"each line on this page is 18 px in height. This means that every diversion from the basic text size should take up multiples of 18 px. The subheadings on this page are set to 14 px. In order that the height of each line is 18 px, the line-height should be set to 18 ÷ 14 = 1.286."
So with the modular scale of 1 to 1.5, the body text's line-height is 2.5. If the section title's cap-height is (1.5)^3 = 3.375, then the line-height can be 5, which leaves 1.625 between the baseline and the top of the cap-height.
Now we set the line-height so that the space between the baseline to the top of the x-height to be equal to the x-height. That is, 3 times the base x-height.
Temporarily, we set it to be 1.
Richard Rutter suggests the following.
So with the modular scale of 1 to 1.5, the body text's line-height is 2.5. If the section title's cap-height is (1.5)^3 = 3.375, then the line-height can be 5, which leaves 1.625 between the baseline and the top of the cap-height.