Legend of Wyatt-Chapter 1507: The Truth Revealed

The impulsive intruder from the Moon Radiance Sect was merely an ordinary inner sect disciple. His rash entrance earlier was triggered by the shocking news he had just heard.

Now, as he faced the collective gaze of the nine major sects’ high-ranking members, he finally regained his composure. Yet, in his nervousness, he struggled to speak despite opening his mouth several times.

"Don’t be nervous. Take your time."

Seeing the disciple’s discomfort, Deputy Sect Master Thomsen offered him a smile of encouragement.

Encouraged by the deputy sect master’s kindness, the Moon Radiance Sect disciple took a deep breath and slowly said, "The news spreading outside now is said to have been released by the Shadow Mountain Black Market... It seems the Howard Family pretended to be part of the Shadow Mountain Black Market, and they were completely massacred as a result!"

Shadow Mountain Black Market!

As soon as the disciple’s words landed, the present upper echelon of the nine sects collectively drew a sharp breath.

"Hmph! From now on, some statements are better kept to oneself without solid evidence."

Recovering his composure, Deputy Sect Master Thomsen swept his gaze across the high-level representatives of the other eight sects, snorting coldly in disdain as he spoke.

Faced with Thomsen’s ridicule, the other sect leaders were visibly displeased. However, they refrained from arguing further on this matter.

After all, this situation clearly wasn’t in their favor.

"Deputy Sect Master Thomsen, we shouldn’t dwell on this issue right now. What we need to discuss is the matter of the Shadow Mountain Black Market’s actions... Their interference this time has extended far too broadly. Knowing full well that the Howard Family was propped up by our Nine-Sect Alliance, they still dared to annihilate them!"

An elderly man with white whiskers flared his nostrils in righteous indignation and spoke vehemently.

"That’s not entirely fair, though... Word has already spread from the Shadow Mountain Black Market that someone from the Howard Family impersonated one of their own, which led to their outright extermination."

"Indeed! What the Howard Family did was sheer folly worthy of destruction!"

"I’ve heard of the Shadow Mountain Black Market’s rules before. Anyone who dares impersonate them will once proven be punished to the extent of erasing their entire clan."

"The Howard Family brought this upon themselves; no one else is to blame."

...

Several high-ranking sect members from different factions, including those from the Moon Radiance Sect, agreed that this debacle was the Howard Family’s own undoing and absolved the Shadow Mountain Black Market of fault.

Furthermore, the rules of the Shadow Mountain Black Market were no secret even to them.

The Howard Family could not possibly have been ignorant of them.

Yet, despite this knowledge, the Howard Family dared to impersonate members of the Shadow Mountain Black Market—it was blatant self-destruction!

"Come now, that isn’t quite the right perspective... Even if the Howard Family was in the wrong, exterminating their entire clan is excessive, isn’t it? At most, the individual impersonating the Shadow Mountain Black Market could’ve been executed; after all, ’Misfortune should not extend to the innocent family.’"

"Exactly! They’ve clearly gone overboard this time. It feels more like a deliberate show of force aimed at us."

"I share this sentiment. I believe we should send representatives to negotiate with them."

...

There were also high-ranking sect members who expressed dissatisfaction with the Shadow Mountain Black Market, including those from the Mysterious Rune Sect.

The dissenting sects were those closer in alliance with the Mysterious Rune Sect.

In the Nine-Sect Alliance region, it was no secret that the Mysterious Rune Sect and the Shadow Mountain Black Market were mortal adversaries.

This animosity stemmed from an incident where the previous sect leader of the Mysterious Rune Sect was slain by an eminent figure from the Shadow Mountain Black Market.

Furthermore, the pressures exerted by that figure forced the Mysterious Rune Sect’s current leader, a three-star Taoist Talisman Master, to swear a Thunder Punishment Oath.

That oath stipulated the conditions under which any three-star attack taoist talisman created by him could only be circulated within the Mysterious Rune Sect.

Any Mysterious Rune Sect member acquiring such talismans had to swear their own Thunder Punishment Oath, vowing that the talismans they obtained would not be transferred outside the sect.

As a result, the Mysterious Rune Sect gained the ability to produce powerful ’three-star attack taoist talismans,’ but at the cost of a lucrative market.

To the Mysterious Rune Sect, this affair was a shameful stain upon their legacy, fueling their lifelong enmity against the Shadow Mountain Black Market.

The Shadow Mountain Black Market’s motive for such coercion was their desire to prevent the mass proliferation of three-star taoist talismans within the Nine-Sect Alliance region.

Such talismans could compromise their various business operations.

Imagine a second-rate assassin from the Shadow Mountain Black Market at the level of Small Perfection within the Saint Realm hunting a relatively weaker target—if the target had a three-star attack taoist talisman and used it, the assassin could easily lose his life.

Failing tasks in such ways would ultimately tarnish the Shadow Mountain Black Market’s reputation.

And reputation was an asset that the Shadow Mountain Black Market valued above all else.

Therefore, they would never let three-star taoist talismans run rampant across the Nine-Sect Alliance region.

"Hmph! If you insist on negotiating with the Shadow Mountain Black Market, you can go yourselves... Don’t expect the rest of us to tag along."

The Moon Radiance Sect’s Deputy Sect Master Thomsen, naturally aware of the Mysterious Rune Sect’s underlying schemes, scoffed coldly.

"Precisely! You want to go, then go ahead—but if you succeed, we’ll hold a celebration banquet in your honor!"

"Exactly."

...

Leaders from other sects less aligned with the Mysterious Rune Sect chimed in.

These seasoned leaders weren’t naïve enough to make themselves pawns for the Mysterious Rune Sect in directly provoking the Shadow Mountain Black Market.

Meanwhile, sects more closely allied with the Mysterious Rune Sect enjoyed exclusive privileges, such as significant discounts on talismans.

Privileges that the other sects did not benefit from.

Though the Nine-Sect Alliance bore the title of an "alliance," internally it was far from unified.

Unless the Shadow Mountain Black Market harbored ambitions to obliterate all nine sects, true unity among them would remain an impossibility.

And in recent years, the Shadow Mountain Black Market had shown no signs of such grand ambitions.

"You... You..." freёnovelkiss.com

The goateed elder, who happened to be the Mysterious Rune Sect’s Deputy Sect Master, was visibly incensed by Deputy Sect Master Thomsen’s refusal—and that of others. In his rage, his beard seemed to almost bristle. "Do you even consider yourselves part of the same alliance as us anymore?"

"Deputy Sect Master Ho, have you forgotten the founding principles of our Nine-Sect Alliance?"

Thomsen sneered, "This time, the Shadow Mountain Black Market could have kept the Howard Family’s extermination secret, yet they openly disclosed it... They did so purely to establish their dominance and serve as a warning to others!"

"In this case, while the Howard Family was clearly at fault, getting wiped out is indeed harsh. But haven’t you seen how the Shadow Mountain Black Market operates? Surely it’s not your first encounter with their ways?"

At this point, Thomsen cast a meaningful glance at Deputy Sect Master Ho of the Mysterious Rune Sect, his words laden with innuendo.

"Thomsen!!"

Ho’s face darkened in fury as he roared.

He caught Thomsen’s insinuation—an allusion to the past humiliation of the Mysterious Rune Sect when their previous sect leader was slain by the Shadow Mountain Black Market’s powerful figure.

It also referenced their coercion into swearing the Thunder Punishment Oath, constraining their dissemination of three-star attack taoist talismans.

"Deputy Sect Master Thomsen, you’ve gone too far... Even if you’re unwilling to provoke the Shadow Mountain Black Market, there’s no need to diminish our Nine-Sect Alliance’s grandeur while boosting their ego!"

A short, unattractive middle-aged man snapped with indignation.

"What a loaded accusation!"

Thomsen sneered, "What exactly did I say? Did my remarks elevate the Shadow Mountain Black Market or denigrate our Nine-Sect Alliance? Or is this merely your own misinterpretation? If so, why don’t you share your thoughts with everyone?"

Rendered speechless by Thomsen’s riposte, the middle-aged man could only gape in anger.

Everyone present clearly understood Thomsen’s veiled implication.

Even so, Thomsen avoided explicit statements, ensuring he hadn’t officially offended the Mysterious Rune Sect.

Had he laid it all out, it would’ve amounted to a direct insult to the Mysterious Rune Sect—an act of imprudence he refrained from committing.

In any case, this matter was temporarily settled as Thomsen and the others defiantly dismissed the idea.

The Mysterious Rune Sect and its allied factions could perhaps muster enough sway over other sect leaders to band together against the Shadow Mountain Black Market.

If forced to act alone, they wouldn’t dare confront even a minor regional branch of the Shadow Mountain Black Market, much less its upper echelons.

"If Junior Brother Barnes hears about the Howard Family’s disastrous fall, he might actually find it amusing," Milan Reid’s gaze flickered, and he contemplated internally.

Regardless of the turbulent winds stirring Thames River City, Wyatt Barnes remained oblivious for now, as he was en route to return to the Moon Radiance Sect.

With his current speed, it would still take him some time to arrive.

The distance between Thames River City and the Moon Radiance Sect was not insignificant.

When Wyatt finally reached the Moon Radiance Sect and learned of the Howard Family’s massacre, he was momentarily stunned.

"Impersonating members of the Shadow Mountain Black Market?"

Upon hearing the details, Wyatt immediately recalled how Howard Family’s Second Elder, Koen Howard, that night in Thames River City falsely claimed to be connected to the Shadow Mountain Black Market.

At that time, Wyatt had ascertained Koen Howard’s true identity and knew with certainty he had no association with the black market.

However, Wyatt never imagined that Koen Howard’s brief falsehood would ultimately lead to the Howard Family’s total annihilation.

"The matter of Koen Howard impersonating someone from the Shadow Mountain Black Market—aside from the deceased Koen Howard—was only known by myself and Leslie Howard... Could it be Leslie Howard who leaked this information?"

Wyatt shook his head at the thought, finding the possibility unlikely.

"But if it wasn’t Leslie Howard, then that means there was a fourth person present."

The realization sent shivers down Wyatt’s spine.

Someone capable of flawlessly hiding their presence from him could only be a master of Saint Realm Great Perfection at minimum—or potentially a Saint Realm expert.

If such an individual wished harm upon Wyatt, not even his three-star attack taoist talismans would save him.

For a moment, Wyatt couldn’t help but inhale deeply, suppressing the unease brewing in his chest.