Zhu Zhuqing

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Zhu Zhuqing (朱竹清)
Alias(es)	Nether
Gender	Female
Affiliation	Star Luo Empire; Shrek Academy
Occupation/Role	Assassin; later a puppet and spirit-mine laborer
Status	Alive; consciousness and emotions sealed after puppet refinement, serving as a dead laborer in a spirit mine 73 74
First Appearance	Chapter 66

Background / History

Zhu Zhuqing was selected by the Heavenly Screen as a new explorer from the Star Luo Empire and sent to the cultivation world. Before departing, she stated that the Star Luo royal family's pursuit had taught her to trust neither sympathy nor pity; she viewed the new world as an endless assassination trial. 66 67

She arrived in Misty Forest at the border of the Yue Kingdom. Rather than panic, she immediately concealed herself, suppressed the glow of her Martial Soul Possession, and assessed nearby threats before moving. 67

After witnessing two rogue cultivators fight over resources, Zhu Zhuqing waited until the victor relaxed and killed him with a single ambush. She took the survivors' storage pouch, blue dagger, Spirit Stones, and jade slip, then left before blood could attract further danger. 67

Her Soul Power could activate the dagger but could not open the storage pouch or read the jade slip, since those items required spiritual power and spiritual sense. She resolved to obtain a cultivation technique and convert her Soul Power. 68

Appearance

Zhu Zhuqing is a slender young woman associated with dark clothing and feline traits when using her martial soul. After being sent to the spirit mine, she is reduced to wearing ragged gray clothing and working barefoot in mud and water. 67 74

• Wears black leather clothing and a black leather glove before her refinement. 67
• Her black eyes become cold vertical pupils under Hell Spirit Cat Possession. 67
• Her refined body is covered in dense black control runes, connected to a sword mark on her forehead. 73
• After refinement, her pupils become hollow grayish-white and devoid of visible emotion. 73

Personality

Zhu Zhuqing is patient, guarded, and exceptionally pragmatic. She does not rely on trust, gratitude, or pity, instead treating survival as a matter of observation, preparation, and decisive action. 67 69

She remains composed under extreme pressure. When she cannot use her seized cultivation items, she does not despair; when captured by the Six Paths Heirs, she remains prepared to fight despite knowing their overwhelming advantage. 68 70

Her willingness to make transactions is equally practical. After saving Chen Qiaoqian, she demands cultivation manuals, a map, and Spirit Stones rather than gratitude. She also accepts Wen Tianren's proposed alliance in pursuit of power and survival—only to be betrayed and refined into a puppet. 70 72

Abilities & Skills

Hell Spirit Cat Possession

Zhu Zhuqing's martial soul grants her heightened senses, stealth, and feline mobility.

• Suppresses the visible glow of her possession to avoid detection. 67
• Detects minute sounds, including an insect's wingbeats within roughly one hundred meters. 67
• Enhances her movement through trees and shadows; she can move without stirring wind or making audible footsteps. 67 69
• Lets her avoid lurking low-tier demon beasts through sharp sensory awareness. 68

Assassination

Zhu Zhuqing specializes in patience, concealment, timing, and lethal close-range attacks.

• Waited motionless in a tree canopy for two hours during rain before acting. 67
• Killed a distracted rogue cultivator with a single strike to the back of the neck. 67
• Confirmed the area was safe and the target was dead before looting the bodies. 67
• Became the contract assassin known as Nether after reaching Great South Valley. 70
• Her effectiveness depends on striking before opponents can activate spells, talismans, or magical artifacts. 67

Survival and Infiltration

Zhu Zhuqing applies Star Luo survival training to unfamiliar terrain and hostile environments.

• Chooses cover immediately upon arrival and keeps her breathing nearly imperceptible. 67
• Avoids unnecessary confrontations until she understands the cultivation world's combat methods. 68
• Slips through a mist barrier behind a rogue cultivator and enters Great South Valley undetected. 69
• Identifies poisonous miasma, suspicious swamps, and hostile beasts while traveling through Misty Forest. 68

Puppet Refinement

Wen Tianren refines Zhu Zhuqing into a controlled puppet using her Hell Soul Power. 73

• Her soul is locked and forced into the depths of her consciousness. 72
• Her consciousness and emotions are lost following the completed refinement. 73
• Black runes and a forehead sword mark form a control hub over her body. 73
• Wen Tianren intended her to become a puppet assassin capable of instantly killing cultivators of the same rank. 71
• Her later fate is determined by her usefulness; she is sent to work as a dead laborer in a spirit mine. 74

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Blue dagger — A heavy, extremely sharp dagger looted in Misty Forest. Zhu Zhuqing can activate its faint blue glow with Soul Power. 67 68
• Storage pouch — Looted from a rogue cultivator, but inaccessible to her because Soul Power cannot erase its spiritual imprint or open it. 67 68
• Jade slip — Recovered in Misty Forest; initially unusable with Soul Power. 67 68
• Cultivation jade slips — Received from Chen Qiaoqian as payment, containing cultivation techniques. 70
• Spirit Stones — Received from Chen Qiaoqian and previously looted from rogue cultivators. 67 70
• Qi Concealment Art and Bloodboil Pill — Given by Wen Tianren aboard the White Bone Flying Boat. 71

Relationships

• Dai Mubai — His panic at her selection contrasts with Zhu Zhuqing's calm resolve; he later realizes he never truly understood her abilities. 67 74
• Tang San — Praises her first killing in Misty Forest as a “perfect assassination” and judges her survival prospects favorably. 67
• Bibi Dong — Admired Zhu Zhuqing's cautious, methodical killing style and later watched her dangerous bargain with Wen Tianren. 67 72
• Han Li — Intervened when a stall owner tried to exploit Zhu Zhuqing, purchasing her dagger in exchange for peace and quiet. 69
• Chen Qiaoqian — Zhu Zhuqing rescued her from Senior Brother Lu's attempted assault, then accepted cultivation manuals, a map, and Spirit Stones as payment. 70
• Wen Tianren — Captured Zhu Zhuqing, offered an alliance for mutual survival and access to the Jade Green Immortal Sect, then betrayed her by refining her into a puppet. 71 72 73
• Six Paths Heirs — Captured her after her attempted assassination of Sun Dayong and intended to use her as corpse-refinement material. 70

Story Role / Major Arcs

Descent to Misty Forest

Zhu Zhuqing is selected by the Heavenly Screen and transported from the Star Luo Empire to Misty Forest. She immediately demonstrates her stealth training by hiding, surveying the area, and killing a rogue cultivator through a calculated ambush. 66 67

Search for Cultivation

Unable to operate cultivation-world storage items with Soul Power, Zhu Zhuqing follows a merchant caravan toward civilization. She infiltrates Great South Valley and learns that strength, cultivation techniques, and the Jade Green Immortal Sect determine one's ability to survive in this world. 68 69

Nether the Assassin

After rescuing Chen Qiaoqian and receiving payment in cultivation resources, Zhu Zhuqing studies Qi Refinement and becomes the assassin known as Nether. Her attempt to kill Sun Dayong brings her into conflict with the Six Paths Heirs, who capture her. 70

Wen Tianren and Puppet Refinement

Wen Tianren removes Zhu Zhuqing from an old man's planned Shadow Corpse refinement and takes her to the Chaotic Star Sea. Although he offers her a partnership and she agrees, he ultimately locks her soul and refines her into a puppet. 71 72 73

Spirit Mine Laborer

After Wen Tianren gains the Jade Green Immortal Sect's support and forms a Nascent Soul, Zhu Zhuqing is dismissed as useless and sent to a spirit mine as a dead laborer. Even there, she retains enough survival instinct to kill an attacking fellow slave and hide afterward. 74 75

Trivia

• Zhu Zhuqing explicitly compares the cultivation world to an “endless assassination trial.” 67
• Tang San considers her survival odds greater than Ma Hongjun's because of her temperament, speed, and ability to hide in the shadows. 67
• Her first cultivation-world kill is made only after she observes the target's battle fatigue, lowered guard, and inability to react. 67