There are many inscriptions in Huanzhu Cave describing the legend of Shijian Stone. The most famous one tells that the gap was cut by the Fubo Geveral Ma Yuan with his sword.
It was thought that the rock can grow and shrink. People believed that each time the rock connected with the ground there would be a Champion (in imperial examinations) from Guilin. In times of South Song Dynasty, the procurator of Guilin hosted a banquet at the Stone to congratulate the students who had passed the local examination and wished them a success in the ultimate imperial examinations. The saying proved to be true many times, as more and more Guilin students succeeded in the imperial examinations over time. Consequently, the rock was also called “Champion Rock.” Apart from that, the stone was described as a ‘‘Trunk Rock’’ in one of the poems written by an official in Song Dynasty.
Scientifically speaking, the gap is a crevice eroded by water. The whole column is nothing more than a product of erosion. It is not possible for it to become a stalactite that is to connect with the ground. No matter how much time passes by, it will always be a suspended rock. Although the prophecy of the “Champion Rock” could never become true, the tale still prevails.
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