A man among dragons, building a mysterious ancient church.

Chapter 330 An Irrecoverable Flaw, the Collapse of Trust
"Ah!" Yuan Zhinü's head was throbbing with pain. The sound of the clapper was like a demonic sound, uncontrollably penetrating deep into her brain. Stimulated by the sound of the clapper, Yuan Zhinü let out a howl from deep in her throat, like that of a wild beast that had been shot.

After the shout, Genji's eyes turned golden, mixed with a terrifying crimson and murderous intent.

She's changed; Genji's entire aura has transformed.

One second he was a gentle, timid boy welcoming his older brother home; the next he has transformed into a vengeful demon with a murderous intent and a crazed expression.

With a quick movement, Genjiro easily dodged Genjiro's Spider Cutter attack. Instead of retreating, she advanced, closing in on him. At a close distance, almost touching her brother Genjiro, she delivered a powerful punch to his abdomen, sending him flying!
"Ugh...!" Genji quickly and incredulously adjusted his posture to avoid being pursued, his mind a complete mess.

Erii was one thing, but why was her younger brother, Ichijo, being so over-the-top? He was so fast he almost couldn't react.

Everyone is of royal blood, so why is there such a big difference? Yuan Zhisheng didn't understand and couldn't figure it out.

"Brother! I never thought you would dare to show your face in front of me again!" Minamoto no Chizuru, no, she should now be called Kazama Ruri.

She was pretty, but her eyes were manic, and her tone of voice carried a hint of murderous intent.

Yuan Zhisheng was dumbfounded. What was going on? The girl had suddenly changed so much? And what was that clapper sound just now? What was that again?
Before Genjiro could have much time to be confused, Kazama Ruri's golden eyes revealed a mandala pattern: "I will let you savor it properly, savor the nightmare that I have dreamed of every night for so many years, Word of Power: Dream Eater!"

Before Genji could react, everything around him instantly brightened, transforming from a pitch-black mountain into a brightly lit, bustling town of Shikari.

"Chishin, you've brought your little brother to patronize my business again. Here, have some taiyaki."

"Oh dear, little girl, you need to act like a man and stop hiding behind your brother all the time."

"Young man, young woman! Come again! I refuse to believe that my swordsmanship is inferior to yours. This is the coolest tree branch I found yesterday after searching for two hours in the mountains—no, the coolest holy sword!"

The old lady who sells taiyaki from her home, the kind-hearted uncle next door who loves to drink, and the elementary school classmate who is passionate about kendo—everything felt so familiar that Genji almost thought he had really returned to his childhood.

But these are just dreams. Can the Word Power Dream Eater really do this? Or to be more accurate, can the young girl remember everything she has experienced so clearly?
Word Spirit Dream Eater is a dream woven by the Word Spirit caster. If the Word Spirit caster's memory is unclear, it is impossible to restore all the details.

“Brother.” Genji appeared behind Genji, no longer displaying his previous madness and murderous intent, as if Genji’s cowardly and gentle younger brother had returned.

Genjiro quickly turned around and slashed out with his sword, but Genjiro easily dodged it. The familiar villagers around them remained unmoved.

The grandmother selling taiyaki was still looking at the two brothers with kindness, ignoring the sword in the older brother's hand. The uncle did not try to stop them either, and continued to tell Yuan Zhinü not to hide behind her brother like a robot NPC.

Even the classmate who was holding a tree branch and pretending to be a sword was still making a fuss and demanding a one-on-one fight.

With a light leap, Yuan Zhinv reached the rooftop: "Brother, I don't have much time left. The King, no, Herzog's clone is also here."

“That clapper sound just now was his way of controlling me.”

Upon hearing the keyword Herzog, and the eerie word 'manipulation', Genji paused, truly ceasing his attack, because Aso's question from earlier that day resurfaced in his mind.

How could an emperor fall into depravity?

Could it be... that the crimes the young girl committed were all orchestrated by Herzog?!
“Brother…” Genjiro spoke faster and told the truth, including her split personality, which was divided into Genjiro and Kazama Ruri, and the sound of Herzog’s clapper, which allowed her to switch between her personalities.

It even includes the fact that Kazama Ruri's personality was hypnotized by Herzog and revealed everything.

This deeply shocked Genjiro. How could this be? The girl was merely a victim; she hadn't truly fallen into demonhood. The culprit was none other than the despicable Herzog!
It was that despicable bastard who led his younger brother, Genjiro, down this path of no return!
For years, Genjiro believed that Genjiro was a demon, so he habitually wanted to define the truth as a lie and to judge that Genjiro was lying and deceiving him.

But the question raised by Makoto Aso had been suppressed by his long-standing habits.

Yes, the emperor will not fall into depravity, and there is no reason for the young girl to fall into becoming a demon. The young girl will always be the same emperor as him!

"Brother, I rushed to find you to explain things clearly, and also to tell you to be careful of Tachibana Masamune!" When Genji saw that her brother had stopped attacking, concern and worry for him reappeared on her handsome face.

"What...what do you mean?" Be careful of Dad? Yuan Zhisheng's pupils dilated sharply. Dad was in critical condition. What was Yuan Zhinu babbling about? Yuan Zhisheng finally uttered his first words after reuniting with Yuan Zhinu.

Genjiro recounts how Ince read Herzog's clone's memories, detailing how Genjiro's return coincided with witnessing all of Genjiro's crimes—a coincidence that seemed too perfect.

It was like a play, with the Genji brothers being manipulated and put on a show.

Genjiro wanted to loudly reprimand his younger brother and refute Genjiro's words, saying that it was all Ince's slander and a malicious conspiracy.

But he couldn't bring himself to say it. The high-ranking mole that the Snake Clan had been unable to uncover, the crime of raising Dead Servants, and even the story of Tachibana Masamune revealing his real name Bondarev all flashed back into Genji's mind.

Most importantly, it was today. He had originally ordered Princess Kaguya to block the path of the King and Ince, and to change all the green lights to red lights.

Later, when Crow called to report on the results of the meeting of the five family heads, he also mentioned that a traitor had been found.

It was a mid-level member of the Snake-Headed Eight Clan who betrayed them, secretly joining the Demon Clan and altering Genji's instructions to Princess Kaguya. On the surface, it seems the Demon Clan was too despicable, but what was the real reason?
It's utterly absurd that a mid-level manager could alter the patriarch's orders to Princess Kaguya.
Princess Kaguya is an artificial intelligence. How could a mere low-ranking official change the head of the family's orders? That's artificial stupidity!

Therefore, Genjiro knew that there must have been a secret authorization granted by higher-ups, otherwise middle-level cadres would never have been able to modify Princess Kaguya.

Tachibana Masamune is far too suspicious, but the former Genji deliberately ignored these suspicious points because of his love for his "father".

If what the young girl said was the truth, then... Genji couldn't help but feel a chill run down his spine.

Yuan Zhisheng felt pain, but it wasn't a sudden, sharp stab; rather, it was a slow, cold, dull ache.

Like a piece of ice gradually melting in the heart, a cold current flows along the blood pumped by the heart to the limbs and bones, freezing every inch of bone and blood.

"No, impossible! Dad, Dad isn't like that!" The usually resolute patriarch was now like a child who hadn't gotten his toy.

Genjiro began trying to explain to Tachibana Masamune: "Your father is actually Bondarev, Herzog's mortal enemy. How could he possibly serve Herzog?"

“Herzog has always tried to steal the power of the White King. Father and I both want to kill the White King and end the tragic fate of the Serpent Clan. How could it be Herzog’s man?”

Rather than refuting Genjiro, it's more accurate to say that he's brainwashing himself.

Yuan Zhinu gazed sadly at her brother, at the most important person in her life, the one she had once depended on for survival: "Bondarev? Everything was buried in that fire at Black Swan Harbor."

"What can be concluded from Tachibana Masamune's one-sided statement? Compared to Bondarev, I am more inclined to believe that Tachibana Masamune is yet another clone of Herzog."

"Don't forget, brother. Tachibana Masamune first found us in Shikatori Town, saying he was there to help the Hebi-Hachi family find their imperial bloodline. But he only took you with him. What about me? Am I not an emperor?"

Yes, if Tachibana Masamune was truly only concerned with the Snake-Headed Eight Families and was truly selfless, why didn't he bring back the two imperial bloodlines?

They only took Genjiro, not Genjiro.

This is a fatal flaw that can never be covered up.

Even using the excuse that the mixed-race community is dangerous and unsuitable for taking Minamoto no Chinobu to Tokyo is simply unconvincing; the Snake Clan is not without bodyguards.

"!" Yuan Zhisheng's body shook violently, unable to withstand the force. The solid and reliable ground he once thought was his 'father' shattered inch by inch beneath his feet, unable to support him any longer.

Genjiro recalls every scene of 'justice' and 'responsibility to slay demons' that Tachibana Masamune taught him, and now they all seem like a poisoned irony.

How ridiculous are the more than ten years of his life after being taken away from Shikatori by Tachibana Masamune, the earnest teachings he received from Tachibana Masamune, and even his thought of seeing Tachibana Masamune off in his final days?
All of Tachibana Masamune's tenderness towards him was a carefully calculated performance from the very beginning!

Once trust collapses, all doubts will surface like a tidal wave. Even if Tachibana Masamune, who has always been healthy, loses his five fingers, he shouldn't immediately fall ill and be in critical condition, right?
Tachibana Masamune's last thought before his death was to see Erii. Considering that Tachibana Masamune had previously strongly opposed handing Erii over to the old church and insisted on keeping her in the Hebi-Hachi family, Genji Chisei couldn't help but feel gloomy.

Herzog targeted Minamoto no Ichijo earlier, and now Tachibana no Masamune is using his sister for something else.
Human energy is limited. First, his trust in Tachibana Masamune collapsed, then he worried about Erii. It wasn't until a few seconds later that Genji realized he should be more concerned about Genji.

"Chi...Chijo." It had been so long since he'd uttered that name; Genji was momentarily dazed. "You...how are you now?"

Genji laughed heartily, her eyes narrowing into slits, revealing a set of white teeth, like a cool breeze in summer: "It's because Kazama Ruri's personality is resisting the sound of the clapper that I can explain to my brother in the dream world."

Genjiro's mood grew heavier and heavier. It was all because of Herzog that his younger brother, Chizuru, had become like this, turning into Kazama Ruri and Genjiro.

How dare Herzog harm his beloved brother to this state!

In that instant, Genjiro and his younger brother Genjiro both felt the same urge to kill Herzog: "By the way, Ince, Ince, do you know where Ince is?"

"You got the truth from Ince, didn't you? Tell me where Ince is hiding."

Yuan Zhinu shook her head decisively, unusually refusing her brother Yuan Zhisheng's request: "No, brother."

“I also dislike ambitious people like Ince, but only by following him is it most likely that we will find Herzog. I want to kill Herzog with my own hands and break free from his control.”

"Only in this way can I return to my brother's side without any hidden dangers."

Genjiro pursed his lips a few times, but in the end, he could only utter the other person's name: "Chijo..."

“Alright, brother, let’s get down to business.” Genjiro still maintained a happy smile, not as stressed as Genjiro: “Herzog’s clone is still outside, and I need to put on a show with you, brother.”

“If my brother wants to test Tachibana Masamune, I can also offer my help.”

(End of this chapter)