Speaking of Longmen in Leigong Temple, the legendary stories of Longmen Cave, Xianren Bridge, Ren Xian House, Yanzi Cave and "Carp yue longmen" are widely known from ancient times to the present. These stories are described and recorded in Changde county annals, Changde folk art and culture, Leigong Temple and local textbooks. Among them, the landscape of Longmen Cave is the most charming. Every year, it attracts many foreign tourists who come here. Dozens of scenic spots in the cave, such as Jiangjunzhu, Kannonji, Sheshentan, Banbian Street, Qiliqiu, Xiaolongkou and so on, are beautiful. As early as a few years ago, it was rated as a "provincial second-class tourist protection zone" by Hunan Provincial Tourism Bureau.
It is reported that some local villagers used lanterns and torches to explore the cave for a day, but they saw holes in the cave and the holes were connected. In the "hall" in the cave, there are two stalactite columns about 10 meter high, each of which needs four or five people to surround. There is an unfathomable Yin River with flowing water in the cave, which may be connected with a big "sinkhole" with perennial water accumulation on the hillside outside the cave. According to reports, there was a drought one year, and the villagers used seven or eight pumps to pump water from the big "tiankeng" to fight drought. After pumping for a month, the water level in the pit never dropped.
Leigong Temple belongs to hilly area, with abundant underground limestone reserves. Karst caves, stalactites and stalagmites are masterpieces of limestone, atmosphere and water.
Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere dissolves in water, and slightly acidic water dissolves limestone, making rocks form caves. There are many cracks on the roof of the cave, and water drops are constantly oozing from each crack. After water evaporates, some calcareous deposits will be left behind. One drop, two drops, three drops ... water keeps appearing and volatilizing. The more calcium deposits on the ceiling, a nipple will be formed-this is the "embryo" of stalactites. Later, the nipple was covered with layers of calcium, so that it became longer and longer, forming stalactites up to several meters. When the water drops at the top of the cave fall, lime is also deposited on the ground, forming stalagmites with large chassis, relatively stable body and 30 meters high. Downward stalactites are sometimes connected with upward stalagmites, forming two pillars with thick ends and thin middle. According to experts' calculations, the growth rate of stalagmites can be increased by 0.6- 1.2 meters in about 10,000 years, while the growth rate of stalactites is even slower, only 1/5 of stalagmites. It can be seen that the formation of caves, stalactites and stalagmites takes millions of years. This is why stalactites and stalagmites are precious.
Longmen cave is the only cave found in the suburbs of Changde city so far. Adjacent to Longmen Reservoir, the area is 1000 mu, and the green water surface is in the north. On the hillside next to the cave, there is a big sinkhole, a big stone cave called Xianfu, a tiancheng stone bridge called Xianqiao, a fantastic and rugged stone wall, and big trees growing in the crevices of rocks, including century-old camphor and camphor trees. The stone surface on the mountain is different, corrugated and honeycomb. The mountains are lush with plants and the jungle is full of flowers. The scenery here can be described as a circle of valleys with beautiful scenery and deep caves. 207 national highway Lingang Highway passes through the territory, and Longmen Cave is about half an hour's drive from Changde City. Located in the suburbs, the transportation is convenient, stalactites and stalagmites are precious, which makes Longmen Cave have high tourism development value and is a fine scenic spot on the tourist line of Changde City.