Xue Daochao

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Xue Daochao (薛道朝)
Alias(es)	“Old Xue”; “Down-to-earth Daoist”
Gender	Male
Hometown	Gansu 131
Affiliation	First Company, First Squad; Special Operations Brigade; later Third Platoon of a Special Reconnaissance Company 82 98 307 318
Occupation/Role	Soldier; Daoist priest, fortune-teller, and Feng Shui practitioner; platoon leader 93 298 307
Status	Active
First Appearance	Chapter 16

Background / History

Xue Daochao enlists as a new recruit in Chen Ting’s First Squad. He initially stands out for his Taoist attire and his willingness to demonstrate palm-reading: after obtaining Chen Ting’s birth details, he correctly identifies that the squad leader has three children—two daughters and one son. He also reads Ji Baichang’s relationship situation, establishing both his confidence in divination and his tendency to charge for information when an opportunity arises. 16 17

Though his appearance is described as ordinary and easy to overlook, Xue identifies himself as a Daoist priest capable of fortune-telling and Feng Shui. He declines to explain why someone with his background chose to enlist, keeping the reason private even when Chen Ting asks him directly. 93 128

His expertise becomes formally relevant when Company Commander Chen Tianjian asks him to investigate the Fifth Battalion’s alleged haunting. Xue identifies excessive Yin energy at the site, prepares ritual tools in a plastic bag, and conducts an exorcistic ritual with Five Emperors Coins, a peachwood sword, rooster blood, and the Golden Light Incantation. Lü Qinglong assists him throughout the operation. 93 95 96

Xue later joins the Special Operations Brigade alongside Lü Qinglong and Ji Baichang. He performs well in selection and training, receives recognition for his combat actions, and is assigned to the Army Special Operations Academy before eventually becoming a platoon leader. 98 113 147 269 298

Military Career

Period	Position / Event	Notes
New-recruit training	First Squad recruit	Trained under Squad Leader Chen Ting alongside Lü Qinglong and Ji Baichang. 16 43
Physical-fitness competition	First place, 3-kilometer run	Finished in 9 minutes 40 seconds after Lü Qinglong deliberately allowed him to take first place. 82
Fifth Battalion incident	Ritual investigator	Investigated and resolved a haunting linked to a construction pit with Lü Qinglong’s assistance. 93 95 96
Special Operations Brigade	Selected recruit	Volunteered to enter the brigade and later trained intensively under Chen Ting. 98 113
Border operations	Third-Class Merit recipient	Earned merit for decisive use of an anti-tank rocket; later received another recommendation after scouting an enemy ambush. 147 220 221
Army Special Operations Academy	Student	Assigned to the academy with Lü Qinglong and Ji Baichang after earning the qualifications for promotion. 269
Special Reconnaissance Company	Third Platoon Leader	Commands Third Platoon and demonstrates highly effective offensive tactics in company exercises. 307 318

Appearance

Xue Daochao has an unremarkable appearance that Chen Tianjian considers easy to lose in a crowd. He originally presents himself in Taoist priest attire, contrasting sharply with his military role. 16 93

• Wore Taoist priest clothing upon joining the unit. 16
• Has a calm, restrained expression even in front of senior officers. 93
• Is described as ordinary-looking and not physically distinctive at first glance. 16 93
• Looks notably handsome when wearing border-defense armor. 140

Personality

Xue is consistently calm, self-possessed, and difficult to rattle. He speaks to senior officers without excessive deference, accepts dangerous assignments with composure, and takes responsibility for his own decisions—such as volunteering to accept punishment for firing an anti-tank rocket without orders. 82 93 147

He is also secretive. He refuses to disclose why he joined the army and withholds divinations when he believes revealing or calculating them would be harmful. His concern is not merely superstition: he warns that certain predictions cost him lifespan, and repeated use of his abilities leaves him physically depleted. 128 210 221

Despite his reserved demeanor, Xue is loyal to those he considers comrades. He arranges a fortune-reading session for Chen Ting’s wife and children before Chen Ting’s retirement, scouts dangerous terrain when he senses an ambush, and secretly tracks Ji Baichang when he suspects Ji’s online relationship may be a trap. 217 267 318

His friendship with Ji Baichang often brings out a more mischievous side. He teases Ji, accepts his red packets while raising the price of secrecy, and openly admits that he is interested in seeing Ji’s reaction if he ever runs out of money. 17 223 267

Abilities & Skills

Taoist Divination

Xue practices palmistry, birth-date divination, and other forms of fortune-telling.

• Correctly identifies Chen Ting’s three children through palm-reading and birth details. 16
• Reads Ji Baichang’s relationship circumstances and later predicts difficulties in Ji’s romantic future. 16 224 267
• Uses turtle shells and coins for more serious divinations. 77
• Can detect impending danger, including enemy activity before an ambush. 77 208 217
• Divinations involving major future events can consume his vitality and shorten his lifespan. 210 221

Taoist Rituals and Feng Shui

Xue can identify and address supernatural disturbances rather than merely predict fortunes.

• States that he can perform Feng Shui in addition to fortune-telling. 93
• Diagnoses the Fifth Battalion incident as a haunting caused by overwhelming Yin energy. 93
• Uses Five Emperors Coins, a peachwood sword, rooster blood, and ritual chanting during exorcism. 96
• Recites the Golden Light Incantation, a Taoist protective and demon-subduing invocation. 96
• Relies on specialized tools, sometimes carried in an ordinary plastic bag. 95

Physical Fitness

Xue possesses exceptional all-around physical ability for a recruit.

• Completed three consecutive double muscle-ups and nearly twenty standard pull-ups. 32
• Maintained a 3-kilometer time of 10 minutes 55 seconds during early training. 44
• Won the new-recruit 3-kilometer competition in 9 minutes 40 seconds. 82
• Threw a practice grenade roughly 50 meters, earning an “Excellent” rating. 103
• Completed a six-kilometer run despite reaching his physical limit. 104
• Finished a later five-kilometer assessment in 16 minutes. 277

Combat Skill

Xue is a capable close-quarters combatant and combatant under pressure.

• Defeated a recruit claiming to be a provincial Sanda champion after maintaining an impenetrable defense. 168
• Knocked his opponent unconscious with a punch to the chin while using protective equipment. 168
• Fired an anti-tank rocket at a critical moment despite orders, earning Battalion Commander Zhang Tianqiang’s praise for his timing and decisiveness. 147
• Volunteers for dangerous reconnaissance duties when he senses hostile activity. 217

Tactical Command

As Third Platoon Leader, Xue excels at deception, flanking, and rapid offensive maneuver.

• Ranked first in computer-simulated combat command during his academy year. 307
• Uses surrounding movements and scattered fire to convince enemies they are attacked from every direction. 307
• Feints at one entrance before concentrating forces for a rapid breakthrough elsewhere. 307
• Defeated Li Xiang’s defending platoon in a bomb-defusal exercise by infiltrating through the rear after drawing attention to the front. 307
• His tactics are highly effective for surprise attacks but place heavy physical demands on his troops. 307

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Peachwood Sword — Used during the Fifth Battalion ritual. 96
• Five Emperors Coins — Used to identify and confront the source of the haunting. 96
• Turtle shell and coins — Used for divination. 77
• Ritual supplies — Includes rooster blood and other materials carried for exorcism. 95 96
• Anti-tank rocket — Fired decisively during a border engagement. 147
• Tracker — Secretly planted on Ji Baichang while investigating his suspected online-contact threat. 318

Relationships

• Chen Ting — Squad leader, mentor, and trusted superior. Chen Ting recognizes Xue as an outstanding recruit and later entrusts him with concerns about his family. 103 128 129 267
• Lü Qinglong — Fellow recruit, close comrade, and frequent partner in supernatural and combat operations. Lü respects Xue’s warnings and assists him when needed. 77 95 217 314
• Ji Baichang — Friend, rival, and regular target of Xue’s teasing. They compete in training, bicker over money and relationships, and nevertheless look out for one another. 29 32 223 318
• Li Xiang — Fellow platoon leader defeated by Xue’s unconventional tactics during a bomb-defusal exercise. 307
• Xue Daochao’s cousin — Fellow diviner who assists Xue in reading Chen Ting’s family fortunes. 267

Notable Quotes

“If I calculate tomorrow for you, it'll shorten my lifespan.” 210

“Sow good seeds, reap good fruits.” 268

“I'm not interested in money. I'm mainly interested in your money.” 267

Trivia

• Xue had not practiced martial arts or sports before enlistment, despite his exceptional physical performance. 82
• He is openly jealous of comrades with girlfriends and claims a divination told him he will not have one until at least age thirty. 223
• He regularly scams or attempts to overcharge Ji Baichang for information and divinations. 17 267
• He once formatted his phone three times in an attempt to remove prohibited content. 318