Hey guys, I'm looking for xuanhuan/xianxia novels where the protagonist's skills are average compared to his peers. I read A Record of a Mortal’s Journey to Immortality and liked it alot until the plot armor kicked in making the MC really OP. Thanks!
Not a "cultivation" one perse (anyways they cultivate feelings) but; Sunset clouds and spring trees. Also another one I wish never to reread; Fallen Hero
Lord of the Mysteries. Average looking, average on the scale of the world and takes a long time to become strong - well except for being calm and resourceful in intelligence. It has a different power system though and maybe you have read it.
The closest I know of would be Molting The Mortal Coil. MC spends a fair amount of the early parts of this story utilizing a cultivation technique completely unsuitable for their element, due to their element being wood and them wanting to craft things, and thus utilize a technique to treat a Wood Spirit Root as if it was Fire. MC does, eventually, fix his cultivation and gain some cheats, but even then isn't exactly an individual of powerhouse proportions. Part of that is the fact that him playing catch up to reach his peer's level, though. Also, cheats aren't unheard of, to the point where reaching past a certain point outright requires one to have claimed certain "cheats", as those without never discover the purposefully kept secret method of advancing beyond that point.
...I haven't read it closely, but from what I've seen, the romance has been minimalistic so far, if it even exists. Besides, the MC's life gets upended so often that long term relationships aren't really a thing he gets to do. I mean, there's been hints and attempts, sure, but nothing has seemed to have stuck.