Fairy Cave Taoist Temple Scenic Area

　　The Fairy Cave Taoist Temple Scenic Area is located on the southern bank of Ziyang County and is the closest tourist attraction to the county town. It covers an area of 320 hectares, extends 4 kilometers in depth, and features lush vegetation and a pleasant climate. The area is home to hundreds of subtropical plant species, making it the largest botanical gene bank in the Ankang region.

　　Fairy Cave was where Zhang Pingshu, the founder of the Southern School of Taoism, practiced Taoism. As Zhang Pingshu was also known as Ziyang, the county was named after him. He lived during the Northern Song Dynasty and was originally a county magistrate in Zhejiang. After making a joke that led to the suicide of his servant, he was filled with remorse and was sentenced to exile. Later, he met a Taoist priest who guided him onto the Taoist path. Wandering to this place, he found it surrounded by high mountains, dense forests, and murmuring streams—truly an ideal site. He carved a cave into the cliff face, cultivated internal alchemy there, and authored works such as the “Wuzhen Pian,” key texts of the Southern School of Taoism. These laid the theoretical foundation of the Southern School and pioneered modern internal martial arts practices. He came to be known as the Ziyang Zhenren (Realized One of Ziyang). Official Taoist activities resumed here, and with approval from the provincial religious affairs bureau, the magnificent present-day Taoist Temple (Zhenren Gong) was constructed on the current site.

　　The Zhenren Gong (Taoist Temple) enshrines statues of the True Martial Emperor, the Grand Supreme Elderly Lord, and the Medicine King, among others. With beautiful scenery and a serene environment, the temple attracts a continuous stream of worshippers and visitors, especially during temple fair festivals—creating a lively scene that can be described as “The realized one ascended to immortality carried by the wind; devoted visitors cross the river drawn by fame.”