Zhu Ziyang and Zhu Changhe returned to Anyang City from Dragon City.
Not long after they arrived home, they received an unexpected visitor.
"Brother Hong! What brings you here?" Zhu Changhe said, clearly surprised.
"What, I'm not allowed to visit?" Hong Zhen replied with a smile.
"No, of course not—I didn't mean it that way," Zhu Changhe quickly waved his hands in denial.
"Hello, Uncle Hong," Zhu Ziyang greeted politely.
"Ah! Good!" Hong Zhen beamed when he saw Zhu Ziyang. He stepped forward and patted him excitedly on the shoulder.
"Xiaoyang, you're a Grandmaster now?"
At those words, Zhu Changhe and Zhu Ziyang immediately understood the purpose of his visit.
"That's right," Zhu Ziyang nodded, his handsome young face glowing with pride.
"This is… incredible," Hong Zhen exclaimed. His rough features were filled with surprise and excitement.
"At just eight years old, Xiaoyang has already become a Grandmaster. There's probably no one like him in the entire Northern Province!"
"Exactly!" Zhu Changhe grinned widely, basking in the praise of his son.
"Brother Changhe, Ziyang is now our greatest hope for Anyang City," Hong Zhen said seriously.
"You mustn't let him go without."
"Come on, Brother Hong, Ziyang is the only son Xiaoying and I have. How could we possibly neglect him?" Zhu Changhe said, sounding a little exasperated.
"Haha, what I mean is—you need to prepare plenty of soul beast meat and medicinal herbs. Now is the best time for him to cultivate. He can't lack resources!" Hong Zhen said, laughing.
"Of course," Zhu Changhe replied, though he let out a bitter smile.
"Even if you hadn't said anything, we're already doing our best. But some herbs and resources are just beyond what my wife and I can afford."
For soul masters, talent is the foundation, but resources are essential for growth. Among them, soul beast meat and spiritual herbs are the most basic necessities.
Soul beast meat is rich in energy and has many uses. Any soul master family with some wealth will provide it regularly.
Although Zhu Ziyang's family were technically commoners, they had built up some savings over generations. As a result, they could afford to include soul beast meat in their meals every one or two days.
Spiritual herbs were even more precious and rare.
The meat and herbs available on the open market were the most basic, offering limited benefits to soul masters. The truly valuable ones were monopolized by the Empire and noble families. Without a noble title or clan backing, a soul master could only buy these exclusive resources if they reached the Soul King level.
That's why Zhu Changhe had smiled so bitterly.
As a noble baron, Hong Zhen understood this well. Seeing Zhu Changhe's helpless look, he smiled and said,
"That's why I came!"
His words left both father and son stunned. But Hong Zhen didn't wait for their reaction. He casually pulled five or six packages from the soul tool ring on his hand.
"Take a look!" he said with excitement and pride.
"What's all this?" Zhu Changhe asked, puzzled by the parcels.
Zhu Ziyang walked over and opened them without hesitation. Inside were five types of fresh soul beast meat and a packet of dried purple herbs.
"This is... Red-Hoof Ox tendon?!" Zhu Ziyang exclaimed in surprise, recognizing one of the items.
"What?" Zhu Changhe turned to Hong Zhen in shock. He instantly understood the intention and was both touched and conflicted.
"Brother Hong… isn't this a bit too much?"
"What's the problem?" Hong Zhen waved it off firmly.
"I'm not doing this because Ziyang is my nephew—I'm doing it because he's Anyang City's best chance of entering Shrek Academy!"
"Thank you," Zhu Changhe said sincerely, no longer declining.
"Haha, now let me tell you what's here," Hong Zhen said, pointing to each item and proudly introducing them:
15 jin of hundred-year Red-Hoof Ox tendon
15 jin of hundred-year Deep Sea Cod
15 jin of hundred-year Iron-Scaled Crocodile meat
15 jin of hundred-year Golden-Winged Sparrow
5 jin of thousand-year Armored Dragon-Rhino meat
15 jin of hundred-year Bone-Tempering Flower
As he spoke, Zhu Ziyang quickly recalled the soul beasts behind these resources:
Red-Hoof Ox: A domesticated offensive beast. Its meat is great for strengthening tendons and bones—especially the tendons.
Deep Sea Cod: A rare and expensive aquatic soul beast. Its meat is delicious and boosts soul power.
Iron-Scaled Crocodile: A strong amphibious beast. Its meat improves physical strength.
Golden-Winged Sparrow: A small raptor soul beast. Its meat nourishes the lungs and spleen.
Armored Dragon-Rhino: A soul beast with dragon bloodline, extremely tough with powerful vitality. Its meat enhances vitality and physical strength.
Bone-Tempering Flower: A spiritual herb that, as the name suggests, enhances physical conditioning.
All of these were exclusive resources not available on the market—only found in black markets, and even then rarely. As a baron, Hong Zhen didn't need to rely on those.
"How about it? These were allocated from Dragon City," Hong Zhen explained.
"They were originally meant for Anyang Academy. But I thought, why waste them on random kids when Ziyang has true talent? From now on, you'll get a batch like this every month. So don't worry, Brother Changhe."
"This… thank you, Brother Hong!" Zhu Changhe was moved. With these resources, Zhu Ziyang's growth would accelerate significantly.
"Ah, don't be so formal! We're family," Hong Zhen said casually with a wave.
After sitting for a bit, he stood up to leave. Zhu Changhe got up to see him out.
Zhu Ziyang looked at the resources before him, unable to hide a smile. The most valuable among them was the Armored Dragon-Rhino meat—not only did it have dragon lineage, but its strengthening effects were just what he needed.
Hong Zhen had truly helped in a big way.
That night.
Liang Ying cooked a stew using the Iron-Scaled Crocodile meat and Deep Sea Cod.
The whole family sat around the table, eating and chatting.
"Mom, were you part of the Earth Dragon Sect?" Zhu Ziyang asked, remembering Uncle Liang Yu in Dragon City.
"Huh?" Liang Ying froze, her hands stopping mid-motion. She looked at Zhu Ziyang.
"Why do you ask that all of a sudden?"
"We met Liang Yu in Dragon City," Zhu Changhe said quietly.
"Oh…" Liang Ying nodded with understanding.
"No, I wasn't in the Earth Dragon Sect. But your grandfather used to be. He left later."
"…I see." Zhu Ziyang paused, deciding not to press further.
Clearly, there was a story behind it.