Collecting Rent From All Realms, Even Empresses Must Pay Tribute
Ch. 33 - Idle Cultivation

Oh?

Ye Chuan tried clicking "Use" on the Spirit Crystal, and as the icon lit up, it worked!

[The Spirit Crystal will automatically circulate the cultivation manual. Estimated absorption and breakthrough to Mid Qi Refining in 24 hours.]

Ye Chuan immediately felt a humming sensation in his body as the manual began automatically absorbing and refining the spiritual energy from the Spirit Crystal.

It felt like…

His body was a computer, and the internal cooling fan was whirring.

He quickly checked his status—

[Name: Ye Chuan

…

Status: Idle cultivation in progress (Spirit Crystal absorption acceleration), 1 day until Mid Qi Refining (Cultivation efficiency is affected by manual, spiritual root, constitution, etc.)]

From seven days to just one!

It was a good item indeed. If only he could get more.

Thinking of this, Ye Chuan glanced at his wallet. He could afford a few more rounds, and tomorrow he would have another four thousand yuan.

"Drawing constitutions costs money, drawing spiritual roots costs money, adventures cost money." Ye Chuan paused, then narrowed his eyes.

This… this wasn't right.

Something felt off.

It felt like he had to spend money on everything. He even felt poor despite having money.

High income, even higher expenses!

But thinking about the potential benefits of the adventure, he decided to go for another round today.

One thousand yuan, spend!

Ye Chuan entered the adventure again.

[Landing Location: TianXuan Continent]

[You appear at the entrance of a village in the Eastern Hua Divine Continent of the TianXuan Continent. You smell the scent of blood. Enter?]

This scenario felt familiar.

Ye Chuan thought for a moment, his eyes widening. Wasn't this the same as before, with the wolf demon?

Well, he'd run first.

[You choose not to enter the village, but behind you is a bottomless cliff. Facing the sheer drop, you choose to—]

[1. Shout "YOLO" and go inside, hoping for a miraculous encounter.]

[2. Attempt to fly across using your Qi Refining level sword control.]

[3. Return to the village.]

Ye Chuan: ?

A cliff behind him, a blood-soaked village in front.

"Alright, alright, no way out, huh?" Seeing the options, Ye Chuan was so exasperated he laughed and started clapping.

Fine, he'd enter the village.

Although he felt a pang of regret for the thousand yuan, compared to the certain death of jumping off a cliff, Ye Chuan chose to enter the village and try his luck.

Maybe it wasn't the wolf this time.

[Facing the bottomless cliff, you turn back and enter the village. The strong scent of blood makes you feel uneasy. You see corpses everywhere; it turns out a group of men in black are raiding the village. You choose to…]

[1. Intervene and save the villagers]

[2. Loot the corpses]

[3. Find a chance to escape]

Loot the corpses?

Seeing the familiar option, Ye Chuan's eyes lit up, but then he thought, this was just an ordinary village, what treasures could these ordinary villagers have?

He might as well deal with the men in black.

[You choose to intervene and save the villagers. These men in black are skilled, but ultimately, they are just ordinary mortals. You draw your sword, channeling your spiritual energy, and cut them down like vegetables. Soon, you defeat most of them. The remaining men in black, seeing your immortal techniques, threaten you: "Our Black Wind Stronghold is backed by the Qian Yuan Sect!" You choose to…]

[1. Announce your name (Please enter)]

[2. Leave no survivors]

[3. Kneel and apologize]

Oh?

Threatening someone stronger than you? Weren't they courting death?

Ye Chuan felt that these men in black weren't very bright. Seeing the first option, a mischievous glint appeared in his eyes as he typed on his phone.

[You announce your name: "I am Huang Haotian of the Qingyun Sect." The men in black freeze, their faces filled with terror. "Qingyun Sect?" They scatter and flee. After you kill a few, some manage to escape the village. You choose to…]

[1. Chase the remaining survivors]

[2. Stay and talk to the villagers]

Ye Chuan didn't hesitate.

[You choose to talk to the surviving villagers, but they are all terrified of you. You find someone who looks like the village chief in a corner and learn that the Qingyun Sect is a notorious demonic sect, which is why the villagers are afraid of you. You choose to…]

[You choose to explain the situation. Although the village chief is skeptical, he eventually believes you. The men in black attacked the village for their treasure. To prevent the village from being targeted again, the village chief decides to entrust the treasure to you. You choose to…]

[1. Accept the treasure]

[2. Refuse the treasure]

Accept!

Definitely accept!

[You choose to accept the treasure. It is an ancient jade pendant engraved with a small spirit gathering array, which can accelerate cultivation speed.]

[Just as you accept the treasure, the village chief, seeing that you haven't channeled your spiritual energy, raises an axe and chops off your head.]

["You're not a good person either!" a vicious voice rings out. You realize the village chief is also a Qi Refining cultivator who was hiding earlier, fearing other cultivators among the men in black.]

[You died.]

[Adventure ended. Items retrieved: 1]

Huh?

Ye Chuan was caught off guard by the sudden twist. Wait, why did the village chief suddenly attack him?

Damn, everyone's a villain?!

There wasn't a single decent person in this world.

Ye Chuan finally had a clearer understanding of the treacherous nature of the cultivation world. He pinched the bridge of his nose, but at least he had gained something from this trip.

[Item: Ancient Jade Pendant

Blue quality. Engraved with a small spirit gathering array. Permanently reduces idle cultivation time by 2 days per realm.

Equippable, Can be further appraised.]

Not bad. It could increase the efficiency of idle cultivation, which was very useful for a lazy person like Ye Chuan.

A good item, worth a thousand yuan!

Ye Chuan equipped it. Although a jade pendant didn't physically appear on his neck, it was displayed in his character information, appearing in the equipment slot.

After equipping the jade pendant, his phone vibrated.

[You have entered the Mid Qi Refining realm.]

[Status: Idle cultivation in progress, 6 days until Late Qi Refining (Cultivation efficiency is affected by manual, spiritual root, constitution, etc.)]

Ye Chuan was a little surprised. Did the jade pendant skip the time needed to absorb the Spirit Crystal?

He felt his spiritual energy; it was much more condensed compared to the early Qi Refining stage.

"Can I call early Qi Refining cultivators 'ants' now?" Ye Chuan chuckled, quite satisfied with the result.

Too bad he didn't get anything for his precious money tree to increase her favorability.

Should he buy more snacks?

There was no rush. Ye Chuan decided to take a break (and save some money).