Herbs, perennial, 24-40 cm tall; rhizomes slender; stolons present. Stems erect, slender, solitary or fascicled, sparsely strigillose, simple or ± branched. Leaves basal and cauline, thin, abaxially sparsely scabridulous, veins scabrous, adaxially scabrous, margin scabrous, midvein ± prominent, lateral veins 3- or 4-paired; basal leaves withered at anthesis; lower cauline leaves long petiolate; blade oblong-spatulate to oblanceolate, 4-7 × 1-1.3 cm, base attenuate, margin serrate (teeth mucronulate); middle leaves sessile or shortly petiolate; blade oblong or lanceolate, 3-5 × 1(-2) cm, base cuneate, apex acute to acuminate; upper leaves small, lanceolate, base often rounded, subclasping. Capitula terminal, solitary or 2-4, terminal at ends of stem and branches, 2-3 cm in diam. Involucres hemispheric-campanulate, 6-7 × 7-10 mm; phyllaries 3-seriate, base hardened, leaflike above, margin scarious, erose-fimbriate, ± acute; outer phyllaries 3-4 × 1-1.5 mm, abaxially sparsely scabridulous; inner phyllaries ca. 4.5 × 1.5-2 mm. Ray florets 12-20, blue-purple, tube ca. 1 mm, glabrous, lamina 10-15 × 2-2.5 mm; disk florets 2.8-4 mm, tube 1-1.5 mm, glabrous, limb campanulate, enlarged, lobes lanceolate, 0.7-1 mm, recurved. Achenes purple, obovoid, slightly compressed, ± trigonous, 2.5-3 × ca. 1.5 mm, sparsely strigose, 4-ribbed. Pappus (?3- or 4-seriate), reddish brown or yellowish; bristles many, stout, barbellate throughout, 0.9-2 mm. Fl. and fr. Aug-Dec.

● Ravines, open forests; 1800-2600 m. Shaanxi (Huxian, Taibai Shan).