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Cai Zifeng

Cai Zifeng

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Cai Zifeng (simplified: 蔡子峰, traditional: 蔡子峰, pinyin: Cài Zǐfēng, jyutping: coi3 zi2 fung1) was one of the founders of the Huashan School’s Sword faction. Along with Yue Su, he read the Sunflower Manual (葵花宝典) at the Shaolin Order’s Putian Temple, inadvertently causing the split between the Sword and Qi factions that would plague the Huashan School for generations.

Biography

Cai Zifeng and Yue Su were both disciples of the Huashan School who visited the Putian Temple of the Shaolin Order. There, they discovered the Sunflower Manual, a legendary martial arts manual. Due to time constraints, they agreed to each read half of the manual and then compare notes back at Huashan.

However, when they returned to Huashan and tried to verify their notes, they discovered that their halves did not match. Each believed the other had misread or misremembered their portion, and neither could practice the techniques from their incomplete understanding.

This disagreement led to a fundamental split in the Huashan School:

  • Yue Su founded the Qi faction (气宗), believing that internal energy (qi) was paramount
  • Cai Zifeng founded the Sword faction (剑宗), believing that sword techniques were paramount

Death

When the Sun Moon Order learned that the Huashan School had read the Sunflower Manual, they sent ten elders to attack Huashan. Both Cai Zifeng and Yue Su were killed in this battle, and the incomplete Sunflower Manual was taken by the Sun Moon Order.

Personality & traits

Cai Zifeng was portrayed as a skilled martial artist who was passionate about sword techniques. His disagreement with Yue Su over the interpretation of the Sunflower Manual demonstrated his conviction that swordplay was the foundation of martial arts.

Martial arts abilities

Cai Zifeng was a master swordsman who founded the Sword faction of the Huashan School. His emphasis on sword techniques over internal energy would become the core philosophy of the Sword faction for generations to come.

Relationships

  • Yue Su: His fellow disciple and co-founder of the factions, with whom he disagreed over the interpretation of the Sunflower Manual.
  • Feng Qingyang: A later master of the Sword faction who inherited Cai Zifeng’s legacy.
  • Feng Buping: A later leader of the exiled Sword faction who attempted to restore Sword faction control.

Behind the scenes

Cai Zifeng’s character represents the historical origins of the Sword-Qi faction split that defines much of the Huashan School’s internal conflict in Laughing in the Wind. His disagreement with Yue Su over the Sunflower Manual created a schism that would last for generations, ultimately leading to the tragic “Jade Maiden Peak” battle where the Sword faction was nearly exterminated.

The story of Cai Zifeng and Yue Su serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of incomplete knowledge and the destructive power of ideological disagreements within martial arts schools.

See also

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