Chapter 2: Military Affairs Registration
The streets were bustling with pedestrians, their footsteps mingling with the continuous, echoing shouts from the distant training grounds. The girl with glasses and her squad mates did not escort Lin Yan directly to the door of the Military Affairs Bureau. Instead, they stopped at a crossroads. At the four corners of the intersection stood waist-high blast-proof concrete bollards, their surfaces covered with scratches of varying depths—remnants of past riots and emergency evacuations. On the corner was a small supply station where several workers in grey-blue overalls were carrying sealed metal crates. The crates bore prominent red markings: Emergency Trauma Medication.
"If you go straight down the street ahead, you'll see the Municipal Military Affairs Bureau building. It's very easy to spot; the exterior walls are made of grey-black reinforced armor plating." The girl with glasses raised her hand and pointed forward. The wind lifted the collar of her school uniform, revealing a thin silver pendant around her neck. It was a basic Sea of Consciousness stabilizer uniformly issued to combat readiness high school students, used to resist weak mental turbulence in the wilderness. "Our squad still needs to return to the school to submit the mountain patrol mission report. The mission records and rift detection data must be archived, so we can't accompany you any further."
The burly young man beside him nodded slightly. There was still a trace of mud from the wilderness on his forearm, and a fresh scratch marked the scabbard of his short blade—a souvenir from his skirmish with a small scaled beast while investigating the mountain earlier. He fixed his gaze on Lin Yan, his tone solemn.
"Once inside, explain your situation directly to the clerk at the window, and mention that our Third High School mountain patrol squad has already registered your arrival. Just answer the questions truthfully; do not hide anything. The Military Affairs Bureau is extremely strict when verifying unregistered personnel. If you provide false information, you'll be taken directly for an in-depth Sea of Consciousness screening. It's a huge hassle."
"Thank you all." Lin Yan bowed slightly. Throughout his journey, he had observed that although these young people were not old, their words and actions carried the vigilance of those who constantly lived on the edge of life and death. They were by no means ordinary students from a peaceful era.
After a brief farewell, the patrol squad turned and merged into the flow of pedestrians on another street, gradually disappearing into the distance. Lin Yan continued forward steadily along the path they had indicated.
This street was different from the main street he had taken when entering the city; it was a secondary road in the government district. The walls of the buildings on both sides were thickened and reinforced, with shock-resistant concrete poured over the surface. All the windows had been replaced with multi-layered blast-proof glass, and the frames were fitted with metal locking clasps. There were very few shops on the street; most were officially controlled supply stations, medical aid posts, and Sea of Consciousness adjustment rooms. Occasionally, one could see small shops with white-and-red signs selling calming powder and nerve-soothing ointments—essential items for relieving headaches and mental exhaustion caused by Sea of Consciousness overexertion.
The composition of pedestrians on the street was also different. Many civil servants in standardized grey uniforms rushed about, along with numerous patrol teams wearing War Zone armbands, patrolling slowly in groups of three. Their gazes were calm, but they instinctively scanned the side alleys and the shadows of the buildings—a habit ingrained by living under the constant threat of alien species. Ordinary people did not walk with their heads down, lost in thought and defenseless; most maintained an awareness of their surroundings.
Every hundred meters along the road, a massive electronic bulletin board was embedded in the wall. The screens continuously scrolled through various notices: Energy fluctuations detected at Rift No. 37 outside the city; surrounding patrol squads to raise alert levels; next week's new recruit training camp begins enrollment; logistics position vacancies announced; and casualty lists, where rows of cold names silently spoke of the slaughter beyond the walls. Below the electronic screens were paper notices, their edges curled slightly by the wind, replaced at regular intervals by the on-duty personnel.
After walking for about twenty minutes, a thick, square grey building appeared in his field of vision. The building had no ornate design; it was perfectly square, its exterior covered in heavy alloy steel plates with clear welding seams at the joints. Signal towers and mental interference arrays were erected on the roof. Sturdy guard posts stood on both sides of the main entrance, with two armed city defense soldiers standing on either side. They wore light armor and held standard-issue pulse rifles, their sharp eyes scanning everyone intending to enter the building. This was the Municipal Military Affairs Bureau of L City Bastion.
Lin Yan stepped forward and explained his purpose to the soldier guarding the entrance. The soldier pulled up the electronic entry registration record, verified the patrol squad's report, and scrutinized Lin Yan from head to toe. He gave a slight sniff with his nose to confirm there was no foul, rotting stench unique to alien species before making a note on his handheld terminal and instructing in a deep voice, "You must complete the file registration within twenty-four hours of entering the city. Unregistered individuals are strictly prohibited from loitering or wandering privately. Violators will be dealt with according to War Zone regulations."
"Understood."
The metal side door slid slowly inward, and Lin Yan stepped into the Military Affairs Bureau lobby. The space was vast, with dense, reinforced load-bearing steel frames erected on the ceiling to prevent the top floor from collapsing in the event of a mental shock. The air in the lobby was a mixture of cold metal, disinfectant, and a faint, subtle psychic residue left by many people simultaneously operating their Sea of Consciousness.
The lobby was divided into several service windows, separated by semi-transparent, anti-psychic interference glass. They handled identity registration, material requisition, assessment registration, casualty reporting, and intelligence registration. A few people stood in line in front of the windows, and everyone spoke in hushed tones; no one made loud noises. A pale-faced soldier sat on a bench against the wall, eyes closed in concentration, fingertips gently pressing against his temples, clearly suffering from a minor Sea of Consciousness injury and waiting for treatment. There were also a few teenagers, likely newcomers preparing to sign up for the assessment, talking in low voices, their expressions tense yet hopeful.
Lin Yan stopped in front of the identity registration window. Behind the window sat a female clerk in her thirties, wearing a grey standardized uniform, the exhaustion of long-term shift work evident in her eyes. A touch-screen terminal was placed on her desk, and beside it lay a flat, smooth silver Sea of Consciousness detector. The surface of the instrument was engraved with intricate patterns, used to collect superficial consciousness fluctuations. She raised her eyes to look at Lin Yan, her voice steady and devoid of unnecessary emotion.
"Come sit down. Name, age, place of birth."
"Lin Yan. I don't know my exact age; I've lived in seclusion in the deep mountains for a long time."
The clerk's hand holding the touch pen paused slightly. She raised her eyes and looked at Lin Yan a few more times. People with absolutely no secular identity records were extremely rare. Fortunately, his entry registration had been noted in advance, so she did not press the matter further and continued with the registration process.
"Seclusion? Can you provide any proof of identity or information about relatives?"
"No."
"Understood." The clerk made the corresponding marks on the electronic form. "According to the regulations for registering unregistered personnel, we will first collect your facial and biometric information, followed by a superficial Sea of Consciousness screening. This is a mandatory procedure for all incoming personnel, primarily to check for mental parasitism by Lizardmen. The instrument will only scan the surface layer of your consciousness and will not pry into your deep thoughts, so don't be nervous. If parasitic contamination is detected, you will be immediately isolated. This is a regulation to protect the entire bastion."
Lin Yan nodded gently and sat in the chair in front of the window as instructed.
The clerk reached out and pushed the silver detector toward him.
"Press your forehead against this metal panel. Relax your mind, do not resist intentionally, and hold it for ten seconds."
Lin Yan did as instructed. The cold touch of the metal pressed against his forehead, and an extremely soft, weak mental power slowly spread out, gently brushing across the surface of his consciousness like clear water.
This was a unique detection method of this world. One of the most terrifying tactics of the alien lizard race was mental infiltration and parasitism. Many victims looked identical to ordinary people on the outside, but their inner selves had long been replaced by alien wills. Therefore, everyone entering the city had to pass this checkpoint.
Lin Yan's mind still retained all the memories of his Jianghu battles. His mental state, honed by years of living between life and death, was inherently stable and resilient. This superficial scan was like a gentle breeze blowing over towering rocks; it could not shake him in the slightest.
The data stream on the instrument's screen jumped continuously, rows of waveform curves rising and falling rapidly. After a few breaths, they gradually stabilized, and a line of green text appeared on the screen: No mental parasitism. Sea of Consciousness fluctuations are stable. No abnormal contamination signals.
Seeing the test results on the screen, the clerk secretly breathed a sigh of relief. She had processed many people returning from the wilderness; even if they weren't parasitized, their Sea of Consciousness was usually tossed into chaotic fluctuations by the mental turbulence leaking from the rifts. This young man who had just walked out of the deep mountains had an unimaginably clean surface layer of consciousness; his mental foundation was far stronger than that of ordinary civilians.
"The test shows no problems." She entered the collected biometric information into the city's War Zone system, generated a temporary identity file, and printed out a hard card, handing it to Lin Yan. "This is your temporary identity card, valid for thirty days. Within these thirty days, you need to determine your future path."
She tapped her finger on the options on the screen and continued to explain.
"First, register for an assigned city logistics position. This includes jobs like sorting in material warehouses, maintaining the city walls, or medical assistance. You work in exchange for fixed rations and simple housing, without having to fight on the front lines. The downside is that resource quotas are limited, making it very difficult to obtain cultivation resources for the Sea of Consciousness or martial arts. You'll be a civilian defending the city for the rest of your life."
"Second, sign up for the municipal unified talent assessment for newcomers. The assessment consists of basic physical fitness tests and Sea of Consciousness potential evaluations. As long as you meet the standards in both evaluations, you can enter the official newcomer training camp. After the training, you will be graded uniformly. Those with exceptional talent can be recommended to enter combat readiness high schools or directly assigned to frontline combat squads. However, the assessment carries risks. Forcing the Sea of Consciousness can cause permanent mental damage; in severe cases, it can turn a person into a mental cripple."
Lin Yan pinched the thin card between his fingertips. The material was special, waterproof and shock-resistant, printed with the facial image just collected and a unique identity number. He glanced down at the card, then raised his eyes to look at the clerk.
"Where do I sign up for the newcomer talent assessment?"
"In the west auxiliary building of the Military Affairs Bureau. The registration window will be open continuously for the next few days. The assessment will begin in three days." The clerk顺手 (conveniently) picked up a simple flyer and handed it over. The paper listed the assessment items, location, and detailed precautions. "Think it over carefully before deciding. Once you sign up, you cannot withdraw at will."
"I understand." Lin Yan put away the temporary identity card and the flyer.
Leaving the registration window, Lin Yan did not immediately head to the west auxiliary building to sign up. He planned to walk around the city first, see this bastion city with his own eyes, experience the survival state of ordinary people in this world, and gather more information about the alien lizard race and Sea of Consciousness cultivation. Making hasty, major decisions had never been a wise move.
Walking out of the Military Affairs Bureau building, the afternoon sunlight spilled onto the streets. Inside the high walls, countless people gritted their teeth and persevered with meager resources, guarding this small piece of survival land; beyond the thick city walls, endless subterranean monsters lurked in the wilderness and deep within the rifts, waiting for any opportunity to break through the defensive lines.
Lin Yan safely tucked the temporary identity card into his pocket and walked slowly down the street. People still came and went, each bearing their own heavy burdens. The choice of the road ahead lay before him, but he was in no rush to make a hasty decision. He still had time to slowly familiarize himself with this cruel yet resilient, broken world.
End of Chapter
"If you go straight down the street ahead, you'll see the Municipal Military Affairs Bureau building. It's very easy to spot; the exterior walls are made of grey-black reinforced armor plating." The girl with glasses raised her hand and pointed forward. The wind lifted the collar of her school uniform, revealing a thin silver pendant around her neck. It was a basic Sea of Consciousness stabilizer uniformly issued to combat readiness high school students, used to resist weak mental turbulence in the wilderness. "Our squad still needs to return to the school to submit the mountain patrol mission report. The mission records and rift detection data must be archived, so we can't accompany you any further."
The burly young man beside him nodded slightly. There was still a trace of mud from the wilderness on his forearm, and a fresh scratch marked the scabbard of his short blade—a souvenir from his skirmish with a small scaled beast while investigating the mountain earlier. He fixed his gaze on Lin Yan, his tone solemn.
"Once inside, explain your situation directly to the clerk at the window, and mention that our Third High School mountain patrol squad has already registered your arrival. Just answer the questions truthfully; do not hide anything. The Military Affairs Bureau is extremely strict when verifying unregistered personnel. If you provide false information, you'll be taken directly for an in-depth Sea of Consciousness screening. It's a huge hassle."
"Thank you all." Lin Yan bowed slightly. Throughout his journey, he had observed that although these young people were not old, their words and actions carried the vigilance of those who constantly lived on the edge of life and death. They were by no means ordinary students from a peaceful era.
After a brief farewell, the patrol squad turned and merged into the flow of pedestrians on another street, gradually disappearing into the distance. Lin Yan continued forward steadily along the path they had indicated.
This street was different from the main street he had taken when entering the city; it was a secondary road in the government district. The walls of the buildings on both sides were thickened and reinforced, with shock-resistant concrete poured over the surface. All the windows had been replaced with multi-layered blast-proof glass, and the frames were fitted with metal locking clasps. There were very few shops on the street; most were officially controlled supply stations, medical aid posts, and Sea of Consciousness adjustment rooms. Occasionally, one could see small shops with white-and-red signs selling calming powder and nerve-soothing ointments—essential items for relieving headaches and mental exhaustion caused by Sea of Consciousness overexertion.
The composition of pedestrians on the street was also different. Many civil servants in standardized grey uniforms rushed about, along with numerous patrol teams wearing War Zone armbands, patrolling slowly in groups of three. Their gazes were calm, but they instinctively scanned the side alleys and the shadows of the buildings—a habit ingrained by living under the constant threat of alien species. Ordinary people did not walk with their heads down, lost in thought and defenseless; most maintained an awareness of their surroundings.
Every hundred meters along the road, a massive electronic bulletin board was embedded in the wall. The screens continuously scrolled through various notices: Energy fluctuations detected at Rift No. 37 outside the city; surrounding patrol squads to raise alert levels; next week's new recruit training camp begins enrollment; logistics position vacancies announced; and casualty lists, where rows of cold names silently spoke of the slaughter beyond the walls. Below the electronic screens were paper notices, their edges curled slightly by the wind, replaced at regular intervals by the on-duty personnel.
After walking for about twenty minutes, a thick, square grey building appeared in his field of vision. The building had no ornate design; it was perfectly square, its exterior covered in heavy alloy steel plates with clear welding seams at the joints. Signal towers and mental interference arrays were erected on the roof. Sturdy guard posts stood on both sides of the main entrance, with two armed city defense soldiers standing on either side. They wore light armor and held standard-issue pulse rifles, their sharp eyes scanning everyone intending to enter the building. This was the Municipal Military Affairs Bureau of L City Bastion.
Lin Yan stepped forward and explained his purpose to the soldier guarding the entrance. The soldier pulled up the electronic entry registration record, verified the patrol squad's report, and scrutinized Lin Yan from head to toe. He gave a slight sniff with his nose to confirm there was no foul, rotting stench unique to alien species before making a note on his handheld terminal and instructing in a deep voice, "You must complete the file registration within twenty-four hours of entering the city. Unregistered individuals are strictly prohibited from loitering or wandering privately. Violators will be dealt with according to War Zone regulations."
"Understood."
The metal side door slid slowly inward, and Lin Yan stepped into the Military Affairs Bureau lobby. The space was vast, with dense, reinforced load-bearing steel frames erected on the ceiling to prevent the top floor from collapsing in the event of a mental shock. The air in the lobby was a mixture of cold metal, disinfectant, and a faint, subtle psychic residue left by many people simultaneously operating their Sea of Consciousness.
The lobby was divided into several service windows, separated by semi-transparent, anti-psychic interference glass. They handled identity registration, material requisition, assessment registration, casualty reporting, and intelligence registration. A few people stood in line in front of the windows, and everyone spoke in hushed tones; no one made loud noises. A pale-faced soldier sat on a bench against the wall, eyes closed in concentration, fingertips gently pressing against his temples, clearly suffering from a minor Sea of Consciousness injury and waiting for treatment. There were also a few teenagers, likely newcomers preparing to sign up for the assessment, talking in low voices, their expressions tense yet hopeful.
Lin Yan stopped in front of the identity registration window. Behind the window sat a female clerk in her thirties, wearing a grey standardized uniform, the exhaustion of long-term shift work evident in her eyes. A touch-screen terminal was placed on her desk, and beside it lay a flat, smooth silver Sea of Consciousness detector. The surface of the instrument was engraved with intricate patterns, used to collect superficial consciousness fluctuations. She raised her eyes to look at Lin Yan, her voice steady and devoid of unnecessary emotion.
"Come sit down. Name, age, place of birth."
"Lin Yan. I don't know my exact age; I've lived in seclusion in the deep mountains for a long time."
The clerk's hand holding the touch pen paused slightly. She raised her eyes and looked at Lin Yan a few more times. People with absolutely no secular identity records were extremely rare. Fortunately, his entry registration had been noted in advance, so she did not press the matter further and continued with the registration process.
"Seclusion? Can you provide any proof of identity or information about relatives?"
"No."
"Understood." The clerk made the corresponding marks on the electronic form. "According to the regulations for registering unregistered personnel, we will first collect your facial and biometric information, followed by a superficial Sea of Consciousness screening. This is a mandatory procedure for all incoming personnel, primarily to check for mental parasitism by Lizardmen. The instrument will only scan the surface layer of your consciousness and will not pry into your deep thoughts, so don't be nervous. If parasitic contamination is detected, you will be immediately isolated. This is a regulation to protect the entire bastion."
Lin Yan nodded gently and sat in the chair in front of the window as instructed.
The clerk reached out and pushed the silver detector toward him.
"Press your forehead against this metal panel. Relax your mind, do not resist intentionally, and hold it for ten seconds."
Lin Yan did as instructed. The cold touch of the metal pressed against his forehead, and an extremely soft, weak mental power slowly spread out, gently brushing across the surface of his consciousness like clear water.
This was a unique detection method of this world. One of the most terrifying tactics of the alien lizard race was mental infiltration and parasitism. Many victims looked identical to ordinary people on the outside, but their inner selves had long been replaced by alien wills. Therefore, everyone entering the city had to pass this checkpoint.
Lin Yan's mind still retained all the memories of his Jianghu battles. His mental state, honed by years of living between life and death, was inherently stable and resilient. This superficial scan was like a gentle breeze blowing over towering rocks; it could not shake him in the slightest.
The data stream on the instrument's screen jumped continuously, rows of waveform curves rising and falling rapidly. After a few breaths, they gradually stabilized, and a line of green text appeared on the screen: No mental parasitism. Sea of Consciousness fluctuations are stable. No abnormal contamination signals.
Seeing the test results on the screen, the clerk secretly breathed a sigh of relief. She had processed many people returning from the wilderness; even if they weren't parasitized, their Sea of Consciousness was usually tossed into chaotic fluctuations by the mental turbulence leaking from the rifts. This young man who had just walked out of the deep mountains had an unimaginably clean surface layer of consciousness; his mental foundation was far stronger than that of ordinary civilians.
"The test shows no problems." She entered the collected biometric information into the city's War Zone system, generated a temporary identity file, and printed out a hard card, handing it to Lin Yan. "This is your temporary identity card, valid for thirty days. Within these thirty days, you need to determine your future path."
She tapped her finger on the options on the screen and continued to explain.
"First, register for an assigned city logistics position. This includes jobs like sorting in material warehouses, maintaining the city walls, or medical assistance. You work in exchange for fixed rations and simple housing, without having to fight on the front lines. The downside is that resource quotas are limited, making it very difficult to obtain cultivation resources for the Sea of Consciousness or martial arts. You'll be a civilian defending the city for the rest of your life."
"Second, sign up for the municipal unified talent assessment for newcomers. The assessment consists of basic physical fitness tests and Sea of Consciousness potential evaluations. As long as you meet the standards in both evaluations, you can enter the official newcomer training camp. After the training, you will be graded uniformly. Those with exceptional talent can be recommended to enter combat readiness high schools or directly assigned to frontline combat squads. However, the assessment carries risks. Forcing the Sea of Consciousness can cause permanent mental damage; in severe cases, it can turn a person into a mental cripple."
Lin Yan pinched the thin card between his fingertips. The material was special, waterproof and shock-resistant, printed with the facial image just collected and a unique identity number. He glanced down at the card, then raised his eyes to look at the clerk.
"Where do I sign up for the newcomer talent assessment?"
"In the west auxiliary building of the Military Affairs Bureau. The registration window will be open continuously for the next few days. The assessment will begin in three days." The clerk顺手 (conveniently) picked up a simple flyer and handed it over. The paper listed the assessment items, location, and detailed precautions. "Think it over carefully before deciding. Once you sign up, you cannot withdraw at will."
"I understand." Lin Yan put away the temporary identity card and the flyer.
Leaving the registration window, Lin Yan did not immediately head to the west auxiliary building to sign up. He planned to walk around the city first, see this bastion city with his own eyes, experience the survival state of ordinary people in this world, and gather more information about the alien lizard race and Sea of Consciousness cultivation. Making hasty, major decisions had never been a wise move.
Walking out of the Military Affairs Bureau building, the afternoon sunlight spilled onto the streets. Inside the high walls, countless people gritted their teeth and persevered with meager resources, guarding this small piece of survival land; beyond the thick city walls, endless subterranean monsters lurked in the wilderness and deep within the rifts, waiting for any opportunity to break through the defensive lines.
Lin Yan safely tucked the temporary identity card into his pocket and walked slowly down the street. People still came and went, each bearing their own heavy burdens. The choice of the road ahead lay before him, but he was in no rush to make a hasty decision. He still had time to slowly familiarize himself with this cruel yet resilient, broken world.
End of Chapter