Genetic Ascension

Chapter 257: Quicktime

Sylas walked out of the cabin with the Basilisk King by his side. Now that its stats had improved to this extent, it could keep up, and it had its value as a companion outside of their fusion.

Plus, it was clear that the way to help the Basilisk King fully awaken its pride was through combat. So, he let the Basilisk King take the vanguard as they walked back toward the Portal. In the meantime, he took out an orb.

This orb was the final mammoth’s Gene Core. The Basilisk King hadn’t ended up swallowing it, and even if it did, judging by how things were going, it wouldn’t level up regardless. There was definitely a special condition needed to help the Basilisk King level up, but for now, maybe it was best to wait on raising its Grade to FFF+ first.

He took out another orb, and this one was the Gene Core of the Arctic King Cobra. Both of them exuded quite sharp auras, one being heavy in the hand, and the other being frosty. Each one also had a Bronze Gene in them as well, so their value wasn’t small.

After looking for a bit, Sylas put them away. He was right that there were, indeed, Runes floating around, but they were too complicated for him to even begin to organize, let alone learn from. It seemed that he still had a long way to go.

As for the Stabilizing Bracelet, it didn’t struggle to accept the Basilisk King’s new Skills at all; it did it with ease. It made him all the more curious about just what those ‘XXX’ marks meant.

Sylas looked up as a battle erupted. The Basilisk King fought against a groundhog-like creature. It was larger than a normal groundhog, but it was still only about 0.75 meters tall.

The Basilisk King’s greatest weakness was its Dexterity and Speed, lacking greatly in both. Against such a small creature, it was having its own fair share of problems.

Usually, it could make up for this by using <King’s Shift>, the upgraded version of <Momentum Shift> that allowed it to suddenly change the entire momentum of its attack with a thought.

But now, <King’s Shift> cost five Aether Units, not to mention a great deal of concentration to cast on top of that. It couldn’t be used in battle at all.

On the one hand, it was good that the Basilisk King didn’t need to worry about accumulating more Skills and could just upgrade its own. But on the other, this was a very clear downside.

In the end, the groundhog creature ended up running away. But as it turned its back, the Basilisk King’s frustration boiled over and it cast <King’s Bind>.

Sylas felt a pressure rush toward him as well, and he was surprised to find that <King’s Bind>, though still a single-target Skill, still had some area-of-effect properties as well. He felt himself dull and slow by a small measure, though he shrugged it off quickly.

The groundhog obviously couldn’t fight back against this and found itself crushed with a single swipe of the Basilisk King’s tail.

With a wide maw, the Basilisk King swallowed it up in a single bite, not even chewing. The groundhog barely caused a bulge in its stomach.

A bit embarrassed, the Basilisk King looked back toward Sylas, but the latter still wore the same unreadable expression. Somehow, though, this made the Basilisk King far more relaxed.

The two continued forward like this.

Since they had come with the Dire Wolf, the journey back was much slower, but it did give the Basilisk King ample time to fight.

Sylas realized over time that while the Basilisk King was slow in body, its mind was quite sharp. It got used to its new stats, and Sylas found that its Effectiveness was increasing. This was likely related to its Gene Talent.

It didn’t have Speed, so it made use of its environment. It didn’t have Dexterity, so it was careful with when it chose to attack, but it also knew when to rely on its high Constitution to tank when it needed to and its high Strength to deal an immediate death blow.

At first, its win rate was low. Well, it didn’t necessarily lose, but the creatures it faced more than once managed to run away and keep their lives.

But by the fifth battle, it was a sure win every time. It learned to restrain its aura so that other beasts weren’t scared away, and by the time Sylas could see the portal in the distance, the Basilisk King had fought its twelfth battle, and it managed to still retain half its Aether, having managed to win every battle except a few with its Physical stats alone.

Sylas nodded. ‘This creature is intelligent, it’s not a normal animal. In fact… its intelligence is almost frightening. I shouldn’t measure how smart a creature is based on whether it can talk or not. This Basilisk King is smarter than most humans, at least in combat….’

Sylas felt his heart tremble as he looked up. He placed a hand to his chest, and his pupils couldn’t help but constrict.

The last time he had had this feeling…

‘My Luck again?’

“Come back,” Sylas called.

The Basilisk King obeyed, and quickly it and Sylas shifted to the side, returning to a region of thick shrubbery as they looked toward the pulsing Portal in the distance.

Because of the suburban neighborhood that was in the way, Sylas had to climb a tree just to see over the homes, and that was when what his heart had sensed happened.

It was an army of them.

There must have been at least 50 Arctic King Cobras that appeared simultaneously, but they weren’t the ones that Sylas was paying such close attention to.

Following in behind them, a gorgeous Arctic King Cobra appeared. Its body was majestic, and it contained the very same golden glow that the Basilisk King couldn’t maintain.

—

[Quicktime Event Triggered]

[Wrath of the Arctic Emperor Cobra]

[Level Recommended: 20]

[Description: The son of the Arctic Emperor Cobra has died, stoking the flames of fury in his father]

[Event Type: Two Path]

[Clear Requirements]

>[Kill Arctic Emperor Cobra]

OR

>[Kill his son’s murderer]

—

Sylas’ eyes widened. He understood immediately who this was targeting. He made a decision instantly: Run.

Unfortunately, he didn’t get the chance.

A pillar of golden light descended, and a beacon solidified above his head.

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