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Shang-Chi has just uncovered another long-lost family member, and this time he doesn’t stand a chance at bringing them back into the fold.
WARNING: The following contains major spoilers for Shang-Chi #7, available now from Marvel.
Shang-Chi has been doing everything he can to keep a grip on his life recently, though it hasn’t been easy. He’s faced betrayals carried out by his own family members and his heroic allies largely see him as a threat now. The past few years have also seen him uncover one hidden or lost family member after another. He’s discovered siblings he never knew he had and the mother he believed to be dead. It seems the past keeps catching up with him in new and shocking ways. The most recent of these revelations have come in the form of none other than Shang-Chi’s very own grandfather. Unfortunately, their introduction is set to be the latest in a long line of particularly violent family reunions.
Luckily, Shang-Chi’s long-lost mother has proven to be an invaluable font of knowledge. Jiang Li not only filled in the gaps of her story for Shang-Chi but also helped to uncover just who has been behind the torrent of villains that have been bearing down on the Master of Kung Fu. As revealed in the pages of Shang-Chi #7 (by Gene Luen Yang, Dike Ruan, Triona Farrell, and VC’s Travis Lanham), it isn’t just the present that the titular hero needs to worry about, especially considering how close to home these threats have emerged from.
When Jiang Li first met Zheng Zu, the latter was the victim of a pirate attack desperately clinging to life, while the former was tasked with protecting the mystical realm of Ta-Lo from outsiders. Jiang took pity on the man and quickly fell in love with him despite her duties. They would end up escaping back to Zheng’s home when she was ordered to kill the interloper. While they were eventually able to settle down and begin a family together, Jiang could never truly escape her past. Now those old wounds have followed her into the present in the form of the Chieftain Xin, Jiang’s very own father.
Another of the Qilin Riders who act as the guardians of Ta-Lo, Chieftain Xin doesn’t share Jiang’s compassion in the least. In fact, he had been the one organizing Shang-Chi’s enemies to launch a full-scale assault of the Five Weapons Society. Xin is entirely dedicated to eradicating everything Zheng Zu had a hand in making, including Shang-Chi. This likely stems from Jiang Li’s perceived betrayals in both rescuing and eloping with Zheng Zu, not to mention raising a family together. Keeping secrets from her commander certainly didn’t help Jiang, but running away with an outsider was likely the last straw for her father. Assuming he is out to eradicate the Five Weapons Society and Shang-Chi for these reasons, it’s hard to imagine that Jiang is safe from Xin’s wrath, either.
There might not be any clear indicators of what Chieftain Xin is capable of, but there are plenty of safe assumptions to make, and none of them are good. The Qilin Riders are some of the greatest warriors on the planet, even without their mystical steeds or the telepathic link that binds them to their rider. Then again, Xin probably doesn’t even need to pose much of a threat on his own considering how many of Shang-Chi’s enemies he has rallied to his cause. With any luck, the Master of Kung Fu will be able to turn back yet another villainous family member, especially after how much practice he has had at just that. If not, the Five Weapons Society will soon enough be the very least of his concerns.
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