In his quest for vengeance, he accidentally acquires the Liancheng Swordplay manual (連城劍谱), an ancient artifact not only prized for the skills detailed inside, but also for containing a secret leading to a treasure.

One day, the three of them travel to the city to attend the birthday party of Wan Zhenshan, Qi Zhangfa's senior from the same martial arts school.

At the same time, in order to win Qi Fang's affection, Wan Gui hypocritically plays the role of a good man by pretending to speak up for Di Yun in court.

Di Yun also hears from Ding Dian the dirty secrets of Qi Zhangfa and Wan Zhenshan – of how they murdered their master, Mei Niansheng, in their attempt to seize the Liancheng Swordplay manual.

Di Yun tracks down the perpetrators responsible for his wrongful incarceration and learns that his respected master, Qi Zhangfa, is actually a scheming and ruthless villain – just like what Ding Dian had told him.

After witnessing these beastly acts, especially Qi Fang's death, Di Yun becomes totally disillusioned with the dark nature and greed of humanity.

However, some readers speculate that the story is based in the Qing dynasty, judging from the illustrations in the published Chinese versions authorised by Jin Yong, which show male characters wearing queues.

Some commentators feel that the plot resembles Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo, except that they are based in different countries and historical periods.

[2] In 1981, Hong Kong's RTHK produced a 25 episodes radio drama based on the novel and the intro song performed by Adam Cheng.