The dark, cloudy sky hung particularly low on this day. Not a single bolt of lightning crackled above, yet the inhabitants of Parachenko Village knew that today would be a rainy day.
Arthur walked silently through the streets of Parachenko Village. The bubbling tension had reached a near breaking point within the Clan, and a vast number of villagers had already started boarding up their homes, reinforcing the windows and doors with whatever material they could find.
Many families had already stockpiled their food and water, enough for several weeks if they needed, while the Fae Masters of Parachenko Village had continuously patrolled the territories within the immediate vicinity of the Clan, waiting for the beast tide to come.
Some families, those with Fae Masters, or those whom have relatives who were Fae Masters could be taken to the underground bunkers near the Clan Leaders Residence, as well as the Lecture Hall and Elders Hall.
They had the privilege of possessing a Fae Master in their family, so naturally they had the right to compete for a spot in the "safer" areas.
Most of Arthur's classmates were held up in their houses. The vast majority of them being first generation Fae Masters, Rank 1 Fae Masters at that, so their ability to compete for a spot in the safehouses was close to zero.
Andrea's family had been taken in, and brought to the Clan Leaders Residence, alongside Andrea.
For the time being, she should be safe there, so long as nothing different occurred in this timeline.
The existence of the Boundless Forest Yearning already altered the timeline, but this alteration came to be a benefit for Arthur, considering his plans for the Sovereign Boundary Physique.
There were a few Elders there, who were the the last line of defense against the beast tide, and would protect their various descendents and children of the Elders, most of whom would possess third-tier and second-tier talents.
Arthur noticed a figure standing at the end of the street, and raised an eyebrow as he leaned against a while while smiling.
"You're not going to the safehouse?".
Randolf shook his head.
"If I do, I won't be able to see what "strength" truly is in this world. There exists Seven Continents and Seven Seas in Human Heaven, and yet, the Kovacs Clan doesn't even have a map of their own Continent..... I want to broaden my horizons".
Arthur smirked slightly before nodding.
"True. True, Winter Rain Mountain is just a tiny region in the scheme of things, its only benefit is that it is close to Falling Snow Famous River. I doubt that anyone in the Clan had ever visited the higher Ranked Famous Rivers, or even one of the Heavenly Forests".
Randolf made no change in his expression.
"You sound as though you have visited these placed before Arthur. Perhaps that diary of yours mentions something about them? Or is it something else?".
Arthur's polite smile grew bigger, as if trying to emphasize his happiness.
"I won't deny it. That diary of mine does mention quite a few things about Azure Envy Continent. A few Fae Formula, some details of unique and rare Fae, some small memoirs about cultivation here and there.... Nothing too important".
Randolf and Arthur stood silently in the quiet and abandoned street, staring at each other with their own unique expressions.
The foreigner took in a deep breath before shaking his head and walking past Arthur.
"I hope you don't get yourself killed Arthur. Such a thing would be a loss to the Kovacs Clan".
Arthur's smile grew even more, as if resembling a grinning demon.
He eyed Randolf's physique, a look of greed could be seen in his eyes.
'The foreign treasure that Randolf possesses.... I wonder what it could be', he thought.
Arthur assumed that it related to Fae in some way, potentially through touch, but time might be related in some way as well.
Randolf wasn't too concerned with dying, since he could stay out in the Village during the battle, meaning that he probably had some ability that could guarantee his safety during a large scale battle.
Arthur had seen foreign treasures before, and every single one of them possessed their own unique abilities.
The vast majority of them didn't possess any direct combat power, but most possessed extremely powerful supportive abilities.
The strongest Foreign Treasure actually belonged to a Rank 9 Fae Immortal that was a foreigner. Arthur didn't know the exact details about this Foreign Treasure, but he knew that it imbued its wielder with an extraordinarily strong attack power.
It was shaped like a stick, but possessed a strange metal barrel, and a trigger towards one end.
The term "musket" had been thrown around by other foreigners in the past, but Arthur still didn't understand what a "musket" was.
That didn't matter right now though. What mattered was the Boundless Forest Yearning.
Only once he obtained that, would he start thinking about dealing with Randolf and his foreign treasure.
At any rate-.
"The battle should begin shortly. The Beast King has been sending scouts towards the Village, scooping out the place. They'll attack with their knight Ranked and lord Ranked spirit beasts, activating as many traps as they can before sending in the bulk of their forces".
Arthur took a step forward, before feeling a strange presence in the air.
The thousand year old demon lifted his head towards the sky, before smiling and continuing his stride.
"They're here".
The moment those words left Arthur's lips, a screech unlike anything the citizens of Parachenko Village had ever heard of, exploded throughout the Village.
Those mortals, who had weaker wills that the average Fae Master, instantly felt their bodies tremble, and their Minds and Souls vibrate slightly, as if a rabbit before a massive wolf.
Fae Masters, no matter what their Rank was, shivered slightly before standing firm in the presence of such a beast.
Even if they didn't know what the creature was, they knew that this battle would determine whether or not Parachenko Village would be able to survive in the future.
This wasn't just a battle to defend their Village, their home.
It was a battle for survival.
Arthur's figure flickered slightly, before he arrived on the roof of a tall building.
He had told Leon and Dominic which area he would be patrolling, which reassured his two older brothers, since neither one of them wanted Arthur to fight on the front lines.
.... Of course, Arthur would go wherever he damn well pleased, and telling his brothers this would only make them not bother him whenever he wanted to fight.
Arthur could feel his origin essence bubbling, despite its crystalline form.
With the assistance of a Rank 2 wood essence Fae, Arthur was already more than halfway to the peak of Rank 1 zero quartz origin essence.
Using a higher Ranked Fae than what their cultivation allowed was dangerous, and unbelievably rare, but with Arthur's standing, and his "resolve" the upper echelons of the Clan, Elder Vova and Elder Anatol, allowed him to take it.
If Arthur was just some random Fae Master, like Randolf or Zoya, there was no chance that he would be allowed to use it.
Back on the front lines, massive wooden barricades had been set up to draw the beasts towards certain plots of land that the Fae Masters had set up.
Ditches and pitfalls had been created all over the huge stretches of land upon which the mortals grew crops, and long lines of Fae Masters readied their origin essence in preparation for what was to come.
Their was a faint trembling in the earth, as one of the Rank 2 Fae Masters gulped, as the approaching storm grew closer and closer.
The sheer amount of creatures that there must be, to cause the very earth beneath their feet to shake and tremble.
Those Fae Masters who specialized in long range attacks, readied their Fae, and raised their arms high above their heads, aiming for their attacks to arc over the traps they had set.
Each of these groups were headed by various Elders, whom also specialized in these sorts of attacks.
Arthur sat down where he was standing, and took out the gourd on his waist, smiling as he took a large sip.
The scent of wine filled the air, as the roars and cries of spirit beasts reached Parachenko Village.
The time had come. The thing that Arthur had been waiting for all this time, was close at hand.
It was time.... for war.