Little Beggar

Biodata

Power Progression

Background

Little Beggar grew up in Tongzi Ward and knew its streets, residents, and underworld activity well. Though a street orphan, she could read—an uncommon skill in the ward—which caused Su Xinghe to value her more highly as their association developed 3.

She discovered that Su Xinghe was secretly working for the Great River Gang rather than the docks. Su Xinghe initially bought her silence with a bowl of plain noodles, but the arrangement developed into a subordinate-boss partnership. Little Beggar became Su Xinghe's sole underling, keeping watch over the Su household, gathering news, and monitoring targets 2 3.

She dreams of becoming a Martial Warrior: formerly an unreachable fantasy while living in a rubbish heap, the goal became tangible through Su Xinghe's funding, connections, and eventual instruction 8.

Little Beggar concealed that she was a girl while surviving alone in Tongzi Ward. After reuniting with Su Xinghe roughly a year later, she was revealed as Xia Xiaoqi; she explains that presenting herself as a boy protected her from being sold to Snowfall Tower and forced into its Hundred Flowers Banquets 151.

Appearance

Little Beggar was initially a small, thin, and scrawny youth, commonly seen crouching in alleys or waiting by roadside walls. Her boyish presentation concealed her actual identity during her years in Tongzi Ward.

• Distinct black-and-white eyes 5
• Delicate face, later marked by bruises after defending the Su household 12
• Often wore worn, dark clothing suited to life in Tongzi Ward 13
• Sustained a bruised face, injured shoulder, and badly swollen knee after fighting Black Tiger Gang thugs 48
• Recovers at White Ape Martial Academy, becoming cleaner, healthier, and more spirited; with her hair tied back, she resembles a jade-faced young hero when carrying a sword 52
• By her reunion with Su Xinghe, she has grown into a tall, slender young woman with pinned-up long hair, misty dark eyes, and a dark-green fish-scale-sheathed short sword at her waist 151

Personality

Little Beggar is clever, observant, and practical. She understands Tongzi Ward's dangers, warns Su Xinghe about heightened Sky-Patrolling Raven patrols, and knows when a task requires discretion 24.

Despite her resourcefulness, she remains visibly young and vulnerable. She is frightened by the corpse-filled ditch near the city wall and by Old Madman's house, yet still follows Su Xinghe into danger when needed 24 25. Her loyalty is reinforced by Su Xinghe's protection and generosity, though she worries that becoming a martial academy disciple may make her less useful to her boss 49.

She is intensely diligent once given access to genuine martial arts, practicing Dripping Water Swordsmanship through the night and maintaining her training even during the escape from Lin County and the occupation of Blackwind Stronghold 54 60. Though initially frightened by killing, she acts first when Su Xinghe orders the apprentices to execute the bandits, showing growing courage and resolve 59.

Xiaoqi remains steadfast in pursuing her preferred sword path. She declines recruitment by Hundred Flowers Pavilion because its methods do not align with the swordsmanship she wishes to learn, and she still aspires to reach the Heavenly One Sword Sect 91.

Abilities & Skills

Listening to Tides Art

Little Beggar learns the Heavenly One Sword Sect's talent-testing manual under Su Xinghe's guidance and shows notable aptitude for its meditative practice 25 26.

• Quickly enters the meditative state on her first attempt 25
• Progresses to hearing ants moving within roughly thirty feet 30
• Uses her enhanced hearing to shadow suspects for hours and overhear their plans to flee 38 49
• Reaches a perception range of roughly eleven or twelve zhang during the investigation of Liu Bin's disappearance 52
• Discovers an island within her Spirit Sea, initially only the size of a tabletop; it later grows to the scale of the mine tunnel 52 74
• Reaches Perfect Mastery, granting a one-hundred-percent enhancement to her sword cultivation and allowing her to attain Force Infusion 73
• Does not share Su Xinghe's silver-fish visualization; this leaves her uncertain about the difference in their cultivation experiences 26 30
• Can perceive spiritual presences through the art, identifying Su Xinghe's Spirit Sea as a river while her own resembles a pool of icy water 74

Dripping Water Swordsmanship

Su Xinghe secretly teaches Xiaoqi the true art Dripping Water Swordsmanship after recognizing her frustration at lacking a formal martial path 53 54.

• Receives the Dripping Water Swordsmanship manual and a short sword from Su Xinghe 54
• Enters the art's gate after a day and two nights of dedicated practice 55
• Possesses exceptional sword talent and reaches Force Infusion with the assistance of Perfect Mastery Listening to Tides Art 73
• Continues to favor sword cultivation over recruitment into Hundred Flowers Pavilion and its alternative martial path 91
• Carries a dark-green fish-scale-sheathed short sword after her later return to Su Xinghe's side 151

Heavenly Will Sword Network

Xiaoqi possesses an extraordinary connection to the Heavenly One Sword Sect's Heavenly Will Sword Network.

• Reconnects with Su Xinghe through their spiritual link during Han Zhi's attack on the Demon Suppression Bureau, calling to him as “Boss” and initiating an authorization transfer 149
• Appears among the beast-like phantoms projected by the network as a Sixth-Rank True Force cultivator 150
• Helps sustain Su Xinghe's temporary borrowed power, allowing him to fight at a Martial Saint-level threshold before the network revokes its authorization 150

Intelligence Gathering

Her familiarity with Tongzi Ward and its inhabitants makes her Su Xinghe's principal source of local information.

• Watches the Su household and reports extortion by Liu Laizi's gang 2
• Monitors Old Madman's condition and warns Su Xinghe when he appears close to death 5 24
• Tracks gangsters through Firewood Alley, Mingsheng Gambling House, and Tofu Alley 38
• Identifies the residence of two Black Tiger Gang thugs and overhears their plan to expose suspected Head-Chopping Bandits 45 49
• Investigates Liu Bin's residence and identifies Old Wang of the Fishermen's Gang as the person who transported Liu Bin and his sister out of the city 52 53
• Learns information about the Beheading Gang's hidden village through local inquiries, providing Su Xinghe with details about Big Bear, Niu Erlang, Uncle Nine, and Head-Chopping Seven 79

Improvised Combat

Though initially untrained, Little Beggar repeatedly assists in violent confrontations and gradually develops into a genuine Martial Warrior.

• Distracts Wang Kuoyi with skulls thrown from a foul ditch, blinds him with white powder, and provides Su Xinghe with a steel chisel during the ambush 15
• Ambushes fleeing thugs with a brick, killing one, knocking out another, and nearly stopping a third before suffering serious injuries 49
• Receives captured weapons from Su Xinghe during the escape from Scarlet Cloud Mountain and joins the apprentices' first battle against the bandits 58
• Is among the first apprentices to execute the defeated bandits at Blackwind Stronghold despite her fear 59
• Her lack of physical strength and training initially leaves her vulnerable against adult opponents, though this weakness diminishes significantly after she begins formal sword cultivation 48 49 73

Equipment / Items

• Steel chisel — Supplied to Su Xinghe during the ambush of Wang Kuoyi and Wang Yuan 15
• Listening to Tides Art manual — Studies the recovered manual alongside Su Xinghe 25
• White Ape Martial Academy enrollment — Funded by Su Xinghe with ten taels for a three-month assessment period 49
• Dripping Water Swordsmanship manual — Secretly given to her by Su Xinghe as her first true martial art 54
• Dark-green fish-scale-sheathed short sword — Given by Su Xinghe alongside the sword manual and retained after her later reunion with him 54 151

Relationships

• Su Xinghe — Boss, protector, martial mentor, and spiritual ally. Their relationship began as a bribed-silence arrangement, then became a loyal subordinate-boss bond; Su Xinghe later pays for her medical treatment, academy enrollment, and martial instruction 3 25 49 54. Their spiritual connection becomes vital when Xiaoqi uses the Heavenly Will Sword Network to aid him against Han Zhi 149 150.
• Old Madman — Monitored by Little Beggar on Su Xinghe's orders. She accompanies Su Xinghe to Old Madman's home and helps recover the Listening to Tides Art after the old man's death 5 24 25.
• Liu Laizi's gang — Little Beggar protects the Su household from the gang's extortion and is beaten by its members 2 12.
• Unidentified “little sister” — A girl appears to live or stay at Xiaoqi's ruined-temple shelter; Xiaoqi calls her her younger sister but avoids explaining further to Su Xinghe 13.
• White Ape Martial Academy — Provides Xiaoqi with her first formal martial affiliation after Su Xinghe secures her admission as an outer disciple 49.
• Heavenly One Sword Sect — The originator of Listening to Tides Art and the operator of the Heavenly Will Sword Network that Xiaoqi accesses during the Qingzhou crisis 25 149 150.
• Hundred Flowers Pavilion — Attempts to recruit Xiaoqi after her rapid advancement, but she refuses because she wishes to continue following her own sword path 91.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Su Household Informant

Little Beggar serves as Su Xinghe's eyes and ears in Tongzi Ward. She reports protection-money demands, watches Old Madman, investigates the old swindler, and carries messages to Lu Family Farm 2 5 6 13.

Conflict with Liu Laizi

She obtains sulfur for Su Xinghe's covert plan, suffers injuries while guarding the Su home, and later reports the arrest of Liu Laizi's gang after the explosion at their courtyard 8 12 14.

Wang Kuoyi Ambush

Little Beggar helps lure and kill Wang Kuoyi and Wang Yuan by creating distractions, supplying a weapon, and blinding the stronger opponent with powder 15.

Discovery of Listening to Tides Art

She accompanies Su Xinghe to Old Madman's house, witnesses the discovery of the manual, and begins cultivating alongside him. This is the first concrete step toward her dream of becoming a Martial Warrior 24 25 26.

White Ape Martial Academy Enrollment

After being injured while independently preventing two thugs from fleeing, she is treated by Doctor Hong and enrolled as an outer disciple of White Ape Martial Academy through Su Xinghe's patronage 48 49.

Investigation of the Stolen True Art

After Liu Bin steals the Golden Ape Earth-Splitting Art, Xiaoqi investigates Lotus-Picking Bridge despite having only recently recovered from her injuries. Her inquiries at Huichun Hall reveal that Liu Bin and his sister escaped by boat with Old Wang of the Fishermen's Gang, giving White Ape Martial Academy its first meaningful lead 52 53.

Sword Cultivation

Unable to bear seeing Xiaoqi remain without a true martial art, Su Xinghe gives her Dripping Water Swordsmanship and a short sword. Xiaoqi trains obsessively, rapidly enters the sword art, and later reaches Force Infusion through the combined benefits of sword training and Listening to Tides Art 54 55 73.

Blackwind Stronghold Campaign

Xiaoqi is transported with the White Ape Martial Academy apprentices to Scarlet Cloud Mountain, where Su Xinghe arms her after attacking the bandits. She overcomes her fear to participate in the execution of the defeated bandits, helps search and sort the stronghold's spoils, and continues sword practice throughout the aftermath 58 59 60.

Heavenly Will Sword Network Intervention

During the Inspection Bureau's assault on the Demon Suppression Bureau, Xiaoqi reconnects with Su Xinghe through the Heavenly Will Sword Network. Her intervention enables the network to transfer temporary authority to Su Xinghe, allowing him to counter Han Zhi's overwhelming Fourth-Rank power 149 150.

Reunion and Revealed Identity

After a year apart, Xiaoqi descends from the Heavenly One Sword Sect's armored flying beast to reunite with Su Xinghe. Her appearance reveals that Little Beggar had been a girl in disguise, a survival measure adopted to avoid trafficking in Tongzi Ward 151.

Trivia

• Little Beggar was initially a potential blackmailer before becoming Su Xinghe's most trusted local associate 3.
• She is sixteen when she enters White Ape Martial Academy, exactly meeting its standard admission age 49.
• Neighborhood residents recognize her as the beggar who used to ask for food in Tongzi Ward, though it is implied that her parents once operated a tailor shop before being taken by the Lu Family 34.
• Her original dream was to roam the martial world with a sword, punish evil, wear fine clothes, and become famous throughout the land 8.
• Xiaoqi's later identity as a girl explains why she concealed herself as a male beggar during her childhood in Tongzi Ward 151.