The Sleipnir gazed down at Arthur's figure, its memories somewhat hazy, as the image of a young man from a year ago, coincided with the the current figure in front of it.
A year ago.... a young teen who had just started to walk down the path of the Fae Master had come before him with a tiny gourd filled with Rank 1 Source Water. Now, that young man had tasted blood and become a Rank 2 Fae Master.
Its eyes narrowed for a moment.
Not only that..... but he was awakened a-.
The Sleipnir's eyes widened slightly as it gazed at Arthur's origin essence sea. It was much larger than it was the previous year, and within one of his Origin Essence Seas, the faint image of a heavenly tree with bright verdant coloured leaves and pink coloured vines could be faintly discerned.....
A Sovereign Boundary Physique! Boundless Forest Yearning!
The divine beast, despite its origins and intelligence still knew what the existence of a Sovereign Boundary Physique meant!
If this young man was given enough time, he was guaranteed to reach Rank 4, perhaps even Rank 5 in the future! From there, even with the Boundless Forest Yearning, it was still up to him to cross the boundary to Rank 6 and become a Fae Immortal.
Sleipnir loved the strong and the righteous. Arthur knew that.
If it could see the potential of Arthur, if its personality wasn't too bad, then perhaps it would give him something a little extra.
The divine beast lifted its head slightly and turned towards the numerous Fae, Fae materials, spiritual medicines and special treasures that Arthur had prepared as an offering.
Most of it was only Rank 3 and below, but to accumulate so many over the course of a single year was slightly surprising, especially for a small region like this one.
It didn't know that Arthur's Village had experienced two small scale beast tides within the span of a week, and how much this young man had benefitted from said beast tides.
Not that Arthur would tell that in the first place.
The Sleipnir narrowed its eyes for a moment before waving one of its eight hooves, collecting the offering that Arthur had given it. Dozens of Fae, hundreds of different Fae materials, and numerous spiritual medicines disappeared in an instant.
Instead, he divine beast summoned numerous of its Rank 2 and Rank 3 Fae, placing them on the ground before Arthur.
Its voice was directly spoken into Arthur's mind.
"Boundless Forest Yearning. You have come quite far over the past year. Due to the size of your offering, and the nature of your talents I have restricted all the Fae in front of you to just Wood Attributed, Life Attributed, Plant Attributed, Flower Attributed, Emotion Attributed and some Moon Attributed Fae.
"You may select three Rank 2 Fae and one Rank 3 Fae".
Arthur's eyes widened a fraction of an inch, and he gave a deep bow to the Sleipnir.
"Thank you Elder Immortal! I will work hard to live you to your expectations!".
The divine beast rolled its eyes at Arthur's shamelessness, but didn't deny his words.
Such a talented young man, with one of the Sovereign Boundary Physiques to boot..... he would go quite far if he didn't stay in this lonely corner of the world.
"If you need me to tell you their abilities, I will explain them once if need be. But only once".
Arthur nodded resolutely.
"Then, I must trouble Elder Immortal!".
The Sleipnir nodded slightly before gesturing to the Rank 2 Fae. Quite a number of these Fae were from other Continents, so Arthur needed to act unfamiliar with their abilities and powers.
"This is Rank 2 Leaf Storm Fae. It is a ranged offensive Fae that can launch an immense amount of leaves towards a target. The leaves themselves are numerous, and possess enough strength on their own to pierce through most Lord Ranked spirit beasts".
"This one is a Rank 2 Flame Flower Fae. It is a Flower Attributed Fae that can form large, horse sized flaming flowers quite a distance away from the Fae Master....".
"This one here is a Rank 2 Aqua Vine Fae. It is a Wood Attributed Fae that is also a variation fae of the traditional Vine Fae. They thrive in environments thick with water spirit essence as well as large amounts of water....".
"Rank 2 Burn Healing Fae. It is a Life Attributed Fae that can only head burns....".
"Rank 2 Kindness Fae. It is an Emotion Attributed Fae that can create kindness in whoever refines it....".
"Rank 2 Moon Essence Fae. A Moon Attributed Fae that can restore the origin essence of a Fae Master quicker than normal. Although, considering you already have a Rank 2 Wood Essence Fae, you won't need this one....".
The Sleipnir went through more than five dozen Rank 2 Fae before moving onto the Rank 3 Fae. Arthur had already decided which Rank 2 Fae that he wanted, but even he didn't recognize all the Rank 3 Fae that the Sleipnir had put before him.
It was a divine beast that had travelled to all, if not most of the Thirty Three Heavens. Arthur couldn't even calculate its cultivation, let alone its age.
"This is the Rank 3 Myriad Flower Tree. It is a Wood Attributed Fae that can create a Myriad Flower Tree. Despite the fact that it is mainly used for creating Rank 3 Fae materials, the Myriad Flower Tree does possess quite a potent paralytic poison. It doesn't affect the Fae Master who contracts it, but anyone below Rank 3 would have a hard time moving their body if they breath in the poison.....".
"This one here is a Rank 3 Heart Extinguishing Fae. An Emotion Attributed Fae that can eliminate a persons heart so long as they can touch it. Whether you touch it physically, or through your own emotions it doesn't really matter".
"This little one here is a Rank 3 Piercing Thorn Fae. A Plant Attributed Fae that creates can create piercing thorns within a large radius around the Fae Master. The difference between Plant Attribute and Wood Attribute Fae lay in the type of spirit essence that are needed to create them. Additionally, Plant Attributed Fae do not suffer from the same weaknesses as Wood Attributed".
"Over there is a Rank 3 Raining Shield Tree Fae. It is a defensive type Wood Attributed Fae that a variation of the traditional Shield Tree Fae. Its size is much larger and can grow to huge proportions in wet conditions. The Raining Shield Fae itself creates a small domain within which no attacks can be permitted inside. The cost of such a Fae is extraordinarily large, but its defensive power is top notch within Rank 3.....".
Arthur nodded slightly, digesting everything that the Sleipnir had just said.
He was missing a Rank 3 defensive type Fae and instantly thought about exchanging the Raining Shield Fae for it. With his expansive origin essence sea and origin essence regeneration, even if he couldn't use it right now, he would be able to use it for quite a long time in the future.
There was also another Rank 3 Fae called the Verdant Root Fae that was also quite powerful.
It was a defensive type fae that could be controlled like any normal vine type fae. Within a distance of 150 metres Arthur could create massive roots that pierced through the surface of the earth and protect himself and allies.
Its power wasn't any less than the Raining Shield Fae, but its origin essence expenditure was way lower in comparison. It also didn't require Arthur to stay in one position, as the effects of the Fae moved as Arthur did.
He had the Flowering Shield Fae which he could use in front of the other Clan members, but it was always best to have something stored in reserve.
In terms of Rank 2 Fae, Arthur had already come to a decision.
In terms of offense, Arthur was fine, at least from an all round perspective.
He didn't have enough, or many Wood Attributed Fae that he could use offensively, other than the ones he had taken from Alina.
He still wanted one of the supportive Fae that the Sleipnir was offering, so he had to sacrifice one of his spots for such a Fae.
Arthur let out a deep breath before pointing to four different Fae.
"Elder Immortal. If possible I would like the Rank 2 Burn Healing Fae. The Rank 2 Blood Healing Fae. The Rank 2 Leaf Storm Fae. And the Rank 3 Verdant Root Fae".
Arthur had made his decision.
The Sleipnir blinked once before nodding and taking away all the Fae other than the four that Arthur had selected.
It had already discerned why Arthur had done such thing, especially considering the Fae that he had offered him.
Arthur had given the Sleipnir a Rank 2 Bone Expansion Fae, which was incredible rare despite its low Rank. Other than just these four Fae, it had already planned on giving Arthur a piece of advice.
"Due to your presence Boundless Forest Yearning, I will not ever return to this place, even long after your death. However, as a result of sowing this karmic bond with you, I will give you a small piece of advice.
"The Boundless Forest Yearning is something that can even earn the affection of the Heavens, and despite its low combat prowess, one can still become strong if their awakened innate ability is powerful.
"If you wish to learn how to develop this innate ability, and evolve it in a fashion akin to a Fae, then head to the Viridian Greed Continent. The first Ranked Fae Ground within that Continent, the Eternal Samsara Tree, will teach you how to do so.
"That is all I shall tell you. Goodbye, Boundless Forest Yearning....".