The Ultimate Martial Soul Compression Method Mu En had taught him was like a key.
It had opened the door to the faster cultivation efficiency Lin Ciyan wanted.
Only a little over ten percent? What was that even good for?
Lin Ciyan lay on the Golden Tree Hammock, a Golden Tree leaf between his lips, his brow faintly furrowed.
His ideal cultivation state was "lying down and winning," not "lying down and winning slowly."
At this rate, if he wanted to reach the Soul Saint realm soon and finally slack off in peace, he'd probably have to live long enough to become an "old grandpa."
"No, I need some kind of cheat... Ah, no, I mean, I need to find some supplementary methods that suit my 'Way of Relaxation' better." His thoughts began to stir.
"Condensing a Soul Core in the future will be another key. Ideally, I'll want a top-of-the-line one."
"But first, I need to solve this 'turtle's pace' problem right in front of me."
With a thought, he connected to the Slacker Shop in his mind.
"Refresh!"
At his command, the shop interface flashed with flowing light, and three new items appeared:
[Item: Automatic Fishing Rod (Ultimate Edition)]: Price: 8,000 Slacking Value. Description: Free up your hands and focus on slacking. The willing will take the bait, and you'll never come home empty-handed! (Note: Increased chance of hooking a rare Soul Beast.)
[Skill: One-Second Sleep]: Price: 1,500 Slacking Value. Description: Ignore your surroundings and instantly enter a deep sleep, restoring your energy effectively. An excellent prerequisite skill for slacker cultivation.
[Curio: Never-Cold Hot Tea]: Price: 500 Slacking Value. Description: No matter how long it sits, the tea in your cup will always remain at the perfect drinking temperature. A must-have for slacking in style.
Lin Ciyan's mouth twitched. "...What kind of stuff is this?"
Not one of them could directly increase his cultivation speed. System, have you misunderstood what it means to "get stronger by slacking"?
I want to speed up while lying down, not get more comfortable while lying down!
With no other choice, he put aside his impatience for the time being and began "conventional" cultivation.
By "conventional," he meant taking his Slacker Deluxe Package to the extreme: wearing his health-preserving Brain Wave Pad, cuddling up with Xiyao, and circulating the Great Dream Freedom Scripture to temper his spiritual power in that half-asleep, half-awake state.
At the same time, he tried to incorporate Mu En's "active Soul Power compression method" into his breathing instinct.
And then there was the subtle influence of the [Winning-by-Lying-Down Aura]...
With all these methods combined, his cultivation speed was nearly thirty percent faster than when he simply compressed his Soul Power.
But even that still didn't satisfy him.
That day, on the training grounds at the edge of Sea God Island.
Bei Bei was drenched in sweat, unleashing a furious barrage against a specially made metal post. His Thunder Dragon Claw flashed, electric snakes writhed, and his momentum was awe-inspiring.
Under the shade of a tree at the edge of the grounds, Lin Ciyan lay spread-eagled in a rocking chair with a thin blanket over him. His Brain Wave Pad gave off a faint glow, his breathing even, as if he were fast asleep.
Soft light elements gathered around him, forming a small vortex that silently seeped into his body.
After finishing a round of Soul Skills, Bei Bei came over, panting, to get a drink. Seeing Lin Ciyan like that, he couldn't help complaining, "Brother Lin, are you cultivating or sleeping? I'm practically exhausted to death!"
Lin Ciyan didn't even lift an eyelid. He answered lazily, "What do you know? This is Cultivation Through Sleep, an advanced realm."
"Fighting and killing is for roughnecks. Civilized people like me rely on the mood."
[Ping! You perfectly demonstrated the superiority of "Relaxation Cultivation" in front of your childhood friend, who was working hard at cultivation, and successfully showed off your nonchalant excellence. Slacking Value +120!]
Bei Bei: "..."
What he didn't know was that the sweat he shed from working hard at cultivation had all turned into Slacking Value for Brother Lin right in front of him.
Similar scenes had played out in Shrek Outer Court, too.
Every so often, Lin Ciyan would get a sudden "burst of inspiration" and head to the Outer Court plaza or cultivation area.
He'd find the most conspicuous spot and either lie on a bench or lean against a statue to carry out his "public slacker cultivation."
Whenever the Outer Court students, who worked hard at their cultivation, saw that the legendary genius they'd occasionally heard about was actually so "slack," they were all dumbstruck.
But when they sensed the dense Soul Power fluctuations unconsciously radiating from him, along with the aura that seemed lazy yet was unfathomably deep...
An invisible sense of "shock" and "questioning their entire lives" began to spread.
So... you really could get stronger while lying down? Then what was the point of me working so hard?
[Ping! You demonstrated "Relaxation Cultivation" in a public area of Shrek Outer Court, shocking numerous students and shaking their understanding. You effectively spread the philosophy of slacking... relaxation. Slacking Value +300!]
[Ping! Current Slacking Value: 6,124 points.]
After one such "public cultivation" session, Lin Ciyan had just stretched and was preparing to "call it a day" when a gentle voice tinged with teasing rang out:
"Well, well. What kind of new training is our little genius... doing?"
Lin Ciyan turned around and saw Zhang Lexuan standing not far away. A faint smile played on her lips as she watched him with interest.
"Sister Lexuan!" Lin Ciyan immediately put on a well-behaved—but still lazy—smile.
"This is called 'sensing heaven and earth, becoming one with nature.' It's an advanced method for cultivating both the spirit and Soul Power."
Zhang Lexuan walked closer. She sensed the peaceful yet pure aura that had not fully dissipated around him, and a hint of surprise flashed through her beautiful eyes. "It sounds impressive. But the way you're acting is making quite a few junior brothers and sisters lose focus in their cultivation."
"That just means they haven't cultivated enough. Their mindset isn't up to scratch." Lin Ciyan solemnly spouted nonsense.
"A true powerhouse should be able to say, 'Let them roll as they will; the breeze brushes the hills.'"
"What do you think, Sister Lexuan?"
His twisted logic made Zhang Lexuan burst into laughter. She reached out and lightly tapped him on the forehead. "You always have so much to say. But... your aura does seem purer, and your Soul Power has grown stronger. It looks like your 'Lazy Person Method' really does work."
"Of course. This is the real deal." Lin Ciyan smugly raised his chin.
They chatted a little longer, the atmosphere relaxed and friendly.
Zhang Lexuan found that chatting with this seemingly lazy but perceptive young man always put her at ease.
And Lin Ciyan thought that the Inner Court's senior sister was beautiful and kind.
Time passed. Two months flew by amid cultivation that went "three days fishing, two days drying nets"—though in truth, it was highly efficient slacking.
Through various "slacking behaviors," both intentional and unintentional, Lin Ciyan's Slacking Value finally broke into five figures, reaching more than twelve thousand points!
With anticipation mounting once again, he opened the Slacker Shop.
"Refresh!"
Light flashed. When the list of items came into focus, Lin Ciyan's gaze immediately locked onto one of the new arrivals!
[Conceptual Curio: Slacking Cultivation Accelerator] (passive effect)
[Price: 10,000 Slacking Value]
[Description: An abstract conceptual curio containing philosophies such as "the greatest hermit lives in the city" and "hide your merit and fame." Once activated, it passively increases cultivation speed based on the "Slacking Influence" the host generates.]
[Effect: The system will comprehensively assess the emotional fluctuations of others—such as shock, acceptance, and imitation—caused by the host's actions and their influence on concepts like "relaxation" and "slacking." (Collectively known as Slacking Influence.)]
[Slacking Influence: Influence is divided into different tiers. If current influence reaches 5,000, cultivation speed increases by 10%; if it reaches 10,000, by 20%; if it reaches 20,000, by 30%; if it reaches 40,000, by 40%... and so on, up to a maximum of 100%!]
(Note: Influence is assessed by the system's intelligence. It is related to, but not absolutely equivalent to, the amount of Slacking Value directly earned.)
[Slogan: The more you "slack off" in other people's eyes, the faster you cultivate in private! Quietly amassing a fortune is the true way!]
Lin Ciyan's eyes lit up at once!
This was it!
This thing was practically made for him! It was a little like that time he'd promoted slacking culture around Douluo I...
Combined with the [Invisible Mode] he'd already obtained—which passively lowered his presence and made others overlook his actions and aura—the two effects would stack.
The art of showing off without a trace was the most lethal!
And after showing off, the resulting Slacking Influence could speed up his cultivation. This was a perpetual motion machine!
"I'm buying it!" Lin Ciyan paid 10,000 points without hesitation.
[Ping! You spent 10,000 Slacking Value and successfully purchased the conceptual curio [Slacking Cultivation Accelerator]! Remaining Slacking Value: 2,310 points.]
[Ping! [Slacking Cultivation Accelerator] activated. Evaluating current Slacking Influence... Evaluation complete! Current overall influence: 0. Cultivation speed increase: 0%.]
"Uh..." The delighted expression on Lin Ciyan's face instantly froze.
Zero? It was actually zero?!
Only then did he take a closer look at the description: "passively increases... based on the 'Slacking Influence' the host generates."
That term didn't seem to mean the bit of Slacking Value he earned through daily cultivation and interacting with people.
It specifically referred to the quantified measure of the impact and influence his "slacking" behavior had on other people's understanding.
The system apparently had stricter criteria for that.
Over the past two months, he'd mostly slacked off among familiar faces and in familiar places.
Although he'd earned quite a bit of Slacking Value, he might not have created any "influential" events on a broad enough scale or with enough impact.
"Looks like just 'small-scale stuff' isn't enough..." Lin Ciyan rubbed his chin. The light in his eyes shifted from initial surprise to a calculating eagerness.
Influence... required a broader stage and, more importantly... an audience.
His gaze seemed to pierce the walls of Sea God Pavilion and look toward the bustling, lively city of Shrek.
There were more Soul Masters there, more ordinary people, and a much bigger... market.
"Hmm..." A sly smile, utterly at odds with his lazy demeanor, curled at the corner of Lin Ciyan's mouth.
"Just staying on the island and working behind closed doors really won't do."
"Looks like it's time to head into the city and take my philosophy of Relaxation Cultivation on tour."
"I need to think about how I can casually show more people how I'm 'slacking on the surface, but actually amazing.'"
"Maybe I could find a lively place, like the plaza in the city center, and hold an unusual 'public meditation'?"
"Or, in full view of everyone, deal with some minor trouble in the most relaxed manner possible?"
Countless ideas began circling through his mind.
Combined with the passive effects of [Invisible Mode], he could first blend in without drawing attention.
Then, at the critical moment, he could "casually" reveal his strength and create a huge contrast!
Quietly amassing a fortune required having some "noise" to hide in first! This time, he had to take the initiative and make some "big news"!
Carrying this new urge to "stir things up" and a clear goal, Lin Ciyan lay back down in his hammock.
But this time, his mind had already flown off to planning an exciting scheme for harvesting "Slacking Influence."
Shrek City, are you ready to welcome a "philosophical master" determined to cultivate "slacking" to its utmost limit?