Zhao Qin

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Zhao Qin (赵勤)
Alias(es)	Third Senior Brother
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Five Animals Academy; Zhao family business
Occupation/Role	Third personal disciple of Yang Chong; martial artist; assists with his family’s silk and ready-to-wear business 35 49
Status	Active 50
First Appearance	Chapter 11

Background

Zhao Qin is Yang Chong’s third senior disciple at the Five Animals Academy. When Li Yuan enters the academy, Yang Chong assigns Zhao Qin to show him the grounds, explain the academy’s rules, provide training clothes, and teach him the foundational Standing Root stance. Zhao Qin carefully explains posture, breathing, intent, and the importance of stable lower-body training 11.

His family runs a silk and ready-to-wear clothing business with several shops in the Outer City. Their business later faces a major cost increase when the Inner City merchant guild raises raw-silk prices by over thirty percent, leaving Zhao Qin and his family unable to directly resist the pressure 35 37.

Zhao Qin has remained in the Stone Skin Realm for more than four years. He attributes such bottlenecks partly to the declining blood-qi that comes with age, failed breakthroughs, and the resource advantages enjoyed by talented youths from noble families 41.

Appearance

Zhao Qin is introduced as a lean, honest-looking man 11.

• Wears Five Animals Academy training clothes while instructing and sparring with disciples 20.
• Has a calm, approachable demeanor that leads many disciples to seek his advice 22.

Personality

Zhao Qin is patient, practical, and considerate toward his fellow disciples. He teaches Li Yuan without withholding details, gives him measured advice about cultivation expenses and danger outside the city, and uses his own connections to help him travel safely 11 15 22.

He is also socially minded. Zhao Qin attempts to introduce Li Yuan to Lin Mingsheng’s Inner City circle, later arranges potential marriage matches for him, and helps connect him with Su Wan 25 40. Though he values advancement, he remains tied to his family obligations and hesitates to pursue the Inspectorate opportunity because it would require leaving for the Prefecture City 50.

Abilities & Skills

Stone Skin Realm Cultivation

Zhao Qin is a Stone Skin Realm martial artist whose skin and membranes are significantly tougher than an Ox Skin Realm practitioner’s.

• Li Yuan’s strikes against him feel like hitting “a large boulder wrapped in ox hide,” producing numbness from the recoil 20.
• He has been stalled at this realm for over four years, despite continued cultivation 41.
• He considers Li Yuan’s Stone Skin Realm strength to be upper-middle after sparring with him 41.

Five Animals Fist

Zhao Qin specializes in the Bear and Tiger forms of the Five Animals Fist.

• Uses Bear Form and Tiger Form in sparring, combining steady defense with heavy, sustained offense 41.
• His Bear Form reaches a mastery-level standard, while his Tiger Form is close to mastery 41.
• During a later bout with Li Yuan, he is stated to possess one fist technique at Great Success 49.

Instruction

Zhao Qin regularly teaches and advises other academy members.

• Teaches the Standing Root stance, including its posture, breathing, focus, and use in mobilizing blood-qi 11.
• Explains how force should rise from the ground and coordinate with blood-energy during sparring 20.
• Guides new disciples in basic training after Li Yuan becomes a personal disciple 40.
• Warns Li Yuan that road bandits do not follow the rules of one-on-one martial combat 22.

Relationships

• Yang Chong — Master; Zhao Qin is Yang Chong’s third personal disciple and assists with teaching newer academy members 11 36.
• Li Yuan — Junior martial brother. Zhao Qin serves as his earliest instructor, sparring partner, adviser, escort-agency contact, employer, and matchmaker 11 20 22 37 40.
• Zhao Shouren — Father; manages the family silk and clothing business alongside experienced shop hands 35.
• Huang Ren — Fellow personal disciple and former hired guard for the Zhao family’s assets; Huang Ren’s injury leaves a vacancy that Zhao Qin offers to Li Yuan 35 37.
• Huang Wei — Acquaintance who turns to Zhao Qin when her family faces a severe financial crisis; Zhao Qin agrees to lend her three hundred taels of silver 49.
• Lin Mingsheng — Fellow disciple from a prominent family. Zhao Qin attempts to bring Li Yuan into Lin Mingsheng’s social circle 25.
• Su Wan — Potential match introduced to Li Yuan through Zhao Qin’s arrangements 40.
• Liu Yan — Fellow personal disciple; Zhao Qin spars with her shortly before Li Yuan’s own match with her 50.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Li Yuan’s Entry into the Five Animals Academy

Zhao Qin acts as Li Yuan’s first guide within the academy, introducing its facilities and rules before teaching him the Standing Root stance 11.

Supporting Li Yuan’s Growth

He provides Li Yuan with practical cultivation advice, spars with him after his Ox Skin Realm breakthrough, and evaluates his later Stone Skin Realm strength 15 20 41 49.

Escort Agency Recommendation

When Li Yuan accepts a dangerous delivery task to Quiet Heart Temple, Zhao Qin writes a letter of introduction to Wang Min of the Wei Yuan Escort Agency, allowing Li Yuan to travel with an escort team 22.

Zhao Family Business Crisis

Zhao Qin’s family business comes under financial pressure from the Inner City merchant guild. After Huang Ren is seriously injured, Zhao Qin recruits Li Yuan to protect the family’s commercial interests, offering pay and Black-Striped Tiger meat 35 37.

Marriage Arrangements

Believing Li Yuan should establish a household, Zhao Qin gathers portraits of potential matches and helps arrange meetings with Huang Wei and Su Wan 40.

Inspectorate Recruitment

The opening of the Inner City Grand Tournament and possible Inspectorate recruitment forces Zhao Qin to weigh an uncertain martial future against his obligations to his family business 49 50.