Martial Academy

Biodata

Background

Martial academies were established by the imperial court to oversee court-affiliated martial forces across the regions and to gather exceptional disciples for centralized training. They serve as the training foundation of Great Qian: disciples who reach the Grandmaster Realm are regarded as having completed this preliminary stage and may be recruited into the dynasty's core organizations. 62 153 195

Clear Tea Martial Academy is the shared Martial Academy of Clear River and Ancient Tea Commanderies. It receives candidates recommended by regional academies, sects, and major clans; only a limited number enter each year despite annual assessments drawing roughly ten thousand applicants. 62 86

The academy's system emphasizes demonstrated strength over background. Rankings from the Myriad Forms Gourd determine resources, status, and access to higher halls, while disciples can improve or lose their standing through reassessments, challenges, and special trials. 91 96

Admission and Advancement

Entrance Assessment

The Martial Academy's admission assessment has three rounds:

1. Strength test — Candidates strike a special wall with a weapon; martial skills are prohibited, and results are based on dent depth and age. More than half of applicants can be eliminated in this round. 86
2. Practical combat — Candidates demonstrate combat ability against a puppet. 89
3. Myriad Forms Illusory Realm — Candidates enter an illusion created by the Myriad Forms Gourd and face demonic-beast trials without physical harm. Passing the basic trial makes a candidate an official disciple; final results account for both trial ranking and age. 90 91

Hall Hierarchy

Facilities and Resources

• Myriad Forms Gourd — A Dao artifact that creates the Myriad Forms Illusory Realm, records the academy's top-three-hundred combat rankings, and hosts quarterly reassessments. 90 91 96
• Myriad Illusions Hall — A cultivation and trial facility with rooms of varying grades; its use is controlled through bookings and academy resources. 96 154
• Heart-Questioning Hall — An illusion-based trial ground that tests willpower and awards Essence Points based on performance. 97
• Archive Pavilion / Scripture Pavilion — Holds True Techniques, martial skills, secret tomes, and Intent Martial Arts; access depends on a disciple's permissions. 96 153
• Exchange Center — Allows disciples to exchange Origin Points for pills, special items, and other cultivation resources. 96
• Beast-Taming Pavilion — Raises trained mounts for academy disciples. Bright Moon Tower disciples may apply for special mounts, while Bright Sun Hall disciples may ride flying spirit beasts. 105
• Star Sect Underground Palace map — The academy maintains maps of explored ruins compiled over countless years by Martial Academy martial artists. 165

Origin Points

Origin Points are the academy's internal resource currency. They may be earned through Myriad Forms Gourd rankings, trial missions, beheading missions, and mandatory annual assignments; they cannot simply be bought with silver. 96 105

• A new disciple's initial ranking can yield thousands of Origin Points. 96
• One Origin Point is roughly equivalent to ten taels of silver when compared with standard medicinal resources. 96
• High-value cultivation items can cost more than a million Origin Points. 96

Rules and Discipline

The academy permits formal challenges and competition, but restricts private violence within its grounds. Shen Yuansi, the academy's top-ranked disciple, states that disputes must be resolved through challenges and that a refusal must be respected. 350

Mao Wangchen personally suppresses breaches of academy order, including Le Shaoyuan's attack in the central hall. However, the academy's authority can be constrained by powerful external institutions such as the Embroidered Garment Tower. 163 164

Major Events

• Chen Fan's admission — Chen Fan clears the entrance assessment, enters Star Hall, and earns more than three thousand Origin Points from his assessment ranking. 89 90 96
• Bright Moon Tower promotion — Chen Fan receives permission to enter Bright Moon Tower despite being only at the fourth martial-arts level. 100
• Demon scourge response — Mao Wangchen and the academy's senior officials mobilize for the border while assigning disciples missions to eliminate Aberrant Demons within the commandery. 123
• Bright Sun Hall-level treatment — After Chen Fan reaches twenty-ninth in the Myriad Forms assessment, Mao Wangchen grants him Bright Sun Hall resource allocation and permissions despite his not yet being a Grandmaster. 153
• Internal political conflict — Vice Dean Ye Wuji faces an attempt by academy higher-ups to remove him from office; Chen Fan later returns and intervenes. 308 310
• Expansion through reputation — Chen Fan's fame attracts applicants from across the northwest, doubling Clear Tea Martial Academy's applicant pool over two years and prompting campus expansion. 446

Relationships

• Great Qian imperial court — Founder and overarching authority; Martial Academies are part of the dynasty's core training structure. 62 153
• Clear Tea Martial Academy — The Martial Academy serving Clear River and Ancient Tea Commanderies. 62
• Mao Wangchen — Headmaster; administers assessments, rankings, permissions, discipline, and access to secret realms. 90 153 162
• Ye Wuji — Vice Dean and a major supporter of Chen Fan's advancement within the academy. 85 100
• White Cloud Martial Academy — A regional martial academy whose relationship with the Martial Academy changes after Chen Fan's success, resulting in additional recommendation slots. 62 121
• Embroidered Garment Tower — A powerful external organization whose envoys can pressure the academy's authority, as demonstrated by Le Shaoyuan. 164
• Chen Fan — A standout disciple whose assessment performance, promotions, and later fame bring the academy prestige and increased recruitment. 96 153 446