Xu Zhou

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Xu Zhou (许舟)
Alias(es)	Brother Xu
Species/Race	Human; Adaptive
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Aberration Association; Yi Gui Company; Object Counter Alliance
Occupation/Role	Contract Anomalist; later a mentor for new Contract Anomalists
Rank	B-rank Contract Anomalist
Status	Active
First Appearance	Chapter 6, as Bai Zuo's associated team member 6

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
C-rank Contract Anomalist	11	Officially registered through Yi Gui Clean Energy Transport Co., Ltd. after an early mission; initially lacks confidence and control over his contracted Weird. 11
Ghost Domain mastered	81	Successfully unfolds the Ghost Hand's Ghost Domain during the Blood Robe incident, using it to restrain the Weird and create an escape route for his allies. 81
B-rank Contract Anomalist	128	Identified as a B-rank while under the Mask of Hypocrisy's control; later continues serving at this rank while leading newcomers on lower-level missions. 128 427

Background

Xu Zhou grew up in a difficult household. His father was a gambling addict, while his mother supported the family through exhausting part-time work until she died from illness during Xu Zhou's high-school years. Xu Zhou then worked while studying and faced continued demands for money from his father; his college entrance results suffered, leaving him at an ordinary university. By the time of the Anyang Island incident, his mother had been dead for three years. 17

His memories also contain prolonged humiliation and bullying, which fed his intense self-loathing and self-destructive tendencies. He later recalls having killed someone, though the extent to which that past was shaped by his own will, trauma, or Bai Zuo's influence remains unresolved to him. 10 127

Xu Zhou first appears as the team member associated with Bai Zuo's Character Card. He is deployed with Supervisor Ji Wu to investigate a detected Weird aura and is already a newly contracted Contract Anomalist with the Ghost Hand. 6 9 He initially believes that his admission into the organization is only because he is useful as “Brother Bai's tool.” 10

Appearance

Xu Zhou is initially described as an ordinary-looking college student in a light-colored down jacket and scarf, with the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow carried across his back. Intense training, missions, and sleeplessness later leave him severely underweight and visibly exhausted before he eventually recovers. 13 116 688

• Carries the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow in a cloth-wrapped back strap. 11 13
• Has a reserved, youthful appearance that makes his combat ability easy to underestimate. 13 427
• Develops dark circles and drastic weight loss during a period of constant training and little rest. 116 117
• While controlled by the Mask of Hypocrisy, manifests a black demonic mask with blood-like tears. 128

Personality

Xu Zhou begins as timid, introverted, and deeply insecure. The danger of fighting Weirds intensifies his belief that he is useless, yet he repeatedly acts despite fear—protecting Ji Wu from the Ghost Infant and later staying behind against a Blood Robe so his companions can escape. 10 82

Bai Zuo's brainwashing leaves Xu Zhou markedly calmer, more emotionally numb, and far more efficient in combat. His changed demeanor alarms those around him, particularly Ji Wu and Zhang Lin, who see a young man who no longer resists being treated as a weapon. 89 90 111

Over time, Xu Zhou regains greater emotional stability and becomes more sociable, dependable, and protective of others. He leads newcomers through low-level missions, worries about their safety, and remains determined to improve rather than return to his former self-destructive state. 427 428 691

He is strongly loyal to Bai Zuo and the Object Counter Alliance, refusing Xie Yu's invitation to join Amber. However, he is not ignorant of Bai Zuo's flaws: Xu Zhou recognizes that Bai Zuo is reliable in a crisis but can become the source of danger when no crisis exists. 99 1470

Abilities & Skills

Adaptive Constitution

Xu Zhou is an Adaptive, possessing strong resistance to Weird contamination and the potential to gain unusual power after exposure to Weirds. 5 11

• Lets him endure the strain of becoming a Contract Anomalist.
• Makes him unusually valuable to Bai Zuo, who marks and uses Adaptives to strengthen his own capabilities. 29
• Does not protect him from psychological harm, manipulation, or self-destructive impulses. 11 89

Ghost Hand

Xu Zhou's contracted Weird manifests as pale bluish-white hands with long black nails. Controlling it initially places an immense burden on his mind. 9

• Can manifest and direct multiple Ghost Hands against Weirds. 10 81
• Can force apart packed crowds to prevent civilians from being crushed. 25
• Can bind a target and open a route through a Ghost Domain for allies to escape. 81
• Its power is difficult for Xu Zhou to control in his early missions and causes severe mental strain. 9

Ghost Domain

Xu Zhou eventually learns to deploy the Ghost Hand's Ghost Domain under combat pressure. 81

• Restrains hostile Weirds with Ghost Hands. 81
• Enables tactical withdrawal by creating openings for allies. 81
• Requires substantial mental power; after extended fighting, Xu Zhou may be unable to deploy it again. 82

Combat Skill

Xu Zhou's combat ability improves dramatically after Bai Zuo's intervention and continued training. By the warehouse battle, his movements are described as efficient, predictive, and honed as though by countless fights. 89 96

• Uses the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow alongside Ghost Hand support. 81
• Identifies and avoids the poisonous thorns on Love Resentment's vines before being poisoned. 96
• Protects allies against gunfire, including cleaving a bullet apart with his blade. 171
• Can overpower weaker Contract Anomalists physically; while controlled by the Mask, he easily defeats D-rank Jiang Tianzong. 128

Equipment

• Great Xia Dragon Sparrow — Xu Zhou's primary blade and emergency trump card. It can cut incoming bullets, but its desire for blood can tempt its wielder toward excessive feeding. 11 130 171
• Aberration Association employee identification — Grants access through the Association's perception-altering security arrangements. 80

Relationships

• Bai Zuo — Senior, recruiter, and the person who originally regarded Xu Zhou as a useful tool. Bai Zuo's brainwashing profoundly changes Xu Zhou, but Xu Zhou remains grateful for being given a reason to survive and later treats Bai Zuo's will as his own. 11 89 131 691
• Ji Wu — Supervisor and primary caretaker. Ji Wu oversees Xu Zhou's early missions, worries about his mental state, and repeatedly intervenes to keep him alive and stable. 6 10 40 82
• Zhang Lin — Fellow Adaptive and concerned mentor figure. Zhang Lin recognizes Xu Zhou's self-destructive condition and tries to help him reconnect with others. 11 111 116
• Jiang Tianzong — Combat partner and former sparring rival. Their shared missions develop Jiang Tianzong's respect for Xu Zhou's strength, though Jiang is severely injured while trying to stop the Mask-controlled Xu Zhou. 96 99 128
• Xie Yu — Senior Contract Anomalist who recognizes Xu Zhou's potential and invites him to join Amber; Xu Zhou declines out of loyalty to Bai Zuo and the Object Counter Alliance. 98 99
• Heart Gu — Bai Zuo's contracted Weird. It has a protective connection to Xu Zhou through Bai Zuo's mark and later communicates Bai Zuo's orders to him directly. 127 693

Story Role / Major Arcs

Early Contract Anomalist Missions

Xu Zhou begins as an inexperienced contractor who struggles to control the Ghost Hand during the Ghost Infant incident. Despite believing himself useless, he fights to save Ji Wu and is formally made a C-rank Contract Anomalist afterward. 9 10 11

Anyang Island and the Abandoned Bridge

After seeing an apparition of his deceased mother, Xu Zhou follows her into white fog on the bridge to Anyang Island. Ji Wu follows to protect him, eventually finding Xu Zhou with a woman who appears to be his mother. 17 18

Blood Robe Incident

Xu Zhou unlocks his Ghost Domain while protecting Jiang Tianzong, Zhang Lin, and Zhao Hun from a Blood Robe. He stays behind alone to delay the Weird, forcing Bai Zuo to use his prohibited brainwashing ability to save him. 81 82 89

Warehouse Battle and Object Counter Alliance

Xu Zhou fights alongside Jiang Tianzong against Love Resentment, displaying combat skill far beyond his previous level. Xie Yu offers him a place in Amber, but Xu Zhou refuses and remains with Bai Zuo in the Object Counter Alliance. 96 99

Mask of Hypocrisy Incident

While investigating a series of deaths connected to the Mask of Hypocrisy, Xu Zhou is targeted by the artifact due to his repressed emotions and violent thoughts toward evildoers. The mask overwhelms Bai Zuo's mark, turns Xu Zhou into a violent enforcer, and drives him to attack Jiang Tianzong. 127 128

After regaining consciousness, Xu Zhou understands that Yang Yu used him as a puppet. His conversation with Yang Yu helps him confront his own past and settle on a purpose: live well and continue fighting Weirds. 129 131

Senior Mentor

By the time Absolute Boundary arrives at Headquarters, Xu Zhou is a B-rank Contract Anomalist trusted to lead newcomers on missions against Wandering Souls, Vengeful Spirits, and occasional Green Faces. His steadiness and strength earn their admiration. 427 428

System-Invasion Incident

Xu Zhou assists Ye Xuan, Jian Bai, and Chu He against Du Rutian. While interrogating Du Rutian, he is briefly knocked unconscious by an enormous presence attempting to invade his mind; Bai Zuo disrupts the intrusion. Xu Zhou later warns the group that Bai Zuo's protection gives him an additional defense against mental threats. 1471 1472 1473