千变万化 — “To undergo myriad changes”

According to legend, King Mu of Zhou possessed eight splendid steeds, capable of traveling a thousand li in a single day, and he cherished them deeply. He was very fond of traveling and once accepted an invitation from the Queen Mother of the West to attend a grand banquet at the Jade Pool.

One day, as King Mu was returning from Mount Kun to Mount He, he heard along the way about a man named Yan Shi, whose craftsmanship was so exquisite that he could create animals that could vocalize and move. Feeling somewhat skeptical, he immediately summoned Yan Shi and asked, 'I hear you can create all sorts of ingenious devices. Show me one.'

The next day, Yan Shi brought wooden automatons to meet King Mu. King Mu was astonished to see that these figures had complete facial features, with eyebrows and beards indistinguishable from real people.

King Mu asked Yan Shi, 'Can these figures you've carved move?' Yan Shi replied, 'Not only can they move, but they can sing and dance, just like real people.' King Mu said, 'Let them perform. I want to see how much they differ from real people.'

Yan Shi commanded the wooden figures to begin moving with drumbeats. Following the rhythm of the drums, the figures arranged themselves, performing offensive and defensive maneuvers. The wooden figures, wielding knives, spears, swords, and staffs, attacked and defended, advancing and retreating in an orderly fashion. They would form a 'single-line snake formation' for a moment, then suddenly transform into 'ambush from ten directions', followed by 'nine palaces and eight trigrams formation', 'six-flower formation', 'seven-star formation', and 'eight-gate formation'. The formations underwent myriad transformations, dazzling King Mu, who was exceedingly pleased.

He felt it would be a pity not to let his concubines enjoy such a novel spectacle, so he ordered his palace maids to invite them to watch together.