I Idle in the World of Immortal Cultivation
Chapter 29: Return to the Sect
At the city gate, the sweeper looked up, glanced at Lin Luo, and went back to sweeping.
Lin Luo walked past. The gate was about to close. Two disciples on duty were pushing the doors shut. When they saw Lin Luo covered in blood, one of them put out a hand to stop him. The other had already pushed the door most of the way closed.
"Who are you?"
"Cangxuan Sect, Chores Hall." Lin Luo slapped his mountain pass token into the disciple's hand.
The disciple looked down at the token, then at the bloodstains on Lin Luo's clothes. He hesitated for two seconds, then handed the token back. He waved to the other disciple. "Let him through. You missed the closing time, but lucky for you, we'll let it slide."
The door opened. Lin Luo walked onto the main street inside the city.
The streets were mostly empty. The stalls were packed up. The shops had put up their shutters. Only a couple of inns still had lanterns hanging at their doors. The light was dim and yellow, falling on the blue stone pavement. Lin Luo's shadow was cut into pieces by the light, moving across the stones in broken segments.
He didn't walk slow, but each step was steady. Nine Cycles Mystic Art kept running. Not fast, but just enough to push the leftover poison out bit by bit. The burning in his lower back had mostly faded, leaving only a light numbness. The palm strike to his ribs had left a bruise, but it didn't bother him. That was the good thing about body cultivation – getting hurt didn't stop you from walking. As long as it wasn't a deep injury, you'd be mostly healed by morning.
He passed through the gate and onto the dirt path that led to the back mountain.
The moon was bright. The dirt path glowed white in the moonlight. Dry grass on both sides rustled in the night wind. From time to time, insects chirped from the grass. At the foot of the mountain in the distance, a few lights flickered – the living quarters of the Cangxuan Sect's outer court disciples. Lin Luo turned off the main path onto the small trail to the back mountain. The lights disappeared. Only the moon remained.
The mine entrance was ahead.
In the darkness, it was nearly invisible. Only a few spirit stones set in the rock walls gave off a faint glow. The weak light didn't reach far. But Lin Luo didn't need light to find his way. He walked into the tunnel. The air was cooler than outside, smelling of earth and ore. The spirit stones on the walls flickered, stretching his shadow long.
When he passed the spirit field, Rat One lifted his head from his grass nest. His little nose twitched. He squeaked once. Then he put his head back in the nest, curled into a ball, and went back to sleep.
The Glow Mushrooms in the spirit field were still glowing, their caps giving off a dark purple light in the dim tunnel. The Purple Mushrooms' leaves were greener than before the battle. The Flamebloom buds had grown bigger. The sect gathering array was still running, its soft light covering the whole field.
Lin Luo kept walking. Ahead were the stone chambers. The stone door was ajar. Pale gold light shone through the crack – the shield formation. Yue Long's soundproof formation, bought for five hundred spirit stones. The golden light hung over the chamber like an upside-down bowl. No sound came from inside.
He pushed the door open. The formation didn't block him. The golden shield split open to let him in, then closed behind him.
The chamber was very quiet. Yue Long sat by the bed. Su Xiaoxiao lay on the bedding.
Yue Long was sitting exactly the same way as when Lin Luo had left – back straight, hands on her knees, rabbit ears up. She was keeping watch. Her Greenwind Sword leaned against the edge of the bed, the blade full of chips. It hadn't been repaired. A strip of cloth was wrapped around her wounded thumb web. A little blood had seeped through it, but it was already dry.
When she heard his footsteps, Yue Long stood up. "Master."
Her voice was soft, but she was completely awake. Not the clear-headedness of someone who hadn't slept – the clear-headedness of someone who had been on alert all night. There were dark circles under her eyes, but her eyes were bright.
"How is she?" Lin Luo looked toward the bed.
"I gave her water twice. She woke up once. She said she was cold. I put another blanket on her and gave her some of my spiritual energy. She fell back asleep." Yue Long's rabbit ears tilted toward Su Xiaoxiao. "Her breathing is steadier than when you left. The wounds on her shoulder and chest haven't gotten worse."
Lin Luo crouched by the bed and held Su Xiaoxiao's wrist. Her pulse was fast, but stronger than before. He swept her body with Spirit Eye Technique. The internal injuries had been stabilized by the Spirit Recovery Pill. The cracks in her ribs hadn't spread. He pushed a little spiritual energy into her meridians. Her own energy was starting to circulate on its own – not from conscious training, just her body's natural healing while unconscious. That meant she was starting to heal. She would get better without the Bone Mending Pill, but it would be much slower, and there might be lasting damage.
He took out the wooden box from his robe and opened it. The dark gold pill gave off a soft light under the golden shield. The smell of medicine drifted out – rich but not sharp, with a faint herbal sweetness.
Yue Long's nose twitched. Her rabbit ears turned halfway. She didn't say anything, but her ears twitched.
Lin Luo moved to the bed, propped Su Xiaoxiao against the wall, and pressed a steady hand to her shoulder. He threaded his spiritual energy into the wound, wrapping it around the piece of tail bone still stuck through her chest.
"I'll count to three."
"Three. Two. One."
Lin Luo looked at Yue Long. His spiritual energy pulsed. The tail bone shot out of Su Xiaoxiao's chest. She let out a muted groan as a string of blood droplets fell to the ground. The wound didn't bleed heavily – Lin Luo's spiritual energy had sealed the torn vessels. Yue Long fumbled a bit, then picked up the Nascent Soul demon beast's tail bone and put it into the Shared Storage.
Lin Luo crushed the Bone Mending Pill, laid Su Xiaoxiao on his arm, and parted her lips with his fingers. She was unconscious from the pain, her lips a little cracked. He poured the crushed pill into her mouth bit by bit, then gave her a sip of water. Her throat moved. She swallowed.
He waited.
The medicine took effect.
Su Xiaoxiao's brow furrowed first. Not from pain – from heat. The heat of the medicine spreading through her body. Her temperature rose. Her spiritual energy began to speed up in her meridians, flowing toward her chest. Lin Luo sat her up cross-legged, pressed his hand to the acupoint on her back, and used Spirit Eye Technique to guide her energy onto the right path. She was at Foundation Establishment. She didn't need to be taught the path itself – but unconscious, she couldn't guide it herself. Like a faucet turned on but no one holding the hose, the water would spill everywhere and cause more damage.
He spent half an incense stick's time, guiding it bit by bit.
Yue Long stood beside them, a handkerchief in her hand. After Lin Luo laid Su Xiaoxiao back down flat, he wiped the sweat from her forehead with his sleeve. Yue Long reached out and wiped Lin Luo's sweat with her handkerchief.
Su Xiaoxiao let out a muffled groan. Her brow was still furrowed. Her lips moved, but no words came out. But her breathing was steadier.
Lin Luo stood up. "The medicine is working. Don't move her for twenty-four hours."
Yue Long nodded. "You're hurt."
"Not badly."
"You coughed up blood."
Lin Luo looked down at his own chest. His chore uniform was stained dark red. Some of it was his own blood. Some was Su Xiaoxiao's. Some belonged to the demonic cultivators from the black market. The fabric was stiff, the dried blood crusted over.
Yue Long walked out. A few moments later, she came back with a clean chore uniform in her hands. It was folded neatly. She had taken it from her own storage pouch. "Ma Biao took an extra one last time."
Lin Luo took the uniform, pulled off the torn, stiff old one, threw it in the corner, and put on the clean one. The bruise from the stone pillar on his back and the one on his ribs showed for a moment when he took off his shirt. Yue Long's rabbit ears drooped. But she said nothing.
"Sleep for a while," Yue Long said. "I'll keep watch. You can rest easy."
Lin Luo didn't say he would sleep. But he sat down on the edge of the bed, leaned his back against the stone wall, and closed his eyes. Nine Cycles Mystic Art ran on its own, spiritual energy flowing slowly through his meridians, repairing his injuries. His eyes stayed closed.
Yue Long watched him close his eyes. Then she picked up the Greenwind Sword from the edge of the bed, held it in her arms, and sat back down in the chair.
The chamber was very quiet. The soundproof formation blocked out everything – Rat One's squeaks, the faint crackle of the Glow Mushrooms in the spirit field, the echo of dripping water from deep in the mine. Only the sound of breathing. Su Xiaoxiao's was the deepest, Yue Long's the lightest, Lin Luo's the most steady.
Yue Long kept watch for a while. Then she stood up and walked over to Lin Luo. She took out her phone.
She scrolled to the shop. The pill section. Bone Mending Pill – three hundred spirit stones. She looked at Su Xiaoxiao, then at Lin Luo, then opened the purchase screen. She bought three pills. Nine hundred spirit stones. The stones were deducted from her account. Her balance dropped from two thousand to one thousand one hundred. She looked at the number, didn't hesitate, and confirmed the purchase.
Three Bone Mending Pills came out of the Shared Storage. Dark gold, but lighter in color than the one Lin Luo had bought in the black market. Lower quality than top-grade – the medicine wasn't as strong, but good to have as backup. She set the pills beside Lin Luo's storage pouch. Then she went back to the chair and picked up the Greenwind Sword again.
She didn't sleep. She just watched Lin Luo and Su Xiaoxiao. Her rabbit ears would sometimes go up and turn a circle, catching any noise from outside the tunnel, then slowly droop again.
---
About an hour later, footsteps came from outside the chamber. The soundproof formation blocked the noise, but Yue Long's rabbit ears caught the vibrations. She stood up and walked to the door. She looked through a gap in the formation – Zhao Tian and Wang Hao were standing in the tunnel, afraid to come closer. Zhao Tian was holding a food box.
Yue Long stepped out of the chamber and let the formation close behind her.
"What are you doing wandering around when you should be resting?" Yue Long's rabbit ears were up, her tone more polite than she meant it to be.
Zhao Tian raised the food box. "From the kitchen. A medicinal meal to restore blood and energy. It's food, not pills. For Xiaoxiao."
Yue Long took the box and opened it. Her eyes lit up. Chicken soup, with angelica and red dates. She closed the lid. Her tone softened. "She can't eat yet. The medicine is still working. I'll save it."
Zhao Tian nodded. He didn't ask if Lin Luo was back – Lin Luo had changed his clothes, but Zhao Tian must have seen the tiredness on his face. He didn't ask anything.
"Any disturbance around the sect?" Yue Long asked.
Wang Hao shook his head. "No one followed. The gate guards said there haven't been any suspicious people entering tonight." He scratched his head. "It's just – the Sect Leader went up to the main peak alone a little while ago. Looked like he was waiting for someone."
Yue Long's rabbit ears turned halfway. She didn't respond.
Zhao Tian looked at her. "Can you handle this? Do you want us to take a shift?"
"No need. Thank you."
"It's okay, Sister-in-law Yue Long. Zhao Tian and I are mostly healed already," Wang Hao said.
Zhao Tian shoved a bun into Wang Hao's mouth. "Eat your food. You talk too much."
He turned to Yue Long. "You keep watch. Let us know when she wakes up."
"Okay. I'll take care of it."
Zhao Tian pulled Wang Hao away. As they walked out of the tunnel, Wang Hao looked back toward the chamber. His cheeks puffed up again, like a bun was stuffed in his mouth. Then he turned and trotted after Zhao Tian.
Yue Long carried the food box back into the chamber. She put the box in the corner, sat back down, and picked up the Greenwind Sword.
---
Another half hour passed.
Lin Luo's breathing suddenly changed – from the deep rhythm of automatic healing to a normal waking breath. He opened his eyes.
"How long?" His voice was a little hoarse.
"About two hours. It's still dark." Yue Long started to stand up, but Lin Luo pressed her shoulder back down.
"How is she?"
"Not awake yet. Her breathing is steady. The medicine is still working." Yue Long paused. "Zhao Tian brought medicinal food. The Sect Leader was standing on the main peak a while ago, like he was waiting for someone."
Lin Luo looked at her. "You went out to ask around."
Yue Long lifted her chin proudly. "Of course I did. And they were talking too loud."
Lin Luo didn't press. He stood up, walked to the bed, and checked Su Xiaoxiao's pulse again. The flow of her spiritual energy was stable. The medicine was being absorbed into her chest even better than expected. Bone and Meridian Mending Pill – mid-grade, on the higher side. Three thousand spirit stones well spent. Her internal injuries had mostly healed. The sword cut on her shoulder had already scabbed over. She was still unconscious, but not from severe injury anymore – it was the deep sleep of strong medicine working through her body. Her body had sent all its spiritual energy to repair the wound through her chest and the internal injuries. There wasn't enough left to keep her conscious.
She would wake before dawn.
Lin Luo pulled his hand back and sat back down on the edge of the bed.
Yue Long pulled out her phone. The screen lit up. She checked Bone One's status. Bone One was still in the ancient battlefield. Status: absorbing death energy, cracks in skeleton repaired. Location: near the exit. Then she turned off the screen and picked up the Greenwind Sword again.
Lin Luo looked at her. She was holding the sword exactly the same way as before – back straight, hands on the blade, rabbit ears up. There were dark circles under her eyes, but her eyes were still bright.
"Yue Long."
"Yes?"
"Sleep for a while."
"I'm not tired yet."
"She'll need you to take care of her tomorrow."
Yue Long was quiet for a moment. Then she leaned the Greenwind Sword against the leg of the chair, pulled the chair closer so it was parallel to the bed – so she could see both Lin Luo and Su Xiaoxiao at the same time – and sat down. She closed her eyes. Her rabbit ears slowly drooped, hanging down over the brim of her hat. A few breaths later, her breathing evened out. She wasn't asleep, just resting with her eyes closed.
Lin Luo leaned against the stone wall. He didn't sleep. He looked at the pale gold light of the soundproof formation. His phone buzzed in his sleeve. He took it out and looked.
[Idle Cultivation · Lightning Prison Indestructible Body. Progress: First Layer 85%.]
[Bone One · Status update: Death energy absorption complete. Skeleton cracks fully repaired. Cultivation: Qi Gathering Layer 9 (bottleneck)]
[Blood One · Status update: Hidden in Demon Abyss second layer. Cultivation: Qi Gathering Layer 8.]
[Rat One · Status update: Sleeping in spirit field. Cultivation: Spirit Gathering Layer 6.]
He turned off the screen.
Outside, the sky was still dark. But not for much longer.
---
On the main peak of the Cangxuan Sect, the light was still on in the Sect Leader's study.
Sect Leader Lu Yuan stood at the study window, a phone in his hand. The screen was lit – identical to Lin Luo's.
Three hundred years ago, the summoned one had come from the mortal realm to this place. No spiritual root, no talent. They sent him to the Chores Hall. He lived there for thirty years. After thirty years, he ran away to the back mountain, dug a hole, and hid himself in it. He grew old and died there. When they found his body, he was still clutching this phone.
Lu Yuan found it. By chance, he activated it with his blood. He didn't know how to operate it at first.
Not until Lin Luo came. Then he started using a recording crystal to watch and learn. But he wasn't the chosen one. The functions he could use were pitifully few – he couldn't open alt accounts, couldn't scan and recruit disciples, couldn't copy items. He couldn't do much of anything. Only idle cultivation.
Still, it was enough. His long-stuck bottleneck had finally loosened. It wasn't too late to start idling now.
The screen was lit. The idle cultivation interface. His cultivation was rising. Bone One's cultivation was rising. Blood One's cultivation was rising. Rat One's cultivation was rising. Yue Long's cultivation was rising. Lin Luo's cultivation was rising.
He put the phone back into his sleeve. His gaze shifted from the back mountain to the direction of Suihuang City. That old mine shaft. The black market. A few demonic cultivators had died there tonight. Not from any major sect. Just wandering rogue cultivators. No one would avenge them. But they died – meaning Lin Luo had gotten the medicine and fought off the ones who tried to take it from him.
Lu Yuan went back to his desk. On a piece of paper, he wrote a single character: "Return." He set down his brush and looked out at the night. On the distant horizon, storm clouds were gathering. The thunder wasn't loud yet. But soon.
---
In the stone chamber of the mine, Lin Luo leaned against the stone wall. The light from the soundproof formation cast a faint glow on the walls. Beside him on the bed, Su Xiaoxiao's breathing was steady. Yue Long clutched the arm of the chair, her rabbit ears fully drooped. Outside the door, the Glow Mushrooms in the spirit field still glowed. The leaves of the Purple Mushrooms swayed gently in the light of the sect gathering array.
The last night wind before dawn blew through the mountain forest. The spirit stones in the stone chamber flickered on and off – like several people breathing in rhythm.
---
(End of Chapter 29)
Current Status
Main Account · Lin Luo
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 3 (Displayed: Qi Refining Layer 1)
Nine Cycles Mystic Art: Second Cycle
Lightning Prison Indestructible Body: First Layer (85%)
Defense: 650
Attack: ~380
HP: ~400 → ~600 (Nine Cycles Mystic Art auto-repairing)
Spiritual Energy: ~8% → ~20%
Spirit Stones: ~4750 (Yue Long purchased Bone Mending Pills with her own stones)
Possessions: Spirit Recovery Pill ×4, Life Extension Pill ×0, Bone Mending Pill (mid-grade) ×0 (fed to Su Xiaoxiao), Bone Mending Pill (below top-grade) ×3 (Yue Long's purchase, backup), Antidote Pill ×3, Light Talisman ×4, Mountain Pass Token ×1, Drunken Immortal Residence VIP card, Myriad Treasures Pavilion VIP card, Realm-Breaking Talisman (authentic), half a broken sword, pale green jade slip, beast-hide map, Spirit Vein Heart, Secret Realm Core Spirit Stone
Skill: Spirit Eye Technique
Disciple: Yue Long
Status: Internal injuries healing, poison cleared, tired
Alt Account · Bone One
Cultivation: Qi Gathering Layer 9 (bottleneck)
Status: Ancient battlefield – death energy absorbed, skeleton cracks fully repaired
Alt Account · Blood One
Cultivation: Qi Gathering Layer 8
Status: Hidden – Demon Abyss second layer
Alt Account · Rat One
Cultivation: Spirit Gathering Layer 6
Status: Sleeping in the spirit field
Sect · Idle Sect
Sect Leader: Lin Luo
Formal Disciple: Yue Long
Members: Bone One, Rat One, Blood One
Guest Elder (temporarily at the mine): Su Xiaoxiao (resting, chest wound and shoulder wound healing – expected to wake before dawn)
Level: 2
Idle Bonus: +15%
Special facilities: Sect Gathering Array, High-grade shield formation (set by Yue Long, covering Su Xiaoxiao's chamber)
Idle Sect Disciple · Yue Long
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 2
Status: Resting with eyes closed (keeping watch), Spirit Stone balance: ~1100 (after buying three Bone Mending Pills)
Four-Cultivation Body: demonic, Buddhist, human, beast
Possessions: disciple-dedicated phone, low-grade storage pouch, Zixiao Sect inheritance token, Greenwind Sword (badly chipped)
Diamond Body: shield shattered in battle – needs time to recover
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Appendix: Special Cultivation Systems for Lin Luo and His Alt Accounts
Immortal Cultivation (Main Account · Lin Luo):
Qi Refining → Foundation Establishment → Core Opening → Fusion → Heart Movement → Golden Core → Nascent Soul → Soul Departure → Spirit Separation → Body Integration → Cave Void → Great Ascension → Tribulation Transcendence
Demon Cultivation (Alt Accounts · Bone One, Blood One):
Qi Gathering → Body Refining → Core Condensation → Desire Embodiment → Devouring → Demon Infant → Soul Departure → Sense Separation → Body Fusion → Void Break → Great Ascension → Tribulation Transcendence
Beast Cultivation (Alt Account · Rat One):
Spirit Gathering → Intelligence Awakening → Body Tempering → Bone Refining → Beast Core → Transformation → Soul Condensation → Spirit Roaming → Body Purification → Void Training → Great Ascension → Tribulation Transcendence
Note: The above are the exclusive cultivation systems for Lin Luo and his alt accounts. Everyone else (side characters, enemies, etc.) uses the traditional system: Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, Nascent Soul, Soul Transformation, Void Training, Body Integration, Great Ascension, Tribulation Transcendence.
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(End of Chapter 29)