A Mortal’s Immortal Gourd
Chapter 68: Recruitment

Chengxi Town was named because it was located west of the county seat.  

Here lay the largest spiritual vein in Anchan County, from which a vast spiritual field had been cultivated.  

The area surrounding the spiritual field was always heavily guarded, and outsiders were absolutely forbidden to approach.  

As soon as Ergouzi entered Chengxi Town, he was assigned a defensive area.  

Since the locust swarm could only take off once and not fly very far, they had to rest in the middle before taking off again.  

This gave people who couldn't fly, like them, the chance to intercept along the way.  

The area they defended was originally farmland, but the crops had long been devoured by the locusts.  

Behind them lay a spiritual field.  

In this spiritual field, some small trees about two to three feet tall were planted, sparsely bearing a few small fruits—long and pointed.  

However, these chili pepper trees contained dense spiritual energy; they were no ordinary peppers.  

They were the famous Chaotian Tribute Peppers.  

Ergouzi recalled reading in a book that these were a specialty of Anchan County, with 500 jin of these peppers submitted annually as tribute to the imperial court.  

It was said that the current wise and virtuous Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, the Supreme and Exalted Longxing Holy Emperor, was very fond of spicy food.  

He almost never enjoyed a meal without chili peppers, especially those produced in Anchan County.  

Chili peppers had a unique trait: the drier and less watered the environment, the spicier and higher quality the peppers produced.  

Therefore, the recent drought in Anchan County was actually beneficial for this spiritual vegetable.  

However, the peppers on these trees appeared to have been harvested hurriedly, as only a few remained.  

A temporary fishing net was set up around the spiritual field to prevent locusts from entering and devouring the crops.  

It also prevented people like Ergouzi from sneaking in to steal the peppers.  

To be honest, at first sight of these Chaotian Tribute Peppers, Ergouzi had the idea of stealing two chili trees.  

But the fishing net blocked him, so he had no chance to act.  

He could only hope that when their team failed to stop the swarm and locusts broke into the pepper field, he could then charge in under the guise of fighting and take advantage of the chaos.  

Since the team took over, a large number of locusts had already been present in this area, so everyone immediately entered combat mode.  

After so many battles, Ergouzi’s team was very experienced in exterminating locusts.  

Moreover, with two large white geese circling in the sky, no swarm could fly over their position.  

Every successful battle made Ergouzi anxious.  

As a genuine farmer, seeing those chili trees made him want to take a few back to plant on Shekou Mountain.  

But for now, he had no opportunity.  

Seeing his team achieve one glorious victory after another, he felt no joy at all.  

Especially since the two big geese were so unaware; after every battle, they would stretch their necks and come to him, bragging about their achievements, begging for praise.  

But he couldn’t openly let the team slack off, so the two geese couldn’t understand his subtle thoughts.  

If the defense failed and some peppers were eaten by locusts, those belonged to the county magistrate—what did that have to do with Ergouzi?  

Standing on the outskirts, Ergouzi occasionally used the Qi Observation Technique to look toward the center of the spiritual field, where the spiritual energy grew denser.  

Sima Yi had told him that the county magistrate’s spiritual field also grew some very precious spiritual herbs.  

However, the yield was extremely scarce; besides paying a portion to higher officials and the imperial court, outsiders could not obtain even a single strand of these herbs.  

Since the team arrived at Chengxi Town to exterminate locusts, several days had passed.  

During this time, Ergouzi saw that all the extermination teams sent out to various places had gathered at Chengxi Town.  

This included the team that had been guarding Ding Family Village and the team led by Zhang Youliang—all of them had come.  

Centered on the spiritual field, more than twenty extermination teams were assigned to various positions for defense.  

There were frequent occasions when the defensive lines were torn apart by locusts, causing hastily recruited villagers to flee, letting locusts break through into the spiritual field, biting open the fishing nets, and devouring the crops.  

Among all these teams, only Ergouzi’s stood out most.  

In continuous days of battle, they defended resolutely, not allowing the locust swarm to advance even one step and even pushing the front line outward more than ten zhang.  

Compared to other teams, their achievements were remarkable.  

The reason for their victories lay partly in the pre-battle reorganization made by Ergouzi and the strict discipline enforced.  

To uphold military law, constables led squads of tough men daily, wielding large knives; anyone who fled was killed, turning the battlefield into a river of blood.  

The villagers were terrified and forced to fight desperately; if they died, at least they received rewards, and if they survived, it was considered a second chance at life.  

After enduring this iron-and-blood training period, every one of his men fought bravely, fearless of death.  

Moreover, Ergouzi never skimmed any rewards from the locusts captured after battles; everything was distributed according to merit.  

Though military discipline was important and understood by all, knowing the theory and being able to execute it were entirely different matters.  

Besides this, the most outstanding members of his team were the two large white geese.  

These two geese had evolved to spirit beast level, with power equivalent to human cultivators at the Qi Refining initial stage.  

Among all the martial scholars on the battlefield, few could match the strength of the two geese.  

Most importantly, on the entire battlefield, the geese were the only two on the human side who could fly in the air.  

On other battlefields, once the locust swarm took flight, everyone could only stare helplessly from the ground, waiting for the swarm to land.  

Only Ergouzi’s team had two white geese guarding the sky, swatting down large clusters of locusts.  

This kept the swarm from ever flying over their heads.  

Naturally, these two geese attracted many people who came to inquire.  

Ergouzi always said they were gifts from his master; anyway, Li Banxian didn’t know where he had gone.  

In recent years, whenever there were inexplicable things, Ergouzi always pinned the blame or credit on Li Banxian.  

His master was powerful; even if he returned to Sanchazi Town someday, he probably wouldn’t fear such small troubles.  

One day, right after a fierce battle ended and Ergouzi’s team had yet another great victory, everyone gathered to distribute the spoils.  

Among the harvested locust corpses were many mutated locusts, most of which had been swatted down by the geese’s wings and finished off by the ground personnel.  

Because the battle intensity was high every day, casualties were also high.  

Ergouzi had already started distributing some mutated locusts to ordinary villagers who had meritorious service for consumption.  

Mutated locusts contained energy that greatly aided cultivators, and even ordinary people could gain strength from eating them.  

"Good harvest! Congratulations!"  

At this moment, Sima Hong came alone to congratulate Ergouzi.  

Because of Sima Yi’s connection, Ergouzi naturally treated Sima Hong with more familiarity.  

"Brother Sima, what brings you here to wander? Please sit, we just have some freshly hunted mutated locusts. Let’s eat together."  

"Sure! I just happened to bring a jar of wine!"  

Sima Hong was unreserved and had long brought a jar of wine.  

Not long after, a pregnant woman with a big belly brought over a large basin of roasted mutated locusts.  

Sima Hong picked up a locust over five inches long, bit into it, and chewed heartily, thoroughly enjoying it.  

"I owe you for this feast of locusts."  

Mutated locusts contained spiritual energy and greatly helped cultivators.  

However, these locusts flew very fast in the sky and were difficult to hunt.  

Other teams captured very few, making each one precious.  

Ergouzi’s team had the help of two white geese flying overhead, enabling them to hunt many mutated locusts.  

Thus, ordinary people in his team who had meritorious service were rewarded with one or two mutated locusts, making other teams envious.  

Many laborers wanted to switch to Ergouzi’s team.  

However, Ergouzi had not expanded his team aggressively; he only replenished a few strong men, maintaining just over two thousand members after deducting battle losses.  

"Brother Zhang, have some wine too!"  

"I’m not used to drinking; I don’t think it tastes good."  

Ergouzi had drunk wine once or twice with his master before and found it unpleasant—bitter, spicy, and choking—a self-inflicted punishment.  

He preferred spending money on honey dissolved in water, which was sweet and enjoyable.  

"Hahaha…"  

"Brother Zhang, how old are you this year?"  

"I’m eighteen."  

Ergouzi answered honestly, though he didn’t know the exact date he turned eighteen since he hadn’t celebrated a birthday after his parents passed.  

"I’ll tell you, a man must learn to drink, and drink the strongest wine while chasing the most beautiful women."  

"Try this wine; it cuts like a knife upon entry and feels like flames rising in your belly."  

Without giving him a chance to refuse, Sima Hong poured Ergouzi a large bowl of wine.  

Persuaded by Sima Hong, Ergouzi lifted the bowl and swallowed a large mouthful.  

The spicy and stimulating flavor made his tongue tremble.  

The burning sensation traveled down his throat, like being cut by a knife…  

"Cough, cough, cough…"  

"Ah…"  

It was terrible!  

He didn’t understand why so many people liked this awful drink.  

"Hahaha…"  

Sima Hong laughed heartily at Ergouzi’s flushed, choking expression.  

He raised his own bowl and gulped down a large mouthful, then slowly exhaled a breath of wine vapor, clearly enjoying himself.  

"You’re still young; when you’re older, you’ll appreciate this wonderful taste."  

"Brother Zhang, you’re eighteen, not too young. Have you considered marrying and settling down?"  

"I have a cousin, sixteen years old, very striking…"  

It turned out that Sima Hong was trying to matchmake for Ergouzi.  

After drinking, his mouth ran nonstop, praising his cousin as peerless and rare.  

Ergouzi was indeed tempted, blushing for a long time.  

Many people in the village his age had already married and had warm homes with wives and children.  

That scene alone stirred his emotions.  

He was still a bachelor; his family had hundreds of unmarried girls, yet he had never even touched a woman’s hand.  

However, the conditions offered by Sima Hong were difficult to accept.  

The Sima family was one of the most prestigious clans in Anchan County.  

Unless the match was of equal social status, Sima family daughters never married out; the suitor had to be adopted into the family as a son-in-law.  

From then on, he would belong to the Sima family, and any children would carry the Sima surname.  

The advantage was receiving the Sima family’s protection, whether in officialdom or cultivation.  

Moreover, the Sima family possessed cultivation methods from Qi Refining to Foundation Establishment stages and many other immortal cultivation inheritances such as alchemy, forging, and talisman painting.  

Aside from alchemy, Ergouzi was tempted by these benefits.  

When he tried to handle official business, he faced obstacles everywhere.  

But with Sima Yi’s intervention, everyone in the government office greeted him with smiles and tried to show their best sides.  

The various immortal cultivation inheritances were resources he desired but could not currently access.  

The Great Zhou Dynasty strictly controlled the spread of immortal cultivation; only those who contributed to the court could gain cultivation methods through official channels.  

After much thought, Ergouzi finally declined Sima Hong’s offer.  

He recalled the days living with his eldest uncle’s family, dependent on others.  

Under someone’s roof, one must bow.  

Joining the Sima family meant living under their command and bearing their expectations.  

He had just escaped from one pit, settled on a plot on Shekou Mountain, and became independent.  

There was no need to jump into another pit for a few benefits.  

After Ergouzi refused, Sima Hong stopped persuading, drank some wine, finished the large basin of mutated locusts, and took his leave.  

Strangely enough, as soon as Sima Hong left, the Ding siblings from Ding Family Village arrived.  

Their purpose was similar to Sima Hong’s: to revive old matters and invite Ergouzi to join Ding Family Village as an honorary guest.  

Ergouzi still refused.  

Next, Constable Wang came on behalf of the local magistrate to invite him, only to be refused again.  

Finally, the Dao Xuan Sect even sent someone to secretly approach Ergouzi, trying to recruit him.  

He also declined.  

As if overnight, Ergouzi became a coveted prize; every faction wanted to win him over.  

But Ergouzi no longer wished to join any faction, dependent on others, doing errands all day while watching faces.  

Though these factions offered generous conditions and various benefits, joining meant that whether they treated you well depended entirely on their mood, and you had to work hard to please them.  

Rather than that, he preferred returning to Shekou Mountain to farm steadily.  

He never planned to rise quickly in the world; guarding his own land and planting crops was enough.