After winning the bid for the Spirit Seed, Zhou Haoyu also went to a nearby magic market and bought some Fire Element resources.
Including the Spirit Seed, he had already spent nearly forty million in just a short while.
On the path of cultivation, talent alone was never enough. Resources were the true foundation. Without sufficient resources, even a genius would eventually become mediocre.
Even though the Zhou family was fully supporting Zhou Haoyu, they had never provided him with so many resources at once.
If not for his possession of Forbidden Curse-level forging techniques, Zhou Haoyu would've been nothing more than a parasite clinging to his family.
Zhou Haoyu now only hoped that once the Flame Scorpion Tiger advanced, its Flame would become even stronger this way, he could forge even better magic equipment.
Back in his room, Zhou Haoyu couldn't wait and immediately had the Seed Devourer devour the Purple Firmament Spirit Seed.
After absorbing it, Zhou Haoyu looked at the flickering purple lightning arcs in his palm and murmured to himself, "Since the first Spirit Seed I've absorbed is called Purple Firmament, I'll just keep calling it that."
"The amplification limit of a Spirit Seed is threefold. Purple Firmament doesn't quite count as a Greater Spirit Seed. I'll need to devour another one later, and when I reach the Advanced level, I'll try devouring a Soul-grade Seed."
Zhou Haoyu already had a plan in mind. With the Forbidden Curse-level forging technique in hand, he definitely wouldn't be short on money for the foreseeable future.
But if the Zhou family wanted to take another step forward, it would be best to secure the Fire Vein at Sun Ridge.
After finishing the absorption of the Spirit Seed, Zhou Haoyu went to an empty plot of land that same night and summoned the Flame Scorpion Tiger, tossing it all the Fire Element resources he had in his spatial ring.
The Flame Scorpion Tiger had been at its bottleneck for some time now, and upon seeing the fire resources, it didn't hesitate to gulp them all down.
Half an hour later, Zhou Haoyu noticed that the Flame Scorpion Tiger had visibly grown in size. Previously, it was just over two meters long now it was four meters long and over two meters tall!
Its scorpion tail resembled a long iron whip, and the sharp venomous stinger looked as if it could take the life of any nearby creature at any moment.
"As expected of a high-bloodline magical beast, the advancement process was surprisingly simple."
Zhou Haoyu patted the Flame Scorpion Tiger's carapace and said with a smile, "This little bit of resources is nothing you'll be getting more and more in the future."
"Roar roar!"
Little Yan let out a soft growl and lowered its head in a submissive gesture.
"In a few days, we'll find some demons to test your strength." Zhou Haoyu gently patted Little Flame's head.
According to his teacher's explanation, the Flame Scorpion Tiger's bloodline was quite high it should be able to grow into a Commander-level beast at the very least.
Although it had only just advanced to the Warrior-level now, thanks to its racial abilities, ordinary Warrior-level demons were no match for it.
"Awuuu~" Little Yan immediately became full of fighting spirit.
The following morning, after two hours of meditation, Zhou Haoyu went to the Mu family's residence. The door was opened by Mu Ningxue, with her flowing silver hair.
"Ningxue, it's been days since we last saw each other—give me a hug."
Without saying another word, Zhou Haoyu stepped forward and hugged her. Over the past few days, their relationship had grown increasingly intimate.
Before Mu Ningxue could even respond, Zhou Haoyu had already wrapped his arms around her. Her figure had become more alluring, and the contours of her body softer and more pronounced.
"How has your cultivation been going these past few days?"
Mu Ningxue knew Zhou Haoyu had been training in the Haotian Tower. That was one of the Imperial Capital Magic University's most treasured cultivation grounds he must've gained a lot during that time.
"Pretty lucky. I managed to break through to Intermediate level in both Summoning and Lightning Element." Zhou Haoyu didn't hold anything back.
Now that he had Pang Lai's support, Zhou Haoyu no longer needed to be as cautious as before. It was fine to reveal some of his talents.
"Already Intermediate in both?" Mu Ningxue's cheeks finally showed some emotion, her beautiful eyes filled with surprise as she looked at Zhou Haoyu.
Mu Ningxue considered herself a diligent cultivator, but her Wind Element still hadn't reached the Intermediate level. She hadn't expected Zhou Haoyu to break through in two elements already.
This talent was clearly far above hers.
"All thanks to the Haotian Tower. You'll definitely get a chance to benefit from it too in the future," Zhou Haoyu said with a smile.
At that moment, Mu Zhuoyun walked out from the main hall. Seeing Zhou Haoyu at the door, he immediately said, "Dear nephew, come on in quickly!"
"Ningxue, you too. Don't just stand there invite our dear nephew inside."
"Uncle, I was just discussing something with Ningxue," Zhou Haoyu replied with a gentle smile.
Mu Zhuoyun invited Zhou Haoyu to sit on the sofa. Then, with a slightly more serious expression, he said, "You've come at the right time, dear nephew. I was just about to bring up something with you."
"Please speak, Uncle," Zhou Haoyu responded immediately.
"I've already discussed it with Ningxue. Once she reaches adulthood, we'll set a date for the two of you to marry. What are your thoughts on that?" Mu Zhuoyun said.
Mu Zhuoyun could tell that Zhou Haoyu had tremendous potential. A golden son-in-law like this absolutely couldn't be allowed to slip away best to settle the marriage early.
That way, even if Zhou Haoyu got involved with other women in the future, at least Mu Ningxue's status and the Mu family's interests would be secured.
"Well... Uncle, you can discuss it with my father. Naturally, I have no objections," Zhou Haoyu replied.
"Good. Once I return from Bo City, I'll speak with Mr. Zhou about the timing," Mu Zhuoyun said with a broad smile that never left his face.
"Bo City…"
Zhou Haoyu's eyes narrowed slightly. For Mu Zhuoyun to be heading to Bo City at this time, there was a ninety percent chance it was because of the magical duel between Yu Ang and Mo Fan.
If it were only a magical duel, there wouldn't be much worth paying attention to.
The real issue was that only a few days after this magical duel came the Bo City Calamity that shocked the entire nation!
There were definitely quite a few treasure chests in Bo City, and after the disaster, some of those chests might disappear forever.
"What is it, nephew? Are you interested in Bo City?" Mu Zhuoyun noticed Zhou Haoyu's intrigued look and asked.
"I do have a bit of interest."
Zhou Haoyu nodded and then looked at Mu Ningxue. "Since Bo City is the place where Ningxue grew up, how about I go there with you and take a look? I happen to have no pressing matters at the moment."
As soon as these words came out, even Mu Ningxue was stunned. Her beautiful eyes looked at Zhou Haoyu in disbelief.
A young nobleman born and raised in the capital, interested in a remote border city?
Mu Zhuoyun, on the other hand, was not surprised. Instead, he smiled with a knowing look. Clearly, the intention behind this trip had little to do with Bo City itself.
Even after the engagement, Zhou Haoyu still showed constant care for Ningxue truly a rare and worthy son-in-law.
"I have no objections, but the matter still depends on the Zhou family," Mu Zhuoyun said. Though he wanted to agree right away, the decision wasn't his alone.
"It's fine. I'll inform my father of the situation shortly," Zhou Haoyu quickly said.
Zhou Haoyu had two goals for going to Bo City. First was to open treasure chests, and second was to assert his status as Mu Ningxue's fiancé in Bo City and mark his territory.
As for the Bo City Calamity, Zhou Haoyu's spiritual force had greatly increased. With some of the magic equipment he'd forged, even Commander-level demon beasts weren't entirely out of his reach.
And even if he couldn't win, he could at least make a clean escape.
"Then once Mr. Zhou agrees, you shall come with us to Bo City, nephew."