[{"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-59":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},2269705,4431,"Chapter 59: Epilogue","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-59",59,"\u003Cp>“Still the same familiar ceiling.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking again at the luxurious crystal chandelier, Li En felt much more at ease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The heavy pressure and threats that had weighed on him were gone; even the same scenery now looked far more comfortable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Lana, don’t run! Why do you always insist on running around naked?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The familiar voice outside also lifted Li En’s spirits—but he’d probably have to wait a bit before opening the door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That's really exaggerated.\" Li En glanced at his body—he was bound so tightly he resembled a mummy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed that when he had emerged, the continuous bleeding from too many wounds had pushed his body to the brink of hypothermic death.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Healing divine arts have their limits; the human body cannot be catalyzed to infinite self-repair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the journey back was anything but smooth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While Li En fought his desperate battle, the other battlefields never ceased.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Heike could call for reinforcements; when Maria and the Great Horned Stag went mad, the little beasts naturally summoned help.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They had repeatedly tried to interfere in Li En and Maria’s battlefield, but were held back by others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Li En stepped out of the battlefield, Dimon and Talia, in terrible condition, were still fighting desperately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To prevent the rushing beast tide from disrupting Li En’s life-or-death struggle, they had blocked the door and fought to the death; Dimon, the only one originally unharmed, had become a bloody mess.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The second wave of reinforcements consisted of official mercenaries; their arrival was oddly timed, intercepted and ambushed by the frenzied beast horde, making their progress grueling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without guides, they spent most of their time wandering the labyrinth of the underground world, fighting to the death with the mad little beasts—essentially just played a supporting role.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it seemed the death of the Great Horned Stag marked the end of everything; after Li En emerged, the monsters grew mild and weak.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even so, the knight squad’s return journey still required constant fighting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the way, Li En encountered Larry, who had switched to shinier armor and arrived riding a Great Sword Spider—truthfully, seeing the Great Sword Spider completely blocking the passage was a disaster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The giant spider blocking the corridor, waving its limbs menacingly, made Li En deeply uneasy—he nearly overreacted and drew his sword.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fortunately, Larry shouted from behind in time, preventing the battered knight squad from suffering another inexplicable life-or-death crisis—knights losing to their mounts was normal; the Great Sword Spider was a powerful rank-four monster.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After exiting the cave, Li En encountered Sallyman and the Radiant Guard holding the entrance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their appearance signaled direct official intervention—the situation had escalated completely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What was once a serial killer case was now an official campaign against a cult and its evil forces of rebellion!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once these people stepped in, the events inside had little to do with Li En and his group.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The remaining beasts were cleaned up thoroughly—rumor had it that the Radiant Guard and City Watch had sealed off the underground cave; no matter what remained inside, it would be cleared away completely after some time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their earlier guess was correct: there truly was a smuggling underground river leading to the subterranean ruins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If Maria had followed that river, all hope would have been lost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the river, along with the small boat upon it, also conveniently solved one of Li En’s major problems.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank goodness, the Hero’s Blood gems were all stored in the Codex’s space. The whereabouts of that bag of ‘gems’ should be blamed on the Beast Cult!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dead men owe no debts—everything can be dumped on Maria and his crew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The cultists who came to assist were, from every perspective, perfect scapegoats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was said Sallyman and her group had happily set a very high bounty on them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The lost bag of “Hero’s Blood” could also serve as motivation for certain people to hunt down villains.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Of course, the reason this matter was settled so quickly was because Li En was willing to sacrifice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He tore off a small piece of Hero’s Blood and placed it on Heike’s corpse. Isn’t it natural for cultists to take a cut? He wasn’t some fearless holy knight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What had been a casual setup earlier became decisive evidence during the post-battle cleanup.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After all, the Ancient Beast Worshipers can’t possibly step forward and claim they didn’t take it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The knight group’s empty-handed exit completely cleared up the suspicion. Under normal circumstances, no one would suspect a holy knight of lying, especially when there were three of them present.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was said that when Li En emerged, his face was as pale as a corpse’s.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some even suspected he might drop dead at any moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t even know when he had passed out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now, Li En rubbed his chin and felt his condition was excellent—no weakness at all from massive blood loss.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Biological Rank: Raw Stone, Status: Strength 8, Physique 9, Agility 6, Spirit 8 (18)】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t an illusion—he had apparently undergone a transformation during sleep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He reviewed the records above and felt something increasingly odd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Dragon Sleep Initiated, Main Material: Dragon Soul Fully Digested, Auxiliary Evolution Materials Being Searched.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Silver-Rank Material: Lion’s Tear (Sun) Confirmed, Silver-Rank Material: Dragon Soul (Volcano) Confirmed, Dragon-Type Materials Being Decomposed and Merged, Sun-Type (Flame) Materials Being Integrated.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Race Talent: Dragon Flame Enhanced.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Dragon Sleep Completed, Current Biological Rank: Raw Stone.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed certain materials stored in the Codex had been consumed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sorry, Lana—your wedding fund seems to have been used by me…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During this Dragon Sleep, the Spirit Codex consumed some materials, helping Li En fully break through the Raw Stone rank.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So, as a Dragonkin with base stats far exceeding ordinary beastmen, it seemed normal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, dragons are famed for their superior base stats; reaching Bronze or even Silver levels at Raw Stone rank isn’t unusual.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En unconsciously rubbed his chin again—he felt something was off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh… scales?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, touching the hard object on his chin, Li En was utterly stunned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He found a mirror and noticed faint red scales on the lower sides of his cheeks!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“. This could actually help me disguise better as a lizardfolk… but a red dragon?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dragonkin are descendants of dragons, but dragons have too many branches; the faint red dragon scales during his Dragon Claw transformation had hinted at Li En’s bloodline origin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No wonder I awakened Dragon Flame and the Holy Flame Halo so easily.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A profession’s path is often directly tied to one’s innate talent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since Li En was now a fire-aligned Red Dragonkin, awakening the rare fire-based divine arts of the Holy Knight class was perfectly logical.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uh, Dimon’s first awakened ability should’ve been Minor Healing—he has a natural talent for healing knight? Or does it hint he’s actually a kind soul who dislikes fighting?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And since he was Red Dragon bloodline, digesting fire-aligned Dragon Soul, Volcano, and Sun-type materials during evolution also seemed normal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He nodded, thinking everything made sense—but who in their right mind uses Silver-Rank materials at Raw Stone rank?! Who dares feed Sun-tier flame materials to a juvenile dragon?!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lacking relevant knowledge, he merely sighed in relief at his advancement and didn’t think much further.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He stared at the mirror for a long time—these scales would greatly aid his disguise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Next time I meet the Dragon Hunter girl, I’ll find a chance to ask how she hides her Dragonkin identity—whether she also walks the False Dragon path.” If he remembered correctly, that girl was also a Red Dragonkin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Red Dragonkind truly lived up to their reputation as the dragon among dragons, the evil dragon among warriors—spreading their blood everywhere without hesitation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Click.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, the door opened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En looked up—huh, everyone was here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Talia rushed in first, followed by Dimon, and Larry was there too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, did you sleep well last night?” Before he finished speaking, Li En saw three faces filled with delight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Li En could react, a wave of sweet fragrance rushed at him—he was embraced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Talia threw herself at him; he even saw joyful tears in her eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hey, is it really that serious?” Li En was puzzled—it was just a nap, right?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“. Lie down right now.” The woman wiped her eyes, said nothing more, and acted immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without another word, Talia carried Li En back to bed—he caught a glimpse through the doorway: the serpent woman was staring coldly at him, then snorted and walked off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You slept for at least thirty hours—your breathing stopped several times. The doctor said you might not make it,” Larry said, sounding deeply uneasy about yesterday’s events.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The doctor had nearly said outright that he couldn’t be saved; the priest had declared the healing divine art had already reached its limit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So this was why Talia and the others were so emotional.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li En hadn’t slept just one night—he’d slept through an entire day and two nights!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a moment’s thought, Li En sat up, smiling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you—and rest easy. As I promised before, I’ve returned safely.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1509,"2026-06-19T21:45:41.002Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","0501c90c22ddd5f4ff7884644d92e4d8fea094e77d58f26a8517868b8c009fcc","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-60","the-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-chapter-58",362,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-dragon-of-a-thousand-faces-cover.jpg"]