Chapter 5: Evolution! Evolution again!
After Ryū waited for Shiro to wake up, he took him to a nearby tree and found another Weedle, persuading it to become a companion. The newly arrived Weedle was named Chairo, because the yellowish-brown parts of its body were very dark, appearing deep brown. Its physique was 0.4 meters, slightly taller than Shiro.
Ryū now realized something. Larger Weedle usually have higher levels and are on the verge of evolving. If he evolved into a Kakuna, these larger Weedle would likely follow suit and enter the next stage soon after. At that point, none could protect the other; it would only increase their visibility and attract the attention of other Pokémon. Currently, both Shiro and Chairo were relatively small in size and still had some time before evolving, so he didn't need to worry about this.
'I can't hold back anymore... I must prepare to evolve.'
Ryū led Shiro and Chairo up a certain tree. The feeling of something about to burst forth from within him was becoming increasingly difficult to suppress. He no longer had time to find a few more Weedle subordinates to guard him; he needed to quickly build a safe and hidden nest.
Ryū led them to collect a large amount of leaves from the tree and piled them up to form a nest. Afterward, he ate many fruits until he was full before drilling into the leaf pile.
"Shiro, Chairo, I'm going to evolve. You two stay on this tree for the next few days. Remember not to let other Pokémon get close."
Immediately after Ryū finished speaking, his body began to glow with white light. Within the white light, his form gradually changed. Finally, Ryū transformed from a yellowish-brown caterpillar into a pale yellow pupa. Because of the coverage of leaves, Ryū's evolution did not cause any unusual disturbance in the forest.
Although Shiro and Chairo didn't understand what "evolve" meant, they watched with their own eyes as Ryū changed form, so they knew the large pupa buried under the leaves was their boss. Shiro and Chairo exchanged glances, ate some fruits nearby, and then slept around the leaf pile.
Time seemed to suddenly slow down. Even the world became much quieter all at once. Ryū, under the leaves, couldn't see the outside world, but because of this, his attention was entirely focused on his hearing. He heard the sound of Shiro and Chairo eating berries. He heard something with four legs running below. He heard birds seemingly landing in the treetop to rest temporarily.
"Kō dō~"
A somewhat familiar sound rang out.
'Ah... here it comes again. It really doesn't listen.'
Unsure how much time had passed, Ryū subconsciously thought of Poliwag in his groggy state. He knew that kid must have run off again, coming over here to find him. Unfortunately, at the moment, he felt very hot and heavy, not wanting to move at all. He closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
Ryū had completely lost track of time. Initially, he could still frequently open his panel and glance at it.
[Kakuna]
[Potential]: Green
[Level]: Lv. 9
[Type]: Bug/Poison
[Ability]: Shed Skin
[Height]: 0.9m
[Weight]: 18kg
[Skills]: Harden
'Evolution can increase potential, and the height and weight are far above average. Good...'
By analyzing and thinking about the panel, he could barely maintain his consciousness. But time passed longer and longer. Being in complete darkness, motionless, and with his body getting hotter and hotter, his consciousness gradually became blurred. Later, he even stopped thinking, waking up in a daze every day and then falling back asleep.
It wasn't until that feeling of something about to burst forth from within him appeared again that his brain suddenly jolted. Another flash of white light. Ryū felt his body become very light and agile. He had limbs, and he even felt something controllable growing on his back.
Whoosh!
Ryū suddenly stood up, pushing aside all the grass covering him.
'Check Panel.'
[Beedrill]
[Potential]: Blue
[Level]: Lv. 10
[Type]: Bug/Poison
[Ability]: Swarm
[Height]: 1.8m
[Weight]: 55kg
[Skills]: Fury Attack, Bug Bite, Poison Sting, String Shot, Harden
"Potential has increased again, and these stats are simply exaggerated."
Ryū felt the nostalgic perspective and couldn't help but laugh. In his previous life, when he was a human, his height was about 1.8 meters. Returning to this perspective now felt incredibly familiar. The average height of a Beedrill in the Alliance Era is only 1 meter, and he was nearly double that! In the wild, this would be an overlord-level Beedrill, but in this forest, it might just be average.
"Shiro! Chairo!"
Then Ryū remembered his two subordinates and looked around for them. Turning his head, he immediately spotted two Kakuna quietly staring at him nearby. Although they had changed appearance, Ryū recognized his two subordinates right away.
Ryū approached and examined them, confirming that the two bugs had just evolved into Kakuna not long ago. To know how far a Kakuna is from evolving again, one only needs to touch it and feel its temperature. This was an experience he gained from his own evolution. During the Kakuna stage, as energy accumulates more and more within the body, the Kakuna's body temperature will get higher and higher. When it reaches a certain point, it means it's about to evolve.
Shiro and Chairo blinked their eyes. Their gazes towards Ryū were full of admiration, thinking that Ryū looked extremely cool at this moment. And Beedrill, as a Pokémon, might not be ranked T0 or T1 in terms of appearance, but it can certainly get into T2.
"You guys take your time evolving here. I'm going to go look for the other two companions."
Ryū touched Shiro and Chairo with his hands, which had turned into two thick white stingers, and then went to the edge of the tree. He could no longer climb down like he did when he was a Weedle. Only one option was left for him: to fly down.
"How do I fly..."
Ryū turned his head to look at the two pairs of wings on his back. Attempting to control the muscles in his back to move the two pairs of wings, the next moment, he actually floated up awkwardly. This was a memory of flight imprinted in his mind, but Ryū's memories as a human were more numerous and profound, making this instinctive memory of Beedrill flight shallow. Ryū could only dig out this instinctive flying memory bit by bit.
After about 5 minutes, Ryū felt he was getting the hang of it. He controlled the wings on his back to slowly flap and then flew down the tree. His speed might have been slow, but he was very stable, unlike the uncontrollable balance he had at first. He believed that with another hour or two of practice, he would fully master free flight.
Afterward, he first flew to the large tree where Kikō had been before, but he didn't find Kikō's figure. This made him frown inwardly, feeling a bit uneasy and suspecting that Kikō might have been eaten by some other Pokémon.
However, after he arrived at the tree where Suzume had stayed previously, he felt relieved. It turned out that after evolving into a Beedrill, Kikō flew out of the tree to look for Ryū, but couldn't find him, so it could only temporarily guard the other companion, Suzume. And now, both Kikō and Suzume had become Beedrill.