Flying Guillotine Movies: Story Timeline

The Emperor's armies have developed a new weapon: a thrown blade that can remove someone's head from long distance. As the paranoid Emperor begins decapitating anyone he fears might be a threat, his guard Mau Tang becomes disillusioned with the excesses of his master. He leaves his post and takes up the quiet life of farming and raising a family. Eventually, though, his past catches up with him, and he must find a way to fight the flying guillotine if he is to save his head.

The emperor's reign of terror expands. Heroic outlaw Ma Teng joins a squad of female rebels, whose leader is torn between family loyalties.

Despite its stand-alone title, this mixture of martial arts and exploitation is a semi-sequel to Shaw Brothers's Flying Guillotine series. This time, the focus is Rong Qui-yan, a kung fu student turned dutiful wife whose life falls apart when her husband is murdered by a squad of government operatives led by the duplicitous Jin Gang-Feng. Qui-yan is forced to go into hiding as she plots her revenge and finds allies in fellow fugitive Ma Seng and ex-lover Wang-jun.