Chapter 108: Jiang Chuxuan

"A Grade-A cultivation resource, a fifth-grade Ningxin Pill, increased my mental strength by 50—that's equivalent to 500 psychic points. Not bad."

Xu Jingming nodded in satisfaction.

Five hundred psychic points—that's what he'd need to accumulate by slaying dozens of second-rank ferocious beasts in the wasteland.

After taking the pill, Xu Jingming immediately prepared to transfer the items inside the two one-cubic-meter space rings.

Since items inside space rings couldn't be directly transferred between each other.

Xu Jingming had no choice but to first lay all the items on the floor of the training room.

There wasn't much—only three bottles of S-grade Diling Spring, along with some healing pills and detoxification pills.

Also, some rare flowers and herbs, and two photos of Jiang Chu.

One official, one personal.

"Almost forgot—I haven't sent these photos to Hao yet."

He checked the time on his phone—it wasn't even ten p. m.

Knowing Zhang Hao as he did, Xu Jingming was certain he was still awake, so he promptly dialed his number.

"Ding… ding… ding…"

After four rings, the call was answered, and Zhang Hao's voice came through:

"Hey, Aming, what's up?"

It was clear he was using speakerphone, accompanied by the clatter of multiple keyboards.

"Playing a game? Should I call back later?"

Xu Jingming recognized that intense keyboard clatter immediately.

"No problem, doesn't bother me—I can operate them with my eyes closed."

"Alright, then I'll say it: I got the autographed photo you wanted. Send me your address—I'll courier it to you tomorrow."

"What autographed photo?"

Zhang Hao paused, then quickly realized:

"Holy shit! You actually got me Jiang the Goddess's autographed photo?"

His excitement was palpable—even the frantic keyboard clatter softened.

"Say no more—when I come back to Jiangcheng for winter break, I'm treating you to a damn good meal."

"Then it's settled. Don't you dare back out."

"Compared to Jiang the Goddess's autographed photo, a meal is nothing—eat as much as you want!"

"Alright, then we'll meet up during winter break. Don't worry, I've got a tiny appetite."

"..."

After chatting with Zhang Hao for a while and declining his invitation to team up in the next game, Xu Jingming hung up.

"Games… I feel like I haven't touched one in ages," Xu Jingming murmured, a look of nostalgia on his face.

Like most college students, in his past life, he'd spent most of his free time gaming during university.

Only in his senior year, preparing for the graduate entrance exam, had he uninstalled the games.

But his graduate studies turned out to be so hectic that he never picked them up again.

After crossing over to Blue Star, he'd been constantly busy.

He barely had time to rest, let alone play games.

In truth, the ordinary college life of his best friend Hao was what Xu Jingming truly longed for.

But he was naturally insecure.

With ferocious beasts existing, the leisurely ordinary college life had long been ruled out for him.

"It's ten p. m. now—I can train for two hours before sleeping."

"Also, I need to deal with this batch of rare flowers and herbs."

"Looks like tomorrow I'll not only need to go to the Equipment Department, but also to the Alchemy Department."

Xu Jingming's gaze sharpened; he changed into a loose training suit in his bedroom.

Then he picked up the Dark Cloud Gale Spear and entered the training room to begin his session.

Early the next morning, after completing his usual morning training,

Xu Jingming went to the courier station to mail the autographed photo to Zhang Hao, then headed to the Magic University Equipment Department.

Since these two one-cubic-meter space rings weren't manufactured by Magic University,

the Equipment Department wouldn't accept them for credit redemption—only for Xia currency.

Each ring was valued at 35 million Xia currency for buyback; together, that totaled 70 million.

Compared to the official retail price of 50 million per ring on the open market, this was far lower.

But Xu Jingming knew such buybacks could never match official retail prices.

After all, even if you bought an item from a store and resold it untouched, its value would still plummet.

Also, last night he'd checked online—most private buyers offered around 33 million.

This price was fairly reasonable.

So when he left the Magic University Equipment Department, his bank balance had reached a staggering 95 million!

In addition, his student account still held 1,903 academic credits from yesterday's reward.

If converted entirely into Xia currency, his total assets amounted to over 110 million!

"Finally saved up a small goal."

Xu Jingming thought silently.

Of course, for psychics, strength was the most important thing.

Therefore, all this money and resources must be consumed as soon as possible.

In his view, having ten million on a bank card was more than enough to handle most situations.

"Go to the Alchemy Department and dispose of all the rare herbs and flowers; while you're there, you might as well buy some suitable pills."

Like the Demon Gear Department, the Alchemy Department was also a standalone building.

After Xu Jingming explained his purpose to the receptionist, he was led up to the third floor.

"The third floor is where rare herbs and flowers are purchased; if you wish to buy pills, take the elevator to the fifth floor."

The staff introduced him respectfully.

Xu Jingming gave a slight nod, indicating he understood.

He stepped out of the elevator and walked into the third-floor lobby.

As soon as he entered, he was met with a strong aroma of medicinal herbs.

At the same time, Xu Jingming's gaze swept across the room, taking in the entire lobby at a glance.

This place resembled the monster material acquisition center on the sixth floor of the Source Water Supply Base.

There were several rooms for purchasing rare herbs and flowers, along with sofas for resting.

But instead of queuing, they used a numbering system.

Xu Jingming took a queue number from the machine and sat down on a sofa to wait.

It was only ten in the morning, relatively early, yet nearly thirty to forty people were already waiting on the third floor.

In fact, Xu Jingming even spotted a team of adventurers wearing bloodstained battle suits, as if they had just returned from the Wild Zone.

"Only up to number fourteen—my number is forty-three; I'll probably have to wait over an hour."

Xu Jingming furrowed his brow, surprised by how many people there were here.

Of course, he could choose to browse the floors above, but no matter how much he wandered, he couldn't possibly spend an hour doing so.

"Still, I could practice for a while."

After a moment of thought, Xu Jingming closed his eyes slightly.

He immediately began practicing the Alien Energy Training Method, absorbing the ambient Yuan energy.

In fact, there were many other adepts in the lobby doing the same; those playing with their phones were the minority.

After practicing for over half an hour, a voice filled with mild surprise sounded beside him:

"Huh, junior, you're here too?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Xu Jingming slowly opened his eyes.

Sure enough, Jiang Chuxuan stood gracefully not far away.

Seeing Jiang Chuxuan, a teasing smile appeared on Xu Jingming's stern face:

"So it's senior sister—did you finally sober up from last night's wine?"

"I sobered up long ago."

Jiang Chuxuan's face flushed red, clearly recalling the scene from last night when she had insisted he help her walk.

That strong, powerful arm—she still remembered it vividly...

After a pause, she asked curiously:

"By the way, are you here to sell the rare herbs and flowers you found in the cave last time?"

"Not entirely—if I can find an alchemist willing to refine them into pills or potions, that would work too."

Xu Jingming nodded slightly.

Although having an alchemist refine them into pills or potions required a processing fee and additional materials to make up the shortfall,

it was still better than selling the rare herbs and flowers directly for academic credits or Daya currency.

"You're looking for an alchemist? Don't you think you already have one nearby—someone outstanding and beautifully captivating?"

The white-haired girl Jiang Chuxuan's eyes lit up.

She cleared her throat and puffed out her chest, almost as if the words "I'm that alchemist" were written on her face.

"You? Aren't you just an amateur?" Xu Jingming looked skeptical.

"Who says I'm an amateur? I've earned my Grade-Two Alchemist certification—I can easily refine Grade-Two pills."

Jiang Chuxuan quickly retorted, "Besides, I'm not planning to go into the Wild Zone to film footage anymore—I'm going full-time as an alchemist."