Zhang Erguo

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Zhang Erguo (张尔果)
Alias(es)	Senior Brother Guo; Senior Brother Guo'er; Senior Brother Erguo 26 31 71
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Azure Mystic Sect 25 26
Occupation/Role	Registered disciple; newcomer escort at Verdant Mist Hall; participant in the Ailin reinforcement mission 25 30 31
Cultivation	Mid Embryonic Breath — Transforming Force 59
Residence	Lower court, after losing his middle-court placement 29 30
Status	Alive; survives the Ailin crisis and later attends a celebration at Instructor Yan’s courtyard 72 86
First Appearance	Chapter 25, “Yet the Wind Came Among the Clouds” 25

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Mid Embryonic Breath — Transforming Force	30 31	Reached after four years of cultivation, in the year preceding the Ailin expedition. Earned admission to the middle court soon afterward, though he later lost that placement after failing an assessment.

Background / History

Meeting Jiang Che

Zhang Erguo first meets Jiang Che when clerk Zhang Pou assigns him to escort the newly registered disciple from Verdant Mist Hall to the lower compound. During the walk, Zhang offers advice about sect life for ten spirit-stone chips. Jiang points out that guidance is already part of his official assignment and that charging privately could constitute soliciting a bribe; Zhang immediately retreats, claiming he was joking 25.

He nevertheless explains the sect’s disciple hierarchy, court placements, assessments, and Luo Wenling’s unusually high standing. Jiang subsequently gives him ten spirit-stone fragments as a voluntary thank-you. Zhang initially fears accepting the money could incriminate him, but accepts once Jiang clarifies its purpose. At the lower court, he introduces Jiang to Yan We iwan and entrusts her with the remainder of the tour 26.

Declining Prospects

Zhang, Jiang, and Yan We iwan become friends through shared meals. His conversation ranges from sect anecdotes to taverns in the town below the mountain, while Yan usually listens quietly. Their gatherings provide Jiang with comfortable companionship outside cultivation 29.

A family setback sharply reduces Zhang’s cultivation support. Previously inclined toward easy work such as welcoming newcomers, he begins taking more than twice as many menial assignments. The time spent working holds back his cultivation, and a failed assessment sends him from the better-resourced middle court back to the lower court 29 30.

After five years in the sect, Zhang fears he will not reach Qi Refining within the fifteen-year limit for registered disciples. Rather than wait for eventual demotion and live with regret, he chooses the dangerous Ailin posting. His feelings for Yan We iwan also influence that decision: after learning that worry over him contributed to her collapse, he blames his weakness and resolves to become someone worthy of seeing her again 29 30 31.

Early Battles in Ailin

Zhang shares a room with Jiang at Ailin’s Hall Department. He initially hopes Jiang’s connection with Steward Du Yongchang will improve their chances of survival, but Jiang warns that they may instead be sent into battle as expendable probes. Hu Yan recruits both men into her team, offering protection in exchange for information and a share of opportunities arising through Jiang’s connection to Du 33.

During a Corpse Tide battle, Zhang uses his Gourd Hammers to kill lesser monsters and rally fleeing soldiers. When another wave threatens to overwhelm him, Jiang provides support 35 36.

The fighting leaves Zhang exhausted and frightened enough to doubt whether he can survive the three-month assignment. Hu Yan rebukes him for undermining the group’s resolve, while Jiang offers gentler reassurance. Zhang promises to recover his composure and asks his companions to prioritize their own safety if he becomes a liability 38.

Investigating the Conspiracy

At Jiang’s request, Zhang makes inquiries about survivors of the earlier Demon Calamity and unusual circumstances surrounding the True Demon’s discovery. He learns that the reporting soldier and his entire patrol have died, and that the soldier appeared dazed before making his report. Although each detail has a plausible explanation, their combination suggests the discovery may have been deliberately engineered 49 50.

Zhang also reports the dead soldier’s family’s destitution: only part of the reporting reward was paid, and death benefits remain unpaid. Their military-household status legally prevents them from leaving Ailin, exposing the human cost behind the investigation 50.

The investigators’ patrol companies are later ambushed. Zhang reacts in time when his company commander attempts to kill him, then joins an outer disciple in killing the traitor. They escape separately, and Zhang spends roughly half an hour fighting while fleeing three Embryonic Breath monsters, two at Transforming Force. Jiang finds him badly wounded and treats him 58.

Despite his injuries, Zhang accompanies Jiang to rescue Hu Yan, who is fighting alone after her company’s destruction. He confines himself to ordinary monsters at the battle’s edges while Jiang and Hu Yan deal with the strongest opponent. After returning to Ailin in disguise, he accepts that his condition prevents further pursuit and withdraws to recuperate 58 59 60.

Guarding the Sutra

When demonic qi erupts from the Hall Department, Zhang escapes with help from fellow disciples. Rather than leave the city, he stays nearby out of concern for Jiang and Hu Yan, hoping he may still be useful. He rests in a secluded house until he sees animated corpses closing on Jiang, who cannot safely interrupt his scripture recitation 70 71.

With only about sixty percent of his normal strength and limited endurance, Zhang takes position in front of Jiang. He kills lesser monsters and three Embryonic Breath attackers, accepting further injuries rather than retreat. A Transforming Force monster eventually knocks away his hammer and throws him to the ground. Jiang kills it before it can finish him, and Zhang loses consciousness 71.

Jiang confirms that Zhang is no longer in immediate danger and settles him in a room. He credits Zhang’s intervention with buying the time needed to weaken the evil spirit through the sutra 72.

Recognition and Return

At the victory feast, Jiang publicly credits Zhang’s bloodied defense alongside Hu Yan’s contributions. Du Yongchang promises that neither disciple’s service will be omitted from the report to the sect. Zhang celebrates Jiang’s rise, though the contrast with his own uncertain future leaves him with mixed feelings 80 83.

Zhang continues helping Jiang after the battle, reporting the extraordinary news of an East City newborn who ages one year each day. Later, back at the sect, he takes pride in Jiang’s assessment performance and invites him to celebrate with Yan We iwan at Instructor Yan’s courtyard 77 86.

Appearance

• Build: Short, stout, and slightly plump 25.
• Face: Round, often wearing a broad smile 25 26.
• Movement: Despite his weight, he moves nimbly in combat 36.

Personality

Zhang is cheerful, talkative, and fond of good food. His wit makes him pleasant company, but his loose tongue can lead him into trouble: Jiang stops him from repeating salacious rumors about Hu Yan, prompting Zhang to realize she might be close enough to hear. He also shows an opportunistic streak when he initially tries to charge Jiang for guidance that falls within his assigned duties 25 29 30 31.

His confidence is less secure than his cheerful manner suggests. Slow cultivation, financial hardship, and comparison with Jiang’s rapid progress produce bitterness and self-reproach. Severe fighting briefly erodes his courage, yet fear does not prevent him from returning to help wounded or endangered friends. His loyalty is clearest when he remains in Ailin and defends Jiang despite his own unhealed injuries 31 38 58 71.

He is also compassionate toward people outside his immediate circle. He shows pity for a soldier facing execution and brings the reporting soldier’s impoverished family to his companions’ attention even though their suffering is not itself a decisive clue 35 50.

Abilities & Skills

Transforming Force

• Possesses the dense inner force of a mid Embryonic Breath cultivator 59 71.
• Can kill ordinary Demon Monsters with a single clean hammer blow, even while wounded 59 71.
• Injury sharply reduces his endurance and protective force; prolonged defense against Transforming Force monsters eventually overwhelms him 71.

Gourd Hammer Combat

• Wields a pair of Gourd Hammers with surprising agility 36.
• Picks off weaker enemies around the edges of large engagements 36 59.
• Can adopt an aggressive, defense-sacrificing assault to eliminate several attackers before a stronger enemy joins the fight 71.

Information Gathering

• Knows the sect’s ranks, court system, promotion requirements, and prominent disciples 26 31.
• Conducts local inquiries and identifies suspicious patterns in apparently unrelated events 49 50.
• Relays unusual public reports without pressing Jiang to disclose why he needs them 77.

Rallying Allies

• Calls fleeing soldiers back into resistance during the Corpse Tide battle 36.
• Attempts to persuade fellow disciples to remain nearby during the demonic outbreak, though they ultimately leave 71.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Gourd Hammers — His paired melee weapons; used against corpse monsters, during his escape from an ambush, and while protecting Jiang’s recitation 36 58 71.

Relationships

• Jiang Che — Junior fellow disciple, close friend, and sworn-in-spirit brother. Their relationship grows from an awkward escort assignment into mutual life-saving support. Jiang later distinguishes their bond as brotherhood: a relationship in which one can entrust another with one’s life 25 58 71 89.
• Yan We iwan — Friend and romantic interest. Jiang recognizes affection on both sides, but Yan’s mortal status and poor health complicate their prospects. Zhang’s desire to improve himself is partly tied to feeling worthy of her 29 30 31.
• Hu Yan — Expedition leader and battle companion. She offers protection, rebukes his despair, and fights alongside him; Zhang later helps rescue her despite his injuries 33 38 58 59.
• Zhang Pou — Verdant Mist Hall clerk who assigns him to escort Jiang Che 25.
• Du Yongchang — Senior sect authority who publicly acknowledges Zhang’s contribution to ending the Ailin crisis and promises to report his merits 80 83.

Notable Quotes

“Fine! We'll go together. Demons, monsters, ghosts—whatever the hell they are, we brothers will go to Ailin and fight them all!” 31

“Why say something like that? In any case, I trust you.” — Responding when Jiang Che asks whether he trusts him 49