The Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre – Third edition changes

The third edition of The Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre was published in 2005 with significant changes.

The original version serialised in the Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao was revised by Jin Yong in 1979 and that was published as the second edition. He made another round of changes that was published in 2005 as the third edition.

Do not hesitate to contact us if you know of any changes that we missed.

1. The Sword and the Sabre

Jin Yong made notable changes to the titular weapons in the third edition .

Origins

In the previous editions, both the Heaven-relying Sword and the Dragon-slaying Sabre were reforged from Yang Guo’s Heavy Iron Sword, which was left with Guo Jing and Huang Rong when Yang Guo and Xiaolongnü left Xiangyang.

In the third edition, the origin of the Dragon-slaying Sabre remained the same. However, the Heaven Sword was reforged from Yang Guo’s Gentleman Sword and Xiaolongnü’s Lady Sword. The Sword and Sabre had a small chip a few centimetres from the hilt. Both swords could only be broken by striking them together at the chips.

Contents

The blades of the Heaven-relying Sword and the Dragon-slaying Sabre contained the Book of Wumu, the Nine Yin Manual, and the Eighteen Dragon-subduing Palms in the previous editions.

In the third edition, they contained a metal map to the location of the Peach Blossom Island instead. The map revealed the location of the Book of Wumu, the Nine Yin Manual, and several other manuals in the Peach Blossom Island, including several of Hong Qigong’s techniques. The Eighteen Dragon-subduing Palms had been omitted.

The techniques used by Mei Chaofeng, including the Nine Yin Bone Claws, had been altered by Huang Yaoshi to reduce their vileness in the third edition. He did that because he was saddened by the deaths of Chen Xuanfeng and Mei Chaofeng.

Guo Fu

The third edition added a scene where Abbess Miejue told Zhou Zhiruo that Guo Xiang was in the Sichuan province when Xiangyang fell. She rushed back, but was too late. Guo Jing and Huang Rong did not pass the Heaven-relying Sword or the Dragon-slaying Sabre to Guo Fu because of her recklessness, choosing to give the Sword to Guo Xiang.

2. The Nine Yang Manual

In the third edition, Zhang Wuji read about the origins of the Nine Yang Manual in the last page of the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra. Wang Chongyang, having obtained the Nine Yin Manual, travelled to Songshan one day and got into a drinking contest with a stranger. He lost and the forfeit was to let the man read the Nine Yin Manual.

This stranger used to be a Confucian scholar in his youth and was educated and smart. He eventually became a Taoist priest and learnt a lot about Taoist principles and philosophies. In his later years, he became a Buddhist monk for unknown reasons. Thus, when he read the Nine Yin Manual, he was able to tap on his vast knowledge and superior intellect.

The monk saw that the Nine Yin Manual taught techniques that were based on extreme Yin principles. He theorised that there must be an opposing path given how the Yin and the Yang were contrary forces. The man created a martial arts technique based on Yang principles and recorded it in Chinese characters between the lines of the Sanskrit Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra.

The sutra eventually ended up in the possession of Shaolin, hence it was possible that this man was a Shaolin monk.

3. Ming Cult

The third edition added details about the rules of the Ming Cult. There were three major commandments and five minor commandments. These eight commandments were engraved on six Holy Flame Tablets. Another six Holy Flame Tablets detailed extremely powerful martial arts techniques in Persian. Xiaozhao translated the text for Zhang Wuji, who was able to master the technique.

The three major commandments were:
* Ming Cult members were prohibited from becoming emperors, officials, kings, generals or any position of power. They rebelled to liberate the populace, not for personal gains. However, it was acceptable to garner support using those titles.
* Ming Cult members were forbidden from oppressing the people and ease their suffering wherever possible.
* Ming Cult members were forbidden from fighting each other.

The five minor commandments were:
* Ming Cult members always kept their promises.
* Ming Cult members were to treat each other like brothers and sisters.
* Ming Cult members were to respect their elders, family and friends.
* Ming Cult members were to respect women.
* Ming cult members were to protect the cult with their lives and obey the commands of their Cult superiors

4. Zhang Wuji

Yin Tianzheng and Song Yuanqiao

When Zhang Wuji witnessed Yin Tianzheng and Song Yuanqiao fight, he cried because the moves they used reminded him of his parents. Yin Tianzheng used the same stances as his daughter Yin Susu, and Song Yuanqiao used Wudang techniques like Zhang Cuishan.

Zhang Sanfeng

When Zhang Wuji held Zhang Sanfeng’s hand on Mount Wudang, Zhang Sanfeng was surprised by his amount of internal energy. He placed it on par with that of Jueyuan and Guo Jing. In the third edition, Yang Guo was added to the list.

In previous versions, Zhang Wuji also commented to Zhou Zhiruo about how Zhang Sanfeng’s abilities were not on par with Guo Jing. This was removed in the third edition.

Ming Cult leadership

Zhang Wuji became disillusioned when he was neither able to save a general nor address the assassination of Han Lin’er. Zhu Yuanzhang also tried to influence Zhang Wuji’s willingness to lead by questioning Zhang Wuji about Zhao Min.

The Ming Cult leadership had lost control as power shifted leaders of their armies, who had become autonomous. The Ming Cult leaders realised that they would further alienate the army leaders if they killed Zhu Yuanzhang. Unwilling to deal with internal politics, Zhang Wuji

Xuanming Elders

Zhang Wuji used his Nine Yanginternal energy to eradicate seventy percent of the martial arts abilities of the Xuanming elders when he fended off their attempt to snatch the Nine Yin Manual from Zhou Zhiruo. That meant that their abilities became inferior even compared to Zhao Min’s archers.

5. Zhang Junbao

In the third edition, Reverend Wuse spoke up on behalf of Zhang Junbao at Shaolin by admitting that he was the one who gave the iron Arhats to Guo Xiang. Hence, any blame should be pinned on him instead of Zhang Junbao.

However, the old monk of the Spiritual Zen Hall insisted that Zhang Junbao should still be punished for secretly learning Shaolin martial arts. Abbot Tianming invited Wuse, Jueyuan and Zhang Junbao to the Dharma Hall to discuss on the appropriate punishments. Jueyuan feared the worst and escaped with Guo Xiang and Zhang Junbao.

6. Zhou Zhiruo

Jin Yong made several changes in scenes related to Zhou Zhiruo. The change in the contents of the Heaven-relying Sword and the Dragon-slaying Sword led to changes in how she obtained the manuals.

Abbess Miejue

In the second edition, Zhou Zhiruo was forced by Abbess Miejue to swear the oath not to marry Zhang Wuji when they were trapped in the pagoda. In the third edition, the scene became a flashback when Zhou Zhiruo’s crimes was exposed.

Ice Fire Island

When she was on the Ice Fire Island with Zhang Wuji, Zhao Min and Xie Xun, she considered cleaning all of them but could not bring herself to do it. She realised that it was because she was deeply in love with Zhang Wuji.

Suicide

In the previous edition, Zhou Zhiruo pretended to commit suicide when Zhang Wuji met with Zhao Min. Instead, she left and disappeared for a couple of months, during which she went to Peach Blossom Isles to retrieve the hidden manuals and started practising the techniques.

Xie Xun

In the third edition, Yin Susu and other high-ranking members of the Tianying Cult was aware that Xie Xun was one of the Four Cult Guardians. They were unaware of his identity in the previous editions.

7. Battle between Shaolin and Wudang

There is an addition to the battle between Shaolin and Wudang in the third edition. The initial agreement was to have six fighters from each side. However, Yu Lianzhou had yet to recover from the earlier exchange with He Biweng and was worried about Zhang Cuishan.

Yuanye was hurling insults at Zhang Cuishan for killing Dou Dajin’s family and for blinding an eye of Yuanyin, Yuanxin and himself. He kept his anger in check while his elders spoke, but could not hold it in when the battle was going to commence. Yuanye called Zhang Cuishan a disgrace to Zhang Sanfeng and Wudang, and that a real man would admit his crimes.

Zhang Cuishan was conflicted. He was ashamed for bringing disgrace to Wudang, but could not break his silence and reveal that the real culprit was his wife. Yu Lianzhou feared that Zhang Cuishan would be unable to concentrate on the fight. The four other Heroes of Wudang would have to assist Zhang Cuishan and Yu Lianzhou, thus weakening the famous Wudang sphere formation.

Seeing her husband’s dilemma, Yin Susu confessed her crimes to Kongwen, Kongzhi and Kongxing, and chided them for accusing the wrong person. She then went indoors with Zhang Cuishan to admit to Yu Daiyan that she was the one who paralysed him, and was willing to be punished for her sins.

8. Miscellaneous changes

The Yellow Dress Maiden

It was revealed that the Yang family was aware of the secret of the Heaven Sword and Dragon Sabre for the Yellow Dress Maiden, a descendant of the Yang family, to be able to expose Zhou Zhiruo’s crimes.

Eighteen Dragon-subduing Palms

Certain ambiguity about the Eighteen Dragon-subduing Palms in the previous editions have been clarified in the third edition. The latest revision established that Xiao Feng refined the technique from original twenty-eight stances to eighteen. It was speculated that ten stances were lost when Xiao Feng died.

It was also revealed that Xiao Feng imparted the technique to Xuzhu, who in turn passed the technique back to the Beggar’s Clan after Xiao Feng’s death. The third edition also stated that Yelü Qi had mastered all eighteen stances of the technique.

Xie Wuji

Xie Xun’s son, Xie Wuji, was one year old when he was killed by Yuanzhen in the previous editions, leading to some discrepancies. That has been rectified in the third edition where he was a three years old when he died.

Kunlun Sect

In the previous editions, He Taichong, Madam He and two other Kunlun experts tried to kill Xie Xun to seize the Dragon Sabre. However, they were killed by Du’e, Dujie, and Du’nan of Shaolin.

In the third edition, the monks easily defeated them, and Yuanzhen wanted to kill the Kunlun members. However, he was stopped by the monks who chided him for wanting to cause unnecessary deaths.

Song Qingshu

Song Qingshu was killed by Zhang Sanfeng for his crimes in the previous editions. In the third edition, Zhang Sanfeng did not kill him. He died from his injuries at Mount Wudang instead.

Xiaozhao

Xiaozhao dispatched emissaries to return the Persian’s six Holy Flame Tablets to the Ming Cult. Since Zhang Wuji learnt the techniques from the six tablets that belonged to the Persian Ming Cult, he returned the favour by giving them a copy of the Great Shift in Heaven and Earth.

However, the real reason was Xiaozhao pining for Zhang Wuji, and wanted to get in touch with him. She sent the Holy Flame Tablets along with the clothings she made for him as a gesture of her affection. These clothings were made while she was staying in an inn when Zhang Wuji rescued the people trapped in the pagoda.

Granny Golden Flower

In the previous editions, Granny Golden Flower said that she and her husband were poisoned by a mute named Tou Tuo from the Western Regions, who worked for the Mongolians. In the third edition, this was changed to an old Buddhist monk from the Western Regions, who worked for the Mongolians.

Yuanzhen

In the previous comments, it was stated that Yuanzhen was as good as Du’e, Dujie and Du’nan. However, this was removed in the third edition.


Second edition changes

Before this third edition change, Jin Yong made alterations to the original version that was serialised in the newspapers. That is referred to as the second edition.