Which Taoist immortal was a Han dynasty general?

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Which Taoist immortal was a Han dynasty general? Zhongli Quan was said to have served as a Han-dynasty general.

Zhongli Quan is one of the Eight Immortals, a celebrated group in Chinese mythology and Taoism. He is also called Han Zhongli, a name that emphasizes his legendary connection with the Han dynasty. Stories say he followed his father into court service and eventually commanded an army that fought Tibetans.

After suffering defeat, Zhongli Quan supposedly fled into the mountains, where an old man introduced him to meditation, alchemy, and the arts of immortality. In later legends, he used a magical fan to turn stones into silver and gold and to revive the dead.

He is commonly portrayed as a cheerful, bare-chested man with a long beard, holding a feather or horsehair fan. The fan distinguishes him from Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, who were famous military figures but are not members of the Eight Immortals. Zhongli Quan is also traditionally associated with silversmiths.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Sept. 2026

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