11 What About Upgrading OP-ness?

The back crystal was the single most op, heaven defying, ridiculous advantage to have in at least the first four sanctuaries. The fifth one may be different, but it was unlikely.

So, considering the value and usefulness of that thing, what would happen if he upgraded it?

Thinking up to here, he stopped. He had not used the black crystal yet, he hadn't even extracted it from the black beetle. It stood to reason Anne could detect it, since it was stored in the system, after all, but how could she be able to tell it was the best option to use the item upgrade?

"Anne, do you know what the uses of that black crystal are?" He asked with eagerness.

Before his death, he read Super Gene all the way up to about halfway through the third sanctuary and knew some other things. Still, for an ongoing novel with at least three thousand parts, it was not even half. So, there were a lot of things he didn't know.

Especially about the black crystal and its origins.

"Yes, master. Its main function is to purify the genes of any creature, so it can make them advance in rank. For example, an ordinary creature that consumed the crystal can become a primitive one given a determined amount of time. It can also be transferred to the sea of soul and make beast souls evolve as well. In this way it also slowly purifies the genes of the person who consumed it, so it grants an advantage. Further uses are possible, but they would require the purification of the crystal." She answered mechanically.

'So that's how it is. The first two abilities were the ones Han Sen used in the first and second sanctuary respectively, but there is no mention of the one he takes advantage of in the third, the one where he can absorb life forces. That means the black crystal was purified before he went to the third sanctuary, but how? There was never any mention of purification, and it can't be due to the presence of geno seeds. He touches one in the second sanctuary, but nothing happens. How did he purify it? Unless…'

The more Ling Yun thought about it, the more it made sense to him. In the first sanctuary, Han Sen used the crystal only to upgrade creatures' ranks. He didn't use it to upgrade beast souls because he couldn't. He didn't do that until the second sanctuary, once the crystal moved towards his sea of soul after he ate it. But he ate it after he became an evolver only to make sure he could take it to the second sanctuary.

Once he ate it, it moved to his sea of soul, where he could upgrade beast souls, but that mustn't have qualified as a purification since Anne said those two options were already available. This must mean the "purification process" can be achieved by going through the evolution pool, as Han Sen went to it with the black crystal inside him until the second sanctuary and immediately after he was teleported to the third sanctuary, where he landed in front of a geno tree and absorbed its life force.

'So the evolution of creatures and beast souls are the first ability and in order for it to gain a third ability it has to go through the evolution pool. Not bad at all. I wonder what the result will be if I upgrade it, would it be able to skip that purification?'

"Anne, what would be the results of the black crystal if I upgrade it? Will further uses be available?" He asked her eagerly.

He couldn't think of any benefit in obtaining the lifeforce drain and gain of the black crystal at the moment, but it would be a useful thing to have…

"No, no further uses would be available. It would most likely only enhance the already existing capabilities of the black crystal, but the only way to know for sure would be to use it." She answered.

'Well, whatever. It will be a benefit, no matter what. Still, I think I will save the beetle for another time. I can't earn more geno points today or I would lose some efficiency.'

With that in mind, the possibilities were already running rampant in Ling Yun's mind. The reason he decided not to eat the sacred-blood creature and opted instead for an ordinary one was that he wanted to experiment with his gene vision. He wasn't in a hurry to retrieve the black crystal due to his lack of beast souls. Up until a few minutes ago, the only one he had was the sacred-blood black beetle armor, but he already decided to gift that one to Han Sen in order to gain a favor and for dollar to be born. So, he didn't need to upgrade it.

Now, though, he was anxious to get his hands on the black crystal and upgrade it. Who knew what kind of goodies could it bring?

Thinking up to here, he got ready to leave the sanctuary.

He could sleep here in his room in the shelter, but there would not be any point. He would be doing that often in the future, and his mother and sister would probably be anxious for his first day in God's Sanctuary. If he didn't return, they would probably assume he got injured or worse.

As he got ready to leave, he decided to check on his gains and checked his profile.

Ling Yun: Not evolved.

Status: None.

Lifespan: 200 years.

Requirements for evolution: 100 geno points.

Geno points gained: 10 ordinary geno points; 0 primitive geno points; 0 mutant geno points; 0 sacred-blood geno points; 0 super geno points.

Bluefire Ripper Griffon: Super Pet Beast Soul.

Nightmare Centipede: Sacred-blood Pet Beast Soul.

Onyx Panther: Primitive Armor Beast Soul.

Mantis Reaper: Ordinary Weapon Beast Soul.

Black-Feathered Hummingbird: Ordinary Weapon Beast Soul.

The Onyx armor was a very elegant black armor that covered the whole body, including the head and joints. It looked a bit mechanical, but also classic. It had round shoulder guards, which was one of the few features that stood out. It also had the pectoral and abdominal muscles highlighted. The helmet had a crescent shape on the forehead, not unlike bladed horns, and where the eyes rested there were yellow crystals.

All in all, it looked pretty bad-ass. (AN: Imagine Wave's Teigu from Akame Ga Kill with the specified changes.)

The mantis reaper was a slightly curved green sword with a black handguard. The blade had lines which made it look like an insect wing.

As for the Black-Feathered Hummingbird, it was a bow. It too was black in color, but the grip was blood-red.

All in all, even if the weapons were not exactly of an amazing standard, there were not the worst.

"Well, at least we can upgrade them with the crystal and become a force to be reckoned with, even if only with equipment. Isn't that right, Ban'er?" Ling Yun asked and the miniature griffon trilled in agreement.

Recalling all of his beast souls, he entered the teleporter. It only took him a few minutes to reach his apartment, where his mother and sister where, as expected, nervously waiting for him. After chatting for a while, Ling Yun showed them the Mantis sword and told them he had joined a hunting party which recruited him after seeing his skills. They were so nice he was even given a beast soul sword for free, even if it was just an ordinary one.

His mother looked relieved that he had someone to take care of him while his sister looked impressed and motivated. All in all, they had a nice family dinner.

"Yun'er, I know you are excited about the sanctuary and have trained very long for this, but don't let that keep you away from your research, I know you enjoy that a lot." Ling Liqiu said with a smile. Ling Yun felt helpless in front of her mother, but she was right, after all.

"Yes, mom. I will keep at it. It is all so interesting, it is just that I can't figure out the gene solution part. The geno art is relatively simple, but without a lab and further studies, the solution is just impossible for me to figure out." He replied with a strained smile.

And he was not lying. During his two-year training, he also studied the required materials for the entrance exam to a variety of elite military schools.

One of those schools specialized in theoretical knowledge ranging from gene study, interstellar warship technology, to the development of Hyper Geno Arts. When he read the novel in his past life, he was always curious about these martial arts skills. Most novels had some type of martial techniques and energy that powered them, but they usually were qi, spiritual energy, or some type of energy with a mystical name. The definitions were clear-cut that it was a mystic thing.

But super gene spoke about harvesting the energy in your genes to power the techniques, which was in a way using your own body's energy to do so. This was, although hard to believe, theoretically possible, which sparked his curiosity as an expert on the human body.

So, when he started studying the materials for that school in particular, he studied the basics of Hyper Geno Art research and became very interested in it. He already had a slight curiosity but realizing he could do an in-depth study was definitely a boon for him.

Also, he was aware that after finishing military school, once he turned twenty, he would have to serve in the military.

Now, Ling Yun wasn't exactly a pacifist. He never sought any trouble but didn't shied from it either. His problem was with taking orders. He always was the smartest person around in his past life, and this one wasn't setting out to be that much different.

True, there were smart people in the world, but he wasn't sure how hey compared to him.

And if he ended up serving as a soldier, no matter his rank, he would have to take orders from a superior, which was something he wasn't crazy about. Especially considering it was a military and humanity was at war with the shura and any misconceived order could get him killed.

Thus, he opted to ask to be assigned to the Saint Hall once he finished military school. If he made a name for himself before even applying, his life was sure to become easier.

And he had an almost infinite amount of skills in the system which he could buy, tweak a little bit, and call them Hyper Geno Arts.

He believed with all of his advantages, he would be called a prodigy in no time. As such, once he entered the Saint Hall, he would be able to pump out two or three new Hyper Geno Arts and don't worry about his future and whether or not he would have to take orders or lose time.

He could also stay in the Saint Hall all the time he wanted. He could even make a successful career in there, if the need ever arises.

The only problem with his plan was the geno solutions.

He understood the basics. Chemical stimulants that made targeted genes release energy more easily and aid the user in the learning process, but he was a medic and biologist, not a chemist, even if his knowledge was good.

And in order to make the gene solutions he would indeed need an advanced lab and expensive materials. All that costed money he didn't have yet. So, his progress had been stagnant for a while. Still, he believed he would get it right eventually.

So, after a nice conversation with his mom and sister, he took a shower and went to bed.

His first day in the sanctuary could be categorized as a complete success, so he only needed to stick to the plan and keep moving forward.