The Smiling Proud Wanderer is a Chinese Martial Arts (Wuxia) novel written by Louis Cha (Jin Yong), the biggest-selling author by far in the world of Chinese novels. Original Chinese title "Xiao Ao Jiang Hu", literally translated as "Laughing Proudly in the Pugilistic World", means to live a carefree life in a mundane world of strife. Alternative English titles are "State of Divinity" and "The Swordsman". Presented here is book 1 of 5. Unlike most other novels by Louis Cha, for instance The Book and The Sword, or the Condor Trilogy (The Legend of the Condor Heroes, The Return of the Condor Heroes, and The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber) in which the historical timeframes are clearly mentioned, The Smiling Proud Wanderer's historical setting is less obvious. However, several mentions of the story in Louis Cha’s other works suggest that the events of the novel took place during the Ming Dynasty of China (from 1368 to 1644). In some sense, the novel was intentionally written as a reflection of politicians. In 1980, Louis Cha once commented that he did not include any historical setting in this novel to show that such characters appear in every era. Furthermore, he pictured the characters as politicians rather than the leaders of Martial Arts sects. Louis Cha also noted that the novel was written during the time of China’s Cultural Revolution. Characters such as Lin Pingzhi and Fangzheng were representative of actual Chinese politicians who lived during that time. The Smiling Proud Wanderer also contained elements of The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, one of Louis Cha's favourite authors. Linghu Chong's encounters with the recluse swordsman Feng Qingyang and the imprisoned Ren Woxing are similar to Edmond Dantes' encounter with Father Faria. Yue Buqun's evil schemes, Lin Pingzhi's revenge and Yue Lingshan's marriage are similar to certain parts of Dumas' novel.