The Smiling, Proud Wander (chinese: 笑傲江湖) is a 1967 novel written by Jin Yong.

Alternate English name: State of Divinity

Background

Characters

HuaShan Sect (華山派)

• Linghu Chong (令狐冲): The hero of the novel. He is the senior disciple of HuaShan, and is a careless happy-go-lucky fellow whose main loves in life are swordplay, drinking, and (beginning in the middle of the series) music.

• Yue Bu Qun: The leader of HuaShan sect, he had the nickname, The Gentlemanly Sword (君子劍), but was actually small-minded selfish, and power hungry. A very orthodox fighter, he could never think out of the box. He pretended to help the Lin family out of the goodness of his heart, but in actuality was lusting after the Lin's sword technique, Pi Xie Jian Fa. He attempted to kill Lin Pingzhi several times. Towards the end, he castrated himself in order to learn Pi Xie Jian Fa, and was eventually killed by Yilin.

• Mrs. Yue (岳夫人): The wife of Yue Bu Qun, she always had faith in Linghu Chong, and thought of him as her son. She was one of the only two HuaShan people that Ren WoXing respected.

• Yue Ling Shan : The spoiled daughter of Yue Bu Qun, she was Linghu Chong's first love, but later turned her affections towards Lin Pingzhi.

• Lin Ping Zhi

• Lu Hou-er : One of Linghu Chong's younger martial brothers, and his best friend.

• Feng Qing Yang : Yue Bu Qun's martial great-uncle, he is a recluse that lives in the back part of Hua Shan. After observing Ling Hu Chong's spirited fights with Tian Bo Guang at Repentance Cliff, he decides to teach Ling Hu Chong his sword technique, the 9 Swords of Duke Koo. He is one of the only 2 Huashan people that Ren WoXing respected.

TaiShan Sect (泰山派)

• Tian Cong

South Ao-han Mountain Sect

• Ding Xing

• Ding Yi

• Yi Lin

North Ao-han Mountain Sect

• Liu Zheng Feng

Song Mountain Sect

• Zuo Leng Chan

Sun-Moon Sect

• Ren Woxing (任我行)

• Xiang Wen Tian

• Qu Yang: Ren Woxing's right hand man, he retired from the Sun-Moon Sect at the beginning of the story to raise his granddaughter and study his music in peace. He later befriends Liu Zheng Feng of the Northern Ao-Han Mountain Sect, they spend their days composing the "State of Divinity" musical score. He dies of severe internal injuries after rescuing Liu Zheng Feng.

• Dung Fang Bu Bai (東方不敗): Literally translated, his name means Invincible East.

• Ren Ying Ying: Ren Woxing's daughter, she is the Sacred Maiden of the Sun Moon Sect, and is the second most powerful person in the sect.

• Lan Feng Huang: Leader of the 5 Poison sect, a Miao sect from Yunnan. Very coquettish, she is one of the people who tried to cure LingHu Chong, but didn't succeed. Linghu Chong makes her his god-sister.

• Ping YiZi: A world-famous doctor also known as The Great Killing Physician (殺人名醫), he requires that you kill one person in exchange for his healing one person. His philosophy is that the number of deaths is pre-ordained by heaven, and if he snatches a person from death's door without offering a replacement soul, he will be punished when it is his turn to die.

Qingcheng Sect

• Yu Cang Hai: Leader of the Qingcheng Sect, he massacred Lin Pingzhi's family to avenge his son, who Lin Pingzhi had accidentally killed. However, he had always held a grudge against the Lins because his master, Chang Qin Zhi, had once been defeated by Lin Pingzhi's great-grandfather, Lin Yuantu.

• Qingcheng 4 Sou: The 4 Elegants of Qingcheng, they are the 4 primary disciples of Yu Cang Hai.

WuDang Sect

Shaolin Sect

Others

• Tao Gu 6 Xian

• Monk Bu Jie: Yilin's father, he fell in love with Yilin's mother, who was a nun. In order to marry her, he became a monk, with the name Bu Jie, which means "No Rules". A few months after Yilin was born, his wife left him in a jealous fit after he cast an admiring glance at another woman. He has spent the last 17+ years searching for his wife.

• Tian Bo Guang / Bu Ke Bu Jie

Modern Transformations (Movies, Books)

TV series:

• The Smiling Proud Warrior (Hong Kong, TVB, 1984) - starring Chow Yun Fat.

• State of Divinity (Hong Kong, TVB, 1996)

• State of Divinity (Taiwan, 2000)

• The Legendary Swordsman (Singapore, MediaCorp, 2000)

• State of Divinity (CCTV, 2001)

Manga:

• State of Divinity, by Li Zhiqing