Located on the infamous Red Island's eastern border. At the Kanundra Hell's Gate Bridge. The clear water was flowing through the shallow section of the river, creating a gentle sound that echoed throughout the tranquil setting.
The queen of the Peasant evolution line's thunderous roar had ended, having terrified all monsters nearby. However, the person who had sparked the Soverant's unexpected rage had managed to flee, away from both the queen and the Assailants who were supposed to be keeping an eye on him.
The Soverant was back in the anthill. At the very least, it was wise enough to realize that remaining outside, vulnerable to the other powerful monsters, was extremely dangerous. Many monsters would seize such an opportunity to finally eliminate the source of the plague on Red Island.
Eon was safe, but returning to such a dangerous place as Red Island was out of the question for the time being. Assailants remained scattered across the Red Island, patrolling every nook and cranny in search of their adversary... who had already crossed the Red Island border.
Eon growled as he crossed the river's stones in his apparent favorite form, the Slug form. This form, of all of his forms, was the one he preferred the most for a reason he was the only one who knew. And it gave him a significant advantage as he crossed the river because the Warden Of The Hell's Gates, the Bakunawa, would not attack him. It would just watch Eon cross the other side.
Eon crawled to the other side of the river and back to his house. His white skin stood out against the green grass and brown stones he was walking through. He arrived at the tree he considered his home after a few seconds, thanks to his unusually fast speed for a Slug.
Eon entered his chamber through the barrier of stones and roots, remaining motionless for a few seconds, staring at the two status boards floating in the air.
It was time...
Unlike his first evolution choices, he no longer had an overwhelming choice of seven evolution options. There were only three of them, and they all had the same stat path, which was the strength stat.
Eon shifted his gaze to the options and began to consider which one to select.
***
Armored Cryo Teplonide.
Race Description:
[A Cryo Teplonide species with an extremely high survivability. They can create tough ice armor out of thin air and use it to protect themselves. Because of it, they can withstand devastating attacks that others cannot. Furthermore, they are exceptionally difficult to defeat because they can summon armor at any time during the battle.]
Skill: Ice Armor.
***
Spiky Cryo Teplonide.
Race Description:
[A Cryo Teplonide species that focuses on retaliation. They can cover their skin with sharp spikes and inflict harm on anyone who manages to strike them. They aren't particularly tough, but once they survive an attack, retaliation is almost always guaranteed.]
Skill: Spiky Skin.
***
Slippery Cryo Teplonide.
Race Description:
[A Cryo Teplonide species that focuses on mobility. A defender with the ability to move quickly on the battlefield by sliding. Because of their slippery skin, they can move faster and cannot be grabbed. They cannot withstand strong attacks or cause immediate retaliation when attacked, but their presence can be felt throughout the battlefield.]
Skill: Slippery Skin.
***
The function of the skill he would obtain was hinted at by the race description of his evolution choices. So, even without seeing the skill descriptions, Eon was given a hint as to what function the skill he was about to acquire served.
All three skills were verified as active, non-damaging skills. Skills of this type would not cause direct damage or would cause no damage at all.
In each evolution, all units would receive skill types alternately. At level 10, all options were damaging skills; at level 20, all options were non-damaging skills; at level 30, all options were damaging skills again; and so on.
Eon growled as he read the description of the Slippery Cryo Teplonide. An evolution that played a very specific niche role. It was automatically ignored by Eon because he could already fly, so mobility was no longer an issue for him.
Eon's gaze shifted between the two remaining options, both of which seemed promising. One that would ensure retaliation if he was attacked, assuming he survived. And the other would provide him with superior survivability by arming him.
The other required the user to be hit first and survive before it could perform its function.
And the other would provide straightforward defense.
Eon moved forward, growling. He pressed the evolution line he had chosen with his gooey eyes. After pressing his next evolution, the board that displayed the options vanished.
[Initiating the evolutionary process.]
Eon crawled to the far corner of the chamber and collapsed. He growled as his white long body melted and turned into white liquid. His eyes followed his transformation until they were the only thing left in his Slug body, and then melted like ice cream in the summer sun.
Eon transformed into a completely white liquid for a split second before moving and forming a circle before transforming into his crystal ball form. Eon's crystal form briefly lit up before turning off, indicating that he had finally fallen asleep. His transformation had begun, and he went into hibernation to become a superior species.
Eon, like his first evolution, was unaware of his surroundings while sleeping. He didn't move an inch for the entire four days it took him to evolve. There was no rain during the entire process. There was no silence outside his little chamber; during the day, day monsters such as boars and birds resounded, and at night, the sounds of night dwellers predominated, with monsters such as Diviar Wolves and Sentrowls nearby.
Those were peaceful times for the monsters who lived in Kegali's great forest. It would, however, come to an end soon.
The vast forest of Kegali, located outside of the infamous Red Island, was teeming with life. And Eon had not yet thoroughly explored it.
And he would...
***
The apathetic light bulb of a crystal ball flickered once more, indicating that he had awoken after four days of slumber in order to gain great power. He didn't have an eye, but his gaze wandered around his chamber, discovering that nothing had changed in those few days, which he had no idea how long.
[The evolution process is complete.]
[You have been awarded one defense point.]
[You have increased your Strength stat by nine.]
[You have gained a level.]
[You have increased your Strength stat by one.]
[You have increased your Agility stat by one.]
[You have increased your Intelligence stat by one.]
[You have been awarded two skill points.]
[Your HP and MP have been replenished.]
Eon leveled up once because he had kept experience points after reaching the maximum level cap. Only 25 of the excess experience points had been kept, and the other experience points that Eon could no longer take had vanished. After reaching level cap, he could keep a maximum of 25 experience points. Which amounted to one level.
[Deceitful Shapeshifter has been activated.]
Eon growled as he crawled out of the spot where he'd been for four days, wandering his sky blue gooey eyes around the area and then to himself. His color did not change, and his skin remained white, smooth, and soft, which was the polar opposite of what he had expected. He shifted his gaze to the floating status board in front of him.
Eon had once again advanced into a superior race...
RACE: Armored Cryo Teplonide [Level: 21/30] [Exp. Points: 0/25].
HP: 390/390
MP: 210/210
Top Speed: 42 km/h
Defense: 2
[STATS.]
Strength: 39
Agility: 21
Intelligence: 21
[DAMAGING ACTIVE SKILLS.]
Lethal Augmentation [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
Icy Touch [MP Cost: 20] [Level: 20/20].
[Imitation] Fire Blast [MP Cost: 40] [Level: 20/20].
[NON-DAMAGING ACTIVE SKILLS.]
Deceitful Shapeshifter [MP Cost: 1]
Ice Armor [MP Cost: 1] [Level: 1/20].
[PASSIVE SKILLS.]
World Conqueror's Perception.
[Lesser] MP Regeneration.
[Lesser] HP Regeneration.
SKILL POINTS AVAILABLE: 4