Level 1 to Infinity: My Bloodline Is the Ultimate Cheat!

The glare, of course, came from Markham. If he hadn't been standing beside Ethan, he might've launched a flying kick at the woman right then and there.

The man beside her—Damien—watched the scene with narrowed eyes and a faint smile tugging at his lips. No matter how absurd the woman's behavior became, his expression didn't change.

"Damien?" Ethan repeated, the name catching his attention. You didn't hear names like that often anymore—too polished, too old-money. He glanced over at the man curiously.

Damien, noticing Ethan's look, gave a polite nod. Ethan returned the gesture—courtesy for courtesy.

He turned his attention back to the saleswoman and followed her to the counter to complete the payment.

---

Meanwhile, Damien and the woman got into a luxury car waiting by the curb and drove off.

All of this happened within Ethan's Soul Sense range.

As the payment process continued, Ethan asked casually, "Do you know Damien's last name?"

"You mean the gentleman from just now?" The saleswoman inserted Ethan's ID card into the payment machine.

Ding… Payment successful. Amount: Twelve million, six hundred and thirty thousand dollars.

The chime seemed to brighten the saleswoman's whole demeanor. With a one percent commission, she'd just made over a hundred thousand dollars.

She handed Ethan back his card, glanced around, and whispered, "I heard his last name is Hayes. He's brought four different women here recently."

Ethan just nodded, offering no comment.

"Sir, what's your address? I'll arrange delivery for the unit," she asked, still in high spirits.

"No need," Markham answered for him. "Just have your team calibrate it and bring it to the back door. We'll pick it up ourselves."

Ethan said nothing, still thinking about Damien. He'd nearly forgotten about the man—until this sudden encounter brought him right back to the front of his mind.

Something felt off.

After they got into the car, Ethan had noticed a shift. The woman, despite her ridiculous tantrums, had actually upset Damien. Yet instead of snapping, he tried to calm her down. That was strange. Either she had someone powerful backing her… or Damien still had a use for her.

Ethan had considered tailing them, but the car sped out of his Soul Sense range too quickly.

He let it go—reluctantly.

---

Soon, the twelve-million-dollar VR Capsule was ready. The saleswoman informed him he'd just need to authenticate it himself once he got home.

Her words jogged Ethan's memory. He still had the old, foul-smelling VR Capsule he hadn't dealt with yet.

Since he couldn't bring it into the store directly, he followed the delivery driver around to the back entrance. After dropping off the new capsule, they pretended to wait for a car.

When the coast was clear, Ethan activated his Soul Sense. In a quick flash, he stored away the new capsule and pulled out the old one, flipping open the lid to air it out.

Markham recoiled in horror, covering his nose.

"Bro… did you poop in there?" he gagged, staring at Ethan in disgust.

Ethan scowled and glared at him.

After a minute or two, the stench lessened slightly. Ethan reentered the store through the rear and found the same saleswoman. He called her outside and asked if the old unit could be appraised for a trade-in.

The moment she caught the smell, her face twitched. Still, she summoned a few technicians to inspect the unit. They confirmed it was in perfect working condition—apart from the soiled interior.

"You should've brought it earlier," she said. "We could've given you the full fifty-six thousand credit. But now, with the interior damage, cleaning and replacing the lining will cost at least five thousand. We can offer you fifty thousand for it."

Ethan nodded. He had, after all, purchased it for over a hundred thousand. with the current condition, the loss wasn't worth haggling over.

He told the Aeon Corporation store to keep it. No one else could use it anyway.

The device was bound to Ethan's personal ID. It would need to be sent to Aeon headquarters to have its information chip replaced. That chip was the key to logging into Ethereal. No secondhand dealer could touch it.

The paperwork was quickly handled, and fifty thousand dollars was credited back to his account.

---

Ethan and Markham left the store, but hadn't gone far when Markham suddenly stopped.

"Bro, you go to the airport first. I've got something to handle. If I'm late, just go ahead without me," he said, turning to leave.

"Where are you going?" Ethan asked, glancing at the time. They weren't in a rush yet.

Markham shook his head but said nothing. He insisted Ethan should head back.

Ethan, of course, wasn't buying it. Melinda had told him specifically to bring Markham back. She knew him well—he'd vanish for weeks if he left now.

"Where exactly are you going? Don't tell me and I'll drag you back myself," Ethan threatened. "And I'll tell Matriarch Whitmore you snuck off to a massage parlor…"

Markham halted mid-step.

"Stop, stop, stop…Fine, you win."

He sighed in defeat and turned around. "You can come, but you have to help."

Ethan raised a brow, intrigued. What kind of trouble did Markham need help with?

"My Dragon Soul… it sensed death energy." Markham's eyes sharpened. This wasn't his usual playful tone—there was something unnerving in his voice.

Ethan laughed. "Death energy? What, it has a smell now? Your Dragon Soul can sniff that out? Where?"

"On that Damien guy from earlier," Markham said evenly.

Ethan's smile vanished.

"You can track him?"

Markham nodded.

"Let's go," Ethan said immediately, hailing a taxi.

Once inside, Markham gave the driver specific directions, wasting no time.

---

Half an hour later, they left the city behind. The taxi finally pulled up in front of a secluded club.

Ethan stepped out, frowning. Why is it always places like this? The last time, with Jade Taylor, it had been somewhere similar too.

Markham studied the building for a moment but didn't move.

Then he shook his head. "Let's go."

"What?" Ethan blinked. "We just got here."

"Can't handle it," Markham muttered and turned around.

"Huh?" Ethan stood at the entrance, stunned.

"Let's go. We're going back to Matriarch Whitmore," Markham called over his shoulder.

Now Ethan understood.

He didn't say "back to Aunt Melinda." He said "Matriarch Whitmore." That changed everything.

Damien… did he have backing that powerful?

Ethan's gaze turned serious. He stared at the club entrance as his Soul Sense flared outward.

---

Boom…

The world distorted. The lavish building in front of him twisted into something grotesque in his Soul Sense vision. It resembled a gaping maw, radiating a cold, sinister presence.

A force resisted his probing, like a fog pushing back his awareness.

Then—

"Hmph…"

The snort was faint but unmistakable, echoing clearly within Ethan's Soul Sense. A sudden surge of energy, shaped like a black, beetle-like creature, shot toward him with violent precision.

Ethan's eyes widened.

The attack shattered his dispersed Soul Sense with ease. It was the first time he'd seen such a focused Soul Sense assault.

But he wasn't unarmed.

Soul Sense manifestation? I can do that too! The skill Morzan taught him wasn't just for storage and retrieval.

As the beetle darted for his face, a brilliant white light burst from the center of Ethan's forehead.

Ding!

Sizzle…

There was a metallic ring, then a searing sound. The black beetle split in half as the white light pierced it.

The light hovered midair, pulsing. Its shape… was unmistakable— although a bit small, it looked exactly like the Twilight War Spear.

In the heat of the moment, he had manifested it instinctively.

But what happened next… was something Ethan never could have anticipated.