Jiang Chen continued calmly:
"Do you know why someone as weak as me can summon a Legendary Hero like you?"
The Empress pondered over his words.
Jiang Chen took out his only remaining Common Troop Token and showed it to the Empress.
"A plain Troop Token?" The Empress scoffed, "Why are you showing me this trash?"
As soon as she finished speaking, a dazzling light burst from Jiang Chen's hand, turning the entire territory golden.
A legend reappeared.
The overwhelming pressure made the Empress instinctively step back half a step, her mouth forming an O shape.
Jiang Chen used a no-cost enhancement once more, obtaining a Legendary Troop Token.
This was part of Jiang Chen's long-term plan.
He had three no-cost enhancement opportunities.
One to enhance a hero, one to enhance a unit, enough to be invincible in the early stages, any more would lead to combat power overflow.
The third would be reserved for when he acquired a special building, preferably a special unit building, for further enhancement.
The reason for waiting until now to enhance the unit was to intimidate potential heroes who admired strength, like the Empress.
The facts proved Jiang Chen's caution was absolutely correct.
As the light faded, the Empress stammered as she looked at the Troop Token in Jiang Chen's hand:
"Go... Golden Legendary..."
Turning a Common Troop Token into a Legendary Troop Token, what a terrifying skill!
[Prompt: The Empress is shocked by your skill, Favorability +20, currently 83, reaching "Passionate."]
Indeed, she admired strength!
To increase Favorability by 20 points in one go...
Jiang Chen said calmly:
"Now, am I qualified?"
The effect of the Favorability was immediate.
The Empress regained her composure, licked her lips, and curtsied:
"Lord, your methods are extraordinary, I admire you. I apologize for my earlier rudeness, please forgive me!"
Jiang Chen accepted her submission, extending a hand to help her up:
"No need for such formalities! I'm not that petty. Now that you've seen my abilities, as long as you work well for me, I promise to make you a god, immortal and eternal. And I will give you the respect due to a strong person."
If "Territory Simulation Studies" is the most important course for a Lord, then "Rhetoric" is undoubtedly the second.
Imagine a Lord who gets nervous speaking in front of subordinates, how could they command respect?
As a top student, Jiang Chen's rhetorical skills were naturally strong.
[The Empress is influenced by you, Favorability +1, currently 84.]
The Empress said, "Please rest assured, Lord, I will not disappoint. What do you need me to do next?"
Jiang Chen replied, "There will soon be a Monster Tide, of course, a Level 1 Monster Tide is a piece of cake for you."
After speaking, Jiang Chen did not delay, and lightly tossed the newly enhanced Legendary Troop Token.
"Recruit!"
A massive portal of light quickly formed, floating in mid-air.
Seeing the position of the light portal, Jiang Chen was overjoyed: Get faster updates on g.com.
"It's a flying unit!"
Such luck.
First, a special building blueprint, then a flying unit.
In both tactics and strategy, flying units have a huge advantage.
Soon, a black dragon, 4 meters long with an 8-meter wingspan, squeezed out of the light portal.
The dragon stepped on the portal, stretched its agile body, and then flapped its wings to soar into the sky.
A strong wind blew, making it hard to keep one's eyes open.
Roar—
The dragon let out a joyful roar, as if celebrating its rebirth.
After circling above the territory once, it obediently landed in front of Jiang Chen.
One, two, three...
Moments later.
Twelve miniature black dragons lined up neatly in front of Jiang Chen, their heads pressed tightly to the ground in absolute submission.
"Greetings, Lord!"
Several poor farmers who had just stood up were so frightened by the dragon's pressure that they knelt again.
Yet their eyes were filled with excitement.
After all, following a powerful Lord meant the territory's safety was assured.
Even the Empress watched the suddenly appearing powerful creatures with a serious expression.
If the twelve dragons attacked her, she would have no chance of survival.
[Prompt: The Empress is awed by your strength, Favorability +2, currently 86.]
Hahaha!
Ordinary Lords, even if they recruited a Legendary Hero, would likely treat them with utmost care.
Afraid that any dissatisfaction might lead to defection.
Jiang Chen, however, had raised the Empress's Favorability to 86 points within minutes of recruiting her.
This is the terror of a cheat.
Jiang Chen beamed:
"Rise, there's no need for excessive formality in the future."
He casually opened the attribute panel of one black dragon.
[Black Dragon] (Unnamed)
Race: Dragon Race
Level: 1
Quality: Legendary (☆)
Attributes: Physique 22, Spiritual Power 18, Soul 20, Capacity 0
Combat Power: 14☆
Skills: Dark Breath, Magic Dragon Scales, Berserker Heart.
...
So strong!
The black dragon's combat power is over ten times that of ordinary units.
Ten times the combat power doesn't mean "one can fight ten."
It's a tenfold difference in attributes.
(Combat power only calculates the average of the four-dimensional attributes, not skills.)
Imagine with a tenfold difference in Physique, Spiritual Power, and Soul, a single dragon could easily wipe out thousands of ordinary monsters.
Not to mention, the black dragon has three powerful skills.
And dragons can be ridden. Once they grow a bit more, Jiang Chen can experience being a Dragon Knight.
After all, it's a Legendary Unit.
Jiang Chen felt it necessary to give them impressive names, as a mark of honor.
He named them from left to right:
"You are Dragon One, you are Dragon Two... you are Dragon Twelve."
As Jiang Chen named them, the names appeared in the black dragons' attribute panels.
Though all were Legendary one-star black dragons, there were slight differences in attributes.
After naming them, Jiang Chen chose the one with the highest attributes.
"Dragon Nine, you will be their captain from now on."
Dragon Nine's face showed a human-like expression of joy:
"Thank you, Lord, for the name. Dragon Nine swears to protect the Lord with my life!"
The clear voice made Jiang Chen pause:
"You're female?"
Dragon Nine seemed a bit uneasy:
"According to your human terms, yes!"
Jiang Chen nodded, reassuring her:
"Rest assured, there's no gender discrimination in my territory, everything depends on strength."
Only then did Dragon Nine relax.
If this Lord were just an ordinary person, it wouldn't matter.
But they had already sensed the terrifying threat from the Empress.
There's only one explanation for this: the Empress is a Legendary Hero.
Their Lord actually gained the loyalty of a Legendary Hero, and it seemed quite high.
If the Lord were dissatisfied with them, it wouldn't end well for them.
Suddenly.
The Empress seemed to sense something, turning to look at the Fog of War outside the territory.
"Lord, there are uninvited guests outside the territory!"
Almost simultaneously.
Jiang Chen received a prompt.
[Prompt: The Monster Tide has begun, please prepare.]