Genetic Ascension

1563 Failed

”You agreed quite quickly.” Cassarae said, her eyes rapidly blinking as she tried to look for some disatisfaction on Sylasʼ face.

”Why wouldnʼt?”

The Hollow Wing stepped across a full 500 kilometers again, flashing in and out of existence. Harsh winds clapped like thunder around them, threatening to blow them off its back entirely.

But Cassarae and Sylas both dealt with it without much ease.

Cassarae snorted in response. ”You think youʼre slick?”

Sylas raised an eyebrow.

In truth, he didnʼt want Cassarae to come, but that wasnʼt for the reasons she was thinking. He agreed readily because if he rejected, then his mother would feel that he was lying about how easy this was all going to be.

He had a feeling that Cassarae knew this too, so she had taken advantage to make sure he didnʼt get mesmerized by another Demonʼs legs.

In the end, he had to be accepting of it, but the words that Kael spoke of kept rotating continuously in his mind.

Long ago, Sylas had deduced that the true purpose of misaligning the continents of Earth with the continents of the Aether Plane was for the purpose of the Progenitor Flame.

Travelling to the center of the world was a grave feet. The core of a world pre- Summoning was already about as hot as the surface of a medium-sized star like the Sun. As a world evolved and gained the ability to have a Progenitor, not only would it grow substantially larger, but reaching the center would only become more difficult.

Sylas had deduced that by aligning the opposite sides of the world with Portals, a path right to the core of Earth had been created.

However, back then, Sylas still hadnʼt been able to gain a full picture. It was only enough to tell him that he needed to quickly get to the center of Earth so that no one lit the Progenitor Flame before he did.

The mechanisms at work, and the bits and pieces and details that were left scrambled in his mind never fully came together.

In a lot of ways, this was one of the reasons Sylas was so fearsome. He didnʼt need the full scope of a picture to be able to pick out the important tidbits that were core to him.

Sylasʼ eyes began to glow.

ʼI was in a battle with Vorthyx. He began to emit Demonic Aether, his body changing, morphing, shifting... identically to Grin. Grin had been a citizen of the Celestial Republic. I only came across him because I got into trouble with the Celestial Republicʼs military during a Quicktime Event...ʼ

Vorthyx was a Coralspire, one of the prominent Clans of the Clypsians. The fact that he had the same odd demonic transformation as Grin had lit something in the back of Sylasʼ mind that allowed him to make the connection.

Sylas had never tried to pursue this matter too much. Ultimately, the Emperor of the Celestial Republic had still been helpful in the end, and just because a few of his citizens were compromised, didnʼt mean that he was.

Plus, every faction of Earth had compromised members. Even Casstle Main had had Gregory whom had almost become a large problem before Sylas managed to kill him.

It could be said that Earth had almost too many moving pieces, and the idea that Sylas would have to manage all of them was far too much of a headache. There wasnʼt enough time, and unless the threat was enough to move him, it was little more than a waste of time to try and and stamp out every single one.

But Kaelʼs words this time triggered something.

The Portals and Demons again?

Was it really a coincidence?

First Vorthyxʼs Demonic Aether triggers this realization in him, and now Kael claims the Demonic Portals might be trying to do something with Earthʼs layout once again?

No matter what, Sylas had to investigate this one personally.

[Warning!]

[You have entered the previously conquered {Woodland Territory). You will experience a Debuff.] —

[Debuff Failed]

[Progenitor Status Detected]

Sylas felt odd energies passing over him, but they were quickly suppressed. Any feelings of control it had over him snapped.

This was probably related to the fact he had once been the Warlord of this Territory. He failed to protect it and he had actually gotten a Demerit for it in the past.

It seemed this was supposed to be the penalty in trying to reclaim it after the fact. But it was unnecessary.

Sylas was no longer a Warlord, but he was something far superior as a Progenitor. These sorts of games werenʼt going to impact him.

That said...

[Progenitor Quest Received]

[Demonic Infiltration of Earth (???)]

[You have stepped into a Territory you once managed and controlled only to find Demonic Aether has been spreading like a cancerous plague. Hidden in the shadows and undetectable until now, this looming threat has only been growing greater and greater. Now it sits on the verge of eruption.] —

It was the oddest screen Sylas had ever seen.

For one, he thought until now that a Progenitor Quest was only something that appeared to grant you the right to be a Progenitor. But it seemed now that they also appeared for another purpose.

This Quest didnʼt need any rewards at all. The implied meaning seemed to be that unless Sylas succeeded, he would be tripped of the right to be a Progenitor.

The reward was maintaining the status he already had.

On top fo that, the Grade was unclear, another oddity. A Quest should be bestowed by

the system. There was no need to hide things like Grades and the such because it should already be assessed by it.

Yet there was nothing of the sort here.

But what was most interesting was that this Quest didnʼt appear until he stepped foot here.

There was something here blocking even Earthʼs ability to detect what was happening on its own soil.

Sylas couldnʼt help if confusion was the true purpose of all of this.

”Letʼs see.”

Sylas touched down onto the forest floor.