Redwood Ridge was vast, with cultivators and ordinary Miao villagers living among one another, making its boundaries hard to define. This part of Southeastern Guizhou was all rolling mountains and ridges, with no clear dividing lines. Centered on Heavenly Hound Cliff, wherever redwoods grew lay within Redwood Ridge's sphere of influence-roughly two or three hundred li across.
Some hundred li southeast of Heavenly Hound Cliff, still within the redwood forest, lay a gorge. Its terrain was complex, like a maze, with streams rushing through its deep ravines. These were all flowing waters: groundwater emerged from springs and rocky caves in the cliffs. Though the volume was small, the gorge's steep drops and sharp turns made the current fierce, accompanied by the urgent roar of surging water and fine, drifting spray.
The gorge towered high, mountains on both banks thrusting straight into the clouds. The urgent sound of water rolled between the rock walls, its immense echoes like thunder. The swift current struck river rocks and perilous cliffs along both banks, throwing up great clouds of spray that filled the gorge like curtains of mist.
Rushing waters and treacherous rocks, gathering clouds and pealing thunder-the scenery here was distinctive. It was a renowned scenic spot within Redwood Ridge, famous throughout Southeastern Guizhou.
In addition, upon leaving the gorge, the water split into three, then gathered streams, tributaries, and rainwater along the way to form three rivers: the Rong River, the Cong River, and the Peach Blossom River.
This gorge was the source of those three rivers, and thus was called Three Rivers Gorge. In the past, many Redwood Disciples had opened caves here to cultivate, practice their arts, and spar. It was also a sacred land in the hearts of the Miao people of the Rong River Great Stockade, the Cong