[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces":3,"chapter-the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-204":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Dragon of a Thousand Faces",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2269850,4431,"Chapter 204: The Black Bird of Night","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-204",204,"\u003Cp>“Victoria, what do you think of me?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh, you’re a good person.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I mean, as a potential partner.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re such a great person! Will you marry me? How much dowry do you want?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some things, some people—you never know what kind of chaos you’ll stumble into until you actually engage with them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En, asked about the amount of “dowry,” completely lost his composure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While trying to choose who to confess to, Li En still instinctively hit the brakes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As one of the most dangerous deceivers, the Snake’s willingness to show support was already due to someone’s favor—Li En’s death and reincarnation didn’t truly matter to him, but it would mean this nation’s near-certain annihilation and the extinction of the Dragon of a Thousand Faces’ descendants, which annoyed the Snake greatly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the Snake’s willingness to interfere was one thing; if you broke your promise to him, violated his authority—his domain of contracts, deception, and betrayal—just try it, and you’d get nothing but a 100% guaranteed disaster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re a good person too, but we’re probably not compatible. I was just curious—what do dark elves find attractive?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at Victoria’s expectant face, Li En sighed and made up a random excuse. Her gaze at him was like that of someone staring at a “beauty”—he simply couldn’t bring himself to go through with it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only a few days remained; Li En had to find a way to fulfill his promise to the Snake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now that he was actually trying to act, this “confession” proved impossible to deliver.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sallyman? Li En thought she probably wouldn’t refuse, but then he remembered the Purple Rose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It just feels like after confessing, I’ll be instantly dragged into marriage—and once the Purple Rose affair comes out, I might never leave the house again.” On another level, Li En also felt he still had a touch of moral purity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Already pretending to be the fiancé was absurd enough; now if I also take her person and wealth, it crosses a moral line I simply can’t step over right now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Li En himself thought it was overly sentimental, this “new face identity” and “fiancé” status had become an unshakable psychological barrier for him—especially with the Purple Rose involved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Find a girlfriend, date for a while, then break up—that’s the lowest-cost solution I’ve come up with to fulfill the deal.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Stephen, Gugu—these safe options, Li En dared not pick, mainly because of the Snake’s previous threats. He feared the Snake might twist their sexual orientations just for amusement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En would rather be seen as a jerk than a pervert.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The remaining options seemed to be only the two dark elves, Sallyman, and Bai.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Bai wasn’t even here, and she was too young—so it was really just the two dark elves left.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh right, there’s also Ophelia—uh, a robot.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En felt numb—none of them seemed suitable for dating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dark elves seemed the only option, but Li En still felt deeply unsettled. Though both dark elf ladies appeared inexperienced, who knew if they’d follow the old path of dark elf matrons—group activities, male concubines, the whole thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En had almost bitten the bullet and tried Victoria—the dark elves’ emotions were usually a tangled mess, and she seemed perfectly willing—but that line “When will you marry me? How much dowry?” was simply too much to bear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s a pity. In dark elf aesthetics, you’re actually quite cute,” Victoria shook her head and sighed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was at the age where she truly wanted to find a “woman” to satisfy herself. Dark elves were the most chaotic of all sentient races—don’t expect her to have normal family values.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Li En truly confessed to her, she’d accept—just like a libertine wouldn’t refuse a girl throwing herself at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially since the libertine was building his base in her city, he could leverage her family’s resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was precisely because he saw through all this that Li En felt even more repulsed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Facing Victoria and Verna’s gazes, he always felt *he* was the one being paid for!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yes, even the Divine Maiden Verna—when they first met, she invited Li En to become her family’s knight. The martial master and knight commander of a family were often the matron’s consort, sometimes even “shared.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cultural differences among races were fine to sample occasionally, but when it came to building a family and choosing a life partner, Li En’s inner self was deeply conservative—he truly couldn’t accept it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Damn Snake,” Li En sighed. This “price” seemed light, but if he actually fulfilled it, he might lose his future entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If all else fails… it’s got to be the dark elves. Just pretend it’s a fling. Stick to the Dixian —nothing happens.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En simply couldn’t bring himself to act, so he decided to drag it out until the last day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If nothing unexpected happens, he’d settle for the dark elves—probably Victoria, since he didn’t want to cause a political incident.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Never thought my first love would… whatever. My standards are already low enough. After all, I’m the one deceiving emotions—even if deceiving dark elves is surprisingly hard to screw up.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En chose to deceive himself: delay one day at a time. Something might change—any moment now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe the Snake will find a new amusement soon, and we can renegotiate the terms—maybe then he’ll let me off the hook.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En would rather fight another Beast Prince to the death than let his love life become a tangled mess—even though it already was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Let’s focus on the real task first.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The most urgent matter now was dealing with the Snake’s implied threat. Li En considered it carefully—there was no clear solution.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His bloodline had just been enhanced; he hadn’t even finished the remaining doses of Kuku’s magical remedies. It wasn’t realistic to push his bloodline further now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Still 20% short… what exactly happened back then?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En naturally thought of his “cheat tool”—borrowing the power of the Heroic Souls should solve many problems.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since the kingdom wasn’t destroyed back then, Lex must have handled everything. He should’ve had the ability to deal with the other Beast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The other Beast? You mean the ‘Elephant’? Too bad—I didn’t have the Zige  to accompany Lord Lex onto the battlefield back then.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En specifically visited Knight Karn—but the result was oddly inconclusive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one knew anything about the other Beast. Li En had only asked the knight order’s high-ups—and received no useful information.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He even hesitantly approached Dainya, dropping keywords like “ Xiongniao ,” “Black Bird,” and “Griffin replacing Lion”—but she just stared blankly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, she angrily shooed him away, annoyed he was interrupting her overtime work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En didn’t think Dainya could hide such knowledge—so she must genuinely not know.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This made Li En find it utterly bizarre. When they fought the Deer, they’d clearly been prepared—even stockpiling “pine resin wood,” the specific counter-weapon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Completely unaware?” But if you considered it, this was likely a royal scandal—information suppression would make sense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, Dainya’s total ignorance surprised him. Logically, she should’ve been informed—at least to spare her this psychological burden.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wait… could it be that even the royal family doesn’t know?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The disaster back then caused massive losses—the entire old capital was destroyed. Now, only ruins remained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...We’ll have to wait until the Queen arrives. Don’t tell me she doesn’t know either. Hmm… actually, that’s entirely possible.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En suspected it was possible. If the Second Princess truly was the late king’s illegitimate child, then the biggest blame naturally fell on the late king himself. The Queen being kept entirely in the dark was entirely plausible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If only the king knew this hereditary secret—and now that the king was dead, a Beast whose abilities and traits were completely unknown was lurking in the shadows, preparing to cause trouble—what kind of hellish difficulty was this?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Really…” Li En sighed, staring at Lex’s Heroic Soul card for a long time. This was your fault—why did you drag me into it?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Another day wasted.” He’d run around, dug through records, questioned people—yet still had no answers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En counted the days, hoping the Snake would extend his deadline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the moment he lay on his bed, he plunged straight into a dream.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh? You’re here?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this time, as Li En fell into the dream, he was pulled once again into the Hall of Heroic Souls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A massive black serpent lay across the hall, occupying at least half the space.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En instantly recognized it—wasn’t this just an enlarged version of the Snake? How did it get so big?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Li En!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Li En could react, a fragrant breeze swept toward him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The familiar soft warmth startled him—his words were instantly silenced as sweet fragrance filled his mouth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the girl on tiptoe finally pulled back, their eyes met.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That silly, sweet, doting smile made Li En feel strangely guilty—as if he’d been thinking about a “new girlfriend” that very day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Long time no see, Vivian (Purple Rose).”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mm, mm, mm.” The girl rushed into the man’s arms, rubbing against him endlessly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cough.” Only when the Snake cleared his throat did the Purple Rose pause her stealthy attempts to remove Li En’s clothes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had the time and place not been so inappropriate, Li En would’ve already been dragged into a room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Snake, you—” Li En’s accusation died mid-sentence as a blade-like gaze pierced him, triggering a life-threatening sensation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked around and noticed the hall wasn’t just occupied by the Snake and Purple Rose—there were four other women who looked like magical girls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The eldest among them wore a veil; she too regarded Li En with Snake eyes—but smiled warmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Rose of the Moon, one of my favorite flowers—and also the current matriarch of the Snake clan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Well, this was indeed a major figure.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Another one Li En recognized well—Bai. She also smiled and nodded at him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En smiled back in relief—her condition seemed stable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next one was unfamiliar. She wore an unusual red-and-white feathered robe, with long sleeves adorned in blue-and-white feathers, and eyes like sharpened blades—her bone-chilling killing intent came from her!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She clearly wasn’t a Snake clan member, yet she showed deep respect toward the Snake’s two descendants—yet completely ignored Li En.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One was snuggling in Li En’s arms, the other watched the scene with amusement, and said with interest:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Little one, when are you coming to us? Let your big sister arrange some matchmaking—plenty of beautiful girls perfect for you! Let’s start with a hundred! Haven’t held a group wedding in ages.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sssss!” For the first time, Li En saw Purple Rose flick her tongue, revealing her Snake eyes in a threatening posture.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman across from her merely smiled—and returned the gaze with her own Snake eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah!” Poor Purple Rose cried out in pain, clearly losing the invisible duel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this woman, seemingly the matriarch, was surprisingly childish.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not only did she bicker with juniors, but after winning, she proudly wagged her tail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En confirmed: these two were indeed pure-blooded descendants of the Snake.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They didn’t seem to care much about their ancestor—and the Snake himself didn’t seem to mind either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En realized: the descendants of the Beasts, especially the magical girls, each branch had wildly different personalities.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For instance, this one who kept staring at him like prey—must be the Bird of Prey.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wait… Bird of Prey?” Li En instantly remembered the target he’d been searching for that day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, she is the ‘Red Feather Arrow,’ an eagle’s magic girl, and the helper I found for you. She’s traveling by day and should arrive in Huicheng soon. Without her help, you won’t survive this crisis.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The snake yawned; after poring over countless threads of cause and effect, he’d finally found some points he could interfere with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ultimately, this was all the mess left by Lex. But as the Dragon of a Thousand Faces, he’d also left gaps in the threads of cause and effect—limited openings for intervention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m on the road. I’m also a subject of the kingdom.” The cold words, and even colder gaze, made Li En wonder if he’d somehow offended her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“She’s from the old capital.” Well, that explained everything.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a sense, her survival was because of Lex—but from another angle, it was Lex who caused it all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“White and Red Feather Arrow are on their way. Their abilities should help you face that opponent.” Both were saved by the Dragon of a Thousand Faces—and both were Li En’s karmic ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En glanced over and gave the ladies a slight nod of thanks.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No wonder they were “family.” With their help, he could finally feel a little at ease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And what about this lady?” Li En’s gaze turned to the last figure in the hall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh, didn’t you bring her in?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En and the others whipped around—and only then saw the final figure: a black-clad “girl.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She seemed beautiful, but when he looked closely, he could make out nothing at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sweetly, joyfully—her laughter grew brighter, yet Li En felt she was screaming, weeping, as if tears were spilling from her smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Found it. Found it. Finally found it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The tiny figure began to spread infinitely; darkness engulfed and devoured everything around. The Hall of Heroic Souls was about to be swallowed by shadows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sovereign of dreams had reached her domain. Li En’s dream was slowly being invaded and controlled by her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The snake sighed, flicking his tail lightly—the dream’s hall shattered outright.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Under current conditions, he couldn’t directly challenge the Beast’s authority—but ending Li En’s dream? That he could do.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before the dream shattered completely, Li En saw only the massive shadow of a great owl—and her joyful laughter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Found it. Found it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That chuckling laugh brimmed with delight and hatred—like a blood-crying death bird, or a grieving widow mourning her lost mate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",2319,"2026-06-19T21:45:42.084Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","7f89d3d3ca5c4b55d3578534f25e91c9a4a10fb97bf0013502b90f61f2b939d8","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-205","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-203",362,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-cover.jpg"]