Seeing no more meteors streak down, Tan finally let out a heavy sigh of relief. A mere mortal, one whose cultivation only reached the Heaven Rank, had almost killed him? No wonder the Lord had warned them before the expedition not to be complacent, never to be complacent. It turned out that the mortal realm truly could not be underestimated.

Just as Tan prepared to strike down the human who had posed such a great threat, a dark light suddenly flared below. Before he could fully process what was happening, the tenth feathered arrow was already hurtling towards him.

This arrow flew with agonizing slowness. Compared to the previous few that resembled shooting stars, this one crept like a snail. Tan even felt that an ordinary person could easily evade it, yet soon, he discovered that he could not. Or rather, though he clearly willed himself to dodge, his body seemed beyond his control.

The arrow floated toward him so leisurely, and his body’s attempts to evade were equally sluggish. Even exerting his utmost strength, the speed remained painfully slow.

This sensation of watching the arrow fly toward him while being utterly incapable of dodging made Tan suffer immensely. He felt on the verge of madness.

At that precise moment, the feathered arrow finally reached Tan’s brow. He seemed to have dodged by less than a millimeter.

The arrow pierced his glabella smoothly. Tan felt a sharp agony bloom in his forehead, yet he still could not move away. He could even feel the arrow easily slicing through every single one of his cells.

"Rumble…" A power that instilled even Tan with despair exploded within his mind. He felt a surge of black light rush toward him, completely engulfing him. All his consciousness vanished without a trace at that instant.

A Zenith-level master, one of the Seven Great Marshals commanding this campaign into the Demon Realm, the third-ranked general under the Greedy Demon—a supreme expert who could sweep away powerhouses like Ye Jingyu, Liang Xiaoke, and Ni Bo with a mere gesture—was shot dead, utterly obliterated, by a Heaven-Rank cultivator like Hu Yanqi. Such an outcome struck everyone with profound horror.

Even the other six demons engaged in fierce combat with Dugu Ba Chen and the others were gripped by terror. Tan was dead. This comrade who had lived alongside them for untold ages was gone, utterly erased. Was this... could this be real?

Above the city wall, Luo Ruofeng and the others were overjoyed. They truly hadn't expected Hu Yanqi to possess such power. Just as they hoped Hu Yanqi would continue to fell the second general, they watched his entire body collapse.

Fortunately, Hu Yanmeng was swift enough to catch him, but Hu Yanqi’s body began to slowly crumble, and his eyes gradually dimmed.

"Brother Hu Yan..." Hu Yanqi had no title or official position; he had always been a guard by Ye Jingyu’s side. Seeing him suffer such a devastating injury struck Luo Ruofeng with deep sorrow.

Hu Yanqi could not speak; he no longer possessed the strength. That final arrow had drained all his power, including the very essence of his life force. He merely turned his head slightly, looking toward where Ye Jingyu had fallen. There, Ye Jingyu was slowly rising, supported by Jiu Feng and Gongsun Xiangyi.

His head still throbbed as if split in two by an axe. Though it had been stitched up, the pain persisted.

But the pain in his heart was worse. The moment he regained consciousness, he saw Hu Yanqi loose that final arrow—the Arrow of Life. It was the power of that very shot that had erased Tan entirely from this dimension.

To achieve the feat of shooting down a Zenith-level master with only Heaven-Rank cultivation, even at the cost of his own life, was an achievement worthy of envy across the Three Realms. Ye Jingyu should have felt pride, yet his heart held none of that satisfaction or glory. All he felt was hatred—a deep, burning hatred for his own powerlessness, his own uselessness...

If he had been strong enough, why would Hu Yanqi have to sacrifice his life? Why would he have loosed that heaven-shattering arrow?

He could clearly sense Hu Yanqi’s life force draining away. Unlike the severe injuries sustained by Liang Xiaoke, Ni Bo, or even himself, Hu Yanqi’s life was truly extinguishing. Even the finest elixirs crafted by Gongsun Xiangyi could not save him now.

Staggering forward, his body unsteady, he reached Hu Yanqi. Gazing at the man who had followed him faithfully since the Southern Barren Forest, Ye Jingyu found himself utterly speechless.

Silence met silence. Speechlessness met speechlessness.

Hu Yanqi’s gaze settled upon Ye Jingyu. Seeing the sorrow etched on Ye Jingyu’s face, the corner of his mouth actually twitched slightly. Was that a smile? A smile of comfort, or...?

"He didn't have to die..." Just as Ye Jingyu struggled to find words, just as Hu Yanqi was about to close his eyes, a resonant voice boomed across the space. Immediately, Ye Jingyu and the others watched a colossal phantom tower above them.

"Hmm?" Ye Jingyu frowned. This was a phantom projection from the Twelve Heaven Witches Annihilation Array. Its body appeared almost fully coalesced, needing only a sliver of providence to solidify. Yet, why would it communicate with him now?

While Ye Jingyu was still stunned, a stream of divine sense flooded his Sea of Consciousness. It was the information transmitted by the phantom—the only method to save Hu Yanqi, or at least, the only way to preserve his consciousness.

He looked at the phantom, then shifted his gaze back to Hu Yanqi...

"Qi, are you willing to follow me forever? Even in their form..." Ye Jingyu suddenly gestured toward Zhurong and the others fighting the demons within the array formation.

Hu Yanqi blinked, then nodded softly, his eyes blazing with unyielding resolution...

"Very well... Go then..." Ye Jingyu turned and spoke to the phantom. The phantom said no more, transforming into a stream of light that surged directly into Hu Yanqi’s body.

Immediately, before the astonished eyes of everyone present, Hu Yanqi's nearly shattered form began to rapidly mend. His faint life force grew stronger, steadily intensifying. Even the aura emanating from him swelled, growing mightier and larger...

When his physical form was fully restored, twin beams of brilliant light shot from his eyes. His agile body sprang upright, and a resounding voice erupted from his lips: "I live again! You may call me Hu Yanqi, or you may call me Yi!"

Yi—the Great God Hou Yi! (Uploading chapter by chapter is tiring for readers; three chapters were written and uploaded together!) [Ti: Dear book friend, the current chapter has reached the final page of this book]