A Mortal’s Immortal Gourd
Chapter 12: Strength Pills

Ergouzi recalled his experience cooking pig feed and began to figure out how to make the Strength Pills.

Using only white rice definitely wouldn't work—people who had eaten rice their whole lives would recognize it in a single bite.

He needed to mix in some wild vegetables.

He picked up a hoe and walked to the edge of the paddy field, where a small patch of wild vegetables grew.

They were Little Chicken Leg plants he had previously transplanted.

Since he now had food to eat, he hadn’t dug them up, only watered them a little each day.

Now, with one strike of the hoe, he discovered the Little Chicken Leg roots had grown thicker than his fist. Each plant was over a foot long.

He picked one up, peeled off the outer skin, and revealed a pure white, translucent flesh—crisp and sweet when bitten.

A once-ordinary wild vegetable had grown this large and tasty thanks to the gourd water.

Judging from these plants’ growth, their yield was much higher than that of rice.

He planned to clear more land next time and plant more Little Chicken Leg to see how it would go.

At this moment, Ergouzi dug up a few plants, washed them clean, chopped them together with the leaves, and cooked them with rice.

Then he poured the mixture onto a smooth stone slab and repeatedly ground and pounded it with a stone.

It eventually turned into a big lump of light yellow-green paste.

Ergouzi scooped a handful and stuffed it into his mouth. It looked bad but tasted pretty good—soft, sticky, with a hint of sweetness.

He rolled the paste into pill-sized balls about the size of his thumb and dried them.

After drying, he tasted a few—they were rock-hard and chewy, but the more he chewed, the better they tasted.

To be honest, Ergouzi wasn’t satisfied with the final product.

There wasn’t the slightest medicinal taste—it tasted way too good.

With its current appearance, it’d be hard to convince anyone it was a real Strength Pill.

For now, he had no better options. He’d try adding some harmless herbs next time to make the pills darker and taste worse.

He stored them in the gourd. Whenever he wanted to eat some, he could just pour out a few. Very convenient.

In a few days, he would take them to the market to sell. At least no one would be able to guess what they were made of.

Over the next few days, he hand-rolled a dou of Strength Pills. After drying, he stored them all in the gourd.

After three days of being stored in the gourd, these Strength Pills had the same effect as rice—boosting strength and enhancing internal Yuanqi.

That day, after copying dozens of characters with Li the Half-Immortal in town, he went to the market to sell the Strength Pills—ten coins per pill.

In the end, he didn’t sell a single one and got ridiculed all over.

People mocked him for being so young and already trying to scam folks with random concoctions.

Some ruffians even said real medicine sellers could smash stones on their chests and insisted Ergouzi perform a head-brick smash and chest stone break.

The onlookers jeered and hyped up the chaos, leaving him humiliated and disheveled.

In the end, he had to pack up quickly and leave the market, red-faced and embarrassed.

On the way home, he was full of frustration. Others selling fake medicine could still make money, but his real medicine couldn’t get a single buyer.

As he passed by Shexi Village, a girl with two braids tied with red ribbons came skipping toward him.

“Brother Gouzi!”

“Xiao’e!”

They hadn’t seen each other for over half a year, and his younger female cousin had grown taller—he barely recognized her. Still, they were as close as ever.

“Brother Gouzi, do you have food now? Are you hungry?”

“Wait here—I have some leftover food at home. I’ll go get it.”

Xiao’e was about to run off but was grabbed by Ergouzi.

“Xiao’e, I’ve rented a few acres on Shekou Mountain. I have food now.”

“Oh, that’s great! As long as you have food!”

Xiao’e finally looked relieved, but then remembered the rumors about Shekou Mountain.

“Brother Gouzi, I heard there’s a snake demon on Shekou Mountain. Have you seen it?”

Kids found the snake demon stories a little scary, but mostly fascinating.

“No, maybe it’s just a story the elders made up to scare children.”

Ergouzi shook his head. He hadn’t noticed anything unusual.

“Oh, by the way, you beat up my second brother last time. He cried at home for a whole day and didn’t even go to school.”

“Hehehe…”

Xiao’e burst into laughter, remembering how her second brother’s face swelled like a pig’s head after the beating.

“Still, be careful. My big brother said he’s going to beat you up—every time he sees you.”

They stood by the roadside, chatting happily for a long while.

As they were about to part, Ergouzi remembered the unsold Strength Pills.

Since he couldn’t sell them anyway, giving some to Xiao’e as snacks wasn’t a bad idea. He immediately pulled out a bundle.

“What’s this?”

“Strength Pills. I bought them at the market. They say you can break bricks with your head and smash stones on your chest after eating them!”

Ergouzi didn’t have the nerve to tell the truth and came up with an excuse.

“Oh no! You got scammed. This clearly isn’t medicine—the color’s wrong and it doesn’t smell like herbs at all.”

“Come on, let’s go find that guy and get your money back!”

Xiao’e grabbed Ergouzi and started walking, but he dared not go—he’d be exposed.

“No need. That guy’s already gone!”

“I tried one. It tastes good. Let’s just keep them as snacks. Who knows—maybe they’ll work?”

“Alright then.”

Xiao’e was still a bit annoyed but had no choice. She popped one into her mouth and slowly chewed. It was surprisingly tasty—chewy and flavorful.

After saying goodbye to Xiao’e, he stopped by Huang Laocai’s house.

Rent was due soon—he came to check in.

Walking in, he saw the courtyard, main hall, and rooms filled with golden piles of unhulled rice.

Aside from the land he rented out, Huang Laocai still cultivated over a hundred acres. It was harvest season, and they had so much grain it couldn’t be stored.

He needed to clear out space at home before collecting rent.

“Ergou, you came just in time. Come with me to the county in five days.”

“Alright. What do you need, Master?”

Ergouzi agreed without hesitation.

“It's harvest time, and I have to deliver taxes to the county office. I'm short on hands and need help.”

“No worries, Master. I’ll definitely be there.”

Upon hearing he’d be going to the county, Ergouzi actually felt excited.

He had only ever been as far as Sanchazi Town.

He’d heard county towns had two- or three-story buildings, carriages, storytellers, singers, and performers.

They said the highest official in the county was the County Magistrate.

They said the County Magistrate had meat at every meal and always rode a fancy sedan chair. His servants at the office all wore embroidered clothes.

In Sanchazi Town, he had only seen rich brides ride sedan chairs. He hadn’t even seen a real carriage yet.

As a kid, he imagined the Magistrate sitting in a sedan chair, a chicken leg in one hand and a bottle of honey water in the other—majestic beyond words!

Looking back now, childhood was really naïve.

Also, the people in Sanchazi Town had no taste—they didn’t recognize his Strength Pills. Maybe he’d have better luck selling them in the county.

And since it was far away, he could sell more freely without worrying about being traced back to Shekou Mountain.

He needed to save up quickly and buy that land on Shekou Mountain from Huang Laocai. That would finally give him peace of mind.