I Idle in the World of Immortal Cultivation
Chapter 44: Discovery at the Dining Hall
The afternoon sun slanted in through the mine entrance, casting golden patches of light by the spirit field.
Yue Long crouched by the stove, dried the last bowl, and put it away. She patted her hands, her rabbit ears perking up and turning a circle.
"Master, what now?"
Lin Luo leaned against the stone wall, his eyes half closed. He opened them and looked at her.
"Let's go to the Dining Hall."
Yue Long's rabbit ears sprang up. "To see Wang Hao?"
"Yes. And to check on how the meat is cooking."
"Didn't you say it needs three days? Today is only the first day."
"To check the heat."
Yue Long tilted her head and looked at him. "Master, are you going to check the meat, or to see Wang Hao?"
"Both."
Yue Long smiled. "Then let's go."
The two left the mine and walked toward the Dining Hall. The Dining Hall was on the west side of the main peak, separated from the Artifact Refining Peak by another mountain. The path passed by the inner court's training ground. Before they reached it, they heard a dull thumping sound – not weapons clashing, but fists hitting flesh. Thump, thump, thump. Very heavy.
Yue Long's rabbit ears turned. "Someone's fighting."
"Sparring."
"How do you know?"
"By the sound. A real fight wouldn't be so rhythmic."
Yue Long thought for a moment and followed Lin Luo toward the training ground.
Two people stood on the training ground. Wang Hao and Zhang Wei. Both were bare-handed, wearing no protective gear. The blue stone slabs under their feet had several cracks from their stomping.
Zhang Wei's Barbarian Ancient War Physique was activated. Dark green lines appeared on his skin, spreading like tree roots from his shoulders to his wrists. His body was a size larger than usual, muscles bulging like rocks. Each punch came with a whistling wind.
Wang Hao's Taotie Ancient War Physique was also activated. A dark red light rotated in his abdomen, like a half-open eye, pulsing with his breath. His body hadn't changed, but he looked more solid – like a deep, bottomless well.
Zhang Wei threw a punch. Spiritual energy wrapped around his fist, the air compressed into a visible ripple. Wang Hao didn't dodge. He opened his mouth – not to bite, but to inhale. The spiritual energy vortex changed direction in midair, pulled by an invisible hand, and went into Wang Hao's mouth.
He swallowed and burped.
"Zhang Wei, that punch still has no power."
Zhang Wei frowned and threw another punch. This one was more than twice as heavy as before. Even faint flames appeared on his fist. Wang Hao inhaled again. This time he didn't burp. The dark red light in his abdomen glowed once, and then his mouth opened involuntarily – a burst of spiritual energy shot out, hitting Zhang Wei square in the chest.
Zhang Wei stumbled back three steps, clutching his chest, his face full of disbelief.
"You – you spat my own spiritual energy back at me?!"
Wang Hao was also stunned. "I… I don't know. I just felt a little bloated, like I needed to burp…"
Lin Luo stood at the edge of the training ground, took out his phone, and swept them with his Spirit Eye Technique.
[Wang Hao · Taotie Ancient War Physique (awakening)]
[Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 2]
[Special ability: Devouring. Can absorb external spiritual energy and skill attacks and convert them into personal energy. Awakening progress: 35%.]
[Hidden ability not yet unlocked: Reflection – can reflect devoured skills back at the enemy through a breath attack. Current trigger chance: very low, requires emotional fluctuation or instinctive reaction.]
Lin Luo stared at the line "Reflection" for a few seconds. Wang Hao didn't know it himself, but that move just now wasn't a burp – his physique was protecting him. Too much spiritual energy in his stomach; if it hadn't come out, it would have hurt him. His physique made the choice on its own, returning the excess energy to Zhang Wei in its most primitive form.
Yue Long leaned over. "Master, what was that move of Wang Hao's?"
"Reflection. Spitting the devoured spiritual energy back at the enemy."
"So cool! Does he know?"
"No. Now he does."
Lin Luo put away his phone and clapped his hands. Wang Hao turned, saw Lin Luo and Yue Long, froze for a moment, then smiled.
"Brother Luo! Sister-in-law Yue Long! What are you two doing here?"
Yue Long's rabbit ears twitched. "Don't call me that."
Wang Hao grinned and didn't change it. Zhang Wei also walked over, breathing heavily, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Brother Luo, that move Wang Hao did just now – " Zhang Wei pointed at his own chest. "He swallowed my spiritual energy and spat it back. However much I put in, he gave back. Isn't that cheating?"
"Not cheating. His physique awakened a new ability."
Wang Hao opened his mouth. "I awakened? When?"
"Just now. You didn't know yourself."
"Then how do I use it?"
Lin Luo thought for a moment. "Fight more. Get hit more. When your physique protects you, the ability will come out."
Wang Hao thought for a moment. "Then I'll spar with Zhang Wei every day?"
Zhang Wei's face twitched. "Why me?"
"Because you're the strongest fighter."
Zhang Wei took a deep breath and didn't speak.
Lin Luo took the Nascent Soul demon beast meat from the Shared Storage. The meat was wrapped in oil paper, dark gold grease seeping through the paper. The aroma of the meat mixed with the sweet smell of spiritual energy.
Wang Hao's eyes lit up. "Brother Luo, this meat – "
"Ask the Dining Hall Elder to cook it. Also, the beast blood needs to be refined."
Wang Hao turned and ran. "The Elder is in the kitchen! I'll go get him!" He ran off, his steps light as if on cotton.
Zhang Wei watched his back and shook his head. "Brother Luo, Wang Hao has changed a lot since that time at the ancient battlefield. Before, he only ate. Now, he fights. Before, he ran away after fighting. Now, he wants to keep fighting."
"That's good."
"Good for him, maybe. But it's hard on me." Zhang Wei rubbed his chest. "That spit of his nearly knocked the wind out of me."
Lin Luo looked at him. "Your Barbarian Physique also has a hidden ability."
Zhang Wei's eyes lit up. "What ability?"
"I don't know. Fight more. Get hit more. It'll come out."
Zhang Wei was silent for a moment. "Brother Luo, do you say that to everyone?"
"Yes."
Zhang Wei opened his mouth, then didn't ask again.
---
The Dining Hall Elder came out of the kitchen, wearing an apron stained with grease, a kitchen knife in his hand. He glanced at the meat in Lin Luo's hands. His eyes lit up.
"Nascent Soul demon beast meat? Good stuff! I haven't cooked such high-quality ingredients in decades!"
"I trouble you, Elder. Stew the meat for everyone to share. Refine the beast blood into essence blood – I have a use for it."
The Elder took the meat, turned it over in his hands. "The golden patterns on this meat are the spiritual energy circuits from when the beast was alive. Don't break them when stewing, or all the spiritual energy will be lost. Slow heat, stew for three days and three nights." He carried the meat into the kitchen. The sounds of pots and pans clashing came from inside.
Wang Hao ran back. "Brother Luo, the Elder said we eat the meat in three days! He also said the blood needs to be refined separately, and he'll bring it to you when it's done!"
Lin Luo nodded. "Come in three days. Call Zhao Tian and Chen Yutong too. Together."
Wang Hao grinned. "Got it!"
Yue Long stood beside Lin Luo, her rabbit ears up. "Master, meat in three days. What do we eat today?"
"Scrambled eggs with Glow Mushrooms. Didn't we have that this morning?"
"That was morning. Lunch hasn't happened yet."
Lin Luo looked at her. "Didn't you just have soup?"
"Soup is soup. A meal is a meal."
Lin Luo didn't speak. He turned and walked toward the mine. Yue Long followed behind, her rabbit ears bobbing.
"Master."
"Yes."
"Wang Hao called me 'Sister-in-law Yue Long.'"
"I heard."
"You're not angry?"
"At what?"
"At him calling me that."
"He wasn't wrong. Su Xiaoxiao is the senior senior disciple."
Yue Long's rabbit ears drooped. "I know. You don't have to remind me."
The corner of Lin Luo's mouth moved.
Yue Long walked a few steps, then turned back. "Master, then why didn't you correct him when he called me sister-in-law?"
"Too lazy."
Yue Long stared at him for two seconds. "You're teasing me."
"No."
"Then why did the corner of your mouth move?"
"The corner moving is the corner's business."
Yue Long took a deep breath and stopped asking.
---
Back at the mine, Rat One was squatting by the spirit field, nibbling on a Glow Mushroom. When he saw them return, he squeaked twice, picked up a piece of mushroom cap in his mouth, ran over, and dropped it at Lin Luo's feet.
Lin Luo looked down, picked up the piece, and put it back in the field.
"Don't feed him. He eats on his own."
Rat One squeaked – like he was cursing. Yue Long crouched and patted Rat One's head.
"Rat One, be good. In three days, we'll eat meat. I'll save a small piece for you."
Rat One's ears went up. He squeaked twice, ran back to his nest, curled into a ball, and waited.
Yue Long stood up and brushed her skirt. "Master, I'll go make soup."
"No soup for lunch. A real meal."
Yue Long's rabbit ears sprang up. "What meal?"
"Scrambled eggs with Glow Mushrooms. We still have two eggs left from this morning."
Yue Long ran to the stove, her steps light.
Lin Luo leaned against the stone wall, took out his phone, and opened Bone One's interface.
The black-gold skeleton was crouched behind some ruins. The Ironback Wolf King's tracks stretched ahead, blood dripping intermittently between the paw prints. Bone One's right arm bones split open slightly, the crossbow springing out, a bolt loaded.
[Ironback Wolf King · Status: Lightly wounded. Left hind leg struck by bolt. Speed reduced by 10%.]
[Bone One · Bolts remaining: 8/12.]
Bone One darted out from behind the ruins. Black mist wrapped around his figure, nearly invisible in the gray battlefield light. He ran without sound, only the soft click of the crossbow being cocked giving him away.
Lin Luo turned off the screen.
Yue Long came over with two bowls of rice. One bowl in front of Lin Luo, one in her own hands. The scrambled eggs with Glow Mushrooms were golden. Egg chunks mixed with mushroom slices. The aroma mixed with spiritual energy, floating over the stone table.
"Master, eat."
Lin Luo took a bite. "Not salty."
"I didn't put any salt in today."
"Just right."
Yue Long's rabbit ears went up. "Say it again."
"No."
"You just said it!"
"Then you heard it."
Yue Long took a deep breath and stopped asking. She lowered her head and ate quickly.
Rat One poked his head out of his grass nest, squeaked twice, and ducked back in.
After the meal, Yue Long took the bowls away, crouched by the stove, and washed them. As she washed, her rabbit ears slowly went up.
"Master."
"Yes."
"Will Sister Xiao wake up tomorrow?"
"Yes."
"After she wakes up, will she send us a message?"
"Yes."
"Then tomorrow we won't go to the market. We'll wait in the mine."
"What about your good deed?"
"We'll go after we finish it. Early."
Lin Luo didn't speak.
Yue Long dried the bowls, put them away, walked over to Lin Luo, and sat down beside him. Her rabbit ears slowly drooped, resting on his arm.
Her phone rested on her knee. The chibi figure hit the wooden fish again and again. Merit +1, merit +1, merit +1.
Lin Luo leaned against the stone wall, his eyes half closed. Bone One's idle interface turned in his mind – the black-gold skeleton tracking the Ironback Wolf King's blood trail through the ruins. The click of the crossbow being cocked, click, click, click, like a heartbeat.
Yue Long's breath rose and fell beside his arm, very soft, very steady.
Rat One poked his head out of his grass nest, squeaked twice, and ducked back in.
Just keep idling.
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(End of Chapter 44)
Current Status
Main Account · Lin Luo
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 3 (Displayed: Qi Refining Layer 1)
Nine Cycles Mystic Art: Third Cycle (progress 0.1%)
Lightning Prison Indestructible Body: Second Layer
Defense: 1000
Attack: ~400
Spirit Stones: 5250 (900 owed to inn)
Possessions: Demon beast essence blood ×5 (to be refined), Nascent Soul demon beast meat given to Dining Hall Elder
Plan: Wait for Bone One to finish fighting the Golden Core demon beast and collect bones; gather for a meal in three days; Myriad Treasures Pavilion talisman (wait for inn to make money)
Alt Account · Bone One (Demon Cultivation · Black-Gold Skeleton · Assassin Form)
Cultivation: Body Refining Layer 5
Status: Idle battle · Ancient battlefield, target Golden Core Layer 3 Ironback Wolf King (lightly wounded, left hind leg injured)
Bolts remaining: 8/12 (replenishes 3 per day)
Win rate: 82% → 85%
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 (bloodline awakening)
Level: 2
Idle Bonus: +15%
Sect Contribution: Yue Long 50, Lin Luo 0
Idle Sect Disciple · Yue Long
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 2 (Human) + Essence Gathering Layer 1 (Buddhist)
Merit points: ~1100
Fudo Myoo's Resolution: 0.17%
Sect Contribution: 50
Spirit Stone balance: ~1100
Possessions: Silver-white wrist guards (mid-grade magical tool)
Idle Sect Disciple · Su Xiaoxiao (bloodline awakening)
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 1
Status: Inside Divine Phoenix Ruins, Five-Colored Divine Phoenix bloodline awakening in progress
Awakening time: ~2 hours remaining
Communication status: Cannot communicate
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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
Buddhist Cultivation (Yue Long):
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 44)