Zhu Zhuqing

Biodata

Power Progression

Background

Zhu Zhuqing fled into the Star Dou Great Forest rather than submit to a family-controlled political marriage alliance. Wounded and pursued by an assassin sent to return her to “Young Master Dai,” she declared that she would rather die than live as a puppet. Though she urged Tang Shuo not to involve himself, he killed the pursuing three-ring soul master with a single bell chime. 3

Her injuries were severe enough that Tang Shuo brought her to a concealed cave and treated her. His Great Sun Divine Light and Eastern Emperor Mirror healed most of her external and internal wounds and restored part of her soul power, beginning her trust in him. 4

To repay him, Zhu Zhuqing guided Tang Shuo through the Star Dou Great Forest while he sought a first soul ring. She killed a sixty-year Bloodfang Boar and defeated a five-hundred-year Tortoiseshell Rhino, but Tang Shuo rejected both targets as too weak. 5 When they encountered a three-thousand-year Ghost Shadow Leopard, Tang Shuo’s mirror enhanced her speed, attack power, senses, and recovery enough for her to kill it. 6

Zhu Zhuqing witnessed Tang Shuo kill the ten-thousand-year Blazing Sun Golden Falcon and absorb its soul ring. Soon afterward, her long-standing cold poison erupted; Tang Shuo used Solar True Qi to suppress it, but warned that it had already penetrated her bones and required a permanent cure. Before departing, she invited him to Shrek Academy. 8 9

At Shrek, she befriended Ning Rongrong but remained openly hostile toward Dai Mubai’s possessive advances. She regards Tang Shuo as both a friend and a personal goal, resolving to cultivate until she can catch up with him. 11 12

After reuniting with Tang Shuo in Heaven Dou City, Zhu Zhuqing accepted his specialized training and later his gift of the Daffodil Jade Muscle Bone. The herb transformed her physique and raised her cultivation from Level 37 to Level 40. 57 62 65 69 70

Appearance

Zhu Zhuqing is a black-clad young woman with long black hair reaching her waist and a slender, graceful build. During her escape through the Star Dou Great Forest, her clothing and body were stained with blood and dirt from her injuries. 3 11

• Usually wears fitted black clothing suited to fast movement. 3
• Has long black hair. 11
• Maintains a notably cool, composed expression around strangers. 11 12
• The Daffodil Jade Muscle Bone made her skin fairer and her temperament more ethereal, causing Ning Rongrong to remark that she had become more beautiful. 70 71
• Her hair turned white and her body rapidly withered when the Lovesick Heartbreak Red consumed her life force to save Tang Shuo. 117

Personality

Zhu Zhuqing is fiercely independent and refuses to let her family dictate her life. Even while badly injured and facing an assassin, she chose the danger of escape over returning to an unwanted marriage arrangement. She also showed concern for Tang Shuo’s safety before knowing his true strength, repeatedly urging him to leave or retreat from stronger soul beasts. 3 5 6

Reserved and guarded by default, she judges others strongly by their conduct. Tang Shuo’s restraint while treating her and his willingness to protect her earned her trust; Dai Mubai’s possessiveness and public courtship attempts earned her contempt. 4 12 38

Her admiration for Tang Shuo is tied to ambition as well as affection. She considers him someone worth striving to catch up to, but privately worries that she may not be worthy of his interest. 12 26

Zhu Zhuqing is exceptionally resolute in pursuit of strength. Although Tang Shuo warned that his training would be painful and cruel, she refused to withdraw and endured repeated injury, recovery, and exhaustion to improve her evasive instincts. 62 63 Her initial resentment toward the harsh training gradually became gratitude, trust, and a more playful closeness with him. 65 66

Her devotion ultimately surpasses concern for her own survival. When Tang Shuo was fatally injured by Bibi Dong, she used the Lovesick Heartbreak Red to exchange her life force for his recovery. 117

Abilities & Skills

Hell Spirit Cat Martial Soul

Zhu Zhuqing possesses the Hell Spirit Cat, also rendered the Netherworld Spirit Cat, an agility-focused martial soul that grants exceptional speed, swift movement, and sharp claw attacks. 5

• Killed a sixty-year Bloodfang Boar in a single rapid exchange. 5
• Uses her speed and claws to target weak points rather than contesting heavily armored opponents directly. 5
• Her normal attacks could not pierce the Tortoiseshell Rhino’s armor, forcing her to strike its eye. 5
• Her fighting style was later refined around Tang Shuo’s principle that she must be able to strike an enemy without allowing the enemy to strike her. 61 62

Hell Stab

Her first soul skill, also rendered Netherworld Thrust, turns her into a high-speed black streak for a focused piercing attack. 5

• Pierced the eye of a five-hundred-year Tortoiseshell Rhino, killing it despite its strong defenses. 5
• Consumes significant stamina when used at full force. 5
• Used against Shen Shisan in the Great Soul Arena before she employed Netherworld Hundred Claws to break his defense. 55

Netherworld Hundred Claws

Netherworld Hundred Claws is a rapid claw-strike technique that produces a barrage of attacking shadows. 55

• Zhu Zhuqing used it to exploit the pulling force of Shen Shisan's web and tear through the defense formed by his eight spider legs. 55
• Its use enabled her to defeat the Level 39 Soul Elder despite sustaining a serious injury to her waist. 55

Combat Enhancement Compatibility

Tang Shuo’s Eastern Emperor Mirror greatly amplified Zhu Zhuqing during her battle with the Ghost Shadow Leopard. 6

• Her attack power, speed, and senses increased by at least fivefold. 6
• The mirror’s light rapidly healed fresh injuries during combat. 6
• With this support, she matched and eventually killed a three-thousand-year Ghost Shadow Leopard. 6

Evasion Training

Tang Shuo personally retrained Zhu Zhuqing around the strengths of an agility-attack Soul Master. 61 62

• She was required to remain within a two-meter circle and dodge Tang Shuo's flexible vine strikes without using soul skills. 62
• The repeated drills sharpened her reactions, movement control, and instinctive evasion. 63 65
• By the end of the training, she could evade nearly every strike and overwhelm same-level arena opponents before they could activate their skills. 65 66

Daffodil Jade Muscle Bone

Tang Shuo gave Zhu Zhuqing the immortal herb Daffodil Jade Muscle Bone because its yin-cold affinity complemented her Hell Spirit Cat martial soul. 69

• The herb cleansed and strengthened her meridians, bones, skin, and overall physique. 69 70
• It raised her cultivation from Level 37 to Level 40, allowing her to reach the Soul Ancestor realm. 69 70
• Its transformation also enhanced her appearance and ethereal temperament. 71

Cold Poison

A severe cold poison lies dormant in Zhu Zhuqing’s body and can erupt when she overexerts herself. 8

• Its yin and cold nature caused her body temperature to drop dangerously after repeated soul-beast battles. 8
• Tang Shuo’s Solar True Qi can suppress the poison and stabilize her condition. 9
• The poison has penetrated her bones and has not been confirmed to be permanently cured. 9

Lovesick Heartbreak Red and Resurrection

The Lovesick Heartbreak Red became the medium through which Zhu Zhuqing saved Tang Shuo at the cost of her own life force. 98 117

• The flower's immense life energy restored Tang Shuo's shattered body, meridians, and organs. 117
• Its activation depleted Zhu Zhuqing's vitality, causing her apparent death. 117 133
• Tang Shuo preserved her body and remnant soul in Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Marrow before using Eastern Sovereign Taiyi's divine life power to revive her. 133 134

Relationships

• Tang Shuo — Her rescuer, travelling companion, mentor, and beloved. He treated her wounds and cold poison, while she helped him hunt soul beasts and guarded him during his first soul-ring absorption. He later healed her arena injury, trained her personally, and gave her the Daffodil Jade Muscle Bone, enabling her Level 40 breakthrough. Zhu Zhuqing eventually confessed that she could not live without him; she sacrificed her life force to save him, and he later resurrected her. 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 12 55 57 62 69 70 105 117 133 134
• Dai Mubai — A persistent and unwanted suitor connected to the marriage arrangement she fled. She rejects his possessive behavior and repeated confessions, viewing his public courtship as disrespectful and humiliating. She later makes clear that she has nothing to do with him and came to Spirit City solely for Tang Shuo. 3 11 16 37 38 105
• Ning Rongrong — A Shrek Academy friend who recognized Zhu Zhuqing’s talent, defended her from Dai Mubai’s harassment, and encourages her to be confident about Tang Shuo. Ning Rongrong also notices the changes in Zhu Zhuqing’s happiness, appearance, and feelings following Tang Shuo’s training and gifts. 11 16 26 66 70 71
• Tang San — A fellow Shrek student who assisted Dai Mubai’s attempted confession without understanding Zhu Zhuqing’s feelings. 37 38
• Qian Renxue — Tang Shuo entrusted the dying Zhu Zhuqing to Qian Renxue after her sacrifice. Qian Renxue protected her, helped preserve her in Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Marrow, and remained with Tang Shuo while he restored Zhu Zhuqing's life. 117 118 133 134

Story Role / Major Arcs

Escape from the Marriage Alliance

Zhu Zhuqing’s refusal to surrender to her family’s control leads to her being hunted in the Star Dou Great Forest. Her rescue by Tang Shuo establishes their first connection and frees her from the immediate threat. 3

Star Dou Great Forest Journey

After being healed, Zhu Zhuqing accompanies Tang Shuo through the forest as his guide and protector. Her battles against the Bloodfang Boar, Tortoiseshell Rhino, and Ghost Shadow Leopard reveal her agility and resolve, while Tang Shuo’s concealed power repeatedly overturns her understanding of him. 4 5 6 7 8

Cold-Poison Outbreak and Separation

Her cold poison flares after Tang Shuo gains his first soul ring. He stabilizes her through the night and promises to seek a complete cure; she then invites him to Shrek Academy before they part ways. 8 9

Shrek Academy and Dai Mubai’s Rejections

At Shrek, Zhu Zhuqing bonds with Ning Rongrong and repeatedly rejects Dai Mubai. She distinguishes his possessiveness and theatrical courtship from Tang Shuo’s respect, composure, and protection. 11 12 16 37 38

Suspicions About “Shuofeng”

After hearing of the masked arena fighter Shuofeng’s fifty consecutive victories, Zhu Zhuqing suspects that the mysterious combatant may be Tang Shuo. 48

Soul Arena Reunion

While pursuing Yu Xiaogang’s requirement of one hundred arena victories, Zhu Zhuqing defeats Shen Shisan but injures her waist. Feeling isolated after the battle, she encounters Tang Shuo, who carries her to Heaven Dou Royal Academy and heals her with the Eastern Emperor Mirror. 55 56 57

Special Evasion Training

Disapproving of Yu Xiaogang’s generalized training regimen, Tang Shuo agrees to teach Zhu Zhuqing personally. His harsh vine-dodging exercises force her to rely on speed, reactions, and instinct, substantially improving her ability to avoid attacks and defeat arena opponents. 61 62 63 65 66

Daffodil Jade Muscle Bone Breakthrough

Tang Shuo gives Zhu Zhuqing the Daffodil Jade Muscle Bone, an immortal herb suited to her martial soul and yin-cold constitution. Its absorption transforms her physique and advances her from Level 37 to Level 40. 69 70 71

Confession in Spirit City

After learning that Tang Shuo survived Spirit Hall’s assassination attempt, Zhu Zhuqing rushes to find him in Spirit City. Realizing that she cannot bear to lose him, she openly confesses her love and rejects any remaining association with Dai Mubai. 105

Sacrifice, Death, and Resurrection

Zhu Zhuqing uses the Lovesick Heartbreak Red to save Tang Shuo from fatal injuries, sacrificing her life force in exchange. Tang Shuo preserves her body in Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Marrow, journeys to find a means to save her, and ultimately resurrects her with Eastern Sovereign Taiyi’s divine life power. 117 118 133 134

Notable Quotes

“I’d rather die than go back.” 3

“He is my... goal, someone worth giving everything to catch up to.” 12

“I could never like him.” 26

“It seemed that I couldn't live without you.” 105