一場瘟疫奪走了青年恆景的父母，他自己也因病差點兒喪了命。病癒之後，他辭別了心愛的妻子和父老鄉親，決心出去訪仙學藝，為民除掉瘟魔。恆景四處訪師尋道，訪遍各地的名山高士，終於打聽到在東方有一座最古老的山，山上有一個法力無邊的仙長，恆景不畏艱險和路途的遙遠，在仙鶴指引下，終於找到了那座高山，找到了那個有著神奇法力的仙長，仙長為他的精神所感動，終於收留了恆景，並且教給他降妖劍術，還贈他一把降妖寶劍。恆景廢寢忘食苦練，終於練出了一身非凡的武藝。
這一天仙長把恆景叫到跟前說：“明天是九月初九，瘟魔又要出來作惡，你本領已經學成，應該回去為民除害了”。仙長送給恆景一包茱萸葉，一盅菊花酒，並且密授避邪用法，讓恆景騎著仙鶴趕回家去。
恆景回到家鄉，在九月初九的早晨，按仙長的叮囑把鄉親們領到了附近的一座山上，發給每人一片茱萸葉，一盅菊花酒，做好了降魔的準備。中午時分，隨著幾聲怪叫，瘟魔衝出汝河，但是瘟魔剛撲到山下，突然聞到陣陣茱萸奇香和菊花酒氣，便戛然止步，臉色突變，這時恆景手持降妖寶劍追下山來，幾個回合就把溫魔刺死劍下，從此九月初九登高避疫的風俗年復一年地流傳下來。梁人吳均在他的《續齊諧記》一書里曾有此記載。
後來人們就把重陽節登高的風俗看作是免災避禍的活動。另外，在中原人的傳統觀念中，雙九還是生命長久、健康長壽的意思，所以後來重陽節被立為才老人節。
二、關於九九重陽節的傳說和習俗（英文）
ninth day lunar month, twenty-nine relative weight, called "chongjiu." and because in ancient china, six, number nine is positive, and therefore, chongjiu called "double ninth festival."
chung yeung festival the earliest can be pushed to the early han dynasty. it is said, in a palace in each of september 9, must peizhu cornelian cherry, food, bait bottle, drink chrysanthemum wine, in order to live longer; han emperor liu bang ai fei qi furen suffer harm by empress, the ladies have been expelled from jiamou palace, the private sector will be introduced this practice.
ancient times, people are climbing on the day of the customs, so double ninth festival is also called "climbing festival." word to begin the eastern han dynasty. chinese poetry a lot of climbing, most ancestors considered; du fu's qilu "forever" is written chongyang climb celebration. wherever he went climbing, there is no uniform requirement, usually climbing a mountain, climb the tower. also called "double ninth festival". the height should be made pay attention to the nine-story, pagoda like seat, which also had two lambs made to meet the double ninth festival (the sheep) meaning. the height and some are still a small red paper on the interpolation flag and candle light. this is probably as "lighting", "eat cake" instead of "ascend", with a small red paper flags instead of cornel.