Biodata
| Feature | Value |
|---|---|
| Name | Xuanzi (玄子), also rendered as Xuan Zi |
| Alias(es) | Elder Xuan; Taotie Douluo 84 |
| Gender | Male |
| Affiliation | Shrek Academy; Sea God Pavilion 84 |
| Occupation/Role | Senior Sea God Pavilion elder; Reserve Team selection commander; tournament team leader 84 86 103 |
| Cultivation | Level 98 Peak Douluo 85 118 123 |
| Martial Soul | Taotie 85 123 |
| Standing | Shrek Academy’s strongest expert beneath Mu En; intended future protector of the academy 97 |
| Status | Alive, but badly wounded following his defeat by the Ice Empress 123 |
Background / History
Xuanzi’s seniority places him above even Yan Shaozhe in Shrek Academy’s hierarchy. Mu En is the one academy figure he genuinely respects and fears. Several years before the Reserve Team selection, his negligence during a Soul Beast Forest expedition allowed accompanying academy members to die or become disabled 12 88 97.
Despite recognizing his unreliability, Mu En considers Xuanzi indispensable. With Mu En’s health declining and Yan Shaozhe’s cultivation still insufficient, Xuanzi is the only available expert strong enough to become Shrek’s principal protector. Mu En therefore repeatedly shields him from serious punishment and prepares a contingency to help him advance after Mu En’s death; that advancement is not shown in the supplied chapters 97.
Xuanzi dismisses Zhang Lexuan’s disappointment over Shrek’s refusal to support the injured Chu Yan, treating it as an immature response to the world’s cruelty. He also resents the Life Association for killing oppressive nobles who graduated from Shrek, regarding those graduates as more important than the commoners they harmed 33 77.
Appearance
Xuanzi resembles a drunken vagrant rather than a distinguished expert 83.
- Unkempt hair — he rubs it with greasy hands when frustrated; it later obscures much of his face after the Death Messenger disaster 88 102.
- Chicken legs and wine — he eats and drinks while others conduct academy business 33 84.
- Wine gourd — he drinks from it before announcing the selection rules, then wipes his mouth with his sleeve 85.
Personality
Xuanzi strongly associates age and rank with entitlement to respect. He objects to waiting for Bai Luo because Bai Luo is a junior, and initially finds apologizing to an ordinary student beneath his status. When a confrontation threatens his dignity, he prefers changing the subject or asserting authority over acknowledging fault 83 85 98.
His coercion is selective. Before pressuring Xiao Xiao, he weighs the political backing of every successful candidate and avoids those protected by influential sects, families, or Bai Luo. Conversely, Bai Luo’s divine aura and the Ice Empress’s strength make him cautious about provoking them directly 85 91 119.
Xuanzi habitually shifts responsibility away from himself. He blames unexpected student relationships for the Reserve Team crisis and privately resents Bai Luo for not supplying protective measures to every Main Team member. After the Death Messenger incident, his immediate concerns center on Mu En’s anger and Shrek’s championship streak rather than the injured students 97 103 105.
Although poor at understanding personal loyalties, he can devise retaliatory schemes. Unable to confront Bai Luo safely, he deliberately draws Dai Hao’s attention to Bai Luo’s refusal to treat Dai Yueheng, hoping the duke will cause trouble for him 111 112.
Abilities & Skills
Level 98 Cultivation
Xuanzi possesses the foundation and Soul Power of a Level 98 Peak Douluo, making him overwhelmingly stronger than ordinary students and a key component of Shrek’s defensive strength 97 118.
- Soul Power pressure — directs a Super Douluo’s oppressive aura at Bai Luo during their first confrontation 84.
- Soul Power constructs — attacks Ma Xiaotao with an enormous hand of condensed Soul Power that she cannot withstand 118.
- Limitations — his strength does not prevent failures caused by carelessness. A Soul King-level Evil Soul Master devastates the Main Team under his supervision 103.
- Superior opponents — Bai Luo’s borrowed divine power frightens him, while the Ice Empress ultimately defeats him despite his full-strength attack 85 123.
Taotie Martial Soul
His Taotie martial soul manifests as an enormous savage beast with a blood-red maw. The narration explicitly notes that Xuanzi is poor at making use of it, although his cultivation still makes its attacks formidable 123.
| Soul Skill | Effect / Demonstration |
|---|---|
| Seventh Soul Skill: Taotie True Form | Summons a mountainous manifestation of his martial soul during his fight with the Ice Empress 123. |
| Ninth Soul Skill: Devour Heaven and Earth | Unleashes a devouring attack through the Taotie manifestation’s open maw 123. |
- The martial soul reacts instinctively with fear when Bai Luo releases a trace of the Goddess of Life’s power 85.
- Its True Form and Ninth Soul Skill fail to overcome the Ice Empress’s counterattack 123.
Relationships
- Mu En — protector and superior. Xuanzi fears his authority, appreciates his interventions, and obeys his demand for an apology when threatened with losing his elder position 88 97 98.
- Yan Shaozhe — fellow academy leader whose lower seniority limits his ability to oppose Xuanzi. Their disagreements deepen over the selection scandal and Mu En’s refusal to punish Xuanzi for the Main Team disaster 86 96 114.
- Bai Luo — adversary whom Xuanzi both resents and fears. Bai Luo rejects his seniority-based intimidation, refuses his medical demands, and publicly humiliates him after the Ice Empress’s victory 84 85 108 123.
- Xiao Xiao — student he pressures into surrendering an earned Reserve Team position. His later, visibly unwilling apology does not restore her faith in Shrek 91 98.
- Bei Bei — beneficiary of Xuanzi’s intervention. Xuanzi transfers Xiao Xiao’s place to him after his elimination, with Bei Bei’s descent from Mu En explaining the favoritism 93 95.
- Huo Yuhao — valued recruitment target who refuses to accept Xuanzi’s treatment of Xiao Xiao and withdraws from the Reserve Team despite his anger 93 95.
- Ma Xiaotao — indispensable tournament fighter who openly rejects his authority. Their dispute escalates when he attacks her for leaving a team meeting 116 117 118.
- Yao Haoxuan — student severely injured under his supervision. Xuanzi’s lack of remorse strengthens Yao Haoxuan’s decision to leave Shrek after the tournament 103 109 114.
- Ice Empress — opponent who stops his attack on Ma Xiaotao and later defeats him decisively, sparing his life through restraint 118 123.
Story Role / Major Arcs
Reserve Team Selection
Xuanzi organizes a free-for-all in which alliances are permitted and the final seven standing qualify for Shrek’s Preparatory Team. Yan Shaozhe considers the method unsuitable but lacks authority to overrule the academy-appointed commander. Bai Luo’s mockery angers Xuanzi, though their earlier encounter discourages retaliation 85 86.
According to Bai Luo’s reconstruction, the format was partly intended to secure Huo Yuhao’s selection through an expected alliance with Bei Bei. Instead, Huo Yuhao joins another group, and Bei Bei is eliminated. Xuanzi subsequently targets Xiao Xiao as the successful candidate with the least influential backing and makes her surrender her qualification to Bei Bei 91 93.
The decision triggers the departure of Wang Dong, Jiang Nannan, Huo Yuhao, Ning Tian, and Wu Feng. Only Zhu Lu remains from the original seven. Mu En orders Xuanzi to apologize to Xiao Xiao, threatening his elder position when he resists. The apology fails to win the students back, and Wang Dong’s disclosure spreads the scandal beyond Shrek 94 95 98.
Death Messenger Disaster
Mu En assigns Xuanzi to lead the Main Team as an opportunity to redeem himself. Xuanzi underestimates a Soul King-level Evil Soul Master, allowing the Death Messenger incident to kill several inner-court students and seriously injure others 103 109.
His question about whether Ma Xiaotao and Ling Luochen can still compete alienates the survivors. Ma Xiaotao instead insists that Yao Haoxuan be taken to Bai Luo for treatment. Xuanzi cannot name a better physician, but later privately blames Bai Luo for not having protected the entire team 103 105.
Mu En again refuses serious punishment despite Yan Shaozhe’s objections. After mild reprimands, Xuanzi returns to eating and drinking, deepening Yao Haoxuan’s disillusionment with the academy 114.
Conflict with Ma Xiaotao and Defeat
During the tournament, Ma Xiaotao ignores Xuanzi’s order to conceal her strength and overwhelms Shrek’s first opponents. He rebukes her, but cannot safely remove the team’s strongest fighter without risking Shrek’s winning streak 116 117.
When she later refuses to remain for a tactics discussion, Xuanzi attacks her with a giant Soul Power hand. Bai Luo intervenes, and the Ice Empress freezes and shatters the attack. Unable to defend his claim that the dispute is merely an internal academy matter, Xuanzi challenges the Ice Empress to a fight intended to preserve his authority 118 119.
Xuanzi unleashes Taotie True Form and Devour Heaven and Earth, but the Ice Empress defeats him and sends him crashing into a crater. Badly wounded, he recognizes that her restraint saved his life. Bai Luo then pats his face in deliberate humiliation and warns him to keep his head down 123.
Notable Quotes
“Who knew these people's relationships would be so strange? They don't play by common sense at all.” 97
“This is an internal matter of Shrek Academy. It has nothing to do with you.” 119
“Would you dare fight this old man, Your Excellency?” 119