Ma Hongjun

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Ma Hongjun (马红俊)
Gender	Male
Species/Race	Soul Master
Affiliation	Shrek Academy
Occupation/Role	Flender's disciple
Martial Soul	Evil Fire Phoenix
First Appearance	Chapter 13

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Soul Power Level 8	13	His soul power is twelve levels below Ye Qingzhou's during his Evil Fire outbreak.
Spirit Master, approaching second ring	31	Manifests the Evil Fire Phoenix with one yellow soul ring; his first soul skill is Phoenix Fire Line.

Background / History

Ma Hongjun and his teacher Flender visit the Ye Family Clinic to seek treatment from Medical Saint Douluo Ye Shuyuan for the Evil Fire bound to his Martial Soul. Ye Shuyuan determines that the condition cannot be fully removed without risking Ma Hongjun becoming crippled, because the Evil Fire coexists with his Martial Soul. Martial Soul evolution could turn it into pure fire-elemental energy, while ice-attribute power can only suppress it. 13

During the consultation, Ma Hongjun's Evil Fire erupts into purple-red flames. Ye Qingzhou restrains him and has Ye Shuyuan feed him Ice Grass, briefly calming the flare-up. 13

Ye Shuyuan identifies the Extreme North as the fastest suppression method, but Ma Hongjun refuses because of its extreme danger. He instead asks to find a female ice-attribute Soul Master, provoking disgust from Ye Shuyuan and Ye Qingzhou; Ye Qingzhou proceeds to beat him while Flender does not intervene. 14

Three years later, Ma Hongjun and Flender pursue the ice-attribute solution through Skywater Academy. Ma Hongjun fixates on Shui Bing'er and her Ice Phoenix Martial Soul, claiming that their phoenix-type Martial Souls should form a Martial Soul Fusion Skill. His continued harassment of Shui Bing'er and other Skywater students draws Ye Shuyuan and Dugu Bo into the conflict. 27 29

Appearance

Ma Hongjun is a round-bellied boy with flaming red hair. When he possesses his Martial Soul, purple-red flames rise around him, his hair lengthens toward the center, feathers grow from his arms, and his hands become claws. 13 31

• Flaming red hair. 13
• Round belly. 13
• Purple-red flames during Martial Soul Possession. 31
• Feathered arms and clawed hands in his possessed state. 31
• His Martial Soul's appearance is publicly mocked as a “wild chicken” or “dirt chicken” rather than a true phoenix. 31

Personality

Ma Hongjun is portrayed as cowardly when confronted with the risks of treatment. Upon learning that forcibly removing the Evil Fire could cripple him, he immediately wants to abandon treatment; he also refuses the journey to the Extreme North out of fear. 13 14

He is repeatedly characterized by lecherous, intrusive behavior toward female ice-attribute Soul Masters. His fantasies during the clinic consultation disgust both Ye Qingzhou and Ye Shuyuan, and he later ignores Shui Bing'er's repeated refusals while treating her as a means to resolve his Evil Fire. 13 14 29 31

He can also be arrogant and thin-skinned. He joins Dai Mubai in confronting Ye Qingzhou and Shui Bing'er despite their greater strength, and reacts angrily when others ridicule the legitimacy of his Evil Fire Phoenix. 31

Abilities & Skills

Evil Fire Phoenix

Ma Hongjun possesses the Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul, a phoenix-type Martial Soul afflicted by Evil Fire that is inseparable from it. 13 31

• Generates purple-red flames during Martial Soul Possession. 31
• Causes painful, uncontrolled flare-ups; one outbreak leaves him running through the street while engulfed in flames. 13
• Cannot be completely cured through ordinary treatment, as removing the Evil Fire by force could cripple him. 13
• Can be suppressed by ice-attribute power, Ice Grass, or the extreme cold of the Extreme North. 13 14
• May be fundamentally resolved only if his Martial Soul evolves and transforms the Evil Fire into pure fire-elemental energy. 13

Phoenix Fire Line

Ma Hongjun's first soul skill fires a purple-red beam of flame at an opponent. 32

• Used alongside Dai Mubai's White Tiger Intense Light Wave against Ye Qingzhou. 32
• Its attack is blocked by Shui Bing'er's Ice Ring Armor. 32

Relationships

• Flender — His teacher and the person responsible for seeking treatment for his Evil Fire. Flender is frequently embarrassed and angered by Ma Hongjun's conduct, but still intervenes to protect him. 13 14 32
• Ye Qingzhou — An opponent who restrains Ma Hongjun during an Evil Fire outbreak, administers Ice Grass through Ye Shuyuan, beats him for his remarks about female ice-attribute Soul Masters, and later defeats him with Dark Fragrance Bind. 13 14 32
• Shui Bing'er — The ice-attribute Soul Master Ma Hongjun seeks out for Evil Fire suppression and a potential Martial Soul Fusion Skill. She repeatedly rejects and confronts him. 29 31
• Dai Mubai — A fellow Shrek student who joins him in harassing Skywater Academy students and fighting Ye Qingzhou and Shui Bing'er. Ma Hongjun mistakes Dai Mubai for Shui Bing'er while hallucinating. 29 31 32
• Ye Shuyuan — The Medical Saint Douluo who diagnoses his condition and proposes methods of suppression, but becomes repulsed by Ma Hongjun's behavior. 13 14

Story Role / Major Arcs

Evil Fire Consultation

Ma Hongjun's condition brings him and Flender to the Ye Family Clinic. The visit establishes that his Evil Fire is tied to his Martial Soul and introduces the ice-attribute suppression method that later drives his actions. 13 14

Skywater Academy Harassment

After choosing to pursue an ice-attribute Soul Master rather than enter the Extreme North, Ma Hongjun becomes involved in Shrek's pressure campaign against Skywater Academy. He targets Shui Bing'er because of her Ice Phoenix Martial Soul and is subdued by Shui Qingrou's pressure before confronting Ye Qingzhou and Shui Bing'er. 27 29 30 31

Defeat by Dark Fragrance Bind

Ma Hongjun attacks Ye Qingzhou with Phoenix Fire Line, but is caught by the Magnolia fragrance of Dark Fragrance Bind. The resulting paralysis and hallucination make him mistake Dai Mubai for Shui Bing'er, exposing his fixation before the Skywater Academy audience. Flender ultimately knocks him unconscious to stop him. 32

Notable Quotes

“Teacher, I don't want treatment anymore! I don't want to become a cripple!” 13

“I should just find an ice-attribute soul master. That's the safest bet, and it's best if it's a female soul master.” 14

“Bing'er, look, both of our spirits are of the phoenix variety; we are a match made in heaven.” 31

Trivia

• Ma Hongjun is described as being the same age as Ye Qingzhou during their first meeting. 13 14
• His embarrassment at Skywater Academy is caused by Dark Fragrance Bind reflecting his deepest desire in a hallucination. 32
• “Wild chicken” is a particular sore point for him because it mocks the status of his Evil Fire Phoenix Martial Soul. 31