Appearance= He’s a rare male huli jing, uncommon but not entirely unheard of. In his human form, he appears to be a comely young man with fox-like features. He has long, silky white hair. Pale skin. Yellow eyes with red winged eyeliner. He has fox ears atop his head. A long, fluffy white fox tail. Sharp, pointed nails like claws. He has intricate, crimson tattoos along his body. And canine teeth. In his fox form, he takes the form of a large white fox with nine tails, with red markings on the fur. The sleeves of his robes have pockets.
Personality= Ning Yun can communicate with foxes and is often followed by a few huli jing who often feed him information or bring books and scrolls to fill his library; he can sometimes be found caring for little fox kits. Ning Yun is peaceful by nature, but will fight back when needed. He typically appears quiet and thoughtful with a bored or monotone disposition, but is cunning and intelligent and is not easily deceived or tricked. He hoards knowledge, like one might with gold, and yearns to learn more about the world and things around him. However, this sometimes leads him to isolate himself, and someone else has to drag him out of the library or archives in question. He also remembers every scroll and book he’s ever read, so even in exile, he can restore his archives. His natural movements lean towards the seductive, unintentionally. He has sharp eyesight, a strong sense of hearing, and a strong sense of smell. He does feel guilt over Yue.
Backstory= Before he was given the name “Ning Yun”, he was once a simple huli jing who traveled the world for knowledge. One day, he was reading by a creek, and was approached by a koi who asked him how she could become a loon. He told her about the Dragon Gate at the Yellow River, and she made him promise to fly with her when she became a loong. The huli jing followed the koi and would tell her many stories until he reached the edge of her creek, and bade her farewell on her quest. Many, many years later, the koi, now a loong, returned to the creek in her new humanoid form. She saw the huli jing, grabbed his wrist, pulling him away from the book with a smile bright as the moon, “How great it is to see you again, scholar fox! Behold, I am a loong now! You must fly with me now, my new friend!” she declared, and turned into her loong form, swooping him up into the night sky. During that flight, the huli jing was astonished and inspired, naming the loong “Yue” for the moon. Yue, filled with joy, returned the favor, naming the white huli jing, “Ning Yun”, her peaceful cloud. For many centuries, the two were inseparable companions. Ning Yun established a vast, metaphysical library of knowledge, and he gifted her an enchanted scroll. While Yue Loong’s creek expanded into a genuine river. Yue and Ning would frequently fly together, exploring the forests around the river, and, after a while, became lovers. However, one day, the Celestial Court noticed his library and displaced it, along with him, into the heavens. They made him "the Archivist", "Keeper of Secrets", effectively confining him to the court. Having a library that contained a vast array of knowledge on almost anything in the known world. He was the guardian and keeper of this library. He worked directly under the Jade Emperor in this role, tutored Erlang Shen, and often had tea drinking sessions with Nezha (he was one of the few who could cool that hotheaded temper). Ning was still around, over thousands of years after being displaced into the Celestial Court, and was there during the time Sun Wukong caused havoc in Heaven, though he found the Monkey King to be entertaining and a nuisance in equal measure; however, Wukong’s spirit reminded him of Yue, leading Ning to be surprisingly lenient towards Wukong’s antics. Over the centuries, Ning had gathered and learned from scrolls and tomes, having an open mind to whatever he may know, which allowed him to learn of things beyond the understanding of most beings, even celestials. This, however, led to him learning things that could be considered "forbidden knowledge" by celestials. Knowledge of things or beings beyond the reach and control of those in the heavens, perhaps they are not the masters. Ning, however, does not desire to hide the truth of things. So, he refused to get rid of the writings. This led to the celestials seeing no more use for him. He was to keep secrets, not share the knowledge that could threaten their rule. So they cast him aside, abandoning their archivist in favor of one who'd allow them to maintain their puppet strings on the world. Yet, unbeknownst to them, Ning managed to take the hidden fourth prince with him from under the Jade Emperor’s nose while he was being banished. Yet Tian was still asleep and had shown no sign of waking. Since then, Ning has become a wanderer, even taking on a student, Yao Kang. He eventually met back up with Wukong during the journey and joined him and the pilgrims.
Abilities= Huli Jing (Ning Yun has the traditional Huli Jing abilities that allow him to manipulate fox fire, create illusions, and shapeshift from his humanoid form into the form of a large, white fox with red markings.) Sorcerer (Ning Yun has acquired many different spells from his studies as the archivist. He utilizes healing magic and sealing magic. Specifically, he can use the Golden Sealing Chains, which physically restrain the target and seal off their magic. He can also create/use talismans and wards. He has various other abilities, notable among which are lightning spells and wind manipulation.). Illusory Nightmares (He can fine-tune his illusions to “acupuncture precision”. His magic essentially “pierces” the person’s psyche, dredges up their darkest fears, and consumes their minds, including their five senses, trapping them in a nightmare they can’t escape unless he releases the spell. This ability can cause panic attacks and mental breakdowns, but only works if he touches the individual.)
