Led by Little Yimi, Ma Lang approached the noisy crowd. A group of burly men in black uniforms formed a circle, while two youths dressed in luxurious attire with intricate secret patterns were arrogantly pushing a crowd of people dressed in ordinary clothes. Among them, a young couple was trying to protect those behind them.
"A bunch of disgraceful Lost Ones, waste of resources, living off the scraps provided by the Alliance! Why do you even dare to touch public secret artifacts? Do you even deserve it?"
One of the tall youths shouted arrogantly, pushing the crowd and particularly beating the young couple who tried to block him.
Most of the crowd remained silent, their heads bowed. Only the young brother and sister at the front stood defiantly, shielding the others.
"This is a right granted by the Alliance! We can establish connections through public secret artifacts and realize our value! We also have a better chance of triggering compatibility and achieving Enlightenment!"
The defiant youth's face was flushed red as he tightly protected the girl beside him, using his body to block the path of the two noble youths.
The two noble youths showed disdain and barked orders to the surrounding black-clad men, "Drive them out! They don't deserve to touch the secret artifacts. They just waste the Alliance's resources. It would be better to let us, the elite, familiarize ourselves with secret power and enter the secret realm earlier. This is the best use of the Alliance's resources. Giving these vermin access is worse than throwing them away!"
Ma Lang watched the scene coldly. Even without the reminder from the golden energy surging in his mind's sea, he knew he had to intervene.
In this world, there are always people who seem chosen by fate to be puppets in others' hands, manipulated at will. Their fates are like canvases, painted upon by others without any control.
They cannot shout or cry; even with countless grievances, they can only swallow them silently. Any noise only invites more ridicule and oppression. Bound by invisible chains, they can only passively endure.
Ma Lang was once such a person in his previous life. Afflicted by illness, he suffered bullying and oppression, unable to change his circumstances no matter how hard he tried.
Reality always told him that the law of the jungle ruled this world, where the strong dominated and the weak could only submit.
This was why he often wore a cold expression and suffered from severe social anxiety.
Despite this, he still loved that world, loving and resenting it at the same time. He loved its beauty and warmth but resented its injustice and coldness.
Perhaps, it was this helplessness and pain that became the root of karma. In this world filled with competition and cruelty, everyone struggles for survival and fights for more resources.
The tears and sweat of the weak become the stepping stones for the rise of the strong. This injustice and oppression accumulate, eventually forming a flood of karma that washes over the world, bringing endless suffering and cycles of rebirth.
The law of the jungle, perhaps, is the source of karma. This is why this world cannot achieve dimensional transcendence.
The situation before him was another form of resource domination. This world had simply elevated material resources to secret power resources, for only the scarce are worth dominating.
The day secret artifacts were born, material resources were destined to be infinite, so the "capitalists" had merely changed the playing field!
With this thought, Ma Lang broke his silence and roared, "Stop! You have no right to prevent them from using resources that belong to the public. Show some dignity and honor befitting a divine family! Don't be so greedy!"
Little Yimi, startled by the sudden shout, looked at Ma Lang with adoration. Though she didn't understand, she found it reasonable and heroic.
"I thought who it might be! It's the waste from the Ma family! You may sympathize with these trashy Lost Ones, but what are you, really?
"Do I need a lesson from you? Stay out of this, or you won't get to participate in your coming-of-age ceremony! Not that it matters for a useless waste like you who can't achieve Enlightenment! But you need to make a show of existence, right? The divine Ma family, tsk tsk, fallen so far! A branch taking the lead, how laughable!"
The black-haired, black-eyed youth laughed arrogantly. The other, with blond hair and blue eyes, smiled silently, nodding in agreement and waving to the black-clad men to handle the situation, his disdain clear.
The black-clad guards hesitated, pausing slightly. One of them, looking uneasy, stepped forward and bowed slightly to Ma Lang, "Young Master Ma! I am a guard of the Devereaux family. As fellow divine families, we hope you won't interfere with Young Master Lucian's interests!"
His words were polite, for even a fallen divine family was not to be provoked lightly.
"Stop your greedy bullying. The rights of divine families are not meant to trample on others' dignity! This is a desecration of the honor of divine families! I cannot allow it."
A cold expression flashed across Ma Lang's face, making him appear exceptionally stern.
Communication failed, and the two sides entered a tense standoff.
Though numerous, the black-clad guards dared not directly attack Ma Lang, a young master of a divine family. Their goal was to restrain him.
Several black-clad men quickly surrounded Ma Lang, trying to subdue him. However, Ma Lang calmly and nimbly dodged their attacks, using the environment to his advantage, slipping away like an eel, making it difficult for the professional guards to catch him.
"You useless scum, you can't even capture a garbage young master? Truly incompetent!" Zhen Liu shouted from the side, his voice filled with dissatisfaction and anger, a sinister smile on his face.
"Don't worry, Young Master, I'm here!" Little Yimi, eyes wide and face scrunched, angrily raised her small fists and charged forward. Anyone who dared harm her young master would not be forgiven!
Just as Ma Lang was about to stop her, he was stunned by the sight. Unlike the innocent maid he remembered, her movements were agile and swift, like a nimble cat, swiftly weaving through the black-clad guards.
She punched one man in the stomach, causing him to double over in pain with a muffled groan. Another kick to a man's knee sent him stumbling backward, nearly falling to the ground.
Little Yimi's movements were clean and precise, each strike effective. The black-clad guards were left in disarray, struggling to defend themselves.
Enraged, Zhen Liu's face twisted with malice, and he secretly launched a surprise attack from the side.
He swung a powerful punch, but Little Yimi deftly dodged and countered in one fluid motion, forcing Zhen Liu to retreat step by step. Despite being outnumbered, Little Yimi's agility and quick thinking gave her the upper hand.
Zhen Liu's face grew increasingly grim. Though he refused to back down, he was repeatedly hit by Little Yimi, wailing in pain and looking utterly disheveled. If not for the support of the black-clad guards, he would have been defeated long ago.
"You lowborn, get out of my way!" Zhen Liu roared, aiming a punch at Little Yimi's head. She sidestepped and slapped his face with a backhand, sending him stumbling backward, his face instantly swelling.
Little Yimi smiled innocently, licking her lips, her eyes gleaming with a mix of pride and a desire for praise as she looked at Ma Lang.