The first half of
欲练神功，
必先自宫 'to master this divine skill, first castrate yourself', popularly quoted as the opening of the
葵花宝典 in
金庸's 《
笑傲江湖》. The novel itself words it differently: the sword manual
辟邪剑谱 opens
武林称雄，
挥剑自宫 'to rule the martial world, take the sword and castrate yourself'. Saying the first half is usually enough for listeners to supply the second.
