Shaolin
The northern star of the righteous martial world — where stillness of mind becomes the deadliest form.
RighteousRival: Fuloong SanctuaryFist / Finger / Polearm
Legend holds that the patriarch Bodhidharma sat facing a stone wall for nine years, and from that stillness distilled seventy-two techniques said to have no equal under heaven. Shaolin has stood as the northern star of the righteous martial world ever since — a sect where combat and contemplation are treated as a single discipline, not two. Based in the Jingji–Songshan region, its arts run on the Vajra (Jin Gang) elemental attribute: unyielding, grounded, built to outlast rather than overpower.
Shaolin is a righteous sect and will not teach anyone whose reputation has fallen too low. It stands opposed to Fuloong Sanctuary. Traditionally the sect does not teach women — though characters with a male body and female disposition (or vice versa) are exempt from this restriction, as is anyone whose affection with a Shaolin member has reached “intimate” or higher.
Sect Philosophy
Shaolin techniques blend fist, finger, and polearm (staff) forms — “inner and outer cultivation as one,” with every feint and shift of footwork said to hinge on a single moment of clarity. The sect’s arts are built on Buddhism aptitude, which can substitute for other, lower aptitude requirements when breaking through a Shaolin technique. Shaolin members can be asked to tutor Chess, Medicine, and Buddhism.
Full Technique Roster
| Type | 9th | 8th | 7th | 6th | 5th | 4th | 3rd | 2nd | 1st |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Internal Power | Quiet Meditation | Arhat Technique | Mind-Qi Unity | Colorless Chan | Bodhi Mind Method | Miscellaneous Agama Sutra | Arhat’s Divine Might | Sinew-Changing Classic | Marrow-Cleansing Classic |
| Movement | Wall-Piercing Skill | Gecko Wall-Climb | Lightness Technique | Great Somersault | Nine-Statue Six-Throne | Reed-Crossing River | — | ||
| Ultimate | Crouching Tiger | 18 Clinging-Robe Falls | Thousand-Pound Drop | Bronze Body Technique | Golden Bell Cover | Small Arhat Staff Formation | Buddha’s Lion Roar | Primal Unity Technique | Vajra Body-Guard Divine Skill |
| Fist | Shaolin Long Fist | Shaolin Vajra Palm | Great Through-Arm Fist | 68-Form Arhat Fist | Great Vajra Fist | Bodhidharma’s 18 Hands | Vajra Prajna Palm | Demon-Subduing Radiant Fist | — |
| Finger | Tiger-Taming Claw | Single-Finger Chan | Flower-Picking Finger | Great Vajra Finger | Twisting Vajra Ring | Shaolin Dragon Claw | — | ||
| Polearm | Six-Harmony Staff | Yin-Yang Staff | 18-Point Eyebrow Staff | Great/Small Yaksha Staff | Five-Tiger Flock Staff | Shaolin Mad-Demon Staff | Weituo Demon-Subduing Staff | Great Wisdom Bodhi Staff | Bodhidharma’s Staff |
Favor Interaction: Wall-Facing Sutra Reading
Reduces the duration of any one reputation effect currently active on a party member — a quiet, contemplative counterpart to the sect’s combat focus.
Regional Story: “The Path of Chan and Wushu”
“In dreams, the six realms are vivid and real; upon waking, even the great thousand worlds are empty.” Shaolin monks are sworn to compassion, having glimpsed the truth of enlightenment — and yet they carry staves in hand, striking down evil when it rises.
Now, word spreads that the pagoda forest within Shaolin’s grounds has begun collapsing without cause. Could this be a sign of the Buddha’s own wrath?
| Trigger | A month rolls over while you’re within Shaolin’s sphere of influence |
|---|---|
| Reward | Tattered Monk’s Sandals |
| Sequel unlock condition | Hold Wudang’s treasure, the Void Qi |
| Sequel reward | Patriarch’s Purple-Gold Bowl |
Signature Mechanic: Demon-Slaying Trial
Completing “The Path of Chan and Wushu” unlocks Shaolin’s exclusive feature: a gauntlet of trials against powerful demon phantoms, meant to temper your skill and yield rare rewards.
| How to start | Interact with Shaolin’s central sect building |
|---|---|
| Cost | 600 regional favor with Songshan, consumed each time you begin a new trial run |
| Structure | 9 stages. Each stage offers a choice between 2 random demon phantoms to fight. All phantoms are Purity 18 and each wields a unique specialty technique. |
| Stakes | Fights are to the death for the phantom — but if you lose, your character does not die. |
| Restrictions | Each phantom carries a random restriction condition that must be met before you can challenge it; higher stages impose progressively stricter restrictions. You get 3 chances per stage to reroll the restriction. |
| Continuity | You can exit mid-trial and resume progress later, or abandon the run entirely. Clearing all 9 stages ends the run automatically. |
| Rewards per stage | Experience, Blood Dew, and a choice of a time-limited trait boosting one technique aptitude (a repeat pick upgrades the existing trait rather than stacking). Higher stages grant richer rewards. Defeating a phantom for the first time also grants its associated Arhat Statue. |
The Eighteen Demon Phantoms
| Phantom | Specialty | Arhat Statue |
|---|---|---|
| Rakshasa of Drunken Fury | Drunken fist — strikes like a rising storm tide once truly intoxicated | Deer-Riding Arhat |
| Mara of the Rotting Heart | Miao-frontier insect-finger techniques; immune to poison, wears foes down gradually | Joyful Arhat |
| Rakshasa of the Soul Snare | Instruments + blade; an iron zither that can shatter courage from afar or cut jade up close | Bowl-Raising Arhat |
| Mara of the Crumbling Peak | Leg techniques so forceful the earth caves in; fluidly switches between many weapon forms | Pagoda-Bearing Arhat |
| Rakshasa of Severed Truth | Talismans + sword — one hand seals demons with incantations, the other cuts down evil | Seated Arhat |
| Mara of the Piercing Sun | Spear — a lifetime spent perfecting the “Five Tigers Soul-Severing Spear,” honed to its absolute peak | River-Crossing Arhat |
| Rakshasa of Ghostly Rain | Hidden weapons; murderous intent barely restrained, attacks like a sudden storm | Elephant-Riding Arhat |
| Mara of Endless Kalpas | Sword — unpredictable forms that dodge critical blows and unleash countless strikes in an instant; immune to Critical Wound effects | Laughing Lion Arhat |
| Rakshasa of a Thousand Lives | Dueling/thrusting — finds an opening through subtlety, then strikes when least expected | Joyous-Heart Arhat |
| Mara of the Turning Light | Defense-focused — waits out the opponent until they no longer dare advance | Reaching-Hand Arhat |
| Mara of False Forms | Mechanisms — even at the brink of death, one triggered device can turn the tide entirely | Contemplative Arhat |
| Rakshasa of Boundless Numbers | Squad tactics — summons three stand-ins to fight in rotation, giving foes no room to breathe | Ear-Scratching Arhat |
| Rakshasa of the Needle’s Shadow | Thrown needles — seals vital points from a hundred paces, every strike aimed at a killing point | Sack-Carrying Arhat |
| Mara of the Heaven-Piercing Sky | Pestle techniques — wherever the sacred pestle lands, it’s as if a wrathful king has descended | Banana-Leaf Arhat |
| Mara of the Serpent’s Shadow | Poison whip — twists and slithers, toying with opponents at will | Long-Browed Arhat |
| Rakshasa of Jade Fingers | Finger techniques — coiled and waiting like a viper in a cold pool, striking only at the fatal moment | Gate-Guarding Arhat |
| Mara of Poisoned Bones | Toxicology — self-poisoned to reverse their own meridians, immune to acupoint-sealing and instant-death effects | Dragon-Subduing Arhat |
| Rakshasa of the Bitter Sea | Whisk techniques — endless entangling motion that wears opponents down through sheer persistence | Tiger-Taming Arhat |
Arhat Enlightenment (post-sequel unlock)
Completing the sequel to “The Path of Chan and Wushu” unlocks two further features: Arhat Enlightenment and Request Enlightenment.
Arhat Enlightenment
For any technique you’ve already broken through, you can use an Arhat Statue earned from the Demon-Slaying Trial to “meditate” on it. Doing so replaces every one of that technique’s insight-slot effects with the statue’s own effect, and raises its power ceiling to the maximum tier. The same statue can be applied to multiple different techniques, and can be swapped or removed at any time. Once a statue is applied, that technique can no longer have its breakthrough result reviewed or be re-trained.
Arhat Statue Effects
| Statue | Effect |
|---|---|
| Deer-Riding Arhat | +10 movement speed & footwork stability |
| Joyful Arhat | +10% to the technique’s current power |
| Bowl-Raising Arhat | +10 illusion/poison resistance |
| Pagoda-Bearing Arhat | Internal Power: +1 Breakthrough slot, +5% power ceiling for all techniques in it · Breakthrough: +10% direct damage · Movement: +10% accuracy · Defense: +10% defense · Odd Techniques: +20 Force/Redirection |
| Seated Arhat | +25% “resilience against stagger” for the technique |
| River-Crossing Arhat | +10 execution speed & qi-channeling |
| Elephant-Riding Arhat | +25% “resilience against external wounds” for the technique |
| Laughing Lion Arhat | +10 weapon handling & attack speed |
| Joyous-Heart Arhat | +10 stance recovery & qi recovery |
| Reaching-Hand Arhat | +20 Force |
| Contemplative Arhat | Internal Power: +1 Odd Techniques slot, +5% power ceiling · Breakthrough: +10% accuracy · Movement: −10% footwork stamina cost · Defense: +20% recoil power · Odd Techniques: +20 Focus/Guard |
| Ear-Scratching Arhat | +20 evasion |
| Sack-Carrying Arhat | Internal Power: +1 Agility slot, +5% power ceiling · Breakthrough: +0.7 ranged attack range · Movement: −10% stamina cost · Defense: +20% mitigation · Odd Techniques: +20 Swiftness/Evasion |
| Banana-Leaf Arhat | Internal Power: +1 Defense slot, +5% power ceiling · Breakthrough: +0.7 melee attack range · Movement: −10% sustained stamina cost · Defense: +20% counter-attack power · Odd Techniques: +20 Finesse/Disarm |
| Long-Browed Arhat | +25% “resilience against critical wounds” for the technique |
| Gate-Guarding Arhat | −10% technique execution requirement |
| Dragon-Subduing Arhat | +30 Qi-Break |
| Tiger-Taming Arhat | +30 Qi-Guard |
Request Enlightenment
How to unlock: Interact with “Nameless” (无字), a special character tied to “The Path of Chan and Wushu.”
Cost: 4,000 Experience per use.
Limit: Once per month.
Effect: Choose one of two blessings — Bewilderment of Aptitude (+5 to your talent ceiling on your next technique breakthrough) or Bewilderment of Breakthrough (+5% connection success rate on your next technique breakthrough).