Gu Hang's triumphant team marched across the vast and complex land of Sacred Terra.
The places they passed through were all different in style.
Some are ancient Gothic hive city complexes, their spires piercing the sky; others are streamlined skyscrapers full of modern technology, their glass curtain walls reflecting the sunlight, stacked like building blocks to form a modern hive city; still others are massive factory districts lying on the ground, like steel behemoths...
Each region is home to a large population.
On Holy Terra, trillions of people live on their home planet. The seas have long since dried up, and every inch of land is now home to densely packed nests.
This means that wherever the triumphant procession passed, there were huge crowds!
Everywhere they went, they were greeted by cheering crowds.
Some of them were on both sides of the street, while others were looking down from high-rise buildings.
Children rode on their parents' shoulders, waving small flags; young women threw flowers into the procession; and the elderly, with tears in their eyes, silently blessed these returning heroes…
Meanwhile, their every move was being filmed and broadcast in real time by hundreds of camera crews aboard hovercars and airships. Even with hundreds of camera crews, there were still numerous servo-controlled skulls operating the cameras to follow and film them, ensuring a sufficient field of view.
The broadcast signal can be received on Holy Terra, and even throughout the entire solar system.
People are free to choose any perspective to view these victorious warriors.
Among them, the most-watched and most popular channel is the one that films Gu Hang from various angles.
The biggest reason, of course, is that Gu Hang, as the greatest hero and commander-in-chief of this war, naturally receives the most attention.
But there is another reason that is equally important.
The people of Holy Terra regard Gu Hang as their savior.
This is inseparable from Salihovic's work.
...
At this moment, Salihovic, on the edge of the Imperial Palace, in a rented penthouse villa in the capital, was drinking and watching the governor's heroic figure with great satisfaction.
Besides this main screen, there are many other secondary screens displaying a lot of data.
The number of viewers, the popularity, the first-hand intelligence from the visits of the staff of the Alliance Embassy and their offices in various places... all these things reflect the support and love of the people of Holy Terra for Governor Gu.
As an ambassador to the Union and one of the Union government's most distinguished diplomats, Salihovic was sent to Holy Terra very early on.
That's normal. For the Alliance, the most important diplomatic relationship is, of course, with Holy Terra.
With the help of Galardore, the substantial manpower, resources, and financial support from the Alliance, and most importantly, the Alliance's formidable strength, he established a firm foothold in Holy Terra.
His Foreign Intelligence Department – the Holy Terra branch – possessed power almost comparable to the Alliance headquarters, collecting all valuable intelligence from the Imperial Central Government and reporting it to the Alliance regularly; at the same time, it also disseminated the messages that the Alliance wanted to convey to the people and officials of the Imperial Central Government.
Salihovic himself also cultivated relationships with high-ranking officials in the Empire and tirelessly championed the Alliance.
Visits, conversations, local gatherings... these are just some of the methods.
More importantly, the alliance's foreign intelligence agencies and embassies made full use of the media industry.
Serious academic research reports based on the alliance as an excellent model, artistic painting and theme music creation, musicals and stage plays created, and publicity targeting high-end audiences.
Based on the Alliance stories, films, simple storybooks, and popular novels were created and disseminated to the widest possible audience.
Every year, countless artists, novelists, and media professionals who receive funding from the alliance create a large number of works to promote the alliance and Gu Hang.
These efforts were initially initiated by Gallardo. However, after Salihovic's arrival, the work in this area was significantly intensified.
His work has been fruitful, and all of this is the result of years of work by him and his people in the Foreign Affairs Department and the embassy—people know the Alliance, not some stranger who won a battle far away and has nothing to do with them, but a well-known 'big IP'.
But these are all just basic tasks.
It simply made the people of Holy Terra, whether they were ordinary citizens or lower-ranking officials, aware that in the distant East there was a beautiful, hopeful, and ideal place bathed in the glory of the Empire—the Alliance.
However, this understanding is somewhat vague, not solid enough, and not deeply ingrained in people's minds.
The turning point that changed everything, the opportunity that led to a qualitative change from a quantitative one, came from the assistance of Prime Minister Zippo.
To be honest, will the Ironclad Wars really pose a security threat to Holy Terra?
Anyone with a discerning eye knows that it's far from perfect.
At its peak, the Ironclad Wars had only just broken through the McGree Space Region. While their forces did indeed advance into the central territory of the Empire, the distance between the Tianwang Space Region, the outermost edge of the central territory, and the Solar Space Region was still far too great.
The Ironclad Rebellion undoubtedly had a significant impact on the Empire. The turmoil in the Eastern Frontier, the immense financial pressure, and the influence of local separatist forces on the central authority of the Empire…
However, these things don't actually have that much to do with the general public or mid-level officials.
The more knowledgeable a person is, the more they will realize that while the Iron Armorers were indeed a big problem back then, to say that they could infiltrate Holy Terra and overthrow the Empire was a pipe dream.
However, in the world of Holy Terra, with its trillions of people, while the absolute number of people with high cognitive abilities is large, the proportion is actually not that large.
Of course, without sources of information, ignorant people at the bottom of society wouldn't know so much.
But it was Prime Minister Qi Bodu who provided the biggest boost.
At the time, due to political factors, Qi Bodu exaggerated the threat of the Ironclad War in order to gain support for the war.
Repeated radio and television addresses repeatedly emphasized the severity of the Ironclad War; newspaper reports covered the conflict; and the frontline battles suffered successive defeats... all of which stirred up considerable turmoil in the hearts of the lower-class residents.
The Empire is constantly at war, but on Holy Terra, for many people, there has never been a war that has been repeatedly broadcast in their ears, making them feel that war is so close to them.
Those so-called elites who can see the truth dare not say in public that this war is insignificant.
Wouldn't that be going against the Prime Minister?
After being thoroughly cleaned up, is the Ministry of Justice, which is now almost entirely the Prime Minister's dog, just sitting around doing nothing?
Salihovic, at this time, keenly realized that this was a very good opportunity for publicity.
He took advantage of Prime Minister Zippo's promotion of the "armored threat" theory to vigorously reinforce this impression.
With the assistance of the Imperial Central Government, the related propaganda efforts were much more effective.
Then, sparing no expense, they assembled the best team and released a series of big-budget films. The theme was the alliance led by Gu Hang fighting against the Ironclad traitors and the Zerg swarm.
Soon after, news broke that the alliance had officially joined the war and marched north to form the southern front army.
Taking advantage of the situation, Salihovic released the first film in the series.
Thanks to its high production quality, coupled with the existing "IP" of Gu Hang and the fact that Gu Hang was indeed on the front lines of the Iron Armor War, reflecting the real situation to a considerable extent, the first film in the series was very well received.
Then, with the Alliance's great victory over Alfonso's fleet, the second film became a huge hit throughout the Holy Terra!
Then came the third, fourth, and fifth installments...
During the fifteen-year war, the Alliance series released five films that were huge hits on Holy Terra, even sweeping across the entire Solar System and the entire Empire. Various spin-off series and related commercial products also gained momentum rapidly.
Gu Hang, the absolute protagonist, has become incredibly well-known.
Gu Hang himself only knew of this information; he had no idea how popular it was. During the war, he devoted most of his time and energy to the war itself. He only had a little spare time to keep an eye on the alliance's development. Sometimes, even peripheral intelligence like this wouldn't be delivered to his desk. And even if it did, he'd just glance at it and that was it.
Therefore, when Gu Hang was in the triumphant procession and received an unexpectedly enthusiastic welcome from the people of Holy Terra, he couldn't immediately connect it with this event, which made him quite puzzled.
In fact, it wasn't just Gu Hang; even the instigator Salihovic, and many high-ranking officials on Holy Terra, didn't expect this.
Who could have predicted this?
Under the imperial system, the entertainment industry was underdeveloped. The high pressure of the social system, the control of public opinion, and the allocation of resources to industrial production and the military were internal factors; the continuous wars and high military pressure externally also made it difficult for the entertainment industry to develop steadily.
In addition to these real-world factors, there are also surreal factors: the corrupting influence of Slaanesh is very easily spread through a developed environment of hedonism and indulgence.
From the courts to the Ministry of Justice, there is a crackdown on such behavior—although, in some upper classes, this crackdown is ineffective, failing to stop the powerful and their backers from indulging in a life of debauchery. However, the control over entertainment among the lower classes is quite strong. Any establishment that disobeys, such as film and television productions, literary publications, and commercial entertainment venues, requires a license.
This has become a lucrative opportunity for the Ministry of Justice to make money, and a powerful tool for certain well-connected production companies, distributors, and casino owners to engage in monopolistic practices.
Of course, the position of Alliance Ambassador is not low. With the Prime Minister of the Ministry of Military Affairs and High Lord Gallardo as his backers, he can certainly be considered a top-level noble.
In addition, he has a large budget and is in an absolutely leading position in all aspects of the film and television industry competition.
In the past, it wasn't that no one had considered using this method to make someone famous. In fact, Gallardo had done something similar for Gu Hang back then. It was just a small-scale operation.
Right now, not only is the scale large, but the film is also a hit; not only is the film a hit, but Gu Hang's achievements are also very real.
Who is the person who can lead the team to the very front and walk through the gate of triumph?
A truly great hero!
Such a high degree of integration of these two identities is extremely rare.
Not to mention, they've achieved this level of excellence in both aspects.
Simply being a movie star? Reaching the top is meaningless.
In the minds of normal people, the recognition of film and television actors is completely different from the emotion of truly admiring heroes.
A simple hero? They certainly have nationwide fame and are widely loved, but they still can't be as likable as a deliberately crafted celebrity persona. Moreover, heroic deeds are usually only known through written words and dissemination, unlike movies and TV shows which are carefully packaged and dramatic.
The combined power of the two is truly astonishing.
At this point, Salihovic smiled.
He now even dares to make a bold statement: In terms of popularity, none of the high lords of Holy Terra can rival President Gu!
President Gu is more popular than the high-ranking lords!
This is what I, Alliance Ambassador and Media Mogul Salihovic, said!
After observing the triumphant military parade for a month, all the statistics prove this point.
The day it generated the most buzz was, of course, the day it crossed the Arc de Triomphe in space; the second most popular day was the first day the triumphal troops landed and were broadcast live.
The peak of popularity certainly decreased afterward. But overall, this event remained the hottest news across almost every level of Holy Terra, dominating the trending topics. Especially when Gu Hang's triumphant troops passed through an area, the triumphant ceremony would quickly capture all the attention in that area. Those who could watch in person would flock there; those who couldn't would gather on television or radio to watch or listen to the news.
Ultimately, all the excitement will culminate on the final day of the triumphant parade, when the procession reunites with the Imperial Guards who left the palace earlier. Led by a company of a hundred Imperial Guards, they will proceed to the main gate of the Imperial Palace.
After passing through this point, Gu Hang will stand at the top of the palace gate tower and deliver a triumphant declaration to all the victorious soldiers, high-ranking officials of the empire, representatives from all walks of life in Holy Terra, and television and radio reporters.
After he finished his speech, the grand ceremony, which had been in preparation for nearly two years, cost a lot of money, and lasted for more than a month, came to a successful conclusion.
That day arrived as promised.
Salihovic did not choose to go to the scene, but instead continued to monitor various data and watch the live broadcast at the league embassy.
However, an unexpected incident occurred.