Kua Fu had never seen anything like this. In the past, he had fearlessly led his people against the threat presented by ferocious animals and had brought them through the perils posed by great floods on more than one occasion. Facing this terrible drought though, Kua Fu was at a loss. At first he sought to dig great wells in the Earth to secure water for the people but it was to no avail. Even hundreds of meters under the ground no water was to be found in these great wells. The cruel sun had thoroughly parched the Earth. As the crisis deepened the old and infirm began to die and soon even healthy-bodied young men began to perish. Frantically the people offered sacrifice to the Heavens and to the gods of rain, but not even one drop of rain fell on the land and the people continued to die one by one. The intensity of the sunshine was actually growing stronger each day, and a great fire of rage began to burn in the heart of Kua Fu. He glared up at the relentless sun, shook his fist and roared, “Fiery Sun, you hateful beast. You will not listen to our cries. I will capture you and make you listen to me!”
Thus Kua Fu resolved to capture the sun. After hearing the news, the people of the tribe came one by one to persuade Kua Fu of the folly of his mission. They pleaded with him, saying the sun was too far away; that if he reached it, he would be instantly consumed by the great flames. Kua Fu was unmoved. He was a great leader and could not bear to see his people endure such terrible hardship. He had to take action. Swinging the great peach tree branch he used when hunting, he strode off determined to confront the fireball in the sky.
Kua Fu began his hunt at night, taking advantage of the time when the sun was still at sleep. Kua Fu sprinted west in the direction of the sea. Unfortunately however, the Heavenly orb soon awoke, so Kua Fu was forced to change direction and pursue the sun to the south. Leaping over one mountain after another and striding across countless rivers, Kua Fu was soon drenched in sweat, which evaporated instantly thanks to the merciless heat of the sun, which scorched his hair and lips. Straining every sinew Kua Fu ran at top speed, his giant soles shaking the Earth with enormous violence.
In this manner, Kua Fu, never pausing for rest, pursued the sun relentlessly. The shadow of the sun became more and more distinct so he knew he was getting closer and closer. Finally one day, Kua Fu at last caught up with the sun in a place called Yu Gu. Seeing the great red burning ball of fire right in front of him, Kua Fu fearlessly stretched out his giant arms in an attempt to grasp it. However, Kua Fu had already been sprinting across the Earth for days and days. He was thoroughly exhausted and the unspeakable heat of the sun had parched his mouth and scorched his tongue. He was near to collapse with hunger and thirst, The great giant in desperation bent to drink the waters of the Yellow and Wei Rivers, Kua Fu drank long and deep but the waters of the two rivers were not enough to quench his great thirst. He ran to the north for he knew in those lands lay a vast lake thousands of kilometers wide. Surely it would be enough to satisfy his thirst. However, this great lake was very far away, and Kua Fu could feel his fatigued body start to fail on the journey north. At last, the mighty legs of the seemingly indomitable giant collapsed beneath him and he fell to the Earth with a fearful clamour.
Kua Fu fell into the sleep of death from which none awake. His body was formed by the gods into a high mountain to commemorate his mighty deeds: the people of his tribe called it “Kua Fu Mountain”. When he fell, his great peach tree branch which landed nearby became a large expanse of peach tree forest with luxuriant foliage and spreading branches, where passers-by could for centuries to come pause for a rest and enjoy some respite from the cruel gaze of Kua Fu’s great nemesis, the pitiless sun. In the third lunar month every spring, the peach trees blossom and seem to dance on the slopes of the mountain like cotton clouds across a summer sky.
