic. It's one of the reasons I don't like plumsynoodles or peachynoodles. So also OCxCanon with that kind of dynamic is a little weird to me but it comes more from ignorance of the matter from the people in that case. I think Macaque and SWK would never consider having a romantic relationship with a student (And I say this for all jttw adaptations where SWK has a student, not just LMK) but this is just my opinion.

[mythologyfolklore]

Golden Cicada, about Erlang and Sanshengmu: Do you remember when I juggled with them?

Yuding Zhenren: And you drop one.

Yuding Zhenren: How did you even manage that? They were human 8yo's and you have four arms! Poor little Yang Jian, because of your clumsiness he got hurt!

Golden Cicada: I told you three I was sorry! Also, didn't you threaten to rip off my wings, if I ever did it again?

Yuding Zhenren: *narrows eyes* And I won't hesitate, Goldie!

[angstandhappiness]

FASCINATING

One must wonder how Yuding Zhenren feels during the events of Lotus Lantern...

[ID: A monochrome purple comic. In the first panel is Yuding Zhenren from the shoulders up, resting his head on his hand while reclining and looking up with a cold, angry expression, saying "Yang Jian." In the second panel is Erlang Shen from the shoulders up, looking down at Yuding Zhenren with a detached expression, responding "Shifu." The third panel zooms out to show Yuding Zhenren reclining on a mat while looking up at Erlang Shen, who is standing a few feet away. Yuding Zhenren says, "My... How you've grown." Yuding Zhenren and Erlang Shen both cast reflections on the pond beside them. While Yuding Zhenren's reflection looks largely unchanged, where Erlang's reflection should be, are the image of him and his sister as kids, crying and kneeling in front of Yuding Zhenren. End ID]

[artistmitchy]

A Springman I drew for my friend's birthday. 🎂

[rad-ramenkingles]

The Chinese Man, Myth, Legend

200 Size

So this guy, I love this guy. Just not doubt in my mind, he is probably one of my favorite characters in Japanese Fiction. I know he gets a bad perception for being this racist depiction, but he is so genuinely great. He started out as basically one note, interesting in looks department but one note none the less. Then he just grew and grew, and grew. Ramenman's whole journey throughout Yudes works, I think is probably the best work by them full stop. Kinnikuman and his story is great obviously because of it being his story and he is the main, but Ramenman is just so consistently awesome to me. I think out of all the characters to, he is the one I would always do drawings of as a kid and would imagine stories about. I even have taken that further into now and have crafted in my own time this whole elaborate story of his life and it's ins and outs from childhood to death really. Just I can't say enough how cool this dude is. Out of the whole cast Yude has made in this series, he is top basically right beside Kinnikuman. I'm sure Yude realized the greatness of him and that's why they gave us the spin-off as well with a Ramenman. Anyway enjoy the final sprite, and there will be one last thing to come. Then after that, this all will be dormant for awhile guys until I can figure life out. Thanks all!

Actual Size

[incorrectjttw]

golden cicada, since you were a cicada, have you ever sung to find a partner, like your brothers?

I know that cicadas live a long time underground and all their young emerge at the same time to reproduce. This as a method of survival and ensuring the greatest number of future offspring. And then the cicadas die after reproducing.

Do you remember your brothers?

Tripitaka, have you ever felt the desire to sing like in your past life? I know you like poetry and nature. Do you feel connected to your insect half?

Wukong, have you ever been curious about the taste of golden cicada? If you had not met Tripitaka, would you have eaten the monk Tripitaka? If you had met the golden cicada when you were younger, would you have eaten Golden Cicada?

I heard that golden cicadas are a delicious dish for Chinese people.

Golden Cicada: Uhm ... yes and no. The answer to this is kind of complicated. I have never mated, because by the time I reached adulthood, I was a full blown spirit with a mind of my own.

Golden Cicada: The forest, where I was laid as an egg, is the home of my original master, Yuding Zhenren, a Golden Immortal whose magic fills the forest. Of course my siblings and I all paid our respects to him after emerging from the earth, but that's where we parted. They were content with mating and dying, like you said, but that wasn't enough for me. I wanted to be immortal, so I became Yuding's disciple.

Golden Cicada: But while I never reproduced, I do still sometimes sing at night. Partly in memory of my dead siblings, but mainly to annoy my fellow disciples. *snickers* I kept that habit, even after I converted and followed the Buddha. It'll never not be funny!

.

Tripitaka: Oh, I do like singing! I'm not comfortable doing it in front of others, though. I get stage fright. And yes, I also love poetry and nature. They relax me. :)

Tripitaka: Well ... to be honest, I have mixed feelings about Golden Cicada. Since becoming the Buddha of Sandalwood Merit, I remember when I was them, but they feel so ... wrong. Not wrong as in, a horrible person I'd never want to be, but more like ... someone I'm expected to be, but am not. Being treated like them feels wrong. Being called by their name feels wrong. They're a stranger. We have few things in common. That person ... isn't me.

.

Sun Wukong: Hmm ... no, I've never thought of that. It wouldn't even have been easy, because Three-Eyes (Erlang Shen) has told me some stuff about them that actually makes me think they could've kicked my arse. And that I would've chipped my teeth on Golden Cicada's exoskeleton.

Sun Wukong: But yes, we do sometimes eat insects. When prepared right, they're pretty tasty! Still kinda unsettled me, when my master said that if he wasn't a vegetarian he'd eat cicadas purely to spite his past life. I ... I think he needs help.

[the-monkey-ruler]

I feel like the jttw fandom sometimes portrays that Erlang betrayed Yuding by joining heaven in a certain way (he's a rebel, but will he support them or do they have some ideals in common?) or when Erlang punished his sister. I also remember that someone mentioned a parallel about how Puti and Yuding would feel betrayed by SWK and Erlang's actions. I don't know if you mentioned anything about the relationship before. But could we call it betrayal? Genuine question. Nor whether adaptations of the legends of Erlang could have touched on this topic. Idk if adaptations of Erlang's stories mentioned this topic.

I feel like the jttw fandom sometimes portrays that Erlang betrayed Yuding by joining heaven in a certain way (he's a rebel, but will he support them or do they have some ideals in common?) or when Erlang punished his sister.

I think it still stands that Erlang is considered more rebellious than many gods of the chinese mythos. This is still portrayed in JTTW if you notice how Guanyin was the one that had to recommend Erlang's services, not the Jade Emperor. That and the Jade Emperor had to pay Erlang for his service when anyone else was following orders.

I can't say what most people accept but I always saw it that Erlang Shen doesn't follow orders he doesn't believe in. That he joined heaven because he does believed that there must be law and order not only for the preservation of the world but also for the sake of balance between the three realms. He understands when Heaven must be questioned but also personally has experienced what it means to break Heaven’s laws, seeing how his own mother broke Heaven’s rules and this crime led to the death of his father and brother. If there was something he didn't believe in or didn't approve of, then I don't think he would follow said orders. I still like to think that heaven sees him as a double-edged sword, it is good to have him on their side but if any of the celestials step out of line he would be the first to act.

Erlang and Sanseng are both considered to have trained under Yuding, and they both joined heaven. Erlang had a single mission in mind, and that was to save his mother, and in his tale he was able to complete that quest, from then on out he would have no other conflict with heaven as long as he completed his mission. There was a chance that Erlang and Sanseng could have continued as immortals separated from heaven but they would still be followed under Eastern Heaven if they wished to be considered true immortals. Their being given the rank of deities would give them more freedom but also give them restrictions. There would be a risk of confrontation perhaps if they didn't join heaven.... but them joining the ranks of deity would not only allow them to work alongside their mother but also that their status in the immortals would never be questioned or challenged.

I don't think that joining heaven would have been seen as a betrayal... but I do think that Erlang putting his sister under the mountain could have been seen as one as that is a far more complex matter.

I have personally said this before that I think Erlang Shen kinda resents how his family turned out. His older brother and father were killed and his mother was trapped under a mountain because of his mother's crimes. While yes he saved his mother, there was nothing he could do for his brother or father. Not even fighting heaven and seeking revenge would help, rather it would cause more harm to others if he fought all of Heaven. He knew what it meant to go against heaven and what that meant for an anyone that wanted to start a family, what they would put their children through. Erlang Shen saw his sister commit the same acts that their mother did and perhaps... he felt betrayed by her actions on some level as well. That his sister would put her child through the fear and danger of being hunted down by heaven like they were. Nothing whether heaven was right or wrong to hunt them down in the first place, but that the outcome would be the same for her as it was for them.

That is why I think Erlang Shen was willing to put Sanseng Mu under the mountain, that he thought he was doing the right thing, as if trying to justify what happened to him. It makes him really multifaceted in how he responds to seeing his sister repeating their mother’s crimes and him resenting his own human nature, that connection to his dead father and brother, and what trauma it has caused him. I'm not saying that he was right to do so but that it gives him an explanation as to why he would do such a thing to his own sister. And in trapping her under the mountain he betrayed Yuding as well. He trained Erlang to fight against heaven to save his family, not to be the one to put it under again.

I think that Yuding would always want for Erlang to follow his own path, whether that aligns with heaven or not. Erlang was recruited by heaven, trying to justify his own pain that it was needed for him to grow, and thus he was trapped in the same cycle that trapped his mother, to trap his sister, trying to hold on to the idea that the pain that heaven did to their family was justified and thus justifying his own actions against Sanseng and her family. He resents that part of his human self as that is a constant reminder of why he was hunted down in the first place. That he always needs to suppress that and any reminder of that as well.

I feel like that is what makes Wukong and him good parallels in that Wukong was rejected by heaven but he still followed his own sense of justice. They both fought heaven, but Wukong believes he was wronged by Heaven’s disrespect and Erlang for the injustice his mother for the sake of family. However Yang Jian was the one to join heaven’s forces after his rebellion making a place in heaven while Sun Wukong believed he was owed more and more, pushing to the point of stealing three types of immortality. Erlang and Wukong refelct each other, both limited by society and their own desires to either follow their choices to their own destruction or learning how to change and adapt to their surroundings. Wukong is the one to try to overthrow heaven to fit what he deeps is ‘right’ through might. And Erlang instead joins heaven and choose to change what he deems is 'right’ while still within the laws. They are both outcasts (Wukong a yaoguai, and Erlang a product of an illegal union), both fought the Jade Emporer (Wukong for the sake of his status, and Erlang for the sake of saving his family), and both either being punished for their crimes or joining heaven, but only on THEIR terms. Erlang only joined heaven after his mother was saved and Wukong only joined heaven when he reached enlightenment and is no longer under the control of anyone in Eastern Heaven. They ended up in the same place but also refused to give up their personal freedoms as well.

I go off a lot here about their foils.

I also remember that someone mentioned a parallel about how Puti and Yuding would feel betrayed by SWK and Erlang's actions.

I can see something like that.

Wukong was exiled by Puti because Puti knew that Wukong's ambition grew too strong for not even heaven could control. He denounced him before he could even commit his first crimes, but Master Puti was wise enough to know what the future had in store. His most prized disciple led to one of the most devastating attacks on heaven. Puti prepared Wukong to take on anything but he never wanted him to on heaven and thus condemning Puti as well.

Yuding on the other hand had an active role in helping Erlang fight against heaven, to use his powers to save his family. He was able to do so, even gaining protection in his status by ensuring heaven wouldn't attack his mother or sister by gaining deity status. But in the end Erlang gave in to the cycle of pain and trapped his own sister. Using the powers that Yuding helped BOTH of them cultivate to harm each other.

I go off a lot here about Erlang's possible emotional turmoil with himself and why he would put his sister under a mountain out of his own free will.

I don't know if you mentioned anything about the relationship before. But could we call it betrayal? Genuine question.

I suppose as much as you could call Wukong going against Heaven a betrayal.

In the master-student relationship, students are meant to be seen as an extensions of their masters, that their actions reflect on their teachers, and that teachers can even be held responsible for their students' crimes as well.

Wukong by being Puti's student was not only to learn his power, but his ideals as well. But his ambition and desire for recognition and power made him discredit his master's teachings. Master Puti shows to value wisdom and personal growth focusing on the importance of cultivation in how it can help you rather than what it can do for you. Wukong was so desperate to learn for the sake of getting stronger but he never considered the consequences of his actions which led to him being cut off. Perhaps Wukong's lack of accountability could be seen as a betrayal if you think that if a person that you trust and care about isn't willing to change for your sake is the same then you can see it as such.

And Yuding could be in a similar case where he took in both a wayward Yang Jian and Yang Chan in order to save their mother and save themselves. They were being hunted by heaven, the only way they could survive was to learn cultivation, not out of personal desire but for the sake of their own security and saving their mother as well. Joining Heaven doesn't have to necessarily go against that, as their own convictions could align with the heavens as well but that Erlang used his power to try to justify what happened to him to repeat the cycle with his mother could be seen as such.

Students learn tools from their teachers and if they misuse what they have learned then it would be on them for such actions. A lot of this is speculation but I think that masters who see their students taking what they have personally taught them for purposes that go against their philosophies as well would have a sense of responsibility and thus a feeling of betrayl as well.

Nor whether adaptations of the legends of Erlang could have touched on this topic. Idk if adaptations of Erlang's stories mentioned this topic.

I haven't seen enough Erlang Shen media to know how often this topic is talked about or if there are any popular media interpretations of this. I would love to see a lot more of this actually! Not all Erlang Shen media follows the Lotus Lantern lore where he is one out of three siblings, as I have seen some where he is an only child like in the Li Erlang take. I know he is in a lot of FSYY media as well but not sure if that goes into his master-student relationship all that well.

In any case this is something I would love to see more in and def something I will try to watch more for my own sake as well.

[kaibutsushidousha]

Who are the Twelve Golden Immortals that Taigong keeps mentioning? Are they his superiors?

The Investiture of the Gods has Taigong Wang as the Taoist currently studying under Yuanshi Tianzun and the Twelve Golden Immortals as the 12 disciples who already graduated under Yuanshi Tianzun before Taigong and are full-fledged Xians by the time of the Investiture (the 1100s BC). Not all of them are particularly relevant characters, be it in the actual Investiture or in Houshin Engi.

1) Taiyi Zhenren

About as minor of a character as any of the 12 in the myth, but easily the one with the most screentime in Houshin Engi. Taiyi's main contribution to Taigong's cause was creating the Soul Jewel, which he put inside Li Shi and Li Jing's stillborn baby, allowing Li Nezha to come to life as a living weapon you know from FGO. After Nezha's suicide, Taiyi also arranged Nezha's revival, so he's who FGO blames for Nezha's unfortunate genderbend. Once Nezha is back to life and learns what his father did to his grave, Nezha goes to beat the shit out of his dad, but Taiyi intervenes, capturing Nezha in the Nine-Dragons Divine Fire Basket so he can give him a proper Taoist education and giving Li Jing the means to fight back if Nezha attacks him again (remember that Li Jing is Bishamonten, so the weapon that Taiyi gave him here is actually the pair of towers Kagetora uses on her 3rd Ascension).

2) Yuding Zhenren

Yang Jian's mentor (doubles as Yang Jian's foster father in Houshin Engi). User of the Xian-Slaying Sword. One of the few that gets to be really cool in Houshin Engi but sort of a complete jobber in the original Investiture.

3) Qingxu Daode Zhenjun

Huang Tianhua's mentor. Contrary to Yuding, he's a jobber in the manga but in the myths, he's the one who gets to beat Wang Tianjun, the second-in-command of the Ten Heavenly Lords.

4) Puxian Zhenren

Boddhisattva Samantabhadra's Xian form before he attained Buddhahood. The guy who gets all the homoerotic ship tease with Taigong in Houshin Engi. By Type-Moon's syncretism laws, he's probably the Buddha form of Kouga Saburou.

5) Daoxing Tianzun

Wei Hu's mentor. Comic relief in Houshin Engi. Otherwise irrelevant. Wei Hu himself is pretty irrelevant in the Investiture, but he's known as Skanda in Hindu/Buddhism and is extremely popular in Japan. You might have heard of him before by his Japanese name Idaten.

6) Guang Chengzi

Before being featured in the Investiture of the Gods, this one already had made an appearance in Shenxian Zhuan, where he is portrayed as just a disguise used by Laozi to instruct the Yellow Emperor. But here he's one of Yuanshi Tianzun's apprentices. Does it make sense for Laozi to be Yuanshi Tianzun's pupil? Not much, they should be even-ranked, even if you don't subscribe to the idea that they're the same individual. Maybe it can work if you write him as the first disciple. That said, his combat record fits his possibly Laozi status, having defeated many named enemies including the leader of the Ten Heavenly Lords.

His main role in both the Investiture and its manga counterpart is saving Prince Yin Jiao from Daji by taking him as his Taoist pupil. After training the prince, he lets Jiao return to the world under the condition that he won't betray his mentor to join the war on his father's side. After some tempting words from the villains, Jiao betrays his mentor to join the war on his father's side, so Taigong kills him (what's the best fight in Houshin Engi) but makes him the god of Jupiter under the divine name Taisui Xingjun. Later FGO released Taisui as the cutest event welfare, causing the tragic prince to finally gain Japanese and English Wikipedia pages.

7) Chi Jingzi

The doting mentor of the other rescued prince, Yin Hong. Background character in Houshin Engi but in the Investiture, he gets a decent amount of screentime, which includes a few arcs of invading enemy territory with a lot of powerful Xian treasures, dropping an important one there, needing to invade again to recover the item he forgot there, and then dropping another, rinse repeat. Also when the prince brothers break the promise of not siding with their father in the war, he has a major emotional breakdown and, covered in tears, burns his dear pupil to ashes.

8) Lingbao Dafashi

Actual pack filler. Doesn't do anything notorious in any myth or adaptation. The best I can offer as trivia is that his weapon in Houshin Engi is the Bell of Fallen Souls, which Taisui uses in FGO.

9) Ju Liusun

Buddha Kakusandha's Xian form before he attained Buddhahood. Background jobber in Houshin Engi, but in the Investiture, he wins a major fight and has his own arc about fighting a traitor apprentice but ultimately forgiving and reaccepting his pupil after learning he betrayed because he married a woman on the enemy side. Said redeemed pupil and his wife eventually die anyway in a fight against the same guy who kills Huang Feihu.

10) Wenshu Guangfa Tianzun

Boddhisattva Manjusri's Xian form before he attained Buddhahood. Background jobber in Houshin Engi, and in the Investiture, while he wins a few major fights, he doesn't really get a personal arc. The closest he gets is a small role in Nezha's backstory. It's weird how little Manjusri gets in terms of stories despite being such a popular Boddhisattva.

11) Huanglong Zhenren

If you thought Lingbao Dafashi's situation was dire, you're not prepared for how pitiful Huanglong is. In the Investiture, he's pretty much only there to get his ass kicked by a guy who is not even relevant enough appear in Houshin Engi. In the Houshin Engi manga, he doesn't get a named Paope. In the Houshin Engi artbook, the author gets his name wrong. Dude can't catch a break.

12) Cihang Zhenren

Boddhisattva Avalokitesvara's Xian form before they attained Buddhahood. The same Guanyin that appears as a main character in Journey to the West. The same Kanzeon from the Iori Buddha statues post. They don't do much here outside of some major fights, but that's fine enough when they have so much presence in Journey to the West.