Genetic Ascension

Chapter 2105: Unilateral

Fanelei frowned. At first, she thought Sylas was asking her the question, but he was looking at something behind her. She spun back, but she didnʼt see anything at all.

Her confusion deepened. Sylas didnʼt get taken by the Madness too, right?

No, that didnʼt make any sense. If he could dispel her Madness, even if he wouldnʼt be able to last forever down here, he could certainly protect himself for the foreseeable future.

Arcane Madness laughed. ”Why would I bother with these things?”

Sylasʼ gaze flickered. So this matter was beneath Arcane Madnessʼ notice? But then how would the other Arcane Madnesses react to this matter?

There was probably an Arcane Madness to each one of the seven Sins and Virtues. Sylas still wasnʼt entirely sure how the Sins and Virtues were divided, but it didnʼt seem like there was an actual real separation at all.

”Itʼs in your best interest that we donʼt care too much. Otherwise, Weaving Madness might want a little taste of you, and Scurrying Madness would bite your head off.”

Sylasʼ eyes narrowed. ʼWeaving Madness? Scurrying Madness? Lust and Greed, maybe? But Scurrying sounds a lot like a Rat, would you apply that to a Scorpion? If this Arcane Madness is named Slithering Madness, and Weaving Madness is Lust like I think it is, it fits. Do Scorpions scurry? Maybe…ʼ

By this point in his thoughts, Sylas was fairly sure he was overthinking things. The important point, or rather important two points, was one, that there really was no separation between Virtue and Sin, and second that Lust and Greed were aware of him as well.

Slithering Madness also seemed to be implying that Weaving Madness was quite interested in him while Scurrying Madness wasnʼt happy with him at all.

But maybe that made perfect sense.

Sylas had naturally formed his Lust Seed himself, but the Greed Seed had been snatched by him in very unnatural fashion. That probably left Scurrying Madness not very happy with him at all.

Still, Sylas couldnʼt understand why they would not care that their legacies were being messed with so much. Why did it sound like Scurrying Madness was more mad at him for taking the Greed Virtue from someone worthless, than it was that someone had bastardized the Path as a whole?

Did they not care that the Scorpion was replaced with the Rat? That the Hippo was replaced with the Boar?

ʼInteresting…ʼ

”There are much more important things to worry about in the universe than little ones that can only use an impotent system to progress.” Arcane Madness said with a chuckle. ”Now you… you have taken a very interesting path. Itʼs almost a shame that you took the Fathomless Path, the Hell Path would be very well suited for you.

”Your Rune Mastery Path will be very troublesome to progress after a certain point. Sometimes there is some wisdom in listening to your predecessors. But Iʼve watched you for long enough to know that you do not care.”

ʼHeʼs talking about Arcane Casting… Hm…ʼ

Gralith had warned Sylas about the fusion of space and time. Sylas thought he had left that problem far behind, and he had already managed to make it to the D-tier with it.

But the D-tier was still quite a distance away from the S-tier.

But Arcane Madness was right about something. He didnʼt care. Whatever trouble came later, he would find the solution to it just as naturally.

”Okay. I understand.” Sylas said with a nod. Then he looked toward Fanelei. ”Itʼs time to go.”

Fanelei blinked but then nodded. How were they going to get back, though?

Sylas pulled back a fist, swirling motes of Pride, Lust, and Greed flowing around him.

The world vibrated.

What was interesting about Hell was that it had to be accessible everywhere. Its location was everywhere, but how exactly did one do that?

Well, it was the embodiment of Hell Rune Creation, and it was crafted as such. It existed under the layer of everything. Whenever a follower of Madness failed to outlast their Madness Key or died, they would be dragged here.

This place was just like the void. It felt like they were a far off distance from Faneleiʼs secluded enclosure, but that was far from the truth.

They could be an infinite distance away or a step away, there was no difference.

Sylas had fallen to this place with his scythe in his hand.

But his scythe was magically not here anymore…

And that wasnʼt because he dismissed it.

”No fun at all.” Arcane Madness said with a chortle.

The sound of a blade whistling through the air echoed almost beautifully.

The world was split in two as Sylasʼ hand caught his scythe out of the air, his fist opening up to greet it with a deft casualness.

He took Faneleiʼs hand and then vanished.

Arcane Madness sighed.

”Did you… just let… someone… leave Hell?” the familiar voice of Scurrying Madness echoed.

”I donʼt know what youʼre talking about.”

”Youʼre… not preserving… your energy… anymore… you were… blocking my… senses…”

”Still donʼt know what youʼre talking about. Nice weather weʼre having though, no?”

”The child… you protected him… he… ruined… my Path… No one… has ever… had this many… Virtue Seeds… before… if he did so—.”

”Itʼs really annoying when you speak like that, you know. Yes, yes, blah blah, he snatched it instead of birthing it himself. And heʼll probably do it again in the future. So what of it?”

”Because…”

”Yes, yes, because rules, and regulations, and theyʼll think weʼre trying to make a comeback and it will cause us many, many problems, blah blah. You should awaken from your slumber. My brain finally started working again properly after I turned it back on. I realize now just how bored Iʼve been.

”Why not have a little bit of chaos? The Angels are already trying to kill him, you know. You should have seen it, Iʼve never laughed so hard in my life.”

”You… cannot make… unilateral decisions… like this… Slithering… Madness….”