"Chu Feng, did I not make myself clear, or did you fail to understand?"
"Or perhaps you feel the offer I've put forward isn't generous enough?"
"Then how about this — as long as you're willing to join my Soul Infant Sect, I can wipe out the Ying Heavenly Clan that has a bounty on your head." The True Immortal of the Soul Infant Sect spoke up once more, attempting to persuade him.
When those words came out, the onlookers were stunned all over again. Even after Chu Feng had explicitly refused, this True Immortal still hadn't given up. Instead, he was raising the stakes, continuing to try to win Chu Feng over. The sheer sincerity behind it moved even the bystanders.
After all, the man was a True Immortal — a powerhouse standing at the absolute pinnacle of the Hundred Refinements Realm, a figure spoken of only in legends. Calling him a god wouldn't have been an exaggeration.
"If you want to kill me, then do it. But I have one condition. This whole affair started because of me, so kill only me and let the rest of them go." As Chu Feng spoke, he glanced toward Wang Qiang and the others.
His mind was made up. Even with his life hanging in the balance, nothing would change it.
He had made a promise to his father to destroy the Soul Infant Sect. If he were to submit to the Soul Infant Sect today, that would be far too shameful.
Chu Feng felt that doing so would be a disservice to his father, to his grandfather, to his mother — and so, even if it meant death, he would never yield.
"What's this?"
But at that very moment, something suddenly tightened in Chu Feng's chest. He could feel that within his Universe Bag, an anomaly had occurred.
It was the Evil God Sword. That half-finished Emperor Weapon, the Evil God Sword, was actually devouring the other weapons — not only consuming and refining every Emperor Weapon inside Chu Feng's Universe Bag, but even the half-finished Ancestral Weapons hadn't been spared.
The speed of refinement was nothing short of astonishing.
It was as if it weren't a weapon at all, but a ravenous beast that fed on blades. In its presence, even a half-finished Ancestral Weapon was fragile beyond measure.
By the time Chu Feng realized what was happening, the Evil God Sword had already refined every last weapon inside his Universe Bag.
Moments later, it began to tremble violently, practically straining to burst out of the Universe Bag — as though it was brimming with impatience, eager to show what it could do.
"I didn't expect that even now, you're still worrying about their lives. Fine — even if you refuse to join my Soul Infant Sect, I respect you as a man of conviction. I'll grant you that condition."
"However, since you've rejected me, I must now take your life." As the Soul Infant Sect's True Immortal spoke, his eyes suddenly flashed, and a bone-chilling coldness erupted from him without warning.
In an instant, dark clouds surged forth and coalesced into a terrifying giant face that churned across the horizon.
At the same time, that overwhelming aura — the kind that declared "none can rival me" — was released in its entirety. It felt as though, with a single thought, he could slaughter all living things beneath the sky.
"A True Immortal — so this is the power of a True Immortal!!!"
Sensing the aura radiating from the Soul Infant Sect's True Immortal, many of the onlookers began to tremble involuntarily. Those with weaker constitutions were so terrified by the pressure that they collapsed to the ground, unable to even move.
"Th-this… this is bad, it's really bad now. My lady… w-what do we do?" Wang Qiang panicked — truly panicked — because he, too, could feel just how powerful that True Immortal was.
"You're asking me? Who am I supposed to ask? I'd like to know what to do myself!" Zhao Hong snapped. It was plain to see that with Chu Feng in danger, she was just as worried.
"D-damn it all. Even if there's no plan, we still have to fight. I can't just leave my brother to face this alone."
As Wang Qiang spoke, he actually defied that colossal pressure, shot into the sky, and landed in front of Chu Feng.
"Chu Feng, what are you doing? Get out of here!" Wang Qiang called out.
"Heh heh, brother — you want me, Wang Qiang, to leave? That's looking down on me a bit too much, isn't it? What does it mean to be brothers? We may n-not… may not have been born on the same year, the same month, the same day — but we c-can… can die on the same year, the same month, the same day."
"Joys are shared, hardships are borne together. That's what brothers are." Wang Qiang said with a grin.
"You…"
Hearing Wang Qiang say those words, Chu Feng felt a warmth bloom in his chest. When Chu Feng had been at the height of his glory, there had been no shortage of people eager to curry favor with him — but those willing to share his hardships, to stand beside him even in the face of death, were exceedingly rare.
Wang Qiang's actions had truly moved Chu Feng once again.
Yet even so, Chu Feng still didn't want Wang Qiang to die alongside him. He wanted to persuade him to leave.
Whoosh —
But before Chu Feng could finish speaking, yet another figure came streaking through the air and planted herself right in front of him.
Chu Feng's eyes widened. This person was Zhao Hong.
"My husband is right — hardships are borne together. Chu Feng, don't you dare try to play the lone hero." Zhao Hong said with a faint smile.