"What?!"
Stelle, March 7th, and Dan Heng all cried out in unison.
Even Qingque shot to her feet. This was no small matter—she couldn't ignore it.
The selection of Generals of the Xianzhou Alliance had always been chosen by merit, that much had never changed. But every generation of Generals was always been someone who's a dragon among men, someone who had earned immense merit for the Xianzhou Alliance. Therefore, aside from dying in battle, the only circumstances under which a General would step down are when, nearing the onset of Mara, guided by the Emissaries of the Netherworld to rest within the Ten-Lords Commission.
She turned toward Fu Xuan. This was the post the Master Diviner herself had petitioned for years without success.
And now? General Jing Yuan would just hand it over to Sylvester?
By age alone, she was more than a hundred years older than him, yet compared to him, her qualifications looked nonexistent.
And procedurally speaking… it was legitimate?
Her gaze dropped to the sealed envelope in Sylvester's hand. If the Master Diviner herself said it came from the Arbiter-General, then it couldn't possibly be a joke.
Heavens, she'd only stepped away from the Divination Commission for a single day, and yet something this enormous had already happened?
"Luofu's getting a new General?! And it's Boss Sylvester? Wait, you all…" March 7th's head swung back and forth like a fan, images of Fu Xuan and Sylvester crowding her brain until there was barely space for anything else.
For a moment, she couldn't even think.
What did that mean? Had she just overheard some obscure Xianzhou dialect?
Or was her Synesthesia Beacon glitching, scrambling her comprehension?
Sure, Sylvester had shown off plenty of miraculous Curios, and his power had to be considerable. But promoting a shopkeeper—a man who wasn't even a civil servant—straight to becoming the master of an entire Xianzhou Flagship? That was absurd!
In Xianzhou's ancient plays, sure, plenty of poor scholars had passed the imperial exams, soared to the rank of number one, climbed through years of toil, then became prime ministers, married princesses, and reached the pinnacle of life.
But this? What was this called?
A humble trash can merchant wins universal acclaim, the emperor has a brain cramp, abdicates the throne, and points at the dragon throne saying, "Your Majesty, please sit here instead."
How did the story ended up this bizarre?
She smacked the shoulder of the Xianzhouan she trusted most. "Dan… Dan Heng, do you know what they're saying?"
"…Luofu is changing Generals."
After a brief silence, Dan Heng said it plain.
Like March 7th, he couldn't make sense of it. He was just as shaken to the core.
Even if he traced history back to the Era of Three calamities, only when the common folk had been driven to rebellion by cruel elites had power ever shifted so drastically.
But the Luofu now? Hardly paradise, but it was at least peaceful and prosperous.
Jing Yuan hadn't committed any unforgivable sins, nor had Sylvester contributed anything unforgettable to the Xianzhou.
Well… fine. The Curios he'd shown were impossibly powerful, and his own strength was likely unfathomable.
But did that qualify him to govern a Xianzhou Flagship of billions?
It was reckless. Far too reckless.
March 7th, hearing Dan Heng's answer, only felt her shock deepen.
So, it wasn't a hallucination?!
She shook Stelle's shoulder. "Trailblazer, say something! Isn't this way too weird? Since when can a whole faction's leader be swapped out like changing clothes?"
But when she looked at Stelle, her face was brimming with envy.
"Sigh, I haven't even glimpsed the throne of the Trash Can Queen, and someone else has already become Luofu's ruler."
Yet instead of discouragement, she looked fired up. "If a trash can merchant can become Luofu's General, then what's impossible about me becoming Trash Can Queen? Come on, Stelle—you can do it!"
"I should've never asked you." March 7th groaned. She'd hoped for clarity, only to end up with an even bigger headache.
But of all of them, none was more shaken than Sylvester himself.
To Dan Heng and the others, this was an outrageous rumor.
To him? It was a hammer blow.
Me, a General? Sure, I can be a "general" in a chess game! But running the Xianzhou Luofu? Managing billions of people? That's insane trust to put in me.
Even with his brain, he couldn't begin to guess what the Xianzhouans were thinking.
"Uh… does General Jing Yuan know about this?" he finally asked, struggling.
In his eyes, a leader like Jing Yuan—lazy on the surface, secretly grinding harder than anyone—would never accept an outsider ruling Luofu.
Truth be told, Sylvester was confident in his combat ability. But governance? He couldn't pretend otherwise—he was utterly clueless.
Yet Fu Xuan gave him a crystal-clear answer.
Her expression didn't shift in the slightest as she said calmly: "Of course he knows. This was jointly petitioned by General Jing Yuan and General Feixiao, then approved by the Marshal."
Sylvester nearly collapsed inside.
Has he lost his mind?
Or had Jing Yuan swallowed some reincarnation elixir, leaving his brain stunted, unhinged, driving him to make such a ludicrous choice?
Even if the Divine Foresight had snapped, wasn't there still the Slacking General? Why would she join in this nonsense too?
What possible benefit did this give them?
Thinking it over, only one explanation surfaced: they wanted to keep the trash cans in the Xianzhou at any cost.
Sure, that was a strategy. But wouldn't the price be insanely high?
This was an entire Xianzhou Flagship—they'd would let him squander it for trash cans? Weren't they afraid he'd play around and wreck Luofu completely?
He pressed on: "So what's General Jing Yuan going to do then? Don't tell me he'll come help me sell trash cans?"
Would they perform some live "house swap" act?
Jing Yuan as the proud owner of a trash can shop in the Exalting Sanctum, while Sylvester played double duty as both General and trash can supplier?
That was like making a corporation's CEO moonlight selling candied hawthorns.
"Of course, he'll remain Luofu's General." Fu Xuan's tone was flat as ever, but her lips quirked upward ever so slightly.
"Two Generals?!" March 7th slapped her forehead. "Wait—this is the legendary dual-ruler system? Has the Xianzhou Alliance ever had such a precedent?"
This time it wasn't just her—Stelle was curious too, and even Dan Heng and Qingque stared at Fu Xuan, puzzled.
Are we about to witness history? That thought rippled through their hearts.
"I see."
But then Sylvester's voice relaxed. "I knew the Divine Foresight wouldn't act so irrationally."
At last, he understood. This so-called title of Luofu General was probably honorary, not one of true power.
Earlier, Fu Xuan had deliberately led him astray, just to watch him squirm.
As for why? Likely just to enjoy his embarrassment.
He glanced at her, amused.
This little loli really hated losing.
"Hey, hey, what's going on here?" March 7th protested, watching Sylvester and Fu Xuan share a knowing smile.
She'd been lost in fog the entire time. Everyone had heard the same words—so why was Sylvester suddenly acting like he'd cracked the whole code?
Even Dan Heng and the others turned expectantly toward him, their eyes pleading for an explanation.