Arthur was..... anything if not prepared.
As someone who had experienced the next one thousand years, and knew the events and timetable for the next millennia Arthur wouldn't have to experience the hardships that he had previously gone through.
Of course, that didn't mean that he wouldn't be without any kind of trouble, or or in any kind of bad situation.
Just as one door closed, another opened. By changing what will happen in the future, something unforeseen will arise from that change. If he killed a man right now, perhaps in a few decades his son would come after him, or his brother or loved one.
If Arthur took a treasure that would've originally belonged to someone else, then he might have the face the repercussions of taking that treasure. He would change fate, and accumulate karma as he walked a new path once more.
He wasn't afraid of changing things, or worried about the effects his current actions caused. His current actions could only ripple out so far, so he wouldn't have to worry about a tornado forming on the other side of the Continent.
Had had started preparing to leave Parachenko Village from the moment he saw the Sovereign Boundary Physique.... no, even before then. Probably from the moment he reawakened in this current time.
The moment he came to realize that he did not die, and was instead sent back over a thousand years, Arthur had already begun to change his fate. The difference in his talent was the first step. Then the exemption of heavenly laws was the second. The third was obtaining the Boundless Forest Yearning, and the fourth and final step would be the destruction of Parachenko Village.
Watching Parvan, Milena, Nyssa and the others all walk back towards Parachenko Village, Arthur smiled before lifting his head and gazing at the large Village in the distance.
Once upon a time.... he called this place home. Now, its entire existence was a chain that he had to sever. Sever from him, and all of his subordinates.
Making things look like an accident, or just some random occurrence in nature was easy for Arthur. Especially with the knowledge of future Fae Masters in his Mind.
Having a higher cultivation was beneficial, and Arthur would normally want to wait until he reached Rank 3 but he could always destroy the Clan, and then cultivate for a few months and then reach Rank 3.
There was an Origin Essence Liquid Pond right? It would be a shame not to use it.
There would be an entire Clan Treasury for him to plunder. The homes of all of his fellow Villagers would be his for the taking, everything else was just inconsequential. In comparison to how he ended Andrea's, or even Elder Stas' life, this wouldn't be considered a mercy.
All it did, was wash away any blood that might spill onto his hands. By forcing the population of Parachenko Village to go insane and attack each other, all Arthur needed to do was claim self-defence, and then ruthlessly cut down anyone who got in his way.
Even if the others couldn't do it, they wouldn't bring themselves to be able to hate him for what he had done. And in the event that they found out the truth, they could either fall in line and continue to serve him, or disappear just like the rest of them.
Entering the Village, Arthur waved off the nine other Fae Masters, heading back towards his home, his pace steady, and his posture unwavering. He had seen a couple of Fae Masters from the caravan drinking and singing happily alongside a normal looking barmaid, their cheeks flushed a healthy red due to the spirits and wine.
Young children ran happily alongside him, wielding sticks and faux swords, pretending to be almighty Fae Immortals whom ruled over the heavens and the earth with an almighty fist. Their joyous cries and their innocent smiles blurred for a moment before being forgotten amidst a veritable sea of similar faces.
After a thousand years, Arthur wouldn't claim to remember every detail about his previous life. If he had the correct Fae, he would be able to remember everything, down to the very last hot meal beginning with the letter "z" that he had eaten.
The faces of mortals, at least, those who did not eventually become Fae Masters were forgotten by Arthur. They didn't become Fae Immortals, so what was the point of remembering them for?
What was the point in remembering every little ant you see, if in the end they all die before you can even age a single day?
What's the point in loving someone, when either you or them will end up withering due to the endless, forward march of time? What is the point in caring, when everything is affected by change?
Beauty will always fade. Nothing is eternal.
Love will always die. Nothing is eternal.
Family will always have to be buried. Why bother caring?
Having only two of something, is that supposed to make it precious? Parents will always end up getting buried by their children, so regardless of whether it happens today or ten years from now, why should it matter?
Arthur sighed lightly, feeling the slightly cool change in the air.
"The only thing in this world that is eternal, is Cultivation".
Arthur didn't quite believe it, purely due to the fact that not even Rank 9 Fae Immortals were completely eternal, but he, alongside even Twilight Obscurity Demonic Sovereign, and Falling Star Immortal Sovereign, believed in something greater.
Was it Rank 10? Perhaps not even the Heavens themselves know what is beyond Rank 9.
Perhaps like the Shadow
"Madness", Arthur muttered.
Madness did not imply a lack of thoughts, a lack of wills, or even a lack of emotions. It did not lack heat. Light. Life. Death. Lightning. Corpse. Wood. Emotion or anything in between.
It was different from Chaos as Chaos was Order without structure. Imagine building a pyramid but you were only given circular blocks. It is comprehensible even though it might not make sense.
But madness.... was like trying to create fire with nothing but water. Life, with nothing but death. It was incomprehensible, yet still existed in the world.
Arthur sighed, feeling his temples hurt slightly. Even he wasn't qualified to debate philosophy on the existence of Madness. Perhaps only the truly mad could perceive and understand the existence before the Dao.
Walking home, Arthur's figure cast a much longer shadow than usual. His features refined, yet unbelievably cold for some reason. Almost as if his entire being was frozen, from the stillness of his eyebrows, to the very depths of his heart, his mind had already been made up.
The sound of a young barmaid attacking a nearby Fae Master echoed out, her features maddened, as if being affected by Hatred Fae.
Arthur glanced back for a moment, before turning around and continuing walking. A small smile marred his usually cold expression.