The official Fish Cave releases fish at least two days each year, and at most for seven days and nights, yielding as little as over 2,000 jin and as much as tens of thousands of jin! The mountain folk can’t eat them all, so they dry fish slices and salt fish, but still, much of it inevitably rots. What’s even stranger is that the fish flowing out of the official Fish Cave are not only of uniform size, scaleless and shell-less, but each fish’s belly contains a fish louse. The fish louse is milky white, about the size of a broad bean, with all four limbs. When first emerging from the fish’s belly, it can crawl on the ground. Over time, the mountain folk discovered that the fish louse is a miraculous medicine for treating esophageal cancer. They collect the fish lice, dry them, grind them into a fine powder, and soak them in liquor. Once someone falls ill, the medicine works instantly and is extremely effective.

Thousands and tens of thousands of years have passed, but where do the fish from the official Fish Cave come from, and where do they go? Why are they all the same size? Why are they all scaleless and shell-less? Why does every fish have a fish louse in its belly? This ancient mystery remains unsolved, so people can only let beautiful legends flow on through the generations.

The mountain folk also told me that on the banks of the Little Dangyang River stands a rare, sky-shading iron-firm fir tree. Judging by its rings, it has grown for exactly 1,184 years! The tree is 36 meters tall, with a diameter of 2.7 meters! Legend has it that 110 years ago, not far from the base of this ancient fir, there stood another equally tall ancient fir. A wealthy family surnamed Pan in the mountains wanted to use this fir to make a coffin, so they ordered three woodcutters to fell the tree. At the very moment the tree fell, all three woodcutters were crushed to death. After that, the Pan family gradually declined, and more than ten years ago, the family line died out.

At the base of the surviving iron-firm fir, there used to be a small pond a few feet square, clear to the bottom, where two frogs with extremely bright red skin lived year-round. The mountain folk regarded them as “immortal children,” often traveling dozens or even hundreds of li through the mountains to burn incense, kowtow, set off firecrackers, and pray beneath the tree. Some would have their children and grandchildren acknowledge the “immortal children” as godparents; some would scoop up the clear pond water to drink, hoping to ward off disaster and cure illness. The mountain folk also hollowed out a rectangular tree hole about a meter up the ancient fir, using it as a shrine, and placed a deity statue inside. Ten years ago, to stop the mountain folk’s superstitious activities, the government organized forestry workers to fill in the pond at the tree’s base, and the “shrine” on the trunk has now closed up and grown over with bark.

“If the pond was filled in, what happened to the two red frogs?” I shuddered. “When filling the pond, they first covered it with stone slabs, then filled it with earth. Maybe the two red frogs are still alive.” Mountain folk Mr. Harris said with a smile.

“Actually, the red frogs shouldn’t have been buried underneath…” I couldn’t help but feel a deep sadness.

Mr. Harris said that every summer, many red snakes coil on the gnarled, rugged branches of that tree. Last summer, he personally saw a huge red snake about 15 meters long and 20 centimeters thick crawl down from the tree and slowly stretch into the grass. Someone wanted to strike it, but suddenly couldn’t bear to, so let the fiery creature slip away.

“In fact, no life in Shennongjia should ever be harmed!” I said to Mr. Harris with a sense of melancholy.

When the mountain folk told these stories, their faces glowed with a red light, and their brows were full of pride. I took the opportunity to feign emotion and said, “How wonderful it would be if I could go and see for myself?”

When the mountain folk heard this, they all fell silent. I immediately pressed further, sighing, “Over the years, I’ve done millions in business with you. I know you may have a mountain closure order here, and outsiders can’t go beyond public tourist routes, but surely I can visit the source of my goods, right? Besides, I’m not someone who breaks the rules. After so many years of dealings, if you still don’t trust me, that’s really unfair.”

Hearing my dissatisfied tone, the mountain folk rushed to pat their chests and promised to arrange food and lodging for me. I took the opportunity to make a few requests: I didn’t need them to accompany me all day, just two mountain guides to serve me throughout, and I would pay the guides a high daily wage; I might stay in Shennongjia for one or two months, and during this time, I hoped they would prepare the goods I needed; once the goods were ready, they would contact me, I would take the goods down the mountain and pay the balance, but before the goods were ready, they shouldn’t disturb my sightseeing; finally, I might want a few friends to join me.

Everything went smoothly after that. Once the mountain folk got me a permit to enter the mountains, I returned home to prepare my luggage and “by the way” invited a few friends. After landing at the airport, I called the three of them:

“Are you ready?”

“Ready!”

“We leave tomorrow.”

Excited cheers came through the phone, and I silently said to myself, “The time has come. I’m ready.”

Chapter One: Return to the Three Kingdoms

Section Two: The Time Tunnel

The next day, we boarded the plane, heading toward the dream in our hearts. Each of us was filled with excitement, and this excitement lingered throughout our bodies, so that even the six-hour flight didn’t make us feel tired at all. Only the complicated transfer procedures made each of us feel anxious. “Hurry up, hurry up!” we urged in our hearts.