Liu Qing

He who increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. This article contains spoilers, meaning it has information and facts concerning Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple. If you do not want to know about these events, it is recommended to read on with caution, or not at all. This template should be removed from the article 3 December 2024.

"Yet another worthy opponent to bring out the fire in me!"

―Liu Qing to Edward Kenway, 1725.

Liu Qing (Chinese: 劉 清) was a Chinese Assassin who served under the Mentor Xiao Han alongside Xue Yan in the early 18th century.

Biography

Battle aboard Sun's ship

"It sits ill with me that Sun has us meeting aboard a ship. There will be scant routes of escape if we're to be ambushed."

―Liu Qing expressing his doubts about the meeting with Sun, 1725.

In 1725, Liu Qing and Xue Yan accompanied Xiao Han to a floating gambling hall in Macau owned by Xiao Han's uncle Sun to follow up on a lead on an Isu site in Indochina. When Sun revealed his intention to surrender the artifact located there to the Qing Emperor, Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins drew arms and prepared to attack Sun and his guards.

Liu Qing attempting to execute Saito

While Xiao Han chased after Sun, both Liu Qing and Xue Yan fended off his men and the Templar Shimazu Saito's ninja in his service. Liu Qing killed a number of ninja before engaging in a duel with Saito's second-in-command, whom he eventually managed to slay as well. Having witnessed this, a furious Saito attacked Liu Qing, but she was also defeated when the Assassin struck down his guandao and destroyed the Templar's sword.

Before Liu Qing could execute Saito, the British Assassin Edward Kenway came to her rescue and forced him back. Amidst the chaos, Sun was able to recover the sea log in Xiao Han's possession and he soon fled with his reinforcements. Seeing this, Liu Qing and Xue Yan followed their leader to chase Sun and recover the sea log.

During their pursuit of Sun, Liu Qing, and Xue Yan were attacked by Edward, who was also attempting to retrieve the sea log. The two Assassins briefly fought Edward to buy Xiao Han enough time to catch up to Sun and kill him. After Xiao Han retrieved the log from Sun's body, it was stolen by Edward, who disagreed with the Mentor's plan to use the Isu artifact in Angkor to overthrow the Qing dynasty.

Seeing that the British Assassin could not be reasoned with, Xiao Han declared him an enemy of the Chinese Brotherhood as Liu Qing and Xue Yan arrived and surrounded Edward. Before anything could happen, however, they all witnessed the gambling ship being bombarded with cannon fire by Jeong. Xiao Han used this distraction to snatch the sea log back from Edward and he warned him to stay out of the Chinese Brotherhood's way before leaving alongside Liu Qing and Xue Yan.

Alliance with Madam Lee

Liu Qing: "This is why I was against holding the meeting aboard the ship."

Xue Yan: "For once, I have to agree."

—Liu Qing and Xue Yan, following their escape from Sun's gambling ship, 1725.

Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins meeting with Lee

The following morning, Liu Qing, Xue Yan and Xiao Han approached Jeong as the admiral and her crew were investigating the wreckage of Sun's gambling den to confirm his death. Jeong initially aimed her pistol at the Assassins, but after Xiao Han revealed that he had acquired the sea log sought by Jeong's patron Lee Huiyin, the admiral agreed to grant them an audience with her.

Liu Qing and Xue Yan were both present for Xiao Han's meeting with Lee, where the Mentor proposed an alliance to find Angkor's treasure. Aware of Lee's past and the persecution she had faced under the Qing dynasty, Xiao Han was able to persuade her to agree to the partnership. However, rather than help the Assassins overthrow the Qing for the benefit of the Han Chinese people, Lee was only interested in acquiring more power and influence for herself.

Pursuing the Fenghuang

Xue Yan: "I'm sorry, master."

Liu Qing: "We have failed you."

—Liu Qing and Xue Yan apologizing to Xiao Han for their defeat, 1725.

After learning that Edward Kenway and the Zhang Wei Union members had left Macau to pursue a possible lead to Angkor's location, Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins joined Jeong and her fleet as the admiral pursued the Union's ship, the Fenghuang, eventually ambushing it near the Philippines. After the Fenghuang sank most of Jeong's fleet, the admiral sailed Liu Qing, Xiao Han, and Xue Yan close to the ship, allowing them to board it using their gliders. They then used their Greek fire bombs to set the deck on fire and killed many of the ship's crew in the resulting commotion.

Liu Qing surrounded by the Fenghuang's crew

During the chaos, Liu Qing saw his Mentor dueling Edward and wished to help. However, while he was distracted, he quickly found himself surrounded by the navigator John Young and several crew members, who held him at gunpoint. After Xiao Han and Xue Yan were defeated by Edward and Shimazu Saito, respectively, the Mentor ordered a retreat. Liu Qing promptly ran away from the crew members surrounding him and managed to deploy his parachute, gliding back to Jeong's ship.

After Jeong informed Xiao Han that she was unable to continue her pursuit of the Fenghuang due to the ship sailing into a storm, Liu Qing and Xue Yan apologized to their Mentor for their defeat. Xiao Han told them not to be so hard on themselves and that it was not their fault, as their opponents were stronger than they had anticipated. He also claimed them that, given their pursuit of the same prize, their paths were bound to cross again eventually.

Search in the Philippines

"We must all make sacrifices for the greater good. This is no easier for Mentor Han than for any of us. I say we give him our grace and follow without question."

―Liu Qing to Xue Yan, 1725.

Sometime later, Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins accompanied Jeong and Lee to Manila, where a riot had occurred recently. While Lee met with the Lieutenant Governor-General to secure their passage to the Southern Seas, the Chinese Assassins investigated around the city to uncover details about the riot. They learned that a monk had used a Piece of Eden—a crescent amulet—to incite the riot, and that Edward had fought him, but ultimately lost the amulet to members of a native resistance against the Spanish colonists.

Following this, Liu Qing and the others met with Lee and Jeong, where Xiao Han informed them of their findings. After the Mentor claimed that they would travel to Cebu to investigate their next lead to Angkor's location and that they would try to intercept the native warriors along the way to retrieve their stolen Piece of Eden, Lee gave the Chinese Assassins free reign to do as they pleased.

Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins leaving Monkey Island

Thanks to Fuma Sukuna's informants, the Assassins learned that the native resistance had a stronghold on Monkey Island and went to investigate it. Along the way, Liu Qing and the others watched as Sukuna and his ninja followers laid waste to entire villages, but did nothing to try and stop them. Eventually arriving at the resistance's fort, the Assassins and Sukuna found it in ruins and concluded that the native warriors had already left Monkey Island.

Leaving Sukuna and his men to take care of the remaining matters on the island, Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins departed and went to rendezvous with Jeong and her fleet. Along the way, Xue Yan questioned Xiao Han about their mission's righteousness, as she was uncomfortable with having allowed Sukuna's ninja to slaughter innocent villagers.

After the Mentor defended his decision, claiming that they all had to make sacrifices for the greater good, Liu Qing prevented Xue Yan from arguing back. The trio then met up with Jeong and boarded her ship, sailing to Cebu.

Confrontation in Cebu

"Papa... Why couldn't you save us all? Please don't go... You can't forsake your own kin..."

―Liu Qing hearing his daughter's voice after being subjected to the amulet's powers, 1725.

In Cebu, the Chinese Assassins split up to search for the crescent amulet. Liu Qing and Xue Yan later joined their Mentor at Fort San Pedro, where Xiao Han was fighting against Edward and Shimazu Saito, who were in possession of the Piece of Eden.

Personality and traits

"As the great General Qi Jiguang once said, be wary of the Japanese with their long swords. I see he was right to be wary!"

―Liu Qing during his duel with Shimazu Saito, 1725.

Liu Qing was a dedicated Assassin who shared his Mentor's goal of using Angkor's artifact to restore the Chinese Brotherhood to its former strength. While he would occasionally engage in banter with Xue Yan, he remained stoic and focused in battle and always looked forward to facing challenging opponents. He recognized both Shimazu Saito and Edward Kenway as worthy foes, and even after defeating the former, he showed her respect by telling her she had "fought the good fight."

Liu Qing and Xue Yan apologizing to Xiao Han

Liu Qing was extremely devoted to Xiao Han, trying to rush to his aid as soon as he saw that his Mentor was fighting Edward Kenway. He was also afraid of disappointing him and, alongside Xue Yan, apologized for their failure to defeat the Fenghuang's crew.

His loyalty to his Mentor extended so far that he supported Xiao Han's claims that they all had to make sacrifices for the "greater good", even if this meant allowing innocents to be slaughtered. When Xue Yan tried to argue against this, Liu Qing quickly stopped her, both to prevent her from upsetting Xiao Han and because of his own beliefs that they should serve their Mentor without question.

Skills and equipment

A large and intimidating warrior, Liu Qing relied on brute strength to overpower his adversaries. This was reflected in his weapon of choice, the guandao, a long and heavy blade which required considerable strength to utilize effectively. Liu Qing appeared to have mastered the weapon, as he used it to defeat a number of well-trained Shimazu clan ninja, as well as Shimazu Saito, whose sword he was able to break in half.

In addition to his guandao, Liu Qing also wielded a ranged weapon in the form of a throwing axe. During their journey to the Philippines, Liu Qing and his fellow Chinese Assassins sported gliders and parachutes which allowed them to fly for short distances. They also carried Greek fire bombs, which created a thick smoke upon detonation and flames that could not be extinguished with water.

Behind the scenes

Liu Qing is a character introduced in Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple. Despite being Assassins, both he and Xue Yan notably lack a Hidden Blade.

Etymology

Liu (劉) is a Chinese surname which originally belonged to the Han dynasty emperors. The character 劉 initially meant "battle axe", but has since lost this meaning and is now only used as a surname. Qing (清) is a Chinese name which has held various meanings throughout history; during the Qing dynasty, it meant 'clear', 'pure'.

Gallery

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  Close-up of Liu Qing
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  Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins being led to Sun
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  Liu Qing with his fellow Assassins
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  Liu Qing and Xue Yan confronting Edward
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  Liu Qing and Xiao Han using parachutes to escape the Fenghuang

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Forgotten Temple