刀光剑影

dāo guāng jiàn yǐng

lit. flash of knives and swords (idiom)

fig. intense conflict

dāo

knife; blade; single-edged sword; cutlass (CL:把[ba3])

guāng

light; ray (CL:道[dao4])

jiàn

double-edged sword

yǐng

picture