Level 1 to Infinity: My Bloodline Is the Ultimate Cheat!-Chapter 848: Three Seconds Are Plenty

The berserker facing Ethan, along with the more than two hundred thousand spectators packed into the Arena Mode stands, stared in confusion at the three fingers Ethan held up. For a heartbeat, no one seemed to understand what the gesture meant, and the uncertainty rippled through the massive coliseum.

The berserker himself, a towering slab of muscle wrapped in heavy plate, blinked as if his brain needed a moment to catch up. "What’s that supposed to mean?" he demanded, his voice thick with suspicion and irritation.

Ethan answered with an unhurried smirk. "It means I’ll end this in three seconds."

[Ding! Battle commencing in 10 seconds!]

[9...]

[8...]

[...]

The countdown began almost mockingly fast, as if the system itself had decided to humor his declaration. The berserker froze, staring at Ethan in disbelief, then his face flushed a deep, furious red as the insult finally landed. Three full seconds passed before he exploded. "In your dreams!" he roared, veins bulging along his neck.

Three seconds to kill a plate-wearer was not just bold, it was borderline insane. Maybe such a thing was possible with overwhelming gear or levels, but this was the Arena. Equipment was standardized at Gold-tier, stats were equalized, and everyone was forcibly set to level 60. No excuses. No advantages. Just skill.

As the timer continued to tick down, the noise in the coliseum ebbed away until an uneasy silence settled over the crowd. Tens of thousands leaned forward in their seats, eyes locked on the two figures standing on the sand.

"Why isn’t Druid God using Stealth?" someone whispered from the stands.

"Shut up and watch," another hissed back, an elbow digging into his ribs.

On the arena floor, Ethan remained perfectly still. He did not vanish into Stealth. He did not shift forms. He simply watched the numbers fall, his posture relaxed, almost bored.

[Ding! Safe zone deactivated. Fight!]

Ethan moved the instant the signal sounded.

Bear Form.

Charge.

His body swelled and reshaped in a flash, fur and muscle exploding outward as he thundered forward. The berserker answered with a bellow of his own and charged head-on, utterly confident in his raw strength. In an equalized arena, he believed he could trade blows with anyone, even the infamous Druid God.

Halfway through the sprint, the berserker launched himself skyward. His massive frame arced through the air, twin axes raised high as power and gravity gathered into one decisive strike. Leap Slash, the signature skill of countless warriors, devastating when it landed.

Ethan felt a flicker of relief cut through his earlier bravado. After boasting about three seconds, he had briefly worried his opponent might play it safe and kite. Instead, the man was coming straight at him.

’Good,’ Ethan thought. ’That makes this easier.’

At the apex of the leap, just as the berserker committed fully to the downward swing, Ethan shifted again.

Panther Form. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

The charging bear vanished, replaced by a sleek, coiled predator. Ethan sprang upward with explosive force, his leap clean and precise, carrying him even higher than the airborne berserker.

"Wild Charge!" someone shouted from the stands. A druid player, rare enough on his own, had leapt to his feet in excitement, half-blocking the view of everyone behind him and not caring in the slightest.

Ethan’s panther form cut through the air like a living arrow. His Wild Charge did not lock onto the berserker’s body, but to a point in space just above him. For a split second, it looked as though he had misjudged entirely.

Then he twisted.

One powerful forepaw hooked over the top of the berserker’s helmet, using the man’s head as a pivot point. Ethan’s body spun smoothly in mid-air, fluid and controlled, and landed squarely on the warrior’s broad back, all four paws digging in.

Weighted by Ethan and trapped in the momentum of his own skill, the berserker dropped faster. His axes were already committed to the swing, the force of Leap Slash unleashed and impossible to cancel.

Ethan did not hesitate. His claws bit into metal and virtual flesh as one paw slashed outward.

Rake.

Sssshhhk!

A burst of virtual blood sprayed from the side of the berserker’s neck as the attack struck a critical weak point. A Rend debuff flared to life immediately, damage numbers ticking fast and heavy thanks to the carotid hit.

A bleed alone would not finish this. The damage ticked every half second, four ticks at most, and even with equalized gear, a berserker like this still had over twenty thousand health.

Ethan’s movements accelerated.

Shred. Shred. Shred.

Three attacks landed in rapid succession, each one snapping into place with brutal precision. The opposite side of the neck. The crown of the head. Every available weak point.

-3426!

-3467!

-6843! Critical!

In less than a second, more than thirteen thousand health vanished. The berserker’s bar plunged past the halfway mark, and the crowd erupted into gasps. One second remained.

The obvious weak points were spent. Arena rules prevented them from being exploited again in the same engagement. The berserker still had under seven thousand health, but that was more than enough to survive if Ethan hesitated for even a moment.

He needed one more strike, a single decisive blow, to make his promise real.

The entire arena seemed to stop breathing. Supporters clenched their fists. Haters silently begged the clock to save the warrior.

Then Ethan did something that looked outright impossible.

His panther form seemed to soften, to flow, slipping bonelessly from the berserker’s back and sliding beneath a flailing armored arm. In the blink of an eye, he reappeared clinging to the man’s chest, their faces inches apart as they continued to fall.

Savage Bite.

The panther’s jaws opened wide, fangs blazing with condensed energy. The berserker, still locked in the Leap Slash animation, could only stare back in pure horror.

CRUNCH.

-6953! Overkill: 1924!

[Ding! Combat ended. Victor: NotADruid. Combat duration: 2.49 seconds.]

Silence crashed down over the coliseum, deeper and heavier than any roar. The system announcement echoed as the berserker’s avatar dissolved into motes of white light, vanishing before it ever touched the sand.

Ethan landed lightly in a crouch and rose at his leisure, shifting back into his human form. He brushed imaginary dust from his hands, clasped them behind his back, and lifted his gaze to the sea of stunned spectators stretching out before him.

When he spoke, his voice was calm, almost casual, yet it carried effortlessly through the stillness.

"Who’s next?"