Level 1 to Infinity: My Bloodline Is the Ultimate Cheat!-Chapter 202: Illusion

Ethan, Victor, and Williams, along with JJ, had just stepped out of the small diner when Ethan flagged down a taxi.

"Head back first. Call me if anything comes up," Ethan said, not giving JJ a chance to protest as he shoved him into the cab.

The cab had barely started rolling when Evelyn bolted out of the diner.

Right behind her, Leeroy and Ryan lunged forward, trying to grab her, but she slipped right past them.

Ethan frowned and subtly noded his head at Evelyn as she sprinted toward him.

Evelyn paused, then put on a fierce expression. "You think you can just leave without paying?" she barked.

Leeroy and Ryan, hearing her words, stopped in their tracks and stood behind her, eyeing Ethan and the others nervously.

Victor and Williams exchanged confused glances, unsure what to make of the strange trio.

Ethan's response, however, was even stranger—he lowered his voice and muttered, "No time to leave now."

Without waiting for a response, he added, louder this time, "Then let's begin."

The moment those words left his mouth, Ethan's demeanor shifted dramatically. He seemed to transform, like a beast unleashed from its cage. A faint shadow of a panther flickered behind him.

In an instant, Ethan moved.

Less than four meters away stood a seemingly harmless college student, casually holding his phone by the roadside.

Ethan, now in his Panther Form, appeared behind the man in a flash. Switching forms, he brought down a Bear's Claw strike directly onto the man's head.

Thud.

The man's skull shattered under the force of Ethan's blow.

Victor and Williams froze. What the hell was Ethan doing? Had he lost his mind? Why was he killing someone in broad daylight?

Before the man's body even hit the ground, blood splattered everywhere.

Before Victor and Williams could react, Ethan was already moving again. This time, his target was a little girl across the street, no older than seven or eight.

"Ethan!"

"Ethan, stop!"

But their voices were too slow. Ethan darted across the road, grabbed the girl by the neck, and lifted her off the ground. His grip was so tight that the girl's face turned purple as she struggled to breathe.

Just then, two people burst out of a nearby diner, screaming, "Murder! He's—"

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Before they could finish, a golden light shot from Evelyn's fingertip, silencing them mid-sentence. Though not fatal, the spell left them unable to speak.

Leeroy sucked in a sharp breath. "Evelyn!"

"What's the problem? Since the Ninth Division already involved us in this, you think they'd just let us walk away? Whether we act or not, the results the same." Her eyes burned with defiance.

"They set this up. We were never meant to leave here alive."

By now, even Victor and Williams finally pieced it together. This wasn't random, they'd walked into a trap.

And Ethan had known.

Ethan's grip tightened around the girl's throat. His voice was low, dangerous. "Enough games. Come out, or I snap her neck."

Poof.

The little girl's form shimmered, her limbs twisting unnaturally before shrinking. Her ears grew pointed, fine fur sprouting along the sides of her face. Her pupils thinned into vertical slits.

She was no child at all.

'A fox mutant?'

But Ethan wasn't fooled by her cute appearance. The way her eyes were rolling back made it clear he wasn't holding back.

Just then, the entire street transformed.

It had been a bright afternoon, just past two o'clock. But in an instant, everything went dark.

The street was eerily quiet, devoid of any people.

The people who had run from the diner stopped near The Den. They turned toward the entrance, only to find the security gate warped and the glass door inside shattered.

A sickening stench of blood seeped from within.

Then, two figures stepped out from the shadows of the shop.

A man and a woman.

The man, in his thirties, wore only boxer shorts and flip-flops, as if he had just walked out of a bathhouse. His skin was slick with moisture, and he carried himself with lazy indifference.

The woman, however, was dressed for a different kind of business. Tiny denim shorts, a crop top, and heavy makeup. Her style belonged to an era long past, the kind of streetwalker look that had all but disappeared from modern cities.

For a woman well into her forties or fifties, it was a sight that made Ethan's stomach turn.

"Heh. Didn't think Celeste's little crew would be so sharp. How'd you sniff us out? Our little fox has never failed before…"

"Cut the bullshit," Ethan snapped. "What the hell do you want?"

Annoyed at being interrupted, the woman's smile vanished. Her eyes turned cold.

"Hmph! Celeste betrayed us, and you—her little lackeys aren't any better. I'll just take you all in for questioning!"

Ethan's eyes narrowed. So this was about Celeste? You targeted my friends just to lure us here?" he asked, his voice low.

The man in flip-flops chuckled. "Don't flatter yourself. Snatching you up was just a bonus. We've been after the curse caster operating here for a while now. But right when we were about to move in, we realized—her real target was you."

The man grinned, eyes glinting with amusement. "Funny, isn't it? We figured we'd just let her little plan play out."

Ethan's stomach twisted. Curse caster? His mind raced. Someone had been targeting him specifically? Why? He didn't even know who his enemies were anymore.

Victor, Williams, and Evelyn had silently stepped up beside him.

The woman giggled, watching Ethan's puzzled expression. "Looks like you don't even know who's after you."

She turned toward the shattered storefront and called out.

"Come on out, dear."

Everyone's eyes followed her gaze. A white, ghostly figure slowly emerged from the shadows.

When Ethan saw the figure, he was stunned.

"Just as I thought…" Ryan muttered under his breath, breaking his usual silence.

"What?" Evelyn asked.

Everyone except Ethan turned to look at him.

Ryan, usually shy, blushed slightly and explained, "Only a spirit can raise ghost parasites. That's what Grandfather said. I've never actually seen one before."

"Oh…" Evelyn's mood darkened at the mention of their grandfather.

"How… is it you?" Ethan stammered, staring at the ghostly figure in disbelief.

"Ethan… I curse you to die a horrible death…" The spirit lunged at Ethan, her voice filled with venom.

Crack!

The woman flicked her wrist, and a whip lashed out, striking the spirit and wrapping around her neck.

The whip, made of some unknown material, seemed to affect the spirit as if it were a physical entity.

"Behave yourself, or I'll destroy you right here!" the woman barked, yanking the spirit back to her feet with a sharp tug of the whip.

The spirit, now more transparent from the attack, glared at Ethan with pure hatred, as if she wanted to tear him apart with her bare hands.

Ethan stared back, unable to comprehend how, in just over two months, she had become like this.