Xuan Zi

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Xuan Zi (玄子)
Alias(es)	Elder Xuan; Taotie Douluo
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Shrek Academy; Sea God Pavilion; leader of the Shrek Inspectorate
Occupation/Role	Shrek elder, Inspectorate commander, later designated successor to lead the Sea God Pavilion
Status	Alive; emerged from seclusion as a Limit Douluo 400
First Appearance	Chapter 36

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Rank 98 Super Douluo	80, 95	A Taotie Martial Soul master capable of deploying his Martial Soul Avatar in battle.
Rank 99 Limit Douluo	400	Achieved after seclusion; two Soul Cores resonated within his dantian, while his Martial Soul evolved into a true Taotie.

Appearance

Xuan Zi is an elderly man whose ordinarily slovenly appearance contrasts sharply with the oppressive presence he displays when serious. He is frequently seen eating meat or drinking from a wine gourd. 36 59

• Tattered clothing and messy hair. 36
• Often wipes grease from his hands directly onto his clothes. 59
• Murky eyes that sharpen noticeably when assessing a target. 36 59
• Lost his right arm after Kakuzu detonated attacks from inside his Taotie Avatar. 217
• Later wore thick bandages over his left arm and left eye upon emerging from seclusion. 400

Personality

Xuan Zi presents himself as careless, uncouth, and perpetually preoccupied with food and drink, but he is observant and calculating beneath that façade. His first reaction to Huo Yuhao's ruthlessness was not alarm, but excitement at the prospect of molding him into Shrek's hidden “Root.” 36

His loyalty to Shrek is uncompromising and often ruthless. He advocates using “old methods” to secure Huo Yuhao's absolute loyalty, considers eliminating him if he cannot be controlled, and views Shrek's interests as justification for covert manipulation. 59 100 263

Xuan Zi is also proud, possessive, and prone to underestimating unconventional opponents. His defeat by Akatsuki left him fixated on revenge and on obtaining the power needed to break through to the Limit Douluo realm. 217 221 234

Abilities & Skills

Taotie Martial Soul

Xuan Zi possesses the Taotie Martial Soul, which ultimately evolved into a true Taotie after his breakthrough. 95 400

• Can activate his Seventh Soul Skill, Martial Soul Avatar, transforming into a Taotie. 95
• Swallowed Kakuzu and Red Dragon Douluo during the battle outside Star Luo City. 217
• His devouring tactic was exploited when Kakuzu unleashed four conflicting elemental attacks from inside his body. 217
• His evolved Martial Soul and two resonating Soul Cores supported his ascent to Limit Douluo. 400

Soul Power Inspection

Xuan Zi can use subtle Soul Power to examine another person's body.

• Probed Huo Yuhao's body after the Ice Jade Scorpion summoning incident. 80
• Confirmed that Huo Yuhao had a purely human body rather than being a soul beast in human form. 80

Limit Douluo Cultivation

After seclusion, Xuan Zi became a Limit Douluo and gained far greater confidence in confronting Akatsuki. 400

• His breakthrough followed the complete fusion of his replacement arm and the transformation of his Martial Soul. 400
• Ordered Yan Shaozhe to report Akatsuki's and Huo Yuhao's movements after returning from seclusion. 400
• Vowed to destroy Akatsuki and eliminate a Holy Spirit Cult branch in the Sun Moon Empire. 400

Equipment / Items

• Wine gourd — frequently carried and used by Xuan Zi. 201 289
• Holy Spirit Cult prosthetic arm — custom-made by Ming Lei Douluo after Xuan Zi lost his right arm; fused Soul Master flesh, soul beasts from the Evil Demon Forest, and a root said to have fallen from the Blue Silver Emperor. 234
  • The arm initially acted independently and required Xuan Zi's Soul Power to suppress. 234
  • It was unstable enough that intense combat risked backlash. 234
  • Its attachment was arranged after Xuan Zi provided the Holy Spirit Cult with important intelligence. 234

Background / History

Xuan Zi first took an interest in Huo Yuhao after witnessing the youth defeat Dai Huabin. Rather than seeing ordinary arrogance, he perceived a cold ruthlessness and decided Huo Yuhao would make an ideal successor for Shrek's hidden side. 36

He subsequently proposed that Huo Yuhao join the Shrek Inspectorate as his personal disciple. Xuan Zi intended to investigate Huo Yuhao's background and use Shrek's “old methods” to ensure his absolute loyalty, but Mu En rebuked him for excessive suspicion. 59

As Inspectorate leader, Xuan Zi offered to personally lead Huo Yuhao's third soul-ring hunt. Zhang Lexuan objected, recalling an earlier Star Dou Great Forest expedition led by Xuan Zi in which only four of twelve Inner Court elites survived. 75 81

During the operation against the Hand of the Grim Reaper bandits, Xuan Zi arrived after the students had already been caught in corpse explosions. His Taotie Avatar caused the unstable cave to collapse further, worsening the injuries of the trapped students. 95 Afterward, he publicly accepted blame for the mission's casualties, while privately planning to one day brand Huo Yuhao's soul through the Golden Tree. 99 100

Story Role / Major Arcs

Interest in Huo Yuhao

Xuan Zi repeatedly assessed Huo Yuhao as a potential instrument of Shrek's hidden will. He approved of Huo Yuhao's apparent self-sacrifice during the Inspectorate mission and praised him as a worthy successor to the Sea God's Will. 98

His attitude remained conditional: after learning of Huo Yuhao's ability to rejuvenate Wang Xian'er, Xuan Zi concluded that Huo Yuhao's secrets were dangerous enough that he should be destroyed if Shrek could not fully control him. 263

Conflict with Akatsuki

At the Starlight Auction, Xuan Zi used rank 98 pressure to threaten Xiao Hongchen during a bidding dispute, only stopping when Jing Hongchen intervened. 201

Outside Star Luo City, Xuan Zi attacked Kakuzu and attempted to devour him. Kakuzu retaliated from within the Taotie Avatar, destroying Xuan Zi's right arm and leaving him severely wounded. 217 Bound afterward by Bibi Dong's magic array, he was only spared after Mu En's spiritual projection intervened and Huo Yuhao accepted a Spirit Bone as the price for letting him live. 219

After the battle, Xuan Zi concealed the true extent of his defeat from Shrek's students and began planning to seize the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect's resources. 221

Dealings with the Holy Spirit Cult

To restore his lost arm, Xuan Zi entered a transaction with the Holy Spirit Cult. Zhongli Wu later reminded him that the prosthetic-arm deal had been completed and approached him to negotiate another arrangement concerning Huo Yuhao. 234 290

Xuan Zi also showed private alarm when reports suggested Bibi Dong had returned, recognizing similarities between the reported figure and the being summoned during his battle against Akatsuki. 247

Sea God Pavilion Succession and Breakthrough

Before his death, Mu En named Xuan Zi as the future leader of the Sea God Pavilion, despite acknowledging that Xuan Zi's temperament was poorly suited to the position. 355

Following Mu En's death and the destruction of the Sea God Pavilion, Xuan Zi swore vengeance against Akatsuki and Di Qiulin. 368 He later emerged from seclusion as a Limit Douluo, with a fully evolved Taotie Martial Soul and a renewed campaign against Akatsuki. 400

Relationships

• Huo Yuhao — Initially viewed as an ideal personal disciple and prospective “Root” for Shrek; later regarded as a dangerous asset who must either be controlled or destroyed. 36 59 263
• Mu En — Fellow Sea God Pavilion elder who rejected Xuan Zi's plan to secure Huo Yuhao's loyalty through coercive methods; later designated Xuan Zi as his successor. 59 355
• Zhang Lexuan — A survivor of Xuan Zi's disastrous Star Dou Great Forest expedition; she openly considered his leadership unsafe. 81 92
• Zhongli Wu — Holy Spirit Cult Master and transactional associate; their dealings included Xuan Zi's prosthetic arm and Zhongli Wu's attempt to obtain Huo Yuhao. 290
• Kakuzu — Akatsuki opponent who exploited Xuan Zi's devouring ability, caused the loss of his right arm, and survived Xuan Zi's attempted kill. 217
• Jing Hongchen — Mingde Hall master whose intervention stopped Xuan Zi's auction-house pressure campaign against Xiao Hongchen. 201
• Yan Shaozhe — Shrek elder ordered by Xuan Zi to mobilize forces and report Akatsuki's movements after Xuan Zi became a Limit Douluo. 400

Notable Quotes

“I will train him to be... the ‘Root’ buried beneath the Golden Tree.” 36

“Such a peerless genius... if he cannot be completely controlled by Shrek... Then he must be destroyed while there is still time!” 263

“This old man has successfully stepped into the realm of Limit Douluo!” 400

Trivia

• Xuan Zi's right arm is destroyed in Chapter 217, and his prosthetic is repeatedly described as a right arm afterward; upon his return from seclusion, however, the replacement arm is described as his left arm. 217 234 400
• His outwardly sloppy habits repeatedly obscure his role as one of Shrek's most politically calculating elders. 36 59