Genetic Ascension

Chapter 1453: 018 [500 GT Bonus]

Sylas looked at the trident pointed at him, feeling as though all of the Aether in the surroundings was falling toward this young man.

It was the same black hole-like feeling he had gotten from the 713th Whale Warlord. And just his luck, he had gotten placed with a Whale Warlord in the middle of an ocean. ”Which Sanctum do you come from?” Sylas asked.

”Sanctum 018.” He replied, his trident still steady. ”And yourself?”

”073.”

The eyes of Authrione narrowed. He had expected a low number—just not that low.

”Will you give in? Or are you going to make me kill you?”

Sylasʼ gaze only flickered once and his Armor bloomed across his body. One shingle after another fell into a place of perfection until he was radiating such bright hues of emerald it seemed as though he had become the shining star of this world.

The pupils of Authrione constricted into pinholes. He knew a powerful Armor when he saw one.

”... Spark Master...”

Sylas didnʼt say a single thing, mostly because he knew that given what he had been going through all this time, and the scale his opponents were steadily growing stronger at, this man was almost certainly the first Spark Master he would come across in his ifetime.

There was a rush of wind between the two of them, raging waves sweeping past. Authrione towered over Sylas, his hooves causing a swirl of watery cyclones to appear beneath his feet.

For some reason, Authrione felt as though there was something particularly odd about Sylas. All signs pointed toward him being too weak to win. It should be a battle he would win in a matter of moments.

So... why was his Luck sending him a subtle warning?

It wasnʼt enough to be a true warning. It was the sort of nudge he felt whenever he faced an opponent he should win against so long as he didnʼt underestimate them.

But why did this Sylas deserve such an evaluation?

Fine.”

Authrioneʼs eyes became orbs of dark blue, his Will churning as one Rune after another threatened to form.

The attempt only lasted a fleeting few seconds before it shattered.

Authrioneʼs pupils constricted. He... actually failed to form his Whale Armor?

Sylasʼ Scorpion Tail swayed and the dark blue sparks of lightning in the skies suddenly began to flash emerald from time to time.

That was when Authrione understood.

”Youʼre no Spark Master. Youʼre a Perfect Spark Master.”

A breath of heated steam left Authrioneʼs lips and his demeanor seemed to change. His aura grew, his almost lackadaisical appearance vanishing.

”No. Iʼm not just a Perfect Spark Master. Iʼm a Primus Luminaria.”

A crown of shimmering gold appeared above Sylasʼ head, his Madness Comprehension sweeping out as his Will pressed down.

”If you want to use your words to cause me to doubt myself, you are wasting your time. Your Spark Seed... ll be taking it.”

Authrioneʼs muscles bulged, his scales reacting in kind. Lines of dark blue Aether formed their edges, making it look as though so much Aether was pulsing within his body that he was glowing from the inside out.

He took a strong step forward and the world shook around him.

Time slowed around Sylas.

“What is his Comprehension?”

[Fathomless Depths (Bronze)]

[The abyss is the expanse within you, yours to command. You have no depths, no end, your enemies falling to pits of hopelessness. Energy, force, even Will itself is swallowed whole, leaving nothing behind. To you, your body is a wellspring without limit, a reservoir without end. Manifest despair in an endless void] [+1000% Constitution]

[+1000% Will]

[Trident Mastery (FFF)]

[The tides of the ocean and the sharpness of a spear, the swipe of a glaive and the heft of a tsunamiʼs wrath. The water and blade are one to you, the ocean yours to command and bloody war yours to lord] [+500% Dexterity]

[+500% Intelligence]

Sylas took a breath.

Not only was this his first time meeting another Spark Master, it was also the first time he was coming across someone with not just one Comprehension, but two of them. Not only did they have a Comprehension, but one of them had actually broken through the normal limits.

It had been a very long time since Sylas felt any real threat toward his life.

But there was no plot to set in motion here, no scheme to unleash, no obvious weakness to exploit. Even after he had cut down one of the legs this Authrione most relied on, it still felt like the gap was unfathomable.

And yet, the more he felt this way, the more chilling and focused his gaze became.

The trident was already before him in a mere instant of time, but his abilities had dilated the scope of the world until even a blink of an eye seemed to extend into infinity.

Sylas exhaled a breath no less heated than the one Authrione had exhaled earlier, his entire body becoming wrapped in his telekinesis. He pulled on all of his Seeds at the same time, his bodyʼs weight increasing severalfold as his Will and Charisma both reached two million stat points.

If he lost this battle, he would lose everything.

He had no intention of losing.

His body shifted and took a strong step backward. Just when he seemed like he would retreat, his Scorned Wraps unfurled, jetting out.

A tornado of energy suddenly pulsed around Authrioneʼs trident, forming a cone that expanded and pushed the Scorned Wraps away before they could latch on.

The rebuffing wind sent Sylas flying back, but he flipped through the air, landing with a deft focus. He took another step forward, his casting of [Glassvolt Throne] having already taken root in the skies.

But as he was about to take a second step, Authrione vanished and appeared right in front of him, the water he had just been standing on exploding, a cavernous depth so deep it stretched hundreds of meters appearing where he had just stood.

His trident twisted in his hand, striking at Sylas, but when Sylas made a move to dodge, a spiraling spear of water jetted right through his gut, ripping into and then out of him. Time slowed once again and Sylas could feel the water within him about to expand and rip him apart from the inside.