在阿里山住著一個叫麻達的男孩，自從母親生病後，麻達就一個人打獵、織布、煮飯來照顧母親。
有一天，母親夢到白髮翁跟她說：「臺南縣關子嶺上有仙奶泉可以治病。」隔天一早麻達就帶著行李出發，半路上他救了一隻被雲豹咬傷的鳳凰，鳳凰變成漂亮的女子對麻達說：「我是鳳凰仙女，仙奶泉有會吐熱水的水虎及噴火的火龍看守，要有太陽公公的金鎖，才能拿到仙奶泉，為了報答你，我帶你去找太陽公公。」說完就變成大鳥載著麻達往天空飛。
麻達醒來時，發現自己躺在金磚梯前，就沿著金磚梯往上走，走上去後，一位穿著金色衣服的老公公對他說：「你很孝順，我給你金鎖，拿到仙奶泉後，記得要將金鎖拿下來，否則會受到懲罰。」
到了關子嶺，麻達把金鎖扔向水虎、火龍，牠們倆馬上動彈不得。母親喝下仙奶泉後病就好了，村民知道後紛紛上山取泉水，這時，一隻大公雞對麻達說：「快把金鎖拿下來！」麻達想到有很多人都生病，決定接受懲罰，鳳凰仙女也支持麻達的決定，大公雞嘆口氣後，吹出一陣暖風，把麻達化成一片肥沃的土地，鳳凰仙女變成有甜美多汁的「鳳梨」，而水虎火龍就變成關子嶺特有的「水火同源」奇景。
There was once a boy called Ma-Da who lived on Alishan. Ever since his mother fell ill, Ma-Da did the hunting, weaving, and cooking all by himself, and took good care of his mother.
One day, Ma-Da’s mother dreamt of a white-haired man who told her, “There is a magic milk spring in Guanziling of Tainan County. It can cure your illness.”The next day, Ma-Da set off early in the morning to find the magic milk spring. Along the way, he rescued a phoenix who had been injured by a clouded leopard. The phoenix turned into a beautiful girl who told Ma-Da, “I am the immortal phoenix girl. The magic milk spring that you seek is guarded by a water tiger that spits hot water, and a fiery dragon that breathes fire. You need the golden padlock of Mr. Sun to get the spring water. To thank you for saving me, I will take you to see Mr. Sun.”She turned into a large phoenix, and carried Ma-Da into the sky.
When Ma-Da woke up, he found himself lying at the bottom of a flight of golden ladders. And so, he climbed the golden ladders. When he got to the top, an old man dressed in golden clothing told Ma-Da, “As you are a very devoted son, I will give you the golden padlock. But you must remember to remove it after getting the magic milk spring, or you will be punished.”
After reaching Guanziling, Ma-Da threw the golden padlock at the water tiger and the fiery dragon, and they immediately stopped moving. After drinking the magic milk spring, Ma-Da’s mother was cured. When the villagers heard about this, they also wanted to get the magic milk spring. Suddenly, a rooster appeared and told Ma-Da, “Remember to remove the golden padlock!”Seeing how many people were ill, Ma-Da decided not to remove the padlock, and accept punishment. The immortal phoenix girl also supported Ma-Da’s decision to help the villagers. The rooster sighed and blew a warm wind over Ma-Da, transforming him into fertile land. The immortal phoenix girl was turned into a sweet and juicy pineapple, and the water tiger and the fiery dragon became the famous“Fire and Water Spring”marvel of Guanziling.
