Uchiyama

"Inner Mountain" is a spiritual narrative novel of inward growth. The sixty-four chapters in the book correspond to the sixty-four mountain system of the Shennong Mountains. There is no complete linear plot, no legendary conflicts and epiphany climaxes, only detailed daily scenes in the mountains: fingertips counting grain in the morning, the dull sound of chopping firewood, bamboo mats drying medicine, dripping water in the cave, footsteps in the fog, and the temperature of the fire pit. The novel progresses from a first-person perspective, and the boundary between reality and subconsciousness is always blurred - you can never tell whether it is the sound of the wind in the mountains or the sound in your heart. The old man who guards the mountain, Jiang Shouyu, the mute child Shiwa, and the medicine woman Su Jie at the foot of the mountain, together with the nameless narrator "I", are like the stones, trees, and mist in the mountain, each occupying its place and growing silently. It does not explain the I Ching, does not preach principles, and does not comfort readers. It simply cuts through the daily skin along the grain of the mountain, revealing a cross-section of the spirit itself. When you close the book, you will not get the answer, but only a certain weight: there are roots under your feet and a mountain in your heart. Wherever you stand is the main peak.