Protagonist's name: Lin Yan
“Lin” is the surname of his foster parents. As ordinary as the camphor trees found all over campus, it helps him blend into the crowds at Ivy University. “Yan” is the character carved into an old wooden plaque he has had for as long as he can remember. The plaque is worn smooth, with tiny pieces of jade set into its edges. He always thought it was an ordinary protective charm, until the bronze talisman appeared and he discovered that the patterns on the two plaques fit together perfectly. Only later does he learn that “Yan” is the personal mark of a disciple of the Xuanqing Pavilion, like a student's ID number, but tied to a cultivator's spiritual foundations.
His name reflects his predicament: one half rooted in the earth of everyday life, an ordinary college student worrying about rent and grades; the other suspended on the ethereal path of cultivation, a candidate chosen by the talisman. In the strain between the two lies a destiny even he has yet to notice.
