Growth 3

Each manifestation of origin has an effect on a particular aspect. Mana influences the mind, makes it faster, sharper and generally more efficient. Aura influences the body making it tougher and stronger. Chi boosts the growth of the soul. Finally, chakra, the outlier of the lot, encourages all-round development of all three aspects of a being. It should be obvious then, that based on the concentration of any type of origin a specific type of practitioner would be more likely to be present. Areas rich with mana will most likely have a large populous of mages. An area abundant with aura will be inclined to developing martial artists. And as is due, psychics and cultivators would be a common sight in chi plentiful regions.

Every embodiment of origin comes with it's own benefits as welll as shortcomings- mana users boast an amazing array of far range and area of effect spells but are notorious for their lack of close-quarters combat ability leaving themselves at risk in close range battles. Aura is quite the opposite with strength in close range but a severe lack of mid to far range abilities. Chi is infamous for its difficulty in progression however the strength increase after each progression is alarming. Chakra is amazing for its ability to provide generalized growth and pacifying other forms of energy but lacks when it comes to specialization.

Another important factor in the gross ability of any specific region is the type of terrain. As you may well know the affinity of any form of origin is heavily dependent on the landscape of an area. Seas, lakes, and rivers surge with water element origin. Mountain ranges undoubtedly give an advantage to earth and wind type practitioners. Whilst volcanic environments provide massive amounts of fire attribute origin. As it stands this is all we know about origin- as to how these differing properties developed even though they came from the same base, that remains one of the many mysteries of this familiar yet unfamiliar facet of our daily lives. In this catalogue, we will discuss a few viable theories...

Exert from the opening chapter of "Laws and Principles of Origin" by Zein DuVierre the archmage.

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Azra was flabbergasted he had just made water? It wasn't strange per se, just recently he made contact with a giant snake that spat fire and a strange deer(?) that could shoot destructive orbs from its antlers. Still seeing something being done and doing it yourself were two different matters. Magic was a man's romance, well magic and mechas. Which child on earth didn't want to control the wind or shoot flames from their hands or perhaps master all four elements to save the world from the evil scorch nation?

As a soul from a world without magic Azra was quite intrigued by the novelty of this new one. That is until he realized that he quite literally opened a hole in space to store his items (which was pretty damn awesome). Slowly the excitement died down.

With a newfound appreciation for his 'storage' skill, he tried to recollect the feeling he had when summoning that puddle of water. Then in response to his effort, he could feel a stream of energy was slowly drawn from somewhere in his chest. The energy then flowed out of his body and into the air forming tiny water droplets which then condensed becoming a small water ball that levitated in the air. Losing focus from his growing excitement his control of the water ball lapsed causing it to lose its shape and splash on his head.

Conjuring up another Azra realised that there was a faint connection between him and the levitating orb. It felt as though he could shape or move it as he felt and he did just that. Azra gazed in wonder as the water shifted for at his will.

A sword. An aeroplane. A cluster of smaller individual droplets. Anything that came to his mind was expressed by the magical water. Curious about the offensive application of his newfound ability he shot it against a tree. The water harmlessly splashed against the tree leaving no notable damage. Recognizing his mistake he willed the mass of water to be smaller and more compact. More origin was drawn out to complete this feat. Moments later the volume of liquid that was enough to fill a small pail was compressed to the size of a finger. The compressed droplet sped through the air impacting the tree's trunk with an audible thud.

A snapping noise followed as the decades-old tree was felled, a large, smooth, circular hole where a portion of its trunk used to be. Azra drew in a breath of cold air...

"Hehe, I can use this. Though I'll need to practice it takes too long to prepare.

Satisfied with the results of his test he finally took a look at himself in the puddle he created. What was revealed was not particularly startling given that he was expecting something of the sort. Not much changed, his frame had gotten larger overall while his horns seemed to have grown longer. He was worried though, his metabolism was already off the charts before his transformation now that he had a much larger body it might become a problem. His smaller self required about two and a half rabbit per meal now that he was larger he could only see that appetite increasing.

What worried him most though was the fact that his scales became more aesthetically pleasing. Why would such a thing be worrying?

"What if those bastards in the forest attack me because I'm more handsome than they are? Ahh, the worries of the beautiful."

The reason could be seen above. Ladies and gentlemen, behold, Narcissus' second coming. Turning his attention away from his physical self Azra invoked his status screen.

[Name: Azra Hale]

[Species: Slithern (Faint draconic bloodline)]

[Class: Extraordinary]

[Origin: 357]

[Unique Skills: Draconic Vision, Babel's Tongue]

[Active Skills: Subspace Storage, Analyse, Dragon's breath]

[Passive Skills: Aqua Affinity, Storm Seeker]

[Titles: Offworlder, Last of Them]

The usual semi-transparent screen popped up with no notable change except an increase in origin. However, it was what followed that attracted his attention.

[Growth complete...congratulations you are now an adolescent slithern.]

[Assessing changes...° Your body has developed enough to use origin efficiently. You can now use magic. Due to your affinities, you can wield elemental magic of the water and lighting type.]

[Your soul adaptation has progressed...Progress 31%]