The recent box-office sensation All Wishes Come True!, which reimagines the well-known Chinese folk tale The Eight Immortals Crossing the Sea, has reignited public fascination with the mythological story and placed the chivalrous and benevolent Lyu Dongbin, one of the eight immortals, back in the cultural spotlight.

Lyusigang town in Qidong, Nantong, has a direct connection with the immortal. Its name originates from the four legendary visits Lyu made to the area.

A scene from the film All Wishes Come True!. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

His first visit came during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), when a plague swept through the area. Lyu appeared as a wandering healer, giving medicine to the sick and money to the poor.

During the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), the immortal returned for a second visit to build a thatched hermitage on coastal sandbanks, planting pines and cypresses and setting up a cauldron to refine elixirs.

His third visit came during the early Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), after a war in which coastal communities suffered famine and desperation. Lyu disguised himself as a vendor and sold half-priced savory baked flatbread to help starving people.

On his fourth and final visit, in the late Yuan to early Ming dynasties (1368-1644), the town was in ruins after endless war. Lyu stopped at an old farmer's house for a drink. He paid with a single blade of grass, which turned into a golden hairpin after he left. Realizing the immortal had come to them for the fourth time, the people named the place "Lyusi".

A statue of Lyu Dongbin stands at Xianyu town. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

Today, Lyu's traces can be found in the town. Muxian Tower, first built in the early Ming Dynasty to honor Lyu, was restored several times during the Kangxi, Qianlong and Xianfeng reigns of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). In 2014, the tower was rebuilt at its original site in Hecheng Park and has since become a popular spot.

Several roads and residential areas in the town also bear his Taoist name Chunyangzi, including Chunyang Road and Chunyang New Village, while Xianyu town and Shenxian Street blend his immortal legacy with the area's fishing culture.