Both Advance

Only after sensing the Spiritual Pressure of the two Adjuchas-level Menos Grande grow more and more distant, until it finally disappeared, did Wien feel relieved.

Once he confirmed that the Gillian beside him was Nel, Wien picked up his pace even further. At the same time, he released what little Spiritual Pressure he had left and finished off the few Gillians remaining on the battlefield, who were already at the end of their strength.

He brought them down, tore off their masks, and tossed them into Nel's mouth one by one.

When only two masks remained in Wien's hands, the glow around Nel finally grew luminous, its pearly white light gradually turning pink. Her body, dozens of meters tall, gradually shrank until it was about two meters tall. A cocoon of light like a pink gemstone appeared before Wien.

"Phew... Have you finally evolved?" Wien couldn't help marveling as he looked at the pink cocoon. "So this is what it looks like when a Gillian evolves into an Adjuchas? It's beautiful."

For Wien, who had spent so long in a dim, chaotic place, this touch of pink in such an empty world was undoubtedly the most brilliant jewel he had ever seen.

"...Lord Wien." Just as Wien was lost in admiration, a gentle, lovely voice sounded beside his ear.

"Nel?" Wien was momentarily startled. "Have you regained consciousness?"

"Yes." Her soft reply finally put Wien's tense heart at ease.

"Really? That's wonderful. I thought you'd forget me." For some reason, Wien felt a faint urge to cry at that moment. Perhaps he had spent so long in this dim world that he had almost forgotten what emotions were, and so he treasured them all the more.

"Even if I lost consciousness as a Gillian, those memories would remain when I advanced to an Adjuchas, including everything that happened while I was a Gillian." Nel's voice was full of gratitude.

"Thank you, my lord. Thank you for taking such good care of me these past few years, even after I lost consciousness. Lord Wien, I'll never forget your kindness for as long as I live."

"It was no trouble. We're companions, aren't we?" Wien laughed. "Besides, you saved me when I fought Yammy, and I haven't thanked you yet. Oh, right, what happened after I fell unconscious? Why did you lose consciousness and become a Gillian? And what about Yammy?"

"Lord Wien, forgive me, but I can't answer your questions right away. I... am about to fall asleep. I don't know exactly how long this hibernation will last." With that, an orange film of light rose over the outermost layer of the pink cocoon, and the whole cocoon began slowly sinking underground.

"Lord Wien, please advance as soon as you can. I can feel that your body is almost unable to withstand the vast amount of Reishi inside you. The path of a Gillian is far from what you imagine. Once you advance, you'll discover more of the mysteries of us Hollows, as well as everything that happened back then."

"Mm..." Wien nodded slightly. In truth, he wasn't sure what would happen after he advanced to Gillian himself. But he could also feel that he had missed too many chances to advance over the years in order to protect Nel.

Whenever a large amount of Reishi gathered around him and prompted him to advance, he had forcibly suppressed himself, keeping the Reishi from coming into contact with him at all. Perhaps Nel was right. It was time for him to advance, too.

Hummm...

A wisp of pink light rose from inside the cocoon, and a piece of armor bone, tinted a rouge-like color, returned to Wien's Blade Claws. It was the mark Wien had left on Nel back then. Because he had needed to maintain it to track her, his Blade Claws had always been missing that section of blade.

"Lord Wien, I've left a mark on you, along with some fragments of my memories from that time. When I awaken, I'll use this mark to find you, whether or not you're still in this forest."

"Can't I stay here?"

"Which Forest of Menos calls to us isn't something we can decide. Lord Wien, I have to sleep now. May fortune favor you in battle."

Perhaps Nel still had much she wanted to say to Wien. But... hibernation came as expected. She had to cut herself off and sink underground along with the cocoon.

"The Forest of Menos?" Wien looked up at the sky and let out a long breath. His body relaxed in an instant, and he began absorbing the surrounding Reishi involuntarily.

Years of mental strain had also left Wien feeling a little weary. After learning that the Gillian he had pursued was Nel and watching her enter hibernation with his own eyes, Wien's constantly taut heart finally relaxed.

"Mm..."

As his body relaxed, the pressure on him diminished as well. Freed from its restraints, the Reishi Wien had forcibly compressed finally burst forth.

The immense pull shook the Reishi in the surrounding air. Streams of Reishi gathered into pale blue ribbons of light and surged toward Wien's body.

"Heh, I've only just stopped suppressing it, and I'm about to advance already?" Feeling the immense Spiritual Power surging toward him, Wien smiled beneath his mask. He then grabbed the last two Gillian masks and stuffed them into his mouth, adding more fuel to his advancement.

The Reishi replenished from outside, the Reishi continually gathering around him, and Wien's own Reishi came together at that moment, seemingly forming a vortex inside him that grew ever stronger. Wien, meanwhile, floated comfortably in this ocean of energy. The sensation was deeply relaxing and warm.

Without realizing it, Wien fell asleep in the ocean of energy. His advancement, too, quietly arrived.

"Mm..."

Wien awoke from his blissful sleep after an unknown length of time and involuntarily murmured. Opening his eyes, he suddenly felt that everything about him was different.

"I... what's happened to me?"

"Child... you're finally awake." Before Wien could make sense of the situation, an ancient, timeworn voice echoed in his mind.

"Who's there?" Wien instinctively went on guard, but in less than three seconds, he relaxed. The voice held no hostility; instead, it conveyed a deep sense of affection. In that brief time, he also sorted out his thoughts. "You... are you the Forest of Menos?"

"Hehe, you're one of the few adorable children I've met." There was a hint of indulgence in the voice. "I am not the Menos Grande... no... yes, you may call me that, the Forest of Menos."

"The Forest of Menos is conscious?" Wien blurted out nervously, then hurriedly shut his mouth.

"Yes and no. The Forest of Menos is only one part of me that nurtures my people. As for the relationship between them... I'll tell you when you're stronger. Knowing too much now won't do you any good."

"All right. I'm already surprised enough that the Forest of Menos is conscious. Even if you told me more, I might not understand it."

Wien didn't ask every question he had, because after successfully advancing, he had already come to understand many things.

"Can I stay in this forest?"

"Of course, my child." The old voice was as kindly as ever. "Only those children who have lost their way on the path of evolution need my guidance. You may choose wherever you wish to dwell. May you grow stronger on the road ahead.

"My child, your origins are somewhat different from those of the other children. So I will grant you more knowledge of Hueco Mundo's laws and your unique traits and abilities. Remember, never tell anyone about me. We will surely meet again in the future."

With that, a gentle white light shone on Wien, and he instantly felt something new enter his mind. Only when the light faded were Wien's thoughts drawn back to the present.

"Phew..." After the light faded, Wien took a deep, refreshing breath and looked around. Only then did he realize that he had become a Gillian over fifteen meters tall.

He had a black outer robe, a pale body, and a huge hole in the center. The only difference was that he didn't have the clownlike mask other Gillians wore. Instead, his mask looked as though it were enclosed in armor, giving it stronger protective capabilities.

"I'm a Gillian already?" Wien murmured. "Cero... so that's how it works."

Yes, what the Forest of Menos had given Wien was not only the laws governing Hueco Mundo, but also Cero, the ability a Gillian ought to possess.

Every Gillian's Cero was actually different, because every Hollow's traits and abilities were different and unique. Only a small number of Hollows had wavelengths that could complement one another.

There was, however, an exception at the Gillian level: consciousness. Gillians without consciousness could release only the most basic Cero, that dark red beam of light.

Conscious Gillians, on the other hand, could combine Cero with the characteristics of their own Spiritual Power to unleash different versions. At last, Wien understood why Nel had lost consciousness, and why her Cero Doble had been triggered at the very last moment.

Using the mark Nel had given him, Wien began looking into what had happened back then.

First, after Wien himself had been gravely injured, Nel had poured out all her Spiritual Power to use her healing ability.

Then, to save Wien, Nel had chosen to forcibly evolve—an evolution undertaken when one's Spiritual Power limit met the requirement, but the Spiritual Power itself was insufficient.

This kind of evolution turned one into a Gillian in an instant. A Hollow with excellent potential like Nel would normally retain consciousness upon advancing to Gillian, but the drawback of forced evolution manifested as the dissipation of that consciousness.

The lack of Spiritual Power caused consciousness to slowly fade over time. Only when it had vanished completely would the Forest of Menos summon her.

Although Yammy's ability was to accumulate Spiritual Pressure, he had ultimately only been a High-Level Hollow at the time. Faced with Nel's Cero, he had been forced to leave her with a threat and turn tail.

Once they were safe, Nel had stayed by Wien's side and used her ability to heal him. Only when her consciousness had completely faded did she leave, walking step by step like a puppet toward the Forest of Menos.

That was why, when Wien awoke, he found that Nel hadn't actually gone very far. It wasn't that he had only slept for a week, but that Nel had only been forced to leave a week earlier. That was the truth of the entire battle, and the truth of how Wien had survived.

After that, Wien had tracked Nel all the way to the Forest of Menos. All the food he fed her along the way had allowed the unconscious Gillian to grow at an incredible rate. By the time of that final battle for advancement, Nel's Spiritual Power had been almost sufficient for her to evolve. What was luckier still was one of Nel's abilities.

The passive ability, Cero Doble.

As long as an attack's power did not exceed the limit her body could withstand, she could fuse it with her own Spiritual Power and fire it back at her opponent.

It was this godly skill that had resolved Nel's final crisis. Although Nel had been unconscious at the time, her ability itself had not disappeared, and Cero Doble was passive. Thus, everything had unfolded naturally.

Having absorbed the memories Nel had given him, Wien began examining himself. He also needed to learn about his own abilities.