[{"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-312":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},2269958,4431,"Chapter 312","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-312",312,"\u003Cp>“This is my money, all of it mine! They took my money, yet dare to claim moral high ground, even dare to make me thank them!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A middle-aged pastor, a follower of the Dawn Lamp, meant to pursue light and spread sunshine among believers and common folk, was consumed by rage and anxiety.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had sunk too deep—he could no longer turn back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Viret, a fourth-rank pastor, given his age under forty, was destined to enter the Church’s upper echelons and eventually become a true High Pastor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had once been a Lamp-Bearer of the Church, an honorific title granted to those who sacrificed and protected; he had earned it by fighting demons to defend his village, once battling until barely breathing for the sake of children—but now he wore the very robe he despised, transformed into the very thing he once loathed most.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve lost all my money! Without funding, how do I survive? I need to replace my mansion, my seventh mistress is demanding money, my fourth child needs reserve funds, and I must bribe the High Pastor myself.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some things, once you take the first step, have no “afterward.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps the singer of peace was right—ambition and desire are the roots of conflict; once you take the first step into desire, you only sink deeper, step by step, into the abyss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To others, Viret becoming High Pastor was merely a matter of time—but he knew himself: he could no longer face his faith, could no longer face his past self; while enjoying his luxurious life, he had no chance to advance further on the “Dawn” path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A deity is a beacon, a path; when you abandon it, if you happen to encounter a “patrol,” you may be instantly destroyed by human law—but as long as you do not directly connect with the deity, It lacks the power to perceive every believer’s inner change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet if he attempts to ascend, if he tries to decipher divine grace to claim more power for becoming High Pastor, that “corruption” will surely become impossible to hide.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that point, merely failing to ascend would be considered leniency by the deity’s system.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Becoming a High Pastor is nothing compared to becoming a wealthy merchant,” yet Viret felt no regret—he believed he had seen through it all long ago.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The years of asceticism and diligence had exhausted his entire life’s effort; in his view, he now had every right to enjoy comfort.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, his insatiable greed for money, wealth, and status made him one of the main collaborators in the slave market—no one could have imagined that an exemplary pastor of the Dawn Church, symbolizing “redemption” and “light,” was the one who had sunk the deepest into corruption.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I am serving the Church—only with wealth and future talent can the Church better redeem humanity,” the past Viret had been skilled at convincing himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My money, my money, my money!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, the grotesque expression on that mask held not a trace of pastoral compassion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His self-deceiving lies had long been shattered; if this chain of money broke, this ruined pastor would inevitably become a stain on the Church, cast out without mercy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Boom!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The solar fire of the Dawn Lamp, meant to dispel darkness and purify evil, was now used to burn down the refugees’ shabby huts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A cloaked “heretic” set fires everywhere—he was the most eager of all attackers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If I can just make these bastards leave here, my slave-hunting team can recover some losses.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He did not even feel he was committing a crime, nor acting against the deity’s teachings—he believed he was merely reclaiming his lost property.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since I cannot recover this “property” through legitimate means, I’ll use illegitimate ones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Attack this trash village, let the trash flee on their own, then I’ll turn them back into slaves. Even if you come with new residency records, I won’t recognize them!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is the age: “rules” matter only on the surface—ultimately, everything comes down to strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We follow rules by day, but at dusk and night, only strength counts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re familiar… Oh, the Blood Countess already claimed your first night.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Viret smiled happily—he had found a precious “merchandise,” one that might let him recover some losses early.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Aaah!” The girl screamed, remembering her nightmare past; she pulled out a fork and plunged it toward her own throat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She would rather die than return to that hell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Snap!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A cast “Human Paralysis Spell” instantly froze the woman who had barely escaped hell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the center of the ruined hut, her face, like a puppet’s, was filled with terror and despair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her body had completely lost control; only uncontrollable tears streamed from her eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Yes, yes, yes—just that expression. That old pervert loves this.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Viret smiled happily—he thought he might raise the price.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Like him, such “mid-level officials,” once they lost faith and reason, had nothing left but this vice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His greedy gaze swept over the surrounding slaves—perhaps this “unexpected bounty” he could keep for himself; then, these slaves must be silenced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His fingers reached happily toward the “puppet’s” lower body, intending to inspect the goods first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If she was already ruined, he might have to pay compensation—then he’d have to eliminate this woman.\u003C\u002Fp>",871,"2026-06-19T21:45:42.084Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","70e4ceec36449f3275ee525129fbd8ee95d64287696781ebb6147dfeffd72b65","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-313","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-311",362,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-cover.jpg"]