On the other side, Ma Lang sneezed, shook his head, and walked out of the room, completely unaware that someone had already set their sights on him. He chatted casually with Grandma Yilan and little Yimi, and under the barrage of Grandma Yilan's nagging to stay out of trouble, he began to feel drowsy.
The door opened, and Ma Lang, like finding a savior, looked up to see his smiling sister, Ma Qing, walking in. She laughed heartily, sat down, and casually draped an arm over Ma Lang's shoulder.
"So, you really made a name for yourself today, didn't you? Lots of my girlfriends have been asking me about you. You've really brought pride to our Ma family, and it feels great! Those little brats deserved it. How did you manage to do it? You haven't undergone the Enlightenment, right?"
She finished with a suspicious look, eyeing Ma Lang up and down.
"Mainly, they were too weak. A little scare, plus Little Yimi's bravery, and they wet their pants," Ma Lang replied, not wanting to elaborate. He himself hadn't figured out what the Giant Eye Nebula and the golden energy in his mind's sea were all about. They seemed similar to the body transformation after the Enlightenment, but he wasn't sure.
"Ha ha, don't be reckless next time you face tough opponents. Just contact me via the Cloud Consciousness, and I'll take care of them in no time."
Ma Qing didn't mind her brother's obvious evasion. To her, the fact that he was back to his senses was a blessing from the Ancestral Deity, and his approach suited her just fine. Their parents would have thought the same way—this was the Ma family style. As for Ma Siyuan, forget about him!
"Sis, tell me about secret artifacts. I saw Lucien's today and got curious!" Ma Lang probed, knowing that Grandma Yilan and Little Yimi wouldn't understand such things, so he had to ask his sister.
"Secret artifacts! Ha ha!" Ma Qing laughed again, then added with a touch of schadenfreude, "Lucien lost his family heirloom after the conflict with you! The Devereaux family is sending people to search everywhere! Serves him right!"
"Alright, let me explain. Secret artifacts come from two sources. The first is family inheritance, and the second is obtained through bloodline guidance after the Enlightenment or by finding them on your own. This one is from Mom, so it counts as family inheritance."
She took off the red crane-shaped pendant from her neck, channeled her secret power, and a flame surged from the artifact. The sound of a crane echoed, and a curved flaming sword appeared in her hand. Intense fire energy swirled, as if ready to burn everything around it.
"Cool, right? Take a look! By the way, secret artifacts usually can't be unbound from their owners, so I wonder what happened to the Devereaux family. I heard it might have been picked up by a powerful individual and forcibly bound to them. Karma, ha ha!" She laughed again, clearly feeling satisfied.
"Take a look. Mom should have left one for you too. Once you complete your Enlightenment, I'll find it and give it to you." She retracted her secret power and handed the pendant to Ma Lang, gesturing for him to examine it.
Ma Lang carefully took the pendant. The ancient, crane-shaped pendant was beautiful, but he couldn't tell how it differed from ordinary jewelry.
"Little Yimi, thank you for protecting your young master. You're truly a brave little cutie." Ma Qing smiled and pinched the cheek of Little Yimi, who was listening curiously with wide eyes.
"I am very brave, indeed! Anyone who wants to hurt the young master will have to step over my dead body, indeed!" Little Yimi declared solemnly and proudly.
"Thank you, Yimi~!" Ignoring Little Yimi's occasional odd speech patterns, Ma Lang hugged her and kissed her earnest, adorable face. She was just too cute! He couldn't resist.
Ignoring Little Yimi's giggles, Ma Lang turned to Grandma Yilan, who was covering her forehead, looking exasperated by their conversation. "Grandma, how does Little Yimi transform? She's really impressive when she transforms."
"Little Yimi is a combat-type bio-android. When the young master was always being bullied as a child, Lady Ma brought Little Yimi home to protect him. Although Lady Ma never mentioned her origins, they must be significant. Back when the young master was ... cough, cough ... not quite himself, Little Yimi always stepped in to protect him. She transformed a few times during critical moments. That's all I know."
Grandma Yilan paused, coughing, before continuing, "That's all I know about her." She rubbed her face, looking a bit embarrassed.
Ma Lang was puzzled. He felt that his parents were always a bit mysterious, especially his mother, who seemed different from others.
The family chatted and laughed late into the night before Ma Qing returned to the academy, and the others eventually went to bed.
The next morning, Ma Lang woke up groggily and started to wash up. Suddenly, a call came through his Cloud Consciousness. Checking, he saw it was from the Lost One girl from before.
A clear voice rang out as he connected the call, "Young Master Ma Lang, the square has been sealed off, and no one can enter or leave. My brother has been detained and questioned. I have no other choice but to contact you..."
Golden energy swirled in his mind's sea, clearly responding to the girl's request. It looked like he had work to do!
After some consideration, Ma Lang decided not to disturb Grandma Yilan and Little Yimi, who were busy. He planned to play a fun game and gather more willpower, and it would be easier to do it alone.
Using the Cloud Consciousness, he called for a bubble-shaped flying car and sped off ...
When he arrived at the square, he saw chaos everywhere, with Alliance Patrol officers maintaining order. Pushing through the crowd, Ma Lang was about to enter when the crowd suddenly parted, and a boy in elaborate secret-patterned clothing rushed out.
Ma Lang recognized him as Lucien, whom he had met the day before. Lucien looked terrible, with a dark complexion, messy hair, and bloodshot eyes, clearly exhausted from a sleepless night.
Lucien hadn't rested. He had spent the entire night with the Alliance Patrol, searching the square thoroughly. Early in the morning, he had taken advantage of the arrival of the Lost Ones to seal off the square. The loss of the inherited secret artifact was a serious matter for both the Devereaux family and the Alliance. It represented the power and heritage of both, and for the Devereaux family, it was particularly crucial. The Alliance was merely cooperating out of obligation.
Seeing Ma Lang, Lucien was taken aback, clearly surprised. He looked around and, not seeing Little Yimi, visibly relaxed.
"Trash from the Ma family, I don't have time for you. Get out of my way, or you won't leave here in one piece today."
"Waiting for your arrogant attitude, little punk! Why do you think I didn't bring my adorable Little Yimi today? I was waiting for you!"