Chapter 126: The Alchemy of Love and Cultivation

As for Ye Xingchen, having just finished his bath, he lay on his bed, lost in thought. He mused on how the people of this world seemed perpetually busy, yet unlike the cultivation world where mobile phones and the internet were commonplace, this realm had neither. Instead, its mages spent their days either meditating or traveling to meditate.

‘It seemed… I would need to find an opportunity to introduce some alchemy, if only to popularize it enough to create something as basic as speakers. Otherwise, what was a person like me, who didn’t require much cultivation, to do during my downtime, besides lying around in a daze? Flirt with myself?’

Just as he was contemplating this, Liu Yuxuan’s voice broke his reverie.

“Brother Xingchen, do you really think I have a chance with Miss Yunxin? She’s the third-ranked Night Elf on the campus beauty list!”

Recalling Li Yunxin’s parting words, a classic line from *Sanguosha*, Ye Xingchen nearly kicked him.

“What ‘Night Elf’? More like an internet-addicted girl who stays up all night gaming! Who came up with that nickname? I suggest they be directly admitted to a college specializing in chunibyo syndrome.”

Liu Yuxuan scratched his head, his tone deflating slightly.

“Uh… that’s not the point! The main thing is, she’s a campus beauty adored by everyone. How could she ever look at me, a perennial second-place finisher, a complete underdog?”

“Why panic? Where there’s a will, there’s a way. With enough perseverance, even an iron rod can be ground into a needle.” Heaven knew what Ye Xingchen was implying with that.

To be honest, seeing Liu Yuxuan’s rather hapless demeanor vividly reminded Ye Xingchen of his past life, long ago on Earth, when he was a corporate drone. He silently evaluated: ‘He’s not bad looking, but his temperament is a bit lacking. If only he could utter something audacious…’

“I was saying, ‘sincerity can move mountains.’ Have you already forgotten the first chapter of the ‘Eighteen Ways to Woo a Girl’ that I taught you?” Ye Xingchen said unhurriedly.

“I remember it, I do! You said to be sincere when pursuing girls. But she seems to really dislike me.”

‘With your aura, akin to that of an underachiever, how could an ordinary girl possibly be smitten with you at first glance?’

“The first impression is external; the second is internal. When pursuing girls, you need to be persistent, even brazen! When a woman says no, it means yes. If you don’t even have that much awareness, how can you ever win the goddess of your dreams?”

“So that’s how it is! Girls always say the opposite of what they mean, especially goddesses!” Liu Yuxuan once again pulled out his small notebook, *Eighteen Ways to Woo a Girl*, and began jotting notes.

“Alright, stretch out your hand. Let me take a look.”

“Brother Xingchen, you can do astrology too? Isn’t that a secret deductive art only taught in higher grades? They say it can predict future marriages…”

Astrology was a high-level elective course they would soon study, rumored to deduce events and predict the future. As one delved deeper and gained more insight, their deductive abilities would strengthen, and powerful astrologers even enjoyed national-level treatment. However, this course was extremely difficult, demanding rigorous talent, and very few senior students managed to master it.

“What are you thinking?” With that, Ye Xingchen grabbed Liu Yuxuan’s hand and began tentatively sensing the magical energy flowing within him.

His elemental affinity was moderate, his spiritual power decent, but his magic flow was severely obstructed. This, it seemed, was the primary reason for his slow cultivation progress. However, for the current Ye Xingchen, this problem was not difficult to solve. After all, he had recently gathered many rare medicinal herbs from that cave. A little refining into some basic pills would clear his blockages and show immediate results.

It was worth noting that the art of alchemy in the cultivation world could be traced back to the ancient Daoist ancestors’ pill refining techniques. Though the technology was immature back then—even gunpowder was stumbled upon during pill refining, and their understanding of medicinal properties was rudimentary—the craft had continuously improved with the times.

Later, when Ye Xingchen entered the cultivation world, he was forced to delve deep into alchemy to earn cultivation resources. From his initial fumbling attempts to eventually mastering the control of heat and precise ingredient ratios, he persevered through diligent study and hard work, finally conquering the skill. While he couldn’t be called a grandmaster now, refining less complex elixirs was still second nature to him.

“Here’s what we’ll do: if you help me gather some items, I’ll help you solve your perennial second-place problem.”

Ye Xingchen recalled that Liu Yuxuan was quite wealthy, never troubled by money, and could always pull a few gold coins from his person. Asking him to prepare some things shouldn’t be an issue.

“Really? Brother Xingchen, if you had that ability, why are you still a ‘perennial second-place finisher’ yourself?” Liu Yuxuan was half-skeptical.

“Hmph! You brat… Fine then, go figure out how to pursue Li Yunxin on your own.” Ye Xingchen made to withdraw his hand.

“No, no, no! Brother Xingchen, what do you need? As long as I can get it, I’ll get it for you! But if it’s too expensive…” Liu Yuxuan quickly forced a smile.

“Don’t worry, it won’t break your bank.” Ye Xingchen pulled out a slip of paper listing two items: an alchemy furnace and a magical storage bottle for preserving medicinal herbs.

Liu Yuxuan took the slip and read it. “Neither of these is difficult; I can get them with some money. But, Brother Xingchen, how does this relate to me shedding my ‘perennial second-place’ status or winning over Miss Yunxin?”

“Think about it,” Ye Xingchen eloquently expounded, though his mind was already scheming to have Su Liyue find an opportunity to connect with this fellow countryman and act as his inside agent. With an inside-outside strategy…

He continued, “Currently, your strength isn’t sufficient, so Li Yunxin naturally won’t take you seriously. But once your strength improves, and your sincerity in pursuing her is evident, coupled with your decent looks, if you seize the right opportunity, won’t your chances of winning her over be several times higher than an ordinary person’s?” After all, in his previous life, he had read his share of romance novels and was well-versed in their tropes. Can’t woo a girl? Then improve yourself and let her come to you! As long as the male lead is outstanding and sincere, paired with just the right amount of fate and opportunity, why would the female lead not be moved?

“So that’s how it is!” Liu Yuxuan slapped his thigh, a sudden realization dawning on him. No wonder Brother Xingchen managed to win Su Liyue, the academy’s universally acknowledged “nightmare-level difficulty” top campus beauty! This strategy, these tactics, were simply beyond his reach! Brilliant! Truly brilliant! Worthy of Brother Xingchen!

But then, a thought struck him. ‘Wait a minute! In terms of strength, isn’t Brother Xingchen ranked behind me? How did he manage to win the school’s universally recognized goddess, Su Liyue, without relying on cultivation power?’

Liu Yuxuan leaned closer. “Hold on! Brother Xingchen, this *Eighteen Ways to Woo a Girl* of yours… could it be that besides what’s written in the book, there’s actually some hidden ultimate secret technique?”

“Tsk, you’re quite clever sometimes, brat. Listen, there are two kinds of books in this world for everything: one is the theory of others’ experiences found in actual books, and the other is the secret manual of truth gained through practice. Pursuing girls is like cultivating magic; just memorizing spells isn’t enough. You need to combine both and know how to improvise on the spot,” Ye Xingchen said, feigning profound wisdom.

“So that’s how it is!” Liu Yuxuan understood! Chief Su’s boyfriend truly was different!