Liu Qing
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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. |
Liu Qing (Chinese: 劉 清) was a Chinese Assassin who served under the Mentor Xiao Han alongside Xue Yan in the early 18th century. After losing his family during the Brotherhood's purge by the Qing Empire, Liu Qing joined the other survivors in searching for a set of three Pieces of Eden which would allow them to overthrow the Qing dynasty and rebuild their Order.
During their search, Liu Qing, Xiao Han, and Xue Yan allied with the affluential businesswoman Lee Huiyin, who also desired the artifacts' power, but faced opposition from the British Assassin Edward Kenway, who disagreed with their plans. After clashing with Edward and his organization, the Zhang Wei Union, several times during their quest for the Pieces, the Chinese Assassins eventually secured one of the artifacts, a crescent amulet.
However, in the process, Xiao Han killed Edward's companion Xialun Qing, an innocent doctor. This act deeply disturbed Liu Qing and Xue Yan and shook their faith in their Mentor. Nevertheless, the two continued to reluctantly follow Xiao Han, accompanying him and Lee to Angkor in search of another Piece of Eden.
Biography
Early life
Prior to the Chinese Brotherhood's purge, Liu Qing was married and had a young daughter, whom he loved deeply.[1] He was also well-acquainted with the Brotherhood's Mentor Xiao Han, whom he regarded as a close friend.[2]
When the Qing Empire began persecuting the Han Chinese people in the early 18th century, Liu Qing's entire family was killed. The Assassin himself managed to survive the purge, but would forever be haunted by the death of his daughter.[1] He later joined Xiao Han and Xue Yan, who were the only other surviving Chinese Assassins, in their quest to find a Piece of Eden that they could use to overthrow the Qing dynasty and rebuild their Brotherhood.[3]
Battle aboard Sun's ship
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.[3]
While Xiao Han chased after Sun, Liu Qing and Xue Yan fended off his guards 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.[4] Having witnessed this, a furious Saito attacked Liu Qing, but she was also defeated when the Assassin struck down his guandao and broke the Templar's naginata.[5]
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 soon fled with his reinforcements. Seeing this, Liu Qing and Xue Yan followed their Mentor to chase Sun and recover the sea log.[5]
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 Chinese 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 Piece of Eden from Angkor to overthrow the Qing dynasty.[6]
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 Admiral Zheng.[6] Xiao Han used this distraction to snatch the sea log back from Edward and warned him to stay out of the Chinese Brotherhood's way before leaving alongside Liu Qing and Xue Yan.[7]
Alliance with Madam Lee
The following morning, Liu Qing, Xue Yan, and Xiao Han approached Zheng as the admiral and her crew were investigating the wreckage of Sun's gambling ship to confirm his death. Zheng initially aimed her pistol at the Assassins, but after Xiao Han revealed that he had acquired the sea log sought by Zheng's patron Lee Huiyin, the admiral agreed to grant them an audience with her.[7]
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.[8]
Pursuing the Fenghuang
After learning that Edward Kenway and the members of his Zhang Wei Union had left Macau to pursue a possible lead to Angkor's location, Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins joined Zheng and her fleet as the admiral pursued the Union's ship, the Fenghuang, eventually ambushing it near the Philippines.[9] After the Fenghuang sank most of Zheng'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.[10]
During the chaos, Liu Qing saw his Mentor dueling Edward and wished to help. However, while he was distracted, he found himself surrounded by the navigator John Young and several crew members, who held him at gunpoint.[10] 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 deployed his parachute, gliding back to Zheng's ship.[11]
After Zheng 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 that, given their pursuit of the same prize, their paths were bound to cross again eventually.[11]
Search in the Philippines
Later, Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins accompanied Zheng and Madam 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.[12]
Following this, Liu Qing and the others met with Lee and Zheng, 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.[12]
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.[13]
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 Zheng 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.[13]
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 Zheng and boarded her ship, sailing to Cebu.[13]
Confrontation in Cebu
In Cebu, the Chinese Assassins split up to search for the crescent amulet.[14] 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.[15] While Xue Yan dueled Saito, Liu Qing and Xiao Han battled Edward, who struggled to keep them at bay.[1]
After Saito was defeated, Edward reluctantly decided to unleash the amulet's powers against his opponents. Gazing into the artifact, Liu Qing was met by a vision of his late family, with his daughter asking him why he had been unable to save them all. The vision brought the Assassin to tears while at the same time rendering his body inert. Xiao Han was similarly affected by the Piece of Eden's powers and both Assassins soon lay on the ground, defeated.[1]
Seeing this, Xue Yan rushed to her fellow Assassins' aid, allowing Edward and Saito to escape in a strange flying contraption. After Liu Qing and Xiao Han recovered from the amulet's effects, the latter asked Xue Yan for Edward's whereabouts, to which she informed him of the British Assassin's escape. However, despite the loss of the amulet, their mission was not a complete failure, as Xue Yan had managed to steal a sea log from Saito during the fight, providing the Chinese Assassins with the locations of two other Pieces of Eden.[1]
Showdown in Sulu
- "We don't doubt the righteousness of our cause, Master. That being said... I can't help but wonder if this fixation on the greater good... blinds us from the path that once brought us together. Perhaps we'll discuss what comes next on the voyage back... not to mention take a moment to reflect on what came before. Master... or rather... Han, my friend."
- ―Liu Qing to Xiao Han, during the voyage back from Sulu, 1725.[src]-[m]
Sometime later, after Fuma Sukuna and his ninja were killed in an ambush by the Zhang Wei Union, Zheng was notified of the ninja's defeat by a note delivered by a raven. After the admiral informed Liu Qing, Xue Yan, and Xiao Han that the Union had suffered heavy casualties during the battle, they decided to follow their enemies to the Sultanate of Sulu in order to eliminate them.[16]
In Sulu, the Assassins were dropped off by Zheng near a warehouse where the crescent amulet was stored. While Liu Qing and Xiao Han fought the Suluese guards to clear the path ahead, Xue Yan attempted to infiltrate the warehouse and recover the Piece of Eden.[17]
However, during the battle, Zheng decided to hinder the Chinese Assassins' mission as payback for treating her unfairly, and ordered her fleet to fire on the warehouse, partially destroying it.[17] Despite this, the Zhang Wei Union's doctor Xialun Qing was able to retrieve the amulet. However, as she attempted to bring it back to Edward and John Young, who were fighting against Xiao Han and Liu Qing, respectively, Xue Yan took her hostage.[18]
The Chinese Assassins attempted to bargain with Edward, promising to release Qing if he allowed them to leave with the amulet and stopped interfering with their cause. However, Zheng interrupted the negotiations by having her fleet fire on both the Chinese Assassins and their enemies.[18]
After Edward seized the amulet during the confusion and used it to defeat Xiao Han, Liu Qing tried to rush to his Mentor's aid but was shot in the foot by John. Edward ultimately refused to take Xiao Han's life, but the latter did not show him the same mercy and attempted to kill John after he interfered. However, Qing sacrificed herself to save him and took the blow instead, leaving everyone stunned.[19]
Liu Qing and Xue Yan looked on remorsefully as Qing died in John's arms, before spotting Suluese soldiers approaching their position. After alerting Xiao Han, the Mentor grabbed the amulet and all three Chinese Assassins escaped back to Zheng's ship.[19]
Aboard the vessel, Liu Qing handed Xiao Han a chest to place the artifact in while Zheng set a course out of Sulu to rendezvous with Madam Lee. Liu Qing commented on the admiral's earlier bombardment, questioning what kind of "bloodthirsty maniac" opened fire on their own allies, to which Xiao Han replied that Zheng's intervention had nonetheless allowed them to retrieve the amulet.[2]
Suddenly, Xue Yan lashed out at Xiao Han, reprimanding him for murdering Qing, an innocent doctor, in cold blood and breaking the Creed. Liu Qing interjected, telling an ashamed Xiao Han that, while he and Xue Yan did not doubt their mission's righteousness, it was possible that their fixation on the greater good had made them lose sight of what had brought them together in the first place. He then suggested discussing the matter on the voyage back home, not as apprentice and Mentor, but as friends.[2]
Expedition to Angkor
After the Chinese Assassins returned to Madam Lee, Xiao Han informed her of their successful retrieval of the amulet. The businesswoman subsequently decided to recover Angkor's artifact next, and set a course for Đại Việt.[20] During the voyage, Liu Qing and Xue Yan continued to reflect on the events in Sulu and their mission, feeling remorseful about their actions yet remaining loyal to their Mentor.[21]
In Phú Xuân, Liu Qing, Xue Yan, and Xiao Han positioned themselves nearby while Lee met with an official of the Nguyễn clan at the Imperial Palace. After Lee proposed an alliance to recover Angkor's Piece of Eden, asserting that its powers could be used to conquer all of Indochina, the official expressed skepticism towards her claims. At that moment, the Chinese Assassins made their presence known, leaping down from the palace and landing behind Lee. This intimidated the official and ultimately led him to accept Lee's proposal.[21]
With the Nguyễn clan on their side, the Assassins and Lee launched an expedition into the jungles of Cambodia to find Angkor. However, they were in a race against time, as both the Zhang Wei Union and the East India Company, led by the Templar Grand Master Alan Jacob, also sought the site.[22]
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.[src]-[m]
Liu Qing was a dedicated Assassin who shared his Mentor's goal of using the power of the Pieces of Eden to restore the Chinese Brotherhood to its former strength. While he would occasionally engage in banter with Xue Yan,[23] 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 that she had "fought the good fight."[5]
Having lost his entire family, including his daughter, during the Chinese Brotherhood's purge, Liu Qing was haunted by their deaths and blamed himself for being unable to protect them. When met by an illusion of his daughter conjured by the crescent amulet, the simple sight of the girl was enough to move Liu Qing to tears.[1]
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.[10] He was also afraid of disappointing him and, alongside Xue Yan, apologized for their failure to defeat the Fenghuang's crew.[11]
Liu Qing's 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 belief that they should serve their Mentor without question.[13]
Following Xiao Han's murder of Xialun Qing, Liu Qing finally sided with Xue Yan and began to question if, in their pursuit of their goals, he and his companions had strayed too far from the Creed. When Xiao Han lashed out at Xue Yan, Liu Qing acted as a voice of reason and told the former that, by focusing only on the greater good, they did not stop to question the means by which they achieved it.[2]
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's mastery of the guandao allowed him to easily shatter most enemies' defenses, as seen when he broke Shimazu Saito's naginata in half,[5] and he could even spin the weapon rapidly to deflect incoming bullets.[4][18]
In addition to his guandao, Liu Qing also wielded a ranged weapon in the form of a throwing axe.[6] 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.[10]
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.[24] Qing (清) is a Chinese name which has held various meanings throughout history; during the Qing dynasty, it meant 'clear', 'pure'.[25]
Gallery
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Close-up of Liu Qing -
Liu Qing and his fellow Assassins being led to Sun -
Liu Qing with his fellow Assassins -
Liu Qing swinging his guandao -
Liu Qing and Xue Yan confronting Edward -
Edward using the crescent amulet against Liu Qing and Xiao Han -
Liu Qing attempting to bargain with Edward
Appearances
References
