'Did this kid really just kill Alan just in order to teach these other brats a lesson!?'.
It was common knowledge in the wider world that against tamed creatures, regardless of whether they were zombies, spirit beasts, spirit plants, corpses or ghosts, that killing the Fae Master that could control them was the best available option.
Once you killed a Taming Fae Master, all of the creatures under their control would regain their senses shortly, having the imprint, mental blocks, runic glyphs or seeds of consciousness from their Minds removed.
The moment you successfully killed a Taming Fae Master, one should immediately leave the area. There was no telling when exactly the creatures under its control would be able to move again, and if it was against an extremely large number of opponents, they might attack you the moment they regain control over their bodies.
Alan, was a mediocre Fae Master at best. Being a member of the caravan, he could command his ghosts from a distance and make use of the protection given by the other caravan members. It wasn't necessarily that all Taming Fae Masters were weak, just that their combat style didn't normally allow them to fight one on one against opponents.
.... Also, he was kind of weak.
Arthur turned his head slightly and glanced at Ricardo standing off by the side. The Rank 3 Fae Master felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise slightly, before glancing down at the field of grass beneath them.
'That Attribute Control Skill made use of Wood Attributed Fae. The exact Fae used are unknown, but he used the leafsword fae as the core Fae. He might copied, or mirrored the leafsword dozens of times over, creating a reflection in the grass beneath our feet. It's not anywhere close to a Domain, but still, I doubt anyone could block such an attack below Rank 2.... Perhaps even some Rank 3 Fae Masters could get ambushed using this Skill....'.
The information on Parachenko Village needed to be updated. The difference between Clans or Sects with Attribute Control Skills and those without were immense, in terms of both power, and potential.
And this Wood Attribute Control Skill that was created by the Kovacs Clan, was definitely a high-grade one. It might not be entirely useful in large scale battles, however its killing potential was extremely high for surprise attacks, or ambushes.
If Arthur walked into a camp at night, and made use of this Attribute Control Skill, he could probably wipe out half of the enemy before they even had a chance to respond.
"Is there something you still need Mr Giovanni?".
Ricardo's train of thought was halted all of a sudden, and he turned towards Arthur, whom still had the same polite smile on his face.
The elderly Fae Master just shook his head for a moment, letting out a small sigh.
"To be perfectly honest Arthur, I'd like to bring you back to the Slavik Clan even more now. Oh, and don't worry about Alan. Even if those juniors try and twist the truth in front of their elders, they won't be able to do anything about it. But still, if I could give a small piece of advice, don't actively use those ghosts in front of some of the other caravan members. They might try and spite you and your friends out of more money if you do so....".
Arthur nodded, before waving Ricardo off and heading back towards one of the training grounds.
His nine subordinates followed him, a curious expression on all of their faces.
Milena, who was curious about the natures of Arthur's six new ghosts, couldn't restrain her curiosity.
"Later, can I take a closer look at some of your ghosts Arthur? There aren't any Fae Masters within Parachenko Village that use ghosts, and Ghost Attributed Fae are extremely rare within Winter Rain Mountain. I think in the Clan Reserves, we can count the number of Ghost Attributed Fae with our fingers".
Arthur nodded.
"Ghost Attribute within the Azure Envy Continent isn't that common either. I believe its mainly used in other Continents. However, considering the proximity that the Azure Envy Continent has to the Azure Sea, there are bound to be some crossovers.
The Slavik Clan in the West also breed Water-Yin Attributed Ghosts. Mainly due to their business with the various spirit beast Clans and Merman Race tribes living in the Azure Sea. The number of Ghost Attributed Fae and Fae materials within the Oceans are extremely high, considering that the Shadow Race within Ocean Heaven, whom created the Formless Night Shadow Sovereign Boundary Physique, used the endless darkness at the bottom of the ocean to create it.
"The Shadow Race is primarily from Lightless Heaven, although like most of the Myriad Races, branches do exist all throughout the Thirty Three Heavens. Although Lightless Heaven does not possess a sun, the light from other Heavens still manage to reach it. At the bottom of Ocean Heaven though, no such thing can happen....".
The Shadow Race possessed innate Shadow-Ghost Attributes, meaning that they could only use Shadow Attributed and Ghost Attributed Fae. They often traded materials with their allies, the Merman Race, and possessed tribes that lived at the bottom of the ocean. Usually in trenches or underground cave systems.
Arthur knew of at least four Shadow Race Tribes living in Human Heaven, all of them scattered all around the World.
They had come here hundreds, if not thousands of years ago for the war between the Myriad Races, and were eventually stranded here with no way to return. Over time they eventually settled down in various locations, passing down their collective knowledge and Fae with every generation.
"Being a Fae Master isn't just about cultivation, or the accumulation of Fae. It is about understanding the World, how it functions and why it functions as so. Taming Fae Masters, and even Blacksmithing and Alchemy Fae Masters know this better than anyone, and as such, all of you here will need to understand a few things about them in order to combat them, and prevent them from making use of their strengths as much as possible".
Arthur sat down on a large rock, staring intently at the nine in front of him.
"You've all fought against Milena at some point and understand that her Corpses are her power. However, even she does not fully realize the capabilities of her Corpses".
The sixteen year old girl raised an eyebrow, unsure of where Arthur was going with this. She knew that his berth of knowledge and wisdom was far greater than her own, but she too came from a Fae Master family.
Saying that she didn't understand her own power, was like saying her entire family didn't know what they were doing.
Arthur noticed this, and adjusted the tone of his voice.
"You use Corpses to nurture poisons, as a pseudo poison jar, which collects and combines dangerous poisons into one. There is nothing wrong with that alone. However, you have no Corpses to defend yourself with. You have no Corpses to support other Corpses with. You have no Corpses to fly, to support your allies, or even just to scout out a location ahead of yourselves".
"You chose to walk the path of Corpses, and become a Corpse Fae Master specialist, yet you only limit yourself by walking down the path of Poisons with Corpses as a support. Let me show you something".
Arthur took out one of the Storage Fae that Alan possessed, and summoned one of his Wood Yin Spectres.
It was humanoid in shape, yet possessed a thick, bark-like skin and seeped out sap, the same colour as blood. It possessed no hair, but on the top of its head and scattered all over its body were leaves, thicker, and pulsating with the same red coloured sap.
Its claws were elongated, like most ghosts, and its green coloured tongue hung loosely outside of its mouth, drooling a thick, black viscous saliva.
It didn't smell bad, unlike Milena's Corpses either, so other than its unpleasant appearance, everything else about it was fine.
Taking out another Fae material, the nine subordinates watched as Arthur made the Wood Yin Spectre fall to the floor, kneeling on one knee with its head bowed.
Milena and Dagen noticed that the Fae material that Arthur had in his hand was one that he had purchased from the caravan. It was a rare Rank 2 Fae material, although its Rank 1 version was relatively cheap in comparison.
It was because the material for the Rank 1 version to evolve, was the spiritual essence from Wood Attributed Fae. In other words, one needed to destroy a Fae on top of it in order for it to evolve.
There was a Fae that could actually release spiritual essence without having to be detonated, but they weren't found in Human Heaven.
It was called a it was called a Spiritual Wood Heart. Technically a type of fruit, but not one to be used on Humans.
"Watch this".
Stuffing the Spiritual Wood Heart into the mouth of the Wood Yin Spectre, its eyes widened significantly and it started to eagerly devour the large pineapple sized fruit in its mouth. It slobbered all over it, spilling a not so small minority of the juices from the fruit onto the floor.
It was definitely a waste.
Once the Spiritual Wood Heart had been completely devoured, Arthur immediately stood up, and kicked the ghost onto the floor. It laid down helplessly on its back, and started to violently shake as if it was being possessed from the inside out.
It started to claw at its chest violently, scratching at its thick bark-like skin, only to draw the same red coloured sap as it pierced through the first layer of bark.
Arthur didn't waste a single second, taking out another Fae material, and sprinkling it all over the Wood Yin Spectre. Another Rank 2 Fae material, this one was called Ghost Tendril Seeds.
The exact moment the sap from its chest wound met with the Ghost Tendril Seeds, the Rank 2 Fae material exploded outwards, instantly creating numerous purplish-green vines that surrounded and cocooned its entire body.
The vines themselves weren't that thick, but their regenerative power and seemingly countless number caused the nine Rank 1 Fae Masters to take a half step back. They all knew that if they came into contact with the vines, they too would be instantly engulphed.
They all waited a few minutes, before a dark green glow started emanating from the cocooned Ghost Yin Spectre.
Arthur looked up towards the night sky, and calculated something for a moment.
"About 11 minutes, give or take 6 seconds....".
Nyssa, Milena, Parvan and all the others went wide eyed, the moment a crack appeared on the thick, Ghost Tendril Vines that had grown out from the wound on the ghosts chest. An eerie green light was released from said crack, before a green coloured hand burst up and out from the cocoon!
The creature inside tore its way out, as if a butterfly escaping from its chrysalis. Eventually standing before the Rank 1 Fae Masters, an expression of shock and bewilderment marred all of their faces.
Arthur lifted his head before nodding and gesturing to the creature in front of them.
"The nurturing of poison itself isn't necessarily the problem. It's that without better, and more varied Corpses to work with, the poison might not combine, or work, or even produce a better effect. If you truly want to study poisons, then you must also study Corpses as well".