Introduction

INTRODUCTION China is a huge country that stretches all the way from Central Asia in the west to the Yellow Sea in the east, a distance of some 2,500 miles (4,000 km). This vast area contains all kinds of countryside, from craggy mountains to lush river valleys, high plateaus to dense forests. This varied land gave birth to one of the richest cultures in the world-and one of the most vibrant collections of myths.