The Origin Celebration, a grand Daoist festival held once every three years, lasted four days in all.
The first two days were devoted chiefly to ritual observances and scripture lectures. On the third day, disciples of the three orders took the stage to match their arts, determining the two finalists who would compete for first place on the fourth day.
On the morning of the Origin Celebration, Xing Yan and the others in his hall rose early. After washing and eating, they brought out the robes, crowns, and footwear they had worn to the Scripture Lecture Assembly on the first day of the seventh month, then helped one another dress properly. Naturally, several days earlier, Xing Yan had already gone to the Affairs Administration Hall to collect a full set of robes for Ju Ying.
After a brief flurry of activity, everyone in the Four Seas Hall had taken on an entirely new appearance:
The Four Seas Hall Master wore a black Daoist mantle embroidered with snowy-white cranes, a Sky-Piercing Crown on his head, and Cloud-Climbing Shoes on his feet, looking graceful and untouched by worldly dust. The girls all wore pale-yellow Daoist robes patterned with faintly pink lotuses, their dark hair beneath snowy Carefree Headscarves, their feet in five-petaled Lotus Clogs. With sleeves and sashes fluttering, they looked as willowy and lovely as immortals.
That morning, a grand Birthday Celebration Rite would be held on Flying Cloud Summit to celebrate the birth of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning. Given Xing Yan's present position, he could hardly take such an important occasion lightly. Before the hour of the Hare was over, the Four Seas Hall Master of Embracing Rosy Clouds Peak gave the order and led his hall down the cliff in single file, heading straight for Flying Cloud