The situation of Yang Lue and the other two was beyond even Hua Tuo's ability to save. Fortunately, Yan Huo's fox senior, Fox Bai, arrived just in time. He reminded Yan Huo that the spirit pills left by Chongyangzi could save the three of them. These medium-grade spirit pills, when consumed by mortals, not only allowed them to gain decades of cultivation but, more importantly, they could transform their bodies, opening the path for them to enter cultivation. However, even for cultivators, medium-grade spirit pills were very precious. Chongyangzi had left a few for Yan Huo's cultivation or as backup. Fox Bai explained this to Yan Huo, but Yan Huo pretended not to hear it.
In Yan Huo's eyes, no pill was as precious as the lives of his friends. Without hesitation, he fed each of the three people a pill. The effect of the pills was truly remarkable. Not long after swallowing them, the three began to visibly recover. When Yan Huo and Fox Bai left, the three were already able to sit up. However, the full absorption of the pill's power was not something that could be done immediately, so the three stayed on the mountain, meditating to absorb the pill's effects while Yan Huo and Fox Bai went down the mountain to rescue others.
The fleeing Fu Chun, of course, was left to Fox Bai to deal with. Later, Fox Bai told Yan Huo that Fu Chun had committed suicide. It was unclear what Fox Bai had transformed into, but it had terrified Fu Chun so much that he chose to end his own life. When Yan Huo asked Fox Bai about it, Fox Bai gave him a look that said he would never speak of it, so Yan Huo did not press further.
Zhang Ge was naturally captured. His martial arts were crippled by Yan Huo, and Liu Yiqing locked him up in the Escort Bureau's prison. With such a big disturbance on the mountain and so many deaths—both from the Escort Bureau and innocent civilians—the aftermath was a headache. Thankfully, the Liu family had the resources to handle the situation. The remaining forces of the Windyuan Escort Bureau were scattered to different places, originally hoping that the sheer number of people would be enough to determine the outcome. Now, Liu Yiqing realized how foolish his plan was. It would have been better to disperse the forces from the start. That way, if something happened, at least more people would survive.
Thus, the forces at the main Escort Bureau were supplemented by those from the branches, leaving fewer than a hundred people at the main branch. Water can wash away blood, but it cannot cleanse the pain in the hearts of people. The Escort Bureau did not hang up white cloths for the fallen comrades because everything had to be kept quiet. All the suffering had to be endured in silence.
Yan Huo silently stood behind the screen, watching his father, Liu Yiqing, comforting the widows and orphans. At that moment, Yan Huo suddenly understood how difficult it must be for his father, the head of the Liu family. His feelings of hatred toward him weakened a little.
Finally, in the late hours of the night, Liu Yiqing finished comforting the last young widow. After handing over the final pension money to the widow, Liu Yiqing wearily sat down on the armchair and picked up the tea on the table, moistening his dry throat. "Yan'er! What are you doing here?" Liu Yiqing was caught off guard by Yan Huo's sudden appearance, but he was overjoyed and greeted him with a smile.
"Oh! I was just wandering around," Yan Huo replied, not expecting his father to have noticed him behind the screen. Being discovered made him a little embarrassed, so he quickly came up with an excuse.
"Why aren't you spending more time with your mother?" Liu Yiqing asked with concern.
"I... I didn't know what to say," Yan Huo answered truthfully.
"..." Liu Yiqing was silent for a moment before saying, "Sigh! That's true. After all, she never raised you, and there isn't much of a bond between you two."
The reunion with his mother, Lin Wan, was not as emotional as Yan Huo had imagined. He had thought he would feel moved watching his mother cry uncontrollably before him. However, he felt no sorrow in his heart.
Yan Huo didn't understand why he felt this way. To him, it seemed as if he was watching a stranger cry, and the matter had nothing to do with him. After all, when Yan Huo needed comfort and help the most, she wasn't by his side. The only person with him was Xiu Ning. It wasn't just his mother's crying that troubled Yan Huo; his second brother, Liu De, also kept pestering him about cultivation. Yang Lue and the others were fine—they had stayed in their rooms after coming down from the mountain, continuing to absorb the effects of the spirit pills. Fox Bai had said that their bodies were such that it would take at least ten days for them to fully absorb the pills' power.
After Fox Bai had said all that, he asked Yan Huo for a treasure and then transformed back into his fox form, disappearing somewhere to feast. If Fox Bai and the others were around, Yan Huo wouldn't have come to Liu Yiqing's place to hide.
"When are you planning to leave?" Liu Yiqing suddenly asked.
*He actually knows my plan!* Yan Huo was surprised, but he replied, "Oh, probably in a few days."
"How confident are you?" Liu Yiqing asked.
"Not yet," Yan Huo answered truthfully.
"Then you still want to go?" Liu Yiqing exclaimed.
A cold glint flashed in Yan Huo's eyes as he said, "Because I have reasons I must go. Besides, as long as the root of the trouble is not eliminated, no one will be at ease."
Liu Yiqing agreed with Yan Huo's point, but he said, "You're right! But there's no need to go looking for trouble with them right now."
Yan Huo didn't respond.
Seeing the determination in Yan Huo's eyes, Liu Yiqing knew that nothing he said would change his mind. So, he sighed and said, "Forget it! I have no right to lecture you. You're a bit like me in that respect. You know it's impossible, but you still have to go ahead and do it. Just remember to be careful in everything you do."
At that moment, Liu Zheng walked in from outside. "Is everything handled?" Liu Yiqing asked.
Liu Zheng answered, "Father, everything is taken care of. I've personally visited the new governor and the new military commander. During our conversations, I didn't find anything unusual. They don't seem to know about the recent events. They were quite shocked by what happened in Yan City. They all said they would thoroughly investigate this matter."
"Haha! Shock doesn't mean they're ignorant. Perhaps they didn't expect a few eunuchs to die here like this. I've already sent letters to my friends in the court, informing them that the six eunuchs have been eliminated. I've asked them to keep an eye on the movements in the palace. Although the claws are gone, they surely still have some minions left behind. Whether they can regain control of the situation in the palace depends on the emperor and his people. This is no longer something the Liu family needs to concern itself with," Liu Yiqing said.