Lu Yang had intended to take Yun Mengmeng to visit Tao Yaoye, but before they could ascend the mountain, they saw disciples from Dust Free Peak gathering at the base of the mountain, chattering lively among themselves, with Tao Yaoye among them.

"Junior Sister Tao, what are all of you doing at the base of the mountain?" Lu Yang asked, puzzled.

"Senior Brother Lu, happy New Year! And to you too, Senior Sister Yun, happy New Year! You see, the New Year is approaching, and we are doing a big clean-up."

"A big clean-up with you all standing at the base of the mountain?"

"Of course, it’s because Master is here," Tao Yaoye explained with a grin.

Suddenly, a powerful aura burst forth from the mountaintop, continuously expanding outward and stirring up countless dust particles.

"Look, Master is using her Pure Immortal Body to do the cleaning. She usually suppresses the Pure Domain, but now with the New Year clean-up, once the Pure Domain is unleashed, all the dust gets cleaned away."

"Now, the mountain is very clean."

This was the first time Lu Yang witnessed a Pure Immortal Body being used this way, and he found it extravagantly luxurious.

"Convenient, right?"

"Indeed convenient."

"The senior sisters say, every year our Dust Free Peak has the cleanest sanitation."

Lu Yang thought that made sense, as no other mountain peak had the Sixth Elder cleaning as thoroughly.

"Speaking of which, it seems like no one cleans at Sky Gate Mountain," Lu Yang suddenly recalled, realizing that cleanliness was indeed important during the New Year.

"There are people doing work." Fairy Eternity said, relieving Lu Yang of any burden to worry, telling him to just enjoy himself, "When we left Sky Gate Mountain, the Fourth Housekeeper led our sect’s Master and others like the skewer chef to do the cleaning. I don’t know if it was voluntary or if Miss Yun instructed them."

The Master of Eternity Sect, along with Master Liu, Master Gao, and others, were ghouls refined by the Eldest Senior Sister and were absolutely obedient to her.

"That’s great," Lu Yang said with a smile, relieved to have one less thing to worry about, now he could truly enjoy the New Year.

Pitter-patter, pitter-patter...

How could the New Year be without the sound of firecrackers? As New Year’s Eve approached, the festive atmosphere in the Seek Dao Sect intensified.

Some senior sisters, certain that the firecrackers couldn’t reach them, held two strings of firecrackers and circled around, not letting go even after both strings had finished.

It had been a long while since Lu Yang had set off firecrackers himself, and seeing this, he felt the urge to give it a try.

Whoosh—

A rocket whizzed past over Lu Yang’s head, bursting not far away.

Then came a series of "whoosh" sounds as countless rockets flew past, some from the left, some from the right, creating a continuous series of explosions.

Only then did Lu Yang realize that, unknowingly, many senior brothers and junior brothers had gathered at both sides, pulling out cannons from their storage rings, shooting at each other, the deafening explosions reverberated around them.

The rockets were of average power, only capable of killing a cultivator at the Qi Cultivation Stage, and in the Seek Dao Sect they could be casually used, not even damaging their clothes.

Some senior brothers, finding the cannons too slow, simply swung their arms and threw the rockets to the other side, who retaliated in the same way.

There were also senior sisters sitting on stools laden with countless rockets below them. A spark fell and ignited the pile, blasting them skywards.

Pitter-patter.

The stools exploded in the sky, resembling gorgeous fireworks.

"... How is this different from the firecrackers I remember?" Lu Yang said, his mouth twitching. This was no longer just setting off firecrackers; the Seek Dao Sect had almost turned into an arsenal.

"I actually think it’s quite alright," Yun Mengmeng laughed, her eyes reflecting the light of the fire, "It’s much less powerful than when I self-detonate."

"It would be a big problem if it were as powerful as your self-detonation, right?" Lu Yang muttered under his breath.

"Not at all," Fairy Eternity appeared and preached, "Back in the days during New Year’s, I often self-detonated a few times to liven up the atmosphere, and it eventually became a tradition."

"People worship me and want to imitate my grandeur, also trying to cause a stir during New Year’s. But they can’t create an uproar as big as my self-detonation, so they settle for setting off fireworks instead."

"So self-detonating during New Year’s is the most orthodox practice?!"

"Obviously, don’t you see the influence I have?" Fairy Eternity boasted, hands on hips.

"Considering how uneventful New Year’s seems here, why don’t I just self-detonate once to let you experience the tradition?"

"No need, no need," Lu Yang jumped in fright. If the Fairy self-detonated once, the whole Seek Dao Sect would be blasted into the sky.

Boom—

The sky resounded with thunderous booms, filled with dragon roars and lion’s roars.

Lu Yang looked up and saw that, to his surprise, his senior brothers and sisters were using the Art of Transformation to morph into dragons and lions, fiercely battling in the sky with fireworks serving as a backdrop. The scene was grand and beautiful, fit for a major final battle between the protagonist and antagonist at the end of a Dream Mirage.

"Is this how dragon and lion dances are performed during New Year’s?"

Lu Yang increasingly felt that this was completely different from the New Year’s he knew.

"Hey, is that also a lion?"

Lu Yang noticed among the group of dragons and lions, there was one lion that looked distinct: around twenty to thirty meters long, with a fearsome appearance, round rolling eyes, and red fur that resembled burning clouds, topped with a single horn, and exceptionally lively in its dragon and lion dance performances.

More accurately described, it was sticking out its tongue and shaking its head in a cheerful manner.

The demon beast resembling a lion noticed Lu Yang’s gaze, flew down towards him, and stared at Lu Yang, speaking human language.

"Can you see me?"

"Who are you?!" Lu Yang was instantly startled. Was he not supposed to see it?

"Well, isn’t this a Nian Beast?" Fairy Eternity recognized the demon beast’s origin instantly.

"Nian Beast? The one cultivated by Time Immortal with Time Dao Fruit?" Lu Yang remembered. Fairy Eternity had briefly mentioned Nian Beasts before, and Eldest Senior Sister had also talked about wanting to catch one but never succeeded.

"Right, it’s a demon beast created by Time Immortal, quite magical."

"This is a demon beast that lives within time, appearing only on New Year’s Eve each year, then leaping through time to the next New Year’s Eve and so on. That’s why the term ’passing the year’ came about."

"They are fond of red and enjoy lively atmospheres. Every year during civilian New Year celebrations, they join the festivities, hiding among them. This time, probably because our sect’s New Year celebration was louder than usual, it attracted one."

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Since their existence is related to Dao Fruit, only immortals can see them."

"So you’re a Nian Beast?" Having understood the origin of the demon beast in front of him, Lu Yang was no longer nervous.

"You’re an immortal, no, you’re only at the Divinity Transformation Stage!" The Nian Beast was shocked. Only immortals could see them, and this mortal was only at the Divinity Transformation Stage. How could he possibly see it and also know about their existence as Nian Beasts?

What is the Second-in-command doing?

Yun Mengmeng sensed something and turned to look at Lu Yang. She saw him talking as if he were speaking to something invisible, performing quite convincingly.

"Is the Second-in-command so childish? I stopped doing that when I was sixteen."