Mingzhu the Spirit Shark

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Mingzhu (full name: Hai Mingzhu, Chinese: 海明珠 “Shinning Pearl”) is a spirit shark. Her human identity is a student in Class 3 of Grade 5 at Zhizheng Primary School and serves as her class’s Cooking Class Representative and Dinner Assistant. She is a carefree girl who only cares about delicious food and possesses superhuman strength.

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Origin

A shark in the Pearl River: Mingzhu was originally a wild bull shark (scientific name: Carcharhinus leucas, conservation status: Vulnerable) from the Pearl River Estuary. She has no memories of her life before becoming a spirit animal. The local Spirit Animal Association captured her after hearing rumors of a “mermaid” appearing in Xinwan, Humen.

Name: As Xinwan being a settlement of the Danjia (Chinese: 疍家 “boat house”) people, the association assigned her human identity as part of this community, giving her the surname “Hai” (Chinese: 海 “sea”) and the name “Mingzhu” (Chinese: 明珠 “shining pearl”) after the Pearl River. She loves her name very much.

Go to school in Class 3: Although Mingzhu initially appeared not very smart, the Association’s volunteers patiently taught her to speak and write. When it was time for primary school, Mingzhu was placed in Libbie‘s Class 3 at Zhizheng Primary School, together with Qiuye.

Personality

Carefree and goofy: Mingzhu is a carefree little girl with a simple mind. She often zones out and acts on her shark instinct, giving off a relaxed, goofy vibe. Her attention span and short-term memory are remarkably short, and she falls asleep immediately if she can’t keep up in class.

Passionate about food: Mingzhu is passionate about food and skilled in cooking. She enjoys discovering new delicacies around the city. She always carries some snacks with her to prevent her shark instinct from taking over when she is hungry. Generous by nature, she readily shares her food with others.

Hidden violent tendencies: Mingzhu’s goofy behavior makes her a target for teasing by the mischievous boys in her class, who give her nicknames like “Daydreaming Representative,” “Snack Representative,” and “Sleeping Representative.” Despite her cheerful demeanor, if someone really crosses the line, she delivers fearsome threats with a sweet smile. If they still don’t take the hint, she’ll teach them a lesson with her punch.

Specialties

Superhuman strength: Despite her lady-like appearance, Mingzhu possesses incredible strength. With the power of a bull shark, she can easily defeat any challenger in a fight or power-based sports with no effort. Her reputation as the invincible girly is well-known among students in Dongguan City and the Pearl River Delta region.

Almost unlimited spirit power: In addition to her remarkable physical prowess, she has seemingly unlimited spirit power; however, her spell casting techniques are somewhat crude. She tends to rely on her abundant power to force her way, often resulting in unnecessary destruction.

Adaptation to land: As a bull shark, Mingzhu can adapt to saltwater and freshwater. On land, she must use spells to expand her gills and drive air flow to ensure smooth breathing, and she speaks by controlling the vibrations of her gills. Unlike normal sharks, her animal and anthro forms have a tongue to help her taste and swallow food more effectively.

Talented singer: Mingzhu is a talented singer who enjoys humming her favorite songs. Lanxi, the Music Representative of Class 3, highly values Mingzhu’s voice and occasionally invites her to perform together. However, Mingzhu sees this as merely “singing for fun,” a byproduct of her breathing spell exercises.

Afraid of cold and dryness: Mingzhu is sensitive to cold and dryness. In low temperatures, she becomes a “frozen fish,” and when dehydrated, she turns into a “salted fish.”

Turning white during anemia: Her pink body color in both anthro and animal forms reflects her “blood color,” and she appears white when she has anemia.

A good cook: Compared to her peers, Mingzhu’s cooking skills are quite impressive. She cooks for herself and assists at the local Spirit Animal Association‘s restaurant. She often makes snacks and shares them with friends, receiving high praises for their tastes.

Life

Living in the clubhouse pool of Guancheng Spirit Animal Association: Mingzhu lives in the clubhouse of the Guancheng Spirit Animal Association, which was once an abandoned open-air basketball stadium in People’s Park. A large banyan tree now grows on the court which has been collecting rainwater for years. The spirit animals have transformed it into a pool with a water purification system, serving as Mingzhu’s “room” and a resting place for other aquatic spirit animals. A sign reading “Beware of Shark” stands by the pool. Although they also keep fancy fish like koi carps there, Mingzhu doesn’t eat them because “they taste terrible and their bones are unbearable.”

Helping in the clubhouse: The clubhouse brands itself as the “Coconut Grove Restaurant” and “Coconut Grove Hostel,” serving both human and spirit animals guests. It serves as a meeting place for local spirit animals while providing food and shelter for those in need. Mingzhu often helps with the restaurant’s operations.

Traffic Light Trio: Mingzhu formed a trio with her classmate Leiting the Sprit Loong and Qiuye the Spirit Dhole. They often go on “adventures” in the city, uncovering secrets left by other spirit animals or assisting the local Spirit Animal Association with community services.

School life: Mingzhu isn’t the brightest bulb out there, and she struggles with classroom learning. Qiuye often provides after-class tutoring for her alongside Leiting, so as to keep them above the average line.

Mingzhu is the Cooking Class Representative and the Dinner Assistant for Class 3. She oversees the snack and lunch distribution.

Relationships

Leiting, Mingzhu’s trio partner and classmate: Leiting the Spirit Loong and Mingzhu met long ago and have been classmates since first grade. Their silly behaviors and constant struggles with classroom learning earned them the nickname “Silly Sisters.” Mingzhu enjoys following Leiting around to have fun, echoing Leiting’s words and cheering her on, which leads to her being called Leiting’s “minion,” though she is really the “Big Boss” in terms of raw power. As a shark, Mingzhu naturally wants a bite on everyone, but she has a particular fondness for Leiting’s loong meat, often imagining dishes she could make with it. However, she constantly reminds herself: “I must not eat my classmate.”

Qiuye, Mingzhu’s trio partner and classmate: Qiuye the Spirit Dhole and Mingzhu were assigned to Zhizheng Primary School together by the local Spirit Animal Association. Although Mingzhu’s bloodthirsty nature sometimes frightens Qiuye, she always looks after her simple-minded friend to keep her spirit animal identity hidden. Qiuye prepares emergency snacks for Mingzhu to prevent her from eating classmates when hungry and provides extra tutoring after class to help her catch up. Mingzhu appreciates Qiuye’s care and never shows aggression towards her. She enjoys transforming into her animal form and asking Qiuye for head pats. If Qiuye is bullied while Leiting is not around or cannot handle the situation alone, Mingzhu will come forward to her aid.

Alice, Mingzhu’s robot classmate: Alice and Mingzhu have contrasting personalities. Alice has a strong sense of mission, while Mingzhu is absolutely carefree. Mingzhu enjoys food, but Alice cannot eat. They spend much time together as Mingzhu practices martial arts and cooking with Tonyn every week. Initially, Alice found Mingzhu silly, but she grew to appreciate her relaxed demeanor. When Qiuye is absent, Alice looks after Mingzhu instead. Mingzhu, on the other hand, teaches Alice some basic martial arts moves and techniques.

Lanxi, Mingzhu’s classmate: Lanxi, the Music Representative of Class 3, is impressed by Mingzhu’s vocal talent and encourages her to pursue a music career. However, Mingzhu only wants to sing casually. To entice her into performances, Lanxi sometimes uses food as bait.

Libbie, Mingzhu’s head teacher: Libbie the Spirit Oryx is Mingzhu’s head teacher. Mingzhu is one of Libbie’s main concerns as being physically strong but mentally simple. Libbie closely monitors her and enlists various class agents to help Mingzhu’s development.

Mingzhu’s challengers: Mingzhu’s impressive physical strength and cute appearance create a stark contrast that the naughty boys struggle to accept. Unable to bear being defeated by her in fights and sports, they continuously challenge her. Known as “the invincible girl,” Mingzhu has gained a reputation not just among students in Dongguan but throughout the Pearl River Delta region. She faces new challengers every few days, some of whom are young spirit animals.

Tonyn, Mingzhu’s trainer: Under the local Spirit Animals Association’s coordination, Tonyn the Spirit Rat trains Mingzhu in martial arts and spell casting once every week, sometimes alongside her friends. They share a common interest in food and often exchange information about delicacies in the city. In addition to physical training, Tonyn is also teaching Mingzhu to cook.

Leiting’s father: Mingzhu is afraid of Leiting’s father because he enjoys fishing. Whenever she sees him, she imagines the pain of being caught by his hooks.

Cloud, Alice’s pet rabbit: Mingzhu has thoughts about cooking Alice’s pet rabbit Cloud, often petting it while mentioning dishes like Mala Tutou (Chinese: 麻辣兔头, spicy rabbit heads) or Lengchi Tu (Chinese: 冷吃兔, cold spicy diced rabbit). However, since it belongs to Alice, she never acts on her thoughts.