28-This isn't even my Final Form yet!

1/2/5/4353 M.A.C - Great Western Rainforest- Mid Morning

[Evolution Completed]

Finally!

It had taken six long days but this message finally signaled the end of her nightly growth spurts. Emi had grown afraid of what her final height would be when she passed the six-foot mark, but she let out a sigh of relief when she saw that she had settled just a bit under seven. She recalled the ostrich-sized eagle she'd seen the first time she'd made her way above the canopy and realized that she might have caught up to it in size.

Well...shit! With this, I definitely can't fly under the canopy anymore...It was already getting near impossible when I made it past five feet, but now...?

Emi spread her wings and winced at what she saw. Her wings had grown so large that if she tried hugging Arctic again, she would be making him a rather spacious tent instead. They were at least eighteen feet from end to end, maybe even twenty. Her tail, shaped like two harps stuck to each other by their shorter ends, had also grown to an impressive size. When Emi flattened it behind her, images of bridal gowns with long trains came to her mind.

Yup, I've outgrown my environment. Good thing we're heading off soon because in a forest this dense, I'd need to find a large clearing just to spread my wings wide enough to take off.

Emi decided to see how her final size impacted her flight and started a short run-up to help her take off. Ever since she had passed the six-foot mark, taking off from a stand-still had become harder and harder and she had found that building a bit of momentum on the ground helped reduce the effort she needed. Emi climbed as high as she could before her muscles demanded a break, at which point she spread her wings out as wide as she could and started gliding.

Damn, I can only fly up like 50 feet before I need to take a glide break...

As her size increased, she found that actively flying had become a lot harder, but in exchange, she found herself able to sustain a glide with about as much effort as it took for her to remain standing. The sheer size of her wings compared to her relatively lightweight body, thanks to her hollow bones and the amount of her volume that was made up of light feathers, had also improved her gliding efficiency. She lost less altitude over the same distance and updrafts carried her further up than before. The wind got caught in her wings and made them billow like sails, allowing her to maintain her altitude with a scant few flaps of her wings a minute as she glided in gentle circles around the circumference of the village.

Man, that's one huge shadow...Let's see how long I can keep it up.

After about thirty minutes had gone by, Emi went down for a well-practiced landing as her muscles began growing sore from her sustained efforts. Emi thought she might be able to hold out for much longer if she went further up and caught the powerful winds above the canopy, but she didn't feel like risking an encounter with something like the giant Eagle she had seen. She'd had to change her way of flying to accommodate her new body and did not feel confident confronting anything in the sky in her current state. She felt lucky that she didn't have to hunt for herself because she was now way too large to hunt below the canopies the way she did in the memories she carried of her life as a regular-sized owl. With how broad-stroked and clumsy her flying had become, hunting smaller, more agile, birds above the canopy also seemed out of her reach. As she landed, a group made up of Arctic and a dozen younger monkeys crowded Emi, jumping about in excitement. These children had taken a liking to Emi's songs and enjoyed watching her flying practices over the last few days, they had even copied Arctic and begun calling her "big sister".

"My, isn't someone getting popular? I might be just a bit jealous. How goes the practice?"

"Hey Majusculus. Good news, I finally finished evolving. Any more than this and I would have needed an airport."

Over the week she had spent in the village, Emi had talked with Majusculus about Earth. He had been curious about a lot of things Emi would say as offhand comments and had found her description of airplanes particularly interesting. He had told her that this world had multiple means of flight, but that the only mundane means he knew of were some kinds of hot air balloons that could only go where the winds led them.

"Oh! So you can finally try that Ability of yours, the one that you were saying was useless until now."

Emi had complained about [Anthropomorphic Form] for the last few days since she'd still been unable to activate it. Between learning about this world, preparing for the journey, and the two new Abilities she had gained when reaching level 2, she had only thought about her inactive Ability at times her lack of hands proved problematic, but that still accounted for over two dozen instances daily.

"Thanks for reminding me. Can you guys give me a little bit of space? I'm gonna try something out. You see, I have been hiding my true form! Are you ready?"

The young monkeys surrounding Emi took a few steps back and stared at her intently, their curiosity piqued. Emi closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she focused on picturing what she had been like in her previous life as a human.

"[Anthropomorphic Form] !"

Oh? I feel someth-

Emi had just begun to feel a strange shifting sensation in her spine when her thoughts were abruptly brought to a stop; her consciousness extinguished like a suddenly blown-out candle. Outwardly, she simply appeared to be standing still with her eyes closed, but beneath her feathers, [Anthropomorphic Form] started doing its work. From the perspective of the surrounding monkeys, Emi remained standing still for nearly ten minutes with close to no perceivable change in her demeanor. The only noticeable shift was that her spine seemed to gradually straighten at a barely perceivable rate, losing a few degrees of the natural forward tilt of her avian body. The change was so minor, however, that it simply seemed like Emi was growing uncomfortable and correcting her posture.

-ing weird. Huh? Did it stop?

Her ability seemingly ran its course, and Emi's thought process resumed as if it had never been interrupted in the first place. Emi inspected her core and saw that her Ability had spent a bit over half of her previously full reserves.

Ok, so it activated. It didn't stop by running out of energy, since I'm not tapped out, so it should have worked.

Emi opened her eyes and craned her neck as she gave herself a once-over.

Must have failed somehow. I look exactly the same.

"Something wrong? Is it still not working?"

As Emi had opened her eyes, Majusculus seemed to assume that she'd given up and decided to take a break.

"I'm not sure. it consumed half my energy instantly and then didn't seem to do anything else."

Emi started scratching the top of her head as she tried to figure out what had gone wrong. A moment later she noticed a look of surprise on the faces of the surrounding monkeys as they openly stared at her, their mouths agape.

"What's wrong? Did I miss something?"

Majusculus, Arctic, and the young monkeys surrounding her all pointed toward the top of her head in unison. A very human-looking forearm was peeking out from her coat of feathers, ending in a fully functional hand that was in the process of scratching her scalp.

Ooooh Yeah! I got hands Again! Although, how the hell is this anthropomorphic!? I literally just grew a pair of human arms from my bird body. I look like that little owl-girl from that one Anime about wars in ancient Chinese wars. Think her name was Karyo-something or other.

The surrounding monkeys started chuckling as they saw what Emi had claimed to be her true form.

"If you hadn't told me you used an Ability, I'd have thought you were just hiding those underneath your feathers for the last week."

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

The crowd of monkeys redoubled in their laughter at that last comment, prompting Emi to defend herself.

"What do you know? This isn't even my final form! Probably..."

Hehe, forget being a magical girl, I'm playing the part of a shounen villain. But now that I pay closer attention, I feel like my balance has shifted a bit.

With the addition of two arms to help her counterbalance, and the shift in her posture, Emi found herself a lot more stable on the ground. She ran around a bit and jumped a few times before attempting some sidesteps.

Not quite back to human, but this is a lot more comfortable. As long as I keep my wings tucked in, they don't throw me off too much. Good thing I got a set of thick-ass thighs, otherwise I'd be a bit top-heavy with these new arms.

"The village will get quieter after the three of you leave tomorrow. It's a year or two earlier than I normally would have it, but since Arctic is leaving tomorrow, I have a lesson for him. Please come along as well, it will prove beneficial to you."

"Sure, is Strong Armor Spear coming along as well?"

"No, he has other duties that need tending before he leaves, and I already gave him this lesson when he came of age."

Emi and Arctic left the other youths and followed Majusculus to his cabin. Majusculus and Arctic sat down as Emi discovered another upside to her recent change. Her hip bones and spine seemed to have either become more flexible, or to have rearranged themselves slightly, and she could now sit on the floor by bending her knees and hugging her legs with her newly grown arms. To her dismay, Emi had only managed to find two comfortable positions to be in as an owl. She'd had to either remain standing upright or lying face down on her stomach. Any other position had turned out either too impractical or uncomfortable to maintain for any significant amount of time. She had tried sitting on a stool Majusculus had provided a few days earlier but her body shape had proved incompatible. She now had an actual way of sitting without putting strain on her legs as she found herself able to transfer her weight to her bottom without her tailbone causing her pain.

Maybe I just couldn't see it because of all the feathers, but [Anthropomorphic Form] seems to do more than just give me arms. I never thought I could have missed sitting this much though. Chairs are still out of the question, because of my tail, but maybe I can try using the stool again.

"Alright, settle down and pay attention. In this world, there are different types of energies. Depending on the definition, and on who you ask, there are between two and four. Out of the four, three can be argued to be different aspects of the same thing."

"Bhramic, Akashic, and Maya. Bhramic energy is the pure energy that fills the world and Maya is what it becomes when it gets corrupted by strong natural or physical forces. Akashic energy is the result of using Bhramic energy to stabilize Maya into a form that doesn't corrupt. Akashic Energy is only available to those who have been linked to the Akashic Network and have made a Choice. So out of those three, for Arctic, there is one that is incredibly difficult to use, one that would turn him into a monster over time, and one he doesn't have access to. I don't think I need to say it, but just in case, never try using Maya. Even if just a little bit might not seem to be a problem, if you start using even a bit too much, then you are bound to eventually lose yourself entirely. There are ways to use pure Bhramic Energy, but they are difficult to learn and those who practice them tend to guard their secrets well. If you get the opportunity, it may prove very useful to learn."

"You might have noticed that there is still one type of energy I have not yet mentioned. That is Vital energy. Vital energy is produced by all living things, in varying quantities. This is the discipline I have strived to master. It is part of what has allowed me to live hundreds of years instead of the few dozens most members of our species last for. For those who don't train with it, Vital energy reflects one's physical state. If someone is sick, exhausted, or injured, it is reflected in their Vital Energy's quantity and quality. For those who train it, the capacity and production rate can be increased. This helps practitioners enhance their physical state, be more resistant to disease, increase their stamina, speed up their natural healing, and lengthen their lifespan. Adept practitioners can also use their vitality to drastically improve certain physical abilities for short periods or single feats. Are you both still following?"

"It's a lot but yeah."

Emi nodded but Arctic yawned as he answered; one of the benefits of using sign language.

"Yes, I know all that already, I spied on you giving this lesson a few times already. Are we getting to the part where you put your hand on our backs yet?"

Emi could see the frustration invade Majusculus's aura as, once again, Arctic revealed how much he had been hiding. It turns out that none of the adults had caught on to the fact that Arctic had been training in secret, and that he'd had a habit of sneaking into the cabin where Majusculus kept books and other records. After finding out that he was leaving, Arctic had ceased all pretense and Majusculus had been shocked at both how much he had failed to notice, but also at how adept Arctic had proven to be with the Modern Imperial language and letters.

"Patience! This is all new to Emi, if not to you."

"Actually, it is not entirely new to me. Back on Earth, there were philosophical and religious groups that claimed similar things, although none of them lived for multiple centuries as far as I know. In fact, one of the lands neighboring my mother's homeland made that concept one of their favorite genre of fiction. They called it "cultivation", but not as in tending to the fields."

"Oh? Does Earth have Cultivators? Cultivation is one approach to Vital Energy indeed, although not one I can use. I don't know how it was in your world, but Cultivators here are actually adept at using Bhramic, Akashic, and Vital Energy together. If you want to be a Cultivator, you either need to find a master, or get accepted in one of the Thousand Sects of Baisheng."

Emi blinked a few times, deciding that this couldn't be a coincidence. The name of the duchy, and the fact this world had a match for the Chinese concept of cultivation, made her suspect that at least a few of the Blessed that had made their way to this world had come from ancient China.

"Well, let's not get sidetracked. Although there are many approaches to Vital Energy, everyone starts the same way. You first have to learn how to sense your vital energy and how to stop your body from letting it slowly release into your surroundings. To help you learn how to sense it in a short time frame, I will be putting my palm on your back and I will send some of my own vital energy into your body. Emi, since you have access to Akashic energy, you don't have to depend on vital energy and you could just focus on your Choice, but I would still recommend training with Arctic. In your case, Arctic, this is what you need to focus on if you want to grow stronger and live long enough to maybe become a spirit beast in the future."

Hahahahaha! Oh my god, I'm getting flashbacks. This is basically "Nen" isn't it? With this, will I pass the unofficial second part of the Hunter exam?

"I don't know what you are thinking about, but stop grinning and come here. You too Arctic."

"Osu! Sorry Master Wing."

Majusculus had a confused expression on his face as Emi said yet another thing that was incomprehensible to him. After half a decan's worth of interactions, he had learned better than to waste his time asking for an explanation; he'd been burned by hour-long descriptions of unrelated tidbits that had popped into Emi's mind. Emi's ability to communicate through intent was working, but she had found that it did nothing to help others catch on to her pop culture references. In fact, she'd had to make sure she didn't try to communicate anything too complex or abstract if she wanted to be fully understood by most of the tribe members. Majusculus positioned himself behind the pair and placed a hand on each of their backs. He frowned for a second as he struggled getting his hand through Emi's dense feather coat and reassumed a concentrated expression.

"I know you can't answer me right now since your hands are occupied, but could you tap once with one of your fingers when you start, please?"

Emi immediately felt a small tap on her back and started focusing inwardly.

I don't have an Ability I can use to trick my vital energy into moving on its own, like I do for Akashic energy, so this might end up being harder. I need to really focus on-

Emi started feeling a strange heat diffusing through her back. It didn't actually feel hot though, not even warmer than her body temperature, but she somehow felt as if the comfortable feeling was spreading. The slight strain she'd had in the muscles at the base of her wings ever since she'd finished her flying exercises grew less noticeable with every passing moment.

Ok, maybe it is going to be easier than I thought.

Emi started cycling her Akashic Energy toward the area where she was feeling the strange cozy sensation, but it didn't appear as if the two interacted at all.

Maybe because it's a different type of energy they don't interact? It could just be that you can't control someone else's vital energy. Let's try a different approach. I should already have some vital energy in my body according to what he said. Rather than concentrating on where Majusculus's energy is spreading, I should focus on the rest of my body.

Emi focused on the parts of her body that hadn't been affected by the warm feeling and started searching for something similar. Emi was so focused that she started reaching a sort of meditative state. All of her attention was directed inwardly and external stimuli started becoming something akin to a slight background noise. Ten minutes went by as Emi focused, but she was unable to tell if she had been at it for a minute or an hour. Emi had managed to reach this state a couple of times while practicing her Akashic Energy cycling, but due to the nature of this state, she wasn't sure of the exact number. Sometimes she would feel as if she dozed off for a few seconds, only to realize that she had spent nearly an hour cycling. At other times just a few seconds had gone by and she wasn't sure if she had even entered that state or just had a lapse in concentration.

Wait, is that something?

Emi's meditative state came to an end as she found something. Maybe it was because Emi had identified vital energy as a sort of warmth, or because blood and Vital Energy were somewhat linked in her mind, but her blood was where she started noticing something. As blood left the area under the influence of Majusculus's vital energy, Emi could feel it slowly return to its normal state. As she focused on the gradual decrease in the warm sensation as it traveled away from the external source, Emi was able to sense the moment his energy had completely dissipated, but she could still faintly feel something. It was hard to feel clearly, and it took her utmost concentration to keep it in focus. It wasn't nearly as potent as what she was feeling from Majusculus, and it felt lighter, less constant. As she focused again, she could sense the faint warmth diffusing from her blood and into her muscles, then out to her skin.

Oh? Oh! Did I do it?

As the bit of Vital Energy she had been focusing on left her body, Emi immediately lost track of it. She did not feel down, however, as she was nearly immediately able to find more warm specks within her. Now that she had been able to sense her own Vital Energy properly once, she knew what to look for and managed to repeat her success with minimal effort. Finding herself not needing his energy as a reference point anymore, Emi took a step forward and broke contact with Majusculus's hand.

"Do you need to take a break? Or do you have a grasp on it already?"

Now with a hand free, Majusculus found himself able to communicate once more.

"I can sense little bits of the energy everywhere in my body, but it's different from yours. It doesn't feel like one thing but like a bunch of little independent clusters. Also, yours feels a lot...thicker? Stickier maybe? If yours is syrup, then mine feels more like dust bunnies, or dandelion seeds."

Majusculus nodded and gave her a smile.

"Good. Your impressions are correct, there is a qualitative difference between our Vital Energies because I have trained hard for a long time. Now try to gather those "dust bunnies" together in the center of your body. Concentrate and breathe deeply. Imagine each inhalation gathering them closer to the center of your body, then try to stop them from moving back as you exhale. Once you've managed to clump a few together, they should stick to each other and should start feeling heavier. Once you've stuck a few of those clumps together, the mass should be relatively stable and anchored. It will then start absorbing any new Vital Energy produced in that part of your body as long as you keep it there."

"Now concentrate on keeping that mass stable, and keep sending any "dust bunnies" you can find in your body into it. You will need to keep this up until, eventually, your whole body is filled with one large cluster. That is the start of the road. Depending on the amount you practice, how healthy you are, how naturally inclined you are, and the quality of your environment, it can take anywhere between a few days and a few years to achieve. Don't worry though, it is usually at most a matter of months, if not decans, for anyone who puts even a little bit of effort into it. For now, try to get a nice clump going somewhere as central as you can in your body. Don't worry if it takes a few days, Strong Armor Spear is extremely talented in this aspect, as opposed to his studies, and will be there to help you practice for the first leg of your journey."

Emi made a complicated expression as she thought over the last statement. Her relationship with Strong Armor Spear was still somewhat uneasy, and she just hoped he and Arctic would be able to get along well enough on the journey to avoid worsening their already strained relationship. Arctic could probably tell that something was going on around him, but if he did, he had decided to keep focusing on his own endeavor.

"Alright, I'll give it a shot. Sounds straightforward enough."