Yongkang Shichengkeng Scenic Area

Yongkang Shichengkeng Scenic Area

Shichengkeng is located in Zhulingjiao Village, Yongxiang Township. Upon entering the valley, visitors are greeted by towering mountains encircling the area like a fortress, lush greenery, and colossal rocks standing in majestic rows along the slopes, resembling a solid stone city. With clouds swirling above, the view is both grand and spectacular. Along the base of the rocky cliffs, there is a winding mountain path over a hundred meters long, allowing visitors to climb step by step. On one side are sheer rock walls hundreds of meters high, and on the other are dense forests and groves of bamboo. Wandering through this area offers a cool, serene, and deeply enjoyable experience. Beneath the cliffs lies a cave known by villagers as “General’s Cave.” Legend has it that when the Yellow Emperor visited this area, his guards were stationed here. Beside the cave is a rock crevice dozens of meters high, resembling a “skyline fissure” that leads straight to the top platform of the cliff. It is said that the Yellow Emperor’s guards kept watch from this platform, and if they spotted any trouble, they would throw small stones down the crevice, which would produce a crisp warning sound—hence its nickname, “Rock Watchtower.”

Shichengkeng is dotted with caves, large and small, numbering more than ten. The most remarkable among them is a large cave halfway up the mountain. This cave spans over a hundred square meters and is divided into upper, middle, and lower levels, all interconnected, with openings on all sides, making it spacious and comfortable. In front of the cave are facing stone gates, inside flows a clear spring, and beside it cascades a waterfall. According to local legend, when the Yellow Emperor’s martial sister, the Goddess Jiutian Xuannü, visited Shicheng Mountain from Jinhua Mountain, the Yellow Emperor welcomed her here—thus, villagers call it the Yellow Emperor’s Cave. Recently, during a cleanup of mud inside the cave, fragments of pottery bowls were unearthed. After examination by the city’s cultural relics department, these were identified as artifacts from the Tang and Song dynasties. From the rear of the cave, one can climb to the top, where it becomes clear that the cave is actually covered by a massive boulder that fell from above. The top of the cave is flat and expansive, like a giant roof, and bears a huge footprint on the boulder. Villagers say it is believed to be left by Jiutian Xuannü when she ascended to immortality upon leaving Shicheng Mountain.

Legend has it that Hu Benkong was a monk from the Chengzhen Temple at the foot of the mountain. He often hiked the hills to gather herbs and provide medical care to help people. One day, while climbing to the top of the cave to collect plants, he accidentally fell from a cliff several zhang (a traditional unit of length, roughly 3.3 meters) high. Expecting the worst, he survived unscathed—truly a blessing from heaven and earth. So, he set up a ladder on the cliff face and inscribed a record of the event himself. Surprisingly, the ink marks from that time have endured for nearly 500 years.