Based on the popular novel by Jin Yong Kam Yung, who also wrote Legend of the Condor Heroes and Return of the Condor Heroes. The Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre is set in 14th Century China during the Mongolian Yuan Dynasty, roughly 100 years after the events of Return of the Condor Heroes. After decades of struggles, famine, and resentment that the Chinese citizens attributed to the Yuan Dynasty's misrule, the Martial Arts sects have begun to rebel. Prince Ruyong seeks the counsel of Cheng Kun, a Shaolin monk with hidden motives, for a strategy to handle the rebels. "The wielder of Heavenly Sword and/or Dragon Sabre rules the world." This well-known legend in the Martial Arts community serves as the catalyst for the story of Zhang Wuji. The narrative begins with how his parents met (episodes 1-3), then follows his trials as a teenager (episodes 4-8), continues with his rise to prominence (episodes 9-23), reveals the secret behind the Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre (episode 23), and concludes with the intertwining of Wuji's romantic life, the longstanding grudges among the Martial Arts sects, and cruel fate.
