After punching the dragon Shou-Lao the Undying through the chest and pulling out its heart, Danny Rand became the Iron Fist. But he was not the first. Indeed, the role of the Iron Fist is a title that has been used by the champion of K'un Lun going back a million years.
K'un Lun is one of the Seven Capital Cities of Heaven, and each of these cities has its own Immortal Weapon as a champion who defends it. Every generation has its own champion, as the word "Immortal" is purely ceremonial. In his role as the Immortal Iron Fist, Danny Rand is a living weapon who channels chi through his body and into his punches. While he is the most famous Iron Fist and has surpassed many of his predecessors, he is far from the strongest.
10 Pei Sent Davos Through A Building With A Single Punch
As she is just a small girl but she actually manifested the powers of the Iron Fist after the villainous Davos (Danny Rand's long-time rival) killed Shou-Lao the Undying. She punched Davos with enough force to send him hurtling back through a building. She then resurrected this new incarnation of Shou-Lao--and other earlier incarnations of the dragon.
Pei has had several names since this first manifestation of her powers: Iron Kid, Kung Fu Girl, and Iron Fist, Jr. She is still just a kid so lacks the focus and experience to be a true Iron Fist, but she will attain these in time, surpassing many others on this list.
9 Bei Bang-Wen Used His Chi To Enhance His Mental Abilities
Bei Bang-Wen is an interesting character study because he used his chi to enhance his mental abilities, making him an incredible strategist. He was Iron Fist in the early-to-mid-19th Century and opposed the British conquests of China and India, teaming up with an Indian brahman named Vivatma Visvajit who used his Prana to give him powers.
Bei Bang-Wen was arrogant and often underappreciated his own blindspots--a trait common among intelligence people who know they understand some fields, and therefore assume they have a grasp of other fields. He eventually lost a major battle to the British armies.
8 Orson Randall Used His Chi To Power Bullets
Orson Randall was born in K'un Lun, but his father was from outside the Heavenly City and only arrived there after his airship crashed in the Himalayas. Orson became the Iron Fist, then left the city to fight in World War I. He formed a team of fellow adventurers known as the Confederates of the Curious.
One thing that separates Orson from others is the unique way he used his chi to power bullets. This mixture of gun-fu with kung fu made him the first to apply the ancient techniques to weapons of the modern era. He spent most of his later years addicted to opium, which suppressed his powers.
7 Junzo Muto Was A Deadly Assassin
Junzo Muto was not a true Iron Fist, but was a power thief who stole Danny Rand's powers and took up the mantle of Iron Fist as a title for himself. He was a deadly assassin and master martial artist who was one of the leaders of the Hand.
He defeated the New Warriors and Danny Rand, using his ability to steal other people's powers to defeat gain the chi mastery of the Iron Fist. He has not appeared in the comics for quite some time, but he is incredible powerful. He even innately learns to use abilities that Danny struggled with. However, he is not naturally an Iron Fist and his limits are yet to be fully explored.
6 Wu Ao-Shi Was A Natural Warrior From The Beginning
Though she began life as a street urchin living in K'un Lun, Wu Ao-Shi was fearless and a natural warrior from the very beginning. She was taken in by Lei Kung the Thunderer after he witnessed her beat down a merchant who was abusing her, and Lei Kung trained her in kung fu with his other pupils.
After Wu Ao-Shi became Iron Fist, she fell in love with a fisherman. When he left her, she left K'un Lun and went out into the world, traveling through the world and beating up those who oppressed others. When a pirate flotilla terrorized Pinghai Bay, she took them on, and after an initial defeat, defeated the entire pirate navy, using a bow that shot chi-powered arrows. She became known as the Pirate Queen of Pinghai Bay.
5 Quan Yaozu Took A Seat On The Throne Of A Particular Hell
One of the earliest of the Iron Fists was Quan Yuazo, who worked with the other Immortal Weapons to take on the Eighth Capital City. But this was not one of the Capital Cities of Heaven. Rather, it was a city of Hell.
He fought demons and eventually locked himself within the Eighth City to seal the gates and close it off from the world. Here, he became known as Changming, and took a seat on the throne of (this particular) hell as its new ruler.
4 Kl’rt Has The Powers Of All Four Members Of The Fantastic Four
As fans of the Fantastic Four know, Kl'rt is the Super-Skrull. While all Skrulls are capable of shapeshifting, Kl'rt also has the powers of all four members of the Fantastic Four. Over the years, the Skrull Empire makes more Super-Skrulls, and Kl'rt gains additional powers.
He is not the only Skrull to take up the role of Iron Fist, but he is by far the most powerful Skrull to try to pass himself off as such. Honestly, as his raw powers go, he is probably more powerful than Danny Rand and almost anyone else on this list. However, he is not nearly as skilled in martial arts or in strategically handling multiple opponents, relying far more on the brute force conveyed by his abilities. As such, he lacks the discipline and focus needed to be all that impressive as an Iron Fist, and if it were not for his numerous other powers, he would not even rank this high.
3 Danny Rand Has Fought Both Against And Alongside The Immortal Weapons
What is there to say about Danny Rand that has not already been said? He is a master of kung fu, a billionaire industrialist, a community organizer, a superhero, humanitarian, and probably the most impulsive Iron Fist ever to shoot off his mouth at inappropriate times. He is ignorant of so much of what has come before, but he regularly proves willing to learn more and adapt, honoring the old ways while adapting to the new changes always happening in the Marvel Universe.
Danny has fought against and alongside the other Immortal Weapons. He has been a member of the Avengers, Defenders, and founded the Heroes for Hire with his best friend Luke Cage. As far as most comics fans are concerned, the words "Iron Fist" and "Danny Rand" are synonymous.
2 Fan Fei Taught Cavemen The Secrets Of Kung Fu
Fan Fei was one of the Avengers from the year 1,000,000 BC. She was born in K'un Lun, but after she taught cavemen the secrets of kung fu, which was forbidden. Her cavemen pupils were rounded up and given to the dragon Shou-Lao the undying, where they were burnt alive. She charged the dragon, expecting to die, and punched it--the first person to rip out the dragon's heart with one punch and become the Iron Fist. She was banished from K'un Lun immediately afterwards.
The very existence of Fan Fei is controversial. There have been 66 Iron Fists by the time of Danny Rand, each of whom (with only a few exceptions) lived to the age of 33. That makes the tradition of the Iron Fist roughly 2000 years old (technically 66 multiplied by 33 is 2,178, but the Iron Fists were not born with their powers). The very existence of Fan Fei contradicts established continuity. However, as the first Iron Fist, she did what was thought impossible, so should be given full credit for her achievements.
1 Wu Fongji Was Also The Phoenix
The most powerful Iron Fist who ever lived was Wu Fongji. There is a simple explanation for this: she was also the Phoenix.
Like most Phoenix hosts from Earth, she had stunning red hair, having been born of one parent from K'un Lun and another from a regular human of Earth). She gained cosmic awareness after a brief encounter with the Phoenix, and left the planet, flying into space.