Xiao Hongchen

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Xiao Hongchen (笑红尘)
Alias(es)	God of Wealth Xiao Hongchen; “Old Xiao”; “Little Xiao” 70 111
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy; Hall of Virtue; disciple of Kong Deming 21 23
Occupation/Role	Soul engineer, metal forger, and combat support specialist
Martial Soul	Three-Legged Golden Toad 12 21
First Appearance	Chapter 8

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Rank 30 Soul Elder	12	Breaks through Rank 30 before departing for the Extreme North to acquire a soul ring.
Fourth-rank Soul Engineer	25	Works toward fifth-rank certification while assisting Hall of Virtue research and performing extensive metal forging.
Rank 40 bottleneck	35	Breaks through after absorbing a Soul Bone; plans to obtain his fourth soul ring in the Jingyang Mountain Range.
Rank 68	102	His soul power is nearing the Titled Douluo realm while wearing Golden Toad Battle Armor.
Ultimate Gold Martial Soul	105	The Three-Legged Golden Toad evolves into Ultimate Gold after he consumes the Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum and Earth Dragon Golden Melon.
Seventh-rank Soul Engineer	105	Is undergoing an eighth-rank soul engineer assessment alongside Meng Hongchen.
Further breakthrough	106	States that he has broken through again, though he cannot determine his exact level until obtaining his seventh soul ring.

Appearance

Xiao Hongchen is usually seen in the white uniform of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy. He has heterochromatic eyes and later fights in dazzling golden Golden Toad Battle Armor. 104 102

• Possesses a Three-Legged Golden Toad Martial Soul; a third leg extends from his waist and abdomen when it is summoned. 13
• His Battle Armor is golden and amplifies his Rank 68 aura. 102
• Often surrounds himself with floating metal spheres and soul cannons during combat. 13

Personality

Xiao Hongchen is intensely proud of his status as a Sun Moon Empire prodigy. When Yan Jingchuan first joins the academy, Xiao repeatedly challenges him to prove himself as the new generation’s greatest genius, even after suffering several defeats. Their clashes eventually turn into a close friendship. 8

His bravado is balanced by genuine loyalty. He and Meng Hongchen openly oppose Wang Shaojie’s disciplinary squad when it attempts to arrest Yan Jingchuan, and he later insists on accompanying Yan Jingchuan back into the Extreme North to rescue Jing Hongchen. 10 16

He is also outspoken, greedy for valuable treasures, and highly expressive when frightened or overworked. He complains about being made to forge metal continuously, yet remains committed to Hall of Virtue’s research and to supporting his companions in dangerous battles. 25 70 101

Abilities & Skills

Three-Legged Golden Toad

Xiao Hongchen’s martial soul grants him exceptional control over metal, making him a natural soul engineer and an unusually effective combat forger. 12 21

• Can manipulate metal over a wide area to purify and shape it for forging. 21
• Uses metal spheres to rapidly form large numbers of soul cannon barrels. 13
• His soul-ring abilities are stated to enhance his metal control. 12
• Evolves from a metal-attributed martial soul into Ultimate Gold after consuming two immortal herbs. 105 106

Soul Engineering and Artillery Combat

Rather than relying only on direct martial combat, Xiao fights as a mobile artillery platform capable of saturating an area with soul-tool fire. 13

• Forms more than a dozen Class 3 soul cannons while also wielding several Class 4 cannons. 13
• Can field over a thousand soul cannons while equipped with Battle Armor. 112
• Fires the Golden Star Orbital Cannon, a charged golden beam powerful enough to force Xiong Jun to block with both arms. 112
• Uses the Alchemy Domain and Ultimate Gold to suppress Xiong Jun during the Star Dou Great Forest expedition. 111
• His firepower is less effective against enemies with overwhelming defenses; Xiong Jun destroys more than half of his cannons with Darkgolden Terrorclaw. 112

Metal Forging

Xiao’s metal control makes him central to Yan Jingchuan’s spirit-forging and Lifebound Soul Tool projects. 21 25

• Can already accomplish Hundred Forging and Thousand Forging through martial-soul-based metal control. 21
• Serves as Hall of Virtue’s primary source of refined and Soul Forged metal when ordinary blacksmiths cannot meet demand. 25 101
• His workload becomes so severe that he has little time beyond forging and cultivation. 101

Defensive Strength

After acquiring powerful resources, Xiao becomes exceptionally difficult to injure in direct combat. 106

• Possesses Indestructible Vajra Body, allowing him to function as a fortified artillery platform. 106
• Has a Hundred-Thousand-Year Golden Tortoiseshell Trunk Bone that provides an “invincible shield” even if his other defenses fail. 106
• Uses Golden Toad Battle Armor for further protection and combat amplification. 102

Equipment

• Golden Toad Battle Armor — Two-Word Battle Armor used at Rank 68. 102
• Golden Star Orbital Cannon — Charged soul cannon used against Xiong Jun. 112
• Class 3 and Class 4 soul cannons — His standard early artillery array. 13
• Hundred-Thousand-Year Golden Tortoiseshell Trunk Bone — Grants an extremely powerful defensive shield. 106
• External Soul Bone — Gifted and later absorbed after Yan Jingchuan’s Star Dou Great Forest operation, contributing to Xiao’s breakthrough to Rank 40. 35

Relationships

• Yan Jingchuan — Began as his rival after Xiao repeatedly challenged the newly enrolled Yan; their defeats and sparring developed into close friendship and brother-like loyalty. Xiao supports Yan against the Imperial House, follows him into lethal expeditions, and later calls him his future brother-in-law. 8 10 16 106
• Meng Hongchen — His younger sister. They bicker constantly and physically fight over trivial remarks, but remain close and fight alongside one another. 10 102 106
• Jing Hongchen — His grandfather and guardian. Jing Hongchen leads Xiao’s early Extreme North expedition and risks his life to give Xiao, Meng, and Yan Jingchuan a chance to escape. 12 15
• Kong Deming — His master in soul engineering. Kong accepts Xiao and Yan Jingchuan as disciples after learning of spirit forging. 21 23
• Ji Juechen — A fellow student and combat-oriented acquaintance. Xiao redirects Ji Juechen toward Yan Jingchuan for a spar, hoping to learn more about Yan’s strength from the duel. 9

Story Role / Major Arcs

Rivalry with Yan Jingchuan

After hearing of Yan Jingchuan’s arrival at the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy, Xiao immediately challenges him to establish himself as the greatest genius of their generation. Yan defeats him repeatedly despite having fewer soul rings, eventually turning their rivalry into friendship. 8

When Wang Shaojie’s disciplinary squad attempts to seize Yan, Xiao and Meng intervene on their own initiative. Xiao orders the squad out of the academy and warns Yan that Wang Shaojie may arrange an ambush. 10

Extreme North Expedition

Xiao reaches Rank 30 and joins Jing Hongchen, Meng Hongchen, and Yan Jingchuan on an expedition to obtain soul rings in the Extreme North. He uses extensive cannon fire to suppress the Giant-Jawed Icefang Dragon so Yan can claim it as a suitable target. 12 13

When Jing Hongchen stays behind to hold off the Titan Snow Demon King and Ice Emperor, Xiao and Meng carry the exhausted Yan Jingchuan during their escape. Xiao later refuses to remain behind when Yan returns to rescue Jing Hongchen. 15 16

Hall of Virtue Research

Yan Jingchuan recognizes Xiao’s metal control as an ideal foundation for spirit forging, effectively turning him into the core metal supplier for future Lifebound Soul Tool research. Xiao and Yan are subsequently accepted as Kong Deming’s disciples. 21 23

He spends years refining metal for Hall of Virtue’s projects, including Lifebound Soul Tools, mechas, and Battle Armor. His usefulness becomes so central that he is described as the primary source of Soul Forged metal when Heaven Forging remains impossible. 25 101

Ultimate Gold Evolution

Yan Jingchuan brings Xiao and Meng to the Icefire Yin Yang Well, where Xiao consumes the Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum and Earth Dragon Golden Melon. The herbs evolve his Three-Legged Golden Toad into an Ultimate Gold martial soul and push him through another cultivation breakthrough. 105 106

Star Dou Great Forest Expedition

Xiao accompanies Yan Jingchuan and Meng Hongchen into the Star Dou Great Forest’s core zone to meet Di Tian. He initially fears the danger but still advances with them, deploying Ultimate Gold, the Alchemy Domain, and overwhelming cannon fire against Xiong Jun. 111 112

Notable Quotes

“Wait until I break through to three rings, then we’ll fight again!” 8

“Living ancestor!! Please do something human for once!” 111

“Ultimate Gold! This genius has an ultimate attribute too!” 106

Trivia

• Xiao is described as a born soul engineer because of the Three-Legged Golden Toad’s metal-control abilities. 12
• Yan Jingchuan privately views him as a “natural-born metal production machine” for spirit-forging research. 21
• He is highly disappointed by the lack of treasure in the Ice God Temple and calls the Ice God “dirt poor.” 70
• Despite his fear of dangerous environments, he repeatedly follows Yan Jingchuan into the Extreme North, the Icefire Yin Yang Well, and the Star Dou Great Forest core zone. 16 102 111