Chapter 127: The Promise with Ikuto

"It seems you've been abandoned, Ikuto..."

Riding atop his Falcomon, Qin Fei looked down at Ikuto, who was crawling out of the snowbank, and spoke with a smile.

"You!"

Ikuto gritted his teeth, glaring hatefully at the figure hovering in the sky. If Falcomon hadn't been holding him back, he would have charged up there to engage in a fierce battle.

"The Mammothmon's attack includes you, you know. It looks like the Gotsumon intends to finish you off along with the rest of us."

"How do you know it's Gotsumon..."

"There are many things I know."

"..."

Observing Ikuto's persistent desire to attack, Qin Fei sighed and said, "I'll give you two choices now..."

"First, we sit down together, listen properly to the purpose of our visit, and then you take us to meet Mercurymon. All your problems, even your own questions, can be easily resolved. Second, I tie you up, just like before... and then you listen to me explain the whole reason behind everything. What do you think?"

"..."

"Humans... are not to be trusted."

Ikuto continued to stare at him with resentment.

"Whether you believe it or not, listening to our story is fine, isn't it? Besides, after meeting Mercurymon, we will provide an account of everything, whether it concerns your origins or the culprit who killed your 'mother' in this world."

"You!!!"

Hearing Qin Fei touch upon the pain in his heart once again, Ikuto prepared to rush forward, but was held back by Falcomon. Knowing the terrifying strength hidden beneath Qin Fei's harmless exterior, Falcomon was far more rational than Ikuto at this moment. It knew that if the boy before them wished, it and Ikuto would have absolutely no chance to retaliate.

Finally, under Falcomon's persuasion, Ikuto gradually calmed down.

Qin Fei nodded with satisfaction and landed on the ground, while Lolo reverted to her Rookie form.

"Are you not going to save your companions? The Gotsumon went down, and it brought the Mammothmon with it..."

Falcomon suddenly interjected, looking at the slope caused by the earlier avalanche, which seemed to have swept everyone else away.

"It's fine. They have their own ways of surviving, and their physical constitutions are incredibly tough—even I am put to shame."

*Whoosh!*

Just as Qin Fei finished speaking, a previously calm patch of snow suddenly erupted, and a large yellow head popped out. It was Agumon.

"Big Brother, it's fine now."

As soon as he finished speaking, with another *whoosh*, Masaru Daimon’s head emerged as well.

"Damn it, what rotten luck... Huh? Qin Fei, and that kid."

Clearly, Masaru Daimon and Agumon had noticed Qin Fei and Ikuto at the same time. Seeing Masaru appear, Ikuto was startled and just as he prepared to stand up, he was held down again by Falcomon at his side.

"Ah, you've come at the perfect time. I was just about to tell Ikuto about the two worlds."

Upon hearing this, Masaru walked over in his usual brash manner, but noticing there were only the two of them, he immediately asked with concern, "Where are Yoshino and Touma?"

"They were taken away by the avalanche!"

"What?!"

"Big Brother, wait for me!"

Watching Masaru Daimon jump up and run off, Qin Fei opened his mouth but decided not to call him back. Now, only Ikuto and Falcomon remained. Qin Fei pondered for a moment and decided to start with a single person...

"Alright, let me start by talking about someone. His name is Akihiro Kurata..."

"..."

Listening to the story from Qin Fei's mouth, the look of disdain Ikuto originally held slowly turned serious, and he even revealed a pensive expression... as if he were weighing the authenticity of Qin Fei's tale.

"Is this really not some fabricated story made up by you humans? Perhaps, with the despicable nature of humans, you just invented a person to shirk responsibility."

Ikuto remained stubborn, unwilling to admit that Qin Fei was there to solve the problem.

"Whether you are willing to admit it or not, you are also a member of the human race, just one who was lost in the Digital World."

"You..."

Qin Fei waved his hand, immediately stopping Ikuto's attempt to escape reality with his rebuttal, and continued, "I told Mercurymon that I would bring him the answer. Now that we are here, it is to resolve the contradictions between the two worlds, and even to deal with the primary culprit... Akihiro Kurata."

Hearing that name, Ikuto couldn't help but clench his fists. He could never forgive the death of his Snow-mother.

"I don't know if I should believe you, but I want to see the answer you speak of."

Ikuto seemed to have finally made up his mind; the eyes he used to look at Qin Fei were no longer filled with wariness and hatred.

"However, if you are deceiving us, deceiving the Digital World, Lord Mercurymon and I will never let you off."

Having said this, Ikuto signaled to Falcomon and left without looking back.

"One more thing..."

Before he had walked many steps, Ikuto suddenly turned his head and said stubbornly, "I am a Digimon, not a human!"

"..."

With those words, Ikuto's figure vanished from Qin Fei's sight within a few breaths.

"Phew. Very well. Now, as long as I can convince Mercurymon and lure Akihiro Kurata here, everything can be resolved with minimal cost."

Qin Fei stood up, staring blankly at the endless snowy mountains before him.

"..."

"Qin Fei, are you really not going to save Yoshino and the others?" Lolo suddenly stepped closer and asked in confusion.

"...Let's go, then. Let's go see."

After patting the snow off his pants, Qin Fei summoned BlackGatomon to evolve into BlackTailmon, and just as he was about to head down, he noticed the group had already walked up, their expressions varied.

"Qin Fei, you really were here. But what about that kid, Ikuto?"

Masaru Daimon greeted Qin Fei and Lolo, who were riding on BlackTailmon, with great delight, but then immediately added, "You wouldn't believe it, Yoshino's Lalamon successfully evolved into a Perfect-level Lilamon."

However, as he spoke, Masaru's expression became slightly lonely; for now, only his Agumon could only evolve into the Adult stage.

"Hmm, then let's go. We should aim to reach the Infinite Ice Wall before dark."

Qin Fei, however, wore an expression of expectation, beckoning everyone to continue walking up the mountain. The group hesitated for a moment, feeling as if everything that had happened was within his predictions, and not worth being surprised about.

Exchanging silent glances, they had no choice but to keep walking. They all felt that there was something mysterious and unfathomable about Qin Fei.

...

"Look, what is that!"

Finally reaching the ice lake near the Infinite Ice Wall, the group froze, almost thinking they were hallucinating.

Because a very ordinary-looking bald middle-aged man was sitting there, fishing.

In the human world, this might not be surprising, but appearing here in the Digital World, the scene was utterly bizarre.

"Digivice Uncle!"

However, as soon as Masaru Daimon clearly saw the fisherman, he chased after him with joy.

"Masaru, wait... do you know him?"

The others followed, asking curiously.

Masaru nodded, explaining with excitement, "He's the uncle who gave me the Digivice!"

Hearing Masaru say this, the others turned curious gazes toward the fisherman.