- In order to find a jade dragon which has been stolen from his very old friend in Chinatown, Tony will have to face a horrible death in a lava pit when the floor is literally taken from under him.
- Tony visits his old magician friend, Chao Liu, after learning from his granddaughter, Dawn, that he is close to death. Chao asks Tony for a favor: help him retrieve a priceless heirloom, a Szechuan dragon statue, that the people of his home province in Taiwan have revered spiritually for a millennium. It has been Chao's life mission to find the statue, which was stolen a century ago. Three weeks ago, the statue was located and Chao purchased it using a fund raised by the people of his province for such purpose, but in shipment it was once again stolen. Dawn's brother, who went on a hunt for the statue, has gone missing in the process, and is presumed murdered by whoever stole the statue because he got too close. Using what leads Chao and Dawn are able to provide him, Tony learns that the statue is in the possession of a Eurasian man named Hon Chi Kai. Upon this news, Chao asks Tony to stop trying to get the statue back as Hon is the most ruthless man Chao knows who will torture and kill to protect his property, and Chao feels it unfair to ask Tony to risk his life. Regardless, Tony continues his quest to retrieve the statue from Hon, but the news also places Dawn's life in danger as she too takes up the task, believing it her duty as a member of the family.—Huggo
- Tom is praying before an idol. His sister Dawn comes in and Tom tells her that she can't stop him. She says that she must then offer a prayer of her own, and Tom walks out as Dawn lights a candle for him.
Once Tom goes to Hon Chi Kai's compound, Hon Chi monitors Tom's progress through the halls of his home. Tom comes to a pair of doors in the hallway outside the room Hon Chi occupies. Doors close at the other end of the hall, sealing Tom in. There is a puzzle lock on the chamber door, and Tom works at it. The floor splits in half to reveal a heated surface beneath. As the two halves of the floor retract, Tom grabs the puzzle lock that is extending from the door. The extended piece retracts until it is flush with the door, and Tom drops onto the surface below and dies a fiery death.
In his chamber, Hon Chi sees the light representing Tom go out. The door opens as the two halves of the floor come back together and the other end opens. Hon Chi's guard Sheng says that the musicians are ready. Before going, Hon Chi looks at a golden dragon statue in a nearby case.
At the Castle, Tony performs. After he's done, he goes to the bar and Dominick congratulates him and guesses how Tony did the illusion. He then gives Tony a card with the name "Chao Liu" printed on it. Tony goes over to where a woman is sitting. Tony sits with her and the woman, Dawn, says that Chao is her grandfather and Tony would know his friend's card. Dawn says that Chao is dying.
Later, Tony and Dawn go to Chao's apartment. He tells Tony that he needs his help. When Tony agrees, Chao shows him a photo of the Szechuan Dragon. He explains that the people of his home province worshiped it for over a thousand years, but it was stolen a century ago. Chao has dedicated his life to finding it and bringing it back to his people. In Taiwan, the refugees from his village have established a fund for the return of the Dragon. He located and purchased the Dragon a few weeks ago, but as he was going to take it home, it was stolen again. Dawn says that no one is talking, and her brother Tom disappeared trying to find it. Dawn says that the only thing they know is the name of a shop, the "Flower of Wisdom".
The next day, Tony drives to the Flower of Wisdom and goes in. The owner, Flower of Wisdom, greets him and offers to predict his fortune. Tony produces a bill to pay her, then turns the piece of paper into his calling card with a drawing of the Dragon on one side. Flower asks what truth he seeks about the Dragon, and Tony tells her that he wants to find the new owner. She says that a powerful man might keep the Dragon but no one owns it, and offers to see what the sticks say as to where Tony can find the Dragon.
At a martial arts studio, Sheng is defeating several students at once when Tony comes in. Tony says that he wants to meet the current owner of the Dragon, and Sheng throws him to the mat. Before Sheng can continue his attack, Tony says that he has the Dragon's mate that Sheng might be interested in. Sheng takers a blindfolded Tony to Hon Chi's compound and brings him before Hon Chi.
Hon Chi is fighting with a partner, using traditional Chinese swords. Hon Chi defeats his opponent and welcome Tony by name, and says that he learned that Tony holds the mate to the Dragon. The Dragon is still on display in the case, and Hon Chi knows that the second Dragon was destroyed. He admits that Tony's audacity intrigues him, and sits down and toys briefly with a puzzle box. Tony asks to see it, and easily solves it.
A light goes off on Hon Chi's control panel, and he presses a button to open the chamber door. Sheng brings a crate and a woman in. Hon Chi says that the vase in the crate and the woman are both unique. Tony asks if Hon Chi stole the woman as well, and Hon Chi insists that he's not a thief. He says that anything that came from Szechuan is his, and his family lives by the simple creed that a man can take and keep whatever he can hold. He gives Tony a medallion and orders to give to Chao with his regrets.
Later at the apartment, Chao tells Tony that the medallion belonged to Tom, his grandson. When Tony gives Hon Chi's name, Chao coughs and Dawn gives him some pills. Once he has recovered, Chao tells Tony that Hon Chi is barbaric and cunning, and his family has been the strongest in Szechuan. Hon Chi is the last of the line, and Chao says that he will never see the Dragon again. Tony assures his friend that the theft of the Dragon was not his fault, and Chao explains that he sought passage to America and sold the Dragon to afford the trip. He tells Tony not to risk his life for a thief, and Tony assures him that he has chosen to help an honorable man.
Chao excuses himself to rest, and once he goes to his bedroom, Tony tells Dawn that Hon Chi still believe he's a warlord. Dawn explains that women of her family once committed suicide to avoid becoming the concubine of a warlord, and wishes that she could so something. Tony shows her the writing that was on the crate in Hon Chi's chamber, and she translates it as a Western name, Cooper.
Tony goes to Cooper Galleries with Dominick, and they meet meets with the owner, Cooper. Dominick pretends to be a Yugoslavian counsel, and Tony explains that Dominick has been empowered by his government to buy certain objects. While Dominick keeps Cooper distracted, Tony goes through Cooper's files and finds an order form for Won Chi. Cooper finally pulls himself away but Tony has moved on, then says that Dominick hasn't found anything he likes and leaves with his friend.
Back at Tony's apartment, Dominick looks at the order form and says that it doesn't indicate his address or his assumed name. Tony points out that the form shows other objects that Hon has ordered and the date they're going to be picked up.
That night when Chao is sleeping on the couch in his apartment, Dawn dresses as a Chinese concubine and slips out. Chao isn't asleep and turns on the light, and Dawn says that the doctor said he should be in bed. Her grandfather asks where she's going, and Dawn claims that she's going to the temple to pray. Chao doesn't believe her given how she's dressed, and says that he doesn't want to lose the loss of a second grandchild. When Dawn asks how he would handle Tony's death, Chao hopes that Tony won't pursue the matter and that Dawn won't as well. Dawn tell her grandfather that she will be back later and leaves.
Tony and Dominick break into Cooper's warehouse with a box on a dolly. They find a crate with the same writing that Tony saw earlier, break it open, and finds a Chinese statue within.
Dawn goes to an escort service and assures the owner, Mrs. Ti, that she has her own wardrobe. Ti says that she has some clients from China. When Dawn says that she knows Szechuan cooking, Ti says that she has one client who prefers that food, and he pays very well. Dawn says that she only needs one chance to prove his skills, and Ti warns that the man will only give her one chance.
Sheng picks up the crate from the warehouse, and Dominick watches from a parked car down the street and then follows Sheng's van. Sheng spots Dominick following him and tells his driver to take a series of turns, and Dominick takes them as well. The henchman then has the driver turn the van's lights off, and they lose Dominick in the darkness. Sheng get out and smashes a chained mace into the windshield of Dominick's car, and he skids off the road as the van drives off.
The blindfolded Dawn is taken to Hon Chi's compound, and he monitors her progress on her control panels and lets her into his chamber. Hon Chi says that she's lovely and undresses her, and he's surprised that they've never met before. He asks what disturbs her, and Dawn tells him that she isn't disturbed. He tells her that he is of mixed blood but a descendant of the House of Hon. Hon Chi demands the real reason she has come before she serves him.
Sheng and the drive wheel the crate into a storage room, and then Sheng calls Hon Chi on the intercom and says that they delayed on the road. He doesn't think the statue is in the crate, and Hon Chi tells him to prepare a proper welcome for Tony. Hon Chi then tells Dawn that she was expecting a friend to join her there, and warns that he may not arrive. He figures that Dawn intended to be Tony's diversion, and tells her to divert him. Dawn defiantly says that she came to take the Dragon so Tony wouldn't have to.
Sheng and the driver find the statue in the crate rather than Tony. Tony, hidden in the base of the crate, uses a blowgun to shoot a pebble out into the hallway. Sheng and the driver go to investigate, and Tony emerges from the hidden compartment and hides elsewhere. The two men return and confirm the base is hollow, and Sheng smashes in the compartment with a kick but finds no one inside. Meanwhile, Tony slips out the door behind them.
Hon Chi spots Tony on his control panel and watches his progress. He tells Sheng over the intercom, but tells his henchman not to interfere. Meanwhile, Tony enters the hallway and is caught in the same trap as Tom earlier. He stays on one half of the floor as it retracts, solves the puzzle lock, and enters the chamber. Hon Chi congratulates Tony as a worthy opponent, and dismisses Dawn and her grandfather as peasants.
Sheng comes in and attacks Tony. When Sheng makes a flying kick, Tony tilts the spire of a decorative pagoda into the martial artist's chest. Dawn takes the Dragon and leaves with Tony, who repeats Hon Chi's earlier words back to him about a man keeping what he can hold.
Later in his apartment, Dominick brings Chao and Dawn in. Tony welcomes his friend to his home, and Dawn brought her grandfather without telling him why. Wheeling out a glass case, Tony produces the Dragon. Smiling, Chao tells Tony that he's made him a happy man.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content