A Day in the Life of the Dead

1. This is a modern city setting, forty years after the revival of martial arts. All cities, organizations, companies, and characters are fictional and do not correspond to any real places or institutions. Martial artists are ranked on a nine-tier system, with ranks assessed and registered by the Martial Arts Affairs Bureau. A rank does not determine social status. Ranks below three are the common tier, ranks four through six are the professional tier, and ranks seven and above are rare. Fewer than two hundred martial artists ranked seven or above are registered in the entire city.

2. A corpse removal worker, believed to have no talent left, can inherit the last day of combat experience of a martial artist whose body he handles legally. Every time he uses this ability, he loses one piece of physical evidence that could establish a case, and another image of the moment of death is etched into his own body. He relies on this thorny ability to earn money, secure a permanent position, save his younger sister, and get closer to the truth behind his father's death eight years ago, which was ruled a training accident.

Genre: male-oriented urban high martial arts, career growth, light mystery. The focus is on corpse removal scenes and the ring, with the mystery serving the characters' choices. This is not a story about a citywide conspiracy, endless power-ups, or a martial arts manual. All cities, organizations, companies, and characters are fictional.