Shen Qi

Biodata

Power Progression

Background and career

Shen Qi worked and borrowed money to finish university after his father’s illness strained the family’s finances. He later lost a PE teaching job and a gym job, then went to Hengdian to pursue acting. Early on, he earned little as an extra and sometimes slept in an internet café 2 3.

While working on Lotus Lantern, he began using the Magic Book to record other actors’ performances. Fei Yang’s recommendation led him to Legend of the White Snake, where Liu Tao suggested he audition for the Demon Dao Sage Lord. He won the one-episode role and a 1,000-yuan contract 1 2 5.

Shen Qi subsequently pursued auditions while continuing extra work. Shu Chang secured him an audition for The Return of the Condor Heroes; he accepted the risk of playing Yin Zhiping because his family needed money and the production offered a significant opportunity. The role was later renamed Zhen Zhibing 9 14 15 22 43.

Appearance

Shen Qi’s looks attract attention on sets and sometimes complicate casting for roles whose appearance is expected to differ from his 1 10 22.

• Features: Distinctive features and a healthy, sun-kissed complexion 1.
• Build: Athletic and muscular, reflecting his sports background 8 49.
• Recorded measurements: The Magic Book lists him as 186 cm and 75 kg in Chapter 8, but 183 cm and 72 kg in Chapter 34 8 34.

Personality

Shen Qi is ambitious but guarded about how he advances. He refuses Wei Jianguo’s repeated suggestion that he work as a male escort, declines Shu Chang’s loan, and remains cautious about talent agencies that might control his career 1 3 26 37. His earnings matter to him chiefly because of his family’s debts, his sister’s schooling, and his father’s treatment 8 25 45.

He builds connections by helping crews, sharing leads, and asking experienced actors for advice. Although the Magic Book can transform a performance, he recognizes that borrowed skill cannot replace his own fundamentals or sustain him through a demanding workload 7 9 34 43.

Abilities and skills

Magic Book

The palm-sized book records a person’s performance or skill onto one of its limited parchment pages. Using a record lets Shen Qi experience the subject’s preparation, technique, and execution as though he had done it himself 1 5.

• Its original five usable pages record performances only; later all-purpose pages also record skills such as swordsmanship and riding 6 8 22 39.
• More accomplished subjects are harder to record. Explanation from the subject can improve his chances, but repeated attempts can leave him exhausted or with a headache 9 17 34 47.
• Its effects are temporary. Shen Qi practices what he learns to improve his own ability 17 34.
• From Sequence 8 onward, he can summon and dismiss the book at will 34.

Acting

Shen Qi begins without formal acting training but learns quickly from direction and observation 5 7 12.

• He takes notes, studies scripts and character motives, and seeks guidance from actors including Guo Da, Fan Ming, and Li Mingqi 5 9 34 43.
• He can still struggle with demanding scenes: Kang Honglei pushes him through unconvincing romantic scenes, and Zhao Guangbin corrects his overly open expression as Zhen Zhibing 35 45 46.

Physical performance

• Swordsmanship: Learns Basic Swordsmanship from Wen Jingrou and later trains in the production’s Quanzhen sword choreography 17 22 38.
• Wire work: Improves through a recorded stunt rehearsal and Lin Feng’s instruction 8.
• Riding: Learns from Shi Feng, then spends several days riding and caring for the horse Lü Bu before filming 39 40 45.
• Rural work: His upbringing gives him practical experience harvesting wheat and helps him teach other Migrant Workers cast members rural habits 27 28.

Relationships

• Shu Chang — Friend and early supporter who finds him an audition for The Return of the Condor Heroes. He later agrees to help watch out for Liu Yifei at her request 1 14 44.
• Huang Qidao — Former roommate and close friend who houses him, helps with practical arrangements, and acts as his unofficial assistant 10 26 36.
• Wei Jianguo — Former roommate whose escort-work proposals Shen Qi rejects; they nevertheless maintain a teasing friendship 3 17 36.
• Wen Jingrou — University junior and martial-arts instructor who teaches him swordsmanship 16 17 26.
• Zhang Yi — Actor friend with whom he exchanges casting leads and works on Migrant Workers 6 7 27 35.
• Fan Ming — Fellow actor on My Own Swordsman and Migrant Workers; a frequent source of advice who comes to regard Shen Qi like a son 26 27 34.
• Huang Xiaoming — Fellow Return of the Condor Heroes actor whose fall Shen Qi breaks during a horse accident; their acquaintance becomes a friendship 41 42 45 48.
• Shi Feng — Martial-arts team member who teaches him sword choreography and riding and shares a room with him on location 37 38 39 40.
• Liu Yifei — Co-star whom Shen Qi helps protect through set-safety arrangements; she later tries to catch him during a fall, and both end up in the water 44 47 50.

Trivia

• The Magic Book gives conflicting birth dates—March 4, 1981, and March 2, 1981—as well as conflicting height and weight entries 8 34.
• Shen Qi repeatedly mistakes the Magic Book’s side effects for changes in his everyday abilities, including his worsening sense of direction early in the story 2.
• He turns down a proposed route into the Dream China talent competition because he distrusts its contracts and wants to pursue acting 24 36.