Chapter 50: Three Options (2)

[Basic Aetherflow]

[Aether comes naturally to you, even when it's outside of your body. Your ability to extend your Aether away from your core, attaching it to objects to control and wield, far exceeds others]

[+5 Intelligence; +5 Charisma (Fragmented)]

[+10 Intelligence; + 10 Charisma (Common)]

[+20 Intelligence; + 20 Charisma (Bronze)]

[>Requirements to Unlock (Bronze)]

[(5) Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Speed, Wisdom]

[(10) Charisma]

[(15) Intelligence]

[Psyche Warp]

[The minds of others are yours to bend and twist to your pleasure. Feed them illusions, delusions of grandeur, fear the likes of which they've never experienced in their entire lifetimes.]

[+5 Will; +5 Charisma (Fragmented)]

[+10 Will; + 10 Charisma (Common)]

[+20 Will; + 20 Charisma (Bronze)]

[>Requirements to Unlock (Bronze)]

[(5) Strength, Constitution, Dexterity, Speed, Wisdom]

[(10) Will]

[(15) Charisma]

[Harmonic Puppetry]

[Your body is your orchestra; its strings are yours to pluck. Your resistance to the mental assaults of others is unmatched, and your control over your body is unmatched, even if that means exceeding its limits]

[+5 Dexterity; +5 Intelligence (Fragmented)]

[+10 Dexterity; + 10 Intelligence (Common)]

[+20 Dexterity; + 20 Intelligence (Bronze)]

[>Requirements to Unlock (Bronze)]

[(5) Strength, Constitution, Speed, Wisdom]

[(15) Dexterity]

[(15) Intelligence]

Each one had its own merits, and it was actually quite difficult to choose.

Basic Aetherflow was a huge enhancement to his telekinetic abilities. A large part of the reason he was able to defeat Big Madness was because of those abilities, because getting close had been far too dangerous and his fists weren't nearly strong enough to harm the beast.

However, by that same token, Psyche Warp was just as important to him. Without it, he would have died on the First Floor of the Slithering Madness Dungeon. Being able to deal with enemies without putting himself in any danger was enticing, and both of these Unique Genes fulfilled that wish.

Then there was Harmonic Puppetry. Its description felt like you were controlling your own body on puppet strings that came from your mind, which was why Sylas had named it as such.

This one was enticing for a different sort of reason.

That magical feeling he felt while fighting the titanoboa had occurred again and again on the journey here. That feeling of being able to control your body, making tiny tweaks here and there to make yourself even more perfect, was so enticing to him. It was like the perfect reflection of self-discipline, a form greater than even martial arts.

Each one pulled at him so he could only start dinging them one by one.

Harmonic Puppetry was appealing, but it was far too similar to <Madness Control>. The overlap was great, and <Madness Control> seemed to have a higher ceiling.

Psyche Warp was great because it relied on his two highest stats, and also the two stats that didn't seem to have limits attached to them. Well... at the very least, he hadn't hit them yet.

But it was also the most hit-or-miss stat. If he met a creature with a high enough Will, it would be useless.

Of course, that was the case for all stats to a certain extent, like because his Constitution wasn't high enough, it was hard for him to harm strong beasts with his fists alone, at least when he didn't use Blade Aura. But he could only use Blade Aura on his body when Madness was activated in the first place.

However, he could always fight quality with quantity and patience in that case, like he had against the titanoboa. Eventually, within reason, his hits were going to hurt.

On the other hand, Will felt much more cut and dry. Either you had enough or you didn't.

Plus, it didn't leave you with much flexibility either. Although Psyche Warp seemed to be evolving toward controlling people, maybe even more permanently, Sylas wasn't sure how he felt about that, either. It was a moral conundrum.

He could target animals alone, but the conversation he had with Morgan and the others made that feel questionable, especially now that he saw their relative Mental stats increasing slowly.

Of course, Sylas wasn't some agent of morality. If it was the best option, he would take it. He just had no choice but to nitpick at this point.

Then there was Basic Aetherflow...

Sylas had added in the word "Basic" on purpose because he felt it was the most scalable of the three Unique Genes. So long as he had more Intelligence, more Will, more Charisma, his telekinesis would only grow stronger under its effects.

Plus, the description of Aetherflow made it clear that he would even be able to apply his other Gene Talents to it and synergize.

As for the ding on Aetherflow, well... It was a deviation from his current path? He was using his fists a lot, and he had gained something he could conveniently use his legs with as well. He was moving toward being a pugilist, especially with his unequip-able Scorned Wraps.

Could he focus on two things at once?

'Well, I think that settles it. That reason is horrible because it's a problem that Psyche Warp suffers from as well. Harmonic Puppetry is the one that doesn't, but the fact it overlaps with <Madness Control> so much is too huge of a ding.'

When Sylas made his choice, he locked it in.

Now... he just had to find 50 Common Genes when all the beasts he had seen until now, aside from the ones in Dungeons, only had Fragmented ones. Not to mention the fact he had yet to see any Wisdom, or Mental Genes. He hadn't received any Will Genes in the Slithering Madness Dungeon, which presumably focused heavily on it.

'I'll just have to take it one step at a time.'

The requirement of 50 Common Genes was only to unlock the Bronze Unique Gene. It scaled down for the Common and Fragmented ones.

But Sylas didn't want to waste this opportunity on a weaker Unique Gene. Gene Crystals were probably even rarer than Gene State potions. He needed to optimize his usage.