The master spoke long with the stone people and Tiny did his best to pay attention. What had been done to his core seemed to help his concentration, and he was able to follow the conversation better than before, but he still felt a little itchy all over, but there was nothing nearby for him to hit. All that he could do was sigh and flex his fingers into his favourite shape: a fist, lamenting the noticeably less bulging muscles in his forearms as he did so. He just had to be patient, he comforted himself, soon he would be larger and more bulgy than ever before. Then he would hit things harder than ever before!

[In terms of resetting body parts, I highly recommend going with bones,] the rock man was saying.

Bones? Tiny snorted. If he was going to make any part of him more powerful, it would be his muscles!

[Why the bones specifically?] the master asked, [I'm pretty sure Tiny is going to want to make himself stronger more than anything, so wouldn't his musculature be a better idea?]

Tiny felt a small bloom of joy within his chest. It was nice having a master that understood him so well, even though they did keep Tiny from fighting all the time.

The stone man frowned and shook his head.

[Why do you think we have bones in the first place?]

[To hold you together? I honestly can't even remember what it felt like to have bones on the inside. I'm probably not the right person to ask.]

[Look. Muscles need something to attach to, that's true for you as well. When our muscles flex and contract…]

Tiny knew about flexing! He hunched his back and brought his arms forward to accentuate his chest and arms. The other two ignored him.

[… they are moving something. And that something is your skeleton. Or carapace.]

[Right. I'm still not getting why the bones need an upgrade before anything else.]

[If he resets his muscles to a better material, then spends a ton of his evolutionary energy on Might…]

[He will,] master assured him.

He would.

[… then it's entirely possible that his strength will be greater than what his skeleton can withstand. He either won't be able to use his Might properly, or he will literally shatter his own bones when he fights.]

That… didn't sound good. Tiny frowned. Not being able to hit things hard was bad, the worst! It sounded like he would need to make sure his bones where strong enough to withstand infinite power! Because he wouldn't be satisfied until his punch could make a mountain explode!

[I hope you got that, Tiny,] the master said, [you're not punching anything with busted arms.]

Tiny nodded to show how seriously he understood the point, then decided to give a thumbs up for emphasis.

[It's actually weirding me out having you be smart enough to listen this well,] the master observed.

[I'm really interested to see what he evolves into,] the rock man said, [Lightning Fist Apes just don't live this long. I'm amazed you pulled it off.]

[It wasn't easy,] the master grumbled, patting Tiny on the arm with one antenna.

Tiny smiled and flexed a little to show the master he appreciated his care. He felt really twitchy though. He glanced around a little then slumped. Still nothing to hit.

[Alright then, Tiny. Off we go,] Tiny started and realised he'd missed the end of the conversation. Still, he'd done well! He'd listened and learned a few things, like how to make sure he punched harder! He turned around and followed the master out of the chamber and back to the space in which they were to evolve. The whole way there, his master pelted him with reminders on what he was to do, and what he wasn't to do, when evolving.

[No matter what,] he was told again, [you aren't allowed to reduce your Cunning below twenty, got it? I want you alive long enough to reach tier seven, not running up to an ancient and trying to punch it in the eye. Keep in mind what Granin said about the bones, and… just make sure you're happy with your choices I guess.]

Tiny reached out with one, displeasingly thin arm and hugged the master to his side.

[Aww, I appreciate it you big lug. Just make sure you use the manual evolution, alright? I know it’s a pain and there are so many options, but it'll be worth it in the long run.]

Tiny nodded, gave another thumbs up before he settled onto his backside and leaned against the rocky wall of the chamber. If he was going to be evolving, he'd need to make sure he was comfortable. With a thought, he activated the System menu, a broad grin stretching across his features. He would grow bigger! Stronger! And when things got in his way, were annoying, threatened his master, or whenever he felt like it, he would hit them! Way harder than before!

[Would you like to use the evolution menu?]

[Congratulations on reaching the maximum level for your current species. Evolution will allow you to change your form and increase your stats as a monster.

Warning: evolving will make securing XP and Biomass more difficult as fewer rewards are given for preying on creatures less evolved than yourself.

Your evolution options are as follows:

Mighty Puncher Kong Boxing Champion Winged Thunder Fist (special) Dark Lightning Kong (special) Lightning Fist Emperor (rare) Thunderstrike Mountain Kong (rare)

Tiny had been explicitly told to ignore the basic evolution, so he reluctantly passed over the Kong Boxing Champion and moved straight to the rare choices. He knew enough about himself to understand he didn't have the patience to trawl through each option, his new intelligence gave him at least that much self-awareness.

[Rare Evolution: Lightning Fist Emperor (rare). -5 bonus to Cunning, +5 bonus to Will, +200 bonus to Might, +50 bonus to Toughness. A fusion of impact and lightning, the Lightning Fist Emperor is a creature capable of shattering the sky with a single fist. The skin, particularly focused around the fists, will be transformed into Bluesky Mithril, an exceptionally hard material that is both conductive and has a multiplicative effect on lightning mana. In addition, a Lightning storm generator will be added to both lightning mana glands.]

Tiny thought about this option and he decided he liked it. He liked it a lot. He would get stronger and tougher and he would be able to shoot lightning out of his hands even better than before! If there was one thing Tiny liked as much as hitting things, it was hitting them with lightning on his hands at the same time. This evolution would help him do that and then some! What about the next one?

[Rare Evolution: Thunderstrike Mountain Kong (rare). -10 bonus to Cunning, +10 bonus to Will, +220 bonus to Might, +75 bonus to Toughness. As enduring as the mountains themselves, the Thunderstrike Mountain Kong is the physical embodiment of where the earth meets the sky. The bones will be remade to Earthblood Basalt, a self-healing, flexible and tough material and will allow the Mountain Kong to endure extreme forces. In addition, a Lightning Ignition Gland will be added to both Lightning mana affinity glands, allowing the Kong to release larger bursts of lightning in a shorter time frame.]

Tiny's eyes, widened! The bones? This was exactly what he wanted. He was a little sad to miss out on the metal infused skin, but he supposed having rock infused bones would be just as nice. Also, he got even more Might! He happily selected this option and then frowned while a whole new set of windows and menus popped up, filling his vision. Anger stirred in the chest of the great ape, but he smothered it with a sigh as he started flicking through the lists, ignoring his growing headache. This would take a while.