A Mortal’s Immortal Gourd
Chapter 33: The Cultivation Sect

Ergouzi had finally managed to register for the exam. With that weight off his mind, he walked much more lightly on the road back from the county seat.

Feeling great, he bought a few big meat buns and munched on them as he walked, grease dripping from his mouth.

When he passed through a dense forest, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him.

“Stop right there!”

Turning his head, he saw three people approaching quickly.

He recognized one of them—it was the chubby assistant from the sword shop.

The other two were strangers, a middle-aged man and a young man.

“Is there something you need?”

“I want to ask—do you have any more copper or silver like this?”

The chubby boy pulled out a copper coin and a small piece of silver.

Since reaching the energy-sensing stage, Ergouzi could feel the spiritual energy in the world.

Focusing now, he could tell the coin and silver in the chubby boy’s hand contained more spiritual energy than normal.

Could this guy have noticed something different about the money from the gourd?

So far, no one had noticed, so for convenience, Ergouzi had been storing his money in the gourd.

After all, silver and copper coins were heavy—very difficult to carry in large quantities.

A single string of coins weighed seven or eight jin. Carrying ten strings was already a burden.

And every time he sold Strength Pills, he’d get several hundred taels back—dozens of jin.

Carrying all that money was exhausting and dangerous.

Still, even if someone had figured it out, he wouldn’t admit anything.

“I don’t have any money on me right now. What’s so special about these coins anyway?”

“Don’t play dumb. Tell the truth—where did you get this money? Where are you hiding it?”

The young man beside the chubby boy had no patience. He drew a short sword and barked the threat.

The three surrounded Ergouzi in a triangle, cutting off any escape.

When Ergouzi didn’t answer, the young man flicked his wrist and stabbed at his throat.

Having fought Zhao Dawang a few times, Ergouzi had gained some experience.

He whipped out his heavy sword and smashed it at the short blade.

Clang!

With a light sound, the young man was left holding just a hilt—his blade shattered across the ground.

Ergouzi followed up with a series of straight thrusts, slashes, and upward strikes...

Pshhh!

One clean swing sliced the youth in half at the waist. Blood sprayed everywhere.

“Aaaahh! It hurts! It hurts!”

Though cut in two, he didn’t die right away. His upper half rolled on the ground, screaming.

Ergouzi, holding his blood-soaked sword, felt a little pity at the scene and tried to comfort him.

“Hang in there—it won’t hurt much longer.”

“You bastard! That was cold-blooded!”

The middle-aged man roared, drawing his saber and charging at Ergouzi.

Ergouzi swung back. This time, the man dodged, avoiding a direct clash.

They exchanged several blows, their weapons never actually meeting.

This opponent was far stronger than Zhao Dawang. He knew Ergouzi was all brute strength and refused to meet him head-on.

He circled constantly, probing for an opening.

This only made Ergouzi more excited.

Zhao Dawang had been hiding from him lately. He’d been looking for a worthy sparring partner—now he had one.

The more they fought, the sharper he got.

Sometimes he even managed to pull off a move or two from that difficult sword manual.

In the middle of the fight, Ergouzi spotted an opening. He suddenly leaped forward a zhang and swung down with full force.

Boom!

The man instinctively raised his saber to block.

The moment blade met blade, a massive force surged through—his weapon shattered, and the bones in his arm snapped.

Only his combat instincts saved him. He fled two or three zhang away with his life barely intact.

Now he stood far off, his right arm hanging limp—most likely crippled.

“You’re a tough one, kid. Nearly got me.”

“But brute strength alone can only take you so far. Let me show you what a true cultivator can do!”

The man held two yellow talismans in his remaining hand.

Ergouzi had seen his master use similar paper charms—for exorcisms, healing, and even fertility. Back then, he hadn’t understood any of it.

Now, he watched as the man spat a mouthful of blood onto the talismans.

The papers ignited and turned into one blue and one yellow light.

The yellow light wrapped around the man, forming a glowing golden shield.

The blue light turned into a dozen sharp wooden spikes that shot toward Ergouzi.

He leapt two zhang into the air—the spikes whooshed past beneath him.

But as he fell, they looped around and targeted him again.

In midair, he had nowhere to run.

In desperation, he remembered a move from the sword manual—one meant to block wind and rain.

He had practiced it in heavy storms. Though it didn’t keep him totally dry, it might block a few wooden darts.

Ding ding ding…

A flurry of crisp sounds rang out—the spikes shattered midair and dissolved into spiritual energy.

Ergouzi launched forward again, reaching the man and slashing.

Clang!

His blade struck the golden shield. It shook violently but didn’t break.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

He hacked several more times, full force—but the barrier held.

“Heh! Kid, you think some mortal trick can break immortal defenses?”

The man grinned, pulling out another yellow talisman.

Not wanting to see what new trick he had, Ergouzi immediately channeled True Qi from his Dantian.

He sent it through the Pericardium Meridian, out through the Laogong acupoint, into the heavy sword.

The blade began to glow, brighter and brighter.

“You… you’re a cultivator too?!”

The man looked as if he’d seen a ghost.

He’d just come out hoping to rob some traveler—use his decades of experience to bully a young man.

How did he run into a cultivator?! And one with even stronger cultivation—at least Qi Refining Level Three!

“Friend, wait—it’s a misunderstanding!”

Too late. Ergouzi could no longer hold back the sword’s power.

He swung.

BOOM!

The sword, the shield, and the man all exploded in a thunderous blast.

Chunks of flesh scattered everywhere, and Ergouzi was splattered too.

Unfortunately, the talismans were blown to bits. He’d hoped to keep one and study it.

Crrrk crrrk…

A strange sound came from behind.

He turned and saw the chubby sword shop assistant, collapsed on the ground in a puddle of his own urine and something worse.

He tried to speak, but his teeth chattered uncontrollably—crrk crrk—and no words came out.

Ergouzi had never seen anyone so pitiful.

He walked over and slapped him a few times. Only then did the trembling subside.

“You’re screwed. You killed a man from the Dao Xuan Sect. You’re in serious trouble now.”

The moment he could talk, the chubby boy went straight to threats.

“Sounds like you know quite a bit.”

Ergouzi glanced around—the scene was a mess. Right next to the main road—not ideal for interrogation.

He stripped a pack off the corpse and found a copper token amid the meat scraps. He stuffed both into the bag.

Then he hoisted the chubby boy and dragged him into the forest.

They walked over ten li before he found a secluded spot and tossed him down.

“Start talking—what’s going on?”

“Don’t kill me! I’ll talk, I’ll tell you everything!”

The boy clung to his leg, snot and tears running down his face.

Ergouzi had imagined dozens of ways to force confessions. But this guy gave it all up before he could try even one.

He felt like he’d punched empty air—no satisfaction at all.

Half an hour later, Ergouzi walked out alone. Behind him lay the chubby boy’s corpse.

The guy had been a coward—he spilled everything with barely a nudge. Ergouzi now knew much more.

But he didn’t trust him. Better to kill him and be done with it.

According to the confession, the chubby boy had been tempted by money but afraid of Ergouzi’s strength.

So he secretly contacted the Dao Xuan Sect for help.

He said the Dao Xuan Sect was a cultivation sect—full of immortals, shrouded in mystery and power.

His sword shop occasionally crafted items for them, so they had some dealings.

But he didn’t expect to kick a steel plate and meet someone even stronger.

From the boy’s body, Ergouzi had also found a leather-bound ancient book titled Manual of a Hundred Weapons.

Finally—a book with a cover and title.

All the books his master owned were missing covers and names.

Flipping through it, he saw the first half detailed many rare materials—some he’d never heard of, including his refined copper and silver.

The second half explained strange forging techniques.

He figured it’d be worth studying when he had time—more skills never hurt.

Besides the book, he found a few taels of silver and a copper token engraved with the word “Black.”

He had no idea what it was for.

By now, it was dark.

He returned to the main road, thought for a bit, then turned around and headed for the county seat.

Since he’d killed the chubby boy and offended the sword shop, might as well go all the way—wipe out the whole family.

That way they couldn’t take revenge later. Hunting each other back and forth was too much trouble.

But by the time he arrived, it was too late.

The sword shop was engulfed in flames, along with neighboring stores.

From the crowd, Ergouzi didn’t see a single member of the family.

According to the gossip, the whole family had accidentally burned to death inside.

With them dead, Ergouzi’s job was done.

After a fight and a long journey, he was starving. He bought ten big meat buns, eating as he walked down the road toward home.

Back at Shekou Mountain, he collapsed into bed.

It took three days of rest to fully restore his depleted True Qi.

The moment he recovered, he went to Sanchazi Town to find his master.

“Master, have you heard of the Dao Xuan Sect?”

Li the Half-Immortal’s expression tensed.

“What happened? You mustn’t get involved with them—it could cost you your head, maybe even your whole family!”

“Why?”

Ergouzi had always been busy farming. He didn’t know anything about this.

“All sects must be approved by the government to exist in specific locations, with strict limits on their size.”

“Any unregistered sect is considered a cult.”

“Cults defy government orders and secretly spread cultivation methods. The authorities execute them on sight.”

“The Dao Xuan Sect is one such cult.”

Li the Half-Immortal took a big gulp of tea to moisten his throat.

Talking about secret cultivation… this was the regret of his life.

Ergouzi didn’t know it, but Li the Half-Immortal understood clearly—passing on an unregistered cultivation method was a capital offense.

If a powerful official did it, no one cared. But for a powerless fortune teller like him—caught once, and it’d be public execution.

He never expected that ragged manual would turn out real—and this foolish kid had actually learned it.

“Master, I’ve also got good news. I successfully registered! I’m going to take the Martial Xiucai exam.”

Ergouzi figured he should share his joy with his master.

“What?! So soon?!”

Li the Half-Immortal was so startled he dropped his teacup.

He felt no joy—only panic.

“I just want to try. Who knows? Maybe I’ll pass.”

Ergouzi wasn’t confident, but he had to give it a shot.

Without a title, any official could beat or insult you.

But Li the Half-Immortal was in turmoil.

The secret cultivation was bound to be exposed.

As soon as Ergouzi took the exam, someone would notice something was off.

Once that happened, the blame would fall on him—for secretly passing down immortal arts. Ten heads wouldn’t be enough.

And the stronger Ergouzi got, the harder he’d be to manipulate.

If the truth came out, his old bones wouldn’t last a second.

He’d scammed quite a bit of money from this kid—maybe it was time to disappear.

“Ergou, I’ll be heading out of town soon.”

“Huh? Where to, Master? When will you be back?”

It felt too sudden.

“I’m going to Kunwu Immortal Mountain to gather spirit herbs. I might be gone three to five years… maybe over ten. Take care of yourself, and don’t slack off!”

“Kunwu Immortal Mountain?”

Ergou had only heard of it in stories—a place where immortals flew through clouds and spat fire, their powers beyond anything ordinary cultivators could match.

“Master, can you take me to see it?”

He regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth. He still had dozens of mu of farmland and a flock of geese at Shekou Mountain.

“Kunwu Mountain is one hundred and eight thousand li away, ten thousand zhang tall. Mere mortals cannot reach it!”

Li the Half-Immortal had no intention of dragging Ergouzi along—he wanted to ditch him.

But before leaving, he planned to squeeze one last payment out of his gullible disciple.