In the northern reaches of Qinghe lies the village of Thousand-Buddha, so named for its people, all followers …
In the northern reaches of Qinghe lies the village of Thousand-Buddha, so named for its people, all followers of the Buddhist faith. In the early days of Xiande, Buddhist fervor swept through Qinghe, and in this village, devotion grew ever more intense, bordering on madness. A wandering monk known as Miaoshan came to the village and declared, "Your worship is naught but hypocrisy." The villagers refused to heed his words and drove him away.
Not long after, heavenly fire descended like a blazing canopy, consuming the village in an inferno. Houses vanished into a sea of flames, and for ten miles, nothing remained but scorched earth—none survived.
Some years later, in the Jianlong era, as travelers passed the desolate ruins in the depths of night, one heard the sound of quiet weeping rising from the wasteland. He said to his companions, "Could these be the lonely spirits of the villagers, still unwilling to find peace?"