On the slopes of Fuzhong Mountain in Yusuo Town, the earth holds the memory of the Eryuan Zhongling Monastery. Visitors find the Zhongling Ruins, where the physical legacy of this ancient Buddhist sanctuary is written in stone foundation footings. These rough, hand-carved stone feet are the sole survivors of centuries of fire and conflict.

Long before the first temple columns rose, this mountain slope served a military purpose. During the Tang Dynasty, the Nanzhao period saw the armies of the Dengdan and Langqiong states pitch their camps on these heights. The sound of clashing iron eventually gave way to quiet study. In the Ming Dynasty, two local men, Zhao Jitai and Li Zhaofang, co-founded the formal monastery. They established a literary academy within its walls, bringing the murmur of reciting scholars to the quiet forest.

The monastery grew. In 1730, during the eighth year of the Yongzheng reign, workers expanded the complex. They built the grand Dabeizhuang, the Wenchang Palace, and the Juehua Hall. These lofty structures stood against ancient trees, overlooking the clear waters of the Lvyu Pond and the busy traffic of the Yunnan-Tibet Tea Horse Road. Inside the main hall, three statues known as the Three Guanyin Sisters—representing Guanyin, Puxian, and Wenshu—watched over generations of travelers and locals.

By the mid-20th century, war and neglect had leveled the halls. The adjacent settlement, once called Sipang Village because it sat beside the temple, changed its name as the buildings vanished. Yet, the connection to the past remained. Recently, local residents gathered their resources to rebuild the main hall on the ancient foundations. Today, a large wooden fish and a heavy bronze bell hang along the corridor. When the wind sweeps up from the plains of Dengchuan and the waters of West Lake, the bell rings out over the mountain streams, connecting modern visitors to the soldiers, scholars, and builders who walked this ground.