Lin Chen woke to the sound of screaming.
His own screaming, he realized. In his head.
**[IDLE CULTIVATION COMPLETE]**
**[DURATION: 8 HOURS 23 MINUTES]**
**[GENERATING REPORT...]**
The blue screen filled his vision. Bright enough to hurt in the pre-dawn darkness.
Lin Chen sat up, heart pounding.
'Right. The system. That actually happened.'
He'd half-convinced himself it was a dream. A stress-induced hallucination from reading his expulsion notice.
Apparently not.
**[CULTIVATION REPORT]**
**Base Qi Gained: 45**
**Multiplier: 10,000X**
**Total Qi Gained: 450,000**
Lin Chen stared at the numbers.
Blinked.
Read them again.
"Four hundred and fifty thousand."
His voice came out as a whisper.
'That's... that can't be right.'
He'd spent three years barely accumulating a few hundred qi points total. A good night of cultivation for a normal outer disciple was maybe five or ten points.
Forty-five was already insane.
But 450,000?
**[BREAKTHROUGH DETECTED]**
**Qi Condensation Layer 1 → Layer 2**
**Qi Condensation Layer 2 → Layer 3**
**Qi Condensation Layer 3 → Layer 4**
**Qi Condensation Layer 4 → Layer 5**
**Qi Condensation Layer 5 → Layer 6**
**[CURRENT REALM: QI CONDENSATION LAYER 6]**
Lin Chen stopped breathing.
Layer Six.
He was Layer Six.
He'd gone from Layer One to Layer Six.
In eight hours.
While sleeping.
"No way. No way. This is—"
He pressed his palm against his chest, feeling for his qi. The standard diagnostic technique every outer disciple learned.
The surge of power nearly knocked him over.
It was like comparing a candle to a bonfire. Where before his qi had been a weak trickle—barely noticeable, struggling to move—now it flooded through his meridians like a raging river.
Strong. Clear. Overwhelming.
'Holy shit. It's real. All of it is real.'
Lin Chen's hands shook.
Layer Six meant inner disciple level. It meant respect. Resources. An actual future.
It meant—
**[WARNING]**
**Sudden advancement detected by body.**
**Acclimation recommended: 24-48 hours before combat.**
**Qi control currently unstable.**
"Unstable," Lin Chen muttered. "Right. Of course."
He stood up carefully.
His body felt different. Lighter. Stronger. Like he'd been wearing weights his entire life and someone had just cut them off.
He threw a practice punch.
The movement was twice as fast as he expected. His fist blurred through the air with a sharp whistle.
He stumbled, off-balance.
'Okay. Definitely need to practice control before I accidentally break something.'
Or someone.
---
Lin Chen sat back down and forced himself to think.
The initial shock was fading. His brain, honed by three years of survival in the sect's brutal hierarchy, kicked into gear.
'Alright. Let's think this through logically.'
He'd jumped five layers overnight. From trash to inner disciple level. Because of some mysterious system with a 10,000X multiplier.
'First question: What the hell is this thing?'
He focused on the blue screen.
"System? What are you?"
No response.
"Where did you come from?"
Silence.
"Why me?"
The screen remained blank except for his status information.
**[HOST: LIN CHEN]**
**[REALM: QI CONDENSATION LAYER 6]**
**[QI: 451,127 / 500,000]**
**[NEXT BREAKTHROUGH: 48,873 QI REQUIRED]**
'Not the talkative type. Got it.'
Lin Chen tried a different approach.
"Can you show me... features? Options? A menu?"
The screen flickered.
**[INFINITE IDLE CULTIVATION ENGINE]**
**CORE FEATURES:**
**→ Idle Cultivation (ACTIVE)**
**→ Cultivation Multiplier: 10,000X**
**→ Auto-Advancement (ACTIVE)**
**→ Technique Mastery (LOCKED - Insufficient Realm)**
**→ System Inventory (LOCKED - Insufficient Realm)**
**→ Quest System (LOCKED - Insufficient Realm)**
**[ADDITIONAL FEATURES UNLOCK WITH PROGRESSION]**
Lin Chen read the list three times.
'Idle cultivation means it runs constantly. Even while I'm awake. And everything gets multiplied by 10,000.'
The implications hit him like a sledgehammer.
If a normal talented disciple cultivated for ten hours and gained 50 qi points, they'd need... he did the math... 10,000 points to break through from Layer Six to Layer Seven.
That was 200 days of cultivation. More than half a year.
With his multiplier? If he cultivated for ten hours, he'd gain 500,000 qi points.
He could break through in a single day.
'No. Faster. The system said "idle" cultivation. It runs all the time.'
Twenty-four hours of passive cultivation would be...
He couldn't even calculate it. The numbers were too stupid.
'I could hit Layer Ten in a week. Foundation Establishment in a month. Core Formation in...'
Lin Chen stopped himself.
His heart was racing again. This time not from shock, but from possibility.
'This is insane. This is absolutely insane.'
He'd gone from trash disciple with an expulsion notice to someone with a cheat code that made cultivation prodigies look slow.
A laugh bubbled up in his chest. Slightly hysterical.
"I'm going to be okay," he whispered. "I'm actually going to be okay."
Then the second realization hit him.
And the laughter died.
---
'Wait.'
Lin Chen stood up and started pacing in his tiny room.
Three steps one way. Turn. Three steps back.
'If I show up at the monthly evaluation as Layer Six, they'll have questions.'
Questions he couldn't answer.
'Where did you get resources for such rapid advancement?'
'What technique are you using?'
'How did you overcome your trash-tier spiritual roots?'
And the worst question of all:
'What are you hiding?'
Lin Chen had spent three years invisible. Three years as the sect's biggest failure. Everyone knew him as the guy who couldn't reach Layer Two.
If he suddenly jumped to Layer Six?
'They'll dissect me. Literally or figuratively, take your pick.'
Sects protected their geniuses. But they also controlled them. Monitored them. Made sure their loyalty was absolute.
And if they suspected he had some incredible treasure or secret technique?
'They'll take it. Or kill me for it. Or both.'
Lin Chen stopped pacing.
The euphoria of breakthrough faded, replaced by cold calculation.
'I can't reveal this. Any of this.'
The monthly evaluation was in three days. He'd been planning to show up, demonstrate his still-pathetic Layer One cultivation, and accept his expulsion with what dignity he had left.
Now?
'Now I need a plan.'
He sat down and thought.
Showing Layer Six was out. That would raise too many red flags.
But staying at Layer One was also suspicious. The evaluation was specifically checking for "meaningful progress." If he showed zero improvement, they'd expel him anyway.
'So I need to show just enough progress to pass. But not enough to attract attention.'
Layer Two.
That was the sweet spot. Still pathetic by sect standards—most outer disciples reached Layer Two in their first year. But after three years of failure, showing a single layer breakthrough would be "meaningful progress."
It would look like desperation finally paid off. Like he'd burned through his last contribution points on resources and barely squeaked by.
Embarrassing, but believable.
'Yeah. Layer Two. That's my story.'
Lin Chen felt his qi surging through his meridians. Layer Six power, contained in a trash disciple's body.
'I'll need to suppress it. Deliberately hold back.'
He'd watched inner disciples spar for three years. Studied how they moved, how they channeled qi. He knew what different cultivation layers looked like.
'I can fake Layer Two. Just channel a trickle of qi. Move slower. Pretend to struggle.'
It would be like fighting with one hand tied behind his back.
But it would keep him alive.
---
Lin Chen spent the next hour experimenting with qi control.
Channeling just a small amount was harder than he'd expected. Like trying to pour a single drop from a bucket. His qi wanted to flood out, overwhelming and obvious.
But slowly, carefully, he got the hang of it.
A thin thread of qi instead of a raging river. Weak. Barely noticeable.
Perfect Layer Two performance.
'Three years of being trash taught me how to look pathetic. Silver lining, I guess.'
He practiced a basic punch. This time, moving at Layer Two speed.
Slow. Weak. The kind of strike that wouldn't hurt a spirit beast.
The kind that wouldn't attract attention.
'Good. I can do this.'
The system screen pulsed.
**[IDLE CULTIVATION ONGOING]**
**[ESTIMATED TIME TO LAYER 7: 18 HOURS]**
Lin Chen stared at the notification.
Eighteen hours until he broke through again.
'I need to stop that. Or at least hide it.'
"System," he said quietly. "Can I... delay breakthroughs? Store qi without advancing?"
The screen flickered.
**[QUERY ACKNOWLEDGED]**
**[AUTO-ADVANCEMENT CAN BE DISABLED]**
**[WARNING: Excessive qi accumulation without breakthrough may cause instability]**
**[RECOMMEND BREAKTHROUGH WITHIN 72 HOURS OF THRESHOLD]**
"Disable auto-advancement," Lin Chen said immediately.
**[AUTO-ADVANCEMENT: DISABLED]**
**[QI ACCUMULATION WILL CONTINUE]**
**[MANUAL BREAKTHROUGH REQUIRED]**
Relief washed over him.
'Okay. So the system keeps gathering qi, but I control when I actually break through. That's manageable.'
He could accumulate power in secret and only advance when it was safe. When he had privacy. When he had an excuse.
'This might actually work.'
Three days until the evaluation.
Three days to practice acting like a struggling Layer Two outer disciple.
Three days to figure out how to hide the most overpowered cultivation cheat in existence.
'No pressure.'
Lin Chen laughed quietly.
'Yesterday I was getting expelled. Today I'm planning how to hide the fact that I'm going to surpass everyone in this sect.'
The irony was delicious.
---
Dawn light crept through the crack under his door.
Outside, he could hear other outer disciples waking up. Footsteps. Conversations. The normal sounds of sect life beginning.
Lin Chen stood and stretched.
His body hummed with power. Layer Six strength contained in trash disciple clothing.
'Alright, universe. You gave me a miracle. Now let's see if I can actually pull this off.'
He opened his door and stepped into the courtyard.
A few early risers glanced his way. Their eyes slid past him without interest.
Trash disciple. Not worth noticing.
'Perfect. Let's keep it that way.'
Lin Chen headed toward the training grounds. He'd practice his "struggling Layer Two" act. Make it convincing.
The system screen pulsed at the edge of his vision.
**[IDLE CULTIVATION ONGOING]**
**[QI GAINED IN LAST HOUR: 18,750]**
**[ESTIMATED DAILY GAIN: 450,000]**
**[CURRENT STATUS: RAPIDLY ADVANCING]**
He dismissed the notification and kept walking.
Three days.
He could do this.
He had to.
Because the alternative—revealing his secret—would get him killed.
'Everyone cultivates slowly. I get 10,000X gains.'
'Time to figure out how to survive being overpowered.'
---
Behind him, unnoticed in the morning shadows, the system screen flickered.
**[ANALYSIS COMPLETE]**
**[HOST DEMONSTRATES STRATEGIC THINKING]**
**[SURVIVAL INSTINCT: EXCELLENT]**
**[DECEPTION CAPABILITY: ADEQUATE]**
**[ASSESSMENT: HOST COMPATIBLE WITH HIDDEN CULTIVATION PROTOCOL]**
**[RECOMMENDATION: CONTINUE OBSERVATION]**
**[PRIORITY: ENSURE HOST SURVIVAL]**
**[SECONDARY OBJECTIVE: —]**
**[ERROR]**
**[SECONDARY OBJECTIVE DATA CORRUPTED]**
**[UNABLE TO DISPLAY]**
**[SYSTEM INTEGRITY: 87%]**
The screen glitched, characters scrambling for half a second before stabilizing.
Then it vanished.
Lin Chen didn't notice.
He was too busy planning his survival.
And deep in the system's code, something ancient and broken watched him with interest.