Luo Jie had no idea that Liou Yuan had already died once at the hands of these two Star Evils.
It was clearly a life-or-death situation, how could Liou Yuan possibly hold back?
While Mr. Ge and Luo Jie's expressions shifted, Liou Yuan stamped a few more times on Ping'an's corpse, only to see it twitch slightly, startling him.
He hadn't had much interaction with Star Evils.
But he had seen how Luo Jie dealt with Ms. Qiao's corpse.
Following the principle of eradicating the root, he wielded the remaining strength of the "Yunwu Prefecture" and forcibly swung his broken saber, severing all four limbs of Ping'an.
Slashing sounds filled the air!
In an instant, black blood and severed limbs flew everywhere, and much of the filthy blood splattered onto Liou Yuan, who seemed oblivious, his gaze cold and unyielding.
So much that Mr. Ge's old eyes widened, murmuring, "The Liou Family truly doesn't have a single coward, each one is ruthless."
After finishing, Liou Yuan confirmed that Ping'an had no chance of coming back to life.
Only then did he toss the broken saber aside.
He lay on the ground, gasping heavily.
"Huff, huff, huff!"
His face was covered with black bloodstains, and his expression showed deep exhaustion.
He could feel that the power he had mobilized within from the Yunwu Prefecture was beginning to fade, and with it came a profound sense of emptiness.
He couldn't muster an ounce of strength, seemingly even breathing was laborious.
He understood that it wouldn't be long before he collapsed.
When that time came, he feared he wouldn't even be able to crawl up.
"Fortunately, now that both Star Evils have been eliminated, and surrounded by allies, there's no need to worry about safety," Liou Yuan thought, his eyes dazed as he looked at Luo Jie and Mr. Ge.
One had lost both hands, the other was severely drained, yet neither was in life-threatening condition.
As Liou Yuan glanced at them, they too discreetly observed this familiar yet unfamiliar young man.
Liou Yuan understood the meaning in their eyes but felt no need to explain.
Or perhaps he simply lacked the energy to speak.
There was a moment of silence, broken only by the roaring flames consuming Liou Yuan's house.
Utilizing the fire's glow, Liou Yuan turned his gaze back to Ping'an's corpse.
It was his first time observing a Star Evil up close.
Those inhabited by Star Evils had long ceased to be human, growing all sorts of horrific offensive appendages.
Like Ping'an's scythe-shaped forelimbs that had been severed.
And his mouthful of fangs, which Liou Yuan was now seeing up close.
And the stench akin to rotting flesh, undetectable when they were uninjured, now assaulted his senses.
Suddenly, Liou Yuan's eyes sharpened, his gaze locking onto Ping'an's chest.
There, he saw a grape-sized black mass, slowly seeping out from Ping'an's corpse.
The substance was gel-like, between solid and liquid.
Just a glance made Liou Yuan feel an ominous nausea.
"Is that the true form of the Star Evil?" Liou Yuan pondered.
People knew of Star Evils, but how many had truly seen one?
Liou Yuan only observed it for a few breaths.
The Star Evil's true form, coerced out by the death of its host, was finally illuminated by the celestial starlight.
It turned into black smoke and vanished into the world.
But it did not completely disappear.
At the same time the Star Evil vanished, the image of the Qualitative Compass appeared in Liou Yuan's eyes.
He then saw a faint grayish white light emerge from where the Star Evil dissipated, drawn into his body by the power of the Qualitative Compass.
A similar situation arose at the location of Ms. Qiao's body, long ago slain by Luo Jie and others.
A trace of grayish white starlight also floated out, consumed by the Fixed Star Compass.
At the same time, Liou Yuan keenly sensed the presence of words floating across the Fixed Star Compass within his consciousness.
"Successfully eliminated Star Evil. Reward received: one Micro-Star Elixir."
A luminescent white elixir hovered above the Fixed Star Compass, ready for Liou Yuan to retrieve at any time.
"Heh!" With this scene, Liou Yuan let out a chuckle.
His desperate struggle tonight hadn't been without reason for this Micro-Star Elixir.
With all his efforts, he had finally succeeded.
With that thought, the last bit of the Yunwu Prefecture's power faded from his body.
His eyes went black, and his body, reaching its limit, could no longer hold on, toppling face-first into the filthy, black-blood-stained soil.
In the final moments of consciousness, he seemed to see an arm clothed in light blue medical robes reaching out from behind to cradle his body.
A slightly resigned female voice spoke.
"You little brat, you actually set your house on fire!"
…
Outside the window came the intermittent "chirp, chirp" of birds, like scattered fragments of silver bells.
Liou Yuan slowly propped himself up in bed, his back resting against the rough earthen wall, his gaze passing through the paper-paned wood lattice to the courtyard where a bare locust tree stood.
A couple of sparrows flitted about, hopping among the gnarled branches, their tails brushing off the last few frozen dead leaves.
He squinted slightly, morning light casting a golden outline on his chiseled jaw.
His nostrils greedily inhaled the dew-laden morning breeze, dispelling the congestion in his chest, the crease between his brows gradually eased, revealing a hint of contentment.
His gaze shifted indoors.
This was no longer his home in the city's west corner.
Instead, he found himself in a room filled with various jars and bottles.
An unusual scent lingered inside.
It was the smell of herbs.
Inside those jars were all sorts of dried herbs.
Initially, Liou Yuan was unaccustomed to the scent, but over the past few days, he had gradually accepted it.
After all, he had set his house ablaze.
In his bid to harm the Star Evil within Ping'an, Liou Yuan had truly gone all out.
The cost was the loss of his home.
Even when neighbors awakened by the blaze rushed to extinguish it, only less than a third of the original house remained.
And it was just charred ruins, unfit for habitation.
The place Liou Yuan was now in was the Xuanhu Clinic where his mother Bai Xin was employed.
In the clinic's backyard, normally not open to the public.
Thanks to Bai Xin's status, the clinic's owner agreed to make space for Liou Yuan to recuperate.
"Luckily, my mother did not blame me after understanding the circumstances."
Liou Yuan looked at the beams above, chuckling softly.
He still remembered the first day he regained consciousness in this room, seeing his mother.
The woman he called mother had an exceptional composure.
She only inquired about Liou Yuan's injuries, without saying a word more.
In fairness, the loss to the Liou Family was manageable.
The cost of eliminating two Star Evils was truly heavy.
Liou Yuan merely lost his home.
But the Yanhe Government Office lost two constables and Chief Constable Luo Jie.
Two constables, one died, one lost an arm, and Chief Luo Jie lost both his hands.
According to Bai Xin, even if Luo Jie's hands could be reattached, he wouldn't be able to wield a saber for the rest of his life.
And then there was Ping'an's family.
From Ping'an to Ms. Qiao and Ping'an's parents, none were spared.
The corpses of Ping'an's parents were found under Ms. Qiao's bed.
Their flesh devoured completely, leaving only smooth bones.
Liou Yuan heard this from the clinic owner's daughter.
The commotion was too great, not to mention the blaze Liou Yuan set, so the next day, nearly everyone in Yanhe City knew about it.
Fortunately, Bai Xin had connections with the Yanhe Government Office.
Through Bai Xin's efforts, details involving Liou Yuan were deliberately concealed.
Liou Yuan understood that it was his mother's way of protecting him.
"Having such an understanding mother truly is a relief," Liou Yuan thought to himself.