Kung Peng-cheng says, "The better-written Chinese chivalric romances all involve this sort of personal dilemma. On the one hand, knights-errant are carefree, traveling the world with a sword at their side, killing whomsoever they please. But over time, ethical demands begin to limit their options and make killing more difficult." Kung comments that chivalric novels always involve the resolution of the knight's personal ethical dilemmas.
「中國武俠文學寫得好的都會觸及到俠客的這種內在矛盾，就是一方面俠客自由自在，仗劍行俠，想殺人就殺人，但天長地久以來的各種倫理要求，又讓他不能痛快殺人、不能乾脆行事，」龔鵬程表示，武俠小說往往就在處理大俠內在倫理上的掙扎與衝突。