The Emperor’s Shadow
Unlike the other great sects, born of temples, valleys, or academies, the Royal Guards trace their origin directly to the throne. They are not monks, exiles, or scholars — they are the living blades of the emperor, a sect created by imperial decree to ensure no dynasty would ever be without loyal protectors.
Their founding dates to the Han dynasty, when an emperor, weary of betrayal from both generals and eunuchs, established a corps of warriors bound not to ministers, clans, or sects, but to the throne itself. At first, they were an elite guard stationed in the palace, but over centuries they became something far greater: a sect in their own right, trained in martial arts fused with imperial law and discipline.
Unlike Shaolin or Wudang, whose roots lie in philosophy, the Royal Guards’ creed was forged in politics and survival: “The throne must stand, or the realm falls.”
The first legendary figure of the Royal Guards was Commander Zhao Jian, known as the Iron Sentinel. Once a wandering swordsman, Zhao gained fame for saving the emperor from an assassination attempt staged by his own ministers. Refusing titles or land, Zhao demanded only one thing: to train a corps of warriors who answered to no one but the throne.
Zhao’s name remains etched in the annals of the sect as the first Patriarch of the Guard. His sword, The Sentinel’s Edge, is still passed down among commanders, a relic said to hum whenever treachery lurks nearby.
The Royal Guards have shifted roles with each dynasty:
Han: Founded as the first line of defense against palace intrigue, establishing their reputation as incorruptible shadows of the emperor.
Tang: Became famed for crushing rebellions and protecting the capital during war. Some called them “the empire’s silent wall.”
Song: Divided by corruption as emperors weakened, the sect fractured, but remnants still defended the throne to their last breath.
Yuan: Struggled under Mongol rulers, many refusing to kneel to foreign thrones. Those who remained redefined the sect as guardians of “the empire itself,” rather than any one dynasty.
Ming: The Royal Guards became infamous for their reach — secret police, spies, and executioners. Their black-clad agents haunted both palace and Murim, their loyalty unquestioned.
Qing: Endured suppression, yet adapted once more, infiltrating the very bureaucracy that sought to control them.
Their legacy is stained with both honor and infamy — revered as defenders of order, reviled as enforcers of tyranny.
Unlike other sects, the Royal Guards claim no mountain or doctrine. Their allegiance to the throne places them at odds with all:
Shaolin: Resent them as tools of emperors, wielding fists not for Dharma but for politics.
Emei: Clash with them whenever emperors trample compassion.
Tangmen: Constant enemies, for Tangmen’s poisons are the bane of emperors, and the Guards are trained to resist and counter them.
Wanderer’s Valley: Mutual hatred — the wolves of the valley despise the throne, and the Guards exist to preserve it.
Scholar’s Academy: A complex rivalry; allies in principle of order, but constant tension between the Academy’s voice of conscience and the Guards’ obedience to the throne.
Thus, the Guards walk a narrow path: loyal servants to the emperor, yet perpetual rivals of Murim’s great sects.
The Royal Guards’ history is riddled with betrayal, for their role demands proximity to power. Some commanders sided with corrupt eunuchs, others plotted coups, and a few sought to replace the throne they swore to protect. Yet for every traitor, ten Guards gave their lives in silent loyalty.
The Night of Crimson Cloaks: When a Tang rebellion stormed the capital, the Guards fought to the last, their bodies piled at the palace gates.
The Jade Treachery: A commander once poisoned the emperor to install a puppet. The Guards themselves hunted and executed him, proving that loyalty to the throne stands even above loyalty to leaders.
These betrayals cemented their paradoxical role: bound by oath, yet always shadowed by temptation.
To be a Royal Guard is to surrender individuality. Disciples wear crimson or black cloaks, their faces often masked, their names recorded only in imperial archives. Their loyalty is trained, drilled, and ritualized until it becomes instinct.
Unlike other sects, they are not free to wander Murim. Their lives are bound to duty — to watch, to guard, to strike. Many Guards live and die without recognition, their deeds erased to protect imperial dignity. Yet among the Eight Great Sects, they are remembered as the shadows of the throne, the eternal guardians of dynasty.
Summary:
The Royal Guards were founded not in mountains or exile, but in the palace itself — a sect forged by emperors to defend throne and dynasty. Their history is one of both glory and infamy: defenders of the realm, executioners of dissent, and tools of politics. Loved as protectors, hated as tyrants, they remain the blade of the throne, the oath-bound sect whose very existence ensures that no emperor ever stands alone.