Chapter 017: Metal Souls

“I invoke the noble name of gold.” “I invoke the elegant name of silver.” “I invoke the sturdy name of copper.” “I invoke the sharp name of iron.”
The four Metal Brothers of the Tatta family chanted in unison. As they spoke, distinct glows began to emanate from their bodies—Tatta Gold emitted a golden light, Tatta Silver a silver-white glow, Tatta Copper a green light, and Tatta Iron a dark, shiny light.
“With the blood of us four brothers, awaken the slumbering Metal Souls! Through our blood, let us unite as one! Brothers, stand together!” The four Metal Brothers proclaimed together. As they spoke, the lights on their bodies flickered continuously, and the four colors merged into one.
“Awake, Metal Souls! Form the Metal Formation!” The four brothers shouted in unison. With that cry, a massive beam of light enveloped them—purple-gold in color!
Once the purple-gold light appeared, it began to shrink inward, gradually condensing until it formed a dwarf radiating purple-gold light all over.
This dwarf wasn’t actually short at all—his height was over 1.8 meters—but he still retained typical dwarf features: thick limbs, a large head, and a full beard. He was essentially an enlarged version of a dwarf!
“Go!” The dwarf said to the two Level 9 dwarf warriors beside him as soon as he appeared.
Without hesitation, the two Level 9 dwarfs rushed toward Glass City, while the purple-gold dwarf, carrying two purple-gold axes, followed closely behind them.
Glass City was in the direction guarded by the Six-Winged. Upon seeing the two Level 9 dwarfs approaching, the Six-Winged turned and dived downward, aiming its spear at one of the dwarfs!
Before the two dwarfs could act, the purple-gold dwarf strode forward, raised one of his axes, and swung it fiercely at the tip of the Six-Winged’s spear.
His aim was astonishingly precise—the axe blade struck right at the tip of the spear!

At the point where the two weapons met, a streak of purplish-red light appeared, followed by a crackling sound. Liuwei immediately flipped backward, performing three somersaults before stabilizing himself and floating silently in the air once more. Clearly, if Liuwei had been on the ground, he would have been sent flying by the dwarf’s axe strike.

“Which one of the Tata brothers are you?” Du Fan rushed to the dwarf’s side upon seeing this and asked in a deep voice.

“I? I’m not any of their brothers, yet I am also any of them! I am the Metal Soul!” replied the dwarf.

The voice wasn’t that of any of the four Tata brothers!

“Then where have the four of them gone?” Du Fan asked.

“They’re all part of my body now,” said the Metal Soul.

The technique used by the Tata brothers had merged into such a strange being!

Generally, fusion techniques are used between humans and pets. Besides connecting their bodies, another challenge is determining which life form should take precedence—whose thoughts should guide the merged entity? Between a human and a pet, this issue is easily resolved, as the owner’s thoughts naturally dominate. But when it comes to two humans, conflicts arise. Who should be in charge? And what about a fusion of four people?

The Tata Metal Brothers might be the only ones in the world capable of using a four-person fusion technique. As twins, they share a special psychic connection, which solves the biggest challenge in such fusion techniques—the issue of who should lead. Thanks to this unique bond, all four gave up the idea of having one dominant mind, creating a single consciousness that called itself the Metal Soul. This soul emerged from their special psychic connection.

Seeing the two Level 9 warriors moving farther away, Bashaa couldn’t help but chase after them. As soon as he moved, the Metal Soul moved first, blocking his path. Purple-gold flames erupted from its body. “I am here! You cannot pass!” Its voice carried an unmistakably firm tone.

For now, let’s call this dwarf the Purple-Gold Dwarf.

Seeing the amethyst dwarf blocking his path, Bashah roared loudly, raised his axe, and swung at it! The amethyst dwarf simply flipped his axe, and with a crack, the axe head blocked Bashah’s strike. Then, by gently releasing the axe, the amethyst dwarf forced Bashah to retreat two steps despite the seemingly casual motion!

Dufan had seen Bashah’s strength before—back when he hadn’t yet merged with a divine essence, Bashah had dared to slay dragons! Even when fighting that golden dragon, Bashah had never been forced back with such a slight push from the dragon.

But this amethyst dwarf could do it.

The power contained within this amethyst dwarf’s body was simply terrifying—nothing but terror could describe it.

Seeing the two level-9 dwarves growing further and further away, Liuyi quickly took off and flew toward them. As Liuyi rose into the air, a flash appeared in the amethyst dwarf’s eyes, and a flying axe was swung at Liuyi.

That flying axe turned into a meteor, rushing toward Liuyi. Seeing the fierce momentum of the axe, Liuyi raised his spear and stabbed at it.

With a clang, Liuyi screamed as he was flung back!

Standing in the middle of the road to Grass, this amethyst dwarf exuded an aura of being an impenetrable barrier, as if no one could pass through him!

Dufan estimated that his own strength might not be greater than Liuyi or Bashah’s. Seeing that both Liuyi and Bashah couldn’t overcome this amethyst dwarf, Dufan decided not to intervene for now.

The amethyst dwarf glanced back. The two level-9 dwarf warriors had already run out of sight.

Only then did the amethyst dwarf pick up his pair of amethyst-colored axes and start walking toward Dufan step by step.

“You, who have killed so many of our kin, you must die!” the amethyst dwarf said simply.

As soon as he finished speaking, he swung his axe at Dufan.

Dufan pushed off the ground with both feet and immediately floated back a few steps. The amethyst dwarf’s axe missed its target. Immediately afterward, the dwarf closed in swiftly, swinging his other axe horizontally across Dufan’s shoulder from top to bottom.

With his old strength exhausted and no new strength yet generated, Dufan could only raise Frostfall to block the axe strike. A tremendous force surged from the axe, sending Dufan flying through the air.

As he was flying, Dufan raised his hand, releasing a flurry of wind blades.

Faced with dozens of wind blades, the amethyst dwarf didn’t move at all!

The wind blade struck the purple-gold dwarf, producing a crisp, sharp sound—like metal colliding with metal! Yet the purple-gold dwarf remained unharmed at all!
“It’s useless. As the soul of metal, magic has no effect on me,” the purple-gold dwarf said slowly, emphasizing each word.
“Attack together!” Du Fan shouted.
Flying swiftly forward, Du Fan brought his Light Battle Qi-infused Frostfall Blade down in a cross-cut toward the purple-gold dwarf. From the left, Basha swung his red-glowing axe, creating a whirlwind as it struck the dwarf’s waist. Meanwhile, Liu Yi thrust his spear straight from the sky, aiming at the dwarf’s forehead with overwhelming force!
The three supreme masters attacked the purple-gold dwarf at once.
The dwarf blocked Liu Yi’s spear with one axe and Basha’s axe with the other, then left himself completely exposed, allowing the Light Cross-Cut to strike him!
The Light Cross-Cut hit the purple-gold dwarf, but it had no effect whatsoever—like mud sinking into the sea.
The axe that blocked Liu Yi’s spear was quickly pushed upward, sending Liu Yi flying several steps back. Then, after blocking Basha’s axe, the dwarf swung his wrist in a strike that made Basha stagger.
Just as Du Fan’s Frostfall Blade arrived, the two axes clamped tightly around it, securing it firmly.
At the same time, the purple-gold dwarf raised his foot and kicked Du Fan hard in the stomach. The kick caused a flash of white light to appear on Du Fan’s body.
Clutching tightly to Frostfall Blade, Du Fan used the force of the dwarf’s kick to pull the blade free from between the dwarf’s axes!
Using force against force, Du Fan wasn’t sent flying far by the kick—he only took a few steps before effortlessly turning around and stopping in front of the dwarf.
After combining forces, the Metal Four Brothers of the Tata family had become immune to magic, and the dwarf’s strength had reached a terrifying level! His attack speed had also increased significantly!
At that moment, the three magicians in the distance finished their spells. Countless vines grew beneath the purple-gold dwarf, expanding at an astonishing rate and quickly wrapping tightly around his entire body.

“Kill him!” Du Fan shouted. The three of them rushed at the amethyst dwarf at the same time. Before they could reach him, intense cracking sounds came from his body. The long vines entwined around the amethyst dwarf burst apart instantly! The vines shattered by the amethyst dwarf flew everywhere! Seeing Du Fan and the others charging at him, the amethyst dwarf let out a loud cry and swung his axes with precision, sending Du Fan, Basha, and Liu Yi flying away. At that moment, footsteps could be heard in the distance, from the direction of Grass. Soon, an army of dwarfs, numbering around a thousand, appeared in that direction. Even more terrifying was the fact that two mountain giants were running ahead of this army of a thousand! “Retreat!” Du Fan shouted, throwing several magic scrolls at the amethyst dwarf. Several bolts of lightning struck the amethyst dwarf from the sky, and Du Fan pulled Basha and started running. Liu Yi also realized the situation was bad and quickly flew after Du Fan. As soon as they reached mid-air, Basha retracted Liu Yi’s wings, and the six of them continued to flee for their lives!