The Heiress’ Return: Six Brothers at Her Beck and Call (Wynter Quinnell) novel Chapter 1779

Wynter fell silent. According to the information she had, she still needed to make some preparations to completely dismantle the opposing side. Cybercrime, after all, was ultimately orchestrated by people.

…

Meanwhile, the Dwain family was in an uproar. This was especially true for Mathilda Evvie, Malcolm's mother. She was hysterical, refusing to believe that Malcolm was gone.

She stood at the doorway, shouting and shoving her granddaughter, Sherry Dwain. "It's all because of you, you worthless girl! Nothing good has happened to us ever since you came into this family!"

Sherry, who was merely five or six, was pushed to the ground, utterly bewildered. Her father was gone, and she wanted her mother. But her grandmother was angry and wouldn't feed her. Her mind was in a daze until a pair of hands caught her.

It was Wynter, disguised as Janielle. She had adopted Janielle's appearance and demeanor, appearing timid and avoiding eye contact.

Mathilda flew into a rage when she saw her. "How could you let this happen to Malcolm? How could he just kill himself? He would never do that! You must have driven him to it, you venomous woman!

"Why were you out gallivanting today when you should have been taking care of him?" Mathilda lunged forward, ready to grab Wynter by the hair.

The investigators quickly intervened, holding her back. "Please calm down. The test results are in, and it was indeed a suicide."

The commotion in the apartment building drew a crowd, and naturally, someone recorded it. Normally, such footage would be sealed and not allowed to spread. But this time, due to lax oversight, the video leaked.

The title was particularly eye-catching, tying it directly to the trending topic of Malcolm's suicide. "Mother-In-Law Confronts Daughter-In-Law" was a headline that would draw anyone in. The discussion grew heated, and the topic's popularity soared.

Janielle's face was clearly captured in the footage, which pleased Royston. The more vitriol in the comments, the better it would serve the Sacrificial Human Formation that the old cultivator had ordered.

"Who would have thought that a woman who only knew how to shop and cook would kill her own husband?" Royston chuckled, his eyes glinting like a sinister creature lurking in the shadows.

But sometimes, who could tell whether a person or a ghost was truly the worst of the two?

Was it Mathilda, who blamed Janielle at every turn and treated Sherry as less than human? Or was it Malcolm who cheated on Janielle and schemed to leave her and Sherry with nothing?

Wynter lowered her gaze, hiding the mockery in her expression.

Mathilda continued to berate Wynter, as if it were her only outlet for grief. She couldn't accept that her "perfect" son had just taken his own life without warning.

Mathilda was inconsolable initially. But once she calmed down, her first instinct was to contact Tracy.

She knew Malcolm had been seeing a younger woman, and she hadn't opposed it. She believed Janielle had outlived her usefulness and was unlike Tracy, who was more fertile and had reportedly been carrying her grandson.

Mathilda wanted to ask Tracy if she knew what had happened, but the calls kept going unanswered.

Growing desperate, Mathilda's eyes filled with hatred as she glared at Wynter. However, that hatred was mixed with suspicion. "Did you know about this all along?"

Mathilda had been about to shout her accusations. But, realizing people were filming and considering Malcolm's reputation, she lowered her voice. "You... it was you, wasn't it? You killed my son!"

Wynter, disguised and mimicking Janielle's voice, replied meekly, "What are you talking about? How could I harm my own husband? Sherry is still here. Please don't say such things."

"How dare you talk back to me? Would this have happened if you had been there?" Mathilda screamed again, then turned to the investigators. "She's suspicious! This venomous woman! Don't be fooled by her act!

"She must have resented my son. There's no way he killed himself—it makes no sense! I demand a thorough investigation!"

No matter how much Mathilda shouted, the investigators wouldn't allow her to continue causing a scene. "We will question everyone involved, but there is no evidence linking Mrs. Dwain to the deceased's death. We've reviewed the surveillance footage and taken statements."

Indeed, if Wynter hadn't intervened, the Willbinder Potion would have been disposed of by Janielle long ago. Moreover, Janielle's friends would have provided her with an alibi.

To anyone looking in, it would have seemed like a straightforward "suicide", just like Stacey's case. She had died despite no one else being in the dorm. Moreover, every victim had left a suicide note confessing their crimes.

Malcolm's note detailed his infidelity, his inappropriate relationship with a student, his academic misconduct, and even how he had accepted bribes from students. This was why the case had sparked such heated debate online.

Even the university administration had come to inquire about it. Mathilda denied everything while trying to shift the blame onto Janielle. "I refuse to believe she has nothing to do with this! You must arrest her!"

Mathilda's actions crossed a line, and the investigators ended up taking her to the interrogation room.

Wynter watched coldly. This was her first "gift".

Malcolm and Tracy didn't have to die, but if they thought they could live comfortably after ruining a family, they were mistaken. Wynter couldn't stand it, and they wouldn't get off so easily.

If Royston had truly understood the Human Sacrificial Formation's intricacies, he might have noticed the subtle discrepancies.

But he could never have imagined that Janielle had not actually committed murder. After all, both the viral videos and the messages he had received indicated that the plan had been successfully carried out.

With the victim dead, the sin would have been imprinted, and their grand formation required such individuals to continuously fuel the resentment.

Tomorrow, the formation would be activated. The old cultivator would surely find the sacred artifact within it. Only then would the holy prayer be truly complete. He believed that the common people would never understand the wealth that devotion could bring.

Wynter was counting on Royston's misconception.

Since the "romance scam" had started online, she would use the same method to turn the tables. By leveraging Janielle's identity, she would dismantle the Human Sacrificial Formation from its core. She had to attend the holy prayer to follow them into the formation.

According to Dalton's explanation, Royston revered and worshipped the Heavens.

Wynter didn't know what would emerge once the Human Sacrificial Formation was activated, but Atwater had once told her that anything related to the Sacred Path could be found within the formation.

"You're not my mom. Where's my mom?" A soft sob suddenly reached Wynter's ears. It was Sherry, whom she had helped.

Logically, her disguise skills were flawless, and there was no way she could have been recognized. But no child would mistake their own mother.

"You don't smell like my mom," Sherry said as she shrunk back in fear.

Wynter crouched down and took out her phone. "Do you want to hear your mom's voice?"

"Mom said not to go with strangers," Sherry replied, glancing toward Mathilda. But compared to strangers, her grandmother seemed even more terrifying.

Wynter pointed to the investigator. "Then how about going with that man? Did your mom teach you to seek help from the police if you're in trouble?"

Sherry nodded and immediately turned to cling to the investigator's leg. "Sir, I..."

The investigator wasn't sure what Wynter was getting at, especially since they were still in the middle of their act. Fortunately, no one was filming anymore, and Mathilda had left.

Wynter lowered her voice. "Take her to Dalton. He'll arrange everything for her."

The investigator nodded. As they left, Sherry kept looking back, seemingly puzzled by why Wynter looked exactly like Janielle.

Wynter, noticing her gaze, suddenly said, "Wait a moment."

The investigator looked confused.

Wynter stepped into a nearby convenience store and bought buns, pasta, sausages, hot milk, and some snacks that children loved, before handing them all to Sherry.

She didn't exactly know what Royston had just said, but he suddenly took a few steps back and revealed a sacred statue.

It was unlike any they had seen before. Carved from what appeared to be sugilite, the figure was breathtakingly handsome.

"Let the Divine One witness the mortal realm." Royston raised his hand before continuing, "We are all your devoted followers."

In an instant, the lights flickered wildly before going completely dark.

Wynter thought she heard a chuckle—low and lingering, brushing against her ears. Then, there was nothing but darkness.

…

Pain was the first thing she felt. Unlike any previous time she had entered a formation, this time, a throbbing headache overwhelmed her senses.

And to make matters worse, someone was cursing her right by her ear.

"What kind of cultivator is Ms. Quinnell supposed to be? She has no sense of shame whatsoever."

"Ignore her. Those from that mountain do nothing but indulge in food, drink, and pleasure. Their sect is ridiculously weak. I heard that not a single one of them could even wield a sword at the last Celestial Summit."

"And yet she dares to look at Augustine like that with those eyes."

One voice after another overwhelmed Wynter, and the words made her frown slightly. She wondered why she wasn't at the round table and what happened to Royston. Then, she slowly began to realize that she had entered the Human Sacrificial Formation.

Realizing this, Wynter clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her palm. She was forcing herself to stay alert.

Something was off. She felt like she wasn't in her own body.

Slowly lifting her gaze, she locked eyes with the ones who had been gossiping the most.

Judging by their attire, they were clearly from a sect, dressed in an ancient robe. If she hadn't just entered the formation, she might have thought she had accidentally wandered onto the set of a fantasy drama.

"She's looking at us. Shh, stop talking. She's still the Princess of Velmoria. We can't afford to offend her, even if she has no cultivation talent."

Even though the ones talking were just a group of teenagers, their chatter was especially irritating.

"Let's not waste time on them. We should go elsewhere and explore. We came here to train, not to be slowed down by their sect."

Wynter was confused with the terms "sect" and "training". She remained expressionless as she absorbed the information.

If she followed the logic of fantasy dramas, this kind of training journey would undoubtedly lead to encounters with malevolent spirits, powerful demons, or some grand villain.

At this point, she was convinced that she had ended up in someone else's body after entering the formation.

Her spirit companions, including Leo, were nowhere to be found. The purple sugilite pendant she always played with had vanished. Plus, she was wearing a flowing violet gauze dress.

Compared to the white-robed cultivators standing nearby, she didn't look like she was here for training at all. Instead, she looked more like someone who had come to drink. The gourd tied to her waist and her revealing outfit only reinforced that impression.

Wynter shifted slightly, her forehead still throbbing. Judging by her position, she guessed she must have fallen and hit her head.

"She didn't hit her head too hard and became dumb, did she?" The group of teenagers exchanged glances before cautiously turning back to look at her.