Using a perspective of "mountains", this article reexamines the social and historical transformation of Dali during the Yuan and Ming dynasties. Dali transformed from the center of a local kingdom during the Nanzhao-Dali period to the southwest frontier under the central governance. Mountain Cangshan, which was regarded as the "central mountain" by the Nanzhao regime, had experienced the process of "internalization". Meanwhile, Mountain Jizu gradually rose from an unknown hill to a famous Buddhist mountain. Cangshan and Jizu represent two different mountain types, but a subtle connection emerged between them in the local context. The Chronicles of Mountain Jizu constructed the mountain as a hidden "Miao Xiang Kingdom". The narrative bridged the gap between the Miao Xiang kingdom in the Cang'er region and the Dali Prefecture under the Central regime. It connected the local kingship with the emperors and built a dual structure between the mountain and the prefecture. The social and historical transformation of Dali in the Ming Dynasty provides us with an important inspiration to understand the formation of the "pluralistic and integrated pattern of the Chinese nation". It offers a vivid case of how a local regime founded by employing Buddhism integrated into the central governance and how the local authority adjusted the relationship between Buddhism and politics afterward.
