Zhang Quan

Biodata

Power Progression

Background / History

Acting Career

Zhang Quan initially gained recognition for his gentle young-gentleman image. Because he and Lin Yu belonged to the same agency and had similar acting styles, they were expected to compete for similar roles. After Lin Yu’s fans demanded preferential treatment and claimed the agency intended to abandon their idol, Zhang Quan’s opportunities declined for nearly two years 109.

During that period, he mostly received unsympathetic characters or roles in low-quality idol dramas. Playing the imperial censor’s son—the fourth male lead in Brocade Rivers and Mountains—was the best opportunity available to him, even though Lin Yu had already rejected the part 109.

Possession and Collapse

Before filming opposite Jiang Nuo, Zhang Quan appeared severely exhausted, with bloodshot eyes and dark circles that makeup could not conceal. He refused an offer to postpone his scenes, but repeatedly forgot his lines under Jiang Nuo’s intense performance. He eventually collapsed during their confrontation scene, prompting an emergency hospital visit 109.

A circulated video falsely presented the incident as Jiang Nuo striking him unconscious. An intern assigned to accompany Zhang Quan admitted that he had been instructed to blame Jiang Nuo if an accident occurred. Coordinated social-media accounts had also been prepared to amplify the accusation 110.

Medical tests failed to explain Zhang Quan’s rapid deterioration. Jiang Nuo discovered that much of his life force had been drained and that his body was becoming a humanoid zombie. His grandmother, his only remaining relative, had recently died 110 111.

Becoming a Half-Corpse Soul

While controlled through a Puppet Thread, Zhang Quan began an unsettling livestream, claiming to hold children who were not actually present. Lin Yu used him to attack Jiang Nuo, who subdued him and extracted the thread from his back. Although his wounds began healing and his awareness returned, the damage from serving as the Ghost King’s puppet was irreversible 112 113 114.

Jiang Nuo offered to refine him into a Half-Corpse Soul, explaining the painful process, his future dependence on yin energy, and the loss of control over his own life. Zhang Quan accepted immediately after learning that the transformation would give him a chance to avenge his grandmother 114.

The refinement successfully restored his consciousness and a humanlike body. His first concern on waking was Jiang Nuo’s weakened condition, and he thanked him as “Master”—a title Jiang Nuo immediately asked him not to use 123 124.

Appearance

• Human appearance: Good-looking, with an established screen image as a gentle young gentleman 109.
• During possession: Becomes emaciated and dark-faced, with stiff limbs, blackened nails, sharp teeth, and wounds in his back. His deterioration eventually includes rotting flesh 110 113 114.
• After refinement: Regains a convincing human appearance and looks more energetic in his clarification video than he had before the possession 124 125.
• In combat: His pupils can turn black as he releases Corpse Qi, returning to normal afterward 332.
• Doll vessel: Sometimes occupies an ugly, cotton-stuffed doll small enough for Jiang Nuo to carry in a pocket 207 213.

Personality

Zhang Quan is determined and deeply attached to his family. He insists on working despite obvious exhaustion, and his grandmother’s murder gives him the resolve to accept an excruciating transformation rather than die without confronting her killer. Before his possession was exposed, the intern accompanying him described him as someone who treated him like a younger brother 109 111 114.

After his refinement, he becomes openly devoted to Jiang Nuo, joining his fan groups and repeatedly naming him as his ultimate idol in interviews. His loyalty also has a supernatural basis: as Jiang Nuo’s Half-Corpse Soul, he cannot betray him. Nevertheless, he retains personal desires, humor, and insecurities, particularly his affection for Su Su and fear that his nonhuman nature makes a relationship impossible 124 125 327 328.

Abilities & Skills

Half-Corpse Soul Physiology

• Humanlike presentation: Retains his own mind and can pass as an ordinary human; low-level instance bosses cannot identify his true nature 114 343.
• Immense strength: His refined state should rank above the Ghost King’s, although his initial unfamiliarity with its power prevents him from quickly winning their fight 114 125.
• Poison tolerance: Jiang Nuo considers him safe to use as a food tester even if the hotel’s dessert is poisonous 352.
• Blood-loss tolerance: Fills a head-sized flask with his blood while remaining comfortable and rosy-faced, replenishing himself with yin incense 343.
• Limits: Refinement does not make him invincible. During the final confrontation with 024, he collapses without signs of life 377.

Ghost Qi and Corpse Qi

• Supernatural combat: Fights the Ghost King through direct clashes of ghost power 125.
• Physical attacks: Tears an eye the size of a human head from a monstrous hand and crushes it, disabling the hand and causing nearby flowers to wither 332.
• Protective use: Winds ghost qi around supernatural nails placed in his doll vessel to neutralize them 213.
• Concealment: Can rein in his ghost qi on command, preventing it from escaping during a television recording 202.
• Limits: A powerful bronze door blocks his underground reconnaissance because its power exceeds his own 221.

Doll Possession and Scouting

• Portable vessel: Enters an antique-market doll, allowing Jiang Nuo to carry him discreetly 207.
• Independent movement: Moves the doll’s limbs, speaks through it in a different voice, and uses an ink-dipped finger to mark a map 213 221.
• Shadow movement: Returns from a scouting mission as a black shadow before slipping into the doll 221.
• Reconnaissance: Follows the Reapers to an underground settlement, observes soul cages, and memorizes the route before retreating 221.

Yin Nourishment and Faith

• Required nourishment: Depends on yin energy, yin souls, and incense offerings. Human food satisfies his taste buds but supplies almost no nourishment 114 343 352.
• Preparation: Secretly visits a mass graveyard to absorb yin energy before the final Dragon Vein expedition 327.
• Faith-based growth: Fans’ affection strengthens his ghost qi as his popularity rises 202.
• Risk to humans: His ghost qi is harmful enough that Jiang Nuo promises to find a way to extract some from his soul so he can safely approach ordinary people 328.

Bond with Jiang Nuo

• Compulsory loyalty: Cannot betray the person who refined him, and initially feels an instinctive urge to submit whenever he sees Jiang Nuo 124.
• Barrier recognition: Can pass through Jiang Nuo’s protective barrier without being attacked because he is bound to him 221.
• System recognition: His connection to Jiang Nuo causes the challenge-world system to detect him as well 345.

Equipment / Items

• Jade ruyi — Carries the Ghost King’s aura. Jiang Nuo gives it to Zhang Quan so he can track his grandmother’s killer 124.
• Ugly doll — A pocket-sized vessel acquired by Jiang Nuo at an antiques market; used for travel, surveillance, and concealed deployment 207 213 221.
• Yin Spirit Talismans — Temporarily maintain his human form while he awaits refinement 114.
• Yin incense — Replenishes his nonhuman body, including during the Twin Messengers’ blood ritual 343.
• Player watch — Displays his highest-level rating during the hotel instance 351.

Relationships

• Jiang Nuo — Savior, refiner, master, and idol. Zhang Quan initially calls him “Master,” later settling on “Brother Nuo” after repeated objections. Jiang Nuo also offers to help address the ghost qi preventing him from pursuing a human relationship 124 327 328.
• Grandmother — His only remaining relative before her murder. Avenging her is his reason for accepting the Half-Corpse Soul refinement 111 114.
• Su Su — His assistant after he establishes his own studio, and his romantic interest. Zhang Quan admires his sunny personality but hesitates to confess because of their different natures. Before the final instance, Su Su indicates that he knows Zhang Quan may not be human and does not care 327 328 346.
• Si Yan — Jiang Nuo’s partner and an ally. Zhang Quan supports their relationship, but finds Si Yan’s jealousy troublesome; he sends a lengthy clarification when fans suggest he intends to pursue Jiang Nuo. He is himself jealous when Su Su admires Si Yan’s photographs 207 328.
• Lin Yu — Former agency colleague and enemy. Lin Yu participates in controlling him and uses his collapse to attack Jiang Nuo’s reputation 109 113 125.
• The Ghost King / Duoluo ke — His tormentor and the target of his revenge. Zhang Quan fights him after refinement, but Jiang Nuo ultimately destroys his soul 114 125 127.
• Tuoba Hong — Expedition teammate. They rescue Qiu Su together, and Tuoba Hong later carries Zhang Quan after his collapse 364 378.
• Qiu Su — Recognizes him as a Half-Corpse Soul and reveals that her skeleton doll is one too. Her comments connect Jiang Nuo’s refinement method to witchcraft from her world 351 364.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Revenge Against Lin Yu and the Ghost King

• After recovering, Zhang Quan posts a dated video thanking Jiang Nuo and disproving claims that he has died 125.
• He tracks the Ghost King to Lin Yu’s home and attacks. When the Ghost King attempts to control him with an incantation, Jiang Nuo intervenes and helps expose Lin Yu behind a hidden mirror 125.
• Jiang Nuo kills Lin Yu and destroys the Ghost King. Zhang Quan then follows orders to conceal the killings, staging the scene to suggest that Lin Yu killed Brother Zhuang 127.

The Monochrome Town

• Accompanies Jiang Nuo inside the ugly doll, standing watch and emerging to confront Mikazuki Shunsuke’s malevolent ghost 207 213 214.
• Tracks the Reapers carrying children’s souls underground and reports the existence of a second settlement filled with soul cages. His mapped route gives the group a basis for further investigation 221.

Feng Mountain and the Final Dragon Vein

• Joins the final Weird and Strange Adventure expedition after preparing with repeated visits to a yin-rich graveyard 327 328.
• Demonstrates his strength publicly by destroying one of the eyes controlling the giant hands beneath Sleeping Village’s road 332.
• Helps Tuoba Hong excavate a woman’s corpse from beneath the flowers, later assists injured companions, and supplies blood for the Twin Messengers’ ritual 335 340 343.
• Before entering the final instance, promises Su Su that he will return, while postponing their conversation about his nonhuman identity 346.

Hotel Instance and 024

• Reveals his highest-level rating after another player mocks him as a possible newcomer 351.
• Tests the hotel dessert. His unusual desire for a second serving alerts Jiang Nuo that the cake has an abnormal effect 352.
• Agrees to destroy the hotel if Si Yan fails to awaken from a forced solo mission within Jiang Nuo’s deadline 359.
• Rescues Qiu Su from a giant spider alongside Tuoba Hong and learns that her skeleton doll shares his nature 364.
• Offers a blessing for Jiang Nuo during the death-wish round and completes the Illusory Calamity Labyrinth side quest with the surviving group 371 372.
• Collapses without signs of life during 024’s destruction. Tuoba Hong subsequently carries him as the survivors leave; his recovery is not established in the supplied material 377 378.