List of Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils characters

The following is a list of characters from Jin Yong's wuxia novel Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils. There are over 230 characters in the novel, including those who are mentioned only by name.

Protagonists

• Qiao Feng (喬峰), also known as Xiao Feng (蕭峰).

• Duan Yu (段譽)

• Xuzhu (虛竹) (see Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils#Xuzhu's story)

• Wang Yuyan (王語嫣) is the daughter of Duan Zhengchun and Li Qingluo. She is described as a beautiful and flawless young maiden independent of all worldly traits. She has a crush on her cousin Murong Fu. She memorises martial arts manuals in the hopes of helping him perfect his skills and winning his heart, but Murong does not appreciate her help and treats her coldly. She is able to identify various types of martial arts simply by observation, even though she does not practise the skills in the manuals she read. Duan Yu falls in love with her on first sight due to her resemblance to "Fairy Sister", a statue of her great aunt he chanced upon. He starts following her everywhere she goes, incurring the annoyance of Murong Fu's followers. Although initially impassive towards Duan Yu, she slowly warms up to him after he saved her on many occasions. After seeing the extent of Murong Fu's obsession with restoring his kingdom by competing for the hand-in-marriage of the princess of Western Xia, she attempts suicide but is rescued. Duan Yu confronts Murong Fu and tells him that he too will fight for the princess' hand-in-marriage, in an attempt to force Murong to return to Wang Yuyan. Murong is angered and he knocks Duan Yu into a well. By then Wang Yuyan realises that Murong Fu has become insane and she throws herself into the well to join Duan Yu, and Murong does not stop her. Both Wang and Duan survive the fall and reveal their love for each other, and eventually leave safely. Wang Yuyan later discovers that she is Duan Zhengchun's daughter, so this will make her Duan Yu's half-sister, and she is heartbroken. Duan Yu later tells her that they can still be together because they are ultimately cousins because his biological father turns out to be Duan Yanqing instead of Duan Zhengchun.

• A'zhu (阿朱) is the older daughter of Duan Zhengchun and Ruan Xingzhu, and is a master in the art of disguise. She is initially a servant of the Murong family. She meets Duan Yu and helps him escape from Jiumozhi. She also disguises Duan Yu as Murong Fu and disguises herself as Xiao Feng as part of a plan to save some members of the Beggars' Sect who were captured by Western Xia soldiers. She later disguises herself as a monk and infiltrates Shaolin in an attempt to steal some martial arts manuals for Murong Fu. Xiao Feng witnesses the act, and forces her to hide with him behind a giant statue. They are eventually discovered, and in an ensuing fight, she is accidentally wounded severely by the abbot Xuanci. Xiao Feng takes her and escapes, and when inspecting her wounds, finds out that she is actually a woman. He helps to save her life for the time being and cares for her while she is wounded. During this time, they grow closer and A'zhu falls in love with him. Xiao Feng looks for the physician Xue Muhua, who is the only person capable of curing her internal wounds. Although Xue is initially unwilling to save her, he eventually agrees to and Xiao Feng departs. After her wounds are healed, A'zhu waits for Xiao Feng five days and five nights on the road and tells him her wish to accompany him forever. Xiao Feng is touched by her dedication and reciprocates her feelings for him. Although they experience a calm and peaceful life in the wilderness while traveling, Xiao is unable to let go of his desire to find out who the person who killed his parents was. They return to Song, and A'zhu volunteers to help Xiao trick Kang Min into revealing who "Leading Big Brother" is. However Kang Min quickly sees through the disguise and gives misleading information that "Leading Big Brother" is Duan Zhengchun. Xiao Feng challenges Duan Zhengchun to a duel. Before the duel, A'zhu finds out that she is actually Duan Zhengchun's daughter, along with her long lost sister A'zi. She decides to disguise herself as Duan Zhengchun to prevent a conflict between her lover and father and is killed by Xiao Feng by mistake. Before her death, she requests that Xiao Feng promise to take care of her younger sister A'zi.

• A'zi (阿紫) is A'zhu's younger sister and a disciple of Ding Chunqiu. Much like everyone else in the Xingxiu Sect, she is sadistic and cruel, and takes pleasure in torturing and mutilating anyone who offends her. She is considered a traitor to the Xingxiu Sect, as she stole the shenmu wangding (神木王鼎), a prized treasure of the Xingxiu Sect, and fled with it. In the newest edition of the book, her reason for doing so was because Ding Chunqiu noticed her growing beauty and started making inappropriate advances on her. You Tanzhi is also attracted by her beauty, and willingly succumbs to her sadistic "games" and amuses her. He even offers his eyes to her after she is blinded by Ding Chunqiu. However, she has a crush on Xiao Feng and cares little about You Tanzhi. She often taunts Xiao Feng with her sister's dying words whenever he refuses to do anything for her. She becomes increasingly jealous of how irreplaceable her dead sister is in Xiao Feng's heart. When Xiao Feng refuses to help Yelü Hongji attack Song, the latter sends his concubine to approach her and trick her into spiking Xiao Feng's wine with a "love potion". While escaping from Liao together with A'zi, Xiao Feng is suddenly seized with fatigue because the "love potion" is actually a poison that will temporarily weaken him, and he is captured and imprisoned. She manages to escape, and finds her brother Duan Yu as well as the Beggars' Sect to help save Xiao Feng. Although Xiao is rescued, he makes a deal with Yelü Hongji on the battlefield and exchanges his life for peace between Liao and Song. A'zi realises that she cannot live without Xiao Feng and follows suit after he commits suicide.

• Mu Wanqing (木婉清) is the daughter of Duan Zhengchun and Qin Hongmian. She is forced to follow a strange rule laid down by her master: If any man sees her face, she must either wed or kill him. Because of this reason, she normally masks her face. She is pursued by Yue Laosan, who is angry that she killed his student, who had seen her face. Duan Yu gets involved in this matter, and she takes him along with her as she escapes. Despite her harsh treatment of him, he tries to help her, and she falls in love with him. When Yue Laosan catches up with them, she reveals her face to Duan Yu, giving him the ultimatum that he will either marry her, or they will both die. He promises her he will marry her. After they are rescued, it is eventually revealed that he is actually her half brother, and she leaves him in anguish. She meets Duan Yanqing, who tricks her and Duan Yu into consuming aphrodisiac, because he wants them to commit incest and disgrace the Duan family. However, Duan Zhengchun's men dig a secret tunnel leading to the room where she is held captive in and rescues her, replacing her instead with Zhong Ling. She appears again in a later chapter when the protagonists are in Western Xia.

• Zhong Ling (鐘靈) is the daughter of Duan Zhengchun and Gan Baobao. She meets Duan Yu while he is attempting to defuse a conflict between two rival sects. She is captured and held hostage by one of the sects' leaders after he is bitten by her pet, the Lightning Squirrel, whose bite is poisonous and fatal. She is rescued by Duan Yu and Mu Wanqing later. Although she, too, is in love with Duan Yu, she gives up after learning that he is her half brother. She appears again in a later chapter to take care of Duan Yu after he is wounded by Jiumozhi.

Kingdom of Dali

• Duan Zhengming (段正明) is the benevolent and wise monarch of Dali who is well respected by his subjects and people. He abdicates to become a monk to help the elders of Heavenly Dragon Monastery deal with Jiumozhi.

• Duan Zhengchun (段正淳) is the Zhennan Prince of Dali and Duan Zhengming's younger brother. Notorious for his philandering ways, he conceives several illegitimate daughters with many different women in his younger days. Ironically, his daughters become lovers with Duan Yu, who is believed to be his son. He succeeds his brother as king of Dali and has been confronted numerous times by Duan Yanqing, who attempts to force him to hand over his throne.

• Gao Shengtai (高升泰) is the Marquis of Shanchan. He rules Dali after Duan Zhengchun's death before eventually passing the throne to Duan Yu.

• Fan Hua (范驊), Ba Tianshi (巴天石) and Hua Hegen (華赫艮) are the three highest ranked ministers in the Dali government. They are highly skilled in martial arts and also serve as the king's bodyguards.

• The four bodyguards of Duan Zhengchun are dedicated to protecting the prince and his family. Duan regards them as his fellows rather than subordinates. They are:
  • Chu Wanli (褚萬里) is disguised as a fisherman. He is killed by Duan Yanqing.
  • Gu Ducheng (古篤誠) is disguised as a woodcutter.
  • Fu Sigui (傅思歸) is disguised as a farmer.
  • Zhu Danchen (朱丹臣) is disguised as a scholar. Duan Yu regards him as a close friend because both of them have common interests in literature and poetry.

• Benyin (本因) is the abbot of Heavenly Dragon Monastery (天龍寺) in Dali.
• Kurong (枯榮) is the most powerful in martial arts among all of Heaven Dragon Monastery's monks. He lets Duan Yu read the "Six Meridians Divine Sword" manual and memorise it before destroying the book.

• Zhong Wanchou (鐘萬仇), nicknamed "Horse Deity" (馬王神), is the master of Wanjie Valley (萬劫谷) and Gan Baobao's husband. He is extremely protective of his wife and hates Duan Zhengchun to the core after assuming that the latter seduced his wife. He even placed a sign at the valley's entrance that reads: Any person with the family name "Duan" who enters this valley will be killed without exception (姓段者入此谷杀无赦).

• Reverend Huangmei (黃眉大師) is the abbot of Nianhua Monastery (拈花寺). He plays an important role in rescuing Duan Yu from Wanjie Valley as he distracts Duan Yanqing in a game of weiqi while Duan Zhengchun's men enter the room where Duan Yu is held via an underground tunnel.

Murong family

• Murong Fu (慕容復), nicknamed "Southern Murong" (南慕容) by jianghu pugilists, is a descendant of the royal families of the Yan states (Southern Yan, Former Yan, Later Yan etc) of the Sixteen Kingdoms era. His father named him "Fu" (literally means "restore") to remind him to restore Yan. An egoistic, scheming and ruthless man, he resorts to all sorts of methods, including unscrupulous means, to revive his dynasty and become emperor. He is even willing to sever ties with his cousin Wang Yuyan, who has a crush on him, in order to realise his dream. He fails in his plan and goes insane eventually. He is skilled in many forms of martial arts but specialises in none. He likes to use his opponents' signature moves against them, which becomes his trademark, known as "returning you with your own way" (以彼之道, 還之彼身).

• Murong Bo (慕容博) is Murong Fu's father. He shared the same delusions of grandeur as his son and orchestrated the attack at Yanmen Pass that caused the death of Xiao Yuanshan's wife. He faked his own death and hid in Shaolin Monastery for many years, secretly learning skills from the manuals in the library. He is saved from death by the Sweeper Monk and decides to abandon his wild ambitions and become the Monk's student.

• Murong Fu's followers:
  • Deng Baichuan (鄧百川)
  • Gongye Gan (公冶幹) is nicknamed "Jiangnan Number Two" (江南老二), as he considers himself the best fighter in Jiangnan after his master.
  • Bao Butong (包不同) is nicknamed "No, No" (非也非也) after his favourite lingo. He is notorious for disagreeing with people and challenging them to verbal fights. Murong Fu kills him to prove his loyalty to Duan Yanqing.
  • Feng Bo'e (風波惡) is nicknamed "Gust of Wind" (一陣風). He is always ready to pick a fight with others even when his chances of winning are low.

• A'bi (阿碧) is a servant of the Murong family and Kang Guangling's disciple. She and A'zhu once helped Duan Yu escape from Jiumozhi. She is very loyal to Murong Fu and continues serving him even after he has become insane.

Duan Zhengchun's lovers

• Dao Baifeng (刀白鳳) is the Zhennan Princess Consort of Dali and Duan Zhengchun's legal spouse. She left her husband after discovering his extramarital relations and decided to have sex with an inferior man to make her husband angry. She had a one night stand with a filthy beggar, who was actually the wounded Duan Yanqing, and gave birth to Duan Yu later. She only reveals the truth to her son near the end of the novel. In the newest edition of the novel, she suggests to Duan Yu that he can marry all of his cousins, since he is no longer their half-brother. She commits suicide soon after to join her dead husband.

• Qin Hongmian (秦紅棉) is nicknamed "Xiuluo Dagger" (修羅刀). She left Duan Zhengchun in anger after learning of his illicit affairs with other women and called herself "Eerie Valley Dweller" (幽谷客). She raised their daughter Mu Wanqing as her student without telling her the truth about her parents until Mu finds out herself. As Mu Wanqing's teacher, she taught her daughter martial arts and sends her to go kill Duan Zhengchun's mistresses and his other illegitimate children. She is eventually killed by Murong Fu, who was using her as a hostage to force Duan Zhengchun to give up the throne.

• Gan Baobao (甘寶寶) is Zhong Wanchou's wife. Her daughter Zhong Ling, whose father is Duan Zhengchun, was raised as Zhong Wanchou's child (without Zhong Wanchou knowing the truth). Zhong Wanchou is extremely possessive of her, but she continues to meet Duan Zhengchun through the secret passage in her room. She is eventually killed by Murong Fu, who was using her as a hostage to force Duan Zhengchun to give up the throne.

• Ruan Xingzhu (阮星竹) lives near Little Mirror Lake (小鏡湖). Her special talent is her ability to swim. She is the mother of A'zhu and A'zi. As she bore Duan Zhengchun two daughters without formally marrying him, she decided to abandon her children to protect Duan's reputation. She discovers that A'zi is her child, but never manages to find out about her other daughter A'zhu until before the latter dies. She is eventually killed by Murong Fu, who was using her as a hostage to force Duan Zhengchun to give up the throne.

• Li Qingluo (李青羅), also known as Mrs. Wang (王夫人) after her marriage, is the mistress of Mantuo Manor (曼陀山莊). She is Wang Yuyan's mother and Murong Fu's maternal aunt. After finding out about Duan Zhengchun's philandering ways, she hates all men and is shown to cruelly order the execution of many who cross her path. She prides herself on her island's tea leaves, and is shown to make an exception to her intolerance of men by allowing Duan Yu to stay on the island as a caretaker for her tea flowers. She cares little for her daughter Wang Yuyan. She collaborates with Murong Fu and Duan Yanqing in an attempt to scare Duan Zhengchun and take revenge on him for betraying her love. However, she soon realises how far Murong Fu is willing to go in order to force Duan Zhengchun to give up the throne after her nephew starts killing all of Duan's mistresses. Murong Fu soon turns his blade towards her after Duan expresses his love for her. In an attempt to save her, Duan tells her that he hates her and will never love her after she conspired with her nephew. Distressed, she kills herself, and as she is dying, Duan reassures her that he does love her.

• Kang Min (康敏), also known as Mrs. Ma (馬夫人) after her marriage to Ma Dayuan, is a treacherous and vicious woman. She seduces Bai Shijing and murders her husband with his help. She attempts to seduce Qiao Feng and marry him, as she admires him and covets the position of being the wife of the leader of the Beggars' Sect. However Qiao Feng rebuffs her and she hates him for rejecting her. She causes Qiao Feng to fall from grace by passing the letter with details about Qiao Feng's origin to Quan Guanqing, and instigates him to incite the Beggars' Sect's members to turn against Qiao Feng. She later tricks Qiao Feng into believing that Duan Zhengchun killed his parents, causing Qiao to kill A'zhu by mistake. Duan Zhengchun later visits her to find out why she directed Qiao Feng to him, and she uses that opportunity take her revenge on Duan for betraying her love. She lures Duan into consuming a potion that weakened him and takes that chance to torture him. She is eventually horribly tortured and her face marred by the sadistic A'zi, who uses the excuse that she did so to avenge her dead sister A'zhu. Kang Min dies of shock after seeing her own reflection in a mirror.

Four Evils

The "Four Evils" (天下四惡 or 四大惡人) are a group of four eccentric pugilists who are notorious for committing heinous crimes. They are ranked in order of seniority:

• Duan Yanqing (段延慶) is nicknamed "Overflowing with Evil" (惡貫滿盈). He is a distant relative of Duan Zhengming and was previously the crown prince of Dali. He was severely wounded in a battle and presumed dead. When his father died, Duan Zhengming became the new king. Bitter that his right to being the ruler was taken from him, he attempts to seize back the throne by harming Duan Zhengchun and Duan Yu on several occasions. Ironically it turns out that Duan Yu, who would become Dali's king in the future, is his biological son. Although he appears to be a crippled old man on crutches, his inner energy is extremely powerful and he is very skilled in the Duan family's skill Yiyang Finger (一陽指). He has the ability to channel his inner energy to his abdomen and speak without using his vocal cords. He is unable to forget the Guanyin who appeared on the night he was defeated and seriously wounded in battle. Eventually, Duan Yu's mother Dao Baifeng tells him that she was actually the Guanyin he remembered, and that Duan Yu is actually his son. He gives up on seizing back the throne, as his descendant will eventually fulfill his wish anyway.

• Ye Erniang (葉二娘) is nicknamed "No Evil Left Undone" (無惡不作; i.e. commits all evils). She had a secret romance with Shaolin's abbot Xuanci and bore him a son, but the child was taken away from her by a masked attacker. She suffers from an emotional breakdown and resorts to kidnapping other people's babies and treating them as her own before killing them. In the latest revision of the novel, she leaves the babies at strangers' homes after playing with them. During the battle at Shaolin, she recognises Xuzhu as her son after seeing the joss stick burn marks on his back and reunites with him. She dies together with Xuanci after he publicly confesses his affair with her.

• Yue Laosan (岳老三), nicknamed "Ferocious Deity and Evil Devil" (凶神惡煞), is also known as the "Crocodile Deity of the Southern Sea" (南海鱷神). He is the most comical character in the novel because of his repeated (but unsuccessful) attempts to make Duan Yu his student, which concluded with him being tricked into becoming the latter's disciple instead. He often bickers with Ye Erniang, claiming that he should be ranked second of the Four Evils, but concedes to her upon her death. Armed with a pair of giant scissors, he often threatens to kill people by breaking their necks. He is killed by Duan Yanqing while trying to save Duan Yu.

• Yun Zhonghe (雲中鶴) is nicknamed "Thoroughly Cruel, Utterly Evil" (窮凶極惡). A lecherous fiend who preys on young women, he is armed with an iron staff and relies on his formidable prowess in qinggong to pursue and flee from enemies. He is viciously killed by Duan Yu when he attempts to make sexual advances on Wang Yuyan.

Shaolin Sect (少林派)

See also: Shaolin Sect

• Xuanci (玄慈) is the abbot of Shaolin. He had a secret romance with Ye Erniang and she bore him a son without him knowing. Their child was taken away by a masked attacker and left in the Shaolin garden. The monks found the baby and decided to raise him as one of them, naming the boy "Xuzhu". Xuanci is actually the mysterious "Leading Big Brother" (帶頭大哥) who led the attack on Xiao Yuanshan's family at Yanmen Pass several years ago, after believing misleading information given to him by Murong Bo. Towards the end of the novel he publicly confesses his affair with Ye Erniang and dies in peace after accepting punishment for his misconduct.

• The Sweeper Monk (掃地僧) is a nameless monk of unknown origin who is in charge of maintaining the library of Shaolin. He defeats Xiao Yuanshan and Murong Bo and puts them to sleep while clearing their minds of their delusional ambitions. When the two of them recover from their trance, they are very grateful to him and become his disciples. The Monk's prowess in inner energy and martial arts is so powerful that even Xiao Feng's "Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms" has almost no effect on him.

• Xuanbei (玄悲) was secretly murdered by Murong Bo. Murong Fu was thought to be the killer.
• Xuannan (玄難) is the head of the Bodhidharma Hall.
• Xuanji (玄寂) is the head of the Discipline Hall.
• Xuanku (玄苦) is Xiao Feng's mentor. He is mortally wounded by Xiao Yuanshan, who had disguised himself as Xiao Feng, and dies after mistakenly accusing the real Xiao Feng as the attacker.
• Huilun (慧輪) is Xuzhu's mentor.
• Huijing (慧净) is a monk who catches the Ice Silkworm (冰蟬).

Beggars' Sect (丐幫)

See also: Beggars' Sect

• Ma Dayuan (馬大元) is the deputy chief of the sect. A righteous and humble man, he is well respected by his followers. He holds the secret letter that contains details about Qiao Feng's origins but has never opened it. His wicked wife Kang Min seduces Bai Shijing and instigates the latter to murder him. Bai uses Ma's signature move "Throat Locking Grapple" (鎖喉擒拿手) to kill the latter and attempts to push the blame to Murong Fu because the manner of killing clearly fits Murong's "returning you with your own way" style.

• Quan Guanqing (全冠清), nicknamed "All Rounded Scholar" (十方秀才), is a treacherous minor leader of the sect. He was seduced by Kang Min and instigated by her to incite his fellows to rebel against Qiao Feng. He meets Zhuang Juxian (You Tanzhi) and manipulates the latter to be the sect's new chief. Zhuang is actually a puppet chief acting under Quan's instructions. Quan attempts to flee after the battle at Shaolin, but the Beggars' Sect's elders catch up with him and kill him.

• Bai Shijing (白世鏡) is the elder in charge of maintaining discipline in the sect. He is seduced by Kang Min and instigated by her to murder Ma Dayuan. He is killed by a masked Xiao Yuanshan.

• Wu Changfeng (吳長風), Chen Guyan (陳孤雁), Xi Shanhe (奚山河) and Elder Song (宋長老) are the four senior elders of the sect. They are incited by Quan Guanqing to rebel against Qiao Feng and unseat him from his position as chief. Their plan fails but Qiao Feng pardons them on account of their past contributions to the sect. Xi Shanhe is slain by Qiao Feng in Heroes' Gathering Manor after they toasted to end their friendship.

• Xu Chongxiao (徐沖霄) is a retired elder of the sect who appears at the meeting in Apricot Forest to testify that the contents of the letter about Qiao Feng's origins are genuine. He was murdered by a masked assailant (later revealed to be Xiao Yuanshan) just before Qiao Feng comes to ask him about the true identity of the "Leading Big Brother". Qiao Feng was believed to be the killer until his name is eventually cleared at Shaolin.

• Wang Jiantong (汪劍通), nicknamed "Sword Beard" (劍髯), was Qiao Feng's predecessor as chief of the sect. He was involved in the attack on Xiao Yuanshan's family. He had a letter from the "Leading Big Brother" containing details about Qiao Feng's origins and sealed and passed it to Ma Dayuan before his death. He also gave instructions that the letter can only be opened in the presence of the sect's elders if Ma dies under suspicious circumstances. He died of natural causes before the events of the novel take place.

Carefree Sect (逍遙派) and associates

• Wuyazi (無涯子) is the sect's leader. He was ambushed and thrown off a cliff by Li Qiushui and Ding Chunqiu after he discovered their affair. He has incredible inner energy but is unable to take revenge on Ding as he was crippled by the fall. Before dying, he transfers his 70 years worth of inner energy to Xuzhu and names the latter his successor. He gives Xuzhu a painting of a woman who looks like Wang Yuyan and tells Xuzhu to look for her. He also mentions that the woman in the painting is his true love, who is actually Li Qiushui's younger sister.

• Tianshan Tonglao (天山童姥; literally "Child Old Woman of Mount Heaven") is Wuyazi's senior and the ruler of Lingjiu Palace (靈鷲宮) on Mount Heaven. She mastered a powerful skill that increased her powers but there is a side effect that caused her to maintain her present body size regardless of age. She is already in her late 90s when the events of the novel take place, but since she started practising the skill in her childhood, her body is that of a child's, hence her name. She is renowned for being a fearsome leader, and many pugilists have been poisoned by her and forced to carry out her orders. If they fail to obey, no antidote is given and they die. When she is in a weakened state, Xuzhu saves her from a mob of angry martial artists who do not realise who she is and want to kill her. She likes Xuzhu and teaches him martial arts. After Xuzhu gives her the Carefree Sect's ring, which belongs only to the leader, she decides that he will be her successor. However Xuzhu is unwilling because he sees himself as a Shaolin monk. In order to force Xuzhu to break the Buddhist code of conduct so that he can no longer be a monk, she captures Princess Yinchuan, gives her an aphrodisiac, and puts her on Xuzhu's bed. Xuzhu makes love with the princess and eventually accepts Tianshan Tonglao's tutelage in martial arts. Tianshan Tonglao dies from exhaustion after her final fight with Li Qiushui.

• Li Qiushui (李秋水) is Wuyazi's junior and the love rival of Tianshan Tonglao. Her younger sister, who is identical to her in appearance, is actually Wuyazi's true love. She had an affair with Ding Chunqiu when Wuyazi neglected her and conceived a daughter, Li Qingluo. She later married a prince of Western Xia and became a princess consort. She dies together with Tianshan Tonglao after both of them realise that Wuyazi loves neither of them.

• Su Xinghe (蘇星河), nicknamed "Deaf Mute Old Man" (聾啞老人) and "Intelligent Gentleman" (聰辯先生), is Wuyazi's eldest disciple. He indulged in various types of arts and neglected his martial arts practice. He saved Wuyazi after the latter was thrown off a cliff by Ding Chunqiu. He pretended to be mute and deaf and founded the Deaf Mute Sect later and accepted the "Eight Friends of Hangu" as his students. He dies after being poisoned by Ding Chunqiu.

• Ding Chunqiu (丁春秋), nicknamed "Old Freak of Xingxiu" (星宿老怪), was a former student of Wuyazi. He attempted to murder his teacher by ambushing the latter and throwing him off a cliff. He later founded the Xingxiu Sect (星宿派), which specialises in toxicology and poison-based martial arts. He is defeated by Xuzhu and implanted with the "Life and Death Talisman" (生死符). He is eventually imprisoned in Shaolin and given an antidote to temporarily ease his agony if he behaves well.

• The Four Servants of Lingjiu Palace are the four personal attendants of the palace's ruler. They served Tianshan Tonglao and later Xuzhu. They are:
  • Plum Sword (梅劍)
  • Orchid Sword (兰剑)
  • Bamboo Sword (竹剑)
  • Chrysanthemum Sword (菊剑)

• The "Eight Friends of Hangu" (函谷八友) are Su Xinghe's students. They are:
  • "Zither Fanatic" Kang Guangling ("琴癲" 康廣陵)
  • "Chess Devil" Fan Bailing ("棋魔" 范百齡)
  • "Bookworm" Gou Du ("书獃" 苟读)
  • "Painting Enthusiast" Wu Lingjun ("畫狂" 吳領軍)
  • "Divine Physician" Xue Muhua ("神醫" 薛慕華)
  • "Marvelous Craftsman" Feng A'san ("巧匠" 馮阿三)
  • "Flower Zealot" Shi Qingfeng ("花痴" 石清風)
  • "Opera Fan" Li Kuilei ("戏迷" 李傀儡)

Liao Dynasty

• Yelü Hongji (耶律洪基) is the ambitious ruler of Liao. He once led a raid on the Jurchens but was defeated and captured by Xiao Feng. Xiao spares his life and becomes sworn brothers with him. Xiao Feng helps him suppress a rebellion later and he rewards Xiao by making the latter a noble. Near the end of the novel, he orders Xiao Feng to lead his army to attack the Song Dynasty but Xiao refuses so he has Xiao imprisoned. In the last chapter he is taken hostage by Xiao Feng, who forces him to make an oath that he will not allow any Liao soldier to cross the border and attack Song for as long as he lives.

• Yelü Nielugu (耶律涅魯古) is Yelü Chongyuan's son and the Great Prince of the South Palace (南院大王) of Liao. He rebels against Yelü Hongji to help his father seize the throne but is defeated and slain by Xiao Feng. Yelü Hongji then gives Nielugu's palace and title to Xiao Feng.

• Yelü Chongyuan (耶律重元) is an uncle of Yelü Hongji and a field commander of the Liao army. He is instigated by his son Yelü Nielugu to rebel against Yelü Hongji but the revolt is suppressed and he commits suicide.

• Noble Consort Mu (穆貴妃) is Yelü Hongji's favourite concubine. She tricks A'zi into giving Xiao Feng a "love potion", which is actually a drug that will cause the consumer to become temporarily weakened.

Western Xia

• Princess Yinchuan (銀川公主) is a princess of Western Xia who marries Xuzhu. Her name is Li Qinglu (李清露) in the latest revision of the novel. She was abducted by Tianshan Tonglao and brought to make love with Xuzhu every night, as part of Tianshan Tonglao's attempt to tempt Xuzhu into breaking the Buddhist code of conduct. She has never clearly seen Xuzhu's appearance and only knows him as her "dream lover". She later asks her father to send out an invitation calling for jianghu pugilists to attend a contest to win her hand-in-marriage, while secretly hoping that her "dream lover" will show up. Xuzhu really participates in the contest and she recognises him when he gives the correct response to her question.

• Helian Tieshu (赫連鐵樹) is the East Conquering General (徵東將軍) of Western Xia. He is also in charge of First Class Hall (一品堂), an organisation opened in Western Xia to recruit martial artists as mercenaries.

Jurchen tribe

• Wanyan Aguda (完顏阿骨打) is the tribe chief's oldest son. He meets Xiao Feng by chance and is so impressed with Xiao's skill that he invites the latter to live together with him.

• Helibu (和哩布) is the tribe's chief.

Subjects of Lingjiu Palace (靈鷲宮)

• The Limitless Sword Sect (無量劍派) is based on Mount Wuliang. It was forced to submit to Tianshan Tonglao. Its members include:
  • Zuo Zimu (左子穆)
  • Xin Shuangqing (辛雙清)

• The Lords of the 36 Caves and 72 Islands (三十六洞洞主、七十二島島主) were forced into submission by Tianshan Tonglao. They were treated harshly by her and later rebelled against her. Some of the Lords include:
  • Sangtugong (桑土公)
  • Xuanhuangzi (玄黃子)
  • Zhang Dafu (章達夫)
  • Duanmu Yuan (端木元)
  • Mrs. Li (黎夫人)
  • Wu Laoda (烏老大)
  • Taoist Buping (不平道人)
  • Cui Lühua (崔綠華)

Others

• You Tanzhi (游坦之) is the heir to Heroes' Gathering Manor, owned by his father You Ji and uncle You Ju. The manor hosts a meeting for the Han Chinese wulin to discuss plans to counter Qiao Feng. Qiao Feng appears at the gathering and engages the pugilists in a bloody battle. The You brothers are defeated and commit suicide in shame. You Tanzhi becomes a pauper and orphan overnight and he bears a grudge against Qiao Feng for his plight. You Tanzhi is captured by raiding Liao soldiers at the border and sold into slavery. He meets Qiao Feng (renamed to Xiao Feng) again and attempts to kill the latter but fails. Xiao Feng lets him go, but A'zi has him captured again after his release. While A'zi tortures You Tanzhi for her sadistic amusement, You is so entranced by A'zi's beauty that he develops a crush on her and willingly succumbs to her commands and becomes her source of entertainment. A'zi forces You Tanzhi to have an iron mask wielded onto his head to hide his identity from Xiao Feng. This causes his face to be marred and disfigured, and he is nicknamed "Iron Clown" (鐵丑) by A'zi. You Tanzhi eventually discovers A'zi using her stolen shenmu wangding to practice the venom-based martial arts of the Xinxiu Sect. She enlists his help in allowing her to finish practising, as this skill requires the user to feed venomous creatures with his / her blood. You Tanzhi willingly sacrifices himself and allows the poisonous insects to bite him. A'zi leaves him to die but he finds the Yijin Jing by chance and uses the skills in the manual to purge the poison from his body. He returns to A'zi, and he repeats the bizarre ritual with her numerous times. He is eventually bitten by the Icy Worm, an extremely rare and poisonous creature, and masters a powerful skill that allows him to project streams of energy containing icy venom. After A'zi is blinded by Ding Chunqiu, You Tanzhi saves her and promises her he will always be by her side to take care of her. She does not realise who he is, and he lies to her that his name is "Zhuang Juxian" (莊聚賢). You Tanzhi later meets Quan Guanqing, who helps him remove the iron mask, but also manipulates him into becoming the new chief of the Beggars' Sect under his new alias, when You is actually a puppet acting under Quan's instructions. After A'zi is captured and held hostage by Din Chunqiu, You Tanzhi surrenders himself at the battle of Shaolin, and becomes an outcast for his defection after Ding Chunqiu's downfall. You Tanzhi is still unwilling to give up his love for A'zi and follows her everywhere. He decides to give up his eyes to help the blinded A'zi regain her sense of sight, hoping to win some love and sympathy from her, but is despised by her even more. He follows suit after A'zi commits suicide.

• You Ji (游骥) and You Ju (游駒) are the brothers who own the Heroes' Gathering Manor (聚賢莊). Together with the physician Xue Muhua, they host a meeting of the Han Chinese wulin (martial artists' community) at the manor to discuss plans to deal with Qiao Feng, who is believed to be responsible for a series of murders. Qiao Feng shows up at the manor to find Xue Muhua to heal A'zhu. The pugilists confront him and the situation escalates into a bloody battle after Qiao Feng toasts to break ties with many of his old acquaintances and friends. The You brothers do not fight honourably and lose to Qiao Feng and their weapons (also their family heirlooms) are shattered. They commit suicide in shame, traumatising You Tanzhi and causing him to bear a grudge against Qiao Feng.

• Jiumozhi (鳩摩智) is the royal advisor of the Kingdom of Tubo and a reputable monk from Dalun Temple (大輪寺). He is versed in Buddhism and martial arts, but does not follow the Buddhist code of conduct, which includes his obsession to become the most powerful fighter in the wulin. He attempts to take the "Six Meridians Divine Sword" manual from Heavenly Dragon Monastery, but the book is destroyed. When he learns that Duan Yu has memorised the book, he kidnaps the latter and tries to con or intimidate Duan to write the manual for him, but Duan escapes with A'zhu and A'bi's help. He almost dies from an imbalance of inner energy due to compulsive training, but Duan Yu saves his life by draining away the energy. He feels grateful to Duan despite losing everything he had built up through years of practice, and repents after seeing how his delusional dream had caused him to stray from the path of goodness.

• Xiao Yuanshan (蕭遠山) is Xiao Feng's father. 30 years ago he and his family were attacked by a group of masked assailants at Yanmen Pass and his wife was killed. He attempted suicide by jumping off a cliff but survived. He remains in hiding in Shaolin's library while secretly plotting revenge on Xuanci, whom he identified as the attackers' leader. He is enlightened by the Sweeper Monk, who puts him to sleep and clears his mind of thoughts of vengeance. He feels grateful and decides to become the Monk's student.

• Shan Zheng (單正), nicknamed "Stern Faced Judge" (鐵面判官), is a reputable pugilist from Mount Tai. He was present at the Beggars' Sect's meeting in Apricot Forest and is one of the few who knows the "Leading Big Brother"'s true identity. He and his family are killed in a fire set by Xiao Yuanshan. Qiao Feng was blamed for their deaths until the truth is revealed.

• Tan Gong (譚公) and Tan Po (譚婆) are an elderly couple from Chongxiao Cave (沖霄洞) in the Taihang Mountains. They were present at the Beggars' Sect's meeting in Apricot Forest, and are among the few who know the "Leading Big Brother"'s true identity. Tan Po is killed by Xiao Yuanshan while Tan Gong commits suicide to join his wife. Qiao Feng was blamed for their deaths until the truth is revealed.

• Zhao Qiansun (趙錢孫) is a cowardly pugilist who was involved in the attack on Xiao Yuanshan's family. He has a crush on Tan Po since their younger days and continues to meet her behind her husband's back to reminisce their good old times. He is killed by Xiao Yuanshan, and Qiao Feng was accused of being the murderer until the truth is revealed.

• Reverend Zhiguang (智光大師) is a reputable monk from Mount Tiantai who was involved in the attack on Xiao Yuanshan's family. He was present at the Beggars' Sect's meeting in Apricot Forest. He commits suicide after refusing to reveal to Qiao Feng the identity of the "Leading Big Brother".

• Qiao Sanhuai (喬三槐) is Xiao Feng's adoptive father. He is killed along with his wife by Xiao Yuanshan for not telling their adoptive son about his true parentage. Xiao Feng was accused of murdering them before the truth is revealed.

• Zhuo Bufan (卓不凡) is an extremely powerful swordsman who joins the subjects of Lingjiu Palace in their rebellion against Tianshan Tonglao.