"Indeed, the situation I encountered was quite similar."

Another attendee of the Shadow Market, Rosy Queen Ester, nodded her head and added, "Even my teacher didn't have the qualifications to enter the core area of the market, and I saw several teams of Market Guards there, all of them clearly beyond the power of a Tier 5 Powerhouse."

After hearing the words of the two former attendees, the atmosphere in the hall turned solemn.

Just by considering the several teams of Tier 6 Market Guards, it's clear that the Shadow Market is indeed unfathomable.

"My Lord, will you face danger being invited to the Shadow Market?"

A hint of worry crept onto Ariel Watson's fair face as she tightly gripped her collar.

"Your Majesty, the reason the Shadow Market has stood for three thousand years and remains favored by the ten thousand clans is precisely due to its own strength, credibility, and reputation. This means that virtually no danger is expected within the market."

Gals nodded to Ariel Watson and spoke, "Moreover, all the forces invited to participate are carefully screened by the market. If a problem arises even once, they are blacklisted by the market. Over time, only those who highly value their reputation remain, and it's unlikely for anyone to harbor covetous thoughts towards others."

"Just like Gals said, I've considered this thoroughly. The Human Clan has long been dismissed by the ten thousand clans as insignificant, so with the arrogance and prejudice of those summit races, it's unlikely they would concern themselves with me."

Leo Ray raised an eyebrow, smiling faintly, "Moreover, after integrating the resources of the Human World, I have several new cards up my sleeve, including Yonir, Grey Elder, Little Jie, the half-step Tier 6 Louise, Diana, and all the guardians, who are not easily defeated."

"Apart from these, I have this."

With a wave of his hand, Leo Ray revealed a fist-sized light gray crystal, which was an upgraded version of the Teleportation Crystal, known as the Teleportation Keystone.

"Before departure, I'll activate the other stone bound to this Teleportation Keystone in advance and set up magic traps and various defense measures beforehand. In case of an emergency, I'll immediately open the Teleportation Gate."

"Once we pass through the Teleportation Gate to the designated location, we will destroy the Teleportation Keystone at the location, making it impossible for the opponent to track us. If they attempt to follow, that's when the traps will activate."

Saying this, a hint of murderous intent flashed across Leo Ray's face, for although the Human Clan's combat power was weak, they still possessed enough strength to kill a few pursuing soldiers.

The most crucial point is that Leo Ray clearly understands that with the hope of repairing the Land of Divine Favor in mind, he has no choice but to proceed.

After all, the significance of the Land of Divine Favor is self-evident. Otherwise, he would have no way to complete the anticipated integration of the entire "Fortress" for suppression and all-around defense within the limited time before the unknown arrives, leading to a certain death scenario.

Upon realizing Leo Ray had his own considerations, Ariel Watson breathed a sigh of relief, but her tightly knit brows did not fully relax as she voiced another concern, "My Lord, there's another matter that greatly concerns us, which is the gathering location: the entrance of the Inverted Gorge."

Ariel Watson's words prompted everyone present to nod in agreement.

The Inverted Gorge isn't far from the Human World, located between the surrounding savage foreign races and the Dwarf Elves' Mist Dream Valley.

More precisely, it's far too close to the Human World.

Additionally, the Inverted Gorge itself is an extremely unique area.

There, gravity is inexplicably abnormal, with many large rocks and sand grains floating in mid-air all year round, while the water even flows skyward in reverse, earning it the name "Inverted."

"My Lord, although the Inverted Gorge is quite famous in the Outer Region, and many powerhouses stop to take a look at its spectacle, the area is filled with turbulent energy particles affected by gravity, resulting in imbalanced energy fields that create nearly undetectable special Energy Vortexes capable of shredding an unprepared Tier 5 Powerhouse to death, making it evidently unfit for hosting a market."

Elusa stood up from the main force subordinates and chimed in, "No matter how you look at it, the Shadow Market should not have been set in this location."

Following Elusa's remarks, Gals and Ester also expressed their agreement.

The Shadow Markets they attended, although located in different places, were all situated in the central regions of the Outer Region, known for being accessible, peaceful, and convenient for invited forces to reach.

However, this time, from any perspective, it is starkly different from the previous occasions, even to a baffling degree.

Upon hearing the concern of his subordinates, Leo Ray also slightly furrowed his brow.

This is precisely what made him ponder in delight from the start, as the location of the Shadow Market this time is indeed peculiar.

From its comparatively close regional location, it seemingly appears to be specially arranged for him, and why it must be at the entrance of the so-called barren Inverted Gorge is even more puzzling.

"My Lord, what exactly is going on here?"

Noticing the puzzled atmosphere in the hall, even Scarlett, who had been dazing off, showed confusion and tilted her head, followed by a similar gesture from the equally confused Louise beside her.

"We still have no way of knowing this."

Leo Ray looked at this pair of bewildered treasures with an exasperated smile, then returned to a serious tone, "Nevertheless, this is the hope of repairing the Land of Divine Favor and a crucial step in connecting us to the Outer Region. Even if a mist lies ahead, there's no reason for us to retreat."

"My Lord, no matter how you look at it, this seems far too unusual. Do you think it's possible that this invitation is fake?"

Jasper Richardson pondered for a moment, knitting his brows again as he inquired.

"That possibility cannot be entirely ruled out, but it is minimal. If it truly were the case, it must be an intricately designed trap, but the opponent could have finalized everything and directly informed us of the exact date to lure us in. There's no need to inform us a week in advance."

Leo Ray rose from his seat and slightly nodded, "If worse comes to worst, if it really is a trap, we cannot let this unknown mastermind remain an unstable factor; they must be thoroughly eliminated."

After saying this, Leo Ray pondered briefly and immediately instructed Louise, Little Jie, and Jasper Richardson along with other key powerhouses, to proceed to the vicinity of the Inverted Gorge to investigate and monitor in case the unforeseen happens, and arranged for Jasper Richardson to secretly set up Teleportation Beacons for the convenience of rotating powerhouses.

The energy near the Inverted Gorge is already extremely chaotic, and as long as the main force subordinates are careful, it will be challenging even for an experienced Tier 6 expert to notice anything suspicious.

Having arranged everything properly, Leo Ray drew a slow, deep breath.

Regardless of the authenticity of the Shadow Market's invitation, he must go this time, there is no alternative.

"I must say, it truly is an enigmatic letter."

Looking at the matte-finished pure black invitation in his hand, Leo Ray's gaze was filled with gravity and curiosity.

If it is false, it could explain these baffling aspects, but if it is real, it is indeed unfathomable why the Shadow Market would do such a thing.

Moreover, who it really is, or which among the ten thousand clans is controlling the Shadow Market, also piques Leo Ray's curiosity immensely.

After all, according to Gals and Ester, no one knows who governs the mysterious market, and it has indeed stirred his great interest.

As he mused about this, Leo Ray rested the invitation card down with a thoughtful expression, nodding slightly.

"We will see through the fog and into the clear skies when the time comes."

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