A notable entry among the many action films released in Hong Kong in the 1980s and 1990s, this is director He Ping's homage to swashbuckling epics and American westerns. Most of the film occurs in the canyon of the title, rendered in Mandarin as Riguang Xiagu. A traveling mercenary known as the Avenger arrives in the valley to settle an old score. He befriends the widowed owner of the local inn and her son while waiting for his enemy to arrive. The Avenger also meets up with Crazy Man (Ku Feng), an old warrior who has been waiting for years for his enemies to come to the canyon and in the meantime has become a devout Buddhist. Crazy Man's foes arrive, and the Avenger joins in the battle on his behalf. His experiences in the valley lead the Avenger to question the purpose of his life as a fighter.