History Characters / QianQiuSectsOfTheJianghu

* AdaptationJobChange: Downplayedl The novel introduced him as the imperial adviser of Yuwen Hu, the previous emperor of Northern Zhou, but the ''donghua'' has him become the ''former'' imperial adviser of Yuwen Yong (renamed Yuwen You in the AnimatedAdaptation). Likewise, whereas he used to be a disciple of the Tiantai Sect in the novel, the ''donghua'' introduces him as an active member of said sect.

* CatchPhrase: Although it's common for all Buddhist monks to say it, one can already make a drinking game of all the times Xueting says "Amitabha" throughout the novel.

* KarmaHoudini: Besides ending up [[spoiler: seriously injured in his duel with Yan Wushi that he needed to cultivate in seclusion for months to recover]], Ruyan Kehui doesn't get any proper comeuppance for his role in [[spoiler: the assassination plot to have Yan Wushi and then the emperor of Northern Zhou killed]]. However, [[spoiler: Puliuru Jian soon takes over the throne, and he is another of the Xianbei people -- who Ruyan Kehui look down on due to his Sinocentric beliefs]]. Therefore, while Ruyan Kehui doesn't get any karma, he doesn't get what he wants either. To add insult to injury, the extras mention that, like in RealLife, the Sui Dynasty eventually absorbed the Chen Dynasty, the latter of where Ruyan Kehui resides.

** When Yan Wushi declines Dou Yanshan's challenge and calls him a nobody, Dou Yanshan managed to silence anyone else who laughed at him by using his inner ''qi'' in his response to let the others knew that even though he was just ridiculed by Yan Wushi, he's still not someone to be easily trifled with. He doesn't get to do such in the ''donghua'', and some of the onlookers even shove him aside.

* FantasticRacism: Dou Yanshan is an ethnicist and believes in the supremacy of the Han people while looking down on the Xianbei people.

* {{Foil}}: He's one to Shen Qiao, showing what happens when someone allows themselves to be consumed by their vengeance, no matter how justified their hatred may be.

[- [[Characters/QianQiuMainCharacters Main Characters]] ([[Characters/QianQiuMainCharactersShenQiao Shen Qiao]], [[Characters/QianQiuMainCharactersYanWushi Yan Wushi]]) | '''Sects of the Jianghu''' ([[Characters/QianQiuSectsOfTheJianghuTheThreeDemonicSects The Three Demonic Sects]], [[Characters/QianQiuSectsOfTheJianghuDaoistSects Daoist Sects]]) | [[Characters/QianQiuNationsAndKingdoms Nations and Kingdoms]] -]]]]]

!! Linchuan Institute | 临川学宫

The master-in-charge of the Linchuan Institute.

A disciple of the Linchuan Institute, and Xie Xiang's ''shixiong''.

* AdaptationDeviation: The novel introduced him as the imperial adviser of Yuwen Hu, the previous emperor of Northern Zhou, but the ''donghua'' has him become the ''former'' imperial adviser of Yuwen Yong (renamed Yuwen You in the AnimatedAdaptation). Likewise, whereas he used to be a disciple of the Tiantai Sect in the novel, the ''donghua'' introduces him as an active member of said sect.

* BeautyIsBad: The novel described him to be handsome that he could pass off as a dignified and wealthy scholar had it not been for the lack of hair on his head. However, he's not as benevolent as he appears to be.

** When Xueting calls Yan Wushi a scoundrel in the ''donghua'', Yan Wushi is quick to fire back that he's not so different.
* StaffOfAuthority: Xueting carries a ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khakkhara khakkhara]]'' with him, which he can also use in combat. This is TruthInTelevision; while ''khakkharas'' are used mostly as noisemakers or instruments, they can also be used as a defensive weapon.
* TermsOfEndangerment: Yan Wushi ''always'' calls him an "old bald donkey" or "old bald ass", and Bian Yanmei also refers to Xueting by the same degrading nickname.

* BitCharacter

* AdaptationDeviation: In the ''donghua'', while he is still complicit [[spoiler: in the plot to assassinate Yan Wushi]], Ruyan Kehui also allied with Beimu (Tujue) when he never did anything of the sort in the novel, where he views the Tujue people as "foreign barbarians". However, the writers eventually revealed that just like in the novel, Ruyan Kehui still doesn't trust the people of Beimu, but he still joins in their plan to [[spoiler:take down Yan Wushi for far more personal reasons, mostly that he strongly dislikes Yan Wushi and his obstinate nature]].

* FateWorseThanDeath: Lampshaded. At one point, Yan Wushi mentions that Confucians love to give lectures and that someone like Ruyan Kehui would rather die than be forced to never preach to the public again.
* KarmaHoudini: Besides ending up [[spoiler: seriously injured in his duel with Yan Wushi that he needed to cultivate in seclusion for months to recover]], Ruyan Kehui doesn't get any proper comeuppance for his role in [[spoiler: the assassination plot to have Yan Wushi and then the emperor of Northern Zhou killed]]. However, [[spoiler: Yuwen Yong is succeeded by another of the Xianbei people -- who Ruyan Kehui look down on due to his Sinocentric beliefs]] -- so while Ruyan Kehui doesn't get any karma, he doesn't get what he wants either.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: In the chapter where Xie Xiang was introduced, he's specifically mentioned to be of the Xie Clan of the Chen Commandery. And beforehand, the narration stated that Yan Wushi would go by the surname "Xie" whenever he would travel. [[spoiler: It's eventually revealed that Yan Wushi is also a descendant of the Xie Clan, and his former name is Xie Ling.]]

* UnknownRelative: It's unknown exactly how they are related, but it's later revealed that [[spoiler: Yan Wushi is from the Xie Clan, which means he and Xie Xiang are of the same blood]].

* HistoricalDomainCharacter: He's a more obscure example than the others in the cast, but Zhan Ziqian is actually a RealLife painter who existed around the time of the Sui Dynasty, and is famous for the portrait "Strolling About in Spring", which is the earliest landscape painting that still exists today.

* NiceMeanAndInBetween: Between the three named members of the Linchuan Academy [[note]] Besides Liu Jingyan, the empress of Southern Chen. [[/note]], Zhan Ziqian is the Nice of the three. Unlike his ''shixiong'', he is well-mannered instead of condescending towards the people he speaks to; and unlike his ''shizun'', he never enforces his Confucianist beliefs on others.
* NiceGuy: He's always polite to anyone he speaks to. In his first appearance, he makes sure to greet both Yan Wushi and Shen Qiao, whereas his ''shidi'' only acknowledged Yan Wushi. He's also one of the few people who is courteous to Shen Qiao from the get-go, which is rare.

** When Yan Wushi declines Dou Yanshan's challenge and calls him a nobody, Dou Yanshan managed to silence anyone else who laughed in response by using his inner ''qi'' in his response to let the others knew that even though he was just ridiculed by Yan Wushi, he's still not someone to be easily trifled with. He doesn't get to do such in the ''donghua'', and some of the onlookers even shove him aside.

* ItsPersonal: While the other four do not personally get along with Yan Wushi, their reasons for [[spoiler: ambushing him were purely for reasons that were either pragmatic or political]] in nature, or both. Dou Yanshan, however, wants payback against Yan Wushi for [[spoiler: destroying the volume of the Zhuyang Ce that was supposed to be delivered to him]].

* LaserGuidedKarma: As one of the five masters that [[spoiler: took part in the ambush]], Yan Wushi makes sure that he doesn't get away with it by [[spoiler: taking advantage of the dissent within the Liuhe Organization to have Dou Yanshan poisoned to death]].

* AdaptationDeviation: The ''donghua'' has her ally with Beimu (Tujue) alongside Dou Yanshan early on in the story, whereas in the novel, she allied with Tujue on a separate occasion in an attempt to consolidate power from Dou Yanshan in the future.
* AgeLift:
* KnowWhenToFoldEm: Yun Fuyi encounters too much trouble on her mission to deliver one of the books of the Zhuyang Ce to Jiankang, and when it eventually escalates to an all-out confrontation in Chuyun Temple, she offers to surrender the book as long as she and her subordinates are left unharmed.
* OhCrap: In the ''donghua'', Yan Wushi warns Shen Qiao that since he has read one of the books of the Zhuyang Ce, everyone in the martial world will start targeting him and will use any sorts of means to get to him first. Yun Fuyi starts to look alarmed at the statement and leaves in a haste, because she's precisely one of those "everyone" Yan Wushi mentioned.

* SleepingTheirWayToTheTop: Shen Qiao and Yan Wushi witness her in bed with one of the young masters of the Huang family to curry favors from them as part of her plan to become the next chairman of her sect.

* HairDecorations: She wears floral hairpins in the ''donghua''.

* PurpleIsPowerful: Downplayed. Yuan Zixiao wears purple robes, and while she is never seen fighting, she does have a wide scope of knowledge as well as a very sharp eye.

* TheBusCameBack: After appearing in Madam Su's birthday banquet, the next time he shows up is almost a hundred chapters later when he and Xie Xiang attend the Sword Trial Conference.

** When Xueting calls Yan Wushi a scoundrel in the ''donghua'', Yan Wushi is quick to fire back that he's NotSoDifferent either.

* AmbitionIsEvil: He's willing to put an incompetent and despotic emperor on the throne just so that the he and the Buddhist sects can regain influence in the ''jianghu'' once more.

* CharacterTics: Xueting tends to slam his staff onto the ground whenever he expresses his frustrations in the AnimatedAdaptation.

** When Xueting calls Yan Wushi a thief in the ''donghua'', Yan Wushi is quick to fire back that he's NotSoDifferent either.

* UncertainDoom: The last time they're mentioned, the novel described that the fight between them and Bian Yanmei came to a standstill. It's uncertain if they were merely defeated and got taken into custody later, or if they were killed off.

* AdaptationDeviation: In the ''donghua'', while he is still complicit [[spoiler: in the plot to assassinate Yan Wushi]], Ruyan Kehui also allied with Beimu (Tujue), when he never did anything of the sort in the novel, where he views the Tujue people as "foreign barbarians". However, the writers eventually revealed that just like in the novel, Ruyan Kehui still doesn't trust the people of Beimu, but he still joins in their plan to [[spoiler:take down Yan Wushi for far more personal reasons, mostly that he strongly dislikes Yan Wushi and his obstinate nature]].
* EveryoneHasStandards: The novel's final chapter states that while Ruyan Kehui is not particularly fond of Yan Wushi, he does not wish for him to [[spoiler: lose against Hulugu]].

* TheBusCameBack

* HiddenDepths: He has a strong passion for drawing, as shown when he asks Shen Qiao to be a model for one of his paintings. This is inspired from the real Zhan Ziqian, who is renowned for his lifelike paintings.

* AdaptationDeviation: The ''donghua'' has her ally with Beimu (Tujue) alongside Dou Yanshan early on in the story, whereas in the novel, she allied Tujue separately from Dou Yanshan in an attempt to consolidate power from him in the future.

* MysteriousPast: The way Gu Hengbo addressed Yuan Zixiao implies that there's some past history between them. What kind of history they have, however, is never looked into.

* StayInTheKitchen: When Yuan Zixiao is introduced to the other martial arts masters in the Sword Trial Conference, many immediately voice their condescension of her due to the sole fact that she's a woman. Not more than one minute later, she immediately silences all her naysayers by proving how observational she is.

* ArcVillain: He's one of the adversaries that Shen Qiao faces when he heads to the Bixia Sect.

* EtTuBrute: He used to be close friends with Hui Leshan, the previous leader of the Bixia Sect. However, when both were competing for the position of sect leader, Hui Leshan got him drunk and made a plot to make it look like Ruan Hailou slept with their ''shizun's'' daughter, which forced him to leave the sect in shame.

!! Liuhe Association | 六合帮

The chairman of the Liuhe Association.

* LaserGuidedKarma: As one of the five masters that [[spoiler: took part in the ambush]], Yan Wushi makes sure that he doesn't get away with it by [[spoiler: taking advantage of the dissent within the Liuhe Association to have Dou Yanshan poisoned to death]].

The vice-chairman of the Liuhe Association and Dou Yanshan's second-in-command.

* PyrrhicVictory: [[spoiler: Although Yun Fuyi managed to become the chairman of her sect after Dou Yanshan's death, her leadership only lasted for half a month until evidence of her collaboration with the Tujue people was brought to light. The resulting revolt resulted in the other leaders of the sect forcing her to rescind her position, and this contributed further to the divide of the entire Liuhe Association.]]

* HiddenDepths: He has a strong passion for drawing, as shown when he asks Shen Qiao to be a model for one of his paintings.

* UncertainDoom: [[spoiler: Yan Wushi nullifies Xueting's ''wugong'' after Yuwen Yun is deposed, and later hands him over to the Tiantai Sect for them to deal with their treacherous ex-disciple however they wish.]] It's never revealed when the sect has in store for Xueting.

* GracefulLoser: Zigzagged. While he's arrogant and competitive, he's quick to admit if he lost and if he got ahead of himself. He also doesn't feel ashamed about losing to people who he knows are the top-ranked ''wugong'' masters. However, he doesn't take well to the thought of losing to people he deems as nobodies.

* StayInTheKitchen: When Yuan Zixiao is introduced to the other ''wugong'' masters in the Sword Trial Conference, many immediately voice their condescension of her due to the sole fact that she's a woman. Not more than one minute later, she immediately silences all her naysayers by proving how observational she is.

[- [[Characters/QianQiuMainCharacters Main Characters]] | '''Sects of the Jianghu''' ([[Characters/QianQiuSectsOfTheJianghuTheThreeDemonicSects The Three Demonic Sects]], [[Characters/QianQiuSectsOfTheJianghuDaoistSects Daoist Sects]]) | [[Characters/QianQiuNationsAndKingdoms Nations and Kingdoms]] -]]]]]

* CantKillYouStillNeedYou: In spite of Yan Wushi's animosity towards Xueting, he doesn't kill him in their final confrontation because [[spoiler: he intends to surrender him to the Tiantai Sect in exchange for a copy of the final book of the ''The Strategy of the Vermillion Yang'']].

* ItsPersonal: While the other four do not personally get along with Yan Wushi, their reasons for [[spoiler: ambushing him were purely for reasons that were either pragmatic or political]] in nature, or both. Dou Yanshan, however, wants payback against Yan Wushi for [[spoiler: destroying the book of ''The Strategy of the Vermillion Yang'' that was supposed to be delivered to him]].

* KnowWhenToFoldEm: Yun Fuyi encounters too much trouble on her mission to deliver one of the books of ''The Strategy of the Vermillion Yang'' to Jiankang, and when it eventually escalates to an all-out confrontation in Chuyun Temple, she offers to surrender the book as long as she and her subordinates are left unharmed.
* OhCrap: In the ''donghua'', Yan Wushi warns Shen Qiao that since he has read one of the books of ''The Strategy of the Vermillion Yang'', everyone in the martial world will start targeting him and will use any sorts of means to get to him first. Yun Fuyi starts to look alarmed at the statement and leaves in a haste, because she's precisely one of those "everyone" Yan Wushi mentioned.

* BeautyIsBad: The novel described him to be handsome that he would look like a dignified and wealthy scholar had it not been for the lack of hair on his head. However, he's not as benevolent as he appears to be.

* CatchPhrase: Although it's common for Buddhist monks to say it, one can already make a drinking game of all the times Xueting says "Amitabha" throughout the novel.

!!! '''Lian Sheng voiced by''': Xiu Yuan (audio drama)\\
'''Lian Mie voiced by''': Zhang Pei (audio drama)

* StayInTheKitchen: When Yuan Zixiao is introduced to the other ''wugong'' masters in the Sword Trial Conference, many immediately voice their condescension of her due to the sole fact that she's a woman. Not more than one minute later, she's able to immediately silence all her naysayers by proving how observational she is.

[[folder:Lian Sheng (莲生) and Lian Mie (莲灭)]]

! Confucianist Sects

* FantasticRacism: Ruyan Kehui is a firm believer in the Han people's supremacy, and does not think highly of foreigners or the influence they have on China's rulers. [[spoiler: This is one of the reasons why he helped in the assassination plot, since he disapproves of the reign of the Yuwen family, are of Xianbei ancestry.]]
* FateWorseThanDeath: Lampshaded. At one point, Yan Wushi mentions that Confucianists love to give lectures and that someone like Ruyan Kehui would rather die than be forced to never preach to the public again.

* HiddenDepths: He has a strong passion for drawing.
* NiceGuy: He's always polite to anyone he speaks to. In his first appearance, he makes sure to greet both Yan Wushi and Shen Qiao, whereas his ''shidi'' only acknowledged Yan Wushi. He's also one of the few people who is courteous to Shen Qiao from the get-go, which is remarkable.

* AdaptationalWimp: In the ''donghua'', Dou Yanshan is portrayed as someone who has far more bark than bite. While he participated in the heat of the battle during the ambush against Yan Wushi in the novel, he stays mostly out of the fighting in the ''donghua'' and only lands a sneak attack on Yan Wushi when the latter is already far too wounded to fight back. Then when he tries to land the killing blow on Yan Wushi, he nearly chickens out when Yan Wushi threatens him with an insidious look and smile.

* DespairEventHorizon

* {{Foil}}