Nie Mingjue (聂明玦, Niè Míngjué) was a former leader of the Qinghe Nie Clan and the older half-brother of Nie Huaisang. Titled Chifeng-Zun (赤锋尊, Chìfēng-zūn), he is also a member of the Venerated Triad.
Appearance[]
At 191 cm, Nie Mingjue is the tallest character in the novel.[1] His waist is narrow and his shoulders broad. Wei Wuxian describes his contoured abdominal muscles as a physique "countless men" would dream to have.[2]
Although Nie Mingjue ranks seventh in looks among the young masters of the cultivation world, his formidable appearance gives the impression that he can start burning with rage at any moment.[3]
Personality[]
Nie Mingjue is well known for his strictness and violent temper.[4] His temper only worsens over the years, as the saber spirit of his clan's cultivation methods begins to affect him.[5] Jin Guangyao notes that Nie Mingjue shows no interest in women, art, alcohol, or anything outside of his saber work and killing members of the Qishan Wen Clan.[5] Although Nie Mingjue rarely opens up to others,[6] he is rather protective towards those he care about. In fact, the deepest regret of his life is watching his father's demise after being gored by a beast during a night hunt.[5]
In addition, Nie Mingjue possesses an extremely black-and-white sense of morality, and is rather intolerant of anything he deems to deviate from the moral good. For instance, he despises the Qishan Wen Clan due to Wen Ruohan's role in his father's death, and he refuses to show mercy towards Wen Qing's branch of the Qishan Wen, claiming that her lack of martial opposition to Wen Ruohan made her an accomplice,[7] not considering she could not go against him directly without likely endangering her family. He also refuses to forgive Jin Guangyao for killing several of his subordinates while undercover during the Sunshot Campaign.[5]
However, this morality also gives Nie Mingjue a strong sense of fairness and justice, as he respects those who disagree with him if they demonstrate integrity, as evidenced by his commendation of Mianmian,[7] and immediately backs Xiao Xingchen's evidence against Xue Yang in the face of the Lanling Jin Clan's political equivocations.[2] He is also compassionate to those he deems innocent: during the Sunshot Campaign, Nie Mingjue goes out of his way to reassure a woman and child trapped among the fighting, and reprimands the cultivators he catches gossiping about Jin Guangyao.[6]
Trivia[]
- Nie Mingjue is the tallest character in the entire novel, standing at 191 cm.[1]
- Nie Mingjue is the strongest Fierce Corpse in the novel, outranking even Wen Ning.[8] However, since Wen Ning maintains his own consciousness, there is nothing special about Nie Mingjue's undead state besides his overwhelming strength.
- According to Mo Xiang Tong Xiu, the height difference between Nie Mingjue and Nie Huaisang can be attributed to their different mothers, which may imply that Nie Mingjue's mother was quite tall.[9]
- In an interview, Mo Xiang Tong Xiu explained that Nie Mingjue's personality was developed to be the opposite of Jin Guangyao. Jin Guangyao is the kind of person who would rather bow than die, while Nie Mingjue would rather die than bow. She enjoyed writing their dynamic, though she doubts they felt the same.[10]
References[]
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