Zuo Ci

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Zuo Ci (左赐)
Alias(es)	Mystery Merchant; “Dad”; “Little Bastard” during childhood 30 73 119 178
Species/Race	Human transmigrator with system-purchased enhancements and a Santa Claus bloodline 68 104 167
Gender	Male
Age	Approximately 24 when recounting his childhood 73
Height	1.8 meters in his ordinary form 33
Affiliation	Old Dad’s General Store; informal Gotham alliance; anti-Viltrumite expedition 12 80 122
Occupation/Role	General-store owner, interworld merchant, employer, and paid magical healer 12 71 172
Residence	Gotham; operates from Old Dad’s General Store 12 73
Status	Alive at the latest documented appearance 180
First Appearance	Earliest supplied appearance: Chapter 2 2

Power Progression

Zuo Ci advances through purchased enhancements, system upgrades, spells, and borrowed powers rather than a conventional cultivation hierarchy.

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Basic physical enhancement	17 55	His initial enhancement is identified retrospectively when he explains upgrading it after fighting Deathstroke. Armor remains essential against gunfire.
First system upgrade	24 32	Reaching $3 million in assets unlocks the upgrade. Completion adds an expanded shop, discounts, more quests, prospective cross-world missions, and recruitment.
Advanced physical enhancement	55	Purchased after Deathstroke exposed his shortcomings. Raises his raw physical ability to Batman’s level, without matching Batman’s fighting skill.
Santa Claus bloodline	68	Wearing red triggers a major all-around enhancement, lie detection, and retractable sled runners. Purchased to reduce his dependence on gadgets.
Bathing in Spring, Level 1	71	Permanently purchased for $10 million. Its healing scales with attack power, making his enhanced Santa form especially effective.
Expanded spell collection	107 109	After his savings exceed $1 billion, he buys numerous spells, including Ice Dragon Wave and a Wizard Zombie sleep spell.
Borrowed Conquest power	120 121	Power Transfer Gloves temporarily give him Conquest’s strength. He trains with Mark and Superman to improve control.
Loss of borrowed Conquest power	121 122	Attempting to transfer Superman’s power overloads and destroys the gloves; Conquest’s power returns to its owner.
Replacement gloves and power storage	125 126	Discovers that a replacement glove can transfer power through nonliving objects. Stores power from two Viltrumites and absorbs it before treating War Beast.
Buffed Stand use	128	Stacks mental-power buffs before using Sticky Fingers to unzip Viltrum’s planetary shield.
Expanded White Snake extraction	131	Enhanced mental power allows White Snake to extract many superpowers, not just Stands. Takes Angstrom Levy’s portal ability as a DISC.
Independent interworld travel	132	Combining Angstrom’s ability with purchased coordinates lets him return to Gotham. Also initiates another system upgrade, which requires returning to his original world.
Temporary “Regent Thaedus mode”	135	Uses glove-transferred strength that Diana compares to Superman’s. The power drains unusually quickly after his return to Gotham.
Temporary return to baseline	139	During a Warhammer episode of uncertain reality, both borrowed Viltrumite strength and his system-acquired strength disappear. His trained reflexes remain.
Expanded Overlord magic	149 155	Purchases elemental spells and items, then demonstrates the super-tier spell Heaven and Earth Transformation against a tsunami.
Psychic power	155 156	Redeemed for situations magic cannot handle. Creates a barrier to redirect a flood, but overexertion causes bleeding.
Temporary divine state	168 170	God’s cross surrounds him with holy light and Heaven’s Gate. He cannot end the state himself or compel God to rebuild Gotham.

Background / History

Childhood and education

Zuo Ci was born in a vocational high-school bathroom and raised by his only relative, an eccentric man whose homemade bomb had left shrapnel in his brain. Under that guardian’s influence, Zuo Ci developed an unusual talent for dangerous inventions: he could make tin mice at eighteen months, despite not learning to talk until three or walk until five 73.

At elementary school, his “toys” included explosive beanbags and a watch with a concealed blade. He also collected pieces of classmates’ uniforms to assemble his own “Million-Strong Army” outfit. His teacher repeatedly intervened to stop these activities 73. Another childhood account shows him demanding snacks as tribute from classmates and giving Mr. Ma homemade oil-spraying shoes; the resulting fall and failed rescue left the teacher with broken ribs and three months of sick leave 108.

In middle school, Zuo Ci targeted three bullies with escalating humiliation. When they hired a thug, he ambushed them with spoiled pig’s blood and stray dogs. Years later, they burned down his home, destroying his possessions and the last photograph of his deceased guardian. He retaliated by tying them to a motorized waterwheel overnight, leaving one mentally impaired, one insane, and one crippled 73.

He turned himself in and spent a year in juvenile detention. Afterward, he completed school and graduated from college, but was transported to Gotham before finding employment 73.

Arrival in Gotham

During his first night, Zuo Ci made money by defeating would-be robbers and recycling their belongings through the system. Batman approached after hearing him mention the Joker, prompting Zuo Ci to introduce himself as a mysterious merchant 2.

He initially stayed in a cheap East End motel and bought a legal identity from the system 4. Within twenty-four hours of arriving, he was already accompanying Batman to help Harvey 8. He later admitted that he had known Batman’s identity from the moment he entered this universe, explaining that such information was public in other worlds 104.

Using money obtained from Batman, he opened Old Dad’s General Store. His stated goal was financial independence from Wayne Enterprises and a peaceful life—not responsibility for Gotham’s supernatural conspiracies 12.

Appearance

Batman initially identifies him as an Asian man; his ordinary build is relatively slender compared with his transformed body 2 68.

• Ordinary form: 1.8 meters tall, though dwarfed by Jack Hanma 33.
• Mage clothing: Commonly wears a Mage Robe or face-concealing hood, although the disguise does little to hide his identity 30 68.
• Santa form: Becomes a hulking, muscular figure almost Bane’s size, wearing red clothing and a red hood with a white beard visible beneath it 68.
• Enhanced Santa appearance: Radiates a red glow during the Gotham Square rescue 71.
• Divine manifestation: Floats amid holy light, hymns, and Heaven’s Gate 168.

Personality

Zuo Ci is openly profit-driven. He monetizes flights, medical treatment, weapons, and access to unusual merchandise, while treating defeated enemies’ equipment as potential income. He prefers an easy shopkeeper’s life, but becomes enthusiastic about fighting villains when their operations offer valuable loot 12 59 80.

His caution coexists with strong pride. He refuses to investigate the Court of Owls and Joker when he believes doing so would involve Barbatos, rejects dangerous recruitment candidates, and delays a Viltrumite expedition until better prepared 12 33 117. Conversely, he resents the Maronis more than Falcone because their recruitment scheme insults his intelligence, whereas Falcone’s expensive bounty acknowledges him as a serious threat 32.

His cruelty frequently takes the form of elaborate humiliation rather than straightforward killing. He uses threats, curses, forced labor, and magical bodily restoration to punish opponents. His preference for nonlethal methods is not a firm moral prohibition: he prepares to kill Bane and deploys lethal force in other battles 15 68 103 154.

He nevertheless shows genuine compassion. Finding a feverish homeless boy and his elderly dog deeply affects him; he treats the child, removes both from the cold, and promises they will survive 39 42. He also heals Nora and Victor and gives Penguin medicine for his mother 105. His Santa bloodline temporarily makes him more charitable, although he still regrets the expense afterward 72.

He prefers direct negotiations to concealed requests and flattery. His willingness to trust also varies sharply: he readily lends Superman the Power Transfer Gloves, while stating that he would not do the same for Batman 43 121.

Abilities & Skills

Merchant System

• Exchanges money for goods, enhancements, and services, including a legal identity and recycling defeated robbers’ clothing 2 4.
• Reserves some exceptionally rare products for mission points rather than cash 24.
• Recruits people from other worlds when Zuo Ci can fulfill their personal wishes 32.
• Provides storage, scans, and identification assistance; its scan finds no hidden contingencies in the Emperor’s shipment 99 128 175.
• Becomes unavailable during upgrades, forcing him to rely on previously redeemed supplies 32.
• Charges aggressively and frequently refuses assistance, but Zuo Ci considers its practical work reliable 4 170 175.

Physical Enhancement and Combat

• Advanced enhancement gives him raw physical ability comparable to Batman’s 55.
• His early combat experience is limited: Deathstroke defeats his evasive attempts, and Bane exploits his showy technique 17 68.
• Later displays impressive technique, combat intelligence, and intuition while using Conquest’s power. Superman says Zuo Ci would have won had their strength been equal 121.
• Retains developed reflexes even when his supernatural strength temporarily disappears 139.
• Uses remote bodies to avoid exposing himself to stronger enemies’ counterattacks 116.

Santa Claus Bloodline

• Activates by wearing red, including clothing stained with blood 68.
• Enhances his abilities broadly rather than merely increasing size and strength 68.
• Grants lie detection and razor-sharp sled runners, which he uses to wound Bane and sever his Venom tube 68.
• Reverts through Puchi Candy from SANDA 68.
• Influences his personality toward kindness and gift-giving 72.

Healing: *Bathing in Spring*

• Restores the user and nearby teammates; healing strength scales with his attack power 71.
• Can save catastrophically injured people provided they have not already died 71.
• Has a small area, described as five by five, but a low resource cost: he can cast it twenty times consecutively without difficulty 71.
• Repairs old injuries and regenerates removed organs 71 154.
• Does not preserve surgical alterations, allowing him to undo Hush’s cosmetic transformation into Bruce Wayne 103.
• Used to treat crowds, restore Gordon’s strength, and heal Harvey’s disfigured face 71 72 143.

Offensive Magic and Curses

• Ice Dragon Wave: Low-cost attack with forced knockback; its casting windup is its principal drawback 107 109.
• Wizard Zombie sleep spell: Deals no damage but forces the target to sleep 109.
• Grasp Heart: Causes Conquest pain without decisive lasting injury; later kills War Beast as part of a planned cure 119 126 127.
• Elemental magic: Combines water saturation and lightning to dry Clayface into brittle pieces 149.
• Heaven and Earth Transformation: Super-tier terrain-altering magic used to freeze a tsunami; designed more for environmental change and area debuffs than direct damage 155.
• “Bullseye” curse: Makes anything launched from Deadshot’s body return to strike him, including blood and broken teeth 153.
• Kidney Stone Cycle: Inflicts recurring stones on Hugo; Zuo Ci threatens to intensify it while healing away Hugo’s attempts to escape through self-surgery 153 154.

Stands and Spatial Abilities

• Boogie Woogie: Swaps positions with a Viltrumite immediately before War Beast attacks 128.
• Sticky Fingers: Creates a zipper in Viltrum’s planetary shield, opening it without breaking through by force 128.
• White Snake: Extracts powers as DISCs. Non-Stand extraction requires a completely nonresisting target and a manageable power gap 131.
• Angstrom’s portal ability: Enables interworld travel when combined with the relevant coordinates 131 132.
• Sling Ring: Opens a portal directly into Hal Jordan’s mother’s hospital room 178.
• Limit: His attempt to retrieve Superman through a portal fails during Gotham’s elemental crisis 133.

Divination and Foreknowledge

• Uses a Crystal Ball to locate Bane’s scattered bases and investigate the Elliot Family 58 75.
• Divination consumes substantially more mana than Bathing in Spring 71.
• A failed reading leads him and Harvey to suspect magical interference, without confirming the cause 80.
• Uses knowledge of comics to recognize characters and explain Mark’s possible future, while stressing that those events are not inevitable 104 109 110.

Psychic Power

• Shapes psychic force through desire and concentration rather than the steadier development associated with magic 156.
• Forms a curved barrier capable of catching and redirecting a tsunami 156.
• Is difficult to control; overuse causes physical strain and bleeding 156.

Behavioral Control and Restoration

• Gentle Bullet: Temporarily makes Deathstroke remorseful and peaceable for one hour without reducing his fighting ability 18.
• Powdered Gentle Bullets: Mixed into store incense to reduce visitors’ aggression 24.
• Hypno-shroom powder: Hypnotizes Bane’s largely mindless test subjects, but produces disorderly, childlike behavior 55.
• Contracts: Secures War Beast’s promise not to attack Superman 126.
• Resurrection treatment: Combines two Slay the Spire potions to revive War Beast and prevent his curse from returning 127.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

Item	Function / Details
The King’s New Armor	Invisible, weightless armor costing $5,000 per set. Stops Deathstroke’s initial shot, but sustained fire forces Zuo Ci to replace it 17.
Tracking Pistol	$20,000 weapon whose bullets pursue targets and avoid obstacles 17.
Electric Rat and lipstick-shaped taser	Electrical devices used against robbers and to intimidate Emily 2 4 29.
Mysterio drones	Produce projections and elaborate visual illusions; also perform scans, combat operations, photography, and signal jamming 17 43 60 67 68.
Power Transfer Gloves	Borrow or store another being’s power. One pair burns out when tested on Superman; a replacement works through a mannequin 120 121 125.
Titan	Giant combat machine obtained through a deal with the Emperor. Its armor withstands Hugo’s giant’s sword, and its power fist kills the creature 102 103 172.
Buffer Potion	Completely blocks one instance of damage; uninterrupted strangulation counts as a single instance 119.
Weaponized guitar	Sonic attacks incapacitate Conquest 119.
Dave’s Garden Shovel	Uproots Ivy’s enormous underground plant body without damaging Gotham’s ground or foundations 157 158.
Genuine Santa Claus hat	Gift from the real Santa; increases charm toward children and grants a yearly Christmas luck boost 72.
God’s cross	Activates when he shouts “hallelujah,” producing his heavenly manifestation 168.
Emperor’s enhancement shipment	Twenty-two Stasis Fields containing eighteen Space Marine Gene-seeds, Primaris technology and materials, the Alpha Primus technique, and a Gene-seed made from the Emperor’s genes. Intended partly to strengthen Jack 175.

• Transport: Uses nitrous-boosted roller skates, a sleigh, and a jetpack 39 71 128.
• Special-purpose merchandise: Includes powerful magnets, extra-strength weed killer, Doom-shrooms, sensitivity potion, and missiles filled with Super Itch Powder 37 99 116 128.

Relationships

• Batman / Bruce Wayne — Customer, uneasy ally, and later business adviser. Initially investigates Zuo Ci; their cooperation grows despite disagreements over his punishments and secrecy 2 15 104 172.
• Alfred Pennyworth — Encourages Batman to trust him and successfully invokes Robin’s welfare to restrain his interrogation methods 15 150.
• James Gordon — Collaborator in investigations and emergency response. Sometimes cooperates with Zuo Ci’s coercive fundraising while maintaining plausible deniability 58 72.
• Harvey Dent — Early rescue concern and later fellow investigator. Zuo Ci heals his disfigurement during the plant crisis, interrupting his emotional collapse 8 80 143.
• Jack Hanma — Cross-world recruit whose wish is greater strength. Zuo Ci supplies enhancement pills, heals his injuries, and considers the Emperor’s materials for further improvement 33 71 175.
• Penguin / Oswald Cobblepot — Begins as a grateful contact seeking favor and becomes an employee. Pledges lifelong loyalty after receiving medicine for his mother 43 105.
• Mr. Freeze / Victor and Nora — Zuo Ci heals Nora and largely cures Victor. Victor works for him under their agreement and eagerly seeks to repay him 99 105 178.
• Poison Ivy — Adversary, debtor, and occasional paid collaborator. Their dealings alternate between humiliation, useful plant-related gifts, and renewed conflict 38 60 62 72 157 158.
• Deathstroke — Former bounty hunter turned customer. Accepts free weapons and ammunition in exchange for future assistance 18 22 24.
• Superman — Trusted ally, sparring partner, and moral counterweight. Owes Zuo Ci a favor after accidentally destroying his gloves 110 117 121.
• Mark Grayson — Receives warnings about his possible future, training support, and help against alternate Marks and Conquest 110 116 119 120.
• Black Essence / Black Sperm — Recruited survivor from One-Punch Man. His duplicates perform Gotham’s reconstruction work, for which Zuo Ci pays the promised wages 155 172.
• The Emperor / “Yellow Pelt” — Warhammer trading contact and source of the Titan and enhancement shipment. Zuo Ci remains suspicious of his motives 172 175.
• God — Grants assistance after Zuo Ci contacts him with a Conversation Ticket, but refuses excessive power-up requests 166 167.
• Hal Jordan — Prospective medical customer seeking help for his dying mother. Zuo Ci rejects the suggestion that payment must involve Hal’s life or soul 178.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Arc	Major Events
Establishing the store	Survives through robberies turned against their perpetrators, attracts Batman’s attention, obtains identification, and opens Old Dad’s General Store 2 4 12.
Falcone and Maroni conflicts	Falcone’s million-dollar bounty brings assassins to the shop. Zuo Ci neutralizes Deathstroke, retaliates against the mob, receives $5 million and a Jade Guanyin statue, then targets the Maronis after exposing Emily’s sabotage scheme 16 18 23 28 29 32.
Homeless boy rescue	Discovers a sick child and his dog Bruce during a snowstorm. The encounter reveals suffering outside his comfortable neighborhood and leaves him deeply troubled 39 42.
Bane crisis and Christmas	Raids Bane’s bases until his wealth exceeds $30 million, defeats Bane’s Venom-enhanced form, and heals Gotham Square’s wounded for a $20 million payment. Distributes Christmas presents afterward 59 68 71 72.
Hush conspiracy	Leads an undercover investigation, extracts the enemy’s hidden metal base, destroys Hugo’s giant with his Titan, and reverses Hush’s surgical disguise. Receives Elliot Family shares as part of the financial aftermath 80 99 103 109.
Invincible War	Connects Mark with Superman, accepts Cecil’s funding, destroys multiple alternate Marks using a Catachan Barking Toad, and captures another through remote-operated attacks 110 115 116 117.
Conquest and Viltrum expedition	Defeats Conquest through sensory attacks, tests his rehabilitation in a nursing home, cures War Beast, and bypasses Viltrum’s shield with Sticky Fingers before releasing Super Itch Powder 119 120 122 127 128.
Return to devastated Gotham	Returns after more than a year elsewhere—roughly a month in Gotham—and finds the city overrun by plants, monsters, and gang warfare. His portal attempt to bring Superman back fails 132 133.
Disaster response	Heals allied defenders, contains radiation from a nuclear giant’s explosion, recruits Black Essence, redirects a tsunami, and uproots Ivy’s enormous plant body 143 154 155 156 158.
Divine intervention and reconstruction	Contacts God to resolve the crisis, then exploits his divine appearance to threaten officials into supporting repairs. Hires engineers and Black Essence’s workforce to rebuild Gotham 166 167 168 170 172.
Warhammer commerce	Consults Batman and selects Shocker Combatant Modification Technology for trade. Later receives the Emperor’s extensive Space Marine enhancement resources 172 175.
Hal’s mother and Death	Treats most of Hal’s mother’s cancer cells. The alteration of her destined death, carrying traces of Heaven, draws Death’s attention; she visits to investigate rather than punish him 178 180.

Notable Quotes

“But Maroni actually took me for an idiot and tried to insult my intelligence with that moronic plan. Some things are just beyond tolerating, okay?” 32

“Money, obviously. What else would it be? Love and justice?” 59

“I'm telling you, I might be a tiny bit ridiculous most of the time, but I do know proper magic, okay!” 71

Trivia

• His initial legal identity contains a personal history Batman recognizes could not belong to him 104.
• He remains single and expresses no interest in dating or marriage during the Viltrum expedition 123.
• God explains that outsiders receive separate multiverses to avoid conflicts and copyright problems, and identifies Zuo Ci’s story as being on the Tomato platform. After returning, Zuo Ci remembers only that God agreed to help 167 168.
• Chapter 174 presents an authorial outline rather than a fully dramatized arc: it describes a future Brainiac victory, a Warhammer visit, a scheme with Cegorach, and the purchase of a One-Time Pencil capable of changing reality with one sentence 174.