opportunity they had three years ago, revealing that Sword had overpowered the king of Qin during their assault on his palace, but refused to kill him. She then attacks Sword, and manages to wound him with Nameless's help. The next day, Nameless "kills" Snow in front of the Qin army. Sword later explains to Nameless that he let the king live because he desired a unified, peaceful China, and that only the king of Qin could achieve that vision. He then sends Nameless off to the Qin capital, writing the words "Our Land" (天下) in the sand to persuade Nameless to reconsider the assassination. The king, touched by the tale and Sword's understanding of his dream to unify China, ceases to fear Nameless. He tosses his own sword to Nameless and examines the scroll drawn by Sword. The king suddenly realizes it describes that an ideal warrior should, paradoxically, have no desire to kill. Understanding the wisdom of these words, Nameless abandons his mission and spares the king. When Snow learns that Sword convinced Nameless to forgo the assassination, she furiously attacks Sword. Sword chooses not to defend himself so that Snow would understand his feelings for her, and Snow accidentally kills him as a result. Overwhelmed with sorrow, Snow commits suicide. At his court's urging, the king reluctantly orders Nameless to be executed for his assassination attempt, understanding that in order to unify the nation, he must enforce the law and use Nameless as an example. Nameless receives a hero's funeral. A closing text identifies the king as Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. Cast Jet Li as Nameless () A Qin prefect of a small province, orphaned at an early age. Forged into a master swordsman over years of training, Nameless possesses the singular technique "Death at Ten Paces" (十步一殺 Shíbù yīshā) allowing him to strike precisely within that distance. He is the primary conspirator to assassinate the king, but ultimately decides that China's unification and peace are more important than vengeance. Hero also saw Jet Li's first appearance in a film produced by mainland China, after his debut in Shaolin Temple. Tony Leung as Broken Sword () Broken Sword and Flying Snow are the only assassins to ever infiltrate the king's palace, killing hundreds of his personal guard and very nearly the king himself before halting at the last moment. Of all the assassins, Broken