Following the death of his teacher, Chen She (Fan Liao) journeys to the martial arts capital of the world: Tianjin. To open his own kung fu school, he must first train a disciple and defeat eight of Tianjins fighters, a challenge that takes at least three years. Chen encounters the talented but dangerous Geng Liangchen (Yang Song) and after just one year the greatest martial artists are challenged. But when personal ethics conflict with the masters rules, some must be betrayed and others with die.