"So it turns out this is a healing talisman."
As his gaze swept over the information about the Cyan Wood Talisman rising from the Fixed Star Compass, an expression of sudden realization appeared in Liou Yuan's eyes.
This thing isn't useless after all.
In critical moments, it's a genuine life-saving talisman.
Especially when someone is on the verge of death with serious external injuries—whip out this Cyan Wood Talisman, instantly heal the wounds, and catch the opponent off guard.
Even if you can't win, once you're healed, you have a much better chance to escape.
But what Liou Yuan wanted most was still the kind of talisman with formidable power.
The kind that could deal direct damage to Star Evil.
"Well, things in this world can't always go as one wishes. Having this Cyan Wood Talisman is not so bad."
"After all, I can use it twice—it's like having two extra lives."
Liou Yuan smiled as he put the Cyan Wood Talisman away, hiding it beneath the sleeve of his robe.
This way, Liou Yuan could activate it with his spiritual power at any time.
And the Fixed Star Compass, after identifying this Cyan Wood Talisman, was now drained of all its starlight energy and returned to its mundane state.
Liou Yuan carefully stored it away, then pushed the door open and stepped out.
Tonight is the most dangerous time. As the only man in the family, Liou Yuan certainly couldn't just go and rest; he still had to keep watch from the rooftop.
Liou Yuan climbed up onto the roof again, lay on his back among the tiles, eyes occasionally scanning for any movement around him.
He'd naturally brought that greatsword up too, placing it within easy reach.
The spell left by Mr. Ge on it had expired, but it was still sharp as ever.
As it turned out, as long as you were strong enough, even weapons made by ordinary folk could harm Star Evil.
Liou Yuan thought he'd just have to get through this long night like this.
Until midnight.
"Huh!" After keeping vigil on the roof for half the night, he suddenly flipped up, letting out a surprised sound, bewilderment in his eyes.
Just now, he felt the spiritual power he'd consumed was replenished within his body.
When Liou Yuan cast the Lion's Roar Spell at Xuanhu Clinic, he'd used up three strands of spiritual power.
Then, using Yunwu Prefecture to sever Dai Yao's arm, he'd spent one more strand.
He had six strands of spiritual power in total, minus four, so he should have only two left within him.
Yet now he could clearly sense an extra strand between his Five Mansions.
There were now three entire strands of spiritual power coursing through his internal organs.
When a cultivator expends spiritual power, it can be restored by meditating or bathing in starlight.
This fact, Liou Yuan knew clearly.
But that was only when an Auspicious Star was in rotation.
During times when the Pleiades Evil Star hung high in the sky, it was extremely difficult for cultivators to absorb starlight from heaven and earth.
Not only was it hard to recover spiritual power, but cultivating at all during this period was forbidden.
This was common sense. Even Liou Zhen had mentioned it frequently in the Breathing Skill manual.
Saying that when the Evil Star is on shift, the starlight from the Evil Star can't be absorbed by cultivators, and so she'd advised Liou Yuan not to try it anyway.
So, after coming back from Xuanhu Clinic, Liou Yuan hadn't bothered to meditate to recover his consumed spiritual power.
And yet, somehow, the spiritual power he'd used up had been replenished.
"Something's not right!" Liou Yuan's brows knitted; after confirming multiple times he did indeed have three strands of spiritual power, his expression grew even stranger.
He then subtly tilted his head back, looking up at the cluster of Pleiades stars hanging in the limitless night sky above.
It was precisely while basking under the Pleiades, that his spiritual power had recovered.
"So does this mean the spiritual power restored within me was replenished by absorbing the energy of this Evil Star?"
Even as he said it, Liou Yuan felt somewhat uncertain—he almost found it ludicrous.
Being unable to cultivate under an Evil Star was pretty much common knowledge among cultivators in this world—was he challenging this iron law?
After a moment's silence, Liou Yuan decided to try it actively for himself.
"No point guessing if I can absorb this Evil Star's energy or not. I'll know once I try."
As he spoke, Liou Yuan lay flat on the rooftop, beginning to circulate Yunwu Prefecture's energy.
As his inner Five Mansions resonated together, spiritual power began to flow within.
He could distinctly sense star energy beginning to seep into his body through his two Star Acupoints.
There was none of what Liou Zhen described as 'unable to absorb' at all.
"Let's see further!"
Out of caution, Liou Yuan didn't immediately end the cultivation. He kept practicing the Breathing Heart Skill, continuously refining the starlight that entered his body.
About the time it took to burn an incense stick later, the starlight that had entered him was truly refined into an extra strand of spiritual power among the Five Mansions.
Added to the previous three strands, Liou Yuan now had four within him.
The facts were right there—Liou Yuan couldn't deny it.
Feeling the flow of four strands of spiritual power within him, Liou Yuan exited his cultivation state, his face full of disbelief: "It seems something incredible just happened to me."
Most cultivators avoided Evil Stars, except for the time when Star Evil appears during Evil Star shift.
The biggest reason was that cultivators simply can't cultivate during this period.
But right now, Liou Yuan was able to completely disregard the Evil Star, and cultivate as usual.
If word of this got out, who knows what kind of storm it would cause.
That's why Liou Yuan thought this was no trivial matter.
If something unusual is happening, there must be a reason.
Liou Yuan broke from his meditation and sat on the rooftop, pondering for a long time.
He only snapped back to himself when a cool wind from outside the city stirred his face in the night air.
"With my current cultivation and knowledge, trying to figure out the reason is as pointless as fantasizing." Liou Yuan shook his head, giving up the fruitless speculation.
No matter what, being able to cultivate during the Evil Star's shift is ultimately a huge advantage for Liou Yuan.
This means he can get twice as much cultivation time as others.
The cycle of Evil Stars and Auspicious Stars is like yin and yang—each dominates half the year.
Ordinary cultivators, at best, can only train for half a year, but that restriction doesn't exist for Liou Yuan, so he gets double the cultivation time.
"Even if my talent is nowhere near someone like Liou Zhen, with this much extra time, maybe I really can close the gap with all those so-called geniuses?"
Light flashed in Liou Yuan's eyes.
His lack of talent had always troubled Liou Yuan.
But now, after tonight, that worry seemed to have resolved itself.
With this in mind, Liou Yuan no longer dwelled on it. Ignoring all distractions, he simply lay back on the rooftop, using the starlight to begin cultivating once more.
The starlight here could never match Virgo Peak's.
But even if he had a hundred times the guts, Liou Yuan would not dare leave the city at a time like this.
So this rooftop was already the best cultivation spot for Liou Yuan right now.
Given the unusual time, Liou Yuan didn't let himself fully sink into cultivation, keeping some awareness attuned to his surroundings, in case anything happened.
Time flowed slowly by.
The spiritual power Liou Yuan had used was almost fully restored.
Now it was time to enter true cultivation mode.
At that moment, Liou Yuan sensed something odd in his body.
The starlight that seeped in through his Star Acupoints wasn't entering straight into his internal organs.
Before entering his viscera, something seemed to filter it first.
Perhaps it was because of this, that Liou Yuan was able to ignore the Evil Star and cultivate as usual.
Unfortunately, Liou Yuan's cultivation was too low to look internally, and he couldn't see what exactly it was.
But he did have one advantage—he was quick-witted.
What within his body could have such a miraculous effect?
The answer was practically leaping out at him.
"Could it be the Fixed Star Compass!" To verify his theory, Liou Yuan willed it, and took the Fixed Star Compass out from his body.
Then he put it under his butt.
After making sure the Fixed Star Compass wouldn't affect him anymore, Liou Yuan entered cultivation again.
Then, something unbelievable happened.
No matter how Liou Yuan tried to run Yunwu Prefecture or practice the Breathing Heart Skill, the starlight falling on his Star Acupoints simply could not seep into his body—not even the tiniest bit.
The answer seemed clear now.
"Heh!" Liou Yuan chuckled, then put the Fixed Star Compass back into his body with a flip of his wrist.
"My big brother and our three-year agreement is now secure."
Liou Yuan still remembered the time period Liou Zhen mentioned in her letter regarding their agreement.
By his count, there was less than ten months left.
Before, Liou Yuan had always felt pressured—not wanting to miss out on such a great opportunity to join a major sect.
Now, that anxiety had completely vanished.
Because victory was nearly guaranteed now.
Not only is the three-year agreement secure, but Liou Yuan's future path as a cultivator seems a lot smoother thanks to the Fixed Star Compass's existence.