Tang San

Biodata

Power Progression

Appearance

• Build: Small and slender as a Nuoding Academy student; subsequently described as lean 7 13.
• Hair: Black 7 57.
• Ocular technique: His eyes display a purple light when he activates Purple Demon Eye 60.

Personality

Tang San is deeply loyal to Yu Xiaogang and initially treats his teacher’s scholarship as authoritative. Although the prospect of sharing his teacher’s attention with Xiao Xuan makes him uncomfortable, he obeys the instruction to invite Xiao Xuan for guidance. He interprets the refusal as an insult rather than a personal choice 13.

His pride rests heavily on his Tang Sect inheritance, Twin Martial Souls, and access to Yu Xiaogang’s instruction. He struggles to accept that Xiao Xuan—a commoner with poor recorded innate aptitude—could surpass him. When reports suggest precisely that, he dismisses them as incompatible with the cultivation rules he knows 16 58.

Defeat leaves a lasting mark on him. He initially protests his loss to Xiao Xuan, then concedes and honors their wager by avoiding him at Nuoding Academy. Nevertheless, he continues to resent the humiliation and hopes to overturn it at graduation 17 27.

His attachment to Xiao Wu can override his judgment. After the Titan Giant Ape takes her, he pursues it while pushing his internal force without regard for damage to his meridians. In that state, he mistakes the Thundering Hell Vine for an ordinary obstruction and suffers an immediate counterattack 53.

His confidence in Yu Xiaogang eventually develops cracks. After personally witnessing Black Bamboo’s extraordinary Soul Rings and overwhelming strength, he questions his teacher directly and challenges the explanation that everything was an illusion. He suppresses his doubts, but no longer dismisses them as completely as before 69 70.

Abilities & Skills

Twin Martial Souls

Tang San possesses Blue Silver Grass and the Clear Sky Hammer. Yu Xiaogang’s deductions about his Twin Martial Souls lead Tang San to formally become his disciple 6 16 62.

• Blue Silver Grass: Used for battlefield control through numerous binding vines 16.
• Clear Sky Hammer: Identified as the foremost Tool Martial Soul. Tang San regards its crushing power as an advantage over a mutated bamboo Martial Soul, though the supplied passages do not show him using it in combat 62.

First Soul Skill: Entanglement

Entanglement sends dozens of thick, barbed vines out of the ground to surround and restrain a target 16.

• The Mandala Snake Soul Ring increases the toughness of his Blue Silver Grass and gives it a poison attribute 16.
• Its coverage impresses the students watching his duel with Xiao Xuan 16.
• Xiao Xuan cuts the vines apart with ordinary spear techniques, without activating a Soul Ring or using Soul Power 16.

Tang Sect Secret Arts

Tang San possesses the Tang Sect’s inner-disciple secret arts and is thoroughly familiar with the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record 58.

Purple Demon Eye

Tang San has reached the Minute Realm of Purple Demon Eye and uses it while observing a high-speed arena match 60.

• Allows him to observe details beyond ordinary eyesight 67.
• Helps him identify Black Bamboo through build, gait, and subtle movements despite changed clothing and a different mask 67.
• Does not reveal Black Bamboo’s uncovered face; Tang San later confirms that the masked fighter never exposed it 69.

Hidden Weapons

Tang San’s Hidden Weapon skills improve during his years at Nuoding Academy 27.

• Deploys the Godly Zhuge Crossbow and Flying God Claw against the Titan Giant Ape during Xiao Wu’s abduction 53.
• Plans to manufacture additional Hidden Weapons using his savings and anticipated gambling winnings 66.
• His attacks fail to stop the Titan Giant Ape from carrying Xiao Wu away 53.

Equipment / Weapons / Items

• Godly Zhuge Crossbow — Sleeve-deployed weapon used against the Titan Giant Ape 53.
• Flying God Claw — Deployed alongside the crossbow during the same encounter 53.
• Money pouch — Contains all his accumulated savings, intended partly for further Hidden Weapon production. He wagers its contents on Black Bamboo’s tenth arena match and loses them when Black Bamboo concedes 65 66.
• Eight Spider Lances — not acquired — Xiao Xuan kills the treasure-bearing Man Faced Demon Spider before Tang San can encounter it. Tang San remains unaware of the missed External Soul Bone 31 59.

Relationships

• Yu Xiaogang — Teacher. Tang San formally accepts him after hearing his deductions about Twin Martial Souls, defends his reputation, and relies on his cultivation theories. Black Bamboo’s apparent violations of those theories eventually provoke Tang San’s first direct challenge to his teacher 6 13 16 69 70.
• Xiao Wu — Close companion and fellow student. She proposes the wager intended to force Xiao Xuan to apologize, accompanies Tang San toward Shrek, and watches over him after his later injury. Her abduction sends him into a reckless pursuit 13 28 53 69.
• Xiao Xuan / Black Bamboo — Nuoding classmate and enduring rival. Tang San loses their duel, observes the resulting avoidance agreement, and later pursues the masked Black Bamboo with Flender. He suspects a connection between the two identities but does not see the masked fighter’s face 17 27 57 67 69.
• Tang Hao — Father and a Titled Douluo. His concealed presence is a major reason Xiao Xuan initially avoids provoking Tang San 6 27.
• Ah Yin — Mother. Xiao Xuan identifies Tang San’s Blue Silver Grass as an inherited Martial Soul while speaking to her 28.
• Flender — Shrek’s dean. Places Tang San’s arena bet and later joins him in confronting Black Bamboo; both are injured in the encounter 65 67 69.
• Zhao Wuji — Shrek teacher who intercepts Black Bamboo’s attack on the fleeing Tang San. He blocks most of its force, though the remaining impact still seriously injures Tang San 69.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Nuoding Academy and Apprenticeship

Tang San kneels and formally becomes Yu Xiaogang’s disciple after the latter explains his Twin Martial Souls. Their first documented Soul Ring hunt ends successfully for Tang San, although Yu Xiaogang returns injured and Tang San appears exhausted and wary 6 7.

When Yu Xiaogang decides to recruit Xiao Xuan as a second disciple, Tang San carries the invitation. Xiao Xuan refuses, and Xiao Wu suggests resolving the perceived insult through a wagered duel 13.

Defeat by Xiao Xuan

After Xiao Xuan again rejects Yu Xiaogang’s interference, Tang San demands an apology. They agree that Tang San’s victory will require Xiao Xuan to kneel and apologize, while Xiao Xuan’s victory will require Tang San to avoid him throughout Nuoding Academy 16.

Tang San opens with Entanglement. Xiao Xuan slices apart the vines and closes in before Tang San can retreat, stopping his spear at Tang San’s chest. Tang San initially refuses to accept the result, then acknowledges that the thrust would have killed him in a real battle 16 17.

Yu Xiaogang attributes the defeat to insufficient combat experience. Tang San honors the wager afterward but retains his resentment. At graduation, now rank twenty-nine, he hopes for a rematch; Xiao Xuan’s absence prevents it 17 27.

Shrek and the Star Dou Great Forest

Tang San leaves Nuoding City with Xiao Wu under Yu Xiaogang’s instructions, heading toward Suotuo City and Shrek Academy 28.

During the Shrek group’s forest expedition, the Titan Giant Ape takes Xiao Wu. Tang San fails to stop or catch it, then encounters the Thundering Hell Vine. His attempt to seize the vine backfires when its lightning injures him, and he ultimately retreats with the battered group 53 54.

He later obtains a Thousand-Year Man Faced Demon Spider Soul Ring and becomes a Soul Elder. Unlike the opportunity anticipated by Xiao Xuan, this hunt yields no Eight Spider Lances: Xiao Xuan has already taken the rare External Soul Bone 59.

Black Bamboo’s Arena Matches

Meng Yiran’s account of a bamboo-spear wielder initially reminds Tang San of Xiao Xuan. He rejects the possibility that his former classmate could possess four extraordinary Soul Rings or defeat a renowned Soul Douluo 57 58.

Reports of Black Bamboo’s arena victories revive his suspicions. Tang San watches the masked fighter and consults Yu Xiaogang, who attributes the spear’s strength to mutation and dismisses the reported two-purple, two-black configuration as an illusion 60 61.

After nine victories, Tang San finally bets all his savings on Black Bamboo’s tenth match. Black Bamboo voluntarily concedes without revealing his Soul Rings, costing Tang San the money he had reserved for making Hidden Weapons 65 66.

Confrontation and Doubt

Ten days after the arena loss, Tang San recognizes Black Bamboo despite a changed disguise. Seeing him purchase a Soul Bone for more than three hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins strengthens Tang San’s suspicion that the fighter profited from the earlier match. He and Flender confront him outside the city 67.

Black Bamboo reveals two purple and two black Soul Rings and gravely injures Flender. Tang San flees with Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, but a ranged attack catches him despite Zhao Wuji’s intervention 68 69.

On awakening, Tang San demands an explanation for the Soul Rings he witnessed. Yu Xiaogang proposes illusion, while Flender suggests concealed cultivation. Tang San outwardly stops pressing the issue, but the possibility that his teacher’s absorption limits are wrong remains unresolved in his mind 69 70.

Notable Quotes

“Xiao Xuan, insulting someone’s teacher is like disgracing their parents!” 16

“His First Soul Ring was already a Thousand-Year Soul Ring! And his Third Soul Ring had reached ten thousand years! How do you explain that?” 69

“What if it wasn’t an illusion?” 70