Genetic Ascension

Chapter 1765: A Split Second

The scope of the Scorned Wraps was very narrow. It could only be applied to a very specific action, and only if that action was being taken by the system.

By comparison, the shard was far more powerful. It superseded the system and applied to the laws of the universe itself, fundamental laws that even the system would have to abide by.

However, because of that scope, it was far more dangerous. And, because its very essence looked down on the universe from the ceiling above, just being in its presence made one feel small and vulnerable. It was the sort of treasure that could break a person.

It seemed that the Professors weren't just insane because it was their original disposition, but being in the presence of this shard for so long could leave them completely broken.

By the same token, though...

The more calm Germaine became, the more she seemed to fidget. She swayed from side to side and seemed to have forgotten about her shock toward Sylas. Her eyes were entirely glued to the shard in Sylas' hand... And then saliva began to drip down from the corners of her mouth. She itched at her neck, veins bulging from her eyes. It was strenuous to tell if she was in pain or if she was moments away from the best orgasm she had ever had in her life.

Her nails dug into her neck, drawing blood that seemed to shake her awake. Sylas, though, didn't seem to have noticed her struggle at all.

As much control over Germaine as he had had while the shard was in her, he had even more now that it was no longer there. It would be trivial to deal with her now.

"Swallowing isn't the method. Where is it?" Sylas asked.

"You... you have to... swallow it... the method is stored within the initiation itself."

Sylas' eyes sharpened and a pressure radiated from him. Seemingly multiplied several times over by the shard, Germaine fell to a knee with such force her femur shattered.

She screamed in pain and a hint of surprise flashed in Sylas' eyes. He hadn't tried to do that at all.

'She must be particularly sensitive to it. I don't think this would have worked against a C-tier without an understanding of what this shard is.'

The shard was... fascinating in a way. Sylas felt like if he handed it to an infant, they would be perfectly fine. It only worked on those aware of its existence.

It was like the incarnation of ignorance is bliss.

However, Germaine didn't think that Sylas was ignorant. It was the exact opposite.

When she offered Sylas to join the Professors when they first met, it was very genuine. Only those with the right mindset could be a part of their secret organization, and every person that had ever been offered such a thing was capable of sensing the true power of the shard.

That was why she didn't understand... how could Sylas be so unaffected?

What Germaine didn't know was that her rank amongst the Professors was far too low... Sylas was far from the only one so unaffected.

But Sylas might be among the only few to be so unbothered on a mere second interaction with this crimson lightning.

"I'm not... lying..." Germaine wheezed, hissing out a breath. "... This is... the internal protective measure... of the Professors."

"Is that so..." Sylas was no longer paying attention to Germaine any longer. His eyes flashed.

BANG.

BANG.

Almost instantly, both of Sylas' eyeballs exploded in a rain of blood. Crimson leaked down his cheeks, but he only calmly closed his eyes.

He had used Seeing Weaver on the shard for a small burst of time and at once shut it off, but he had still ended up blinding himself.

Crimson lightning swam in his eye sockets, destroying everything in sight. But Sylas had already expected exactly this to happen.

His fists clenched and the Scorned Wraps roared to life.

Crimson lightning and crimson flames clashed, the former clearly far more powerful. And yet, it hardly mattered when the quantity of the latter was so much greater.

Sylas' face paled, his muscles trembling. But soon, all the crimson lightning had been erased.

Sylas fused with Gogo and began to heal, but the process was slow and languid. He would probably be blinded for

a long while. If not for how powerful his eyes were, he would probably be blinded for good.

Just a fraction of a second, and yet this was the result.

Still, Sylas had seen exactly what he wanted to see.

Indeed... Legacy was quite the organization. However... they seemed to have made a mistake by coming to Earth.

BOOM.

Still blinded, Sylas' Will moved and an enormous obelisk appeared right in the middle of his ship. A line of connection was formed from Earth to his current location in the Milky Way, teleporting it here in an instant.

The ship swayed and was nearly knocked off course, but it luckily stabilized.

Sylas wasn't trying to understand the shard just now, that would have been the pinnacle of foolishness. But Germaine said that swallowing the shard was the initiation process. That meant that someone had modified the shard before giving it to Germaine, and where there were modifications, there would be Runes.

Using that split moment, Sylas managed to see it all. He didn't understand them, it was far more complex than anything he could manage. Clearly, it was a S-Grade Mesh of Runes. It was impossible for him to even start comprehending them.

But, he had felt something interesting from them nonetheless.

The First Race of Earth was quite the powerhouse society. They had figured out how to do a great number of things, and one of them seemed to be the Genesis Forge. This obelisk and its pieces were the reason Sylas was able to form an A-Grade Race so quickly.

And now Sylas knew where the First Race had found the Runes to study to allow it to exist in the first place.

At first, Sylas wasn't sure that this was created by the First Race. After all, the last piece of the Genesis Forge had been in the Champion Dungeon. How had the First Race gotten it there without completing their Summoning? Maybe the Genesis Forge was just a reward the system had conjured up.

But now he knew for sure. This was a creation of the First Race. Not only that, but its truest potential would only flourish with the sacrifice of a Professor.

Sylas tossed the shard forward.