We can call Shan Hai Jing "an imaginary world geography book centered on China".
However, due to the underdeveloped ancient geography, most of the geographical scenes contained in Shan Hai Jing are not accurate enough. This reflects the differences between ancient and modern world views, but most of them are still traceable. Therefore, it cannot be asserted that it is untrue or accurate. It can only be said that when the ancients wrote books, their concepts were still limited by the level of science and technology.
As for some humanistic contents, because there was no biographical literature when Shan Hai Jing was written, it can only be understood from other angles in many cases. Most of the history that may be closest to the truth after textual research is quite different from that recorded in the book. In other words, the stories in the book can't be understood from a general perspective, and the records in the book are of great help to explore the real history.
The author of Shan Hai Jing has always been a hot issue for scholars, and there are different opinions. To sum up, there are several sayings: for example, "stand firm"; Zou Yan said; Later generations integrated the legends of the Chinese people. Southern Chu people said; Bashu people speak; The early alchemists said wait. The ancients believed that the book was "made by curious people during the Warring States Period and the Miscellaneous Notes of Zhuang Lie Li Sao Zhou Shu Jincheng". Modern scholars also believe that writing a book is not an instant, and the author is not a person. Yuan Ke, a contemporary scholar, believes that Shan Hai Jing is actually the work of an anonymous person, not written by one person at a time.
Shan Hai Jing is rich in content, including geography, vegetation, ancient myths, products, monsters and some ancient history. The authenticity of the content has always been controversial. When Sima Qian compiled Historical Records, he found it unreliable and didn't use it for reference. When compiling Sikuquanshu in Qing Dynasty, it was also considered untrue. And classify it as a novel. However, according to modern research, there are many similarities in some places that cannot be verified geographically, from a global perspective. So in geography and other aspects, many people think it is of great research value.