[{"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-228":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},2269874,4431,"Chapter 228: The Empire's Truth","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-228",228,"\u003Cp>The empire’s birth dripped with sin and blood-tears from every pore.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Is it truly good for beasts to gain humanity? At least beasts stop hunting once fed, and never slaughter their own kind for hollow glory, money, or grand ideals—the kinds of evil no beast could ever commit—Solomon Tiro.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the sake of grand ideals, for so-called collective interests, “humanity” often sinks to unimaginable depths.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I lived for a while in the Realm of Beasts. I suddenly realized humanity isn’t so bad—most of the time, it’s decent. It’s good that humans rarely care about me day-to-day—Solomon Tiro, covered in bite marks.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Setting aside this absurd dimension-traveler, sentient beings under the banner of “higher interests” often commit acts more inhuman than any beast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Fertility Breeding Facility, a state-rented reproductive support structure with an abnormally high miscarriage rate, reports directly to the Kingdom’s Steam Industry Department.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In just decades, the Kingdom surpassed centuries of accumulation by other nations, swelling wildly—yet its technological source was this bizarre institution.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To petition the Whisperers for knowledge, the most crucial element isn’t the cost—it’s the “devout petitioner.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Whispering ritual can be twisted by the officiant; back then, the Kingdom had countless Truth Cult Servants, masters of manipulating rules.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But some core rules cannot be twisted: the petitioner’s desired knowledge must be what they truly, deeply wish to know.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So how do you systematically acquire vast quantities of knowledge in exchange for loyal warriors?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The result proved terrible: even the most loyal warriors often cherished their families most—not their nation—and their wishes inevitably spiraled out of control.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even when a wish succeeded by chance, the “yield” remained wildly unstable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Every stable petitioner who becomes an ‘Empire Mother’ is invaluable—loyal, courageous in sacrifice, willing to give everything for the empire’s birth.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the ruined fertility facilities, cries and wails echoed everywhere, while looping playback devices broadcasted ironic propaganda.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Countless “mothers” clutched their swollen bellies, studying the so-called Imperial Scripture—their maternal, gentle smiles sent chills down the spine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lex, tongue-tied, simply played a memory: his own shocking awakening to the empire’s darkness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The adolescent girls “cultivated” (brainwashed) became prime petitioner candidates, internalizing the empire’s needs as their own dreams, and under the aid of “Empire Librarians,” repeated petitions to extract precious knowledge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Typically, a successful “Empire Mother” could be used four or five times until she could no longer conceive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who was the father? Did it matter? The empire’s standard pool of “Empire Mother” candidates numbered over a thousand; at its peak, over ten thousand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even with success rates below ten percent, the yield was unbeatably high.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Rosalind’s mother was an Empire Mother. By the way, that name was given by Griffin II—he dreamed of turning the kingdom into an empire. I strongly suspect all his other children were consumed too.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The memory playback halted midway—too many nauseating scenes weren’t fit for Li En, this “youngster.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These knowledge sources were effective—but came from “outside,” with no restraint. The Soul-Melting Death Furnace was merely one of the milder methods; mass biological, viral, and human experiments were “empire routine.” The empire’s most famous war golems were built from flesh and blood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In less than decades, the Kingdom transformed from an obscure backwater into one of the continent’s top empire contenders. Whether other empires rose amid countless tears and blood remains unknown—but this empire’s rise was drenched in tears and sin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This sin wasn’t just against its own people—it extended to foreign nations, other races.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why do the conquered nations now hate it so? Too much blood debt and hatred remained, untouched by the kingdom’s decline.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though the Great Red Dragon burned away most “knowledge” and “memories,” it could not erase the hatred and fury between people.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Rosalind’s mother petitioned over thirty times—the knowledge and data she exchanged filled an entire archive. In exchange, she received only one fetus. Ha. In the Outer Gods’ reckoning, a beast’s fetus is more durable than a human’s.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En was stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beasts can be used like this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beasts’ greatest strength has always been their incredible vitality and regeneration—especially beast kings, nearly all of whom are immortal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So when still a fetus, they could be endlessly exploited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this filthy tale, it’s hard to say whether “human” or “beast” was more evil.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t know how much of Rosalind remains human—or if she’s merely the dregs after being squeezed and filtered.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lex spoke words he himself couldn’t trust—his lifelong love, perhaps his lifelong delusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“But one thing was later confirmed: she hated the kingdom, hated humanity, hated all life.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t know if she ever truly loved me. I truly don’t know. I don’t know if that past sweetness was real or a lie. I don’t even know if she’s still capable of love. If you can, verify it for me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The past replayed again. Lex never felt he deserved the title of Hero.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was just a fool. A complete fool.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps he should’ve stayed quietly in the countryside, married a plain but lively village girl.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was dazzled by the metropolis, by the kingdom’s glittering dream of prosperity, convinced his actions were righteous—yet were those wars abroad and suppressions at home truly just?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he vaguely sensed something was wrong and prepared to leave entirely, love and family bound him tighter. Even now, Lex doesn’t know who set the trap—Griffin II or Rosalind herself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he said, he didn’t know which was more evil. Both were players in this game, scheming against each other—and he was the most foolish, yet most powerful pawn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I did many foolish things. When I tried to turn back, I’d already lost control of my own body.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who did this? Who could implant a cursed spell into the invincible Hero’s body? Lex knew the only painful answer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The past was blind obedience and folly; awakening came too late—he became nothing but a killing machine, a tool.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Victory Day celebration? I want to laugh. Who broke the seal of the ‘Elephant’? Guess. Without this stupid, strongest sword, who could’ve easily pierced the underground labyrinth and severed the still-intact beast seal?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a memory: a puppet-like “Lex” followed the legion into the neighboring kingdom’s underground labyrinth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These were still among the empire’s actions—not even the most inhuman.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The knowledge from outside demons shaped countless tragedies—for its own citizens, and for conquered nations.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this process, everyone reaped benefits; empire soldiers became death gods and lords to foreign lands, while countless new weapons and technologies were incubated in foreign territories.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Small fishing villages like Huicheng were fine—but back then, even commoners in the empire’s major cities had several war or debt slaves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lex spoke, yet he wasn’t seeking forgiveness—only self-confession.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or perhaps he merely hoped this history wouldn’t be forgotten—or maybe he was just issuing a Legendary Quest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Great Red Dragon destroyed everything, sterilizing from the root—likely erasing most ‘knowledge’ and ‘knowledge-bearers.’ But some things still linger. If you get the chance, destroy them! This is our sin, our crime.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Hero of the Great Red Dragon smiled, rushing to disaster sites, saving every resident he saw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lex kept smiling—but inside, he ached beyond endurance. He couldn’t even be sure these mortals deserved saving.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t even feel clean himself. His absurd growth was aided by outside knowledge, built upon countless “sacrifices.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“So was the campaign against the Demon King Elephant just a farce?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Not quite. According to Griffin’s plan, he wanted the ‘Elephant’ to cause chaos, making the kingdom appear as savior—and thus become an empire. But the Elephant charged straight for the old capital. It looked like Rosalind was behind it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That era, that nation, became the chessboard for a father-daughter game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The father held most of the kingdom; the daughter held the strongest piece—the foolish Lex Soren.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What role did Dianya’s mother, Marianna, play? Was she helping Griffin?” “No. She knew nothing. She was likely the royal family’s only sane person. In Griffin’s script, if he couldn’t become the true Griffon King, the next emperor should be cleaner. She was well-protected, deliberately isolated from the darkness.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lex sighed. His feelings toward Marianna were deeply complicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their marriage was purely political; their relationship had been terrible before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Before the war against the ‘Elephant,’ with Marianna’s help, I broke free from my chains. To atone, I organized the campaign against the ‘Elephant.’ Later, I returned to the capital intending revenge. But by then, Rosalind was already pregnant.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bewildered Hero walked into the streets—crowds cheered, celebrating victory, chanting his name everywhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before him stood his weeping, repentant wife—and the innocent child in her womb.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Should he draw his sword and slaughter? Marianna helped him too. She was innocent. Most ordinary people in the empire were probably innocent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Eventually, Rosalind was imprisoned. Under Griffin’s arrangement, the bloody wedding took place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The Marianna at the wedding was Rosalind in disguise. I died at that wedding—I refused to be controlled anymore. I didn’t even know when they switched sisters again. Maybe Rosalind was better at it. Or maybe Marianna was too soft. Doesn’t matter.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one could kill the invincible Hero. Only he himself—reversing his Hero Sword, drove it through his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re pathetic.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hah. Yeah.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What happened during and after the wedding—Lex didn’t know. He was already dead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But current intelligence shows: night and beast hordes descended that night.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rosalind and Griffin turned on each other completely, deploying all their pieces. Beasts and imperial legions clashed in a devastating battle within the capital.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And Li En, learning of Lex’s death from the dream, triggered certain verification systems—causing the Great Red Dragon’s arrival.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In a sense, this hellish scene was caused by the Thousand-Faced Dragon Lex, so the Great Red Dragon was granted permission to intervene—with a single devastating breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En was numb. It was all too chaotic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Did Rosalind have no feelings for Lex? Li En doubted it. That madness didn’t look like acting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps, as Rosalind herself screamed in the side chamber:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Marianna hadn’t stopped their first elopement—if they’d run away to the countryside—none of this would’ve happened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You seem to have forgotten the key point. What about Dianya? What happened to her?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“She…” Lex sighed. Among all his monstrous deeds, this was one of the worst.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My marriage to Marianna was actually my compromise with Griffin—and Griffin’s punishment to Rosalind. None of us expected her to flip out completely.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Okay, Li En realized—you still loved Rosalind. Marrying Marianna was just revenge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But at that moment, Lex had no choice. Could he rebel against the empire, shatter the hard-won peace and stability?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both Griffin and Rosalind saw through him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They knew: if he bowed, apologized, Lex would never raise that invincible sword. Even now, Lex deeply regretted his past stupidity and hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in the end, he was just a sword—an invincible, undefeated sword—still held by the powerful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His reason, his restraint, his righteousness—these became the very chains that bound him then.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The political situation demanded my marriage to the royal family. Marianna was the only option. She was furious, but gritted her teeth and accepted—she was willing to marry someone she hated for the empire’s stability. Three days before the wedding, we used a secret method to conceive Dianya, planning to announce it at the ceremony to calm public sentiment.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Li En had a face, he’d be covering it now. What kind of nightmare was this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had everything gone smoothly, the kingdom would’ve become an empire, Griffin II would’ve become the true Griffin Emperor, and Lex—still just a sword in their hands. Perhaps, at best, he’d be passed to a new wielder.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He might’ve used his power to make the empire act more human—but the empire, once built, was already entering its whitewashing phase. What meaning did saving it then hold? And could one man truly redirect such a massive, momentum-driven machine?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re really pathetic,” Li En confirmed the serpent’s judgment. This Hero was utterly pathetic—just dragging down the Thousand-Faced Dragon’s reputation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lex sighed. He knew he was useless. But some things still lingered in shadow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was just a sword—a sword that could never be defeated. Too much was hidden inside him. He didn’t know. The Great Red Dragon’s conditions for attacking the land were extremely strict. Back then, the empire surely had many more secrets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only if deemed an enemy of the plane, an enemy of civilization, a world-destroyer—and only if the empire’s destruction carries a lower cost than its survival—would the dragon’s breath fall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Check the truth progress—it’s still only 54%. Go find out why the Great Red Dragon wants to destroy everything, what else happened that day, and what lingering shadow from the empire’s past holds a catastrophe capable of ending the world.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After some thought, he dug a deep pit for Li En.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For some reason, I always feel that with Griffin’s abilities, he shouldn’t have died so easily. As long as he lives, he remains a threat—to the entire world.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En fell silent. He wondered if he’d crossed into the wrong timeline—why were all these missions so deadly? Could he even handle them?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“By the way, if you want to save the kingdom, save it—I won’t force you. Its destruction is deserved anyway. But if you can, look after Dainya and her mother. They’re the most innocent, especially little Dainya. Though ‘Hao’ has been nearly destroyed and won’t awaken soon, only Dainya’s strength can permanently eliminate this threat.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En was speechless. Do I look like I have the power to save a nation? And by ‘Hao’—are you referring to Rosalind, or the ‘Beast’ sealed away?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking this through, even the prophecy proved true—Dainya truly is this generation’s Second Princess.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Both. Currently, Dainya’s bloodline appears stable, but remain cautious.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lex’s words sounded like a final farewell. Li En guessed he’d already planned to flee—intending to slip out of the city under cover of night and dump this entire mess on Li En, who’d return tomorrow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why so formal? We’re one and the same. What’s mine is yours. My mess is your mess.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I %%&*……!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En experienced the joy of cursing himself—he finally understood why those heroic spirits despised Li Ensu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Digging a pit for yourself like this? That’s truly brilliant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the thing Lex most wanted to entrust him with—he never voiced it. It was simply too humiliating.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Geez, you don’t still want to know whether Rosalind truly loved you, do you? Did she ever truly love you?” But this longing was too strong—it reached Li En anyway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lex’s silence, perhaps, was the most humiliating answer of all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Li En made up his mind: even if he became a bastard afterward, he’d never again be such a pathetic, naive fool.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unaware, Lex had already reached the city’s edge. It seemed he’d vanish for a full day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the two figures blocking the city gate suggested that this single-minded hero had already been seen through.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, Mary, little Dainya—nice weather, huh? Fancy meeting you here?” Lex forced a smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Father, is it true, as Mother said—that you’re planning to abandon us again?” Faced with his daughter’s tearful gaze, Lex instantly crumbled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“How could I? How could I? Little Dainya, do you want to fly high? I’ll take you up among the clouds—want to?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No. I want you to make up with Mother.” It seemed Dainya had sensed something was wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instantly, the “humiliated hero” Lex was drenched in sweat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",2569,"2026-06-19T21:45:42.084Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","5a65772ef8b59e3dba4433e106af4db41ca32a74a75c845503149217199c5c16","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-229","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-227",362,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-cover.jpg"]