I Idle in the World of Immortal Cultivation
Chapter 25: The Phoenix People Arrive
The sky wasn't fully bright yet.
Outside the Cangxuan Sect's mountain gate, a spirit beast carriage stood in the morning mist. Two Crimson Feather Luan birds pulled it. Their feathers glowed with a dull luster under the dark red sky, like two flames about to go out. The carriage was dark red, carved with golden phoenix patterns. The curtains were made of fine spirit silkworm silk. When the wind blew, the curtains didn't move.
Beside the carriage stood a middle-aged female cultivator. Her robe was fiery red, with golden phoenix patterns embroidered on the hem. Her back was very straight. Her chin was slightly raised. She looked at the Cangxuan Sect's mountain gate like she was looking at a broken temple.
People from the Fire Phoenix Sacred Ground.
---
On the stone steps behind the mountain gate, Su Xiaoxiao walked out with a bundle on her back. The bundle wasn't big – blue coarse cloth, the tie strings in a bow. She wore a dark green cloak, its collar trimmed with a ring of white fur – the one Yue Long had bought for her.
The Phoenix female cultivator looked her over. Her gaze swept across Su Xiaoxiao's face and paused for a moment on her Foundation Establishment Layer 1 cultivation. The corner of her mouth twitched – not a smile, but something hard to read. Like she had confirmed something, or like she was sneering.
"Let's go." The woman turned and lifted the carriage curtain. "The carriage waits for no one."
Su Xiaoxiao stood at the mountain gate and didn't move. She looked back at the Cangxuan Sect's gate. Behind the gate were long stone steps. At the end of the steps was the direction of the Chores Hall. Behind the Chores Hall was the back mountain. In the back mountain's mine shaft lived two people. She couldn't see anything, but she knew they were there.
The Phoenix woman waited a moment, didn't hear footsteps behind her, and lifted the curtain again, frowning.
"What are you still looking at?" Her voice wasn't loud, but every word carried an impatient arrogance. "A few ants. After you spend a few years at the Fire Phoenix Sacred Ground, you'll realize that people and things in small places like this aren't worth mentioning. Now come."
Su Xiaoxiao didn't turn her head. She stared at the long stone steps behind the mountain gate for one last look. Then she turned back and looked the Phoenix woman in the eye.
"Wait here. I need to go back and take care of something. Then I'll go with you."
The Phoenix woman's frown deepened. "Take care of what?"
Su Xiaoxiao had already turned and was walking back. She didn't walk fast, but her steps were steady. Her dark green cloak rippled in the morning wind. Her bundle bounced on her back.
"Don't worry about it."
The Phoenix woman watched her back. Her lips moved, but in the end, she didn't say anything else. She let the curtain fall and leaned back in her seat.
The moment the curtain closed, the corner of her mouth slowly curled up. Not a smile – a sneer. Her voice was light, like a whisper to herself, drifting through the gap in the curtain and scattering in the morning wind.
"So arrogant? And she doesn't even know – she's just a sacrifice. Chosen by the Sacred Ground to be offered to the Divine Phoenix."
The Crimson Feather Luan birds shook their wings and let out low cries. On the stone steps of the mountain gate, Su Xiaoxiao's figure grew smaller and smaller, slowly disappearing into the morning mist.
---
When Su Xiaoxiao ran back to the Cangxuan Sect, she realized she had forgotten many people.
She went to the dining hall first. Wang Hao was eating steamed buns, one in each hand, his cheeks puffed out like a hamster's. When he saw Su Xiaoxiao run in, he froze for a moment, nearly dropping his buns.
"Xiaoxiao? Didn't you leave?"
"Not yet."
Wang Hao put down his buns, wiped his hands on his clothes, and patted himself down from top to bottom. When he reached his waist, he stopped. He untied a dull gray ring from his belt, rubbed it on his clothes, and pushed it into Su Xiaoxiao's hand.
A savings ring. Low-grade storage item. Not much capacity, but for a Qi Refining disciple, it was everything he owned. He didn't know how long he had saved for it. No idea how much he had gone without.
"Take it." Wang Hao's voice was a little hoarse. "Don't let anyone push you around over there. If someone does, write down their name. When I train up enough, I'll go find them and hit them."
Su Xiaoxiao looked at the ring in her palm. She didn't refuse.
"Okay."
Wang Hao grinned. He grabbed another bun from the table and pushed it into her hand. "Food for the road. From the Drunken Immortal Residence. Still warm."
Su Xiaoxiao took the bun and ran toward the inner court.
---
Zhao Tian was on the inner court's training ground. The sky had just started to lighten, and he had already been training for half an hour. His sword light cut white arcs through the morning mist. The sound of his blade cutting the air was sharp and clean.
When he saw Su Xiaoxiao run over, he lowered his sword and stood waiting for her.
Su Xiaoxiao ran up to him, caught her breath, and hitched her bundle higher on her shoulder. "I'm leaving."
Zhao Tian looked at her. He was silent for a long time. He didn't say "take care." He didn't say "have a safe trip." He didn't say anything extra. He lowered his head, slid his sword back into its scabbard, and then pulled something out from his robe.
Three pieces of ice silkworm silk. Palm-sized, thin as a cicada's wing, glowing faintly blue in the morning light. They felt cold to the touch – like ice taken from a snowy mountain.
"Take it." Zhao Tian handed the silk to her, his tone flat. "The road will be hot. This is like having air conditioning."
Su Xiaoxiao took the silk. A wave of coolness spread from her palm through her whole body. She looked at Zhao Tian.
"Your master won't get mad?"
Zhao Tian's expression didn't change. "Master often tells disciples that to train the sword, you need to build good relationships. That way, you can go and chop down every sect's nameplate without worry."
Su Xiaoxiao couldn't help but smile. She put the silk in her bundle. "Thanks."
Zhao Tian's master appeared out of nowhere and knocked him on the head. "No respect." Then she turned to Su Xiaoxiao, pulled two pieces of heavenly silkworm silk from her storage bangle, and gave them to her. "Take these. Now you have enough to make a silk inner armor."
"Senior, your presence is like the bright moon. Your gift enters my heart like pure moonlight. This disciple will treasure it well," Su Xiaoxiao said sincerely.
"Such a clever child." Her voice was cool but carried a rare warmth. Then, with a dragon's roar from her sword, she rode the wind into the clouds, leaving behind a brilliant trail. A brief glimpse, then gone.
---
Su Xiaoxiao ran to the library.
Chen Yutong was in the library organizing scrolls. She sat at a long table with several thick books open in front of her, copying them with a brush. When she saw Su Xiaoxiao come in, she put down her brush, stood up, and took a wooden box down from a shelf.
The box wasn't big. Inside were two small porcelain bottles.
"Fasting pills. Use them sparingly." Chen Yutong set the bottles out one by one, lined up neatly. "And this is Hundred Flower Dew. I made it myself. Put some on when you have time. It's good for your skin."
Su Xiaoxiao looked at the two bottles, then at Chen Yutong. She wore a light blue inner court uniform. Her hair was pinned up with a wooden hairpin. Her face was clean, without any makeup. It was a face full of scholarly grace – no makeup needed.
"Why do you study this?" Su Xiaoxiao asked.
Chen Yutong closed the box and handed it to her. "Better than sitting around doing nothing."
Su Xiaoxiao took the box and put it in her bundle.
---
Finally, she went to find their homeroom teacher, Mr. Li.
Mr. Li lived in a small courtyard in the Cangxuan Sect's outer court. It wasn't big, but it was kept very clean. A few spirit plants sat on the windowsill. Stacks of books filled the corners of the yard.
When Su Xiaoxiao pushed open the gate, Mr. Li was sitting at his desk, looking through things. Several drawers were open. The desk was covered with papers and odds and ends. He looked through everything carefully – picked each one up, looked at it, put it down.
Su Xiaoxiao stood at the entrance. She didn't make a sound.
Mr. Li searched for a while. From the very bottom of one drawer, he pulled out a cloth-wrapped package. The cloth was blue, the edges a bit worn, but very clean. He put the package on the desk and untied the string.
Inside were a few books. Not technique manuals, not secret scrolls – books about the customs, geography, power distribution, and environment of the Three Regions and Five Domains. The covers were a little old, the edges curled up, the pages yellowed. But they were well kept – no tears, no missing pages.
"The world out there is not like home." Mr. Li stacked the books one by one, wrapped them back in the cloth, tied it tight, and handed it to Su Xiaoxiao. "Read a lot. Learn a lot."
Su Xiaoxiao took the package. Her bundle got heavier. She looked at Mr. Li. His hair had turned quite white. The lines on his face were deeper than on the first day of school. He had taught for so many years, sent off batch after batch of students.
"Teacher, I'm going now."
Mr. Li nodded. He didn't say much. He sat back at his desk and kept sorting through the things in his drawer. He didn't look up.
---
Su Xiaoxiao ran toward the mountain gate with her bundle on her back.
The bundle was much heavier than when she came. Wang Hao's savings ring, Zhao Tian's ice silkworm silk, Chen Yutong's wooden box, Mr. Li's books. Nothing weighed much by itself, but together they pressed down on her.
The Phoenix woman was still waiting outside the gate. The Crimson Feather Luan birds had grown impatient – their claws scraped the ground, their wings half-opened and half-closed.
Su Xiaoxiao quickened her pace, ready to go through the gate.
Then the sky split open.
Not a metaphor. Literally.
A loud boom came from the direction of Suihuang City. The ground shook. On the distant horizon, a crack opened in the sky – like someone had slashed a knife across the dome. Golden light poured down through the crack, lighting up the whole sky above Suihuang City like daylight.
Su Xiaoxiao's steps stopped. She stood at the mountain gate, staring up at the crack. Her bundle slipped off her shoulder. She didn't pick it up.
---
News spread faster than the wind.
"The gateway to the Immortal Realm has appeared above Suihuang City!"
"It's real! Not just a legend!"
"Golden Core! Nascent Soul! There might even be treasures from the Body Integration Stage!"
Outside Suihuang City, forces poured in from all directions. People from the Sacred Ground. People from the Demon Sect. Rogue cultivators. Messengers from the Five Domains. Disciples of the Cangxuan Sect. Everyone ran toward the crack.
Su Xiaoxiao didn't get into the carriage. She bent down, picked up her bundle, tied the strings tight, and turned toward Suihuang City. Her bundle bounced on her back. The coolness of the ice silkworm silk spread through her palm. The savings ring pressed against her finger. She ran fast, her dark green cloak flying in the morning wind, the white fur collar pressing against her neck.
"Su Xiaoxiao!" The Phoenix woman lifted the carriage curtain, her voice sharp with anger. "Where are you going?!"
Su Xiaoxiao didn't look back. She ran past the stone steps of the mountain gate, past the training ground, past the entrance to the Chores Hall. The Chores Hall was empty. The axe was still stuck in the chopping block. Split firewood was stacked neatly in the yard.
She ran toward the back mountain. Toward the mine.
She didn't know what she wanted to say. Maybe she had nothing to say. Maybe she just wanted to look one more time. Just one more glance. Then another, and that would be enough.
Zhao Tian had followed her at some point. He didn't speak, staying a little behind her, his sword swaying gently with his steps. Wang Hao also came running from the dining hall, half a bun still in his mouth, his cheeks puffed, panting hard.
The three of them ran toward Suihuang City. Su Xiaoxiao in front, Zhao Tian to her left and back, Wang Hao to her right and back.
---
The Phoenix woman stood at the mountain gate, watching their figures grow smaller and smaller in the distance. The Crimson Feather Luan birds let out low cries behind her, like they were urging her. She watched the direction Su Xiaoxiao had run for a long time, then let the curtain fall.
"We'll wait," she said to the birds. Her voice was quiet. "Let's see what's inside that gate."
---
Outside Suihuang City, chaos reigned.
Rogue cultivators poured in from everywhere – some on flying swords, some riding spirit beasts, some running on foot. Small sects came in groups. Big sects stood calm and composed. Sacred Ground people wore matching golden robes and stood at the front. No one dared to crowd them. The Demon Sect stood on the other side, their black robes flapping in the wind.
Lin Luo stood in front of the gateway to the Immortal Realm.
He had come early. Earlier than almost everyone. The moment the crack opened, he had come out of the mine. Yue Long followed behind him, her rabbit ears straight up, her silver-white hair falling from under her hat and floating in the wind.
Bone One had somehow come from the ancient battlefield. His skeleton still had traces of Blackscale Wolf blood on it. His Shadow Cloak was wrapped tight. He sat on a rock behind Lin Luo, two green flames glowing softly in his eye sockets.
Rat One lay on Lin Luo's shoulder. His gray body was curled into a ball. His little claws gripped Lin Luo's collar. His nose twitched, sniffing the spiritual energy in the air.
Lin Luo pulled out his phone and looked at it.
A message popped up on Bone One's interface.
[Idle Cultivation complete. Breakthrough successful.]
[Bone One's current cultivation: Qi Gathering, Layer 9]
He dismissed the message and looked up at the crack in the sky. Golden light poured down through the crack, covering the ground and gilding the land for miles around.
Yue Long squeezed up behind him, her rabbit ears straight up. "Master, the sky is split open!"
"I see it."
"Are we going in?"
Lin Luo didn't answer. He pulled the real Realm-Breaking Talisman from his robe. The runes on the talisman glowed faintly in the golden light – pulsing on and off, exactly matching the way the crack flickered. Like two magnets separated, calling to each other.
He looked up at the crack. The golden light grew brighter. The edges of the crack began to spread, like an eye slowly opening.
People around him shouted –
"The gate is about to open!"
"Step back! Everyone step back!"
"Who has the talisman? Where is the talisman?"
Lin Luo held the talisman in his hand. He didn't move.
He was waiting. Waiting for the crack to stabilize. Waiting for the first wave of people to go in and scout ahead. Waiting for whatever danger was inside to reveal itself.
No rush.
People of the Idle Sect were never in a rush.
---
(End of Chapter 25)
Current Status (End of Chapter 25)
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 (idling)
Defense: 650
Attack: ~380
HP: ~1800
Spirit Stones: ~8250
Possessions: Spirit Recovery Pill ×8, Life Extension Pill ×1, Antidote Pill ×3, Light Talisman ×4, Mountain Pass Token ×1, Drunken Immortal Residence VIP card, Myriad Treasures Pavilion VIP card, Realm-Breaking Talisman (authentic)
Skill: Spirit Eye Technique
Disciple: Yue Long
Alt Account · Bone One
Cultivation: Qi Gathering, Layer 9
Status: Outside Suihuang City · Before the Immortal Realm gateway
Alt Account · Blood One
Cultivation: Qi Gathering, Layer 7
Status: Hidden – Demon Abyss second layer
Alt Account · Rat One
Cultivation: Spirit Gathering, Layer 5
Status: On Lin Luo's shoulder
Sect · Idle Sect
Sect Leader: Lin Luo
Formal Disciple: Yue Long
Members: Bone One, Rat One, Blood One
Guest Elder (temporarily away): Su Xiaoxiao
Level: 2
Idle Bonus: +15%
Special facility: Sect Gathering Array
Idle Sect Disciple · Yue Long
Cultivation: Foundation Establishment Layer 2
Status: Standing by
Four-Cultivation Body: demonic, Buddhist, human, beast
Possessions: disciple-dedicated phone, low-grade storage pouch, Zixiao Sect inheritance token
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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 25)