Brocade Guard

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Brocade Guard
Original Name	锦衣卫
Affiliation	Great Zhou Dynasty
Occupation/Role	Privileged imperial force responsible for demon extermination; formerly also monitored aristocratic families and sects
Status	Active; rebuilt as an elite demon-slaying force under Chen Fan's leadership 498 513
First Appearance	Chapter 1

Power Progression

Stage / Realm / Level	Chapter	Notes
Reconstituted elite-force standard	498	Chen Fan reorganizes the Brocade Guard with a planned strength of 30,000–50,000 members. Recruitment requires at least the third gate of the Divine Treasury Realm, prioritizing quality over numbers.
First-year rapid growth	504	Membership reaches 50,000. With Chen Fan's elixirs and newly created cultivation methods, the weakest members reach the peak of the Divine Treasury Realm within one year.
Three-year elite army	505	Nearly all 50,000 members reach the peak of the Divine Aperture Realm; Squad Leaders become Divine Transformation Realm cultivators, Centurions reach the Divine Tribulation Realm, and senior command positions include Terrestrial Immortals.
Post-Demon Domain reorganization	513	After suffering over half its casualties during the Demon Domain campaign, the force is reorganized into 36 teams of roughly 1,000 members. Most Chief Squad Leaders are peak Divine Tribulation Realm, while more than half of the Centurions are Terrestrial Immortals.

Mandate

Before the institutional reforms of the Yuanding Emperor's reign, the Brocade Guard reported directly to the Great Zhou Emperor. It monitored aristocratic families and sects, hunted demons, ghosts, and monsters, and possessed authority to act first and submit its report afterward 21.

Following the division of privileged-department powers, the Brocade Guard became dedicated to enforcing the Demon Subjugation Edict through demon and demon-beast extermination. Surveillance of aristocratic families and sects, registration duties, and management of the Imperial Prison were transferred to the Suppression Guard 498.

Organization

Standard Rank Path

Rank	Official Rank	Notes
Squad Leader	Ninth Rank	Commands a small unit.
Chief Squad Leader	Eighth Rank	Senior squad-level position.
Centurion	Seventh Rank	Commands a hundred personnel.
Chiliarch	Sixth Rank	Commands a Chiliarch Garrison.
Myriarch / Myriad Household	Fifth Rank	Senior regional-garrison commander.
Commander	Fourth Rank	Oversees a Brocade Guard Commandery.
Warden	Third Rank	Highest rank in the standard promotion path.

The Brocade Guard also employs concurrent deputy positions, including Deputy Centurions, Deputy Chiliarchs, and Deputy Myriad Households 21.

There are nine Brocade Guard Commanders across the Great Zhou: one for each of the eight non-Central provinces grouped into four regions, four assigned to Central Province's prefectures, and one stationed in the Imperial Capital 98.

Dark Guard and Embroidered Envoys

The Dark Guard was a specialized branch within the Brocade Guard. Its members inspected and assessed Brocade Guard units internally, while externally gathering demon intelligence, locating demon territories, and guiding extermination operations 43.

Dark Guard Rank	Function
Ordinary Dark Guard Member	Basic operative
Bronze-Rank Inspector	Inspector
Silver-Rank Inspector	High-authority inspector; may investigate and arrest Brocade Guard Chiliarchs, Myriad Households, and Vice Myriad Households when evidence and sufficient strength are present 101
Gold-Rank Inspector	Senior inspector
Dark Guard Leader	Third-Rank official equivalent to the Brocade Guard Leader; reports directly to the Emperor 43

The Dark Guard was later separated from the Brocade Guard system. Its Gold-Rank Inspectors became Gold-Rank Embroidered Uniform Envoys, a status held by Chen Fan 276.

Recruitment and Training

• New recruits traditionally received the complete Body Tempering Fist, a foundational Divine Treasury Realm technique, upon joining the Brocade Guard. Merit points earned through service could later be exchanged for further techniques such as Blade Draw Slash 1 15.
• Brocade Guard techniques could not be privately taught outside the organization 15.
• During Chen Fan's tenure in Yan Cloud Prefecture, recruits were selected for clean backgrounds and barred if tied to aristocratic families, sects, unknown origins, or separate martial inheritances 127.
• Chen Fan established a reserve-training system in Yan Cloud Prefecture, initially teaching recruits the Divine Treasury portion of the Primal Chaos Skill and the advanced saber art Heaven and Earth One-Blade Slash 127.
• After rebuilding the organization, Chen Fan supplied broad-access cultivation resources and created the attribute-less Primordial Limitless Art, Eight Extremes Divine Fist, and Ninefold Saber Technique for Brocade Guard use 499 504.

Equipment and Resources

• The Brocade Guard's traditional uniform includes brocade clothing and the Embroidered Spring Blade 1.
• During the reorganization, every member received magical artifacts, including armor and inner armor 500.
• Chen Fan reforged the force's Embroidered Spring Blades with high-grade materials, raising ordinary members' weapons close to low-grade spiritual-weapon quality 505.
• Weapon allocation after reforging was tied to command level:
  • Ordinary members — near low-grade spiritual weapons
  • Squad Leaders — mid-grade spiritual weapons
  • Centurions — high-grade spiritual weapons
  • Commanders — top-grade spiritual weapons
  • Battalion Commanders — low-grade Sacred Weapons or semi-Sacred Weapons
  • Regional Commanders — mid-grade Sacred Weapons
  • Chief Commander — high-grade Sacred Weapon 505
• The organization relies heavily on cultivated resources, including pills, weapons, armor, cultivation methods, martial skills, Mystical Powers, and Secret Arts 500 513.

History

The Brocade Guard was already an established imperial institution when Chen Fan joined at age fifteen. Its accessibility to foundational cultivation methods made it an attractive path for martial artists, though demon-extermination service carried severe risks 1 15.

The Dragon Abyss Prefecture front line against the Purple Mountain demons exemplified these risks. Heavy casualties caused rapid promotions among surviving personnel, while even Chiliarchs could die in battle each year 45.

Under Chen Fan's leadership in Yan Cloud Prefecture, the local Chiliarch Garrison expanded beyond its normal establishment, formed a reserve-training system, conducted Wolf Demon extermination campaigns, and helped construct the Northern Border Great Wall. Five hundred Brocade Guard members and 3,000 prefectural soldiers were stationed along the completed defensive line 127 132 169.

During the Eastern Province crisis, the Brocade Guard purchased Dragon Scales from independent cultivators under its protection, destroyed five second-rate forces implicated in intercepting sellers, and compelled major families and sects to assist in defending its stockpile 196.

The Yuanding Emperor later weakened the original Brocade Guard by separating its former functions and redistributing its authority. Chen Fan subsequently became Lord Protector and reconstructed it as a smaller, elite force focused on demon extermination 275 498.

After three years of accelerated training and re-equipment, Chen Fan prepared the rebuilt Brocade Guard for a counterattack into the Demon Domain 505. The campaign inflicted severe losses, but the surviving force continued searching the Ancient Life Star's seas, mountains, and deserts for remaining demons and demon beasts 513.

Notable Garrisons and Operations

• Ping An County Precinct — Chen Fan's original posting; a local Brocade Guard unit operating against demons in Great Zhou territory 1.
• Dragon Abyss Prefecture Chiliarch Garrison — Front-line garrison engaged in the prolonged defense against Purple Mountain's demons 45.
• Yan Cloud Prefecture Chiliarch Garrison — Veteran-heavy garrison facing Wolf Demon incursions, Demon Beast Mountain Range invasions, and pressure from local aristocratic families and sects 110.
• Northern Border Brocade Guard Commandery — A strategic commandery stationed near the Demon Beast Mountain Range and associated with Jiang Wang's defense of the northern frontier 103 276.
• Eastern Province Myriad Household Garrison — Coordinated the Dragon Scale acquisition operation and suppression of destabilizing regional forces during the Eastern Province crisis 196.
• Southern Border Search Teams — Twelve Chiliarch-led teams search the Ten Thousand Mile Mountains for demon traces; Hua Tianjiao's Ninth Chiliarch team includes members no weaker than peak Divine Transformation Realm 513.