Baruch Clan

The ground was covered in snow, and snowflakes continued to drift down from the sky.

A figure walked along the road of the small town.

"Yulan Calendar year 4600, January 1st. The Magnolia Festival, is it?" Watching the town decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, with children dressed in new clothes, Kolan whispered to himself.

He had just emerged from the Magical Beast Mountain Range, and the first town he arrived at was Wushan Town. Today was indeed January 1st, 4600 of the Yulan Calendar, also known as the Magnolia Festival.

The Magnolia Festival was the grandest holiday across the entire Yulan Continent. It was on this very day that the High Priest had established the Yulan Empire. At the same time, the entire continent was renamed the Yulan Continent, and the calendar was changed to the Yulan Calendar, with that day marking the first day of the first year of the Yulan Calendar!

Ever since then, every year on this day, the entire continent would celebrate the arrival of the Magnolia Festival; it was the biggest holiday of the continent.

The four great empires, the Holy Union, the Dark Alliance, and every kingdom and duchy would celebrate the Magnolia Festival in various ways on this day.

Wushan Town was no exception.

Furthermore, Wushan Town had a joyous occasion: the first Dragonblood Warrior of the Yulan Continent, Baruch, was going to establish the Baruch Clan here.

"That guy Baruch is now world-renowned, the Dragonblood Warrior among the Four Ultimate Warriors!" A mental image of that burly, imposing man appeared in Kolan's mind, and a smile surfaced on his face.

He and Baruch could be considered acquaintances; they had fought side by side before.

Since it happened to be the day Baruch was establishing the Baruch Clan, Kolan prepared to pay a visit to offer his congratulations and, incidentally, have a glass of celebratory wine.

He strode toward the Baruch Clan estate.

Before long, the Baruch Clan estate appeared in Kolan's line of sight.

The Baruch Clan estate occupied a vast area. One could see it had just been completed, and it looked quite magnificent. At this moment, the Baruch Clan estate was decked out in lanterns and streamers, and sturdy men stood guard at the main gate.

The Radiant Church and various prominent figures from the Holy Union had all arrived.

Even royalty from many empires, the royal families of various kingdoms, and core disciples of Saint Realm clans had come to offer their congratulations.

"Baruch, an old friend has come to visit. Why don't you come out and welcome me?" Kolan released his restrained aura and laughed aloud.

"I wonder which old friend has come? Baruch failed to welcome you in time!" A figure quickly appeared at the main gate.

The man was wearing a sleeveless short shirt that highlighted his powerful chest muscles. His brownish-black hair hung in disarray, and his eyes shimmered with sharp light.

"Baruch, do you still recognize me, Kolan?" Kolan walked over and smiled faintly.

"Kolan!? It's you! That's great, it's great that you didn't die!" Baruch looked at Kolan, stunned, then realized something and burst into hearty laughter.

Back when they were defending against the beast tide on the North Sea coastline, he had a deep impression of Kolan—it was impossible not to, as Kolan was a Saint Realm Necromancer, the only Saint Realm Necromancer in the entire Yulan Continent.

If it hadn't been for Kolan holding back the Nine-Headed Serpent Emperor, even Baruch wouldn't have been able to fight three opponents at once, let alone eventually slay the Nine-Headed Serpent Emperor and quell the beast tide.

However, Kolan had fallen into the Yulan River. When he searched for him after slaying the Nine-Headed Serpent Emperor, he found no trace of Kolan. He had assumed that Kolan had died or had quietly departed.

After all, Necromancers were loners with eccentric behaviors.

"Haha, Baruch, 21 years have passed, and you have become world-renowned, becoming one of the top Saint Realm powerhouses in the Yulan Continent!" Kolan laughed.

It had been 21 years since his soul mutation!

Time was truly worthless to Saint Realm powerhouses; a single session of cultivation could last months or even years.

"Congratulations, Baruch, on establishing your clan today!" Kolan offered his well-wishes.

"Come, let's go inside. We shall drink well today!" Baruch said.

Afterward, Baruch led Kolan to a courtyard where over a hundred people were gathered, every single one of them a Saint Realm powerhouse.

"This is the first Tiger-Striped Warrior, Bolei. His strength is formidable, not a bit inferior to mine!"

"This is the first Undying Warrior, Amanda. His defense is terrifying, and his strength is monstrous!"

"This is the first Violet Flame Warrior, Haide. He excels in speed and physical attacks, and possesses terrifying regenerative abilities!"

Kolan examined each of these first-generation Ultimate Warriors one by one.

Each of them had reached the pinnacle of the Saint Realm in the Yulan Continent after roughly three or four hundred years of cultivation.

If not for O'Brien becoming a god earlier, this era would have belonged to the Four Ultimate Warriors.

Unfortunately, above the Four Ultimate Warriors now stood the High Priest and the War God, two god-level powerhouses.

"This is Amanda's good brother, Haydson. He founded the Saber organization, cultivates the Laws of Darkness, and excels in slaughter."

"This is the War God O'Brien's eldest disciple, Fain. He cultivates the Laws of Thunder and Lightning, and his strength is extremely high."

"This is the founder of the Radiant Church, Ernst!"

"This is the leader of the Radiant Church's ascetics, and also one of the founders of the Radiant Church, Desri!"

"..."

Baruch introduced them one by one, and every name was like thunder to Kolan's ears.

Haydson, Fain, Desri—these were all future peak Saint Realm powerhouses.

As for their current strength, even if they weren't peak Saint Realm powerhouses yet, they were likely at the pinnacle of the Saint Realm.

"Everyone, this is the Saint Realm Necromancer, Kolan!" Baruch introduced.

As soon as Baruch introduced him, many people showed expressions of surprise.

They had not expected that a Saint Realm Necromancer had actually been born on this continent.

Ernst and Desri could not help but reveal expressions of displeasure and disgust; as the founders of the Radiant Church, both were Saint-level light mages with sincere faith in the Sovereign of Light, and they felt an instinctive loathing toward practitioners of Necromancy.

If one were to ask which faction in the Yulan Continent hated necromancers the most, it would undoubtedly be the Radiant Church, which was also the force that hunted down necromancers most relentlessly across the entire Yulan Continent.

"Baruch, how do you know a necromancer?" Ernst said with displeasure.

"Ernst, who I associate with is my own business!" Baruch warned him, "Today is the day I establish my clan, and I do not wish for anyone to cause trouble. Otherwise, don't blame me, Baruch, for not showing you any respect!"

"Ernst, let's give Baruch some face today. If we run into him in the future, we can deal with him then!" Desri grabbed Ernst's arm and said in a deep voice.

Kolan smiled faintly.

He did not take the meaning behind their gazes to heart in the slightest.

As he was now, unless it was a God-level powerhouse, Kolan feared no one, not even those at the peak of the Saint Realm.

The fact that he hadn't made a move was already giving Baruch enough face.

While here, Kolan also encountered a few acquaintances, all of whom were Saint-level mages from the Yulan Empire.

For instance, the Dean of the Yulan Magic Academy, Dickeny, a wind-element Saint-level mage.

And the personal disciples of the High Priest of the Temple of Life: the water-element Saint-level mage Natalie and the lightning-element Saint-level mage Riley!

The Yulan Empire was a cradle for mages, and more than half of the Saint-level mages in the entire Yulan Continent hailed from there.

As for the Temple of Life, it was the greatest power in the Yulan Empire and a sacred site for cultivation founded by the High Priest; all of the High Priest's disciples were mages, and not a single one was a warrior.