Chapter 29: Awakened One

Daniel was merely a commoner, already middle-aged and accustomed to toiling every day just to put food on the table. Long ago, he had abandoned martial arts training.

Even if anger burned fiercely within his heart, the harsh reality remained unchanged. At that moment, he was simply no match for the burly Wesley Sterling.

"Bang!" Wesley’s foot slammed into Daniel, sending him crashing heavily to the ground.

"Wa..." Daniel spat out a large mouthful of crimson blood before his eyes rolled back, and he completely lost consciousness. The severity of his injuries was immediately apparent.

A large, unmistakable footprint was imprinted across his worn work clothes, clearly demonstrating the terrifying force behind Wesley’s kick.

Yet Wesley had no intention of stopping.

He strode toward Daniel, raised his right foot high, and prepared to stomp down viciously on the head of the unconscious man.

At that moment, Ryan was rushing toward them.

Although he had yet to arrive, he had already closed a considerable distance.

"Wesley Sterling? I just encountered Derek Sterling earlier today. Why am I running into another member of the Sterling Family now?"

Ryan could vaguely hear the conversations ahead, leaving him somewhat bewildered.

Why did he keep encountering people from these powerful families?

However, the moment he heard that his father had stepped forward to defend someone, his expression changed drastically.

Unfortunately, there was still some distance between them.

The dense crowd of onlookers further obstructed his vision, making it impossible for him to see the situation clearly.

Anxiety surged through Ryan’s heart. Without hesitation, he poured Origin Energy into his body as if it cost him nothing.

WHOOSH!

His speed suddenly increased severalfold, his figure shooting forward like an arrow released from a bowstring.

Meanwhile, the surrounding commoners could only watch helplessly as Daniel lay motionless on the ground.

Seeing his miserable state and Wesley’s overwhelming strength, none of them dared to step forward.

One after another, they turned their heads away, unable to bear watching what was about to happen.

"Heh. Truly oblivious to death."

The four burly men dressed in black stood nearby with their arms crossed over their chests, watching the scene with mocking expressions.

"No!"

Seeing her husband lying unconscious in a pool of blood while Wesley still intended to hurt him, Sarah’s face instantly paled.

She frantically pushed her way through the crowd and rushed toward Daniel.

Just as Wesley’s raised foot was about to come crashing down, Sarah threw herself between them and desperately raised both hands to block him.

"Get lost, you cheap woman!" Wesley instantly flew into a rage. Showing no mercy simply because she was a woman, he abruptly changed the direction of his stomp and swung his leg sideways.

"Bang!"

His powerful kick slammed into Sarah’s arm.

She was sent tumbling to the ground beside Daniel, her neatly tied ponytail coming undone as her hair scattered wildly across the ground.

Her delicate body simply could not withstand such a heavy blow.

Her lips quickly lost their color, and a trace of blood appeared at the corner of her mouth before she too collapsed into unconsciousness.

"Dad! Mom!" Ethan was horrified. At that moment, he finally managed to push his wooden wheelchair through the crowd and reach his parents.

Because of the height difference, he had no choice but to throw himself out of the wheelchair.

He landed heavily on the ground but immediately crawled toward his parents, frantically checking on them.

Toby also rushed over, tears streaming down his face.

His slightly oversized, patched clothes nearly caused him to stumble as he squeezed through the crowd, but he eventually reached his parents and dropped to his knees beside them.

"Mom! Dad!"

He desperately shook their unconscious bodies, his voice breaking as he cried helplessly.

"Hmph. A family of lowly commoners. First a cripple, then a brat."

Wesley glanced at Ethan and Toby with undisguised disdain. "What are you crying about? Damn it. You’re so noisy!"

The sound of Toby’s wailing seemed to irritate him even further.

His expression instantly turned vicious. Without the slightest hesitation, Wesley clenched both fists and swung them toward Ethan and Toby’s heads.

WHOOSH!

The two fists tore through the air with terrifying force.

If those punches landed, the consequences would be disastrous.

Ethan and Toby, who were completely defenseless, would have little chance of surviving the devastating blows.

....

At this moment, the surrounding crowd was even more terrified.

Their faces were pale, yet not a single person dared to step forward and stop Wesley. Once again, they turned their heads away, unable to bear witnessing what was about to happen.

In truth, there were countless commoners gathered around.

If they had all swarmed Wesley and his men, even an ant colony could bring down an elephant. These few burly men were merely ordinary people who had yet to awaken their Bloodlines; if the crowd had truly united, subduing them would not have been difficult.

Unfortunately, when people had been forced to kneel for too long, even their knees eventually became weak.

Facing the overwhelming influence of the Sterling Family, these commoners only dared to complain behind closed doors. None of them dared to harbor even the slightest thought of resistance.

Meanwhile, the four burly men in black were visibly excited.

As externally hired lackeys of the Sterling Family, they had practiced martial arts since childhood but had never awakened their Bloodlines. Ordinarily, they were the ones being bullied by powerful Warriors, and they rarely had the opportunity to bully anyone themselves.

But today was different.

They had finally encountered an opportunity to vent all the resentment they had accumulated over the years by freely bullying ordinary commoners.

And with the Sterling Family backing them, they had nothing to fear.

The thought alone filled their hearts with a twisted sense of satisfaction.

"Hoo!"

The next instant, before Wesley’s fists even reached them, the terrifying force behind his punches had already swept over Ethan and Toby.

Ethan’s expression instantly turned deathly pale.

His legs were immobile, leaving him unable to escape. When he looked at his younger brother, Toby, who was still crying helplessly beside him, it felt as though he had suddenly fallen into an icy abyss.

He gritted his teeth and braced himself against the ground with both arms.

With all the strength he could muster, he painstakingly shifted his body, positioning himself between Toby and the incoming fists.

He could not protect his parents.

He could not protect himself.

But at the very least, he could try to protect his younger brother.

Ethan closed his eyes in despair.

He could only pray that his body would be strong enough to withstand the blows and bear all the damage himself.

A crystal-clear tear slowly slid down his cheek.

It contained deep unwillingness.

Since childhood, Ethan had been plagued by illness. Ever since he was ten years old, he had never again experienced the simple joy of running freely like other children.

He had always tried to hide his sadness.

For the sake of his parents, for the sake of his younger brother, he had endured quietly and forced himself to remain strong.

But now, standing on the brink of death, all the grievances he had buried deep within his heart suddenly erupted.

Why?

Why had fate treated him so unfairly?

Why had his family been forced to suffer like this?

The world was cruel.

Yet there was nowhere to escape.

"Lowly commoner, die!"

At this moment, Wesley Sterling seemed to have completely lost himself in his frenzy.

He poured even more strength into his fists.

Rather than slowing down, his punches became even faster, tearing through the air with terrifying force.

However...

The expected scene of blood and flesh splattering never occurred.

"Bang!"

Just before the fists could land, a figure suddenly rushed through the crowd.

Ryan had finally arrived.

Having desperately forced his way through the surrounding onlookers, he barely made it to the scene in time.

The moment he saw his two younger brothers facing imminent death, his eyes instantly turned cold with fury.

He didn’t have time to think.

His body moved on instinct.

Ryan twisted his waist and shot forward, placing himself directly in front of Ethan and Toby.

Then, at the critical moment, he raised both palms and firmly blocked Wesley’s incoming fists.

"Bang...!"

Fists collided with palms.

A violent shockwave erupted from the point of impact!

The surrounding air seemed to tremble as a circular wave of force spread outward, kicking up sand and dust from the ground.

Wesley Sterling’s expression changed drastically.

His fists felt as though they had slammed into an unyielding steel plate.

No matter how much strength he exerted, he could not push forward even an inch.

"Who are you?!"

Wesley’s eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the unfamiliar, thin figure standing before him.

He had never imagined that someone would actually dare to block his attack.

Even more unbelievable was the fact that this person had successfully stopped him.

Among ordinary commoners, was there actually someone capable of blocking his punch head-on?

"Who is he?!"

The four men in black were equally stunned.

The surrounding commoners were initially dumbfounded.

Then, when they realized that the two terrifying fists had been stopped, they collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

But their relief quickly turned into astonishment and uncertainty.

"Hey, isn’t that the Cole Family’s useless eldest son, Ryan?!"

"That’s the Sterling Family we’re talking about! Does that useless kid actually dare to step forward?"

"Yeah! Isn’t Ryan a premature baby who has always been weak and sickly? How did he block that punch? He looks so thin, yet his strength is actually this great!"

"But what’s the use? There are five people on the other side. Does he really intend to fight five against one?"

"It seems the Cole Family is going to suffer today..."

"Knowing that you can’t win and still daring to fight. How foolish! That entire family really does like to show off!"

...

"Brother..."

Hearing the familiar voice, Ethan suddenly opened his eyes.

When he saw his brother’s slender back standing firmly before him, it was as though a ray of light had pierced through the endless darkness.

Tears immediately streamed down his face. He had never expected to escape death at the very last moment.

But then, as if remembering something, Ethan hurriedly wiped away his tears before reaching out and covering Toby’s eyes.

He didn’t want his younger brother to witness anything terrible.

Toby seemed exhausted from crying and did not struggle or resist. He simply leaned against Ethan, his small body trembling as he continued to sob softly.

"You ask who I am?" Ryan’s voice was cold. From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of his parents lying unconscious on the ground.

The sight of that enormous footprint imprinted across his father’s worn clothes stabbed into his eyes like a blade.

A terrifying rage surged through his chest. His expression became increasingly grim, his features twisted by uncontrollable fury.

"I am what you call..." Ryan slowly raised his head and stared directly at Wesley Sterling. "A lowly commoner!!!"

The moment his voice fell, something strange happened.

Ryan’s palms instantly transformed into sharp claws.

Dense white Origin energy surged forth, rapidly covering his fingers and palms.

At the same time...

BUZZ!

The Spider Silk Blade suddenly activated. The claws on Ryan’s hands grew larger, transforming into glossy black hook-like claws that resembled forged iron. Their sharp edges glimmered with a chilling cold light.

Clack!

The claws suddenly opened and closed.

Before Wesley could react, they had already clamped tightly around both of his fists.

"Pfft!"

The razor-sharp black hook claws instantly pierced through his flesh.

Blood sprayed outward like thin crimson arrows.

"An Awakened One?!" Wesley Sterling’s expression changed drastically.

The next moment...

"Ahhh!!!" A miserable scream erupted from his mouth.

"It hurts!!! Damn it... Let go of me!!!" He struggled frantically, his face contorted in pain.

He had never imagined that an Awakened One would suddenly appear in the middle of this remote slum.

Originally, he had merely intended to bully a few weak commoners and vent the frustration in his heart.

Who could have expected that he would actually kick an iron plate this time?