Genetic Ascension

Chapter 1201  The Reason

Chi. Chi. Chi.

The stingers suddenly passed through one emerald pane of glass after another before Sylasʼs telekinesis flared to life, gripping them in the air and grinding them to a halt just before they ripped through Jala and Alexʼs bodies.

Sylas stood to his feet, his telekinesis turning the stingers around and causing them to spin like high-caliber drills.

BANG!

They shot out with such speed that the sound barrier shattered in an instant, tearing through the heads of the Horned Hornets they came from.

Sylasʼs thoughts were still very much focused on the ground as he tried to come up with a plan. His mind ran through the possibilities, trying to think of a way out of this.

In a maze that was moving, it was one thing. But if he was correct, this maze was being controlled. That meant that no matter what they did—assuming their senses were sharp enough—the controller could counter whatever methods they used.

They would be trapped in this maze perpetually in such a situation, and there wouldnʼt be anything they could do to get out of it.

That was troublesome. More than just a little. It was like the only path they had here was to kill everything inside.

And even that wasnʼt necessarily straightforward. If the one controlling this hive felt too threatened, the Demon might not even allow them to find it, continuing to move the maze around until they were exhausted.

Then there was the elephant in the room—the one thing Sylas was truly focused on right now.

How was it that he didnʼt feel it? Why did he not notice that the hive was moving around him?

Unless… the Demon wasnʼt moving the parts they stood in, but rather everything in relation to it.

If not for this, Sylas would have noticed it long ago. His spatial awareness was too strong. Coupling that with Astral Stutter, and there was little space-wise that could escape his attention.

The only way he wouldnʼt notice is if the piece of the hive he was in wasnʼt moving at all.

ʼWe definitely arenʼt moving right now. But that also means…ʼ

Sylasʼs eyes narrowed, his head turning to one side, then another.

That should mean that everything in his line of sight would be fixed in place.

This could be exploited. It was the biggest weakness of this entire operation.

The other tunnels were being moved in relation to this one, but that obviously meant there was a limit to how they could be arranged, especially if they were suspended in relation to each other.

The only way a system like this could work was if this hive was a series of tubes and suspended pathways. If it was one big block of carved-out cave, there was no way this would work.

Which meant…

Sylas looked down.

The bone was far too thick and heavy—that much he had already come to notice. If the Demon realized that they were also aware of what was happening, their actions would likely become less subtle and far more pressed—which might actually make it harder to deal with.

But…

An emerald glow wrapped around Sylas, then extended to Jala and Alex. The latter two couldnʼt react before they were lifted into the air. Suddenly, they were all hovering.

Sylasʼs eyes flashed.

SHUUU.

They shot out, moving so fast that the world around them blurred.

Sylasʼs movements were sharp and decisive. Every turn, every twist, he didnʼt hesitate before shifting.

It all happened so fast that Jala was trying to decide whether he should be clutching his head or vomiting. By comparison, Alex was whooping along as though on the best rollercoaster ride of his life.

After finding one weakness, Sylas realized there had to be another. That was when he realized it.

Senses.

How did the Demon know where they were? Was the range of their visualization really so far?

Impossible.

In the past, Sylas might have believed in that possibility, but his scope of understanding of the world was far deeper now than it had ever been. He knew what was average for a visualization even in the E-Grade, and it could be said that someone with a range of more than two kilometers like him was impossible to find.

Let alone the fact that even Sylas couldnʼt see through this whole hive.

That wasnʼt because it had a greater radius than two kilometers, but because seeing through walls and barriers— especially ones with strong Aether characters—was too difficult.

At most, he could see the scope of the tunnel he was in, and maybe around a few corners, but then it became too difficult.

Even if these tunnels were formed by the Demon in

question, it would be impossible for them too. Meaning… they were sensing their location through another means entirely.

That only left one possibility.

Contact. Specifically, contact with the bone of the tunnels.

At first, Sylas was still confused. After all, the Horned Hornets were flying creatures. They were definitely being directed by something to know where to go. Did they have the same sensory perception? If flying could avoid detection, then how were they being directed?

But Sylas had missed the obvious answer.

Their stingers and bone lances… all of them were made of bone as well.

This Demon was able to sense them based on this alone.

That left one answer to everything: avoiding touching the floors, ceiling, and walls. Then moving so fast that before the Demon could react, they were already out of its sensing range.

This plan needed one more factor, and that was to kill the Horned Hornets coming for them before they could react, too. Who knew if they had methods of communicating as well? Maybe that was the real reason the Demon at the center of it all could sense them.

The hive began to shake less than half a minute later.

ʼIt knows. Unfortunately, itʼs too late.ʼ

BANG!

Sylas burst through a thin curtain of bone, appearing in a vast space.

Up ahead, he saw the reason for all of this.

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[Queen Horned Hornet (EE-)]

[Level: 67]

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