The Legend of Fong Sai-Yuk
Fong Sai-yuk (方世玉)
Fong Sai-yuk or Fang Shiyu was a (possibly fictional) Chinese martial artist and folk hero from Zhaoqing City, Guangdong Province. He was first mentioned in wuxia stories dating from the Qing dynasty (1644–1912), such as Shaolin Xiao Yingxiong (少林小英雄; Young Hero of Shaolin), Wan Nian Qing (萬年青) and Qianlong You Jiangnan (乾隆游江南; The Qianlong Emperor Visits Jiangnan). His father, Fong Tak (方德; Fang De), was a wealthy merchant, while his mother, Miu Tsui-fa (苗翠花; Miao Cuihua), was a martial arts expert. Fong was also associated with Hung Hei-gun and the Five Elders of the Southern Shaolin Monastery.
Fong Sai-yuk (方世玉) was trained in the martial arts by his mother Miu Tsui-fa, daughter of Miu Hin, who according to the legend was one of the Five Elders, who escaped the destruction of the Shaolin Monastery by the Qing Dynasty.
According to legends, starting immediately after his birth, Miu Tsui-fa would intentionally break every bone and limb in Sai-yuk's body and then bathe him in the Chinese herbal liniment Dit Da Jow, making him practically invulnerable. This treatment gave Sai-yuk's body the quality known as "copper skin, metal bone".
While he was still in his early teens, he accepted an open challenge from Tiger Lui and killed him.
According to legend, Fong Sai-yuk was killed by Bak Mei (white eyebrow), the notorious kung fu warrior in a battle embedded with revenge. On the other hand, according to the history, Fong Sai-yuk was killed during the fight with Wu-Mei (五枚), which was at the event of "Shaolin fire", when the temple was burning down.
Stories about Fong have been adapted into films and television series since the 1970s. The most notable ones are the 1993 Hong Kong film Fong Sai-yuk and its sequel, which starred Jet Li.