The Legend of the White-Haired Demoness

Liang Yusheng（香港）传慧出版有限公司 · Hong Kong SAR, ChinaJan 2023

Rating 4.0

Word count: 402K words
Chapters: 32

Summary

The story is set from the late Wanli era to the early Chongzhen era of the Ming dynasty. Lian Nichang, a heroine of the greenwood famed for her stunning beauty and hatred of evil, is known as the Jade Rakshasa. On one occasion she robs a retired high court official, Zhuo Zhonglian, on his way home, and crosses paths with his grandson Zhuo Yihang; the two become friends through their fight and later fall in love. Zhuo Yihang is the senior disciple and chosen successor of the Wudang sect. His martial uncle, Daoist Baishi, believes that as a member of a prestigious orthodox sect he should not love a woman of the greenwood, and interferes. Lian Nichang therefore storms Wudang Mountain in fury. But in the end, because Zhuo Yihang is weak-willed and irresolute, the affair ends in tragedy. Lian's hair turns white overnight, and she comes to be known as the White-Haired Demoness.

Editor's review

The White-Haired Demoness is one of the most discussed works by Liang Yusheng; its power lies not in bizarre techniques but in writing a love affair as a collision between two temperaments and two sets of rules. Lian Nichang is the Jade Rakshasa of the greenwood—striking, fierce, and implacably hostile to evil; Zhuo Yihang comes from the renowned Wudang sect and is its leader's disciple, yet is weak-willed and hesitant. They meet through a robbery and fall in love through combat, but the obstacle is not simply villains scheming: it is the gap between Wudang's respectable 'orthodox' standing and her greenwood identity, and Taoist Bai Shi's intervention merely brings that contradiction into the open. Lian Nichang's rampage through Mount Wudang is the emotional peak of the book and the turning point of the tragedy: her resolve contrasts sharply with Zhuo Yihang's retreat, and in the end her hair turns white overnight. The book is readable because the characters' motives are clear and the emotional progression has layers; the reader can see how each concession accumulates into something irreversible. The setting, from the late Wanli years to the early Chongzhen years of the Ming, adds an atmosphere of instability to the jianghu grudges. It suits readers willing to see 'love' outweigh 'martial arts' in wuxia and able to accept a tragic ending.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who like wuxia with a heavy emotional thread and finely drawn psychology
Those who want to know Liang Yusheng's representative works and the origins of the White-Haired Demoness story
Readers who can accept a tragic ending and want to see how character drives fate
Those interested in the late-Ming jianghu and sect rules

Not a good fit for

Readers who only want brisk action and have little patience for romantic entanglement
Those expecting a happy reunion and unwilling to accept a tragic close
Readers who dislike depictions of sect hierarchy and orthodox-versus-evil ideas in old-school wuxia

Reading tips

Pay attention to the specific choices Lian Nichang and Zhuo Yihang make at each disagreement; that reveals the causes of the tragedy better than the ending alone
Slow down at the Mount Wudang scene and understand Zhuo Yihang's retreat in light of sect pressure and his weak character
See Taoist Bai Shi's intervention as an embodiment of sect rules rather than mere villainous obstruction
After finishing, look back at the robbery scene where the two first meet; the emotional contrast will be clearer in hindsight

About the publisher

（香港）传慧出版有限公司 Hong Kong, China

(Hong Kong) Chuanhui Publishing Limited is a publishing house based in Hong Kong, China. Public information about it is limited. Judging from the books in the database, its publishing focus is on wuxia novels, especially electronic editions of works by Liang Yusheng. Titles include such full-length wuxia classics as The Legend of the Condor Heroes-style romances Pingzong Xiaying Lu, Yunhai Yugong Yuan, Baifa Monü Zhuan and Datang Youxia Zhuan, mostly presented in multiple volumes, with both upper and lower volumes and complete editions. Liang Yusheng is its core author, and the category is relatively concentrated, reflecting a systematic arrangement and digital dissemination of classic wuxia texts. Its publishing feature lies in reproducing traditional wuxia novels in e-book form, using Hong Kong ISBNs beginning with 988, so that readers can encounter Liang Yusheng's martial arts world digitally.

第一回铁矢神弓少年扶巨宦金鞍宝马大盗震虚声
第二回震动京华惊传梃击案波翻大内巧遇夜行人
第三回手足相残深宫腾剑气恩仇难解古洞结奇缘
第四回七绝阵成空大奸授首卅年情若梦石壁留经
第五回平地波澜奸人施毒手小城烽火密室露阴谋
第六回月夜诉情怀孽缘纠结荒山斗奇士剑掌争雄
第七回剑谱惹奇灾风波叠起掌门承重托误会横生
第八回谦谢掌门情缘难斩断难收覆水恨意未全消
第九回江湖术士施诈骗红丸颖异少年有心求剑诀
第十回剑术通玄天山传侠客京华说怪内苑出淫邪
第十一回糜烂叹宫闱英雄气短蜩螗悲国事侠士心伤
第十二回块垒难消伤心悲国事权奸弄柄设计害将军
第十三回风雨多经断肠遗旧恨市朝易改历劫剩新愁
第十四回名将胸襟女魔甘折服秘魔崖下鬼母逞豪强
第十五回神剑施威胆寒惊绝技毒珠空掷心冷敛锋芒
第十六回父子喜相逢指挥解甲忠奸难并立经略归农
第十七回珠宝招强人荒林恶斗神威折魔女群盗倾心
第十八回冤狱毁长城将星摇落苦心护良友剑气腾空
第十九回孽债难偿问花花不语前缘未证对月月无言
第二十回一曲箫声竟成广陵散多年梦醒惭作未亡人
第二十一回毁寨剩余哀情留块土试招余一笑慨赠藏珍
第二十二回六月飞霜京城构冤狱深宫读折侠女送奇书
第二十三回剑气腾霄三番惊大内宫闱窥秘一愤走天涯
第二十四回转念弃屠刀深仇顿解真情传彩笔旧侣难忘
第二十五回莲出污泥决心离父母胸无杂念一意会情郎
第二十六回剑闯名山红颜觅知己霞辉幽谷白发换青丝
第二十七回无意留名少年求庇护忏情遗恨公子苦相寻
第二十八回塞外收徒专心传剑法天涯访友一意觅伊人
第二十九回空谷传声伊人仍不见荒山露迹奸党有阴谋
第三十回天际看寒星情怀惘惘草原惊恶斗剑气森森
第三十一回幽恨寄遥天相思种种琴声飞大漠误会重重
第三十二回漠漠黄沙埋情伤只影迢迢银汉传恨盼双星

FAQ

Is this a love story or a wuxia story?

Both, but the emotional line carries great weight. Lian Nichang and Zhuo Yihang's meeting, love, and break form the main line, driven by the conflict between Wudang and the greenwood. The fights and jianghu episodes serve the relationships, so readers looking only for martial-arts spectacle may find it unsatisfying.

Is the ending tragic? Should I prepare myself emotionally?

It ends in tragedy. Because Zhuo Yihang is weak-willed and unsteady, Lian Nichang's hair turns white overnight, and she becomes known as the White-Haired Demoness. It is best to be prepared; the work's power comes from this irreversible fall rather than a happy resolution.

What is Lian Nichang's rampage through Mount Wudang about?

Zhuo Yihang's uncle-master, Taoist Bai Shi, believes that as an orthodox sect disciple he should not love a greenwood woman, and interferes. Lian Nichang therefore storms Mount Wudang. This conflict pushes the contradiction between sect respectability and personal feeling to its height and is the key turning point toward tragedy in their relationship.

Related on WeRead

白发魔女传梁羽生全民魔女1994 宇宙鸽

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Liang Yusheng Author · Chinese · 1924–2009

Liang Yusheng (1924–2009), originally named Chen Wentong, was a native of Mengshan, Guangxi. After the victory of the War of Resistance, he entered Lingnan University in Guangzhou and later became an editor of the supplement of the Hong Kong newspaper Ta Kung Pao. In 1954, with The Dragon and Tiger Duel in the Capital, he pioneered the new school of Hong Kong wuxia fiction. He wrote thirty-five works before retiring his pen in 1984. His wuxia novels often draw on history, weaving real dynastic changes with martial-world feuds; his characters combine patriotic concern with romantic attachment, and his elegant prose is interspersed with poetry, giving his work a distinctive scholarly flavor. Representative works include The White-Haired Demoness, Seven Swords from Mount Heaven, The Romance of Pingzong Xiaying, and The Romance of the Cloud Sea and Jade Bow. He is often mentioned alongside Jin Yong as a leading figure of his time. Besides wuxia fiction, he also wrote modern poetry; the library holds 143 of his works.