You have more or less the same mind power, but since you are not a coward you trained it mostly just to read memories while he alters them to reduce the hostility he would earn for his actions. The character is the main difference here...so if you absorb him your wasted potential gets a power up...you are still not forced to use it, but it could be useful in some aspects...for example, if some stupid cop sends you to jail or if some hobbyblackmailer tries to ruin a friend of yours to offer her a solution to stay at the uni. However, it could also boost your level if you absorb another level 2 mutant, until now you hast had level 1 enemies and dead ends...fact is you will need your final evolution fast, you have 12 finals, real monsters and you need to be stronger than ella if you want to make her yours...or get rid of her, whatever you prefer.
1. In the latest update you break the mental chains Jake put in your mind, you do so with the assistance of the same voice you got during the levelup. Based on the dialog (don't remember exact wording but something about refusing to be chained by [some-name]) I believe that he is the source of your powers and is refusing to have a vessel of his be bound by a vessel of a rival monster (the source of jake's powers).
2. didn't Ella say that freeform development of your powers where you diverge from your original powerset can only happen in higher evolutions with the first one giving you powers that depend on the origin of your powers rather than yourself?
3. MC did do his best training his mental powers, they never came to him as easily as jake's did.
4. MC got a completely different eye than Jake after evolution.
All of those lead me to believe Jake just has a different origin to his powers rather than being the same powerset modified by their subconscious to have a different focus.
Also speaking of levels, the superhumans in HERO seem to be using serums to levelup. And from the ultimate fight against klaus it became quite clear that such artificial levels are vastly weaker than a proper one like the MC had.
I am hypothesizing that the maximum level being 5 is actually a drawback of the artificial serum based levelup method.
Basically those guys (and gals) have crippled their cultivation. sacrificing their foundation for quick powerups.
I also am sure Ella survived because of this very same reason. Yea he is level 5 to her level 4. But I believe she earned her levels without injections.