Chapter 141: Commander of the Halberdiers

At this moment, the tribe had not yet built any city walls. Wu Zetian sat inside a tent, accompanied by a beautiful, gentle, bright-eyed and white-toothed young maiden. She wore a light gauze dress patterned with golden circular flower clusters, her fragrant shoulders exposed to the air, and her delicate collarbones completely unmasked.

A single cinnabar dot adorned her forehead like a red plum blossom, while a swell of voluptuous richness at her chest resembled pure snow—

Shangguan Wan'er.

Wu Zetian's trusted confidante.

Likewise, she was a renowned and immensely talented woman.

Yet even such a woman was eclipsed into utter plainness by Wu Zetian's side... After all, she was the only female emperor in the entire history of China.

"Your Majesty the Empress Heavenly Ruler, this humble subject has an offering to present, contributed by a player."

Lai Junchen knelt outside the tent.

The title Heavenly Ruler was the honorific title Wu Zetian had bestowed upon herself. This fellow had even invented a brand-new character for her name: Zhao (曌), believing herself to be as sublime as the sun and the moon suspended in the sky, casting her radiance upon all living beings.

"Very well."

When Shangguan Wan'er stepped out of the tent and received the "Statue of Yan Luo," the young maiden paused slightly, seemingly astonished by the exquisite craftsmanship of the sculpture. As for Wu Zetian, upon seeing the warm, delicate, almost jade-like texture of the marble statue, she too felt a trace of surprise, taking the palm-sized sculpture into her hands.

"Who is he?"

Wu Zetian's fingers brushed over the statue's bare upper torso, its softly contoured abdomen, and even traced the V-line of the pelvis. The empress's gaze flickered with a stirring of emotion. Powered by Tencent's cutting-edge black technology, the advanced intelligent NPC imbued with an emotional system was virtually indistinguishable from a normal human being.

"This subject respectfully requests Your Majesty to bestow a reward upon the player who contributed this item."

The personality setting of this empress, "fond of beautiful youths," flared up. Completely immersed in the statue, she gave no reply until Shangguan Wan'er reminded her from the side, whereupon she indifferently said: "Appoint him as a military sergeant."

A military sergeant did not refer to a modern Japanese non-commissioned officer, but rather to an unranked, lower-tier military post from the Tang Dynasty. For instance, Chen Zi'ang, who composed the famous poem *Ascending Youzhou Tower*, passed the imperial examinations at age twenty-four and once served as a Left Rectifier. Later, after a military defeat on the frontier, he was demoted by Wu Zetian to a military sergeant.

This position was far too low. Lai Junchen petitioned once more: "Reporting to Your Majesty the Empress Heavenly Ruler, that player possesses a boss template."

A boss template signified that the player's strength was undeniably high.

Wu Zetian declared: "Then appoint him as a Standard-Bearer of Honoring Virtue."

Lai Junchen continued to report: "That player is a Supreme Diamond VIP!"

As an advanced artificial intelligence, Wu Zetian naturally understood what this represented. Moreover, according to her programming, she was required to seize opportunities to grant Supreme Diamond VIPs favorable treatment that was well-grounded and did not provoke resentment from others—and thus, the empress decided: "Appoint him as a Standard-Bearer of Cherishing Virtue."

Military Sergeant: Unranked.

Standard-Bearer of Honoring Virtue: Junior Ninth Rank, Lower Grade.

Standard-Bearer of Cherishing Virtue: Senior Ninth Rank, Lower Grade.

Yan Luo never expected that in this short span of time, he would complete a triple jump in his official rank. Although military officials were not as prestigious as civil officials, leaping straight into a post of Senior Ninth Rank, Lower Grade—if this were truly a time-travel scenario back to the Tang Dynasty, it would undoubtedly be the protagonist's treatment!

After making these appointments, Wu Zetian was, after all, a monarch adept at employing talent. Pondering briefly, she added: "A Supreme Diamond VIP must certainly possess a mount. As an official of our Great Zhou, he naturally ought to serve the country. Since his mount allows for rapid travel, command him to act as a scout and search for a suitable location to establish a city."

"Understood."

Lai Junchen departed.

"Who on earth is this sculpted youth? The name of this artwork is the Statue of Yan Luo... Is his name Yan Luo?" Wu Zetian fell into deep contemplation.

Outside the tribe, the players were in an uproar once again. Watching Yan Luo mounted atop his heavy-duty warhorse, they were consumed by envy, jealousy, and hatred. Even the other Supreme Diamond VIP, the Pure-Hearted Little Brother, glanced at the donkey he was riding, then looked back at the towering steed straddled by Yan Luo, and a profound sense of inferiority welled up from the depths of his soul.

"A Prince on a White Horse!"

Several female players stared with infatuated eyes. Yan Luo was handsome and wealthy—riding a horse like that meant he must have recharged one million in cash; he was a super-typhoon-class tycoon!

Coupled with the innate feminine fondness for shiny objects—a trait similar to that of dragons—the gold chain hanging around Yan Luo's neck was impossible to look away from. Gleaming brilliantly in the sunlight, it seemed to gild him with an aura of supreme wealth.

"What Prince on a White Horse? That horse is brownish-yellow; he should be called the Prince on a Yellow Horse!"

"Prince on a Yellow Horse, I love you!"

At that moment, a utterly shameless player squeezed out from the crowd, lunged forward, and grabbed tightly onto Yan Luo's thigh: "Big Tycoon, let's be friends."

Yan Luo: "Let go!"

"Big Tycoon, won't you be my friend?" Clinging on like stubborn glue, this player refused to let go, his entire body plastered against Yan Luo's leg.

*Thud!*

He was kicked flying by a single hoof of the horse...

This commotion actually turned out to be beneficial for Yan Luo. The intense emotions he harvested, alongside shock, finally included "envy." When he chose to fuse the fragments, upon failure he gained 7% of a fragment. Very soon, his emotional energy filled up again, and this time he obtained 11% of a fragment.

Through the arduous efforts of the ruthless officials and bailiffs, order was finally restored. The fat middle-aged man known as the "Pure-Hearted Little Brother" rode his donkey over to Yan Luo and cupped his fists in greeting: "Brother, I never expected we'd run into another Supreme Diamond VIP so soon."

"Hello."

Yan Luo's status as a Supreme Diamond VIP was entirely fabricated, yet he harbored not the slightest psychological burden or sense of embarrassment.

"Brother, I run a coal mine. What do you do in real life?" the chubby uncle struck up a conversation.

"I'm a student."

"Oh, still in school, are you in high school or university?"

"Senior year of high school."

After exchanging a few mundane remarks, the fatty had already mentally categorized Yan Luo as a second-generation rich kid—someone who recharged a million on the very first day of the server launch while still being a high school student. He could only imagine how obscenely wealthy that family must be.

The Gold-tier VIP named "Sister I Want" stood nearby, utterly unable to break into the conversation between the two mounted "tycoons." Inside, he cursed viciously: "A couple of upstarts, how utterly vulgar."

Soon, Lai Junchen returned.

"Congratulations."

He said to Yan Luo, who was still seated on his horse: "Her Majesty has appointed you as a Standard-Bearer of Cherishing Virtue, Senior Ninth Rank, Lower Grade. From now on, we shall be fellow officials serving in the same court."

Lai Junchen's words were actually intended as flattery to satisfy the player's vanity. The so-called Standard-Bearer of Cherishing Virtue was merely an official who guarded the palace gates—equivalent to a ceremonial guard or a blade-wielding imperial bodyguard. In modern terms, he was nothing more than a security guard watching the gates of Zhongnanhai, which was worlds apart from his own position as an imperial censor.

At that moment, a worldwide announcement rang out with a system prompt:

"Player Forest Elf has presented a work of art by the Greek sculptor Phroniskos—the Statue of Yan Luo—to Her Majesty Wu Zetian, the Empress of the Huaxia Civilization, and has been appointed as: Standard-Bearer of Cherishing Virtue. As the first player to attain an official post, this is hereby announced to the entire world!"

Appointing a ninth-rank official was such a trivial matter that it would normally never qualify for a global announcement. But the game had just launched, and Yan Luo was the first player to become an official with a defined imperial rank! This held monumental significance on a global scale, while simultaneously serving to inspire other players and provoke the competitive vanity of the wealthy whale players.

The entire online gaming world erupted in an uproar!

Everywhere, questions echoed: "Who is Phroniskos?", "Who is Yan Luo?", and "Who is Forest Elf?"

The individual system prompt received solely by Yan Luo read:

"You have acquired the officialdom template: Standard-Bearer of Cherishing Virtue. As the first player to become an official during the rise of the great civilization of China, you have been rewarded with 1 Free Attribute Point."

"The faction you belong to, Empress Wu Zetian, has issued a quest to you: Scout and search for a suitable location to establish a city. Due to your official status, this quest cannot be declined. If you fail this mandatory quest, your official rank will be demoted from Senior Ninth Rank, Lower Grade, down to Junior Ninth Rank, Lower Grade."

"Upon successful completion of the quest, based on the comprehensive evaluation rating of the city-founding location you discover, you will receive commendation and rewards from your faction."