A wave of commotion rippled through the crowd.
The army had almost always been recruited from formal residents, and the conditions were becoming increasingly strict. Public recruitment for all was only a thing during the Battle of the Throne. Why was it suddenly open today?
Even the newly migrated immigrant, Gude, had heard from the uncle about how generous the army's treatment was.
Joining the First Army was equivalent to having no worries about food and clothing for the rest of your life. Not only was everything included, but even after death, a pension would be received, and the family would benefit. Moreover, they ate more than just wheat porridge and pancakes. Fish slices, jerky, and butter were common items, and there were no limits! Apart from the possibility of losing one's life, it was almost a perfect job.
No, it *was* a perfect job.
If you could exchange it for so much, what was life worth?
Gude had wandered from Wolfheart all the way to Graycastle, and had seen too much suffering and disaster. Batch after batch of people died on the roadside like livestock, crows dancing happily on their faces, enjoying the feast... Sometimes life was no better than grass.
Besides, the Hermes Church, which swept across most of the Wolfheart Kingdom, had been defeated in front of the King of Graycastle. Joining this powerful and mysterious army might be safer than being a knight's attendant.
Joining the Second Army was also good. Although the conditions were slightly worse in all aspects, and you might be sent to other cities, it was safer, and there had been basically no news of losses.
In other words, if they could be selected by the army, no matter which unit they were assigned to, it could be considered the best way out for outsiders like them.
Gude and Shanguo became excited, and they looked at Baji together, "Uncle!"
The latter also seemed a little hesitant. After pondering for a moment, he smiled wryly, "I'm still not going... The foreman must have put some thought into hiring me, and I can't break this agreement first."
"It's just registering now, and it's not certain if you can pass," Shanguo persuaded, "You can wait until the results come out before making a decision."
"At that time, I'm afraid I won't have the determination to refuse," Baji shook his head, "You go, I'll wait for your good news in the square."
Shanguo wanted to say something more, but Gude grabbed his shoulder, "The line is starting to form."
He looked back and forth, and finally nodded, "Then let's go apply first."
Because many applicants were illiterate, the scene seemed a little chaotic. After registering his name, he was taken aside by a black-clad guard and separated from the crowd. At the same time, more and more city residents who had heard the news came to apply, and they were about to surround a corner of the square. The explainer had to close the registration channel and loudly announced that recruitment would continue tomorrow. Even so, everyone did not disperse for a long time. Many people stood around the tent, seemingly wanting to see what kind of assessment it was.
This made Gude couldn't help but feel lucky that he hadn't come too late today.
On the registered side, some people had already entered the tent under the leadership of the guards.
He noticed that although the tent was nearly a hundred steps wide, enough to accommodate all the applicants, no more than ten people entered at a time, which meant that the assessment might be more complicated and difficult than imagined.
Sure enough, before long, a shrill scream rang out from inside the tent, which made the expressions of the applicants waiting outside suddenly become serious.
"This..." Shanguo shrank his neck, "Could it be testing the ability to take a beating?"
"If it's torture, the screams should be in segments," Gude pondered, "Such a continuous scream sounds more like being frightened."
"R-really? You know so much..."
Because I have no shortage of experience in hitting and being hit, he breathed lightly, "I also heard it from others."
After a while, bursts of vomiting came from the tent.
Everyone's faces turned a little green.
"What is being tested this time?"
"Uh..." Gude was speechless. He could guess that there were ghosts!
When the first batch of examinees were brought out, his heart couldn't help but jump. Only one out of ten people remained inside, which meant that the elimination rate was as high as jiug? And why were their steps so weak? It seemed that they couldn't even stand steadily—at least from their figures, these people shouldn't be too weak.
But he had no time to think about why.
The guard called his name, "Gude!"
"Yes!" Gude clenched his fists and strode into the tent.
The space inside was not large, and seemed to be divided into multiple areas by curtains. According to the order of entry, a group of people sat down in front of a man wearing an army zhifu—but the stool was a bit strange, requiring you to stand on tiptoe to sit on it, and it was very easy to shake, as if it was deliberately making people uncomfortable. What made him slightly relieved was that Shanguo was also in this team.
"I am the assessor of this project," the man in uniform said, "You don't need to know my name, because most people will be eliminated soon. Even if you pass all the assessments, it's just the first step. To truly join the army, you still have many things to learn!"
So this is to select the Second Army... or a new reserve army for the Second Army? Gude thought, but no matter what, as long as the salary can make him and Ruqiu live better, he has to try it anyway.
"Now I announce the rules," the other party continued, "Everyone puts their feet on the pedals and keeps them there for five minutes. No matter what you see, don't fall off the stool. Of course, if your feet touch the ground, it's also considered a failure, so get ready to start."
Everyone couldn't help but look at each other, "So simple?"
The officer sneered and did not answer, but pulled the curtains around.
Then, a strange white light engulfed Gude.
When he came back to his senses, he found that he was floating in the sky!
"Ah——————Ah——————!"
Screams suddenly came from his ears, along with dull thuds. This caused no small panic, and even Gude subconsciously wanted to flap his hands and feet, trying to escape the fate of being crushed to pieces, but the slightly shaking sensation under him instantly woke him up.
He was still sitting on the stool!
But even worse was yet to come.
The floating did not last long, and soon the clouds around began to rise, which meant that he was falling—the feeling of falling to the ground at high speed was almost indescribable. Gude felt that his heart was almost in his throat! The brain issued an extremely dangerous warning, but reason told him that his butt was still touching an invisible stool! Under the impact of two contradictory thoughts, what finally appeared in his mind was Ruqiu's face...
...
After the white light dissipated, the scene in the tent returned to his vision.
"Not bad," the officer clapped his hands, "You passed the first assessment, and your results are much better than the last group. But there are still several tests behind, I hope you can persevere to the end."
This is just... the first one?
Gude swallowed and found that his hands were shaking badly, and his back was icy cold, as if he had just crawled out of the water.
Damn it!
That fall was not the end. Afterwards, the vision repeatedly climbed and dived several times, and also swept along the mountain ridges and steep rock walls, as if it could crash into the mountain at any time!
Simple? He couldn't help but think of the sneer he had shown before... No, being able to sit in the original position now is already a blessing from the gods!
Gude turned his head slightly and looked to his side—he saw that half of the ten seats were empty, and Shanguo was gone.