Chapter 3 Determination

Finally, the diary has turned to page 999, which is the last mysterious girl

May you be happy and safe - Mei Xue. On the last bookmark, write down your name and a brief blessing. The young man gently closes the diary and decides never to open it again

At this point, this diary, which recorded all his memories of heartbreak, no longer had any blank pages, and he finally realized that his romantic endeavors might never succeed

After leaving the orphanage and purchasing this estate with his meager income, he was destitute for a period of time. During that time, he was so impoverished that he could not even afford to buy clothes, and for nearly a year, he wore the academy uniform. Fortunately, the uniform of the Junior Sorcery Academy also had a simple dust-repelling function; otherwise, he would have had no clothes to change into.

Sigh, is it really my fault? After a sigh, the young man pushed open the simple wooden door and walked into his home

He does not regret meeting them, nor does he regret having once liked them

Fate has no right or wrong

This diary was purchased by him on the occasion of his one hundredth heartbreak, consisting of exactly nine hundred and ninety-nine pages. However, he later added a bookmark at the end, bringing the total to one thousand pages

As a pharmacist, he does have some income to a certain extent, but the money earned from alchemy has all been spent on various flowers and gifts, which he intends to present when he confesses his feelings.

The general who picked up that little baby named him under the plum tree - Mei Xue

The fine rain of the autumn sky silently transformed into delicate white snow, just like that winter sixteen years ago, when a small infant was discovered under a blood-stained plum blossom by a general leading an army into battle

He cannot afford the high-level alchemy workshops that require payment at the academy, so he can only practice alchemy at home, even reluctant to buy materials from the academy. Apart from a few essential main ingredients that can only be obtained from the academy, the rest are all grown by himself

Sweet memories, bittersweet memories, and memories that evoke both laughter and tears; each page here is a trace of time. From the orphanage to the academy on Tiantai Mountain, he and they met and parted, leaving behind unforgettable memories from their brief encounters

Unfortunately, he did not wait for her, and he could no longer find any trace of her.

Many young girls approached him impulsively to confess their feelings, even without him knowing their names, resulting in quite a few amusing incidents. Even now, among these nine hundred and ninety-nine pages, there are still many people whose names he does not know

However, that was all his own willing choice; even knowing that this love was unrequited, he still devoted his true heart to them

Uncertain of when it happened, fine rain began to fall from the sky again, and the young man quickened his pace to return home.

Each heartbreak leaves a scar in his heart, a scar that does not fade with time but rather deepens continuously

However, love is without reason; he encountered them and bravely confessed his feelings to them. Everything came from the heart, with no pretense, as if there were an unbreakable bond of fate between him and them

What will it be like after entering the Buddhist path? The young man imagined that it would involve chanting scriptures, meditating, and practicing Zen, in short, it would have nothing to do with alchemy.

However, he did not capture that bluebird of love, watching as the bird representing happiness flew away before him

Behave, when you grow up, your sister will consider it, but not now

Fire Spirit Grass, www.hetushu.com.com Seven Snake Fruit, March Vine. Approaching the medicine cauldron, the young man habitually tossed several processed herbs into the boiling medicinal soup.

Fortunately, the previous owner of this courtyard was also a graduate of the Junior Immortal Techniques Academy, and left behind quite a few seeds and unripe medicinal herbs, saving him a considerable amount of effort

In the cold white snow, the baby is covered with plum blossoms, as if being protected by them

Perhaps the vast majority of them have long forgotten this young man of humble origins who inexplicably confessed to these ladies, but he remembers each and every one of them.

Unfortunately, the disparity in status between him and her is indeed too great, and she has long since gone to a distant battlefield, with no news of her for many years

Even now, as he decides to let go of worldly attachments and enter the Buddhist path, he harbors no resentment towards them whatsoever

In the center of the room stands a large cauldron, about the height of a person, which is an essential vessel for alchemy.

Because the disparity in identity between him and them is too great, and because the ordinary him is completely unworthy of them, he is merely an orphan picked up from the battlefield, a student studying at this small Tian Tai Shan Junior College

Turning to the first page of the diary, there is a tall girl with azure dragon horns, his first love. She, with her graceful demeanor, is an idol in the hearts of countless people, and she was also the first person to confess to him

One can imagine that there could not possibly be any cloud towers or painted buildings here, nor could there be any high-class residents; the most remote corner is the home of the young boy

Although humble and dilapidated, this is the home of the youth, as well as his medicinal field and alchemy workshop

Sitting on his somewhat cold stone bed, the young man took out his diary

The medicinal concoction in this cauldron has been simmering for three years. Although its quality is not high, it is sufficient for refining a few basic potions. These basic potions have also been the commodities that the young man has relied on for his livelihood over the years

Behind the medicinal herb field stands a dilapidated small stone house, which has long been covered with vines. A few languid morning glories hang above, comfortably enjoying the nourishment of the autumn rain

Love has no right or wrong

Where might she be now? And where are the other nine hundred and ninety-eight? He sincerely wishes them well, grateful to fate for the moments of intersection he shared with them.

However, it was not until the herbs were thrown in that the young man remembered that he might not need to refine medicine after tomorrow

She is the girl who is closest to him, the one with whom he spent the happiest years, and the one who waited for him for three days and nights, risking illness and the threat of wild beasts.

He became an alchemist simply because it was the fastest way for him, as a child, to become self-sufficient. He did not like to burden others, and even though the battlefield orphanage was a public institution established by all races, he did not like the atmosphere there

A love repeated nine hundred and ninety-nine times, a heartbreak repeated nine hundred and ninety-nine times, after dragging his frail body to the place of appointment and waiting for three days and three nights, he finally sighed as he filled the nine hundred and ninety-ninth page of his diary, which was also the last page

Continuing on, the second and third girls were also acquainted during that period. At that time, both he and they were still young, but it seems that girls are always more precocious when it comes to matters of love, which is why his confession ended in a disastrous failure

In the flipping pages of the book, the young man unfolds his past one by one

That was his first rejection. Although looking back now, he was indeed inexplicably mature for his age, the failure of his first confession and the library incident did leave him with some psychological scars.

As for the return, it goes without saying that it is zero; in terms of investment returns, it can no longer be described as a loss. It is common to accept a gift with one foot and then reject his confession with the other; there are even a few instances where he was playfully asked for several gifts before being rejected.

It is more appropriate to call it an alchemical workshop rather than a home; apart from the bed in the corner and a few books on it that exude a sense of life, the room is filled with herbs in the process of being processed.

Independence, autonomy, and the ability to make decisions for oneself—this is his character. After sensing the pitying gazes of the people in the orphanage, he no longer wished to remain there

Now I recall that between him and her, it was merely unrequited love. At that time, he was still young and was treated by her as a child. Although he had been embraced by her before, it was clearly not an intimacy between a man and a woman, but rather the affection of an elder for a child

She is that gentle person, the one he initially fell in love with, and it is she who made him understand what love truly is

Choose your own path, no matter how difficult it may be, and do not regret it

Speaking of which, he is not actually a fervent lover of alchemy. Although, as a descendant of the Flame Clan, he possesses a natural talent for alchemy, it is only slightly stronger than that of an average person, and cannot be considered outstanding.

Almost every member of the Flame Clan is a half-breeder, inheriting the bloodline of the great ancestor Yan Emperor, which endows them with innate resistance to toxins and affinity for plants. Wherever the Flame Clan resides, various medicinal herbs are abundant, and the Flame Clan is also the race with the most divine herbalists, with eight out of ten renowned divine herbalists in history coming from the Flame Clan

Even so, he has been striving, bravely confessing his feelings and expressing love at moments of excitement in order not to miss the opportunity

The mysterious her, just as she appeared, quietly vanished from his world.

The hand-folded thousand paper cranes, said to bring good luck, the yellow satin ribbon, representing love, the nine hundred ninety-nine roses, the sparkling starfish, and the seven-colored stationery—these beautiful and adorable gifts, though not at all affordable, nearly exhausted all of his financial resources

Ninety-nine times of heartbreak does not mean that he has lost hope; it merely signifies that he has realized he has walked into a dead end

He still remembers the response he received when he confessed to her, the one he admired, when they were young

In the yard, a few low-grade herbs are sparsely planted. As a pharmacist of the Flame Clan, cultivating herbs is almost an instinctive ability. Even the descendants of the Flame Clan who have not become pharmacists would plant some medicinal flowers and herbs in their yards to nurture their hearts and clear their minds

Because he has always devoted himself wholeheartedly, the pain of heartbreak is even more intense

They are beautiful figures who happened to pass by here, mostly accompanied by guards and companions, completely belonging to a different world from the solitary and ordinary him

Those are filled with memories, his years of romance

What should one do when encountering a dead end in a maze? Then one should take another path, seeking more possibilities for oneself; this is the decision he made earlier

This is a dilapidated stone courtyard, numbered 57, located at the far corner of the Tian Tai Mountain formation, and it is the only property of the young man

The reason for deliberately choosing a diary with nine hundred and ninety-nine pages is that he finally realized his peculiar constitution after experiencing one hundred heartbreaks, and he foresaw many more failures to come.

His home is located in the lowest residential area at the foot of Tiantai Mountain, where the inhabitants are ordinary people without any talent for celestial arts, relying on selling their labor to earn a living

Then, it is heartbreak