Genetic Ascension

1552 What Chance

Moose grit his teeth, his jaw rattling with the pain, but his voice remained completely silent.

”Youʼve failed me many times, my love. Havenʼt you? First, you fail to secure Progenitor status. Then, you sit around for a year and still fail to snatch it back. Now you tell me that everything weʼve planned wonʼt work. Do you know what this sounds like to me?

”The excuses of a man who doesnʼt believe in his Goddess. Thatʼs a problem, donʼt you think? What should I do with an unworthy concubine?”

”See for yourself.”

Mooseʼs words came out steady despite his pain, his large frame solidifying as he allowed a window to his eyes.

The voice fell to silence.

Kael Darkmane sat in silence.

He had a jaw that looked as though it had been chiseled out of stone. His skin was darker than most on the homogenized Earth. After the Eighth Summoning, Earth had done its best to intermingle the gene pool of everyone, making most quite racially ambiguous to those of the past. But Kael seemed as though he had spent quite a long period of time in the sun, his skin bronzed and his eyes radiating a sharp golden light.

The man was built like a brick wall, standing at what had to be almost eight feet tall now, and laying a cudgel with a particularly long polearm across his lap.

His reaction wasnʼt like the others. The moment he had seen Sylas, he knew. He made the phone call long before Sylas had even acted. In fact, he made the phone call the instant he had seen the notification, before even laying eyes on the man.

In fact, Kael knew this would happen long ago when no one could find Sylas. This was most definitely the benefit of stepping off of Earth.

Earth was great because of its Summoned status. It had Dungeons the world had never heard of, sprouted up resources that even the Sanctum would salivate over, and there was an overwhelming amount of Aether here just for the lot of them.

However, it had its limitations as well.

The difficulty of the challenges that appeared here was scaled to its people. Earth was trying to train them to be better, but too much of their population was still far too weak.

This was like an anchor dragging them all down.

Because of this, the Dungeons could only grow so powerful; the Quicktime Events only became so intensive.

Kael hadnʼt stepped out of the Darkmane compound in over a month because there was simply nothing worth doing with his strength. Instead, he had poured all of his resources into trying to find a way to leave the planet.

But he wasnʼt Earthʼs Progenitor, and he couldnʼt as easily leave its influence.

So he was stuck here.

He was so used to being number one in everything he did. But this time, he had lost- and so thoroughly at that.

Slowly, he stood as the world rocked to a stop around him. His flying vessel touched down, right outside of Casstle Main territory.

Sylas looked at the ticking timer. Interesting.

This wasnʼt the first time he had challenged a City Stele. It was just that the first time was for a Bronze City, and it was in different circumstances during the Battle of Worlds.

Back then, there had been Demon Coins, named Waves, and much more time to rest. But this had none of that.

This was a real City Stele Trial.

He wouldnʼt be able to buy treasures to help him here, nor would he have time to rest. In fact, the only way out of here was victory or death.

If he went over the 24-hour time limit, the next wave would appear, and if he went over it again, the next would appear.

There was no stalling, no rest—just endless, wall-to-wall battle until only a single army was left standing.

Or a single man.

[Glass Warrior (FFF+)]

[Level: 50]

[Physical: 75,100]

[Mental: 100,100]

[Will: 75,100]—

[Glass Bear (FFF+)][Level: 50]

[Physical: 100,100]

[Mental: 75,100]

[Will: 75,100]-

[Glass Wolf (FFF+)]

[Level: 50]

[Physical: 100,100]

[Mental: 75,100]

[Will: 75,100]-

[Wave Two][Time to Wave Three: 00:23:59:59]-

An identical wave to the first appeared. But their stats had already increased by leaps and bounds.

Is this really a Silver City Stele?

There should be ten waves. At Wave Two alone, they were already nearing half of Sylasʼ Physical stats. From his experience, Sylas also knew that they would become more difficult to deal with in more ways than just their stats alone.

They would gain formations, treasures, better teamwork, higher intellect.

At this pace of improvement, Sylas was fairly certain that the challenge would scale far greater than what he had experienced in the Tower of Champions.

ʼInteresting.ʼ

He raised another finger.

[Wave Two Cleared]-

[Wave Three][Commencing in 00:00:59]—

He raised his finger once again.

[Wave Three Cleared]-

[Wave Four] [Commencing in 00:00:59]-

Sylas exhaled a breath, his expression growing more focused. Wiping out Wave Three wasnʼt nearly as easy as Waves One and Two. The army was already nearing his Physical stats. It seemed that now, he would have to grow more serious.

[Glass Warrior (FFF+)][Level: 50]

[Physical: 150,100]

[Mental: 220,100]

[Will: 150,100]-

[Glass Bear (FFF+)][Level: 50]

[Physical: 220,100]

[Mental: 150,100]

[Will: 150,100]—

[Glass Wolf (FFF+)][Level: 50]

[Physical: 220,100]

[Mental: 150,100]

[Will: 150,100]-

[Wave Four]

[Time to Wave Five: 00:23:59:59]-

Sylasʼ finger raised into the skies, Runes beginning to wildly swirl. Glass Aether bowed

to his momentum, the army before him finding themselves stripped of their energy.

His Morphic Silver Bearings appeared, forming sheets of continuous curved shields in

the air as the momentum of his Will Manifestation bloomed.

He pressed his finger down, a ripple spreading through the world.

Chi. Chi. Chi.

Arrows of Will twisted until they became solid streaks of icy blue cutting across the air.

The result was much the same.

Sylas was used to fighting those with stats greater than his own.

What chance did those with weaker stats than him stand?