Du Min Gyu

Lieutenant General of the Imperial Army, one of the foremost instructors of the Central Province.

## Appearance

Elderly man with a long, gray beard, unkempt and wild, white and bushy eyebrows, wearing plain, dark-green robes, his wrinkled face half-hidden beneath his conical, straw hat. With an uneven gait, signs of a pained hip.

### Volume 19

Back and head held high, there was no sign of the tender limp or hunched back of yesteryear, his hair and beard dyed black and meticulously groomed.

## Personality

Proud, stubborn, gruff and stern but in essence noble-minded and caring. Fiercely looks after his own.

## Background

A foolish, love-sick silk-pants who left home wandering about for five years till he found a new love at twenty-five, and her name was War.

From there, he traveled across the Empire and took part in every conflict, rebellion, and outbreak he could find, slowly but surely gathering valuable experience, valiant comrades, and loyal subordinates, but limited fame. Over the next five years, he Condensed his Aura during the Battle of Five Pagodas, Formed his Natal Palace after the Black Scarf Rebellion, and Awakened to the Blessing of Wind while standing on the summit of Wutai Mountain. Even then, he still couldn’t be considered an outstanding talent, but then eight years later during the Defiled uprising of Shilin, he uncovered twelve Concealed Wraiths in camp to save the Commander’s life and went on to slay three Demons in battle. Due to his exemplary performance, Du Min Gyu finally rose to the heights he’d long dreamt of, promoted from Third-Grade to First-Grade Warrant Officer and given the title of **Sanguine Tempest**, for wherever he passed, the winds blew red with the blood of his enemies.

More than thirty years later, he single-handedly slaughtered a hundred turncoat Experts and turned defeat into victory at the Hoplesh Rebellion. For this, he was promoted yet again and became a rare Exarch of the Empire, a Peak Expert whose name was spoken across the Empire. Only then did he reconnect with his family, and for a time, life was good.

Then he fought the Butcher of KunLun and plummeted from lofty heights, a crippled warrior whose only value was his uncanny talent to take mediocre Martial Warriors and turn them into passable Elites. Learning the joys of guiding a young mind through Cho Jin Kai. His disciples and students all finding great fame and fortune for themselves, bringing him great praise and respect, as well as a new title: **Great Teacher Du**.

Riddled by aches in his nineties, he turned to Dream Smoke, an addictive substance, used to numb pain with a side effect of lower inhibitions.

Though technically a military family, before his unprecedented rise to power, the highest ranking officer in the Du Family’s history had been Min Gyu’s great-grandfather, a Colonel whose rank had been conferred posthumously. His siblings, two older brothers and three younger sisters, had all passed away leaving a horde of ungrateful children and grandchildren.

### Teachings

* Believed in tempering the mind as well as the body. He often lectured on the history of weapons and wars.
* Specialization first, generalization later, so every soldier has at least one use.
* Simple, repetitive actions which push the limits of the body, forcing the person doing them to instinctively adapt, which gives rise to an innate, intuitive use of chi.

## Powers and Abilities

Favors a lighter touch when it comes to the Forms, his movements appearing soft and delicate as a feather upon the wind, yet each one hiding immeasurable strength within. His movements are sharp and unyielding, always aiming for the path of least resistance, direct and unambiguous as his personality demanded.

Before he Awakened to the Blessing of Air, his battlefield mantra was: Strike first, strike hard, and move on, leaving naught but destruction in his wake. This manifests as him striking at the most precise way while assisting all allies on the battlefield.

### Signature Moves

* Wind Chakram: His Talent keeps his Wind Chi from dissipating upon contact with another living creature.
* Howling Gale

After being crippled, he learned to Lighten his body and lift himself with Wind Chi, relieving the pressure from his damaged limb by floating through the air.

### Equipment

* Saber: A reward for almost single-handedly putting down the Black Scarf Rebellion, gifted to him by the Magistrate of Hwando.
* Battle-fan

## Relationships

**Cho Jin Kai**: His First Disciple and the closest thing he had to a son.

**Cho Jin Tok**: Sees him as a grandson of sorts. After Kai’s passing, their family asked Du Min Gyu to take Jin Tok as a Disciple, but he refused. He offered to find Jin Tok another Mentor but Kai’s family would not hear it and soon publicly severed all ties. Worse, they even lied and claimed he tried to extort them for coin in exchange for Mentoring Jin Tok, lamenting at how he cared nothing for his First Disciple’s family.

**Du Kang Bing**: Grandson of a second cousin. Owed the cousin a favor and took the boy in as a student. Out of dozens of blood relatives, he was the only one that remained loyal when the rest betrayed him after he returned with Yan.

**Du Min Yan**: His Terminal Disciple and adopted granddaughter. Took her in as student during his trip to the Northern Province and helped her Awaken the Blessing of the Divine Wind.

**Akanai**: Du Min Gyu initially had an antagonistic view of Akanai, blaming her for his Disciple's death. However, after realizing that this was not the case, their relationship became more abrasive than anything else.

**Ryo Da'in**: Had been seeking his approval of so many years and refused to give up even after he'd accepted Yan as his Terminal Disciple. Though the Ryo family grew distant, Da’in defied her father’s orders and drew even closer to Min Gyu in his time of trouble, becoming something of a sister figure and sparring partner to Yan. Grateful of her efforts, he spoke with her parents to become her godfather, and they agreed as long as she was willing, and she was. He also kept in mind her father's request to help find a suitable husband.

**Du Min Kyung**: Most prized pupil, slave and only grandson. Inherited the essence of his teachings, a warrior who struck first, struck hard, and moved on to the next battle, leaving naught but destruction in his wake.

**Duan Xiao Qi**, **KageTaka**: Student/Guard.

## Trivia

* His only other living disciple was already well established and learned, no longer requiring his aid.
* He disdains the rest of his 'family,' his cousins' were more like parasites.
* His epic, 'The Butcher of Kun Lun', is a two hour play filled with opera songs and verbal quips exchanged in the midst of 'battle'.
* Healed by Taduk after an oath of secrecy

## References

1. ↑ Chapter 82
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Chapter 351
3. ↑ Chapter 488
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Chapter 84
5. ↑ Chapter 102
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Chapter 85
7. ↑ Chapter 368
8. ↑ Chapter 120
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Chapter 124
10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Chapter 635
11. ↑ Chapter 637
12. ↑ Chapter 553
13. ↑ Chapter 364
14. ↑ Chapter 88
15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Chapter 95
16. ↑ Chapter 380
17. ↑ Chapter 564
18. ↑ Chapter 105
19. ↑ Chapter 110