[Terran POV]

I had wandered far and wide yet I still lacked the courage to walk in front of others. I had seen them lifting boulders, parting rivers with magic and fighting a dragon to a standstill all while I felt my strength leaving me. my senses were duller, I was lacking in control and trying to shapeshift had become too slow such that I had to create pockets of tendrils in my joints, hands and feet that I had to compensate for. The pain I felt was a burden I had become used to but when it spiked it would cause me to have to sit down, even if it didn’t rob me of my faculties I couldn't do much in such a state so I would just sit and suffer in silence sometimes vomiting out blood so the speed at which I could travel was no longer what it used to be.

I had replaced all of the fake leather that I had either made or was having my body imitate so that I could have some protection given how weak I was becoming. I had carved a wooden mask to replace the fake one as well. Now whenever I looked at myself when I found clear lakes I would look somewhat like a human wearing a skintight suit of armor made of chitin, scales and leather while I had fashioned my face to have some human features while it too could be hidden in the armor that I had made imitating some half-remembered sci-fi helmet such that the human face was hidden behind two layers in most cases and atleast one otherwise.

I kept walking and noticed that the architecture had begun to have an eastern feel as opposed to western one which made me question how such influences could even be here but I chose to move on for now maybe someday I would try and uncover such mysteries …. if I lived.

*sigh*

The clothing was also different, and people spoke similarly to some of the languages I knew even if I could no longer step close enough to hear things clearly.

I had helped some people in my travels mostly those who were alone and injured such that it looked as if they had accepted death most would either faint when they saw me as I walked towards them or would try and run or crawl away in fear until they couldn’t anymore, some did try and fight me but they where sloppy and easy to disarm or dodge.

I don’t know if I am unlucky, losing my edge or what but they would always lose their conscience one way or another either from my actions or their own and after I treated them someone would always get close enough to notice me before they regained conscience such that I would choose to flee.

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I knew I had to change something because I would die a slow and lonely death otherwise but thinking something or even saying it is different from doing it. Unfortunately the decision to act was taken out of my hands as I was traveling and sensed danger so jumped out of the way only for a massive sword to strike where I was standing and looked towards what I could only describe as cultivators given that they were unnaturally beautiful and floating in the air.

The one in the middle spoke something in such a manner that it felt as if the world spoke with them yet I understood them.

“Creature, why have you come to the lands of our sect? Leave if you value your life and know that the only reason I do not slay you where you stand is because you still hold both your reason and strength.”

There were 4 men and a woman each with weapons drawn and pointed my direction so I too took a stance with my spear which I had replaced with one entirely made from the biomass I had gathered since coming to this world and spoke in chinese not knowing whether or not they would be able to understand me.

“I travel to seek aid and to see the wonders this world has to offer, I know little of the lands I travel, point me to someplace that would be willing to aid me and I shall leave.”

The eyes of most of them widened as they looked at me and some of them looked at one another in confusion while the girl turned to look elsewhere and then turned to the others and their eyes hardened as they stuck in sync with chains bursting from around me and fire and ice striking at me from the sides and a spear of earth came at me from the front so I ran straight at it and jumped and used it as a foothold to avoid the chains and charged directly at them and thrust my spear to force one to block with his sword but ended up drawing blood when I overpowered him and pushed them back and then slashed around me to force the other two to back away then used the spear to create wind strong enough to weaken the fireball coming my way into another charge.

I won’t lie it was exciting to me to fight like this as no one was capable of it in my world so I didn’t really have a good tactical mindset for it but the only thing thus far I have seen that might threaten me are the chains that they used in the beginning but that is just based on myths of my world.

We fought at some range with another spear wielder trying to hold me down using techniques that could counteract my strength somewhat by using the earth to his advantage but I could see him straining himself as he redirected and dodged while the others kept trying to attack me with fire and ice which they couldn’t really control that well such that they where simple to dodge while keeping a flow of attack.

It was fun in a way that I had not felt in a long long time such that I even forgot my pain and just enjoyed the battle and slowly adjusted myself against them until the chains came back so I had to jump away and turned to look at the girl who was making symbols with her hands and swordsman that was somewhat recovered standing behind the others and got ready for a fight that would be harder and somewhat in sync we all took a stance with our weapons.