Pei Qian

Overview

Pei Qian (裴钱) is a pure martial artist at the Peak Realm (止境) and the founding disciple of Chen Ping'an. Originally a destitute orphan begging in the capital of the Nanyuan Kingdom within the Lotus Root Blessed Land (藕花福地), she was brought to the Haoran Heaven by Chen Ping'an. Through grueling training under the martial arts grandmaster Cui Cheng at Luopo Mountain's bamboo building, she transformed from a mischievous, lazy, and cowardly child into an indomitable martial arts grandmaster.

Renowned across the battlefields of the Jinjia Continent and Baoping Continent under the alias "Zheng Qian" (郑钱), she earned the terrifying monikers "Zheng Qingming" (郑清明) and "Zheng Saqian" (郑撒钱) for her devastating, one-strike-kill punches against demon cultivators. Behind her mortal origins lies a profound secret: she is the reincarnated soul of the daughter of Jiang She (the First Ancestor of the Military School), meticulously arranged by ancient powers to temper her humanity.

Appearance and Personality

In her childhood, Pei Qian was a famously skinny, dark-skinned "little black charcoal" (小黑炭). Having grown up as an orphaned beggar, she was initially greedy, cowardly, manipulative, and deeply cynical, believing the world operated purely on malice. She habitually told lies to survive, hoarded every copper coin she found, and wore a yellow demon-suppressing talisman stuck to her forehead for liquid courage. She avoided hardship at all costs and famously dreaded martial arts training, instead waving a walking stick around, claiming to practice a self-invented "Crazy Demon Sword Art" (疯魔剑法).

As she grew older and absorbed the teachings of her master and Cui Cheng, her appearance and demeanor underwent a radical shift. She grew into a tall, slender, and beautiful young woman with a clear, unyielding gaze, typically dressed in neat black martial attire with her hair tied in a simple bun. Her personality transformed into one of absolute reliability, unwavering principles, and a chillingly calm martial presence. She acts as the strict but protective "Eldest Senior Sister" of Luopo Mountain. While she is terrifying and merciless to her enemies on the battlefield, she remains intensely filial to her master and deeply affectionate toward her Luopo Mountain companions, especially Zhou Mili and Chen Nuanshu.

History

Origins in the Lotus Root Blessed Land

In her past life, Pei Qian was the daughter of Jiang She and his Dao partner. When her soul shattered, it was rescued by a Buddhist monk and secretly safeguarded by the Confucian Wen Temple. She was reincarnated into the Lotus Root Blessed Land as a mortal orphan to prevent her father from plunging the world into war over her death.

Living as a beggar in the Nanyuan Kingdom, she encountered Chen Ping'an during his travels. After a series of chaotic events involving the old Daoist (Lao Guan Zhu), she and Chen Ping'an were unceremoniously expelled from the blessed land. Initially, Chen Ping'an greatly disliked her selfish, manipulative tendencies, forcing her to diligently copy books (抄书) to earn her meals and instilling strict moral boundaries in her.

Training in the Bamboo Building

Although born with an unparalleled "Golden Form" (金形之姿) perfect for martial arts, Pei Qian initially refused to train due to her intense fear of pain. Her turning point came when she witnessed an illusion of Chen Ping'an walking away in the rain alongside Cao Qinglang. Terrified of being abandoned and replaced, she marched to the second floor of the bamboo building and demanded that Cui Cheng teach her how to fight, swearing to endure any amount of suffering to ensure she would never lose her place by her master's side.

Under Cui Cheng's brutal, near-lethal daily beatings, Pei Qian forged an unbreakable martial foundation. She internalized Cui Cheng's core philosophies: "Three days of diligence: yesterday, today, and tomorrow," and the concept of "No one stands before me" (身前无人).

The Continental Tour and Battlefields

When she came of age, Pei Qian embarked on a solo martial arts tour across multiple continents, traveling through Beiju Luzhou, Aiai Continent, the Middle Earth Divine Continent, and Jinjia Continent.

• In Beiju Luzhou, she broke two realms simultaneously at the Yaoye River to enter the seventh realm (金身境).
• In Aiai Continent, she fought the ninth-realm grandmaster Liu Suiyu at Leigong Temple while only in the eighth realm, sustaining heavy injuries but earning immense respect.
• In the Middle Earth Divine Continent, she challenged Cao Ci—the undisputed greatest martial artist of their generation—to four matches. Though she lost all four, she secured her position as one of the most terrifying young martial artists in the world.

During the war against the Wild World, she fought on the Jinjia Continent and the Baoping Continent battlefields. Using the alias Zheng Qian, she became legendary for seeking out the thickest enemy formations and obliterating demon cultivators with absolute ruthlessness, ensuring no enemy left an intact corpse.

Cultivation and Abilities

Pei Qian is a Pure Martial Artist at the Peak Realm (止境), specifically the Qi Sheng (气盛) layer. She broke through her major bottlenecks by securing the title of "Strongest" (最强) in the world for her respective realms multiple times, capturing massive amounts of martial destiny (武运).

• Golden Form (金形之姿): An innate physical constitution that makes her bone density and bodily structure uniquely perfect for martial arts, allowing her to generate devastating force.
• Sun and Moon Eyes: The old Daoist of the Lotus Root Blessed Land embedded the essence of the blessed land's sun and moon into her eyes. This grants her the ability to see through illusions, divine spatial formations, and, most importantly, perceive the inner "heart-state" (心相) of any cultivator she looks at, revealing their true nature, foundation, and hidden weaknesses.
• Fist Intent: Unlike her master's calculating, highly adaptable boxing style, Pei Qian's fist intent is overwhelmingly direct and domineering. Her signature stance, derived from the God Beating the Drum (神人擂鼓式), unleashes a torrential flood of power. When she strikes, her pure true qi completely dominates the local heaven and earth, treating her internal breath cycles as changing seasons and shifting daylight.

Though primarily a bare-handed martial artist, she has an innate, terrifying aptitude for all combat forms. She eventually revealed that she had also secretly cultivated a natal flying sword, which can split into seven distinct swords with multiple innate divine abilities.

Relationships

• Chen Ping'an: Her master. She reveres him with a fanatical, absolute devotion, viewing his words and principles as infallible law. Her greatest fear is disappointing him, and her greatest joy is his praise.
• Cui Cheng: Known to her as "Cui Yeye" (Grandpa Cui). Her brutal but highly effective martial arts mentor. She deeply respects him and honors his legacy by striving to make the martial arts of Luopo Mountain unmatched in the world.
• Zhou Mili: Her best friend and fellow protector of Luopo Mountain. In her youth, Pei Qian loved taking Zhou Mili on "patrols" around the mountain, acting as a fierce protector for the timid water spirit.
• Li Baoping: Pei Qian deeply respects Li Baoping, affectionately calling her "Baoping Jiejie." Li Baoping was one of the few peers who could completely overwhelm Pei Qian with logic and academic diligence.
• Cao Ci: Her greatest martial arts rival. She relentlessly pursues higher martial peaks primarily to challenge and defeat Cao Ci, aspiring to stand solely at the apex of martial arts.
• Cui Dongshan: She calls him "Big White Goose" (大白鹅). They share a dynamic of constant bickering, mutual pranks, and underlying profound trust.

Quotes

• "Master, don't worry. I will be very careful when walking the rivers and lakes in the future. If I make a mistake, I'll fix it."
• "My master is the person standing on the city wall who wins whenever he throws a punch!"
• "Walking arrogantly, demons panic! Crazy Demon Sword Art, unparalleled in the world! If we are friends, let's slaughter a local dog; I'll eat the meat and you drink the soup!"
• (To Liu Suiyu before their fight) "The fist comes from Luopo Mountain, but it wasn't taught to me by my master. It is called the God Beating the Drum Stance."
• "I, Pei Qian, can lose to anyone, but there is one person I absolutely cannot lose to! Absolutely not!"

References

• 剑来8：误入藕花渡，第七章 — 丢出观道观: Details Pei Qian's origins in the Lotus Root Blessed Land, her initial status as a beggar, and Chen Ping'an formally bringing her out of the blessed land.
• 剑来9：乱起太平山，第三章 — 真先生也: Records the Maihe River God recognizing Pei Qian's rare "Golden Form" constitution, marking her as an unparalleled martial arts prodigy.
• 剑来16：月色入高楼，第十章 — 天下大势皆小事: Details Pei Qian climbing the bamboo building to officially ask Cui Cheng to teach her martial arts, swearing never to back down no matter the pain.
• 剑来24：新酒等旧人，第五章 — 少女问拳河神: Describes her breaking two realms at once on the banks of the Yaoye River to become a seventh-realm martial artist.
• 剑来25：天地皆同力，第三章 — 朱颜敛藏: Covers her brutal, realm-jumping fight against the ninth-realm grandmaster Liu Suiyu at Leigong Temple in the Aiai Continent.
• 剑来31：观礼正阳山，第十章 — 剑光直落: Showcases her grand return as a Peak Realm (止境) martial artist at Zhengyang Mountain, revealing her fearsome battlefield titles "Zheng Qingming" and "Zheng Saqian".
• 剑来50：蜉蝣见青天，第六章 — 故事是一把双刃剑: Explains the cosmic backstory of her soul, confirming her as the reincarnated daughter of Jiang She.