Hu Tao

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Hu Tao (胡桃)
Alias(es)	77th Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor; Dark Poet of the Alley School 15 42
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Wangsheng Funeral Parlor
Occupation/Role	Funeral parlor director; funeral rites specialist; poet 15 34 42
First Appearance	Chapter 15

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Pyro Vision wielder	16	Uses precise Pyro control to manage the heat and scale of flames during steel smelting.
Adeptal Arts seeker	61–62	Resolves to become stronger after feeling unable to protect Bai Ye; Zhongli creates a suitable Adeptal Art for her.
Tailored Adeptal Arts	71, 79	Receives Zhongli’s booklet. Its methods absorb Yin energy around ghosts and spirits, convert extreme Yin into rising Yang, store Pyro power for explosive release, and emphasize speed-based combat.
Rosalyn’s trainee	100–101	Uses Adeptal Arts to enter the sealed pillar containing Rosalyn and begins sparring against the weakened Fatui Harbinger.
Improved combatant	106	Repeatedly trains under Rosalyn, strengthening both her Vision and Adeptal Arts while learning to recognize traps and fight through Cryo-infused attacks.
Enhanced movement technique	116, 202	Her movement becomes erratic and difficult for Bai Ye and Xiao to track; later she approaches Baizhu without being detected.
Yin–Yang cultivation	295	Practices a further cultivation method involving absorbing Yin to replenish Yang energy.

Background / History

Hu Tao is the 77th Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. She takes her work with death seriously: she investigates murders through the deceased themselves, respects the wishes of souls, and takes responsibility for funeral rites and the collection of bodies in dangerous areas. 15 34 95

After Bai Ye develops a hearse-like Spirit Vehicle for the parlor, Hu Tao becomes both an eager customer and driver. She uses the vehicle for commissions and transportation, although her enthusiastic driving repeatedly alarms her passengers. 15 19 32 33

Her concern that she could not adequately support Bai Ye in battle motivates her to seek strength from Zhongli. He provides an Adeptal Art built specifically around her physique, Pyro affinity, and agility; Hu Tao subsequently trains against the sealed Rosalyn despite the severe difference in experience between them. 61 62 79 100 101

Hu Tao later accompanies Bai Ye on expeditions involving Archon remnants, Inazuma, Tsurumi Island, and The Chasm. On Tsurumi, her soul-release methods fail against souls forcibly bound by an unknown influence, revealing a limitation even in her specialized funeral arts. 127 181 182 218

Appearance

Hu Tao is a young woman with reddish-brown twin tails. She wears a hat bearing the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor emblem and plum-blossom decorations. 15

• Often carries her family polearm. 86
• Wears a Pyro Vision. 16
• Uses sunglasses made by Bai Ye while riding in the Spirit Vehicle. 117

Personality

Hu Tao is playful, provocative, and commercially minded. She readily advertises coffins, funeral packages, and parlor promotions—even to people who are unlikely to need them soon. 95 218

Beneath this humor, she is highly protective of Bai Ye. She worries when he is injured, confronts him over reckless risks, seeks greater strength so she can fight beside him, and repeatedly offers to keep him safe herself. 61 78 79 81 106

She is fiercely competitive, particularly when comparing herself with Shenhe, but she channels that insecurity into training. Her first encounter with Guizhong, however, leaves her unusually nervous and self-conscious. 79 100 208

Abilities & Skills

Pyro Vision and Polearm Combat

Hu Tao combines a Pyro Vision with rapid spear techniques.

• Manipulates flames with enough precision to aid metalworking without overheating the material. 16
• Uses flame butterflies, Pyro-infused thrusts, and heavy spear strikes in combat. 87 101
• Blinds and distracts an Archon corpse with attacks to its eyes, creating an opening for Bai Ye to counterattack. 88
• Can be endangered by hostile Archon residue; an Archon’s aura once invaded her body after she struck its skull. 87

Adeptal Arts

Zhongli’s custom-made arts complement Hu Tao’s mobility and Pyro affinity.

• Absorbs Yin energy in ghost- and spirit-associated places. 79
• Converts extreme Yin into Yang, enabling the storage and sudden release of large amounts of Pyro energy. 79
• Provides agility techniques tailored to her body; her movements later become difficult for Bai Ye and Xiao to follow. 79 116
• Allows her to enter and leave the small realm within Zhongli’s stone pillar. 100 107

Funeral and Soul Arts

As Wangsheng’s director, Hu Tao possesses techniques dealing with spirits and the boundary of death.

• Leads Bai Ye into the realm between life and death to question murdered adventurers’ souls. 34
• Performs rites for Archon remains and takes responsibility for future Archon farewell ceremonies encountered by Bai Ye. 120 127
• Attempts to cleanse and release Tsurumi Island’s trapped souls. 181
• Her normal methods cannot free souls forcibly confined by an unknown power. 181 182

Spirit Vehicle Operation

Hu Tao operates the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s hearse-like Spirit Vehicle.

• Uses it for transport, commissions, and collecting adventurers. 19 32
• Keeps coffins and funeral ornaments inside the vehicle. 32
• Her driving is enthusiastic but reckless enough that Bai Ye and Ganyu intervene to prevent dangerous ideas, including using an Electro Abyss Mage as a power source. 33

Poetry

Hu Tao is known as the Dark Poet of the Alley School and takes pride in her Liyue-wide reputation. 42

“One, two, three, four, five, go up the mountain to find clients...” 42

Equipment / Items

• Family polearm — her primary weapon in combat. 86
• Pyro Vision — used for flame control and offensive techniques. 16 87
• Adeptal Arts tome — the custom cultivation manual given through Zhongli. 71 79
• Wangsheng Spirit Vehicle — funeral parlor hearse adapted from Bai Ye’s vehicle design. 19 32
• Funeral talismans — carried during the Tsurumi Island expedition. 182
• Suona and sunglasses — used while traveling in the Spirit Vehicle. 117

Relationships

• Bai Ye — Close friend and frequent partner in investigations, expeditions, and combat. Hu Tao becomes determined to grow stronger so she can protect him, while Bai Ye repeatedly relies on her expertise with death and spirits. 34 61 79 181
• Zhongli — Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s Guest Official and Hu Tao’s trusted adviser. He creates her tailored Adeptal Arts, directs her to train against Rosalyn, and helps manage the parlor while she is absent. 62 95 100
• Rosalyn / La Signora — Initially Hu Tao’s sealed enemy and sparring partner. Their repeated training develops into a mentor-like dynamic, with Rosalyn offering combat advice and Hu Tao bringing her food and books. 100 101 106
• Shenhe — A perceived rival whose strength initially makes Hu Tao feel inadequate. Hu Tao later includes her in a welcome feast and works beside her on Tsurumi Island. 78 79 181
• Xiangling — Friend and business-minded companion. They join Bai Ye on outings, discuss food and funeral-parlor ideas, and travel together to Sumeru. 45 60 295
• Ganyu — Investigation partner during the Stone Gate murders; Ganyu handles the physical investigation while Hu Tao and Bai Ye seek testimony from the dead. 33 34
• Guizhong — Bai Ye’s teacher. Hu Tao is unexpectedly intimidated when meeting her, but later eagerly accepts Guizhong’s offer of instruction. 208 295

Story Role / Major Arcs

Spirit Vehicle and Early Partnership

Hu Tao helps produce Bai Ye’s vehicle, purchases one for Wangsheng Funeral Parlor use, and joins him on commercial trips and investigations. 15 19 32 34

Rite of Descension

She assists Bai Ye during the chaos surrounding Rex Lapis’s apparent assassination. Bai Ye shields her from debris, while Hu Tao supports the later farewell rite as Wangsheng’s director. 54 119 121

Pursuit of Strength

Feeling overshadowed by Bai Ye’s growing responsibilities and Shenhe’s strength, Hu Tao asks Zhongli for training. She studies his Adeptal Arts and repeatedly challenges Rosalyn inside the stone pillar. 61 62 79 100 107

Archon Remnant Operations

Hu Tao fights alongside Bai Ye and Keqing against an Archon corpse, intervening when Bai Ye is overwhelmed. She later accepts responsibility for arranging appropriate rites whenever Bai Ye encounters further Archon remains. 87 88 127

Inazuma and Tsurumi Island

Hu Tao joins Bai Ye and Shenhe in investigating Tsurumi’s bound souls. Though she cannot initially release them, she identifies that they are being forcibly held rather than lingering from ordinary attachment. 181 182

Sumeru Cultivation

Hu Tao reunites with Bai Ye and Guizhong in Sumeru, reveals that her strength has increased, and discusses her Yin–Yang cultivation method. 295 296

Trivia

• Hu Tao considers Bai Ye’s scent the most fragrant thing she has smelled, second only to Xiangling’s cooking. 91
• She once defeated Yae Miko in Genius Invokation TCG. 181
• She is comfortable offering unused coffins as places for tired passengers to rest. 32
• Her proposal to use Bouncy Bombs at a funeral is rejected as excessively dangerous. 127