I Idle in the World of Immortal Cultivation
Chapter 33: Business and the Lightning Tribulation
The rain stopped in the second half of the night.
Yue Long didn't remember falling asleep. She just remembered crouching at the mine entrance, counting raindrops. She counted and counted, and at some point her head tilted to the side, leaning against the stone wall, her rabbit ears drooping onto her shoulders. When she woke up, the spirit stone lamps had been replaced with new ones. The light was a little brighter than the night before. Outside the tunnel, the sky hadn't fully brightened yet, but the rain had stopped. The air smelled of wet earth.
She rubbed her eyes, stood up, and her legs were a little numb. Lin Luo wasn't in the stone chamber. His bedding was folded neatly. The Greenwind Sword hung on the wall. His phone was gone.
Yue Long's rabbit ears turned. She heard the sound of chopping wood from deeper in the tunnel.
"Master—" she called out. Her voice echoed several times in the tunnel. The chopping stopped.
"Yes." The sound came from the direction of the spirit field.
Yue Long ran over. Lin Luo was chopping wood. The axe rose and fell in the same steady rhythm as always. Rat One squatted by the woodpile, a small piece of wood in his little paws, trying to copy him. When he saw Yue Long run over, Rat One dropped the wood, squeaked, and climbed up Lin Luo's shoulder.
"Master, when did you get up?"
"A little earlier than you."
"How much earlier?"
"The time it takes to burn an incense stick."
Yue Long pouted. "Why didn't you wake me up?"
"You were sleeping like Rat One."
Rat One squeaked in protest.
Yue Long crouched down and helped him stack the chopped wood neatly. As she stacked, her rabbit ears suddenly went up. "Master, someone's coming. Cultivation – I can't see through it. Higher than the Sect Leader?"
Lin Luo didn't stop chopping. "Myriad Treasures Pavilion."
"How do you know?"
"Guess."
Yue Long didn't believe him, but she didn't ask again. She stood up, brushed the wood chips off her skirt, and started to tuck her rabbit ears into her hat – then stopped halfway and pulled them back out. She didn't feel like hiding them today.
Footsteps came from the tunnel, unhurried. Two people. One in front, one behind. The footsteps in front were very light, but each step landed on the same beat. The footsteps behind were heavier, like someone carrying something.
Liu Ruyan walked out from the bend in the tunnel.
Still the same light gold robe. Still the dark green silk sash at her waist. Still her long hair pinned up with a jade hairpin. Behind her followed a servant carrying a wooden box. The box wasn't large, but the servant was sweating heavily.
"Sect Leader Lin." Liu Ruyan stood by the spirit field. Her gaze swept around the area and finally landed on the axe in Lin Luo's hand. "Chopping wood?"
"Yes."
"The leader of a sect, chopping his own wood?"
"The Idle Sect has few people."
Liu Ruyan smiled, didn't waste time on pleasantries, and spoke directly. "The spirit plants you grow are much higher quality than what's on the market. The Myriad Treasures Pavilion wants to buy them long-term. Name your price."
Yue Long's rabbit ears went up. She looked at Lin Luo – he was still chopping wood, his head not raised. Then she looked at Liu Ruyan – Liu Ruyan was looking at her.
"You're Yue Long?" Liu Ruyan asked.
"Y-yes." Yue Long's voice was a little tight.
"Did you grow these spirit plants?"
"Yes." Yue Long nodded, then quickly shook her head. "Not just me. Master planted some too. Rat One planted some too. Everyone planted together."
Liu Ruyan looked at Lin Luo. "Let her negotiate with me?"
Lin Luo finally stopped chopping. He looked at Yue Long. "Go."
Yue Long froze. "Me?"
"You grew the plants. You negotiate."
Yue Long opened her mouth to say "I don't know how to negotiate" or "I've never done this before" or "I don't know what to say," but Lin Luo had already gone back to chopping wood. The axe rose and fell – crack, crack, crack – like he was saying, "That's it. Go."
Yue Long took a deep breath and turned to Liu Ruyan. "Then – then should we go over there to talk?" She pointed to the stone chamber.
Liu Ruyan nodded and followed Yue Long.
---
In the stone chamber, Yue Long sat on the edge of the bed, her back very straight, her hands on her knees. Liu Ruyan sat in the chair. The servant put the wooden box at her feet and stepped back to stand by the door.
"Glow Mushrooms, Purple Mushrooms, Cold Grass, Flameblooms, Soul-Nurturing Grass." Liu Ruyan listed them. "How many of each?"
Yue Long thought for a moment. "Glow Mushrooms – I can get forty every month. Purple Mushrooms, twenty. Cold Grass, twenty. Flameblooms, ten. Soul-Nurturing Grass, twenty."
"Quality?"
"Higher than market – a lot higher." Yue Long held her hands apart to show about two inches. "No, two times higher."
Liu Ruyan watched her gesture. The corner of her mouth moved. "Price? You give a price."
Yue Long opened her mouth. Her mind was blank. She had never negotiated before. She didn't know what spirit plants should sell for. She didn't know market prices. She didn't know whether to aim high or low. All she knew was that her plants, grown under the sect gathering array, grew fifty percent faster than ones outside, and their quality was better. But how much better? How many spirit stones were they worth? She didn't know.
She bit her lip. "You give a price first."
Liu Ruyan looked at her and gave a number.
Yue Long's rabbit ears twitched – higher than she had expected. But she didn't nod or shake her head. She was thinking. Master had said that in a negotiation, the first one to show their cards loses. She wasn't afraid of losing – she was afraid of embarrassing the Idle Sect.
"Too low," she said.
Liu Ruyan's eyebrow moved slightly. "How much is not too low?"
Yue Long thought for a moment and added forty percent to Liu Ruyan's number.
Liu Ruyan was silent for a moment. "Thirty percent."
Yue Long's rabbit ears turned. "Deal."
Liu Ruyan pulled a contract from her sleeve and placed it on the table. "Sign it."
Yue Long picked up the contract and read it from beginning to end. The mortal's books hadn't been a waste. She recognized all the characters on the contract. She understood all the terms. She put the contract down. "Add one more condition. If the quality doesn't meet the standard, you can lower the price. But if it does, the Myriad Treasures Pavilion can't lowball me."
Liu Ruyan looked at her, pulled a brush from her sleeve, added a line to the contract, and handed it to Yue Long. "Read it again."
Yue Long read it again, nodded, picked up the brush, and signed her name at the bottom of the contract – Yue Long. The two characters were crooked and wobbly. Next to Liu Ruyan's neat signature, it looked like a primary schooler's homework pasted next to a university student's. She pushed the contract back.
Liu Ruyan put the contract away and stood up. "I'll come for the spirit plants at the beginning of next month. We'll settle the spirit stones then."
"Okay."
Liu Ruyan walked to the entrance of the stone chamber, stopped, and didn't look back. "That master of yours. He knows how to be lazy."
Yue Long's rabbit ears went up. "Master isn't being lazy. Master is –" She thought for a moment. "Idling."
Liu Ruyan didn't say anything else. She left.
---
Yue Long ran back to the spirit field with the contract, her rabbit ears streaming behind her. "Master! I signed it! I negotiated it!" She held out the contract. Her hands were shaking – not from fear, from excitement.
Lin Luo took the contract, glanced at it, folded it, and put it in his sleeve. "Yes."
"Can you not say 'yes' every – never mind. I won't argue with you today." Yue Long crouched by the spirit field, her chin propped on her hands, her rabbit ears twitching. "Master, when I gave the price, I added forty percent. She said forty percent. I said forty percent. She said thirty percent. I said deal."
"You added forty percent, she gave thirty percent. You lost ten percent."
Yue Long's smile froze. "…Huh?"
"But for your first time negotiating, it's not a loss." Lin Luo stuck the axe back into the chopping block. "Next time, add fifty percent."
Yue Long thought for a moment. "What if she still comes back with thirty percent?"
"Then you make twenty percent."
Yue Long's eyes lit up. "Master, did you already know she would counter?"
"Yes."
"Then why didn't you tell me earlier!"
"Then you would have been nervous."
Yue Long opened her mouth, then closed it. She crouched by the spirit field. Her rabbit ears slowly drooped, then slowly went up again.
Lin Luo pulled out his phone and checked Bone One's interface.
[Bone One · Static state countdown: 00:00:00.]
[Static state ended. Bone One has resumed movement.]
[Bone One cultivation: Qi Gathering Layer 9 → Body Refining Layer 1 → Body Refining Layer 2 → Body Refining Layer 3.]
[Current cultivation: Body Refining Layer 3 (Demon Cultivation · Body Refining)]
[Start idling?]
[Yes / No]
Lin Luo tapped [Yes].
[Select attack target.]
A map appeared on the screen, marking the positions of various demon beasts in the ancient battlefield. The lowest was late Foundation Establishment. The highest was Nascent Soul Layer 3. In the deepest part of the map, a dark red dot was flashing – the Nascent Soul Layer 2 demon beast. Its right eye was gone, its left hind leg was broken, its tail was shortened, and its body was covered in wounds. Its cultivation had dropped from Nascent Soul Layer 2 to Nascent Soul Layer 1.
[Target: Nascent Soul Layer 1 demon beast (severely wounded). Predicted win rate: 12%.]
Lin Luo stared at the 12% for two seconds. Twelve percent wasn't nothing. Bone One's immortal nature was made for this kind of win rate. He tapped [Select specific Nascent Soul demon beast].
[Bone One · Idle battle started. Target: Nascent Soul Layer 1 demon beast (severely wounded). Strategy: War of attrition. Estimated time: Unknown.]
He turned off the screen.
"Yue Long."
"Yes!"
"I need to go out."
"Where?"
"To survive a lightning tribulation."
Yue Long froze. Then her rabbit ears shot straight up. "Lightning tribulation?! Master, are you breaking through to Golden Core?"
"No. Lightning Prison Indestructible Body level skip. Drawing lightning to temper the body."
"I'm coming too!"
"What for?"
"To protect you!"
"A lightning tribulation doesn't need protection."
"I'm coming anyway!"
Lin Luo looked at her. "Stand far away. Don't come close."
Yue Long nodded hard, her rabbit ears bobbing.
---
The highest peak in the Cangxuan Sect's back mountain.
At the summit was an empty clearing. Nothing grew there. The stones had been worn smooth and shiny by wind and rain. Dark clouds were gathering in the sky – not slowly, but suddenly. One moment it was clear and sunny, the next the whole sky went dark. The clouds hung low, like an upside-down pot covering the entire mountain.
Lin Luo stood in the center of the clearing, looking up at the sky. Yue Long hid behind a large rock two hundred paces away, only half her head and her rabbit ears showing.
Thunder rolled from deep within the clouds – not one boom after another, but a continuous rumble, like someone dragging a giant iron plate across the sky.
When the first lightning bolt struck, Lin Luo didn't dodge. The lightning swallowed him whole, pouring in through the top of his head and flowing out through the soles of his feet. Fine golden lines exploded across his skin – the lines of Lightning Prison Indestructible Body, ten times brighter than usual.
He grunted. He didn't fall.
The second bolt struck immediately. The third. The fourth. Each bolt was thicker and brighter than the last, lighting up the entire mountain like daylight. Yue Long hid behind the rock, her hands over her ears, her rabbit ears squeezing through her fingers, trembling in the thunder.
When the fifth bolt struck, Lin Luo went down on one knee. His chore uniform had been burned to ash by the lightning, revealing blackened skin underneath. The golden lines on his skin still glowed, but much dimmer.
The sixth. The seventh. The eighth.
When the ninth bolt struck, Lin Luo stood up.
The blackened layer of his skin peeled away, revealing fresh skin underneath. The new skin wasn't ordinary flesh – it was dark gold, covered with fine lightning patterns. The patterns moved across his skin like living things, then slowly sank into the depths of his flesh. They disappeared.
[Lightning Prison Indestructible Body · First Layer 85% → Second Layer.]
[Defense: 650 → 850.]
[Additional effect: Greatly increased lightning resistance. Melee attacks deal minor lightning damage.]
The thunder stopped. The clouds scattered as quickly as they had come. The sky turned blue again. Sunlight shone down through the gaps in the clouds, falling on Lin Luo.
He looked down at his hands. His skin had returned to its normal color, but when he made a fist, tiny sparks of electricity jumped between his fingertips.
Yue Long ran out from behind the rock, her rabbit ears up, her red eyes wide. "Master! You're alive!"
"Yes."
"You're smoking!"
"It burned."
"Does it hurt?"
"Not bad."
Lin Luo took a clean chore uniform from the Shared Storage and put it on. Yue Long stood beside him, staring at his hands. She saw the tiny sparks of electricity jumping between his fingers, like little fireflies.
"Master, what stage can you fight now?"
"I don't know. I haven't tried."
"Want to try?"
"Try what?"
Yue Long raised her fist and waved it in front of Lin Luo. "Hit me?"
Lin Luo looked at her. "No."
"Why?"
"Can't handle it."
Yue Long pouted, but the corner of her mouth still curved. She turned and walked down the mountain. After a few steps, she stopped and looked back.
"Master."
"Yes."
"The lightning marks on your body. They look nice."
She turned back around and continued down the mountain. Her rabbit ears bobbed in the wind. Lin Luo followed behind her. She didn't look back, but her ears turned once – to make sure he was following. Then her rabbit ears slowly drooped, resting on the brim of her hat, and stopped moving.
In the distance, in the direction of Suihuang City, the sun was setting. The clouds on the horizon were dyed dark red, like iron fresh from the forge. Yue Long walked ahead, her steps light. Lin Luo followed behind, his hands tucked into his sleeves. The two of them walked one after the other toward the mine.
---
(End of Chapter 33)
Current Status (End of Chapter 33)
Main Account · Lin Luo
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 3 (Displayed: Qi Refining Layer 1)
Nine Cycles Mystic Art: Second Cycle (bottleneck update in progress, Third Cycle available in ~6h)
Lightning Prison Indestructible Body: Second Layer (new), Defense +200, greatly increased lightning resistance, melee attacks deal minor lightning damage
Defense: 650 → 850
Attack: ~380 → ~400 (minor lightning bonus)
HP: ~600
Spiritual Energy: ~20%
Spirit Stones: ~4750
Possessions: Spirit Recovery Pill ×4, Life Extension Pill ×0, Bone Mending Pill (below top-grade) ×3, 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, spirit plant purchase contract (signed by Yue Long)
Skill: Spirit Eye Technique
Disciple: Yue Long
Sect Members: Yue Long, Su Xiaoxiao (temporarily away)
Special Status: Nine Cycles Mystic Art Third Cycle about to unlock
Alt Account · Bone One
Cultivation: Body Refining Layer 3 (increased by three layers)
Status: Idle battle · Ancient battlefield, target Nascent Soul Layer 1 demon beast (severely wounded), win rate 12%, war of attrition in progress
Cumulative deaths: increasing
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: Spirit field at mine land
Sect · Idle Sect
Sect Leader: Lin Luo
Members: Yue Long, Su Xiaoxiao (temporarily away)
Level: 2
Idle Bonus: +15%
Special facilities: Sect Gathering Array, High-grade shield formation
Idle Sect Disciple · Yue Long
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 2
Status: Guarding the mine
Buddhist cultivation update: Will unlock in ~12h
Current technique: Qi Drawing Technique (human Foundation Establishment)
First negotiation: Signed first contract (long-term spirit plant purchase), added 40% counter-offer, final deal at 30%
Personality: lively, talkative, can't keep secrets, acts cute, goofy, puts her hand in the rain, gets nervous but doesn't back down in negotiations
Spirit Stone balance: ~1100
Possessions: disciple-dedicated phone, low-grade storage pouch, Zixiao Sect inheritance token, Greenwind Sword (repaired)
Diamond Body: shattered, about to transform into Fudo Myoo's Resolution
Idle Sect Disciple · Su Xiaoxiao (temporarily away)
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 1
Status: Traveling with Fire Phoenix Sacred Ground, heading to Nirvana
Idle Cultivation: ~48h to Foundation Establishment Layer 2 (as of end of Chapter 33, Su Xiaoxiao has been gone about one day)
Personality: brave, active, intelligent; more open and playful around people she trusts
Injury: Piercing wound healed, still coughs occasionally
Possessions: disciple-dedicated phone, savings ring, ice silkworm silk, wooden box, Mr. Li's books, dried Glow Mushrooms
---
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
Buddhist Cultivation (Yue Long – unlocking soon):
Essence Gathering → Mortal Liberation → Core Mind → Will Dispersion → Clear Mind → Relic → Soul Movement → Void Transcendence → Pure Spirit → Void Passage → 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 33)