Dim Chong Sect - the "also ran" sect of wuxia?

[Ken Cheng]

In quite a few wuxia stories, especially Gu Long's, we hear of a "Dim Chong" Sect and meet some of its members. The sect shows up from time to time, but is almost never considered a major sect like Shaolin, Mo Dong, Ngor Mei, Kunlun, or the Beggar's Union. What's the story on this Dim Chong Sect, and does it have any notable martial arts or members?

[HuangYushi]

By "Dim Chong Sect", I take it that you are referring to the Diancang School 点苍派.

As an organisation, the Diancang School was featured in the 1st edition of DGSD. The school was located in Yunnan. Its eldest disciple, Liu Zhixu 柳子虚, was considered to have enough of a reputation in the martial arts circle of Yunnan to serve as one of the eight judges at the Inter-Faction Swordplay Competition of The Boundless Sword. Therefore, Liu Zhixu was either a pugilist with skills that were far beyond the ordinary, or an elderly individual who was known for his virtuous life. [These were the two conditions required for anyone to be deemed as having a reputation in the martial arts circle of Yunnan].

The Diancang School is probably named after Mount Diancang in Dali. Mount Diancang faces the Sea of Er, and the well-known Temple of the Celestial Dragon is located between them.

Pic: http://www.dalitravel.gov.cn/images/...%E5%85%891.jpg

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Elsewhere, representatives of the Diancang School attended the ceremony in which Linghu Chong was officially made the leader of the Northern Hengshan School.

In addition, the 1st edition of SPW featured a Jiang Feihong 江飞虹 [nicknamed 'the Willow-Leaf Sword' 柳叶剑], one of the more outstanding products of the Diancang school during that period. Jiang's swordplay skills were described as 'light and agile'.

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In HSDS, the five elders of the Kongdong School were supposedly visiting an Esteemed Hero Liu 柳大侠 at the Diancang School when the eminent Shaolin monk Kongjian was killed.

/// Sidetrack: Does the existence of another disciple surnamed Liu 柳 in a different dynasty mean that the Diancang School had a line of Lius amongst its better products? ///

Later on, Zhang Wuji received an invitation meant for Fuchenzi 浮尘子, Gusongzi 古松子 and Guizangzi 归藏子 of the Diancang School, asking them to attend the Lion-Slaughtering Ceremony in Shaolin. Fuchenzi, Gusongzi and Guizangzi were specifically identified as long-established swordsmen who had chosen to live in seclusion in Yunnan, away from any contact with people in the Central Region.

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In the Sword Stained with Royal Blood, it was said that the Diancang School was one of the four top schools of swordplay during the last days of the Ming Dynasty, along with Emei, Kunlun and Huashan. One of the highly-skilled swordsmen mentioned during that period was a person called Wan Lifeng 万里风 [nicknamed 'the Wind-Chasing Sword' 追风剑] who dominated the swordplay scene of Yunnan with his excellent skills.

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The sect shows up from time to time, but is almost never considered a major sect like Shaolin, Mo Dong, Ngor Mei, Kunlun, or the Beggar's Union.

Although Diancang is not in the same league as Shaolin, Wudang and the Beggars' Union in terms of martial arts diversity and membership numbers, it achieved enough to be considered as one of the top four schools of swordplay during the last days of the Ming Dynasty, along with Emei and Kunlun. Despite its Taiji Swordplay Technique, Wudang apparently failed to make the cut into the top four. [Perhaps Wudang was in the 5th place???]

does it have any notable ... members?

I think the most notable "named" members of the Diancang School where Jin Yong is concerned, are Fuchenzi 浮尘子, Gusongzi 古松子 and Guizangzi 归藏子, as mentioned in HSDS. They were recluses in Yunnan, but well-known enough to be invited to the Lion-Slaughtering Ceremony. They also had enough clout to send this unwritten message to the other recipients of the same invitation: if these three from Diancang could show up, so could everyone else.

HYS

[Ian Liew]

I remember reading somewhere before that Dianchang was more of a rich-boys club, in that swordsmen who had some cash came together to form a sect for mutual support and recognition. Maybe over time some of them donated the martial arts copyright and intellectual property to the sect. I'm rather surprised that they seem to be quite influential during the JY times. If Dianchang can be better than Tiejian during the SSWRB era, then it's not doing too badly at all.