Chapter 7

I hope everyone can give the cavalry a "5-star support."

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When the head of the family saw Li Wenjun, he indeed turned out to be a stranger, young in age, and wearing clothes made of poor fabric, clearly from a poor family. He also carried an old and worn-out bundle, which matched the characteristics of the famine-stricken people outside the town.

The head of the family nodded and, after a brief consultation with his companion, pretended to be indifferent and walked toward Li Wenjun.

The head of the family and his companion walked behind Li Wenjun and suddenly acted, each grabbing one of Li Wenjun's arms.

Li Wenjun never expected these people to harm him and had no guard up. Even if he had been on guard, it would have been useless. He was young and had been suffering from hunger for several days, his strength severely depleted. He couldn't even run away from these two strong men.

"What are you doing? Let me go quickly," Li Wenjun struggled hard, but his small arms and legs were no match for the two strong men.

"Kid, sorry, but you have to come with us," the two strong men's large hands clamped down on Li Wenjun like a pair of vise grips, dragging him toward the headman's house.

Seeing that struggling was futile, Li Wenjun shouted at the top of his lungs, "Help! Robbery! Save me!"

The street was mostly empty, and even if there were a few people, they all watched indifferently, with no one stepping forward to help Li Wenjun.

The town of Junbao had been surrounded by famine-stricken people for a long time, and their lives had been severely affected, leading to a lack of goodwill toward all outsiders.

Li Wenjun was taken to the headman's house.

The headman looked at Li Wenjun and shook his head, "Didn't I tell you to find boys no older than fourteen? This one looks older than fourteen, doesn't he?"

Li Wenjun, hearing this, thought it was his chance to escape and quickly said, "Headman sir, you have keen eyes. I'm already fifteen."

The headman waved his hand, showing impatience, and said, "Fifteen? Let him go, drive him away."

The head of the family hurriedly said, "Headman, I have something to report. This boy may be a bit older, but his blood and qi are vigorous. He said he once killed a wolf alone, which proves he is a person with vigorous blood and qi."

"Oh, really?" The headman looked at Li Wenjun again, "Did you really kill a wolf alone?"

At this moment, Li Wenjun dared not admit it and shook his head repeatedly.

The head of the family became anxious, "When you pawned the wolf skin, you clearly said you killed the wolf. Even if you want to deny it, you can't."

"I said that to get a better price for the wolf skin. Please, Headman sir, understand," Li Wenjun quickly denied his previous statement.

The headman was not very interested in using Li Wenjun, as he was a bit too old. However, he knew that finding someone with vigorous blood and qi was not easy. If the Immortal's requirements happened to fall on Li Wenjun, and he let him go now, it would be hard to find him again later.

After a moment's thought, the headman pointed at the head of the family and said, "Go and bring the priest here. I want to ask him myself."

After about the time it takes to eat a meal, the priest arrived, and even the blacksmith was brought by the head of the family. Both of them insisted that Li Wenjun had once told them he had killed a wolf.

To prove his words, the blacksmith even brought some of the wolf meat that Li Wenjun had given him.

Wolf meat is clearly different from pork or beef. The fact that Li Wenjun could produce wolf meat largely proved that he might have killed a wolf himself, though not 100%, it was highly likely.

The headman smiled and looked at Li Wenjun as if he were a treasure. He said, "Young man, I didn't expect you to have such skills at your young age. Don't be afraid, we have no intention of harming you. We just want to ask for your help with a small task."

Li Wenjun didn't know what was going on, but he instinctively said, "I don't want to help."

The headman frowned, and the head of the family scolded, "Who do you think you are? It's an honor for the Headman to ask for your help. Don't be ungrateful. Remember where you are standing. You have to help today, whether you want to or not. If you don't, you won't leave our town."

The headman chuckled, waved his hand to dismiss the head of the family, and then put on a gentle face, saying to Li Wenjun, "Young man, don't rush to refuse. Let me explain.

This is a great opportunity for you.

As you know, there is a great drought. You came to our town because you couldn't survive in your hometown. In the face of the wrath of heaven, we are all powerless to change it. However, there is a capable person in the world. An Immortal has come to our town and said he can set up a Seven Stars and Nine Palaces Array to drive away evil spirits and bring rain, changing the drought. This array requires sixty-three boys and girls.

Young man, if you agree to be one of these boys, I can guarantee you will eat well and drink well for the next two days. Afterward, I will give you some money and food. If you are lucky, the Immortal might take you as a disciple. Then you will be a disciple of the Immortal, with a noble status. If you need help in the future, I might even have to beg you.

Young man, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Don't miss it, or you might regret it later."

Li Wenjun still shook his head and said, "I am unworthy! I don't dare to accept such a good thing. Please give it to someone who wants it, Headman sir."

Seeing that Li Wenjun was still stubborn, the headman's face turned red with anger. He hummed and said coldly, "Whether you want it or not is not up to you. Bring him down and keep him under watch. Don't let him escape."

The head of the family and others rushed forward, like wolves, and tied Li Wenjun up with ropes, dragging him away.

Two days passed, and the sixty-three boys and girls were finally gathered.

It took a lot of effort to gather them. To prevent these so-called boys and girls from escaping, the headman not only assigned people to watch them day and night but also brought in two large black dogs to guard outside. With such strict supervision, even if they were adults, they couldn't escape.

During these two days, Li Wenjun tried every possible way to escape. He wanted to escape more than anyone else, but he never succeeded.

Because he tried to escape so many times, he was eventually tied up and given only two bowls of thin porridge a day.

Li Wenjun was like a trapped beast, his eyes red with anger. He had endured hardships and walked hundreds of miles to escape the drought area, and just when he had a glimmer of hope for survival, he faced this new challenge. He had no idea whether he would live or die.

However, no matter what, he was not willing to let his fate be controlled by others. He had no connection with the town of Junbao and did not want to risk his life for them. The old Taoist was not a good person, and he did not want to be his disciple.

Despite his unwillingness, Li Wenjun had no strength to change his situation. With his hands and feet tied and guarded by people and dogs, how could he escape?

All Li Wenjun could do was curse the headman and others of the town of Junbao, hoping they would suffer, while anxiously waiting for the final moment to arrive.

The time soon came for the final moment the old Taoist required. During these days, the headman had been closely monitoring the old Taoist's movements.

The old Taoist never left the threshing ground, always sitting cross-legged with his palms facing the sky, eyes closed, meditating. He never opened his eyes.

The more the old Taoist did this, the more the headman believed he might have real abilities. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so calm and composed. The headman and the 1,500 people of the town of Junbao all saw the old Taoist as their savior and hope.

In addition to sending people to serve the old Taoist, the headman also sent several groups to search for the "snake spirit." However, the snake spirit seemed to have been alerted, and the headman's people could not find it, though they did find some traces.

The headman was unsure if the old Taoist could defeat the snake spirit. If the old Taoist fled in advance, the town of Junbao would face a great disaster. To prevent the old Taoist from getting any wind of the situation, the headman gave a strict order that no one was to reveal any information to the old Taoist.

The townspeople serving the old Taoist did not participate in the search for the snake spirit, and since the old Taoist was always meditating with his eyes closed, he did not receive any news until the headman sent the sixty-three boys and girls to the threshing ground.

These boys and girls were of various ages, the youngest still in swaddling clothes, crying for food, and the oldest like Li Wenjun, already in their mid-teens. In some places, boys of this age might already be fathers.

To transport these boys and girls to the threshing ground, the headman arranged ten large carts, pulled by donkeys, horses, and mules, and sent them out of the village, watched by the townspeople and the famine-stricken people.

Most of these boys and girls were still young and naive, unaware of the danger. They held the large steamed buns given by the headman, eating and laughing.

There were about a dozen boys like Li Wenjun, distributed among three carts. However, besides Li Wenjun, only two or three others were tied up.

The boys in the same cart as Li Wenjun pointed at him and spoke in a way that suggested he was ungrateful.

These boys had been promised money and food by the headman, which was very attractive to them after their hardships. No wonder they were not thinking about the danger.

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