Chinese director Lu Yang will continue the story of his well-received Brotherhood of Blades film in a sequel, the director said at a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday. The new project, Warfield of Shura, will feature almost all of the original cast of the last film, including actor Chang Zhen, while adding actress Yang Mi to the cast as the leading female role.

In 2014, Lu's Brotherhood of Blades was a dark horse during that year's hot summer box office season. The film earned a high reputation among audiences and film critics as well as grabbed a Golden Horse Award that year. However, the movie fell short of expectations at the box office.

Lu revealed that after two years of preparation, he and his team began working on Warfield of Shura with renowned director Ning Hao as the producer.

According to Lu, the franchise aims to delve into the community of martial arts, where there is no clear dividing line between good and evil or right and wrong.

At the conference, Ning Hao added that he hopes to bring something fresh to Chinese martial arts films, not only by bringing in new ways to tell stories, but also by introducing different elements.