Wudang

In the late Yuan dynasty, warlords rose up and chaos erupted throughout the land. At Wudang, the real master Qiu Chuji held a grand ceremony to pray for blessings to celebrate his hundredth birthday, attended by the monk Zhu Yuanzhang from Huangjue Temple, Ma Zhilan, the adopted daughter of the rebel leader Guo Zixing, and the wealthy girl Shen Rong, who became friends with Qiu's disciple Zhang Junbao. After years of hard training in the desert, Chi Bilie brought Huo Lang and Xue Ying to challenge Qiu, leaving Qiu severely injured and in critical condition, while Junbao was captured. Zhu Yuanzhang joined Guo Zixing's forces but was betrayed and became a beggar; he contemplated jumping off a cliff to end his life but was rescued by the escaping Junbao, regaining his confidence. Shen Rong, who was in love with Zhu and pregnant, sought him out but discovered that Zhu had married Ma Zhilan for military power, causing her to lose her pregnancy and die in childbirth, which left Junbao devastated and enraged. After learning that Qiu Chuji had survived, Chi Bilie returned to Wudang for a decisive battle, resulting in both sides suffering injuries. Before dying, Qiu left Junbao with an eight-character secret. Junbao understood the secret, developed Tai Chi, and changed his name to Zhang Sanfeng. After Zhu became emperor, he initiated a massacre and did not spare even Sanfeng. In a fury, Sanfeng killed eighteen dragon riders and stormed into the emperor's presence, intending to kill Zhu, but Empress Ma rushed in to plead for Zhu. Ultimately, Sanfeng had no choice but to spare Zhu and returned to live in seclusion at Wudang, avoiding the world of martial arts.