White Marten

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	White Marten (白貂)
Species/Race	Venom-Eating Marten; subsequently evolves into a form not identified in Zhao Er’s reference book 60.
Affiliation	Zhao Er’s companion and hunting partner 48 60 63.
Occupation/Role	Mountain guide, scout, hunting assistant, and source of poisonous mist 69 90 143.
Cultivation Realm	Primordial Unity 143.
Status	Alive; continues accompanying Zhao Er 157.
First Appearance	Appears as a trapped Venom-Eating Marten during the Wang Family steward’s capture attempt 20.

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Further evolution of the Venom-Eating Marten	60	Develops silver markings on its forehead and becomes too fast for Bone Tempering–realm Zhao Er to track. Zhao Er suspects the Blackwater Fruit it previously ate caused the change; his reference book does not describe this evolved form.
Primordial Unity	143	Its speed increases again, and it reveals controllable black poisonous mist. Golden markings formerly confined to its forehead now extend along both sides of its body to its limbs. Lu Zhi had previously supplied a Black Mist Lotus to help it break through 123.

Background / History

Capture and First Cooperation

The Wang Family steward attempts to capture White Marten for a Clear Source Sect elder, valuing it at no less than two thousand taels. While trapped in Golden Silk Nets, it begins chewing through them. Zhao Er intervenes when he realizes the steward intends to eliminate witnesses 20.

White Marten bites the steward’s neck, saving Zhao Er after the steward’s punch leaves him unable to stand. Although the steward dies, his hand remains clamped around the marten. Zhao Er cuts the wrist tendons to release it. Rather than attack him or flee permanently, White Marten stays nearby and later brings him a venomous snake as repayment 21 22 24.

Blackwater Fruit and Hunting Partnership

On meeting Zhao Er again, White Marten offers him another snake and takes an interest in his iron halberd. It persuades him to follow it through the mountains to a lake, where it distracts a huge black serpent while Zhao Er attacks. Its real objective is the poisonous Spirit Plant fruit guarded by the serpent 45 46 47 48.

Their division of the spoils establishes a mutually beneficial arrangement: White Marten takes the fruit, while Zhao Er claims the serpent. It accepts his invitation to return with him and settles on his shoulder. Later, Zhao Er proposes continued cooperation in hunting snakes and finding Blackwater Fruit, and White Marten accompanies him down the mountain 48 60.

Life with Zhao Er

White Marten remains free to leave and hunt independently. Zhao Er explicitly regards their relationship as a partnership rather than conventional pet ownership. It nevertheless returns to his courtyard, shares snakes, and guides him on further hunts 63 67 69.

During the Red-Patterned Poison Spider hunt, it warns Zhao Er of hidden attackers but is itself caught in a net. After biting an opening, it leads him to the attackers’ concealed belongings; Zhao Er subsequently removes the remaining net. It then finds and eats a crimson herb in the spider’s cave 70 72 73 74.

White Marten also supports Zhao Er’s cultivation by gathering abandoned weapons for their metal. During his month of mountain seclusion, its daily searches supply much of the material needed for the Nine-Turn Golden Body Art. It later assists against the Rockhide Tiger by biting its ear and apparently injecting venom 90 91.

Primordial Unity and Poison Supply

After Zhao Er reaches Primordial Unity, he considers White Marten less useful in combat but has no intention of abandoning it. Lu Zhi gives it a Black Mist Lotus intended to help it advance, offering Zhao Er the prospect of another concealed helper 123.

Once White Marten reaches Primordial Unity, Zhao Er discovers that its new black mist remains controllable after he absorbs and releases it. He initially keeps the marten hidden from academy experts, then obtains an identification token from the Beast Taming Lineage. He collects its mist over three uninterrupted days and rewards it with poisonous spirit grass 143 146 149.

Although White Marten stays behind with the Dragonblood Horse during the Tyrant Blade Martial Hall operation, Zhao Er uses its collected mist in the assault. The mist’s controllability later helps motivate his search for a technique capable of controlling his other released poisons 150 151 156.

Appearance

White Marten is a small, slender creature whose cute appearance conceals lethal venom 22.

• Fur: Initially white, with silver forehead markings appearing after its further evolution 22 60.
• Later markings: At Primordial Unity, golden patterns extend from its forehead down both sides of its body, stopping at the limbs 143.
• Eyes and nose: Large, glossy black eyes and a small pink nose 22 69.
• Movement: Commonly appears as a white blur or streak because of its exceptional speed 21 60 143.

Personality

White Marten is intelligent, playful, and capable of reciprocating kindness. It repays Zhao Er’s rescue with a snake, repeatedly offers him food, and uses gestures to recruit him for tasks it cannot accomplish alone. Its affectionate habits include rubbing its head against him, rolling on the ground, and resting on his shoulder 22 46 48 67.

It is skittish around unfamiliar people and prefers mountain routes that avoid other martial artists. An unexpected visitor can send it hiding inside Zhao Er’s clothes. This timidity does not prevent protective behavior: it threatens Wu Xing on his first approach and attacks the Rockhide Tiger during Zhao Er’s struggle 67 69 74 91.

Its cooperation is selective. It refuses to enter the spider cave to lure out the beast and shows little enthusiasm for exploring the Witch Toad’s swamp or searching nearby for herbs. Food can quickly change its mood, as shown when a poisonous spirit-grass reward immediately dispels its exhausted expression 69 81 149.

Abilities & Skills

Venomous Bite and Sharp Teeth

• Its bite carries deadly poison; biting the Wang Family steward’s neck saves Zhao Er from a fatal follow-up attack 21 24.
• It bites holes through all three Golden Silk Nets, despite Zhao Er being unable to tear their material by hand 22.
• It also chews an opening in the transparent net used by the hidden attackers 72.
• Its bite leaves two small punctures and blackened flesh in the Rockhide Tiger’s ear, suggesting substantial venom injection 91.
• Limit: Against the huge black serpent, its swipes leave no marks, and the creature’s size and defenses prevent an effective bite 47.

Controllable Black Poisonous Mist

• After reaching Primordial Unity, it exhales black mist and shapes it into a small snake-like form 143.
• The mist drains vitality and is more potent than Blackwater Strange Serpent toxin. Zhao Er judges that even Primordial Unity martial artists would probably struggle to defend against it 143.
• Zhao Er can absorb the mist, release it again, and shape it into needles, miniature halberds, or a small marten while retaining control 143.
• Collected mist becomes one of the poisons Zhao Er spreads during the Tyrant Blade Martial Hall assault 151.
• Limits: This control does not initially extend to Zhao Er’s other toxins. White Marten’s supply is finite and is exhausted after three days of continuous collection 143 149.

Speed and Agility

• It moves between trees in rapid bursts and repeatedly evades the black serpent’s head and tail strikes 46 47.
• Following its first documented evolution, even the stronger Zhao Er cannot see its movement path 60.
• It remains faster than Zhao Er while he uses the level-four Light Swallow Art 107.
• Limit: Zhao Er’s improved Thousand Mechanisms Eye Art lets him anticipate and catch its pounce despite its Primordial Unity breakthrough 143.

Scouting and Communication

• Knows the mountain terrain well and leads Zhao Er around dangers and other martial artists 46 69.
• Finds venomous snakes, poisonous plants, and discarded weapons useful for Zhao Er’s cultivation 74 90 107.
• Communicates through squeaks, coos, hisses, pointing, and physical demonstrations; it even wriggles like a snake when trying to explain its request for help 46.
• Its urgent cries serve as danger warnings that Zhao Er learns to recognize 70 90.
• Limit: Zhao Er cannot reliably interpret all its gestures, and its refusal to scout certain locations limits its usefulness 69 81.

Recovery and Poisonous Diet

• Its injured leg and visible wounds recover remarkably quickly after the steward nearly crushes it to death 22.
• Regularly eats venomous snakes and consumes highly poisonous plants, including Blackwater Fruit, a crimson herb, and Black Mist Lotus 22 48 74 123.
• Limit: After eating the unknown crimson herb, it becomes unusually sluggish and sleeps inside Zhao Er’s clothes 74 76.

Equipment / Items

• Identity Token — A pendant purchased from the Beast Taming Lineage, made from wood-element spirit ore to help condense its inner force. One side bears “Martial”; the other reads “Southern Mountain · Zhao Er” 149.
• Poison-pill pouch — A small cloth pouch worn around its neck, containing poison pills Zhao Er buys specifically as snacks 157.
• Tiger-hide nest — Sleeps in a small nest made of tiger hide in Zhao Er’s cultivation chamber 97.

Relationships

• Zhao Er — Rescuer, hunting partner, and caregiver. Their reciprocal assistance develops into an affectionate bond; Zhao Er supplies poisonous food while White Marten provides guidance, materials, warnings, and venom 21 22 48 90 149 157.
• Wang Family steward — Captor who intends to sell it to a Clear Source Sect elder. White Marten poisons him but needs Zhao Er to release it from his grip after his death 20 21 24.
• Lu Zhi — Supplies Black Mist Lotus to help it break through. Its intelligence prompts a smile from the normally stern academy head 123.
• Wu Xing — Initially treated as a potential threat; White Marten hisses at him until Zhao Er soothes it 74.
• Dragonblood Horse — Zhao Er’s other animal companion. White Marten rides on its back and is left with it during an off-campus mission 150 157.

Trivia

• Zhao Er’s hallucination in the Bewitching Flower field makes White Marten appear as a tiny white-haired person; this is a toxin-induced vision, not a demonstrated transformation 107.
• It tastes a leg of the Golden-Backed Heavenly Dragon, then spits it out in disgust 60.
• It has no interest in the poison-neutralizing starfall grass Zhao Er collects to sell 107.
• When Zhao Er’s painful cultivation wakes it, it briefly covers its ears before returning to sleep 87.