Ba strode through the flood. A terrific heat spread from her body and dried up the waters. Huang Di then fashioned a drum out of a sea monster's hide. When he crashed down his huge, powerful drumsticks, a terrible thunder shook the mountains. You's army was paralyzed with fear.
China has the oldest existing civilization in the world.
Its earliest myths date from more than 4,000 years ago, but its mythologies were ever-changing. Names, ranks, and the importance of Chinese deities were closely connected to the ruling powers of a region or an era. Much of China's early history is intertwined with its mythic history. The line between mythic leaders, like Huang Di, and historic figures is often very blurry. Ancient Chinese mythology was later transformed by the spread of the Taoist, Confucian, and Buddhist religions.