Frost Ice Iron General finally reacted. "Alright," he said to Ye Fan, "I’ll fight alongside you."

Ye Fan looked at Frost Ice Iron General, knowing he had made up his mind. This was the kind of resolve he could respect! A true man must be decisive. You can’t let gratitude for past favors stop you from defending yourself when someone is trying to kill you. At least in Frost Ice Iron General’s mind, Tianxiong Iron General wasn’t worth dying for.

"Kill!"

Ye Fan immediately charged toward Tianxiong Iron General in the center of the flames. Sensing he was alone, he spun around, his heart sinking in that instant. Frost Ice Iron General was still standing where he’d been, hesitating. The moment Frost Ice Iron General saw Tianxiong Iron General’s true face, his ruthless determination suddenly evaporated.

Ye Fan was speechless. Just because Tianxiong Iron General was now fighting in his original form, Frost Ice Iron General had suddenly abandoned the attack. As expected, a guy like this was completely unreliable. Ye Fan truly gave up on him.

Ye Fan understood well the principle of relying on oneself, so he prepared to unleash his Slaughter Sword Dao.

Tianxiong Iron General was furious. As Ye Fan approached, he roared, "You brat, you ruined my plan! I’ll kill you!" He had hidden in this harsh place for the sole purpose of executing his plan: achieving a rapid breakthrough. But now that Ye Fan had destroyed his Fire Qilin form, all his plans were in ruins. He had never been this enraged. In that moment, he erupted with unprecedented power.

Ye Fan scoffed, "Kill me? You’re not worthy. I’ve killed plenty of people stronger than you. I don’t even know how many Spirit Clan Commanders I’ve slain! Do you really think you’re stronger than them? What a fool’s dream!"

With a great shout, Ye Fan unleashed his Slaughter Sword Dao. This technique represented the pinnacle of his Sword Dao. When this Peak Sword Dao struck out, it carved a massive gash through the surrounding sea of fire. But the Sword Dao Power didn’t stop there; it slammed directly into Tianxiong Iron General.

"ARGH!" Tianxiong Iron General screamed in agony. His body was nearly split in two by the Slaughter Sword Dao. Though he was lucky to have survived, he was now utterly spent.

"I’ll kill you!" Enraged, Tianxiong Iron General lunged forward in a suicidal attack.

Ye Fan, however, just watched him with disdain. At this point, Ye Fan wasn’t afraid of him in the slightest. Without his Fire Qilin form, Tianxiong Iron General was nothing but trash! He slashed out with two sharp streams of Sword Qi.

Instantly, Tianxiong Iron General sustained wounds that would not heal. He was on the verge of collapse. But just as Ye Fan moved in to deliver the killing blow, Tianxiong Iron General suddenly shouted and produced a Crystal Ball radiating fiery light. He then lunged at Ye Fan.

"You’re courting death!"

Ye Fan’s sword thrust forward, piercing Tianxiong Iron General’s body. At the same instant, however, the Blazing Crystal Ball slammed into Ye Fan. The two of them were thrown back, crashing against the black rock wall.

"ARGH!"

It wasn’t Tianxiong Iron General who screamed, but Ye Fan. He felt the flesh on his chest being scorched away. A searing heat and excruciating pain swept through his entire body. He desperately wanted to get the Blazing Crystal Ball off him, but he couldn’t break its hold. The way things were going, he would be burned to a crisp. His body was fused to it, making it impossible to struggle free.

Tianxiong Iron General’s situation was even more tragic. Impaled by Ye Fan’s Yuanhong Sword, he could only glare at Ye Fan in fury, clearly on his last breath. Both combatants were now draining their life force, unable to influence the outcome of the battle. Thus, the one who would decide the victor was Frost Ice Iron General.

Ye Fan roared at him, "What the hell are you standing there for? Kill him!"

Mustering his courage, Frost Ice Iron General stepped before the two men. He manifested a Frost Ice Sword, preparing to take Tianxiong Iron General’s head. At that moment, however, Tianxiong Iron General lifted his head and looked at him. That stern gaze was what Frost Ice Iron General feared most. He vaguely recalled his early days of martial training, when he had to face that same severe, disciplinary look from his mentor every day.

Tianxiong Iron General spoke, his tone filled with sorrow, like that of a hero in his twilight years. "Brother Shuangbing, are you really going to kill me?"

Frost Ice Iron General was instantly swayed. When Tianxiong Iron General called him "Brother Shuangbing," his heart simply melted.

"I know I’ve done wrong," Tianxiong Iron General continued. "When I came here without telling you, it wasn’t because I feared you would take everything from me. It was because I didn’t want you to take this risk.

"This Crystal Ball is filled with infinite fire power. If you can fuse it into your body, you will hold the key to becoming a god!

"There’s no turning back for me now. The future rests on your shoulders. I am content to be able to help you one last time. After all, we are the best of brothers!"

Tianxiong Iron General spoke with great emotion. Unsurprisingly, his words had a tremendous impact on the already wavering Frost Ice Iron General. In that moment, he seemed to waver. He shattered his Frost Ice Sword.

"Big brother, you shouldn’t have done this!" he pleaded. "There’s still a way back for you, you don’t have to die! Can we go back to how we were before? Please? Don’t take these shortcuts anymore!"

"Alright," Tianxiong Iron General said, "if only we could start over..."

"We can!" Frost Ice Iron General insisted.

Ye Fan was utterly speechless! He finally roared at Frost Ice Iron General, "You pig-headed idiot! Are you really falling for his sob story at a time like this? If you don’t make a move now, I’m the one who’s going to die!"

This was all just a ploy. Ye Fan knew that as soon as Tianxiong Iron General was safe, he would absolutely slaughter Frost Ice Iron General without a second thought. People are selfish, and a petty villain like Tianxiong Iron General was the most selfish of all. There was no way he would willingly make sacrifices for his brother’s sake.

"Shut up!" Tianxiong Iron General snapped. "Our bond as brothers isn’t something you can hope to damage! Even though I’ve done wrong, he will forgive me!"

Before Ye Fan could respond, Tianxiong turned to Frost Ice Iron General. "Kill this brat! As long as he’s alive, he’s a threat to both of us! You’ll forgive me for what I’ve done, but he will never forgive you for this!"

Frost Ice Iron General seemed to recall his brother’s old lessons, teaching him not to be indecisive—that for a man, killing was sometimes necessary. At that, Frost Ice Iron General turned to face Ye Fan. It was as if, in that instant, he had slipped back into the role he played all those years ago.

His murderous gaze locked onto Ye Fan.