Chapter 7

(Harribel pov)

Is he truly an Adjucha? His spiritual energy shook the entire Hueco Mundo.

"No," The answer came to my mouth.

With that Spirit Energy He was in the process of transforming into a Vasto Lorde.

"I hope he completely change into Vasto Lorde."

Hmmm...

Now that I think about it, devouring Hollows, Menos, and Adjucha didn't seem to affect him.

Naturally, consuming Hollows would slowly corrupt one's mind. That's the reason why Adjucha continue to devour Hollows. If they stop, their primal instincts would take over their bodies, and they would revert to Menos.

The natural process of becoming a Menos involves hundreds of Hollows fusing with each other or a single Hollow slowly regaining its reasoning without external help and devouring other Hollows to evolve into a Vasto Lorde, bypassing the Menos stage entirely.

That's why that particular slime was the weirdest one; it went through the process of becoming a Menos while retaining its reasoning.

_ _ _

Meanwhile, Aron had completed his evolution, but he chose to not cancel the Mirror World as he contemplated the situation concerning Seele.

Great Sage transmitted the entire image of what happened while he was sleeping, revealing that Seele was now in the Sea of Quanta.

Due to the failed experiment she broke down into molecular status and end up in the Sea of Quanta.

"Sensei, can I bring Seele here using Garganta?" Aron asked his skill, which had saved him countless times before.

"Report: It is recommended for you to find the Earth first, as the spiritual energy in Hueco Mundo is corrupted. Individual Seele is in a vulnerable state due to exerting too much of her stigma," Great Sage answered directly in his mind.

'Sigh, in the end, I still need to regain my human form,' Aron thought.

Canceling the Mirror World, he arrived in a deserted area of the Menos Forest. There, a tanned-skinned woman stood with a spear-like object inserted into her arm, and a mask covered her face.

Aron examined her from head to toe, slowly realizing that this figure resembled a human. He jumped in surprise as he made the connection.

"Uhm... Hello?" Aron said, scratching his head nervously.

'I've been practicing using my wind element skill for this moment,' he thought, his imaginary fist tightening.

"Just what are you?" were the first words the figure uttered, questioning Aron's background.

"I'm an Adjucha Slime," Aron answered, feeling surprisingly upbeat because this was the first time he had spoken to a being with a human-like figure. "My name is Aron Laserna. And you are?"

The figure looked at him with warmth, leaving Aron wondering why she exuded an aura of fondness towards him.

_ _ _

(Harribel's POV)

Looking closely at him made me want to feel that squishy body. Can I hug him? Can I use him as a pillow to sleep? Most importantly, this slime looks adorable! I should give him my name.

"I'm Tier Harribel," I answered unconsciously as I hugged him. He was so soft! For now, I should calm myself, but he was really soft.

"Let me ask you this, do you feel your consciousness getting consumed by your instincts or by a thousand voices?" I asked, as this was the most important question I had for him.

The slime formed a question mark above its head and looked at me with a quizzical gaze. "What do you mean? I didn't hear something like that," it said, making me sigh in relief.

For some unknown reason, he wasn't being affected by his instincts or the thousands of consciousnesses of souls he had devoured. After all, it's normal for an Adjucha and Menos to hear thousands of whispered voices with different opinions, causing their consciousness to be pushed into the darkest corners of their minds and be driven by their instincts.

_ _ _ 

(Aron's POV)

As the tanned-skinned woman, Tier Harribel, hugged me, I couldn't help but feel a strange mix of surprise and comfort. Her touch was gentle, and I could sense a genuine warmth in her embrace. But what caught me off guard the most was the thought that someone found my slime form adorable.

"I'm Tier Harribel," she said, her arms still wrapped around me. Her voice was soft, and it held an air of curiosity.

She had asked me an intriguing question, one that delved into my very nature. "Let me ask you this," she continued, "do you feel your consciousness getting consumed by your instincts or by a thousand voices?"

I blinked—or at least I thought I did, considering my lack of eyes. Her question left me puzzled, and I couldn't help but form a question mark above my head, a gesture she seemed to understand.

"What do you mean? I didn't hear something like that," I replied, my gooey form shifting slightly. Her sigh of relief was palpable.

For some reason, I found myself unaffected by the typical struggles of an Adjucha or Menos. I hadn't been overwhelmed by a cacophony of voices or driven solely by primal instincts. It was a peculiar situation, one that made me wonder about the uniqueness of my existence.

[Answer: Due to the unique skill "Great Sage," the will of those beings that you devour is destroyed.]

No wonder Harribel was confused about me.

Now that I think about it, isn't Harribel a cool name?

But for now, what should I do to become a Vasto Lorde?

[Answer: You need to devour 10,000 Hollows.]

[The devouring count of other beings is 1 for Hollow, 100 for Menos, 500 for Adjucha, and 3,000 for Vasto Lorde.]

By the way, Great Sage, thank you so much for helping me with everything you've got.

If not for you, I don't know what would have happened to me, and I might have roamed the place as a mindless monster.

After saying that, I saw an image of a beautiful woman with blue hair smiling so warmly at me, but the image suddenly vanished, leaving me confused.