"Gifted successfully!"

  "Gift: Ten middle-grade Qi-Nourishing Pills."

  "Returning feedback...."

  "Tenfold feedback, reward: One hundred middle-grade Qi-Nourishing Pills."

  Back in his room, Ye Chen had no trace of sorrow on his face. Listening to the system's notification, he nodded contentedly. Lu Jing had indeed provided the tenfold reward. With this, Lin Ke'er's importance had significantly decreased in his mind.

  However, the female cultivator from Green Cloud Shop, who had a fifteenfold feedback, still lingered in Ye Chen's thoughts. After all, the extra five times was no small matter. Over the course of years, that would amount to an astronomical sum. Not to mention, many things couldn't be measured simply by spirit stones.

  For example, gifting spells. The difference between a tenfold and a fifteenfold reward was like heaven and earth. For the female cultivator from Green Cloud Shop, Ye Chen had already formed an idea after seeing Lu Jing's actions.

  He had also done some inquiries over the past few days. The person in charge of Green Cloud Shop was Sun Ye. And Sun Ruoxin was his daughter. Sun Ye was rather greedy, but his talisman-making skills were decent.

  He had once been an outer disciple of the Green Cloud Sect. It seemed he had been injured during a sect competition and was unable to progress any further. He was then reassigned to be the steward at the Green Cloud Shop in Silver Moon Market.

  Sun Ye being so greedy made things easier. Ye Chen decided to pay the tuition and learn talisman-making from the other party.

  Unlike Lu Jing, who was an apprentice without paying any fees and had to work for the master, Ye Chen would pay to receive proper guidance, essentially hiring him as a teacher.

  Given Sun Ye's personality, it was clear that learning talisman-making from him would not be cheap. But once the connection was established, Ye Chen could also meet Sun Ruoxin, thereby gaining access to the fifteenfold feedback channel.

  This would be a further fivefold increase in the feedback reward. The small tuition fee would easily be recouped.

  Ye Chen had no doubts about his choice. As for whether learning talisman-making would be a waste of time now that he was already an alchemist, Ye Chen thought it didn't matter much.

  The more skills, the better. If he could learn, that would be great. If not, then it didn’t matter, since his main target was the fifteenfold feedback from Sun Ruoxin. However, since for now, his savings were still insufficient, he needed to accumulate more before proceeding.

  …

  The next morning, Ye Chen continued his usual routine of cultivation. Though he was always full of energy and vitality when he woke up, he wasn't in a rush because he understood the value of delayed gratification.

  The cultivation world was full of dangers. Only cultivation and strength mattered; everything else, including women, was trivial. They would only hinder the speed of his cultivation. Once he became stronger, what couldn't he enjoy?

  So unless the system's cold, detached notifications demanded it, he wouldn't bother to leave the house to meet female cultivators.

  However, by the afternoon, Lu Jing came again. She came under the pretense of caring for Ye Chen, offering him comfort.

  On the third day, Lu Jing came by again, conveniently passing by on her way home from work to check on Ye Chen. On the fourth day, she even brought Ye Chen the first talisman she had crafted herself, a "Clear Evil Talisman."

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  In the cultivation world, souls and spirits were very much real. If a cultivator died in a place with special conditions, by sheer chance, they could turn into something strange, a distorted form of their former self.

  The "Clear Evil Talisman" was highly effective against such aberrations. Lu Jing practically came by every day. She always found reasons to check on Ye Chen. She thought this continuous barrage of attention had to yield results.

  After all, if a mature and curvaceous woman sought you out every day, most male cultivators would surely entertain impure thoughts. They'd begin to wonder if the other person was interested in them.

  Not to mention, Lu Jing crafted a persona for herself, sending small yet meaningful gifts, like the talisman, that carried sentimental value. Add in her inherent allure, and it was a winning combination. Most male cultivators would fall for it.

  Ye Chen's reactions were exactly what Lu Jing expected. In the previous few days, he had been in a melancholic mood, occasionally gazing longingly in the direction of the mountain peaks during their conversations.

  However, his spirits had improved considerably since then. His gaze towards Lu Jing had grown warmer, more intense. He no longer mentioned Lin Ke'er, acting almost as if he had fallen out of love. His shift in attitude made Lu Jing overjoyed.

  The progress of her plan to conquer Ye Chen was faster than she had imagined. In truth, Lu Jing felt a little contemptuous of Ye Chen. Though she acknowledged her own charm, she couldn't help but feel that Ye Chen had changed his affections far too quickly.

  Was this real love?

  Earlier, Lu Jing had thought Ye Chen's feelings for Lin Ke'er were sincere, and part of her had even felt a touch of admiration. But now, she only saw him as a lecherous fool. It was clear he simply liked attractive women. She had shown him a little affection, and just like that, Ye Chen had moved on from Lin Ke'er, abandoning his previous attachment.

  But despite her disdain, Lu Jing couldn't help but feel pleased. This was exactly the result she wanted to see. The sooner she captured Ye Chen's heart, the sooner she could secure more resources to support her cultivation. Only then would she be able to rapidly improve and break free from the constraints of her apprentice contract.

  As the evening of the sixth day arrived, Ye Chen voluntarily saw off Lu Jing, his reluctance evident in his actions. He even seemed to hesitate for a moment, wanting to escort her back home.

  However, Lu Jing politely refused. "Fellow Daoist Ye, there's no need to send me. If you have time tomorrow afternoon, do come by my house for a meal. I have some beast meat from a demon beast. If I stew it and pair it with spirit rice, the flavor will be exquisite. My culinary skills are quite good. You must try it.”

  Ye Chen's face lit up with delight, and without any hesitation, he nodded in agreement. "I'd be honored."

  Seeing the eager look on Ye Chen's face, Lu Jing's heart skipped a beat.

  'Too easy. He's practically in the palm of my hand. Lin Ke'er, your little simp is indeed quite something, but he'll soon belong to me.'

  Lu Jing felt satisfaction as she bid Ye Chen farewell.

  As she walked away, Ye Chen couldn't help but smile as he admired her graceful, swaying figure. Her methods were indeed far superior to Lin Ke'er's. Inviting him over for a meal…. The very act would stir expectations in any man.

  "Lu Jing must like me."

  But even though Ye Chen had been moved, he knew better than to fall for such simple tricks. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate her attention; more that he saw through her intentions.

  Nonetheless, he could trigger the tenfold return again tomorrow. He decided to, as Lu Jing had expected, give her a little surprise, one that might also trigger some great feedback rewards.

  "Let's see if it’ll be a critical hit."

  ...

  The next day, after completing his cultivation tasks, Ye Chen spent the afternoon refining a batch of pills. Then, he set off for Green Cloud Shop. When he arrived, the attendant who had previously helped him recognized him immediately.

  "Fellow Daoist, what can I assist you with today?" the attendant asked politely.

  Ye Chen smiled and asked, "I'm looking for your steward. Is he here?"

  Last time, the steward, Sun Ye, had shown him a defensive spell, Golden Light Technique, which had worked quite well. Ye Chen had decided that today, he would purchase that spell.

  Even though he already had offensive spells, a defensive one was necessary to complete his arsenal. In the future, he also planned to purchase speed-enhancing spells. The idea was to develop comprehensively in all areas.

  During the purchase, he would also take the opportunity to familiarize himself with the people here, letting them know he had the means to spend. This would come in handy when he would eventually seek to learn about talisman-making from them.

  The attendant, recognizing Ye Chen's face, didn't ask further. Instead, he simply nodded and went to fetch Sun Ye from the back.

  Soon, Sun Ye appeared and greeted Ye Chen warmly, inviting him upstairs to the second floor.