Level 1 to Infinity: My Bloodline Is the Ultimate Cheat!-Chapter 319: The Dragon’s Roar

The next day, 7 a.m.

Ashhorn Mountains, near Dragonvault Ridge.

Williams eased the vehicle to a stop on the gravel shoulder.

"Ethan... we’re here."

No one had logged into the game last night. Ethan had barely managed to catch a few hours of sleep.

Ever since they’d set off, Victor had been on edge—he could feel it again. That same killing aura. And for Ethan, a gnawing sense of dread had returned, creeping in like a fog that wouldn’t lift.

All night, Ethan had kept his Soul Sense extended. It now spanned nearly five miles. Despite the strain it put on his Soul Power, he hadn’t dared let it down—not until exhaustion finally took him three hours ago.

Markham’s instructions were clear: Ethan was to reach the highest point on the left flank of Dragonvault Ridge. He would be waiting there.

Once they stopped, Ethan turned to Williams. "Need a break?"

The man had been driving all night—it showed. Williams shook his head. "I’m good."

Ethan didn’t press the issue. He pulled out a spread of food from his storage and handed it around. Once they had eaten and hydrated, they stepped out and prepared to proceed on foot.

With a wave of his hand, the hulking Predator Beast X vanished into thin air. The others didn’t even blink. By now, they were used to Ethan’s inexplicable storage abilities. What still intrigued them was the scale of the space he had access to.

As they began their climb up the narrow mountain path, Ethan glanced back at Victor.

"Still feel anything?"

Victor shook his head. "No. It faded about an hour before we stopped."

Ethan gave a short nod and continued on. They moved in near silence. With Celia among them—a regular human so they had to keep a measured pace.

By eleven, they reached the spot Markham had described.

But once there, Ethan frowned. There was nothing. No entrance, no marker. Just an abrupt dead end. Unlike the Silverwood family’s Hidden Territory, where a visible chain had guided them into the cloud, this place offered no such clue.

What Ethan didn’t know was that the Silverwood family had sealed their entrance and currently, that chain had become invisible.

"Bro..."

A voice rang out. A figure stepped straight from the mountain wall.

Ethan spun around—and there stood Markham.

But what truly caught him off guard was Melinda stepping out right behind him.

Leo, standing closest to the rock face, had seen it all. Two people, emerging from solid stone. When Markham passed by, Leo instinctively reached out to touch the wall. It was firm. Real. He stared at it, unsettled.

Before he could speak, Ethan was already urging Markham.

"Hurry. Get everyone inside. Now."

The feeling of dread had returned—stronger than before.

Melinda’s voice cut through the tension. "Ethan... you’ve been followed. How could you be so careless?"

Ethan’s chest tightened. He knew it. He’d suspected it since last night. Without delay, he recounted everything he’d sensed on their journey.

Melinda didn’t respond immediately. Instead, she summoned a five-pointed conduit—shaped like a foil star. It floated in the air, gleaming with a power unlike any Ethan had seen.

He noticed the difference instantly. freeweɓnovel~cѳm

Markham and Maria’s conduits had been pale white with a hint of pink. Melinda’s was a brilliant blue streaked with red-gold veins.

Aoooooh...

The star-shaped conduit warped and morphed, taking the shape of a dragon’s head. Golden, regal, alive.

With a roar, it surged forward, and as it flew, its body unfurled behind it—segment by segment—forming from the void. The conduit had become a dragon, a living gate to another realm.

The Dragon Vault.

As it passed, the cloud churned violently, then from deep in the sea of clouds, something stirred. A blood-red shape slithered into view. A tail—long, serpentine, and alien. It lashed out toward the dragon with terrifying force.

Melinda’s golden dragon struck back.

BOOM—

The collision echoed like thunder. The dragon’s light dimmed, and the red tail was sent hurtling backward, crashing through clouds and mist.

Its surface crawled with life—countless hideous looking insects, packed tightly like scales. As the dragon struck, many were destroyed, but more came, swarming over the tail in waves.

Ethan’s expression twisted in recognition.

"Candle Abyss... Celeste! We’ve run this far, and you’re still trying to kill us?!"

His voice cracked with fury as he shouted into the sky.

Melinda held her stance, her face drawn. That strike had carried nearly the full power of her attack. Yet all it had done was force back that beast. It hadn’t even struck the true threat. That tail? It was just a defense mechanism. A mount.

The real opponent hadn’t even shown themselves yet.

Melinda’s thoughts reeled. Who was this enemy? Who was "Celeste"? And what was Candle Abyss?

The cloud sea trembled again.

A female voice echoed across the mountain.

"Hmph... You’re quick. I’ll give you that. But let’s see how long you can hide in there!"

Her words hung in the mist, and then—a shape, a massive red form flickered deep within the cloud, stirring the air before drifting away.

They all heard her voice: Ethan, Victor, Leo, Williams.

And they saw her too, just briefly—her silhouette unmistakable.

It was Celeste.

Ethan turned to Melinda and said. "Thank you, Aunt Melinda."

She gave a brief nod, then turned toward the rock wall.

With a hand gesture, she stepped forward. The mountain didn’t part or shimmer. It remained solid, yet she passed right through it.

Leo exhaled long and deep.

Williams glanced at him. "What?"

Leo patted his chest dramatically. "I thought I’d have to ram my head into another damn wall..."

The others laughed—recalling the illusion barrier back in Shadow Lynx Village.

One by one, they followed Markham into the stone and a moment later, the world changed.

Just like Silverwood’s Hidden Territory, this place was springtime itself. Birds sang in the trees, blossoms filled the air with their scent, and warm sunlight bathed the land.

Outside, it was December. The Ashhorn Mountains were brutal this time of year—wind howling across the ridgeline at over twenty-five hundred meters above sea level.

Celia, bundled in three layers of down jackets, had been shivering the entire hike. She’d asked Ethan earlier if this mountaintop was to be their new home.

He’d smiled and said it was a secret. She’d thought he was joking, but now?

She stood frozen—not from the cold, but in awe.

It felt like stepping into another world. Her eyes darted from one sight to another, unable to take it all in.

Even Victor, normally unreadable, looked stunned.

Leo was practically hugging Markham, the two laughing like old friends.

Only Williams remained calm. He’d reacted at first—his eyes flickered—but quickly returned to his usual stoic self, as if nothing could shake him.

"Ethan..."

"Brother Ethan..."

The three chase siblings approached, their voices full of warmth and relief.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺