Chapter 180 The New Emperor

The Red Empire's homeworld, Tyronharmir Palace.

The Imperial Assembly Hall was the venue for various large-scale ceremonies and activities. The handover ceremony of each Imperial Head of State was routinely held here and broadcast to the entire universe.

The venue was already decorated, and the seats below were full, mostly with remote projections. Among them were high-ranking officials of the empire, leaders of affiliated allied civilizations, and special envoys from the Glorious and Void Spirit civilizations.

Super-A Grade allies were also invited to attend, sitting in the middle and back areas, next to the empire's direct descendants.

Han Xiao was flanked by Kant and Old Dragon. The ceremony hadn't started yet, and the three were still chatting casually.

"In the blink of an eye, another term has passed, and Ulan Riel is about to retire," Kant said with a sigh.

"Counting up, I've experienced a total of four Imperial Heads of State. Although Ulan Riel wasn't the most brilliant, she was the easiest to get along with, willing to listen to advice."

Miližaus whispered. As a member of the Ancient Ones, his life... dragon life was rich in experience.

"Is that so? This is the first time I've witnessed a head of state transition in person."

Han Xiao was quite interested.

In his previous life, players couldn't reach this level. This was also the first time he had personally experienced such an event, and he found it novel.

* Although I am stronger than the vast majority of Super-A Grades in the universe, I am still a baby.

At this moment, Kant pointed his mouth towards the front and whispered, "Did you see that? That's the empire's new head of state. Do you know what kind of person he is?"

"I don't know," Miližaus shook his head.

Han Xiao also looked over. The new head of state's seat was next to Ulan Riel. From his angle, he could only see a burly back.

Long before today's handover ceremony, the transition of the empire's top power echelon had been determined internally and the path had been paved. However, according to imperial custom, the identity of the new leader remained confidential to the outside world. The allied forces had no way of knowing before today.

However, Han Xiao was not subject to this rule. He already knew who the next Imperial Head of State would be.

After chatting for a while, the time for the ceremony gradually approached. The voices in the venue lessened, slowly disappearing, and the postures of the people straightened.

When the time came, the whole place was solemn. The high-ranking official presiding over the meeting stood up, first expressed the empire's welcome to everyone's attendance, and then announced the official start of the ceremony.

The Imperial Head of State handover ceremony carried out its own civilization's style, the process was concise, unlike the Glorious Federation's flashy and cumbersome procedures.

One link after another proceeded, finally reaching the highlight of the handover, the resignation speech by Ulan Riel.

Under the gaze of everyone, Ulan Riel stepped onto the podium. Today, she was wearing a simple imperial uniform, her hair was tied high, and there was nothing remarkable about her.

She looked around the venue for three seconds and slowly opened her mouth:

"Today's scene reminds me of the day I took office as Imperial Head of State, with the same high spirits and the same confidence, firmly believing that I could make the empire better. So many years have passed, and the original vision has been realized in different ways. I can proudly tell myself that I have not failed the initial belief, nor have I failed the empire's expectations of me.

Looking back, we have made many achievements in the fields of politics, economy, and cosmic security. The greatest achievement is the development of the Flickering World, which will lay the foundation for the empire's future high-speed development trend. During the empire's development, we were fortunate to meet more like-minded partners and more mutually supportive allies. The empire's achievements today are not my personal achievement, but the result of the joint efforts of every imperial colleague. Here, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks for your contributions."

Ulan Riel bowed, performing an imperial etiquette, and thunderous applause immediately erupted in the venue.

After a few seconds of applause, Ulan Riel straightened up, raised her hand and pressed down, signaling not to continue applauding, and then continued:

"Of course, the road ahead for the empire is also full of obstacles, never smooth sailing, and we also face many challenges.

The empire rose from humble beginnings, and our ancestors worked hard, steadfastly overcoming one disaster after another, and finally allowed us to stand in the forest of cosmic civilizations, becoming one of the cornerstones for maintaining the order of interstellar society. The golden spirit of the empire has been passed down from generation to generation, and has been branded in our genes. We are not afraid of difficulties and have solved many difficulties, including the Intelligent Plague, not only maintaining our own civilization, but also maintaining the safety of the universe. What does not kill us will only make us stronger.

The development trend of the world has always been to move forward in twists and turns. There will be new challenges and new opportunities in the future. I sincerely wish all imperial compatriots to maintain the spirit of the empire in the days to come. No matter what difficulties we face, we will not shrink back, but face it with a smile.

Today, my term is coming to an end, and my duties will be smoothly transitioned to the next imperial helmsman, who will continue our great system and continue to fulfill our lofty responsibilities to civilization and the universe.

I believe that the empire will create greater glories in his hands, just as I believed in myself in the beginning.

Finally… may the empire last forever!"

After speaking, Ulan Riel bowed again. Her resignation speech was not lengthy, nor did she boast about her achievements, maintaining the empire's consistent concise style.

*Clatter, clatter, clatter*—

In the next second, thunderous applause rang out in the venue, giving the greatest praise to a head of state who was about to retire.

Han Xiao also applauded, recalling the scenes of getting along with Ulan Riel in his mind, and secretly sighed.

Having known each other for decades, putting aside the factors of identity, the two were somewhat friends.

'I'm afraid it will be difficult to see her again in the future…'

After the Imperial Head of State steps down, they continue to enjoy the same level of treatment, but without real power. They generally live on the empire's homeworld and rarely appear in public. After passing away, they can choose whether to upload a backup of their memories and integrate them into the empire's main intelligence, the "Hall of Heroes".

The applause was thunderous, lasting a full minute before slowly stopping. Ulan Riel stepped aside, and the burly new head of state stepped onto the podium, making his debut in front of everyone.

This person had a resolute face, a high hairline, revealing a smooth and round forehead, a burly figure, and strong pectoral and biceps muscles that made the uniform tight, outlining a healthy figure. The whole person exuded a tough and fierce aura, like walking male hormones, at this time full of vigor and ambition.

Mabrus Peer Statham, the new Imperial Head of State, was once a cadre in the Imperial Army, then transferred to an administrative position, governing one side, rising all the way from star chief to star cluster chief, and then transferred to the empire's center. During Ulan Riel's term, he obtained the Senate's training qualification, becoming one of the candidate successors, and finally stood out, determined to take over as Head of State.

Relevant information flashed through Han Xiao's mind. This person was the Imperial Head of State most familiar to the players in his previous life.

Ulan Riel was considered half an anomaly. Mabrus was actually the normal style of Imperial Head of State. Among the past Imperial Heads of State, this style of person was the most common.

Mabrus looked around the audience, gave a simple self-introduction, and then said solemnly:

"I pay my highest respect to Ulan Riel for her contributions over the years. The empire's achievements today are inseparable from her merits. And in the many years to come, I will be at the helm of the empire. Just as she believes in me, I also believe in myself. I will live up to my mission and lead the empire forward…"

His tone contained strong confidence, and he spoke eloquently.

The inauguration speech was different from the resignation speech. He analyzed the current situation, looked forward to the future, talked about his political ideas, emphasized the empire's development path, set his own governing goals, and so on. Compared with the resignation speech, it was much longer, lasting more than an hour.

Han Xiao summarized the general idea, and the key words were "strengthening central centralization," "strengthening regional control," "expanding military strength," "leading multi-field cooperation," "reducing unnecessary waste of resources," and so on. This was a big change from Ulan Riel's policies during her reign, and emphasized the empire's control over different fields.

Many guests present did not show it on their faces, but in fact, they had already set off waves in their hearts.

Changes in the empire's development policies would have a profound impact on many forces, and the new head of state's tough ideas were naturally not good news for them. Now, he was just giving them a heads up.

Many Super-A Grade allies also had flickering eyes.

"I didn't expect the new head of state to be so tough. I thought he would choose to seek stability when he first took office," Kant muttered in a low voice.

"Since he said so, it must have been approved internally by the empire. If the empire has no objections, how can we outsiders influence the appointment of the three major civilizations' leaders? His position was already extremely stable," Miližaus shook his head.

"Alas, my honeymoon period with the empire is probably coming to an end."

Han Xiao shook his head, vaguely having this premonition.

The reason why Ulan Riel trusted him so much was that they had gone through one event after another together and established a relationship of mutual trust. Mabrus had never met him before. Even if he valued him, he wouldn't be as easy to talk to as Ulan Riel.

But it was enough. After eating decades of cooperative dividends, the Black Star Army had completed its rise. As long as it maintained the status quo, he would be quite satisfied.

Everyone had their own plans, but on the surface, they still pretended to watch seriously, without showing any signs.

Before long, the handover ceremony finally came to an end. Ulan Riel and Mabrus shook hands heavily, announcing the completion of the transfer of imperial power. This scene was captured in a photo.

On February 15, Star Sea Calendar 740, the Red Empire changed its head of state. Ulan Riel stepped down, and the empire entered the Mabrus era.

Two days later, the Glorious Federation also held a handover ceremony. Barder resigned as President, and a new President of the Glorious Federation took office, named Louis Lodge.

Two of the three major civilizations changed leaders together in a matter of days. The entire interstellar society was buzzing with discussions, and most interstellar citizens were analyzing what changes this would bring to their lives.

On the third day, Han Xiao finally received an invitation from Mabrus for a private meeting.

…

Han Xiao's remote projection came to the Head of State's office. Mabrus was already sitting in Ulan Riel's former seat. The bodyguards beside him hadn't changed, and it was still Clotti.

"Black Star, I've heard so much about you."

Mabrus showed a smile full of masculine aura.

"Your Excellency Head of State," Han Xiao also nodded as a greeting.

"You are a legendary figure in the universe. I have always wanted to meet you, and today my wish has finally come true." Mabrus's tone was heroic, and his attitude was still polite.

Seeing this, Han Xiao also exchanged business compliments with him.

In Han Xiao's opinion, Mabrus had just become the Head of State and needed to meet with every important person in the empire. This meeting was just a simple acquaintance and had no special purpose.

The two chatted for a while, and Mabrus brought up the main point.

"I will not change the agreement between Ulan Riel and you. The territory that has been allocated to you will not be interfered with by the empire in the future. I will not stop supporting you, so you can rest assured."

"Hehe, I have always believed that the empire is fair and just. One point of effort will yield one point of gain, and I have never had any doubts," Han Xiao said with polite words.

Mabrus grinned, and suddenly changed the topic, "Regarding the Super-A Grade Association, the empire is still discussing it internally. If you have any opinions, you can always bring it up to me, and I will consider it accordingly."

Han Xiao's heart skipped a beat. He maintained his smile, simply nodded, and did not answer.

The two chatted for a few more words, and Mabrus indicated that he meant to end the conversation.

Han Xiao was about to say goodbye and leave when he suddenly glanced at Clotti and said with a smile, "I wonder if His Excellency Dark Emperor can see me off?"

"You're just a remote projection, what's there to see off?"

Clotti frowned.

At this moment, he suddenly noticed Mabrus nodding to him, so he had no choice but to lead Han Xiao out of the room.

After closing the door, Han Xiao looked at Clotti and asked curiously, "How is Ulan Riel?"

"Her? She joined the Senate," Clotti asked in confusion, "Why are you asking this?"

The Red Empire was different from the Glorious Federation. The Imperial Senate had no deliberative power and could only be responsible for training successors at most. It was truly a place for retirement and rarely had contact with the outside world.

"Just curious, but why are you still the Head of State's bodyguard? Haven't you been transferred?" Han Xiao smiled.

"No, originally, after Goth grew up, it was possible for him to take over. Now that he's gone, the other direct descendants have their own duties and can't be easily transferred, so I can only continue to be a bodyguard."

Clotti shook his head. Although he still had a cold face, his tone was somewhat helpless.

Just as the two were chatting outside the door, Mabrus in the Head of State's office looked at the closed door, a hint of fear flashed in his eyes.

"The predecessor really left me with a problem. You gave Black Star too many things on your own…"

As a representative promoted by the hardliners, Mabrus didn't like external allies like Black Star who were too powerful to be controlled.

But for the time being, he didn't plan to do anything to Black Star and could only maintain the status quo and wait for the future.

Mabrus still remembered Becrodi's report that Goth, who was highly expected, might have fallen into Black Star's hands. Although he didn't know if it was true, he had already become wary of Black Star after the example of the Mechanical God.