Set in the waning days of the Sui Dynasty, Dao Ma, a hardened warrior who survives by collecting bounties on wanted fugitives, drifts from place to place with a young boy named Xiao Qi. In a remote desert village in the Western Regions, in search of his next bounty, Dao Ma clashes with a corrupt official and unexpectedly reunites with an old man who once showed him kindness. The old man entrusts him with a dangerous mission: to escort a mysterious figure, Zhi Shi Lang—whose head carries an enormous bounty—to the capital, Chang’an.
Bound by a debt of gratitude, Dao Ma sets out on the journey, joined by the old man’s daughter. But as they travel, enemies from their past begin to close in, relentlessly pursuing them across the desolate landscape.
Adapted from the critically acclaimed comic of the same name, the film takes its title from the term for a warrior who escorts valuable cargo. Unlike traditional wuxia heroes defined by righteousness and honor, it foregrounds a cold, pragmatic protagonist driven by survival and profit. The action unfolds across deserts and inns, not merely as spectacle but as a tactile extension of the world itself.
Action master Yuen Woo-Ping crafts a new vision of wuxia through grounded, physically driven choreography, imbued with both weight and precision. Anchored by the commanding performances of Wu Jing, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Nicholas Tse, and Chen Lijun, the film culminates in the special appearance of Jet Li. Each flash of the blade sends dust and blood into the air, heralding the return of wuxia in its most raw and untamed form. (Martin LEE)