Upon seeing the task, Chi Cheng leaned back in his gaming chair, laughing heartily.
"Brothers, it's time to act! Under the heavens, all land belongs to the king! The rise of the dynasty is today!"
Chi Cheng looked at the screen, where an input box appeared.
[Please establish your empire's name.]
The chat exploded with suggestions.
[Great Chi! It must be Great Chi!]
[Chi Dynasty!]
[Call it the Sixteen Dynasty, to commemorate the host being killed sixteen times by the Boss just now!]
[Name it Great Cheng, the host's name has 'Cheng', it sounds imperial!]
Chi Cheng looked at the barrage of comments, his face darkened.
What kind of suggestions are these? He clearly deserved better!
He cleared his throat, pretending to ponder for a moment.
"A nation's name must be grand."
"It can't be too common, nor too fanciful."
"It should be simple, have a sense of historical weight, and let future generations know it's a legend upon hearing it."
"Look at the past, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, Qing... Great Tang! Great Song! How majestic do they sound!"
Chi Cheng stroked his chin, his fingers flying over the keyboard,
"Then... let's call it [Great E]! Emphasizing a comprehensive network! A blend of East and West!"
The livestream room went silent for a second.
The next second, the chat exploded.
[????]
[You built it up for so long, and you came up with Great E?]
[Where's the historical weight?]
[Future historians: I can't make this up anymore.]
[Might as well call it the Sixteen Dynasty!]
[What did I say, increase the dosage!]
Chi Cheng forced a serious expression.
"What do you know?"
"E is a very important letter in English."
"It stands for Emotion, Energy, Empire!"
"Together, it means emotion, energy, empire!"
"This is a fusion of East and West, looking to the future!"
"You don't understand because your vision is too small!"
The chat showed no mercy.
[Did the host drink peanut oil? Damn, you can talk!]
[Stop making things up, Brother Chi, you're just too lazy to switch input methods.]
[Laughing to death, the host's naming skills are as abstract as his gameplay.]
[Great E Dynasty, it sounds so abstract!]
[Long live the emperor, the emperor's English is great!]
Ignoring the ridicule, Chi Cheng clicked confirm.
The next second.
The game screen suddenly paused.
A burst of blinding gold light, reminiscent of cheap special effects, exploded on the screen, and the system solemnly announced:
[The Great E Empire is officially founded!]
[Mandate Value +10]
[National Destiny Value +5]
[Money +1000]
[Establish the Foundation of the Nation: Step Two]
[Please establish your capital.]
[The capital is the heart of the empire, the foundation of the nation's destiny. Please, Your Majesty, carefully select an auspicious land to stabilize the mountains and rivers!]
Seeing this prompt, Chi Cheng moved the mouse, controlling the perspective to take a full circle in the cramped rental room in the game.
The walls were peeling.
The light bulb flickered.
This didn't look like the start an empire should have.
Chi Cheng immediately showed a face of disdain.
"Brothers, choosing a capital is a technical task, it can't be done carelessly."
"Since ancient times, choosing a capital has emphasized the convergence of dragon veins, easy defense and difficult attack, and abundant resources!"
"You want me to set the capital in this shabby rental room?"
"Does that make sense?"
So, he immediately operated the character to walk out the door.
Once outside, the game's view suddenly expanded.
In the distance, the outlines of city skyscrapers could be vaguely seen.
Brightly lit.
Extraordinarily grand.
"Brothers, the capital must have a grand vision! See that CBD over there? That's where the True Dragon Emperor should be!"
He controlled Jiang Xiaoyu to run all the way outside.
But just as he reached the exit of the urban village, the screen suddenly darkened.
The originally brightly lit city outline in the distance was instantly shrouded by a layer of gray mist.
The mist stood like a wall outside the alley entrance.
Going further, the character stopped directly.
A line of prompts immediately popped up in the center of the screen.
[The area ahead is not yet unlocked.]
[The current national destiny is weak, the dragon aura is insufficient, unable to leave the urban village range.]
[Hint: The empire is just beginning, the foundation is unstable.]
[Please complete the foundation construction first, enhance the national destiny, and then attempt to explore a broader area, vying for the Central Plains!]
Chi Cheng: "..."
Chat: "..."
After a brief dead silence, the livestream room exploded with a screen full of merciless laughter.
[Hahaha! Damn weak national destiny! Want to set the capital in the CBD? Can't even leave the village entrance!]
[Your Majesty, times have changed, trying to challenge the capital bigwigs without graduating from the beginner protection zone?]
[I think it's very reasonable! Isn't this just the Beginner Village!]
Chi Cheng, unwilling to accept defeat, controlled Jiang Xiaoyu to try different directions along the alley.
It was frustrating, unable to leave.
However, Chi Cheng wasn't discouraged.
This game even had a fog of war, what does that mean?
It means the map is quite large! The game's openness is strong! The subsequent content is exciting enough!
So, Chi Cheng decisively turned the character around, running to the largest and most luxuriously decorated internet cafe in the urban village.
Click [Establish Capital].
But soon.
[Establishment failed!]
[Hint: You must have actual control over the location.]
Chi Cheng: "..."
Chat: "..."
The smile on Chi Cheng's face instantly froze.
Chi Cheng gritted his teeth, then ran to the nearby bathhouse, chess room, and even a sizable chain supermarket...
Without exception, all failed.
Chi Cheng controlled the protagonist to wander around the streets of the urban village, looking at those industries that didn't belong to him at all, and finally could only sigh longingly at the screen.
"Brothers, case solved. The phrase 'Under the heavens, all land belongs to the king' doesn't work in modern society at all..."
So, he could only return the way he came.
Step by step, he walked back to the shabby building in the urban village.
He directly clicked the mouse on the floor of the rental room.
This time, the system didn't pop up a blinding red frame.
[Detected that you hold a valid lease contract for this 15-square-meter house]
[Meeting the minimum territorial claim conditions!]
[Confirm!]
Soon.
Mission accomplished!
[Foundation Establishment Mission Completed!]
[All prerequisites met! The foundation of the nation is set, a grand enterprise begins here!]
[Character interface unlocked!]
[Current identity: Founder of the Great E Dynasty]
[National Destiny Value: 8]
[Mandate Value: 17]
[Treasury: 3000]
Seeing this prompt, Chi Cheng finally felt a bit relieved from the frustration of being rejected by five-star hotels, high-end internet cafes, and bathhouses.
"Brothers, see?"
"It's not that I don't want to set the capital in a five-star hotel, it's just that this world doesn't understand me yet!"
"What's wrong with 15 square meters? 15 square meters is still a kingdom!"
Chi Cheng looked at the character interface, studying it carefully for a while,
Mandate Value 17 points?
How do you use this thing, is it time to recruit people next? A lone emperor has no presence.
Various comments from the livestream chat also popped up.
[Alright, alright, thirty years on the east of the river, thirty years on the west, don't underestimate the Great Emperor's poverty, right?]
[Treasury 3000? Your Majesty, your treasury isn't even enough to get a VIP booth at a KTV.]
[Laughing to death, a 15-square-meter kingdom, the emperor turns over in his sleep and he's out of the province!]
[The birthplace of the Great E Empire must start from a rental room!]
Just as Chi Cheng was about to study the character interface, the screen suddenly shook slightly.
That golden-edged imperial decree unfurled with a swish.
A deep drumbeat followed.
[Mission Triggered!]
[As an emperor, how can you be without guards to protect you?]
[Please recruit direct attendant guards to display imperial majesty and protect the palace.]
[Mission Conditions: Please recruit direct attendant guards to ensure palace safety, majesty, and order at the entrance.]
[Mission Reward: Some supplies]
Seeing this task, Chi Cheng was first stunned, then slapped his thigh excitedly.
"Brothers! It's time to act! The system wants me to recruit Imperial Guards!"
"Imperial Guards, don't we need a strong man for this?"
The chat instantly flooded with messages.
[Recruit from the gym!]
[Find a boxing coach!]
[Directly hire a bodyguard, will the treasury 3000 be enough?]
Chi Cheng glanced at the area map within the urban village.
[Urban Village Entrance]
[Residential Complex Gate]
[Labor Market]
[Gym Entrance]
[Chess Room]
[...]
Chi Cheng thought for a while, having just experienced the failure of setting the capital, he understood that he couldn't afford professional bodyguards, they cost money.
Managing such a large country, he had to be frugal.
So currently, the most suitable would still be the residential complex security guard!
"What is a guard? It's not necessarily someone who can punch a cow to death."
"The essence of a guard is to guard the gate, maintain order, and prevent unauthorized entry."
"Isn't the security guard at the residential complex entrance a modern version of a guard?"
"And the most crucial thing is, my treasury is only 3000 now, hiring a gym strongman might bankrupt me, hiring a security guard is very reasonable."
The chat was half convinced by him, the other half purely instigating.
[Good guy, modern guard = residential complex security guard.]
[Reasonable, very reasonable.]
[Security guard: I was working well, suddenly got enfeoffed?]
[Residential complex gate is the imperial city gate, right?]
[Hurry up! I want to see the security guard getting enfeoffed!]
"Those who know me, are in the chat!"
Chi Cheng pushed the mouse, heading straight to the entrance of the urban village residential complex.
At this time in the game, it was evening.
By the iron gate of the complex, an elderly security guard in an oversized uniform was slumped on a small stool.
Next to him was a broken radio, the old man half-closed his eyes, occasionally humming along, looking very content.
As the screen approached, the system popped up the character information.
[Interactable Character: Zhao Dezhu]
[Identity: Xinghe Residential Complex Security Guard]
[Age: 48]
[Combat Power: 5 (If lying down, combat power will soar.)]
[Traits: Strong sense of responsibility, familiar with local residents, knows the gate rules.]
[Current Relationship: Stranger]
[Can be Enfeoffed]
Chi Cheng saw this status and laughed on the spot.
"Zhao Dezhu!"
"Brothers, this name sounds reliable!"
"Dezhu, the 'De' generation, a pillar of the nation!"
"Isn't this a natural protector of the country?"
The chat immediately got into character.
[Zhao Dezhu, pillar of the nation!]
[Enfeoff! Must enfeoff!]
[Residential complex security guard, knows the access rules, this power isn't small.]
[Don't look down on him as just a security guard, he's the actual executor of the access system.]
[First Imperial Guard of the Great E Dynasty, Lord Zhao Dezhu!]
[Hahaha, there's even hidden combat power!]
"It's you! Grandpa Zhao! My Great E Dynasty lacks talents like you who are hidden experts!"
"Such talent, how can it be buried?"
"Enfeoff!"
Chi Cheng controlled the protagonist to step forward and clicked the [Interact] button.
A golden option box, exuding an aura of dominance, popped up on the screen:
[True Dragon Emperor, words become law! Do you wish to consume 5 Mandate Value to enfeoff Zhao Dezhu?]
[Please choose the enfeoffment position!]
"Enfeoff! Must enfeoff! A mere 5 Mandate Value for a Commander of the Imperial Blade Guards, this is a huge gain!"
Chi Cheng unhesitatingly chose the guard, then pressed the confirm button.
"Dong...!"
A sound like a great bell from the heavens echoed in the game.
A blinding gold light descended from the sky, striking precisely on Grandpa Zhao's head.
"By the mandate of heaven, the emperor decrees! Bestow upon you the yellow coat, enfeoffed as Commander of the Imperial Blade Guards! So decreed!"
[Enfeoffment Complete!]
[Mandate Value Consumed: 5]
[Enfeoffed Individual: Zhao Dezhu]
[Enfeoffment Position: Direct Attendant Guard]
[Duties: Protect the palace, maintain order at the entrance, ensure imperial dignity.]
In the screen, Zhao Dezhu shivered all over.
The next second, a title slowly appeared above his head.
[Direct Attendant Guard · Zhao Dezhu]
Immediately, the in-game Grandpa Zhao gave the protagonist a very standard security salute.
[Zhao Dezhu's attitude towards you has increased to: Respect]
[You have gained regional access rights: Free access to Xinghe Residential Complex public areas]
[Mission Complete!]
[Received Mission Reward: Supplies · Vanguard 500 Yuan Shopping Card]
[Mandate Value +4]