The Heiress’ Return: Six Brothers at Her Beck and Call (Wynter Quinnell) novel Chapter 1831

Upon hearing this, Whitley twitched slightly.

Perhaps he had misheard, but why did he have the feeling that Wynter had said those words for everyone to hear? Was she implying that Dalton was being unfair?

Whitley turned to look at her before shifting his gaze toward Dalton. What was Dalton thinking?

Yet, Dalton's handsome face appeared unfazed. It even seemed like that "old" comment from before had affected him more than this.

Wynter's words had revealed the last hidden truth about Mt. Lunther.

For someone to have lived on the mountain for so long without getting discovered—even serving as the acting sect leader there—meant that the people of Mt. Lunther were undeniably responsible.

Mt. Lunther's decisions also represented the other sects' decisions. The fact that such an unpredictable person held the rights to speak on all the sects' behalf was enough to send chills down one's spine!

"We cannot let him go," said Dudley. "If he managed to disguise himself on Mt. Lunther for so many years, who knows where he'll hide next? He needs to bear the consequences of the Wraithlord Transformation Formation he created in Granville Village."

Indeed, this was what all the sects feared the most. Isidore mentioned earlier how he had devoured Mt. Lunther's actual leader alive. If they were to encounter him next, it would most likely end badly for them, too.

If they were to really let someone like this go, who knew how many more Wraithlord Transformation Formations he'd create elsewhere, just like what he'd done in Granville Village? If that were the case, there would be countless casualties.

Isidore despised these blabbermouths for performing the cleansing ritual in front of the Requiem Pillar. He was also afraid of divine retribution.

Pinching the disciple in his grip, his eyes darted around as he plotted his escape.

In order to avoid any surprises, he had intentionally left some soul fragments in the secret passage at the back of the mountain. He had done that precisely to avoid these situations from happening.

However, the only place to hide his soul fragments was inside the sacred statue. Without a physical body, he couldn't cast any spells unless someone found him one day.

Isidore never wanted to do this unless absolutely necessary. After all, he was only a step away from ascension.

If Raleigh was still by his side, then he could have just possessed him. Yet, because of that tiny detail, everything was ruined!

Isidore clenched his fists, weighing his chances of success.

If Whitley wasn't here, then perhaps he would be able to get away. However, Whitley seemed to have gone crazy and was listening to the words of a disciple.

Isidore was the one who'd underestimated Wynter. Had he known earlier that this would happen, he would have gotten rid of her the moment she was brought to Mt. Nyxvam.

He would never have imagined that the little wretch he spared would end up becoming a thorn in his side!

Indeed, when Wynter was younger, they had crossed paths before.

At the time, she had been a very quiet girl, trailing after Ailithir with a deadpan expression all the time. She'd only nod in response when Ailithir spoke to her. Otherwise, she always seemed afraid to look at other people, always trying to make herself appear smaller.

In truth, Isidore didn't really pay the little coward much attention. He had never imagined that the person who would end up foiling his plans was none other than the person he'd looked down on the most!

Time was running out. He had to possess the body now!

Lowering his gaze to look at the sword formation that was about to kick into action, he suddenly exerted great force. The moment he pushed the disciple away, he raised his palm to the sky, which began to emit a black mist.

Underground, something seemed to be moving. One by one, things sprouted out from the dirt.

Everyone couldn't believe their eyes. Weren't they on holy grounds? How could there be grim spirits here?

It was obvious that these grim spirits were the villagers from the foot of the mountain. Still in the same get-up from when they were alive, they approached the cultivators with gaping mouths.

However, the area around the Requiem Pillar was unaffected.

When the disciples standing a little further from the Requiem Pillar saw what was happening, their faces fell.

They hadn't undergone much training yet, so they had never seen so many grim spirits before. Those things were unkillable, yet they clung to deep resentment. If the disciples came into contact with them, the grim spirits could drain their souls.

They tried to avoid the grim spirits but soon found themselves at a loss.

"Feradach, d-does Granville Village also have this many grim spirits?"

"There are way more than this!" Feradach replied while running away. Nonetheless, he didn't forget to offer his juniors some comfort. "Don't worry. With Mr. Glaisne and the others here, they will definitely think of something!"

Indeed, all the sages were trying to think of a plan. Without wasting any time, the moment those grim spirits appeared, they raised their hands and formed a sword formation.

However, there were just too many of them. They emerged from the ground incessantly, taking the form of the villagers.

If the sages were to just kill them off, they would definitely incur personal burdens. However, if they merely suppressed them, the grim spirits would just get up again like they couldn't feel any pain.

"Why haven't we attacked?"

It was Ailithir who spoke. He didn't understand why his fellow sages were hesitating.

On the other hand, Isidore understood why. After all, besides the stubborn Ailithir, there wasn't a cultivator who didn't care about incurring personal burdens.

At that moment, Isidore knew he could flee. He didn't even need to go back to the sacred statue to hide. Thinking of this, he broke into triumphant yet creepy laughter.

However, there was something he'd overlooked. Besides Ailithir, there was one other person who had never given a damn about personal burdens—Wynter.

She wasn't like the other sages, who tended to overthink their options and weigh the factors involved.

Instead, she attacked straightaway, her sword flying through the air. She didn't care about personal burdens at all. With the Spirit Token wrapped around her finger, she stabbed her sword through numerous grim spirits on the ground.

Yet, Isidore wasn't going to give up now. He was going to take Raleigh away with him.

However, Wynter wasn't going to let him get what he wanted. Her sword swished through the air where Raleigh stood.

Isidore's expression instantly turned cold. He knew that there was no way he could take Raleigh with him anymore, so he raised his hand in an attempt to disappear.

At that moment, Wynter said quietly, "Whitley, think of a way to keep him here!"

Whitley looked down at Wynter, who was ordering him around. He should have ignored the command, but for some reason, he decided to obey her. He soared over from the east side.

Knowing that there was a ruthless killing machine here, the grim spirits slowly began to lose the nerve to approach Raleigh. On the contrary, they went in the opposite direction—where Dalton was standing.

Most of the cultivators here were just disciples, after all. When they noticed that the grim spirits had turned around, they scrambled to the ground like spiders, scuttling away on their hands and knees at a rapid pace.

They were so frightened that their knees had gone wobbly, and their faces were as white as a sheet.

The truth was that this was always how the various sects' rules had been. The more scholarly the disciple, the less valuable they were.

Not only that, they weren't from remarkable families, either. If anything, they were often considered nothing more than cannon fodder.

Some of them came to their senses and began to rush toward the Requiem Pillar. So long as they could reach the pillar, they would be fine!

The sages did want to rescue the disciples, but given their limited means and bigger priorities, they truly weren't able to help them.

Even though the grim spirits had no sense of pain, they were able to discern who had weak spiritual skills.

Isidore was only focused on running away and didn't have time to think about the grim spirits he'd spent years painstakingly developing. After all, he'd only unleashed them to buy himself some more time.

Dalton was no longer just standing idly—he had raised his hand slightly. There was a crack as the grim spirits' skulls shattered.

Federach was stunned when he saw this. Was Dalton really this ruthless? Was this how he had dealt with the grim spirits from before?

When they were at Granville Village, Dalton had still been in the form of a young man. He hadn't gotten mad, so he hadn't reacted this ferociously.

But now, things were different. He had taken his adult form. It wasn't that he'd grown more impatient—rather, it was that the grim spirits were completely powerless to resist him.

On the other side, Wynter had yet to notice that Dalton was angry. All she could think about was capturing Isidore and ending the Sacrificial Human Formation.

…

Meanwhile, Wynter's disappearance had stirred up a storm in Colifernia and even the entire Hawford.

Fabian was having tea with a few of his friends when one of them said, "Fabian, your company is growing stronger by the day. At first, I thought it was on the verge of shutting down since Mr. Gordon had passed away suddenly.

"In my opinion, the Quinnell Group owes its success today to your grandsons and granddaughter. I sincerely congratulate you on your success. Had the Quinnell Group shut down, so many people would have been devastated."

Fabian waved his hand, chuckling. "At my age, how could I still be capable of building up the Quinnell Group? It's all thanks to my granddaughter. As for the other grandchildren, I won't even mention them. They aren't even half as good as my granddaughter."

The others laughed when they heard that. Fabian had a different way of thinking from the others. While most people favored sons over daughters, Fabian treated them equally. If anything, he even had a soft spot for Wynter.

At that moment, Alexis hurried over to Fabian's side. Bending down, he whispered into his ear, "Mr. Quinnell Senior, something's wrong. Ms. Quinnell is missing."

Fabian instantly jumped to his feet. "What?"

When the others saw this, they quickly asked, "What's going on, Fabian?"

When Fabian heard that, he composed himself. "It's nothing. You all enjoy the tea. There's something I need to take care of."

With that, he led Alexis to a quiet corner. "Did you say that Wynter is missing?"

Alexis nodded. "Yes, Mr. Quinnell Senior. When we try calling her, we're told that her phone has been turned off, and it is the same when others try calling her, too. She hasn't replied to any of our text messages, either.

"Not to mention, there is a possibility that today isn't the first day that she had gone missing. The legal department tried contacting Ms. Quinnell after settling a past case but couldn't reach her. That was two days ago, and today is already the third day."

When Fabian heard this, he shuddered. Ever since they found Wynter, his heart had been at ease. However, she had gone missing once again, leaving Fabian worried sick.

Quickly taking out his phone, he opened WhatsApp and clicked into one of the group chats. Then, he started typing, tagging everyone in the chat.

"Drop everything you're doing right now. Devote all your manpower to finding Wynter, no matter the cost."

Albert: "What's the matter, Grandpa? Is Wynter missing?"

Rowan: "Wynter is missing? What happened?"

Blake: "I'm in Colifernia right now. I'll dispatch my people to search for her right away."

Sebastian: "Alright, I'll send my team and prepare a report at the same time."

Fabian: "Enough nonsense. If you can't find Wynter, then don't even bother coming home!"

The Bandits: "Yes, Grandpa!"

Once that was settled, Fabian kept his phone and turned toward Alexis. "I'll make arrangements for someone to go to Colifernia with you to find Wynter. Turn the entire city upside down if you have to. We lost her once, and we can't lose her again."

Alexis nodded. "Yes, Mr. Quinnell Senior."