Zhao Qiu

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Zhao Qiu (赵秋)
Alias(es)	Little Ball, used by Zhou Fan; Brother Qiu; Frog Emperor, his chosen masked stage name 120 158 159 451
Gender	Male 169
Affiliation	Xinghai University, first-year Class Six; Dawn 169 328
Occupation/Role	Student, Taijutsu specialist, and founding member of Dawn 256 272
Innate Ability	A-rank Gigantification, also rendered as Giantification 5 6 159
Cultivation	Fourth tier, three stars—the latest explicitly stated base rank 450
Status	Alive 497
First Appearance	Chapter 5 5

Power Progression

Temporary Life Shackles boosts are distinguished from permanent cultivation ranks.

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Gigantification awakened	5 6	Awakens the day before the school combat test. His A-rank ability lets him kill a first-tier, one-star wolf in one move.
Second tier, five stars	158 159	First explicitly stated cultivation rank. Independently completes an assignment to kill five beasts of the same rank.
Twofold → threefold gravity training	182 183 184	Begins gravity conditioning with Duan Fei and completes training under triple gravity.
Life Shackles: First Muscle Lock	212	Reveals his self-created five-lock technique. At this point, he can release only the first lock.
Life Shackles: Second through Fourth Locks	256	Demonstrates the Tendon and Bone, Metabolism, and Internal Organ Locks while sparring with Zhou Fan.
Third tier, four stars	330	Explicitly identified as his base rank before activating Life Shackles against Gu Yu.
Fourth tier, one star—temporary	330	Opening the Third Metabolism Lock raises his strength from third tier, four stars.
Fourth tier, two stars—temporary	330	Opening the Fourth Internal Organ Lock further increases his strength during the same fight.
Life Shackles: Fifth Origin Lock	352	First documented activation of the final lock, which burns his body and blood to generate power.
Fourth tier, three stars	450	Latest stated base rank. With Life Shackles, he can contend with a fifth-tier Esper.
Eight Gates Technique: Fourth Gate	452	Learns from Zhou Fan’s Shadow Clone and reaches the Fourth Gate in under an hour. Fails to open the fifth and discovers that the technique cannot simply be stacked with Life Shackles.

Background / History

Zhao Qiu comes from a fairly well-off family. He does not join Dawn for money and considers the organization’s image more important than its salary arrangements 272.

At Xinghai University, he is the only male student in first-year Class Six, taught by Wang Yiyi. His classmates are Situ Ya and Li Mengmeng; their regular training produces coordinated frontline, water, and earth attacks during the Falling Moon City mission 169 170 171.

His friendship with Zhou Fan predates their university missions. Zhao supported Zhou when others mocked his C-rank ability, something Zhou remembers when lending him Susanoo armor 159.

Appearance

• Build: Large, burly, and round-bodied; Gu Yu initially recognizes him as the “fat guy from Xinghai University” 186 328 348.
• Gigantified form: Becomes a giant over three meters tall during his Demon Wolf assignment 159.
• Susanoo-armored form: Stands over thirty meters tall when enlarged and covered in Zhou Fan’s armor 362.
• Formal styling: A haircut and new outfit arranged by Zhou Fan make him look noticeably sharper and more handsome before Gu Yu’s birthday dinner 497.

Personality

Zhao Qiu is boastful, playful, and eager to look impressive. He celebrates strong performances, trades insults with his friends, and maintains his bravado even after being knocked down. His humor includes deliberately absurd interpretations of sayings and exaggerated declarations of his own genius 6 117 283 364.

Despite his physical toughness, he is cautious about dangerous missions. He prefers retreating to unnecessary risks and explicitly places survival above proving himself. That caution does not prevent genuine sacrifice: he later fights four guards alone so Zhou can rescue Lin Qianqian 186 348 372 376.

He is perceptive about other people’s romantic feelings but remarkably oblivious to his own. He recognizes Lin’s jealousy and the significance of her protective pendant, yet repeatedly misses Gu Yu’s attempts to spend time alone with him 224 400 447 448.

His loyalty to Zhou is not free of envy, but he openly distinguishes the two: Zhou’s rapid improvement makes him jealous while also making him genuinely happy. Friendly competition similarly drives him to defend and refine his own Taijutsu 213 256 452.

Abilities & Skills

Gigantification

An A-rank Taijutsu-type superpower that enlarges his body or individual body parts while increasing physical power. Enlargement also strengthens his attack and defense, rather than merely changing his size 6 159 171.

• Enlarges his right hand until it is bigger than his entire normal body during the school test 5.
• Changes different body parts independently, including reducing one fist’s size to deliver faster repeated punches 159.
• Retains better basic physical fitness than non-Taijutsu Espers even without enlarging himself 182.
• Can combine Gigantification with Life Shackles and externally supplied Susanoo armor 363.

Life Shackles

A superpower Zhao creates himself, not a skill derived from Gigantification. It releases bodily limits in five stages, drawing progressively more strength from his physique 212.

Lock	Function
First: Muscle Lock	Releases muscular limits to unleash the muscles’ full strength 212.
Second: Tendon and Bone Lock	Builds on the first lock by drawing out the strength of his bones 212.
Third: Metabolism Lock	Drastically accelerates cellular metabolism to generate greater power 212.
Fourth: Internal Organ Lock	Pushes his internal organs to their limits and coordinates the strength of his entire body 212.
Fifth: Origin Lock	Burns his body—including muscles, nerves, bones, skin, and blood—to force out its remaining strength 212 352.

• Strength and toughness: Raises both offensive power and physical defenses, allowing him to continue advancing through Gu Yu’s burning whip strikes 330.
• Fourth-lock effectiveness: Its boost exceeds the corresponding Fourth Gate of Zhou’s Eight Gates Release during their early spar. Zhou wins narrowly because his base cultivation is higher 256.
• Sustained-use limit: Keeping four locks open overloads his body and requires periodic rest 301.
• Origin Lock cost: Fighting Tenshiki’s guards leaves his muscles, bones, and meridians severely damaged, though he survives 372 376.
• Later endurance: Can maintain his full power for roughly two hours, less than Duan Fei’s Immortal Body allows 452.

Martial Techniques

• Gigantic Machine Gun / Gigantification: Machine Gun — Rapid punches delivered while controlling his fists’ size; used against the Demon Wolf, crystal pillars, and Demon Tigers 159 283 348.
• Frenzied Machine Gun — Pins a mutant beast beneath him and repeatedly hammers its face with both fists 301.
• Full-Power Punch — Rapidly enlarges his fist for a heavy strike, forcing back an Execution Department member wearing a Black Tiger mask 411.
• Skyward Sparrow — Punches rapidly enough for friction with the air to produce flames and fiery air cannons 348 421.
• Tiger Heaven Crash — Fires a massive tiger-shaped air cannon. Destroys two crystal dragons and later overcomes Gu Yu’s Fire Cloud · Phoenix 283 330.
• Night Dragon — An Origin Lock-powered kick surrounded by blood-red energy forming a dragon’s head; sends East Style flying 372 373.

Eight Gates Technique

Zhao learns the technique from Zhou Fan’s Shadow Clone after defeating Duan Fei in a Life Shackles-versus-Eight Gates spar 451 452.

• Reaches the Fourth Gate in under an hour, aided by his Taijutsu specialization and experience developing Life Shackles 452.
• Cannot immediately advance to the Fifth Gate 452.
• Cannot simply stack Eight Gates with Life Shackles because the techniques overlap 452.
• Studies their differences to improve Life Shackles, which he considers better suited to himself 452.

Susanoo-Assisted Combat

Zhou Fan can cover Zhao in Susanoo armor and supply energy swords. Susanoo is borrowed support, not Zhao’s own ability; Zhao controls his movements while Zhou provides the armor 159 362.

• Defeats third-tier, five-star experimental beasts after initially being outmatched 159.
• Uses a ten-meter greatsword while standing over thirty meters tall 362.
• Stacks the armor with Gigantification and four Life Shackles to fight Seven-Tails, including aerial combat 363.
• The armor is not invulnerable: Five-Tails’ black energy attack damages it and drives him backward, requiring Zhou to repair it 362.

Combat Tactics and Limitations

• Close-range preference: His greatest damage depends on closing with opponents; Gu Yu exploits this through whip range and a defensive fire tornado 330.
• Adaptability: Stops charging directly, circles Gu Yu’s tornado, catches her whip, and pulls her out of cover 330.
• Environmental disadvantage: Fighting at sea limits his effectiveness, prompting Zhou to send him back to support Luo Luodong’s group 424.
• Mental vulnerability: Su Mei controls his body until Zhou destroys her psychic presence within his consciousness 423.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Frog Emperor mask — A toad-shaped mask chosen to conceal his identity; Zhao insists it represents the “Frog Emperor” and adopts that stage name 120.
• Flying Thunder God Kunai — Carries Zhou Fan’s teleportation mark, allowing Zhou to reach him immediately in an emergency 227.
• Frenzy Gauntlets — Treasure Secret Realm reward that enhances his Taijutsu; worn while breaking Ruan Qingqing’s crystal pillars 283.
• Black robe — Worn during Dawn’s Chaos Secret Realm expedition. Zhou refuses to let him add a mask, joking that it would make their leader difficult to identify 280.
• Exchanged bracelet — Zhao and Gu Yu exchange bracelets after spending a day together in Xinghai City 448.

Relationships

• Zhou Fan — Best friend, mission partner, trainer, and trusted source of backup. Zhao protects him, supports his leadership, and tries to advance his relationship with Lin; Zhou returns that loyalty through rescues, training, borrowed armor, and matchmaking 159 301 336 372 423 497.
• Gu Yu — National Competition opponent turned Void Rift teammate and developing romantic interest. Zhao defeats her, later fights beside her, exchanges bracelets with her, and attends her private birthday dinner. He continues to deny that their outings are dates 330 348 448 449 497.
• Lin Qianqian — Classmate, friend, and Dawn teammate. Zhao cooperates with her during the assessment, interprets her feelings for Zhou, and risks his life to enable her rescue 224 328 372 376 400.
• Duan Fei — Training partner, housemate, and friendly rival. Zhao initially distrusts him but offers him lodging to avoid interrupting Zhou and Lin’s time together; their later sparring drives both men’s improvement 180 181 182 451 452.
• Wang Yiyi — Adviser of first-year Class Six and leader of the class’s Falling Moon City mission 169 170.
• Situ Ya and Li Mengmeng — Class Six teammates whose ranged water and earth abilities complement his frontline fighting 169 171.
• Jiaoxin — Dawn colleague and fellow bounty hunter. They work together on organizational missions and the Three-Tails hunt 272 282.
• Su Mei — Enemy who forces him to steal the Sea God Spear through mind control. Once freed, Zhao reacts with fury and attacks her ally Auge 421 423 424.

Story Role / Major Arcs

School Test and University Training

• School combat test: Kills a first-tier, one-star wolf in one move and receives scores of 8, 9, 9, 8, and 9, the highest awarded at that point 5 6.
• Teacher selection: Asks his newly assigned teacher to accept Zhou as well, but the request is refused 77.
• Solo hunting assignment: Kills five second-tier, five-star beasts without Zhou intervening. Their return journey introduces She Wan’s stitched experimental beasts and Zhao’s first Susanoo-armored fight 158 159.
• Gravity conditioning: Trains with Duan Fei under increasingly heavy gravity before unveiling Life Shackles 182 184 203 212.

Dawn’s Early Missions

• Ashen City: Waits outside the Thunderclap Society’s base as backup, witnesses the Raymond battle, and attempts to deter the Blood Hand Society by invoking Xinghai University. The tactic instead triggers Ding Hao’s grudge against the school 232 243 248 252.
• Organization funding: Helps complete two bounty missions earning 800,000 in total. Dawn treats the earnings as operating funds, with a 10,000 monthly salary, reimbursed expenses, and possible bonuses 272.
• Three-Tails hunt: Helps Jiaoxin and Duan Fei defeat the fourth-tier, five-star Beast King. Ruan Qingqing then attempts to seize it; Zhao breaks her crystal pillars but is knocked down by a surviving crystal dragon 282 283.

National Competition

• Advanced Area: Escapes a pursuing pack with Zhou’s help, then joins him in the more dangerous zone. With four locks maintained, Zhao defeats roughly a fifth of the beasts they encounter before needing rest 300 301.
• Gu Yu duel: Overcomes her range advantage and fire tornado through a whip-catching maneuver, then defeats her Phoenix attack with Tiger Heaven Crash 330.
• Friendly cooperation: Teams up with Lin rather than fighting a fellow Dawn member for assessment points 328.

Void Rift Expedition

• Gu Yu partnership: Forms a team with his former opponent after they each kill half of a Demon Tiger pack. Later activates the Origin Lock and is rescued by Zhou and Yuan An 348 352 353.
• Tailed-beast encounters: Uses Zhou’s Susanoo armor to clear a beast-filled valley and combines it with Life Shackles against Seven-Tails 362 363.
• Lin’s rescue: Holds off Tenshiki’s four guards so Zhou can pursue her captor. Kills two guards, survives severe injuries, and expresses relief when Lin returns safely 372 373 376.
• Mistaken succession: Believes Zhou died in a Spatial Storm and proposes preserving Dawn by becoming its leader. Zhou returns during the announcement, and Zhao embraces him in relief 397.

Blood Society and Sea God Spear

• Apparent betrayal: Steals the spear and flees on a manta ray, attacking Zhou during the pursuit 421.
• Mind-control revelation: The theft is exposed as Su Mei’s manipulation rather than a voluntary betrayal. Zhou frees Zhao through Sharingan genjutsu 422 423.
• Retaliation: Opens his Fourth Internal Organ Lock and fights Auge, destroying their ship before returning to support the allied vessel 424.

Later Training and Gu Yu’s Courtship

• Xinghai outing: Initially tries to turn Gu Yu’s invitation into a group trip, but spends the day alone with her after Zhou intervenes. They exchange bracelets, and Zhao later watches her departure reluctantly 447 448 449.
• Taijutsu development: Defeats Duan Fei’s newly learned Fourth Gate using three Life Shackles, then learns Eight Gates himself to refine his own technique 451 452.
• Birthday dinner: With Zhou’s help, buys Gu Yu a scented plush toy and candy gift box, dresses up, travels to the Imperial Capital, and sincerely compliments her appearance 497.

Notable Quotes

“Good thing we're brothers. Seeing you get stronger makes me a little jealous, but deep down, I'm still really happy for you.” 213

“It wasn't that I couldn't beat them. I just didn't want to take the risk. My life matters more, after all.” 348

“Old Zhou, you have to bring Lin back!” 372

“And don't call me Little Ball! Only Old Zhou gets to call me that!” 451