Sao Jiang

"Did you ever stop to wonder why I chose Sao Jiang to be my partner? It's simple. It's because he has the same vision I do. A vision of a future free from perspectives. It will be a new world... A world of truth, not lies. He possesses the power, and I possess the mind. Overwhelming power... and an unrivaled mind... Unstoppable."

- Muramasa Neikan

Sao Jiang (嘯江, Xiāojiāng; literally "howling river") is the older brother of Sao Feng, and secretly allies himself with Muramasa Neikan. He was the first to be become the Jade Emperor (玉皇, Chinese for "Jade Emperor"), but their father had chosen Sao Feng instead because he sensed darkness with his elder son's heart. Enraged by this, Sao Jiang laid waste to the villages of Yāolù, until he was finally exiled to a remote island between Yāolù and the Tribe of Aether, where he was given an offer by Muramasa to enact his revenge.

Appearance
Unlike his his younger brother, Sao Jiang has long black hair that is kept combed, and behind his ears. He is generally tall, and has royal earpieces in both ears, a symbol of his former royal heritage. His eyes were also much different than his brother's, being dark lavender as opposed to amber; possibly implying the opposite personalities of the two brothers. In reference to his royal lineage, Sao Jiang is seen wearing a very formal hanfu; a silk robe with a purpled-lined blue japanese haori over it. In his first appearance, and many other times as well, he is seen wearing a simple yellow shenyi with a snow-white mantle around the clavicle area. He is also shown to be wearing a rather complex mask to hide his appearance from those who know of his identity as a royal family member.

Personality
Sao Jiang is said to be very similar in terms of personality with w:c:bleach:Sōsuke Aizen, with the menacing humility of Gin Ichimaru. Despite his current villainous status and former position of royalty, Sao Jiang is a surprisingly polite, soft-spoken intellectual, often addressing his subordinates by their given names. He rarely shows any sign of alarm or distress and often has entire situations planned out well in advance. Whenever confronted, Sao Jiang is casual and uncaring, attempting to draw out a conversation and make small talk, which often infuriates the one he is talking to. In conjunction with this, Sao Jiang tends to use a heavy sense of sarcasm and mocking politeness, make it very difficult to discern his thoughts. Many find his demeanor and appearance rather unsettling and there are very few who were willing to trust him even before he was revealed as a traitor. He seems to be fully aware of the effect he has on others and more than once has been seen toying with people's emotional states for his own amusement.

He initially appeared to be a very kind, well-respected figure and was looked up to by many, especially his younger brother Sao Feng. However, this was just a mask to disguise his manipulative and very dangerous nature. In truth, he cares very little for those under his wing (both past and present), and is willing to use almost everyone around him as pawns in his twisted game of chess. This deception was something that his father was capable of seeing through, hence his reason why he gave the throne to Sao Feng. In his own words, Sao Jiang claims to be unaffected by any form of morals or ethics as he views them as mere restrictions on his potential. He is, therefore, willing to stop at nothing to further his selfish ambitions, including manipulating or killing anyone if he deems it to be necessary. He is fond of long, complicated, and somewhat convoluted plots, and frequently appears to toy with his underlings for amusement. Unlike most of the other Shinigami who appear to have some kind of honor and kindness, including some of Muramasa's henchmen, Sao Jiang lacks genuine compassion and honor. To date, the equally manipulative Muramasa Neikan is the only person who seems to be able to see through Sao Jiang's manipulation. Muramasa has also shown that he has some sense of Sao Jiang's emotions and feelings, correctly identifying that Sao Jiang was enjoying the invasion of Kichirō and his friends and their successes within Aether.