At the foot of Niaodiao Mountain in Eryuan County, a rough stone path climbs the steep slopes of Dishishan Mountain. This path leads travelers through a terraced sequence of seven ancient temples, beginning at Lingshan Temple and ascending through Dajue, Shengmu, Guanyin, Jiulian, and Shuifo temples. At the absolute summit sits the Jade Emperor Pavilion, the crowning structure of this architectural sequence.

The origins of this mountain sanctuary date back over a thousand years to the Nanzhao Kingdom under the Meng clan. Builders raised the timber frames, blue-tiled roofs, and stone walls during the Ming dynasty, and workers reconstructed them during the Qing dynasty. Along the climb, four stone-brick pagodas—named Xukong Gongyang, Wuliang Duren, Wuliang Jixiang, and Nanwu Ruyi—rise against the canopy of ancient pine and cypress forests. Near the base, the sixteenth-century Wisdom Bridge, built during the Jiajing era, still bears the memory of local scholars like Zhang Chuo and Shi Huali, who crossed its stone arch to study for the imperial exams.

Local Bai folklore animates these high stone terraces. Legend says a winged monster with a wolf's head, a dog's tail, and a thorny belly once lived where the Jade Emperor Pavilion stands, flooding the Baishi River during harvest seasons. A traveler named Daoist Zhuang vanquished the beast with the help of water deities. A golden phoenix flew down to celebrate, dropping feathers that gave the town below its name, Fengyu, meaning Phoenix Feather.

Inside the pavilion, the air carries the scent of aged wood and incense. The smooth clay of the sculptures represents a harmonious flow of three distinct belief systems, placing Buddhist, Confucian, and Daoist deities side by side. Every spring, the quiet forest fills with the rhythmic clatter of rattle whips and the high notes of traditional Bai tunes. These sounds connect modern visitors directly to the centuries of pilgrims, scholars, and builders who climbed this same mountain to touch the edge of the sky.