Definition
A Chinese idiom meaning that when someone rises to power, even their lowliest dependents benefit. Xiucai twists it to mock his family.
Roosters
A Chinese idiom meaning that when someone rises to power, even their lowliest dependents benefit. Xiucai twists it to mock his family.
Story context
Buckle up, fellow Daoists—this chapter hits you with a double dose of gut-twisting tension. On one side of the abyss, we follow Lyu Xiucai’s frantic return to the Lyu household, babbling about his master being snatched away by a coalition of six formation-wielding cultivators and a half-immortal. The old man tries to slam the door on him, but Xiucai is utterly convinced that if he plays hero now, he’ll earn the ultimate payoff: a secret technique from his master’s immortal hand. On the other side, we swing right back into the psychiatric ward where Li Huowang is trussed up in a straitjacket and metal muzzle, facing off against Wu Cheng—the man who just dropped the nice-guy mask. With Yang Na’s safety dangled like a blade over his loved ones, Li Huowang makes a chilling demand: he won’t talk to a pawn. He wants the man behind the curtain.
Why it matters
This chapter presents the perfect mirror puzzle: on one side, we have Lyu Xiucai’s gleeful, transactional loyalty in the Dao-Twisted World (“I’ll save him for the technique!”); on the other, Li Huowang’s stone-cold defiance in the modern world (“I won’t negotiate with a pawn”). Both men are driven by a calculating survival instinct, but the tones couldn't be more different. Xiucai’s enthusiasm feels almost comedic—the overeager disciple who thinks he’s already halfway to his reward. Li Huowang’s calm silence, by contrast, is the quiet before a storm. The surface-level “rescue” plot (Xiucai recruiting simpletons and bravos) may look like a minor side-thread, but it reminds us that Li Huowang is not alone in his world, even if his “allies” are schemers and opportunists. Pay attention to that final cold request: “I want to talk to the person behind you. Face to face.” Li Huowang isn’t just buying time. He’s repositioning himself for a real counterstrike—and the person behind Wu Cheng should be very, very nervous.
Quick facts
Source novel
Dao Gui Yi Xian
First appearance
Face to Face
Chapter references
1
Type hints
Dao Gui Yi Xian, enigmatic transformation, mutual replacement
Guide tags
Dark Fantasy, Xianxia, Chinese Web Novel
Appears in chapters
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