Record of the Missing Sect Master / 教主走失記
A Lifetime of Beautiful Clothes / 一世華裳

Characters Guide

Protagonists

Ye You (葉右) / Sect Master (教主) of the Demonic Sect (魔教)> Ah-Xiao (阿曉), Young Master Xiao (少爺), Sir Xiao (曉公子), Ah-You (阿右) <The main character. Gets amnesia right before the series starts after being caught in a fire. Purportedly Wenren Heng’s Junior Brother who went missing ten years ago. Willful and stubborn, Ye You likes anything interesting. Often does things in pursuit of fun without consulting others. He also seems to enjoy teasing his Senior Brother. Currently, his sect members are also frantically searching for him.Wenren Heng (聞人恆) / Sect Master (門主) of Shuangji Sect (雙極門)> Xiao-Heng (小恆), Brother Heng (恆哥), Ah-Heng (阿恆) <The secondary protagonist. Supposedly Ye You’s Senior Brother who has been looking for him for ten years. He’s polite and amiable to most but keeps a certain distance from everyone except his Junior Brother. Dotes on Ye You and is usually willing to address whatever concerns he has (to an extent). Definitely knows more than he lets on, but is tricky enough to dodge most questions.

The Demonic Sect (魔教)

Elder Bai (白長老)Always seems to be tired and sleepy. Was the last one to see the sect master before Ye You decided to run off. Left at home to watch over the sect because he moved too slowly. Apparently the strongest Elder of the sect, despite his usual slowness.Elder Miao (苗長老) / Miao Wang (苗汪)One of the four Elders who left in search of the Sect Master. Can talk about extremely terrifying things with a straight face — no one is sure if he’s actually serious or not. Researches poisonous insects.Elder Mei (梅長老)One of four Elders who left in search of the Sect Master. Thinks very highly of herself. The Demonic Sect Elder whom Wenren Heng dislikes the most, apparently.Elder Baili (百里長老)One of four Elders who left in search of the Sect Master. Always seems to pick the short end of the stick.Elder Ji (季長老)One of four Elders who left in search of the Sect Master. The one the author seems to forget exists the most often.Elder Hei (黑長老)The Elder in charge of the Demonic Sect’s shadow guards. Looks delicate despite his occupation.

Wenren Heng’s Associates

Qin Yuemian (秦月眠) / Manor Lord (莊主) of Xunliu Manor (尋柳山莊) / Ah-Mian (阿眠)Wenren Heng’s good friend. Found and rescued Ye You from the burning inn. Suspicious of Ye You after learning of his amnesia and the overly coincidental nature of his reunion with his Senior Brother.Young Master Li (李少) / Son of a Prince (世子)The son of a prince from the palace. Got to know Wenren Heng while the other was at the capital. A Sect Master Ye fanatic and always brings him up in conversation.The Scarred Man (刀疤男)Part of Wenren Heng’s Shuangji Sect, and the one who leads Wenren Heng’s subordinates. Said to look very ordinary except for the knife-scar on his face.

Seniors of the Righteous Faction (白道)

Academy Master Ge (葛幫主) of Dingtian Academy (定天書院)Close friend of the Wang family, located right across the river from them in Suzhou. His son finds a bootleg copy of Pursued Until Scattered, a legendary martial arts book, which leads to no end of trouble. Has terrible luck.Manor Lord Wei (魏莊主) of Fengxian Manor (豐賢莊)Wenren Heng’s old mentor from after his master passed away. Sly and cunning, always amiable with everyone. One of the two great powers of Jianghu along with Pavilion Master Ding and also in constant conflict with the other.Pavilion Master Ding (丁閣主) of Lingjian Pavilion (靈劍閣)Cold and straightforward. Described to be akin to an unsheathed sword. One of the two great powers of Jianghu along with Manor Lord Wei and also in constant conflict with the other.The Alliance Leader (盟主)Chosen by long-standing sects of Jianghu. Picked not because of martial skill but because of his patience and ability to stop fights (particularly between Manor Lord Wei and Pavilion Master Ding). Has gradually gained the respect of the people of Jianghu.Sect Leader Xuanyang (玄陽掌門) of Wudang Sect (武當派)Head of Wudang Sect. His Junior Brother, Priest Hezhen (和真道長), is in charge of guarding the notorious Bodhi Prison for Wudang.Abbot Ciyuan (慈元方丈) of Shaolin Temple (少林寺)Head of Shaolin Temple. His youngest disciple, Master Deru (德如大師), is in charge of guarding the notorious Bodhi Prison for Shaolin.

Juniors of the Righteous Faction

Wei Jiangyue (魏江越) / Sir Wei (魏公子/魏二公子)Manor Lord Wei’s second son. Wants Wenren Heng to marry his younger sister. Interested in Ye You because of his apparent martial art skill.Wei Jiangrou (魏江柔) / Lady Wei (魏姑娘) / Xiao-Rou (小柔)Manor Lord Wei’s only daughter and younger sister of Wei Jiangyue. The darling of the family. Likes Wenren Heng and wants to marry him.Sir Yang (楊公子)The only survivor of the monster’s murderous rampage ten years ago. Saved by Manor Lord Wei who he calls “Uncle” and treats Wei Jiangyue and Wei Jiangrou as if they’re his real siblings. His body is weak because of his past experiences.Ding Xilai (丁喜來) / Sir Ding (丁公子) / Ah-Lai (阿來)Pavilion Master Ding’s only child. A prodigal son who spends the majority of his time playing around. Pretends to be upright in front of his father despite this. Good friends with the Junior Alliance Leader.Junior Alliance Leader Zhong (鐘少盟主) / Sir Zhong (鐘公子) / Xiao-Zhong (小鐘)The Alliance Leader’s only child. A prodigal son who spends the majority of his time playing around. Good friends with Ding Xilai.

Others of the Righteous Faction

Wei Jin (衛晉)Head of Lingjian Pavilion’s elite troops “Moon’s Shadow”. Serious and diligent. Reports everything directly back to the Pavilion Master.Ren Shaotian (任少天)Captain of the second squad of “Moon’s Shadow” and personal bodyguard of Ding Xilai. Frivolous and always has a wicked smile on his face.Miracle Doctor Ji (紀神醫) / Ji Zhaohen (紀招恨)A famous doctor who invented countless new medicines and saved countless people. Wenren Heng takes Ye You to him in an attempt to find some way to fix the latter’s amnesia and muddled internal energy. Refuses to treat those of the demonic faction.Young Miracle Doctor Fang (方小神醫)Ji Zhaohen’s youngest disciple. Eighteen years of age. A genius whose head is filled only with medical texts and saving people. Has no sense of propriety and cannot read the mood. Sent by Miracle Doctor Ji to monitor Ye You and takes his job very seriously.

Demonic Faction (邪派)

Xie Junming (謝均明) / Temple Master (宮主) of Wuwang Temple (無望宮)Friend of Sect Master Ye’s. Moved to the Central Plains from the Western Regions. His sect was originally referred to as the demonic sect before the Gold Sect (now Demonic Sect) came to Jianghu. On Wenren Heng’s list of most hated people.Chen Hong (沉虹) / Fort Master (寨主) of Chenhong Fort (沉虹寨)Friend of Ye You and Xie Junming. Looks extraordinarily young for his age.

Misc.

Wang family (王家)Previously part of Jianghu but left the world of martial arts after the monster’s murderous rampage ten years ago left Elder Wang’s eldest son dead. Currently located in Suzhou and has very good standing amongst the people. The current head of household (the Wang family head 王家主) is traveling with the righteous faction in order to find justice for the poisoning of his father (Elder Wang/the Wang Patriarch 王老爺).Lady Tao (桃姑娘)Ye You’s friend and a skilled qin player who’s said to be the most beautiful woman in Jiangnan. Wenren Heng doesn’t like her.Sect Master Shui (水幫主) of Suiyun Sect (碎雲幫)Wenren Heng’s friend and part of the neutral faction. Thinks his sect would sound cooler if it was called Suigu (“Broken Bones”) Sect instead. Full of fervor and fighting spirit, and needs to be constantly talked down from his ideas by his sect elders.

Villains
^{(warning for minor spoilers below)}

The White Piece (白子)The central villain of the story. Identity unknown.Blood-sucking Ghost (吸血老鬼)An old monster of Jianghu from seven or eight years ago, presumed dead. Sucked the vitality out of young girls and boys in order to gain power.Li Hua (黎花)A flute player working for the white piece, but low enough on the ladder to be expendable.Fuping (浮萍)The lead entertainer of Tiangzhu Courtyard in Xiangxing City.Mr. Xiao (肖先生)The owner of Fulai Inn and the person who Fuping reported to.Ghost Gentleman (鬼相公)Another old monster of Jianghu who had previously been presumed dead. Surrounded Shaolin in the dead of the night.Cong Yun (從雲)Miracle Doctor Ji’s eldest disciple and said to be long dead. Works with the monster and white piece in order to make drugged troops.The Monster (魔頭)The old villain of Jianghu who terrorized the land over twenty years ago. Creator of the Lantern-Extinguishing Poison and the Lantern-Extinguishing Skill. Completely massacred three entire prominent Jianghu families in search of the miraculous martial arts book Pursued Until Scattered. Presumed dead after being attacked by all the righteous sects of Jianghu.

Detailed Breakdown / Semi-Review
warning for some minor spoilers

Record of the Missing Sect Master is a BL mystery story centered around an initially amnesiac main character who (as it quickly becomes apparent) is the mastermind of a long-running revenge scheme that eventually ends up implicating some powerful figures in the story.The mystery in general is well-articulated, with hints and foreshadowing placed early on in the narrative that eventually gets utilized later. Most of the chapters are relatively important to either set up characters or set up plot, and there's really not much excess fat to be found, plot-wise. It's a story that's quite fun to reread if you're into mysteries, since early events take on new meaning in light of later revelations.The story is also labeled as a comedy, and rightfully so. In particular, the main characters' followers are a source of comedic delight, and while they are important to the story as his accomplices, they are also great fun as just plain comedic relief.Now, for the criticisms. The main one, from those who dropped it, is that the early chapters are slow -- and I don't disagree. The earlier chapters are more concerned with setting up the backbone of the mystery, and the actual mystery itself doesn't pick up until midway through the narrative. Once it does, though, it proceeds at a brisk pace, and I think most agree that there was very rarely a dull moment in the second half of the series.Another criticism is how overpowered the main character is, and how many of the other characters seem to require his assistance to solve any mystery, despite these other characters also being in positions of power. I myself have commented on how it seems the main character knows a bit too much about events, despite being amnesiac. I also found the author can get a bit too self-congratulatory with some of the revelations (as in, she never seems to quite trust the readers to understand foreshadowing without her having to point it out.) These are ultimately, for me, small critiques in the grand scheme of things, though, and the well-constructed mystery makes up for it. And, as this is a revenge story, part of the satisfaction does come from watching the main character's plan unfolding without a hitch, so your view of this story will ultimately depend on whether you like that kind of revenge tale or not.A final criticism is how the romantic male lead pales in comparison to the main character, and how said male lead doesn't seem to have much role in the story other than to dote on his lover. Others have commented how the romance isn't really necessary to the story and isn't as well-written as the mystery. I personally found the male lead a bit too overbearing for my tastes (though he never crosses my bottom line), but I did enjoy their relationship in the end, once it actually picks up. I also agree with these criticisms about the romance taking a back-seat to the mystery, but as I actually prefer plot to be the forefront and romance to be one-and-done, this was a plus-point for me instead of a minus.In short: If you enjoy mysteries with a well-articulated plot and fun characters, Record of the Missing Sect Master is worth checking out. If you prefer your romances to take center stage, and to contain more setbacks for your main characters to overcome, then this series might not be for you._{Though I think we can all agree that the most valid criticism of all is that our best boy Ding Xilai didn't get more screentime. Justice for Ding Xilai!}

Support

There are multiple ways to support the original author. The easiest and least costly way (especially if you have access to Paypal) is to buy the VIP chapters via Jinjiang. You can see an in-depth guide on how to use Jinjiang linked below.Record of the Missing Sect Master was also published in Taiwan (so in traditional Chinese) back in 2018 in three volumes. These books are still widely available via most Taiwanese booksellers. I've linked a search criteria on books.tw for the volumes, since the site has an English version and allows for international shipping, though you will need an account to click into the actual listings since they are R-18. If the site appears in Chinese for you, click 繁體 in the upper right corner, and there will be a popup with the option to change into English.For the record, 上 means "first part", 中 means "middle part", and 下 means "last part".There are currently no other official adaptations (whether that be live-action dramas or audio dramas) of this series.If you have any questions, or have encountered any issues when trying to give your support, feel free to contact me for help.

• In-depth Guide on using Jinjiang
• Buy the books (in Traditional)!

Contact

This carrd is made by emiliers, who translated this series into English over at Shrimp Chips translations.If you have any questions about this carrd specifically (most notably, how to support the author), feel free to drop me an email via this contact form. I'm also available on curious.cat and Novelupdates, if you want something less formal.If you wish to discuss anything related to my translations, please refer to this FAQ over on my translation blog, and contact me via the specific contact methods listed there.I also have a carrd for all my other socials, but fair warning: it's not fandom-focused.