An In-depth examination of the defense system employed in traditional rural settlements within the Karst Peak Forest Plain not only elucidates its distinctive mechanism for human-nature relationship but also has signifi cant implications for the preservation of contemporary cultural heritage, the planning of settlement safety, and the development of rural social security prevention and control frameworks. Considering the concentrated contiguous settlements of Shuangmeng Village in Luocheng, Guangxi as the primary subject of investigation, this paper systematically examines the construction logic and insights of the defense system across three levels—macro, meso, and micro—through the integration of literature review and fi eld research. The analysis is conducted from the perspectives of both physical geography and human geography. The results show that: (1) At the macro level, the settlement groups distributed along the plains on both sides of the traffi c line rely on the traditional governance concept of the Baojia system and the township covenant, and the method of fortifi cations in villages to achieve mutual assistance. (2) At the meso-level, settlements form a natural defense barrier with the help of terrain, dense forests, and water sources, and the settlements form a hierarchical defense structure from the outside to the inside through the three elements of boundary, scale, and streets and alleys. (3) At the micro level, traditional residential buildings have both residential and defensive functions, and the internal space is closely integrated with defensive facilities, from large to small, fortifi ed one by one. The results show that regional joint defense and hierarchical defense, as the core of the defense system, are also the key points that distinguish the Fenglin Plain settlements from other settlements. Its adaptive construction wisdom provides historical experience and practical paradigms for contemporary cultural heritage protection, resilient and safe settlement planning, and the construction of rural social security prevention and control systems.