Cultivation Online

Chapter 2593: Ninth Division

”Above Sergeant are Captain, Major, Colonel, and General. However, for most soldiers, Sergeant is the highest rank they can attain. The ranks above it belong to a separate class of military personnel that requires more than just time and merits to reach,” Sergeant Mu continued.

”Now let’s talk about the military’s organizational structure. It consists of nine main Divisions, each made up of its own Battalions, Companies, Platoons, and Squads.”

”Each Division has its own mission and area of expertise. For example, the First Division is combat-oriented, while the Second Division specializes in support. The Third Division focuses on logistics, and the Fourth Division specializes in intelligence gathering.”

”The Fifth through Eighth Divisions follow a similar structure, with the Fifth Division being combat-oriented, the Sixth specializing in support, and so on. In case you weren’t already aware, General Mei commands the First through Fourth Divisions, while General Gu oversees the latter four.”

”Even though we’re technically part of the same military, it often feels as though we’re divided into two factions, with both sides constantly competing against each other.”

After a brief pause, Sergeant Mu added, ”I probably shouldn’t be telling you this, but you’ll all find out eventually, so...”

A soldier suddenly raised their hands.

”What is it?”

”Sergeant, what about the Ninth Division? If General Mei commands the First through Fourth and General Gu oversees the Fifth through Eighth, then who commands the Ninth?”

”That would be the Supreme General, the highest-ranking soldier in the military.”

”Who is the Supreme General?”

Sergeant Mu shrugged.

”No clue. Only those in the Ninth Division and the higher-ups know the Supreme General’s identity.”

”Then how does one join the Ninth Division?”

”You don’t.” Sergeant Mu shook his head. ”You can apply to join any Division from the First to the Eighth after your year-long training, but the Ninth Division is by invitation only.”

”Is it possible to be rejected by a Division?” Someone then asked.

”Of course, but such cases are rare.”

”What happens if you’re rejected from all Divisions?”

”I would like to know too, since it has never happened before.”

Some time later—

”Let’s talk about your year-long training, or what we call boot camp. Everyone here—except Corporal Yuan, once again—will be required to partake in training at the end of the classes. During the training, you will be taught how to fight properly, as well as other skills you will require to flourish in the military.”

Sergeant Mu proceeded to spend the next two hours talking about the training and what they can expect.

”Alright, that will be all for today’s classes. We will resume class tomorrow at the same time. You are all dismissed.”

Sergeant Mu left the classroom immediately after dismissing them, and the soldiers swiftly left, returning to their living quarters since they were still not allowed to roam the military base.

As Yuan followed Sergeant Bing and Sergeant Quang back to his living quarters, he asked them, ”When will we learn about the sirens and the reason why everyone has to enter the underground?”

”You won’t learn about that until after boot camp,” said Sergeant Quang. ”However, since you won’t be participating in that and are already a Corporal, you will learn about it after the ceremony.”

”I don’t get it.” Yuan suddenly said.

”What do you mean?”

”Why is the military so restrictive with information? If the world is truly in danger, what’s the point of keeping everyone in the dark?”

Sergeant Bing shrugged, ”Don’t ask me. I am merely following the rules.”

Yuan narrowed his eyes.

’Something feels off about this...’ he thought.

’Why are they withholding such important information? I could understand keeping civilians in the dark to prevent mass panic, but why hide it from their own soldiers as well?’

’No... what if they have no choice but to hide it? If the information is dangerous, then everything makes sense!’

A look of realization appeared on Yuan’s face.

’There is a good chance that this information is related to Eternals, and the reason they’re not revealing it to everyone is that doing so would harm them!’

Since he experienced first-hand what it was like to learn about Eternals, Yuan understood the military’s decision to hide such information from everyone.

’Looks like I have no choice but to climb the ranks if I want to learn more...’ he sighed inwardly.

The next day, Yuan returned to the classroom.

”Today, we’ll discuss the rules—rules that every soldier must follow, regardless of rank,” Sergeant Mu said.

”There are many, but the most important one to remember is that all information concerning the military is strictly classified and must never be shared with civilians.”

”I’m aware that some of you come from military families and may have heard certain things from your relatives, but most of that is already public knowledge. The information I’m referring to is what you’ll learn during training and after becoming full-fledged soldiers.”

”If you’re caught sharing classified information, the punishment can be death, so keep that in mind.”

For the next several hours, Sergeant Mu would go over many rules of the military, including the unspoken ones.

”That’s all for today. Tomorrow, we will talk about the base and its facilities.”

After Sergeant Mu left, the soldiers immediately started complaining to each other.

”Man, these classes are so boring. I’d rather we just start training immediately.”

”If you knew what boot camp would be like, you wouldn’t be uttering such foolish words.”

”What is it like? Tell me.”

”And spoil the fun? Nah.”

Time continued to pass, and several days of classes later—

”That concludes your classroom instruction,” said Sergeant Mu at the end of class. ”Tomorrow, you will all begin boot camp. If you have any questions, you can ask the instructors there.”

He then turned to look at Yuan and Mei Xiaoyun and said, ”Corporal Yuan. Private Mei. General Mei has called for you two. Head to her office after this.”

”Yes, Sergeant.”

Some time later, Sergeant Bing and Sergeant Quang escorted them to General Mei’s office.