Li Shengnan

Biodata

Power Progression

Background

Li Shengnan is the daughter of Li Kui of the Weiyuan Escort Agency. Her brother Li Feng was once the senior-most disciple of the Tiger Martial Arts Academy, but the academy abandoned him after he suffered injuries that ultimately killed him. Shengnan later joined the Eight Trigrams Martial Arts Academy 27.

Appearance

Li Shengnan is exceptionally tall and muscular, with a sweet, round face that contrasts with her imposing build 12.

• Her arms are thicker than Qin Ming’s thighs when they first meet 12.
• She wears black training clothes stretched taut by her muscles 12.
• Her physique and strength are partly the result of cultivating Savage Bull Strength 27.

Personality

Lu Liu describes Shengnan as kindhearted, noting that she teaches new disciples to cultivate whenever she has time 12. She is protective of her companions, repeatedly putting herself in danger for Qin Ming, Embroiderer, and Wang Xiaoxi 42 48 87.

She is proud of her family and quick to anger when Chen Yue insults Li Feng and the escort agency. She also has a teasing side: she jokes that Qin Ming could learn her family’s martial art if he married her 27.

Abilities & Skills

Savage Bull Strength

A ninth-rank Horizontal Training Martial Art inherited by the Li Lineage. Its cultivation contributes to Shengnan’s muscular build and formidable physical strength 27.

• Her Qi and blood are several times stronger than an ordinary person’s; she can sleep in snow wearing a single layer without harm 40.
• She channels its strength into her saber strikes, swelling her arms as she attacks 43.

Saber fighting

Shengnan relies on powerful slashes rather than a mastered saber technique 43.

• With the Cold Iron Saber, she wounds the injured Huo Lin, a Perfected Skin-Refining Realm martial artist 43.
• Her strength and the saber’s sharpness let her threaten opponents at the Perfected Skin-Refining Realm, but she is no match for a stronger Flesh-Refining Realm opponent such as Huo Zheng 40 43.

Equipment

• Cold Iron Saber — Bloodhand’s former weapon, worth 300 taels of silver, which Qin Ming lent her for self-defense. Huo Lan took it after Huo Zheng injured Shengnan 40 43.
• Human-skin mask — Qin Ming borrowed her mask to disguise himself when entering Desolate City 89.

Relationships

• Qin Ming — Her junior brother. She looks after him at the academy, and he later saves her during the escort ambush. Before dying, Li Kui asks Qin Ming to care for her and prevent her from seeking suicidal revenge 12 29 30.
• Li Kui — Her father. He leads the escort assignment attacked by Clearwind Stronghold and dies after being poisoned 27 30.
• Li Feng — Her deceased brother. Bloodhand injured him during an earlier encounter; Shengnan resents the Tiger Martial Arts Academy for abandoning him afterward 27 28.
• Pei Heng — Her master at the Eight Trigrams Martial Arts Academy. She brings him to Qin Ming’s aid during the yamen confrontation 20 21.
• Lu Liu — Her fellow academy disciple. They seek help for Embroiderer and repeatedly defend their companions together 18 20 43.
• Embroiderer — Qin Ming’s companion and Shengnan’s housemate in Qingyang County. Shengnan is gravely injured defending her from the Wild Wolf Gang 47 48.
• Viper Elder — A Clearwind Stronghold member whom Shengnan identifies as her father’s murderer. Qin Ming captures him and leaves him for her to deal with 73.
• Chen Yue — A Tiger Martial Arts Academy disciple who insults her family and challenges her to the Two-Academy Showdown. After the ambush, he falsely blames Qin Ming and the escort agency for the disaster 27 31.

Story Role

The yamen and escort ambush

After returning from an escort assignment, Shengnan reports an alarming matter to her master. Later, she and Lu Liu seek Embroiderer’s release from the yamen. When Qin Ming breaks into the dungeon, Shengnan returns to the academy and brings Pei Heng to his aid 12 18 20.

On another escort job, she relays Qin Ming’s warning about an approaching bank of fog to her father. Clearwind Stronghold attacks the caravan; Shengnan is badly wounded and blinded by powder before Qin Ming carries her away. Li Kui dies after entrusting her care to Qin Ming, and the two survivors shelter near a waterfall before returning toward Qingshan Town 27 28 29 30 31.

Qingshan Town and Qingyang County

During Clearwind Stronghold’s attack on Qingshan Town, Shengnan rescues Lu Liu from bandits and later kills two late-stage Skin-Refining Realm attackers. After Qin Ming defeats Yuan Lie, she joins the survivors leaving for Qingyang County 34 38.

When survivors try to seize the gravely wounded Qin Ming’s possessions, Shengnan draws the Cold Iron Saber against Wang Bo and fights Huo Lin. Huo Zheng strikes her down, and Huo Lan takes her saber 42 43.

In Qingyang County, Shengnan moves in with Qin Ming and Embroiderer. She cuts down three Wild Wolf Gang kidnappers but is nearly killed by their Flesh-Refining Realm leader; Xiong San gives her a Qi-Blood Pill. Still recovering later, she and Embroiderer are abducted by gang members and rescued by Qin Ming. He subsequently brings her the captured Viper Elder 47 48 72 73.

Desolate City and the River God Sacrifice

In Desolate City, Shengnan resumes escort work to help support the household despite her lingering injuries. She tries to stop Hou Wu from taking Wang Xiaoxi as a sacrifice, but he strikes her aside before Qin Ming arrives 86 87 88.

After a Dog Demon abducts Xiaoxi and Xiangxiang, Shengnan leaves to find Qin Ming. Lu Ming captures and tortures her, then binds her at the River God Sacrifice as bait. Qin Ming intervenes and reveals himself to her and the captive children 94 98 99.

Afterward, Shengnan agrees to leave with Xiong San and declares that she will cultivate in seclusion until she reaches the Bone Refining Realm. Qin Ming provides her and the others with cultivation supplies 103.