"Can I win?"

Arthur asked the question that was bothering him the most. He didn't want to enter a suicidal battle, however, he didn't want to run away and abandon his home.

This was the place he met Lucy and Saly, apart from this small world, he had no world to return to. He loathed Earth and didn't want to live the rest of his life there.

Raising his daughter there may be better in a lot of ways but she would grow up in a better environment if she lives on Astria.

She wasn't human and there's bound to be racism and mocking, her strength doesn't matter as they would talk behind her back, moreover, the little girl has suffered more than enough already, he wanted nothing but happiness for her and Lucy.

"Win? The numbers say otherwise. Arthur, do you believe in numbers or in yourself? Do you think you're capable of chasing them off? If your lover was here, the percentage of your win will rise significantly… unfortunately, she's not here and you're on your own."

Arthur stood there, not knowing what to do or say, this lame copy of his did a good job at demoralizing him, but it has told him undeniable facts too.

"On your own, there's no way you can win but you could unite every strong person to fight with you. I would call them meat shields as they won't be able to injure the beasts, then again, I know for a fact that you won't resort to such a ruthless path… no matter how heartless you may be, sacrificing thousands of lives to ensure the safety of a world is not something you would do."

"Then tell me what do you want me to do? Run away after all the things we've built here? After getting rid of the Holy Church and stopping the war… should I just turn my back and let things be… let this world be destroyed? Should I tuck my tails between my legs and find another world to build a home for my family and friends? Is running away the only option I have?" (Arthur)

The copy remained silent for a few seconds then clapped his hands, somehow changing the endless space into an old dirt road.

The road led to three different paths, one was littered with blood and bones, the second was of a peaceful valley full of greenery. As for the last, it led to complete darkness, the end couldn't be seen as the view was shrouded with darkness after only a few meters from the crossroad.

"I never said this was the only option. Fate exists but the person is the one who decides how his life goes on, I'm merely laying out the options for you, it's up to you to decide."

Arthur contemplated the three paths, he only focused on the last one, which was shrouded in complete darkness.

"What is the last one?"

The copy also stared at the last path and replied

"The easiest yet most dangerous option. Theoretically, it's doable but I never tried it. It's about restarting from the very beginning."

Arthur glared at his copy, clearly displeased that it was only revealing half the truth as if being cryptic or mysterious on purpose.

The copy shrugged and ignored Arthur's glare while he resumed

"Delete all your skills, destroy your cultivation. You will basically become the same person you were on Earth, physically. It sounds crazy but that's not the most difficult part, what's hard is what comes after that, I have designed a special program inside the ARK, if you follow it by the letter and make use of Zodiak's powerful Dark Magic and only rely on that, the chance to win against the Divine Beasts will significantly rise."

"The percentage of my win will rise but that will not guarantee my victory. I'm supposed to give up everything just for that?"(Arthur)

"As I said, I'm only showing you the way. It's up to you to choose, I'm not forcing you to do anything."

Arthur didn't reply and only stood there, ignoring his copy, seemingly lost in thoughts. A long time passed, the copy disappeared a while ago and there was only him, standing in front of three paths, each leading to different futures, varied outcomes, tragic consequences.

After a long silence, Arthur caressed his ring and said

"I'll do what I have always done, create my own path, forge my own destiny. If death is what awaits for me, then that's as far as I can go."

Arthur thought his copy was gone for good but when he muttered those words, a figure appeared in front of him.

"If you say so… however, I'm intrigued about something since a long time ago. Why aren't you spending your skill points? You've been saving them for long enough, don't you think so?"

…

Before Arthur went to the Green-Leaf world, he did some blacksmithing and managed to craft an extremely strong weapon, probably stronger than his own blade, Makaze.

He stored it away, planning to gift it to Lucy, as it suited and it was specifically crafted to match her skills and powers.

Not only did he craft a masterpiece, he gained three skill points. Since reincarnation, he only gained one skill point that was invested in his fire abilities, improving them and granting him the explosive ancient flames.

A skill point is hard to come by and is very, very beneficial to him if it's invested in the right skill, especially if it's a maxed one.

If he were to use efficiently, the results would be phenomenal, take Dark Magic, for example, if he were to put all his available skill point on it, it'll definitely become something extraordinary.

What Arthur's copy wanted to know is why Arthur hadn't used them yet. His fight against Rozak would've been significantly easier.

"You will see soon…"

Arthur didn't provide an explanation, he left with those words, leaving his copy alone in the endless white space, wondering what Arthur was going to do.

"Indeed… we really are not the same person."

The copy disappeared after he muttered those words.

…

Arthur meditated inside the dark cave while waiting for Swain to return. He doesn't have his servant's ability, so all he could is patiently wait for the youth's return and hope for some good news.

He didn't cultivate and merely calmed his mind and thought about what to do, what his choice is going to be and how exactly will he proceed.

Cultivating won't increase his strength since he reached the peak of the Divine Realm and he needs to break through to the God Realm to boost his strength.

Arthur was sure that he would be able to face against the Divine Beasts if he ascends to Godhood, however, it was easier said than done. He needs enlightenment to become a God, he can also possess a strong individual who has enough Mental Power for him to break through to the God Realm but the tricky thing is that this individual needs to be way stronger than Rozak, who Arthur was barely able to defeat and even that almost resulted in his death… it wasn't a pleasant thought, at least not one Arthur wanted to relive.

Hours passed as Arthur sat there, he stopped meditating a while ago and started summoning Death Knights and Wraiths. No matter what his decision will be, he needs undead to help him secure a few things and protect some people, they cost a small amount of Mental Power;

Furthermore, Mental Power regenerates after a while, so it was worth it, he also used Dark Mana to summon weaker undead such as Skeleton warriors and mages, they are weaker than Death Knights, as they only have a Lv ranging from 300 to 700, however, their usefulness is undeniable.

A Lv700 skeleton may seem strong thanks to his high level but his intelligence is rock-bottom, it can also be killed by a person way weaker than it but Arthur believed in the concept of quantity over quality if it's about the undead.

One undead can't beat an experienced Lv300 mage, but thirty undead could, same thing for a cultivator at the Spirit Realm.

One Death Knight may find some difficulty, but three Death Knights will obliterate that cultivator. Arthur planned to create a whole legion of Undead to aid him in the approaching fight, not only as cannon fodder but to help his sect too and act as the first line of defense.