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

The words "Power of the Source God" hung in the air, and Ethan's eyes sharpened. None of the others in the hall had ever heard the term before, but Ethan had. He had come across it in the hidden archives of Shatterstar. It was precisely because of those words that KH3106 had once guided Shatterstar to Earth in search of aid.

The records described the Power of the Source God as something that only appeared in the Desolate Domain—in other words, Earth—during the earliest generations of humankind. Its existence was what allowed the birth of supreme beings. According to legend, only those born on Earth, infused with this mysterious power, could ascend beyond mortality into what was called the Divine Rank.

Across the Great Universe, from the First to the Ninth, no one had ever managed to shatter the barriers that locked each universe apart. The First Universe, where energy was weakest, had advanced further in technology than anywhere else. The Ninth, closest to the Desolate Domain, was saturated with energy yet remained savage and inhospitable, the smallest of the nine and ruled not by men but by beasts. People from the First Universe derisively called it the "Uninhabited Domain." By rights the Desolate Domain should have been counted as the Tenth Universe, yet the ancient records of the First never once acknowledged it. And Earth was its only living world.

"If someone could absorb Source Energy Crystals long enough," Micah said suddenly, breaking the silence, "becoming a Voidbreaker wouldn't just be a dream."

His words hit harder than thunder.

"Holy hell… that's insane," Blackie muttered, staring at the crystal orb in the Old City Lord's hand. He nearly lunged for it then and there.

"Of course it's insane," Micah shot back, grinning at the look in Blackie's eyes. "If you made it into the Voidbreaker rank and broke through the spatial wall, you could finally chase after your little Red Snow."

Blackie flushed to the tips of his ears. "I—shut up!"

The Old City Lord let out a long breath and studied the orb with a bitter smile. "So Baelor Wane knew all along. That's why he kept pushing north to the Ice Fields. The sly bastard wanted to pocket it all himself. No merchant alive isn't cunning."

Ethan's thoughts sharpened. "Then there's no reason to cooperate with Wane anymore," he said aloud. Inwardly, though, his heart was racing. 'This treasure… it's mine. All mine. Entirely mine.'

He wasn't selfish—his brothers would get their share, of course—but Clearspring City had ruled the Sea of Death for tens of millennia by hoarding every drop of water. Sharing something like this with them was unthinkable.

Regis opened his mouth as if to argue but stopped himself.

"Don't bother trying to talk him down," Blackie said, brimming with excitement. "It's just a Forgotten City, right? We'll crush it in minutes!"

Ethan glanced sideways at him. Blackie's thoughts were plain enough—just like Micah, he was dreaming of breaking through the void for the sake of Red Snow.

"Don't start celebrating," Ethan warned, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "We don't even know how many Source Cores there are. Whether there'd be enough for anyone here to actually make it to Voidbreaker is another question entirely."

Blackie deflated with a groan. Still, a sliver of hope was better than none. Micah chuckled at his misery. "Some people just don't have the talent. Even Source Crystals might not be enough to carry them."

"What did you just say? You think I, a Black Qilin, lack talent?" Blackie nearly blew his top.

"Enough," Ethan cut them both off. "We move out now." He turned on his heel and headed for the exit. Blackie glared at Micah, who only rubbed his nose sheepishly and followed along.

Julian lingered, casting a glance back toward the courtyard. Hank choked on his wine, spraying it everywhere. Even Quinn cracked a smile. Regis, usually immovable as a mountain, sighed and cuffed Julian on the back of the head.

"You little brat, out!"

Julian stumbled away, wide-eyed and wounded, with no idea what he had done wrong. He didn't dare ask either. He left with a bewildered look, completely unaware of Regis's thoughts: 'If Bongo's memories ever resurface, I may not be seen as his father anymore.'

Once outside, Ethan wasted no time. He summoned Shatterstar from its bay, cloaking the mech in stealth to avoid panic in Beastfall City. The hatch sealed shut as he and his companions boarded, making it seem as if the four of them had vanished into thin air. Not even Regis, Quinn, or Hank could sense the machine's presence. Its concealment was perfect at their level of power.

Inside, Ethan lay back in the pilot's cradle. With Shatterstar under him, he felt untouchable. Even Saint-ranked warriors were hardly worth mentioning. He had yet to face a true Voidbreaker powerhouse, so he couldn't say how far Shatterstar's infinite energy could take him, but he knew for certain there were beings above that level. Morzan proved as much. Ethan still remembered finding him beaten up in the Spirit realm's spatial rift. The question haunted him: who could have done that?

"Brother Ethan, aren't we heading north?" Micah's voice came through the cockpit's comms.

"We're detouring to Hurricane City," Ethan replied.

Blackie frowned. "Why?"

"We left in such a rush last time. Rumination Gorge never sat right with me."

No one argued. With Shatterstar's speed, the detour would take only minutes.

They were nearing the Central Dominion when Micah suddenly swore. "What the hell is that?!"

"That," Ethan said grimly, "is the heart of Rumination Gorge."

Julian and Blackie, both natives of the Sea of Death, had heard rumors but never seen it for themselves. What they saw now left them speechless: yellow sand spewing skyward, towering thousands of meters, before cascading down the canyon walls. Rumination Gorge erupting was like nothing on Earth.

Ethan's pulse quickened. He had come here precisely to uncover why this gorge erupted at all.

"Shatterstar, begin scan."

"Beep… Scan initiated."

"Scanning… Geological activity detected. Non-natural phenomena detected. Life forms detected. Interference present…"

Ethan sat forward at once. Non-natural phenomena—and life forms…