Military Service Bureau

Biodata

Purpose and Selection Process

Military service is mandatory at age eighteen and lasts three months under the supervision of the local Bureau. Its grand examination determines whether a participant may continue on the martial path. 1

• The lowest half of examinees are returned to civilian status and forbidden from further martial training. 1
• Of those who pass the first cutoff, another half receive only the status of martial artist; they may seek work in martial halls, escort agencies, and related professions. 1
• The remaining candidates qualify as martial prospects eligible to enter martial sects. 1
• The Bureau exists to identify martial talent and avoid overlooking potential recruits. 3
• Talented disciples are ultimately supplied to the higher orthodoxy before the dynasty and ordinary sects receive the remaining candidates. 6

Training and Facilities

Nine Palace Living Stakes

The Bureau's foundational martial art is the Nine Palace Living Stakes, a three-by-three stake formation combining footwork with precise strikes.

• Each stake is shaped like an upper-body puppet, with a chest, abdomen, hands, and head. 1
• Disciples must navigate the stakes and strike marked red points to produce a sound. 1
• Achieving nine sounds in three breaths marks entry into the technique's threshold; nine breaks in three breaths is associated with reaching Skin Tempering. 2 6
• Formal instruction ends after ten days, after which disciples practice independently. 2

Residential and Service Areas

• The Red Cloud County Bureau houses four hundred disciples, each assigned a single-room courtyard with personal Nine Palace Stakes. 1
• Its facilities include a Public Kitchen and Utility Room. 3 4
• Wei Jinlin personally serves as the Red Cloud County Bureau's director, martial instructor, Utility Room steward, courier, and cook. 4 11 30

Grand Martial Arts Arena

The Bureau's restricted Grand Martial Arts Arena is used for special training of advanced disciples.

• The arena contains roughly thirty rows of iron stakes, spaced about two yards apart. 25
• It formerly housed an Iron-Scaled Python Demon at the far end of the Iron Stake Area. 25
• Disciples who reached Nine Breaks in One Breath or above were selected for special training there amid increased demon activity. 25
• Progress through the Iron Stake Area was used to determine eligibility for Red Tokens, which represented portions of demon meat. 30

Administration

Directors

• Wei Jinlin — Director of the Red Cloud County Military Service Bureau; personally instructs disciples, controls access to the Bureau, and possesses sufficient strength to defend it alone. 2 6 18
• Xu Shou — Director of the Black Mountain County Military Service Bureau; relocated one hundred elite disciples to Red Cloud County after losing his county's special-training resources to a monster. 30
• Xie Qingci — Director of the Qingning Prefecture City Military Service Bureau; oversees talent assessments for selected county-level geniuses. 72
• Four county directors — Jointly organized the Genius Bait plan and could grant recommendations to participating disciples based on performance. 46 65

Transfers

The Bureau system permits transfers between jurisdictions through sufficient influence or official arrangement.

• Li Youning was transferred from Red Cloud County to the Qingning Prefecture City Military Service Bureau through her family's arrangements. 21
• Qin Zhonghai arranged for Li Hu to transfer to the Prefecture City Bureau after Li Hu helped save his life. 59

Security and Demon Response

Despite its elevated status, the Bureau is repeatedly targeted during the rise of demon activity.

• Three intruders infiltrated the Red Cloud County Bureau before dawn; Wei Jinlin repelled them alone. 6
• An Earth Dragon Beast attacked near the Iron Stake Area and killed disciple Zhao Zhiqiu before Wei Jinlin drove it away. 42
• After monster attacks disrupted neighboring counties, disciples from Black Mountain, Black Water, and Cloud Peak Counties were relocated to Red Cloud County. 41
• The four Bureau directors later coordinated a Genius Bait plan intended to lure and eliminate the Earth Dragon Beast. 46 52
• Wei Jinlin ordered participating disciples to return to the city when the plan escalated into a confrontation with the demon. 54

Examinations and Recommendations

• The Red Cloud County Bureau held a mini-test in which the three disciples who advanced deepest into the Iron Stake Area each received a Red Token. 30
• Performance in the Genius Bait plan could earn a joint recommendation from the four directors, guaranteeing at least the possibility of entering a third-rate sect and potentially a first-rate sect. 46
• Lu Ming was later recommended for entry into a first-rate sect by the four directors. 65
• At the Qingning Prefecture City Bureau, selected geniuses were exempted from the ordinary Grand Examination and admitted to the inner division for talent testing. 72
• Talent-test results influence the status and resources a disciple may receive after entering a sect. 72