Ying Shuang

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Ying Shuang (嬴霜)
Alias(es)	Marshal Ying; “Second Aunt”
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Blazing Firmament
Occupation/Role	Military commander; leading candidate to succeed as Blazing Firmament’s Imperial Marshal
Status	Alive 287
First Appearance	Chapter 246

Background

Ying Shuang is the daughter of Ying Lie’s deputy general and has followed Ying Lie since childhood. As one of Ying Lie’s many adopted sons and daughters, her strength and prestige place her among the top three, and she was a principal contender for the next Imperial Marshal even before Ying Lie took notice of Qin Kaijiang. 246

She began martial training at the age of three. Her early life was devoted almost entirely to cultivation and war: she mastered infantry combat, mounted combat, and archery, while Ying Lie had to compel her to study military texts and governance. She once wished to cultivate the Dao of Heartlessness to eliminate distractions from her martial path. 254

Although she bears the Ying surname, Ying Shuang’s imperial clan originates from a different dynasty than Ying Lie’s. Her clansmen reside in the Qin lands, and her family has historical ties to the Qin surname. 271

Appearance

Ying Shuang presents herself as a battle-hardened commander, usually dressed for mobility and combat rather than ceremony.

• Wears black scale armor capable of taking on a dragon-like form. 253
• Favors fitted martial attire designed not to impede movement. 272
• Uses a dragon spear and manifests a black-dragon-themed armored presence in battle. 264
• Her scars and injuries were healed after her time within the Dragon Source space, leaving her skin noticeably restored. 271

Personality

Ying Shuang is fiercely proud, direct, and driven by military merit. She considers Blazing Firmament’s strength and future more important than personal comfort, and she is willing to make ruthless decisions when she believes they serve the state. 247 275

Despite her harsh manner, she adheres to responsibility. After mistakenly injuring Ao Tian, she accepted blame personally, took an equivalent wound, and protected her mount from bearing the punishment alone. 247 She also regards alliances pragmatically: Blazing Firmament needs allies, but only allies willing to respect its strength and commitments. 267

Her lifelong focus on battle left her inexperienced with intimacy and ordinary personal attachments. Around Qin Muye, she becomes unusually defensive, embarrassed, and emotionally conflicted, especially when her political aims clash with her growing concern for him. 254 276 283

Abilities & Skills

Martial Mastery

Ying Shuang is an elite all-round martial combatant trained in infantry fighting, mounted warfare, archery, and close-quarters killing techniques. 254

• Her spear techniques are powerful enough to overwhelm numerous opponents and drive back multiple high-level experts. 264
• In unarmed combat, she compresses her power into her body and attacks with extreme precision; she launched forty-nine killing moves against Qin Muye within a single breath. 258
• Her body is described as being forged like a divine weapon, combining extreme durability with exceptional agility. 258
• Her combat experience, built through repeated life-or-death battles, compensates for gaps in raw strength against stronger opponents. 271

Dragon Cavalry Dance

Dragon Cavalry Dance is Ying Shuang’s defining mounted-combat art. It allows her to fuse her true essence with that of her mount and elevate their combined power far beyond their individual realms. 246

• Her true body is at the peak War God level, but when synchronized with her mount, she can wield combat power comparable to a First Rank expert. 246
• The technique can manifest as mount armorization, transforming her mount into armor better suited for one-on-one combat. 266
• She used Dragon Cavalry Dance with Qin Muye’s Torch Dragon Dharma Body, granting her the ability to contend with Colt Dragon, a Five-Tribulation Great Sage. 266
• The art also imposes a spiritual master-and-mount relationship, though Qin Muye’s will and abilities made him exceptionally difficult to tame. 268
• Losing or being betrayed by a mount severely compromises her combat position; Ao Sheng’s betrayal shattered her black-dragon armor during the struggle for the Dragon Source. 265

Killing Intent and Battlefield Perception

Ying Shuang possesses unusually refined awareness of killing intent and hostile presences.

• She tracked Qin Muye through an illusion formed from Silent Ink Painting and his War God Domain by locking onto his distinctive killing intent. 257
• She retained full clarity when exposed to the Little Dragon Source, resisting an influence that affected others. 263
• Her killing aura and martial reputation are feared across the continent; she is regarded as nearly invincible below First Rank and capable of threatening many higher-level combatants. 254 268

Spiritual-Energy Arts

Ying Shuang can deploy large-scale spiritual techniques in addition to direct combat.

• She created a void abyss that drew in surrounding spiritual energy and condensed it into a vortex of spiritual blades. 285
• The resulting blade storm tore small spatial rifts through the air and disrupted enemy perception, allowing her to isolate Zhao Kang. 285

Military Strategy

Although initially focused almost solely on martial cultivation, Ying Shuang is a capable strategic thinker.

• She recognized that Blazing Firmament needed technological and tactical answers to Gan Kingdom’s combat Flying Boats, proposing the recruitment of alchemists and puppet artificers to replicate them. 275
• She understood the strategic danger and opportunity created by Gan Kingdom’s location after its world fusion, including the possibility of forcing Blazing Firmament and the Luo Kingdom into conflict. 252 254
• She intends to compete for Blazing Firmament’s first Duke title, believing that winning it would make her succession as Imperial Marshal “fifty percent secure.” 271

Equipment

• Dragon Rider Spear — Ying Shuang’s primary weapon; she channels black flames and dragon qi through it in large-scale engagements. 264
• Black Dragon Armor — Armor formed from her former mount Ao Sheng through Dragon Cavalry Dance’s mount-armorization art. 265
• Frost Chant Sword — A sword she gave to Qin Muye before receiving armor forged for her in return. 271
• Skirted armor — A protective armored skirt forged by Qin Muye for her from rare materials. 271 272
• Divine bow — Forged with Ao Ming’s dragon sinew as its bowstring. 267 274

Relationships

• Ying Lie — Adoptive father and Blazing Firmament’s Imperial Marshal. His approval and the succession contest shape Ying Shuang’s political ambitions. 246 271 279
• Qin Muye — Ally, sparring partner, and the mount bound to her through Dragon Cavalry Dance. Their relationship shifts from diplomatic hostility to battlefield cooperation and emotionally fraught trust. 253 258 269 282
• Mu Jianqiu — Fellow adopted daughter of Ying Lie, addressed by Ying Shuang as a sister. Mu Jianqiu mediates between Ying Shuang and the Qin family and later forges weapons connected to her campaigns. 247 274
• Ao Sheng — Her black-dragon mount and armor source. Ao Sheng later betrayed her in pursuit of his own evolution, causing the collapse of her black-dragon armor. 246 265
• Ao Ming — Dragon Palace commander and hostile ally whose betrayal led Ying Shuang to strip him of his dragon sinews and Dragon Pill. 267
• Wang Qin — Her deputy general and trusted subordinate, who advises her on the political and personal difficulties surrounding Qin Muye. 276 279
• Zhao Kang — Adopted brother, rival candidate, and commander of the Evil-Extermination Guard. Their rivalry becomes increasingly dangerous, culminating in punishments for both after the Liu Lan incident. 270 287
• Tushan Qinglan — A Fox Immortal whom Ying Shuang rescues from Marsh Prison; Qinglan’s medicines later intensify Ying Shuang’s emotional turmoil. 272 279 280

Story Role / Major Arcs

Gan Kingdom Negotiations

Ying Shuang arrives in Gan Kingdom as Blazing Firmament’s powerful representative during the proposed merger between the nations. She initially injures Ao Tian after mistaking him for a traitor, then accepts responsibility by taking a comparable wound herself. 246 247

She distrusts Qin Muye’s apparent submission to the Luo Kingdom, believing Gan Kingdom would be doomed if it became a vassal state. Once Qin Muye reveals his plan to resist the Luo Kingdom and requests Blazing Firmament’s assistance, she agrees to support Gan Kingdom. 252 253

Clash with Qin Muye

During the Luo Kingdom war, Ying Shuang challenges Qin Muye to an unarmed battle after discovering he had concealed abilities from her. Their duel becomes a clash between her perfected killing techniques and Qin Muye’s Torch Dragon physique; Qin Muye ultimately defeats and restrains her. 257 258

Though angry at the outcome, Ying Shuang continues to work with him and acknowledges Gan Kingdom’s importance as an ally. Qin Muye promises that Gan Kingdom will support her bid to become Imperial Marshal. 269

Dragon Source Conflict

Ying Shuang enters the Dragon Source struggle alongside Qin Muye and the Dragon Palace factions. Ao Sheng betrays her during the conflict, destroying her black-dragon armor and leaving her seriously injured. 265

She and Qin Muye use Dragon Cavalry Dance’s armor transformation to fight Colt Dragon and other powerful enemies. Afterward, Ying Shuang captures Ao Ming, removes his dragon sinews and Dragon Pill, and uses the spoils for Blazing Firmament’s military needs. 266 267

Return to Blazing Firmament

Back in Blazing Firmament, Ying Shuang prepares to compete for the first Duke title, a victory she believes would secure much of her claim to the Imperial Marshal succession. She also seeks to understand and counter Gan Kingdom’s combat Flying Boat technology. 271 275

She rescues Tushan Qinglan and Ye Luanyin from Marsh Prison by invoking her authority over Zhao Kang, then supports Qin Muye during the conflict at the Fox Immortal Temple. 272 284

Conflict of Duty and Attachment

Ying Shuang attempts to obtain information about the combat Flying Boats through increasingly personal means, including a drug-assisted seduction plan. After recognizing the damage caused to Qin Muye’s trust, she abandons the attempt, states that she will no longer compete for the Flying Boats, and promises to release him from Dragon Cavalry Dance after Gan Kingdom’s war ends. 280 282

Following the Fox Immortal Temple incident, Ying Lie punishes Ying Shuang and Zhao Kang with Soul-Nailing Needles. Qin Muye treats Ying Shuang’s injuries, further deepening the uneasy dependence between them. 287