Covering the Sky: I Prove the Great Dao Through the Gate of Immortality

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As night fell, the Stone Village deep in the wilderness did not quiet down as usual. Bonfires blazed along the Spirit Lake, their flames illuminating half the sky and reflecting on the lake's surface, making it shimmer like scattered gold. The air was filled with the aroma of roasted spirit fish, the rich fragrance of stewed ferocious beast meat, and the lingering scent of Little Dot's beast milk. The entire village was immersed in an unprecedented joy, as lively as a New Year celebration.

Standing at the village entrance, Shi Yunfeng watched the busy villagers, the joyful children, and the blazing bonfires, his cloudy old eyes filled with satisfaction. He had lived most of his life and had never seen Shi Village so lively. Before, Shi Village was just a small, dilapidated village forgotten deep in the wilderness, so poor it was hard to even get enough to eat. The children were as thin as monkeys, the adults were pale and emaciated, and the elderly dragged their ailing bodies, waiting to die. Back then, their greatest hope was that the game they hunted that day would be enough to feed the whole village. But now, everything was different. The spirit lake was teeming with plump spirit fish, the mountains were covered with rare medicinal herbs and fruits, the children were as strong as calves, the adults had all embarked on the path of cultivation, and the elderly had all regained their health. And all these changes began when that child came to Shi Village.

No, it started when that man came to Stone Village.

Shi Yunfeng's gaze swept past the crowd, landing on the charred willow tree in the distance. There, Li Chenzhou stood with his hands behind his back, gazing calmly towards the Spirit Lake. Beside him stood his great-grandfather and the little red bird, seemingly engaged in conversation. Looking at that figure, Shi Yunfeng felt an indescribable gratitude welling up within him. He knew that Stone Village's current state wasn't due to luck or destiny, but to that man. It was he who brought the Willow God's revival, he who brought the cultivation method, he who brought the Eternal Life Trial Tower, and he who single-handedly molded that child into the best in the world. Yet he never took credit, never boasted, and didn't even want to reveal his identity. He simply stood silently behind, watching, waiting, and protecting.

"Grandpa Chief!" The little boy's voice came from afar, interrupting Shi Yunfeng's thoughts. He turned his head and saw the little boy carrying a golden-brown, oily roasted spirit fish, running towards him with his short legs. The spirit fish was bigger than his head, and he was having some difficulty carrying it, but the smile on his face was brighter than the campfire.

"Grandpa Chief, eat fish! I grilled it myself!" The little one ran up to Shi Yunfeng, held the spirit fish above his head, his little face full of anticipation, "Praise me, praise me!"

Shi Yunfeng looked down at the spirit fish. Its skin was roasted to a golden brown, and steam still rose from it, emitting a fragrant aroma. He reached out and took a bite. The fish was tender and juicy, melting in his mouth with a faint milky scent. He paused, then looked at the little one. "This fish…why does it taste milky?"

The little one chuckled, his missing front tooth giving him a mischievous grin. "I pickled it in beast milk! Delicious, isn't it?"

Shi Yunfeng chuckled, shook his head, and took another bite. The milky aroma and the freshness of the fish blended in his mouth, creating a unique flavor. He nodded. "Delicious. But you child, you even put animal milk in grilled fish, really..."

"That's the best way to eat in the world!" the little one chimed in, puffing out his chest with a smug look. "I'm the best at everything! Best at drinking milk, best at grilling fish, best at fighting!"

Shi Yunfeng looked at him and couldn't help but smile. This child was a bit arrogant, but he had the right to be. As the number one Blood Refining Realm cultivator in the world, unmatched in the Eight Domains, he certainly had the right to say such things. Shi Yunfeng reached out and patted the little boy's head, the warmth of his palm seeping through his hair, carrying the affection and pride of an elder for a younger generation. "Good, good, you're number one in everything. But don't forget, whether you're number one or not, you're still the little one from Stone Village."

The little one paused for a moment, then nodded vigorously. "I know! I will always be the little one from Stone Village! No matter where I go, no matter what I become, I will never forget that it was Stone Village that raised me, and it was the clan chief, great-grandfather, aunts, uncles, Uncle Li, and Goddess Liu who gave me a home."

When he spoke, his voice was no longer childish, but carried a seriousness beyond his years. In his dark, bright eyes, there was no arrogance, no haughtiness, only a deep, heartfelt gratitude. Shi Yunfeng's eyes reddened again. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but his throat seemed blocked by something, and he couldn't utter a single word. He simply patted the little boy's shoulder forcefully, then turned away and wiped his eyes with his sleeve.

Little One didn't chase after him; he knew his clan chief didn't want him to see him cry. He stood there, watching Shi Yunfeng's hunched back disappear into the crowd, a complex emotion welling up inside him. He knew his clan chief was old; although Uncle Li had cured him, time waits for no one. He didn't know how much longer he could stay with his clan chief, but he vowed that while he was still alive, he would make sure his clan chief lived a good life, and that Stone Village lived a good life.

"Little one!" Skinny Monkey's voice came from the campfire. "Come quick! We're going to roast that little golden monkey!"

"Squeak!" The little golden monkey's shriek followed immediately.

Little Dot turned his head and saw Skinny Monkey and Snotty Kid chasing the golden monkey all over the village. The little monkey, though only three inches tall, was incredibly fast, leaping over walls and darting to treetops, keeping the two little ones running around in circles. Little Dot grinned and joined the chase. The three children and the monkey weaved through the campfire and into the crowd, their laughter, screams, and curses mingling together, turning the entire Stone Village into chaos.

The women sat around the campfire, grilling fish and chatting. Their conversation, naturally, revolved around their little one.

"This child was so difficult to raise when he was little. He needed to drink milk seven or eight times a day, and he would cry if we didn't give him any. His crying could be heard throughout the whole village," an aunt said with a smile.

"That's right. Back then, the village was poor and couldn't even afford animal milk, so we took turns going into the mountains to find wild animals that had just given birth and secretly milked them. Once, I was almost bitten to death by a mother wolf." Another aunt chimed in, her voice full of lingering fear.

"But look at him now, he's made something of himself. He's the best in the Blood Transformation Realm, unmatched in the Eight Domains. All our hard work over the years has paid off."

"Yes, it wasn't in vain."

As they talked, they started crying again. Not from sadness, but from joy. The kind of joy that comes from watching your child grow up. The irrepressible joy that comes only when one stands out from the crowd.

The men sat around another campfire, eating meat and drinking wine heartily. Their conversation revolved mostly around Little One's strength.

"How heavy do you think that little guy's punch was?" one of the men asked.

"I heard it weighs 120,000 jin! 120,000 jin! One punch could flatten a small mountain!" Another man gestured, his eyes filled with shock.

"What's that? He can even send a Venerable One flying with a single punch! Those masked old monsters who have lived for seven or eight hundred years, weren't they all beaten to a pulp by him?"

"Hahaha, serves them right! They looked down on our Stone Village! They thought we were easy to bully! Now you know, right? Our Stone Village is number one in the world!"

"Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

The clinking of wine bowls echoed in the night wind, and the men's laughter, rough and bold, carried far and wide.

Grandfather sat under the willow tree, a pot of spirit wine before him, which he sipped slowly. His complexion was ruddy, his back straight, and his eyes gleamed with a sharpness beyond his years. He had once been a member of the Martial King's Mansion, seen the world, and knew the weight of the seven words "Number One in the Blood Refining Realm." That was no ordinary honor; it was the highest honor that could shake the entire Eight Domains. And this honor belonged to Stone Village, to the child he had raised single-handedly.

"Brother, what are you thinking about?" Shi Yunfeng walked over and sat down next to him.

The great-grandfather glanced at him and smiled slightly. "Thinking back to those days. When I was exiled to the second ancestral land, I thought my life was over. I thought the Stone Clan was finished, I thought Stone Village was finished. I never expected that God would open his eyes and let that child live, and live so well."

Shi Yunfeng nodded. "Yes, thank God. No, not God, but Mr. Li. He saved Little One, saved Willow Goddess, and saved our entire Stone Village."

Grandpa was silent for a moment, then raised his wine bowl. "A toast to Mr. Li."

Shi Yunfeng also raised his wine bowl. "A toast to Mr. Li."

The two wine bowls clinked lightly together, producing a crisp sound. Then the two old men tilted their heads back and drank it all in one gulp.

The little red bird perched on a willow branch, watching the bustling crowd below, its heart filled with mixed emotions. It had once been a sacred spirit of the Fire Kingdom, worshipped by all, even the Fire Emperor treated it with utmost respect. Now, however, it was a village bird, perched on a willow tree, watching a group of mountain villagers revel. It should have felt lost, should have felt resentful, but it didn't. Because it knew that this village was warmer than anywhere else it had ever been. The people here didn't change their attitude because of its status. They called it "Little Red Bird," left it spirit fish, talked to it, and even let their little ones chase after it. They didn't treat it as a sacred spirit, nor as a powerful being, but simply as a friend, as family.

"Little Red Bird! Come down and eat meat!" The little one's voice came from below.

The little red bird looked down and saw the little one holding a skewer of grilled spirit fish, waving at it. The spirit fish were grilled to a golden brown, glistening with oil, and emitting a fragrant aroma. The little red bird swallowed hard, flew down from the branch, landed on the little one's shoulder, and took a bite of fish. The fish was tender and had a faint milky fragrance. It paused for a moment, then looked at the little one. "You marinated them with animal milk again?"

"Hehe, isn't it delicious?" The little one smiled smugly.

The little red bird rolled its eyes, didn't answer, and continued eating its fish. It didn't want to admit it, but the fish was indeed delicious. That brat, though annoying and arrogant, his grilled fish was truly fragrant.

The little golden monkey was finally caught by the skinny monkey and the snotty-nosed boy, pinned to the ground, and forced to wear a little outfit. The outfit, sewn together by women from scraps of cloth, was brightly colored and looked utterly ridiculous on the little monkey. The monkey squeaked and struggled desperately, but the skinny monkey and the snotty-nosed boy held it down tightly, and it couldn't break free. The little one walked over, squatted down, looked at the little monkey in the colorful outfit, and grinned. "Not bad, it looks pretty good. Wear it like this from now on."

The little monkey closed its eyes in despair. It felt that its monkey life was completely over.

As night deepened, the campfire gradually died down, and the crowd slowly dispersed. The drunken men were helped back to their houses by their wives, the tired children were carried back to bed by their parents, and the women who had been chatting yawned and left in twos and threes. The liveliness by the Spirit Lake gradually subsided, leaving only a few piles of embers still flickering with a faint red light, like the eyes of the earth, quietly gazing at the starry sky.

The little boy, clutching the clay pot, walked home. His legs felt weak, not from being drunk, but from exhaustion. For the past three days, he had fought dozens of battles, defeating countless opponents. Today, he had spent the entire day causing trouble—chasing monkeys, grilling fish, eating meat, drinking milk, shouting, and laughing. His body was at its limit, but his spirit remained high. He didn't want to sleep, afraid that when he woke up, it would all have been a dream.

"Little one." Li Chenzhou's voice came from behind.

The little boy turned his head and saw Li Chenzhou standing in the moonlight, hands behind his back, his face calm. His shadow stretched long in the moonlight, as if it were reaching to the horizon. Looking at that figure, the little boy suddenly felt a strange sense of peace. He ran over and buried his face in Li Chenzhou's arms.

"Uncle Li, am I dreaming?" His muffled voice came from inside Li Chenzhou's clothes.

Li Chenzhou looked down at him and reached out to rub his head. "It's not a dream."

"So, I really am the best in the world?"

"Yes."

"Will I always be the best in the world from now on?"

"If you work hard, you will."

The little boy raised his head and looked into Li Chenzhou's eyes. In those eyes, there was no deception, no pretense, only a reassuring certainty. He grinned, revealing a bright smile with a missing front tooth. "I will definitely work hard. I will become the number one in the world across all realms. I will let everyone know that the little boy is the strongest."

Li Chenzhou didn't speak, but simply picked him up and walked towards the small stone house. The little boy nestled on his shoulder, feeling the gentle night breeze, smelling the faint scent of herbs on Uncle Li, and listening to his steady, strong heartbeat. His eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and his consciousness became increasingly blurred. He struggled not to sleep, but finally closed his eyes.

In the last moment before his consciousness faded, he heard Uncle Li's voice.

"Go to sleep. There will be new challenges tomorrow."

He didn't answer, because he was already asleep. A faint smile lingered on his lips—a smile of contentment, a smile of peace, a smile of anticipation for the future.

Moonlight spilled over Stone Village, onto the charred willow tree, and onto the small stone house. The ripples of Spirit Lake rippled gently in the night breeze, like an ancient lullaby. The entire village fell silent, broken only by the occasional bark of a dog and the low growls of ferocious beasts in the distant mountains.

But everyone knows that tomorrow, when the sun rises, the village will continue to be bustling. Because that child will continue his story. And they are all part of that story.

The carnival in Shicun is not over. It has only just begun.