──Alright, I managed to shake off the humans.
There don’t seem to be any other beasts around here, so let’s go ahead with the evolution.
As I choose my evolution path, the energy filling my body begins to circulate.
This is my third evolution. The heat mutating my body gets stronger each time.
My body swells, pushed by the surge of heat. The flow of inner energy revitalizes me on a cellular level.
～Private System Log~
…
Aresnal Silme has begun evolution.
Species changed to Aresnal Armory Slime.
Stats updated in response to evolution.
New skills have been acquired.
…
～～～～～
The evolution I chose was the Aresnal Armory Slime.
Compared to the other two options, this one had less quirks, and it seemed like it would allow me to improve my current abilities, so I chose it.
“(Phew, it’s done.)”
I stretch myself upwards, as if I’m doing a full-body stretch.
My body, now the size of a baby elephant, can easily reach the tree branches.
“(Hm…?)”
That’s when I notice something strange.
It feels like my body is different somehow──.
“(──Wait, I’ve turned into a cube!?)”
Yes, my body has transformed from its usual oval-like shape into a cube.
Each side is exactly the same length, forming a perfect six-sided cube.
“(If I was going to turn into something like this, a little warning would have been nice…)”
I grumble to myself.
Well, it looks like my shape-shifting ability is still intact, so it should be fine…
“(Alright, let’s take a look.)”
As the thrill and feeling of newfound power from my rapid growth settle down, I decide to check my status.
----------------------------------------
Species: Aresnal Armory Slime
Rank: Grand Beast
Soul Accumulation Level: 56 (UP)
Stats
Life: 457/481
Mana: 413/476
Power: 215
Toughness: 2488
Resist: 268
Speed: 163
Skills
Dissolve, Self-Healing, Sense of Direction
Cover, Throw, Climb
Block, Perfect Defense, Escape Instinct
Steadfast, Flexible Movement, Whip
Compact Whip, Combo Attack, Recklessness
Stealth, Empathy, Slash
Compact Slash, Gesture, Communication
Weapon Body, Flowing Martial Arts, Body Repair
Bite, Dance, Swimming
Escape, Swift Moment, Cross Counter
Challenge, Focus, Aerial Jump
Charge, Heavy Impact (NEW), Storage (NEW)
Transport (NEW), Weapon Storage (NEW), Replicant Form (NEW)
Glamorous Shine (NEW)
----------------------------------------
Damn, those stat boosts are insane.
Before evolving, I was just getting into the mid-100s.
Now, I’ve jumped straight into the 200s in a single leap.
No wonder I feel this unstoppable surge of strength.
The stat distribution is similar to what it was before, but my mana has gone up significantly. Is that an increase in capacity, considering I’m now an “Armory Slime”?
Well, more is always better. There’s no point in overthinking it, so let’s move on to the skills.
----------------------------------------
Skill Details
Heavy Impact: Enhances damage when attacking with body weight. Increases falling speed.
Storage: Increases the amount of stored nutrition. Allows holding Life and Mana above maximum.
Transport: Reduces the weight of transported items and minimizes damage to items during transport.
Weapon Storage: Envelops a weapon within the body, allowing it to be stored in a separate dimension.
Replicant Form: Allows analysis and recording of weapons. Can transform body into recorded weapons.
Glamorous Shine: Increases aggressiveness of creatures targeting the skill holder. If the holder is killed, the experience gain of the killer from soul fragments is dramatically increased.
----------------------------------------
I’ve gained six new skills this time around.
Though technically, Heavy Impact is an upgraded version of Crushing from the bear fight, and Storage, Transport, and Glamorous Shine have replaced Stored Food, Carry, and Alluring Light, so I guess there are only two brand new skills.
Stolen story; please report.
Let’s check out the upgraded (?) skills first.
Heavy Impact has purely improved, making it easier to use.
The increased fall speed could come in handy too.
Storage seems to be an evolved form of Stored Food. It now allows me to store Life and Mana, which should prove useful in the future.
Transport is likely an upgrade of Carry. I might not use it often, but it’s good to have.
Lastly, Glamorous Shine is an upgrade of Alluring Light. Its hate-drawing effect has intensified, and the experience gain has been boosted from “substantial” to “dramatic.” But that doesn’t really matter to me.
I don’t care about that now.
“(Alright, now let’s look at the truly new skills.)”
First, Weapon Storage. With this, I can store the weapons of any beast I defeat, like goblins.
My body is sturdier, so I probably won’t need to use it much, but it could come in handy for projectiles.
Being able to carry weapons and have more options is useful too. I might encounter opponents with skills that make fighting bare-handed a disadvantage.
For example, if the bear had a skill that ignored the strength of living beings, it would’ve been easier to handle with a regular shield.
Now, on to Replicant Form.
This is… a tricky skill to evaluate. It feels a bit redundant with Weapon Body.
However, the ability to analyse weapons sounds interesting.
I pick up a nearby twig to test it out.
“(A twig can be a weapon for a kid, right? Replicant Form – Analyze!... Oh, it actually worked.)”
Weapon detection is loose, I see.
Apparently, a twig is classified as a club.
“(Ohhh, I get it now.)”
Information about the twig appears in my mind. It’s similar to the way I checked evolution paths.
With the analysis complete, I try the transformation function.
“(Replicant Form – Imitate!)”
A part of my body transforms into a twig.
The size, surface texture, and slight curves are all replicated perfectly.
“(Whoa, that’s impressively accurate.)”
It’s indistinguishable from a real twig.
But as I run my hand along it, it breaks with a dry snap.
“(Oops.)”
Looks like I used too much force.
The broken twig dissolves, turning into blue liquid, similar to when my Aresnal Slime body rots away.
“(So it even replicates the durability…)”
And once it breaks, the imitation fails, and the part I used for it dies off.
“(Thanks to my bigger body, the Life cost isn’t too bad, but I’d better not use this recklessly.)”
Given my current Toughness, my raw body is probably stronger than an iron weapon.
It might not be as useful as I thought… but I put Replicant Form aside for now and give a hop.
“(Alright, let’s go hunting!)”
I’m eager to test this newfound strength from my evolution.
****
While escaping from the bear, I was intentionally moving towards the part of the forest with fewer people — deeper into the woods.
As a result, the area I'm in now is thick with mana.
Feeling a strong premonition that I might encounter a formidable foe, I proceeded deeper into the forest.
----------------------------------------
"(Hmm, it’s a bit hard to walk here.)"
As a Aresnal Armory Slime, I'm about the size of a small elephant.
The forest isn’t so overgrown that I can’t move at all, but there are plenty of obstacles, which makes it physically cramped for me.
----------------------------------------
"(Alright, let’s make use of my slime traits here.)"
I shaped my body into a long, narrow rectangle snake like structure, moving forward in a serpentine motion.
Since this isn’t too different from my usual cubic form, maintaining it doesn’t require much energy.
After weaving through the trees for a while, I emerged into an open space.
The clearing was a gentle hill that rose higher towards the center.
----------------------------------------
"(Those fruits look delicious.)"
In the centre stood a single fruit tree, a massive tree even my evolved self-had to look up at.
Its branches were laden with vibrantly coloured fruits that looked ripe even from a distance.
It was definitely an otherworldly sight, as each branch bore fruits of different colors and shapes.
"(Alright, let’s try one.)"
Due to my evolution, my stomach (or whatever I have) has expanded.
My ability to "store food" has also upgraded to "preserve," increasing my storage capacity.
This is a good chance to replenish my reserves.
"(Hmm… I’ll go with that orange one.)"
Among the numerous fruits, I chose one that looked like a crescent-shaped banana on Earth.
However, unlike bananas, they weren’t in bunches but grew individually on branches, and instead of yellow, they were orange.
They kind of looked like the Japanese snack kaki no tane.
"(Alright, let’s dig in!)"
I absorbed the orange banana-like fruit, peel and all.
As it dissolved in my digestive fluids, a superb sweetness spread through me.
"(Delicious...)"
It was so good that I couldn’t help but sigh. The fruit’s taste was incredible.
It had a taste similar to a melon, with a gentle but rich sweetness.
I finished it in no time and was about to reach out for more with a tentacle when—
"(Huh…?!)"
I realized I couldn’t move.
No matter how much I tried to exert myself, I couldn’t budge.
Or rather, I couldn’t exert any force at all.
It felt like the numbness you get after sitting on your legs for too long.
"(Ugh!)"
Before I could think about what to do, things got worse.
Suddenly, several roots burst out from the ground and wrapped around me.
"Juwaaa..."
A vertical crack appeared on the tree’s bark.
The jagged crack opened to reveal countless teeth inside the tree.
"(Could it be… a Treant?!)"
I searched my knowledge for clues about this enemy.
I’d heard of magical beasts that mimic trees, but this was my first time encountering one.
The roots wrapped around me and started pulling me toward the Treant’s mouth.
Although it couldn’t swallow my entire body, part of me ended up inside its mouth.
As the crack closed and the teeth bore down, my body…
Clang!
…was completely unscathed.
"(Well, that figures.)"
No monster could break through my toughness level of over 2000 so easily.
The Treant kept biting down repeatedly, giving me a chance to observe the inside of its mouth.
"(It doesn’t seem to have a throat. Where does it absorb its prey from?)"
A new question arose, but for now, I couldn’t spot any obvious weak point.
The inside of its mouth was probably softer than the rest of its body, but—
More importantly...
"(Alright, full recovery!)"
The paralysis wore off, which was far more crucial.
Thanks to my Resist skill, bolstered by Perfect Defense, I’m highly resistant to status ailments. Even if I get affected, it wears off quickly.
"(Time to move. Lightning Strike!)"
"Gugigigii!"
I launched a lightning attack as my first counterstrike.
Using a significant amount of mana, I fired multiple lightning bolts.
"(And now, Hedgehog Attack!)"
Utilizing my transformation ability, I extended spears from the part of my body inside its mouth.
With my increased volume due to evolution, I exploited every gap between its teeth to stab it.
—Unregistered Information Log—
…
Aresnal Armory Slime has acquired the skill Thrust.
…
"Gyuaa!"
"(Unyielding!)"
The Treant tried to pull me off with its roots from the outside, but I used a skill to hold my ground.
Well, I wasn’t really on the ground, but you get the idea.
Anyway, by combining my skills like Dissolve and Combo Attack, I continued to deal sustained damage, causing the Treant to writhe in agony.
Branches were shaking violently, as if a sudden storm had hit.
"(Oooooo!)"
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but at some point, the Treant stopped resisting, and I felt power surging within me.
My level had increased.
—Unregistered Information Log—
…
Aresnal Armory Slime has leveled up to Soul Accumulation Level 62.
Aresnal Armory Slime has acquired the skill Glutton.
The skill Antibody has been acquired. Glutton has been integrated.
…
Later, I went back to nibble on the remaining fruits to avoid wasting them, and I somehow ended up with some strange skills.