Ye Xiaojing

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Ye Xiaojing (叶小荆)
Alias(es)	Teacher Ye; Xiaoye; Withered Leaf Mantis 183 314
Species/Race	License Holder / Super-species Player 58 192
Gender	Female 54
Age	21 54
Affiliation	Jinping Special Affairs Center; formerly served the Ancient Tribe and later joined the Deep Sea Clan 191 192 552
Occupation/Role	Minister of Security and second-in-command of the Jinping Special Affairs Center; formerly Jiang Qian's combat instructor and assistant 36 178 552
Identity Card	Withered Leaf Mantis Card 191 192
Status	Active 552
First Appearance	Chapter 36

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Fourth State: Perfect Form / Noble Card	192	Advanced to a Noble Card with assistance from the Deep Sea Clan a year after recovering from the damage to her arms. Her Authority manifested at this stage.
Fifth State: Composite Form	435 455	Awakened the Natural Force Withering. As a newly advanced Fifth State, she initially could use only its instinctive “Control” phase.
Peak Fifth State	552	Served as Jinping City's Minister of Security and led its crisis response as a peak Fifth State dignitary.

Background / History

A past life-or-death crisis left Ye Xiaojing with severe fear trauma, once making her unable to fight with dual blades. A year of hypnotherapy gradually restored her ability to fight, but Jiang Qian's Fear Demon Clone later triggered those memories during a sparring session. 36

Ye Xiaojing once served the Ancient Tribe, whose harsh internal competition cultivated her into a combat specialist. During that period, colleagues deliberately damaged her Withered Leaf Mantis blades at their joints, severely injuring her arms and reducing her combat ability by roughly seventy percent. 191 192 She eventually left the Ancient Tribe and joined Lan Junxian of the Deep Sea Clan, who used his connections to restore much of her strength and fighting spirit. 192

After becoming a Fourth State Noble Card holder, Ye Xiaojing fought the Black Alliance's Earth Dragon. She was infected by iron wireworms during the battle and pushed her Near-Death Recovery Authority to protect Jiang Qian, worsening the strain on her body and placing her at serious risk of mutation. 57 58 59 The Feather Clan later assumed responsibility for controlling and treating her condition. 88

Her mutation-risk evaluation eventually allowed her to return to the Jinping Branch, though she was reassigned to assist Jiang Qian despite outranking him in evolutionary stage at the time. 178 Jiang Qian later healed her mutation, removing the obstacle that had blocked her future advancement and enabling her reinstatement. 275 290

Appearance

Ye Xiaojing is a tall, athletic young woman with fair skin, balanced muscle definition, waist-length black hair, and a cool, delicate appearance. Though outwardly elegant and composed, her fighting presence is markedly intimidating. 48 54

• Usually wears coordinated brown or camel-colored trench coats, long boots, and occasionally a beret. 178 182 284
• Has long, toned legs and a physique shaped by years of martial-arts practice. 54
• Her Withered Leaf Mantis Card can transform her arms into dead-wood-colored mantis blades with dense serrations. 191
• Conceals the damaged joints in her arms through a Mantis Card camouflage technique. 192
• Her eyes can show a dead-wood-colored light while her Authority is active. 58

Personality

Ye Xiaojing is reserved, disciplined, and exceptionally professional. She is described as a “lone wolf” who rarely teaches others and is poor at giving praise or encouragement, yet she became Jiang Qian's first formal combat instructor and consistently pushed him through punishing training. 48 63

In battle, she is fast, precise, and ruthless, favoring vital-point attacks and decisive finishing blows. Her calm exterior can give way to a frighteningly cold killing intent when opponents threaten those under her protection. 38 314

Despite her history of demotion and mutation risk, Ye Xiaojing retains strong personal principles. She refused Ji Ming's improper request to secretly monitor Jiang Qian beyond the limits of a legitimate investigation, even when refusal endangered her chance of re-employment. 179 She is deeply wary of the Ancient Tribe's culture of ruthless competition and warns Jiang Qian not to entrust his future to it. 191

Her initially distant relationship with Jiang Qian gradually becomes affectionate and trusting. She remains practical and capable in daily life, handling administrative work, surveillance analysis, cooking, and field operations while openly choosing to remain by his side. 187 198 285 291

Abilities & Skills

Withered Leaf Mantis Card

Ye Xiaojing's Identity Card grants her mantis-like biological transformations centered on her arms and combat mobility. 191 192

• Transforms her arms into interlocking, serrated dual blades capable of lethal close-quarters attacks. 191
• Uses the blades with extreme precision, targeting vital points and head-level openings. 38
• Can create mantis scythes to restrain opponents, including clamping down on an enemy's tail during capture operations. 200
• Can actively shut off her hearing to negate sound-based attacks. 293
• Uses a camouflage skill to hide the damage at her blade joints and prevent enemies from exploiting that weakness. 192

Dual-Blade Martial Arts

Ye Xiaojing is an elite close-combat fighter and Jiang Qian's principal combat instructor. Her style is characterized by speed, accuracy, ruthlessness, and an emphasis on lethal timing. 36 38

• Known First State techniques include Twin-Blade Twist and Whirling Blade Frenzy. 53
• Highly proficient in close-quarters grappling and joint-control techniques. 53 185
• Can overwhelm multiple Third State opponents in seconds without leaving her position. 314
• Her severely damaged blade joints reduced her combat ability by approximately seventy percent before her recovery. 192

Authority: Near-Death Recovery

Ye Xiaojing's Noble-stage Authority allows her to force out extraordinary potential and willpower when she has lost normal combat capability. 58

• Can briefly reverse a losing battle even while critically injured or exhausted. 58
• Allowed her to continue blocking attacks from the Earth Dragon and Komodo Dragon while parasitized. 58
• Carries severe backlash; powerful use may cost years of lifespan. 58
• Does not remove the effects of poisoning, injury, or parasites, which can rapidly drain her stamina afterward. 58 59

Natural Force: Withering

After reaching the Fifth State, Ye Xiaojing gained the Natural Force Withering. 435 455

• Drains an affected opponent's speed and strength during combat. 435
• Lets her control an opponent's attack rhythm before delivering a fatal strike. 435
• Initially limited to the instinctive Control phase of Natural Force use. 435

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Withered Leaf Mantis blades — Her primary transformed weapons; the joints were once deliberately broken by former colleagues. 191 192
• Specialized handcuffs — Used to restrain captured License Holders during operations. 200
• Big Dipper Button Camera — An authority item supplied by Jiang Qian for surveillance; it becomes invisible in daylight and can transmit a live visual feed. 292 293

Relationships

• Jiang Qian — Former student, subordinate, partner, and later boyfriend. Ye Xiaojing trained him in close combat, repeatedly protected him in life-threatening operations, and eventually confessed her feelings to him. 36 63 285 286
• Lan Junxian — Former superior and benefactor. After Ye Xiaojing left the Ancient Tribe, he helped restore much of her fighting ability and supported her Noble Card advancement. 58 192
• Ji Ming — Jinping Branch superior. He rehired her under conditions after her mutation-risk evaluation, later oversaw her reinstatement and career options. 178 179 290
• Huo Qian — Feather Clan physician assigned as Ye Xiaojing's attending doctor when the Feather Clan took over her mutation treatment. 88
• Bai Wuhen — Ancient Tribe chief instructor with a hostile shared history. He publicly calls Ye Xiaojing a deserter and disparages her departure from the Ancient Tribe. 314 315 316
• Yu Xuan — Jiang Qian's sister. Ye Xiaojing helps protect her during investigations and later earns the approval of Jiang Qian's family. 292 350

Story Role / Major Arcs

• Combat Instructor — Introduces Jiang Qian to practical combat, repeatedly spars with him, and establishes his foundation in close-quarters fighting. 36 44 53
• Black Alliance and Parasite Incident — Battles Earth Dragon, becomes infected by iron wireworms, and relies on Jiang Qian to remove the parasites and prevent her death. 57 58 59
• Return to the Jinping Branch — Returns from treatment under mutation-risk restrictions and becomes Jiang Qian's assistant after his promotion. 178 182
• Jinping University Investigation — Works alongside Jiang Qian in surveillance, capture, and rescue operations while he studies her unstable energy structure. 192 198 200 204
• Mutation Healing and Reinstatement — Becomes the decisive proof of Jiang Qian's ability to heal mutations; her recovery clears the way for reinstatement and future advancement. 275 290
• Advancement Training Camp — Defeats a group of provocateurs and confronts the return of her Ancient Tribe past through Bai Wuhen. 314 316
• Fifth State Advancement — Advances into the Fifth State in order to remain capable of fighting alongside Jiang Qian. 435 455
• Jinping City Crisis — As Minister of Security, organizes the capture, transport, and investigation of enemy remnants while protecting the city's civilians. 552