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

"Hey! What’s with that attitude?" Leo called out as Victor walked ahead, ignoring him.

The rest of the group shook their heads, paying him no mind.

Even Doe floated forward, instructing, "Follow my trail exactly. Don’t take the wrong step."

Ethan almost pointed out that she was floating—how could she leave a trail?

But as he watched, he noticed that wherever she passed, the mist slightly parted, leaving shallow depressions in the ground.

It had to be another use of soul energy.

Doe led them through the thick fog, twisting and turning for several minutes. Then, suddenly the mist vanished.

The moment they stepped through, Ethan glanced back. The thick fog that had surrounded them was gone.

The realization sent a chill down their spines. Even after seeing so many mysterious and impossible things already, the sheer mystery of the barrier made them rethink what they knew about magic.

Ahead, about a hundred meters away, stood a lonely village.

Something about it was… off.

A deep sense of unease crept up Ethan’s spine. He turned instinctively, expecting Doe to be playing another one of her ghostly pranks.

But instead, his gaze locked onto something else, a pair of glowing green eyes staring straight at them from the trees.

He barely made out the creature’s silhouette—its body massive, dark, and sleek, eerily similar to his panther form in the game.

As soon as it noticed him looking, it held his gaze for a brief moment, then vanished into the forest.

Shadow Lynx.

The name popped into his head instinctively. A wave of goosebumps prickled across his skin.

"Shadow Lynx!" Ethan shouted.

The group spun around, but there was nothing.

Under the skeptical stares of the others, Ethan pointed to where the creature had been. "I swear! It was right there! It disappeared in a blink."

Seeing his serious expression, the others grew uneasy.

Victor knelt down, scanning the area. After a moment, he shook his head. "No tracks. No signs of movement."

"Ethan, you sure you’re not just messing with us?" Leo teased.

No one responded to him. But their silence spoke volumes.

Especially Doe.

She had been here before. She knew how strange this place could be. After another moment of tension, they pressed on, moving carefully toward the village.

Victor and the others had already loaded their submachine guns, scanning their surroundings with growing unease.

At the village entrance, an old drilling machine stood rusted and decayed, its iron plating corroded beyond recognition. An unfinished well sat beneath the drilling rig, half-dug, filled with stagnant water. @@novelbin@@

It looked exactly as Doe had described. It was as if time had frozen here for the past forty-four years.

Swallowing his nerves, Ethan stepped up to the well and peered inside. Dark water reflected his gaze back at him.

No movement. No strange figures.

Just silence.

The group reached the first row of houses, cautiously stepping into the abandoned village.

"…Are we sure this place is empty?" Leo muttered.

At first, no one thought much about the question, but Ethan’s mind caught onto something.

Based on Doe’s story, this place had been abandoned for over four decades.

Yet—

There wasn’t a single vine, not a single overgrown weed. That didn’t make sense.

In a deep mountain forest like this, a village left alone for even a few years should have been completely overrun with vegetation.

Yet the houses looked untouched.

If it weren’t for the rusted drilling rig, no one would believe this village had been abandoned at all. It was as if the people had only just left.

"…Nothing’s changed," Doe whispered, breaking the eerie silence.

Her words made the unease settle even deeper in their bones. Something had prevented nature from reclaiming this place.

Celeste frowned, her gaze locked onto a particular house near the village entrance.

"This place… feels familiar," she murmured. "But I know I’ve never been here before."

Ethan followed her gaze and nodded. "If that’s the case… then this is where your missing memories are."

She clenched her fists and stepped forward.

The group followed her into the courtyard.

According to Doe, this house had a distinct mark—eight knife cuts on the wooden beam inside.

They stepped through the entrance, sweeping their flashlights across the interior.

Seven knife marks were immediately visible. Ethan stepped closer and ran his fingers along the back of the beam. Experience more tales on NovelBin.Côm

The eighth mark was hidden near the corner. Everything was exactly as Doe had described.

"…It’s so quiet," Leo muttered.

Once again, he had unknowingly pointed out something unsettling.

Victor’s expression darkened. "He’s right. Ever since we left the mist, there haven’t been any sounds. No birds, no insects—nothing."

Even in cold weather, there should have been some faint rustling.

But there was nothing.

For the first time, Victor, as hardened as he was, felt the weight of uncertainty press down on him.

Facing human enemies was one thing, but facing the unknown was another.

"Hey, check this out." Victor suddenly called from the corner of the room.

The group gathered around as he held up a half-eaten military ration bar.

It had been bitten into but left abandoned.

Victor examined it, his face growing more serious. "This is a newer model. We didn’t have these back when I was deployed."

He turned the packaging over and shined his flashlight onto the label. The date printed on it read: September 7, 2024.

Celeste’s expression turned grim. "That matches the last recorded expedition here."

Ethan exhaled slowly. The implications were clear. The last group to investigate this place had been here.

They had left in a hurry.

And whatever had happened to them… was still unknown.

Leo glanced around, uneasy. "They abandoned their supplies. Left food behind. Something must’ve happened."

He looked at the others expectantly, as if they had the answers.

They didn’t.

But one thing was certain—

Celeste, Doe, and the others had all come here before. And when they returned, they had been cursed by whatever the Shadow Eaters were.

No one knew what those creatures truly were.

A curse? A disease? A parasite? And now… they were here too.

Would they be affected as well?

Every recorded case of the affliction had been among individuals with supernatural abilities. But who was to say it wouldn’t spread to ordinary people? After all, no ordinary person had ever made it this far.

Not with the barrier keeping them out.

And Ethan… he wasn’t exactly normal.

"I’m sorry." Celeste suddenly spoke, her voice filled with guilt.

The group turned to her.

"…Why?" Leo asked, confused.

She met his gaze, her face unreadable. "I wasn’t sure before… but now I am. This is the place. This is where it started."

She hesitated before adding, "If we don’t figure this out, you might all end up like me."

Silence.

Then, after a long pause, Leo stretched, cracking his neck. "Oh, come on. Like I wasn’t prepared for this?"

He crouched down and started rummaging through his backpack.