Spirits of all kinds inhabit the ordinary world of countless adherents of Daoism and CCT. But none quite fit the precise description most readers would identify as angelic. Angels are generally understood as pure immortal spirits made that way from the start. Chinese Daoist and popular beliefs include countless immortal beings, but, apart from the highest gods, most of those began as human beings and achieved immortality later. In addition, angels in other traditions typically function as messengers or guardians. A variety of spirits play those roles in Daoist and CCT lore. Perhaps the closest thing to angels in the Chinese repertoire of religious symbolism are the apsaras, imported into China with Buddhism.