Chapter 84: Home Again, Home Again, Jiggitty Jig
Considering how little time Benton had actually spent in the village, it felt strange for him to consider it home. The small, decrepit place filled with starving people besieged on all sides by spirit beasts was his future, though, and that made it home.
The amount of spirit beasts was a bit concerning, more so than he would have thought. The density of them near the village had increased significantly in the time since he’d left, and there were mainly rank twos nearby compared to rank ones before. There were even visible scratches in the Orange Vigor Spirit Wood wall near the gate. Benton doubted if a rank three would be strong enough to make those, meaning a beast of an even higher rank might have been there.
The differences were a clear indication that something was pushing the lower ranked beasts further and further out.
Back where Benton had grown up, afternoon thunderstorms had been commonplace. Not every storm produced a tornado, but some of them did. That was how he’d thought about the chances of a beast tide when he’d left the village. There was definitely a thunderstorm, but there may or may not be a tornado.
The conditions at the village currently were along the lines of a tornado watch. Conditions were right for a twister, but that didn’t mean one would form. The same went for a beast tide.
Only time would tell if that watch would become a warning, meaning a tornado was on the ground. Or in this case, that a tide was coming.
A clamor arose inside the walls when the guards noticed the caravan coming, an event that had to be both unexpected and almost unprecedented in their recent memory. The gate remained closed for several minutes even after the caravan stopped right outside of the village.
Finally, Mo Jian appeared atop the wall, and his eyes went wide. He cupped his hands. “These lowly ones feared that the Esteemed Master Cultivator was lost.”
Benton shrugged. “Better late than never. Can we enter? I’ve got a lot of people and kids out here.”
“Of course. Of course.”
After a couple of shouts from Mo Jian, the gates opened, and the caravan rolled inside.
“Forgive me, but though these ones are glad that the Esteemed Master Cultivator has returned, where is the food?” the mayor said.