Zhang Rang

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Zhang Rang (张让)
Alias(es)	A-Niu; Leader of the Insurgent Army; Son of Heaven of Great Qin; Emperor of Great Qin
Species/Race	Human; later an Ancient Dragonman bearing the power of the Red Scale Dragon
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Insurgent Army; Great Qin; Dragonman Empire
Occupation/Role	Former snake catcher; rebel leader; founding emperor and ruler of Great Qin
Status	Deceased; died during the campaign against the True Dragon, leaving Zhou Qingqing instructions to preserve Great Qin's knowledge 212
First Appearance	Chapter 85, as A-Niu

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Seven Limits martial artist	102	Had broken through to the Seven Limits by the Insurgent Army's defeat; this allowed him to survive the Four-Eyed Elder's strike, though he was left critically wounded 102
King-level Ancient Dragonman / Red Scale Dragon	183	Consumed Zhou Qingqing's Dragon Transformation Serum after Great Qin defeated the Red Scale Dragon and Green Scale Dragon pair; gained the Red Scale Dragon's King-level power 183
Sixteen-meter Red Scale Dragon form	194	Fully transformed into a Red Scale Dragon roughly sixteen meters long during the battle around the Heavenly Capital Ruins 194

Background / History

Zhang Rang began life as A-Niu, an uneducated snake catcher. After encountering a hidden mountain sect, he developed ideals of resisting the cruel Great Zhou and formed a bond with Zhou Qingqing, then still concealing her true identity. She joined him as he traveled the realm and prepared for rebellion; Zhang Rang later regarded the hardships she endured for him as a debt he could never fully repay 85 194.

As leader of the Insurgent Army, Zhang Rang gathered like-minded followers, raised a force containing several Five Limits martial artists, and seized two provinces from Great Zhou. The territories became a refuge for displaced people, but his rebellion was crushed by the Master of Heavenly Governance, whose power neutralized martial abilities within range. Zhang Rang, already at the Seven Limits, survived a strike that pierced his chest; Zhou Qingqing and Xiaohu led the remnants toward the Dragon-Severing Mountain Range to escape 102.

The defeat forced Zhang Rang to recognize that he had gravely underestimated Great Zhou and had endangered both his followers and Zhou Qingqing. After recovering, he initially pursued Bai Chuan's dragon in hopes of using its power against Great Zhou. Witnessing the dragon's overwhelming strength changed his goal from acquiring that power to simply tracking and understanding it 120 123. He later met Huang Zhongtian, accepted the latter's knowledge of the True Dragon, and ceased pursuing it. Together, they rebuilt the Insurgent Army in the provinces where it had suffered its worst losses 136.

The destruction of Great Zhou's major sects and powerholders during the struggle over the True Dragon removed major obstacles to unification. Zhang Rang and his allies founded Great Qin in Qing Province, made the True Dragon their totem, and held a Fengshan sacrifice to legitimize his rule. Under his early governance, the recovering state stabilized despite natural disasters, northern barbarians, and surviving Great Zhou forces 138.

Fifteen years later, Zhang Rang was fifty, frail, and faced a new crisis as giant beasts proliferated across Great Qin. After being refused entry to the Heavenly Capital Ruins when seeking the True Dragon's aid, he mobilized the nation to fight independently, gathering craftsmen to develop weapons against the beasts 182. Zhou Qingqing's Dragon Transformation Serum subsequently gave Great Qin a means to create Dragonmen. Zhang Rang organized the Dragon-Man Legion, opened combat techniques to the public, and established the Scholar and Hunter professions to strengthen and defend the empire 183.

As Great Qin grew stronger, Zhang Rang's desire to secure its future became intertwined with an ambition to possess the True Dragon's power. He revived contact with a mysterious Black-Robed Being who had once offered him strength in exchange for slaying the dragon. Though tempted by the being's gift, Zhang Rang chose not to take it himself; instead, he entrusted it to Zhou Qingqing, believing her to be the person most worthy of his trust 184 185.

Fearing humanity would eventually be unable to adapt to the changing world, Zhang Rang led Great Qin's final expedition into the Heavenly Capital Ruins. He secured noble-family support by promising that success would let them become eternal True Dragons, then entered the battle alongside Zhou Qingqing, General Wang Weiqin, Dragon Machine Soldiers, and elite troops 187 188. When the True Dragon was engaged with an unknown otherworldly opponent, he chose to intervene against it, despite recognizing that he and most of his men could offer little direct combat support 194.

During the battle, Zhang Rang assisted Zhou Qingqing's attempt to turn the tide by searching the True Dragon's former lair for something that could disrupt its composure 200. He ultimately died in the conflict after sending Zhou Qingqing away. His final testament asked her to relocate Great Qin's most valuable knowledge and urged humanity to coexist with dragons and great beasts rather than cling to enmity 212.

Personality

Zhang Rang was driven by responsibility toward common people. His early rebellion sought to give refugees a stable home, and his later policies focused on ensuring that ordinary citizens could survive giant-beast threats rather than depend solely on a handful of powerful warriors 102 183. Even when denied the True Dragon's help, he chose to mobilize Great Qin rather than abandon its people to the crisis 182.

He was also pragmatic, politically capable, and willing to use morally questionable means for a larger goal. He exploited the noble families' greed for immortality to unite them behind the anti-dragon campaign, and he suppressed old sects and burned their scriptures during his rule 187 194. His desire to protect Great Qin gradually developed into a determination to obtain the True Dragon's power and secure an eternal empire 183.

His relationship with Zhou Qingqing revealed a more selfless side. He believed he had failed her repeatedly, yet trusted her enough to give away a power he could have claimed for himself. He accepted that she might one day betray him, viewing even that possibility as a repayment of his debt to her 185.

Abilities & Skills

Seven Limits Martial Arts

Zhang Rang was a martial artist who reached the Seven Limits before the collapse of his first rebellion.

• Survived the Four-Eyed Elder's chest-piercing strike due to his Seven Limits cultivation, though he was nearly killed 102.
• Commanded Insurgent Army members who had reached the Five Limits and used their strength to seize two provinces from Great Zhou 102.
• Lost access to the old martial system's broader support when martial power later faded from Great Qin 182.

Red Scale Dragon Transformation

After consuming Dragon Transformation Serum, Zhang Rang gained the power of the King-level Red Scale Dragon.

• Could fully transform into a sixteen-meter Red Scale Dragon 194.
• Could assume a partial dragonized “second posture” to endure the extreme heat of the Heavenly Capital Ruins while conserving stamina 189.
• Manifested fire-like power from his body when confronting the Black-Robed Being 184.
• His transformed combat ability remained far below Zhou Qingqing's enhanced dragon form and General Wang's Dragon Machine Soldier during the final battle 194.

Leadership and Statecraft

Zhang Rang built Great Qin from the remnants of a defeated rebellion and organized its response to the giant-beast era.

• Unified territories with Huang Zhongtian after the fall of Great Zhou 136 138.
• Made the True Dragon Great Qin's totem and used the Fengshan sacrifice to reinforce his legitimacy 138.
• Ordered the construction of Zhou Qingqing's laboratory and supported the Dragon Transformation Serum project 183.
• Created the Dragon-Man Legion from selected elite soldiers 183.
• Established Scholars for research and construction, and Hunters to defend citizens from giant beasts 183.
• Used battlefield deductions and public encouragement to maintain troop morale during the final expedition 189.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Black stone token — A patterned token left by the Black-Robed Being; Zhang Rang crushed it to summon the entity back to the Great Qin Imperial Palace 184.
• Dragon Machine Soldiers — Great Qin's massive humanoid war machines, deployed with Zhang Rang's army during the expedition into the Heavenly Capital Ruins 188.

Relationships

• Zhou Qingqing — Wife, Empress of Great Qin, and his closest confidante. She joined his rebellion in its earliest days, saved him after the Insurgent Army's defeat, developed the Dragon Transformation Serum, and fought beside him in the final campaign 85 102 183 212.
• Huang Zhongtian — Ally and general who joined Zhang Rang after recognizing that their ideals aligned. Huang helped him rebuild the Insurgent Army and later served as an intermediary with the True Dragon 136 176.
• Xiaohu — A famine-stricken youth Zhang Rang rescued years earlier. Xiaohu became a loyal follower and later an Ancient Dragonman general who supported Zhou Qingqing after Zhang Rang's death 102 212.
• Bai Chuan / the True Dragon — Initially a source of potential power against Great Zhou, then Great Qin's revered totem and protector. Zhang Rang eventually turned against the True Dragon in an attempt to secure humanity's future and obtain its power 120 138 183 194.
• Black-Robed Being — Otherworldly entity who offered Zhang Rang power in exchange for killing the True Dragon. Zhang Rang eventually accepted its assistance but chose Zhou Qingqing, rather than himself, to receive the offered power 184 185.
• Wang Weiqin — General who served as one of Great Qin's principal combatants in the anti-dragon campaign, alongside Zhou Qingqing 194 200.

Notable Quotes

“Fine sons of Great Qin, let us move out!” 188

“You are not to blame; the fault is entirely mine. Now that I am gone, please take care of yourself.” 212