The Kings of Rags and Shadows
The Beggar’s Sect is unlike any other of the Eight Great Sects. While Shaolin rose from temples, Wudang from mountain peaks, and the Royal Guards from palace halls, the Beggar’s Sect emerged from the streets and gutters of the empire. Formed not by emperors or saints, but by the hungry and the cast-off, it is the largest and most widespread of all sects, its disciples hidden in plain sight among the beggars, vagrants, and forgotten souls of every city.
Its origin traces back to the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms era, a time of chaos when famine, warlords, and corruption left countless peasants starving. Among the destitute rose Hong Qigong, a wandering hero who lived among beggars not out of pity, but because he believed the downtrodden were the truest reflection of the empire’s soul. He taught them martial skills to defend themselves, turning bowls and sticks into weapons, and instilled the creed that even the lowliest may hold dignity and power.
From these roots, the Beggar’s Sect grew into a brotherhood of rags that spanned the empire, united not by temples or palaces, but by the shared hunger for justice — and survival.
Central to their legend is Hong Qigong’s Bowl of Justice. It is said he once struck down a corrupt magistrate using nothing but a beggar’s bowl, his qi flowing through the humble clay like a divine hammer. That bowl, cracked yet unbroken, became the first relic of the sect, symbolizing that weapons are not made of gold or steel, but of spirit.
The disciples who followed him wore tattered robes to hide their skills, infiltrating cities as common beggars. From alleys and markets, they gathered information, spread news, and struck when injustice grew unbearable. Over time, the Beggar’s Sect became both a spy network and a martial brotherhood, its power drawn not from courts or wealth, but from the countless unseen eyes of the poor.
The Song: Flourished in cities, their networks of beggars gathering intelligence for heroes and rebels alike.
The Yuan: Persecuted as thieves and spies, many Beggar leaders executed — yet the sect endured by retreating deeper into shadows.
The Ming: Reached its golden age, with leaders like Hong Qigong’s successors openly influencing Murim councils. Some emperors relied on their networks as an unofficial intelligence service.
The Qing: Suppressed harshly, their bowls smashed and leaders hunted. Yet no dynasty could erase them, for beggars cannot be uprooted from streets.
Thus, their legacy is eternal: wherever poverty exists, so too does the Beggar’s Sect.
The Beggar’s Sect earned enmity from many sides:
Tangmen: Detest them as thieves of secrets, for beggars often intercept messages and antidotes.
Wanderer’s Valley: Mock them as weak, yet fear their numbers and unpredictability.
Royal Guards: Constantly clash with them, for emperors view the Beggar’s Sect as spies and rebels in disguise.
Shaolin: A complex relationship. Both protect the common folk, but Shaolin sees the Beggars as undisciplined rabble, while the Beggars accuse Shaolin of ignoring the suffering of the streets.
Their rivalries are born not of philosophy, but of survival — for the Beggars walk in every shadow.
Like all sects, the Beggar’s Sect has faced betrayals:
The Bowl Breakers: Disciples who sold secrets to Tangmen in exchange for food and silver, leading to massacres of beggars in several cities.
The False King of Rags: A pretender who declared himself Beggar Chief, only to betray the sect by allying with warlords. He was executed by his own disciples, who fed him poisoned rice as punishment.
The Cleansing Flames: Dynasties and sect rivals repeatedly burned beggar camps, but each time survivors rebuilt — their creed being resilience itself.
These trials forged their greatest strength: the ability to endure, no matter how often beaten down.
To be of the Beggar’s Sect is to embrace both shame and pride: shame in poverty, pride in survival. Members wear tattered robes and carry bowls as both disguise and weapon. Their creed is simple: “All under heaven have worth — even the lowliest dog may bite.”
Unlike other sects, they are not bound to mountains or monasteries. Their strength lies in numbers, mobility, and invisibility. From imperial capitals to tiny villages, their disciples sit in the streets unseen — yet watching, listening, waiting.
Summary:
The Beggar’s Sect was born from hunger, injustice, and survival. Founded by Hong Qigong, the first King of Beggars, they turned rags into robes of honor and bowls into weapons of justice. Dynasties have tried to burn them, rivals mock them as rabble, yet no force can erase them. Their legacy begins not with temples or palaces, but with the dirt streets where the forgotten gather — and from there, they rose to become one of the Eight Great Sects.