Puppet Notes (Wearing Book) - 157

 

| PN | Innocent | 157

In the middle of the night, Qi Chao woke up and noticed the empty, slightly chilly space beside him.

It was clear that Brother Shen had been gone for a while.

At first, Qi Chao assumed Brother Shen had gone to the bathroom or downstairs to get some water, but as time passed, he sensed something was off. He decided to get dressed and go look for him.

Strangely, there was no sign of Shen Yuxi in either the bathroom or the living room. Qi Chao paused, wondering if Brother Shen had gone to the basement or to the children’s rooms.

After some thought, he decided to check the second floor first, thinking it unlikely that Brother Shen would be in the basement. If there was no sign of him upstairs, he would then go to the basement.

Unseen by Qi Chao, a red eyeball, bouncing like a rubber ball, followed closely behind him. The crimson pupil was tightly constricted, as if in a constant state of tension.

“Ayu.”

Hearing his father’s voice, Ayu, who had been trailing at the back of the group, suddenly looked up. The hair under her cap was slightly disheveled, and a hint of anxiety flashed in her red eyes.

“Father, Dad went to the second floor.”

Shen Yuxi had originally spoken just to bring Ayu back to attention. Seeing her anxious expression, he frowned slightly, gave a soft “hmm” in response, and then shifted his gaze to the others.

Without exception, each puppet seemed somewhat distracted.

“I’ll emphasize this again: tonight’s plan allows no room for failure.”

Shen Yuxi’s face was somewhat pale. Because of the unfolding events, the will of the world wouldn’t allow him to die, yet it had ways to make him suffer more, as a means to hinder his actions.

He turned his head to look at Ayu, his voice carrying a chill. “Qi Chao going to the second floor is not the problem right now. Your task right now is to complete the plan. Do you understand?”

Ayu looked up, meeting her father’s penetrating blue eyes that seemed to see through everything. Her heart tightened, fully aware that this was her father’s way of reprimanding her.

“Yes, Father,” she replied.

Ayu tugged her navy cap down slightly, her thoughts no longer as scattered as before. The priority was the current plan, and even if something unexpected happened on dad’s end, Father would undoubtedly find a way to handle it.

Beside her, Lan Luo and Chi Yao heard this and pressed their lips together, their expressions growing more resolute, no longer filled with the hesitation they had shown earlier.

Only Agu, watching Shen Yuxi’s back, pursed his lips. In his view, Father was likely not as calm as he seemed on the surface. He might even be regretting not having given dad a sedative before leaving.

Then again, perhaps not. With the way Father cared about dad now, he probably couldn’t bring himself to resort to drugs.

Thinking this, Agu grinned and said, “Father, let’s get started already. Agu can’t wait to go home.”

Shen Yuxi cast a glance at Agu, his slightly narrowed almond eyes seeming to warn him to adjust his attitude.

Agu quickly straightened up, looking more serious.

Shen Yuxi withdrew his gaze and turned toward the courtyard of the Association. Speaking more quickly than before, he said softly, “According to yesterday’s arrangement, we’ll regroup here in half an hour. Stay in contact.”

The puppets nodded and dispersed in different directions.

Meanwhile, without the original story’s hint from Qiao Sheng, the Association’s higher-ups were completely unaware of an intruder in their headquarters. In fact, even now, they were still in the dark.

“Qiao Sheng has gone missing, is that correct?” 

The Association’s president turned to Liu Tian, the captain of the first team of espers, with a frown. “How long has he been missing?”

“I’m not sure,” Liu Tian replied, shaking his head. Qiao Sheng had always been a recluse, and after his only friend, Marshal Lu, disappeared during a mission, Qiao Sheng rarely appeared at the Association or the research facility.

“Missing is missing, then.” The president sighed with a hint of regret. “The two S-class beast puppets he controlled were incredibly useful. If we’d known he would disappear, we should have secured those puppets for ourselves earlier.”

Liu Tian showed a look of regret as well. Since gaining his abilities, he felt distinctly separated from ordinary humans. This powerful sensation was something no one could dislike.

He had heard that Marshal Lu once had two abilities transplanted, and now, with him missing, Liu Tian was the strongest esper in the Association. 

If Qiao Sheng’s two puppets were in the Association’s hands, Liu Tian might even have a chance to gain another ability himself.

The president glanced at Liu Tian, seemingly aware of his thoughts. Without commenting, he brought up another matter. “Superman from that third shop hasn’t been located yet, has he?”

“No. Since the shop closed, he hasn’t returned,” Liu Tian replied, pausing before adding, “We sent people to track down those who had been treated at superman’s shop, but they knew little about him—only that he needed money to support his family.”

The clients had been tight-lipped, unwilling to divulge any of Superman's personal information. 

However, among the espers, there were those who could gather intel through special abilities, so even the most secretive individuals had little hope of withholding information.

“Is that so?” The president chuckled. 

Needing money was good—it meant the potential for cooperation. The real worry would be if the other party turned out to be an impenetrable fortress, immune to any approach.

Liu Tian nodded, hesitating for a moment before saying, “Although those who went to the shop for treatment described superman as friendly, when our people went to Ganfen District, the neighboring shop owner revealed that he isn’t as kind-hearted as he appears.”

“The shop owner next door even nearly got killed by him.”

The president was momentarily surprised by this but quickly masked his reaction. It made sense—who would open a shop in that area and be a genuinely nice person? 

Such a person was, in fact, more reassuring; with sufficient incentive, they’d likely make a very cooperative partner.

The only question was whether this superman’s ability was innate and if it held any research value.

The president’s gaze darkened thoughtfully as he looked up at Liu Tian, just about to instruct him to expedite the search, when the Association’s alarm suddenly blared.

Ding—ding—

The alarm had a distinctive short-long pattern, clearly signaling an external intrusion. The president’s eyes widened, and Liu Tian immediately sprang to his feet, preparing to confront the intruder.

But before he could step outside, a large blade came down at him directly. Liu Tian dodged hastily, looking up to find a red-haired, red-eyed girl staring at him intently.

Seeing the intruder break in, the president panicked. His arm shot forward, ready to press the alarm, but in the next instant, his right hand was enveloped by a smooth, round orb that instantly corroded the skin off his hand.

"Ah—!"

The president cried out in pain, only to hear a delighted laugh ringing in his ears. A boy's voice sounded out next to his ear.

“If you don’t want your whole body to be corroded, tell us where the esper transplant device is.”

The president’s pupils dilated, and his lips trembled in fear as he looked at the puppet with sun-kissed skin in front of him. He could clearly feel his skin being slowly eaten away, as if ants were crawling over him, and it seemed like even his bones were starting to show.

“Not going to talk?” The boy’s smile widened. "You're tough, huh?"

Agu had originally not intended to resort to force, but now, time was tight. Plus, after hearing this group’s intentions regarding superman from the shop, he couldn't resist taking action. 

Of all the people they could have chosen to target, they went after his dad.

Luckily, they were facing him right now. If Father had been here, things might not have ended well for them.

At that moment, in the room where the esper transplant device was stored, the entire room was filled with green light clusters. All of this emanated from the green crystal in Shen Yuxi’s hand.

“Father, Agu and the others know the location and have already entered the vortex,” said a voice from the side.

Shen Yuxi gave a soft hum, his gaze fixed on the massive transplant device in the center of the room. His expression was somewhat indifferent. It was because of this device that he had been forced to build the trial grounds. 

Now, everything was at a point where it was about to come to an end.

Outside the room, the alarm blared incessantly, and faint human screams could be heard in the distance.

Shen Yuxi lowered his head, gently squeezing the green crystal in his hand. The next moment, a transparent barrier suddenly formed on the surface of the crystal. The barrier slowly expanded, even extending through the door and into the corridor before gradually coming to a stop.

Lan Luo, who had been “working” in the hallway, saw this and let the black mist in his hands dissipate before stepping directly into the barrier.

The injured espers in the hallway tried to follow, but no matter how they attempted to destroy the barrier, they couldn’t find a way to enter. The barrier seemed impenetrable.

“Father.”  

As soon as Lan Luo entered, he saw his father and Ayu standing side by side. His father was holding the core of the mother tree in his hand.  

Looking around at the green light clusters filling the room, Lan Luo’s previously tense nerves relaxed unconsciously. He rarely visited the trial grounds, but he was very fond of the mother tree.  

He couldn’t tell if it was just his impression, but Lan Luo always felt that the mental energy of the mother tree was somewhat similar to his dad’s. 

However, how could there possibly be a connection between a human and the mother tree?  

Shaking off the stray thoughts, Lan Luo refocused and walked over to his father’s side.  

The core of the mother tree in Shen Yuxi’s hand was continuously emitting green light clusters, as if it were summoning something. 

However, the esper transplant device in front of them remained completely still, showing no sign of activation.  

“Father, why isn’t the transplant device responding?”  

Lan Luo asked, his voice tinged with confusion.  

The mother tree had two cores: one in his father’s hand, and the other inside the transplant device.

When the core of the mother tree was stolen and used as material for the transplant device, Father had been continuously trying to find ways to retrieve it. 

However, if he tried to take it by force, it would damage the core of the mother tree. The only way to retrieve it was to use the other core to awaken the transplant device’s core.

Yet now, the core of the transplant device wasn’t responding.

“It’s nothing,” Shen Yuxi said calmly, as if he had anticipated this outcome.

Ayu stood nearby, continuously recording the spiritual energy levels in the room.

The mother tree was the foundation for all the puppets, and the core was the source of the tree’s energy. 

When the thief had stolen the core, the energy of the mother tree had been significantly reduced. If the core wasn’t retrieved soon, the mother tree would be doomed to die.

Lan Luo, observing the expressions of his father and Ayu, took a step back and leaned against the door. 

The barrier around the mother tree’s core was secure, but it didn’t rule out the possibility of humans breaking in.

His task was simple: when those humans entered, his job would be to snap their necks the moment they crossed the threshold.

Far away in the Ganfen District villa, Qi Chao remained unaware that his partner and child were defying the "World Will" to carry out a plan. 

After heading up to the second floor, Qi Chao walked down the left side of the corridor, moving from one end to the other. He didn’t hear any conversation between the children and Shen Yuxi.  

So, they must be in the basement after all?

With this thought, Qi Chao was about to turn back and go downstairs. However, before he could take a step, he suddenly heard some faint sounds coming from the room on his right.  

That room was where the three men were staying.

Qi Chao stopped in his tracks, choosing not to continue forward. Instead, he leaned against the wall outside their door, listening quietly to the conversation inside.

“Li Ge, is it really okay for us to stay in this villa with the villain? I keep feeling like he’ll kill us or just toss us back into the trial grounds when Qi Chao isn’t around.”

The low voices of the men in the room drifted out, sounding as if they were speaking in fear.  

Qi Chao could only vaguely catch a few key phrases. He paused for a moment, his brow furrowing.  

Trial grounds? Villain?  

“Are we really just going to ignore Qiao Sheng and Lu Chen? We couldn’t have escaped without them. Although they won’t die, I still don’t feel right about it.”  

“I feel the same.”  

“There’s nothing we can do. Right now, we can’t protect ourselves. It’s better to stay here in the villa with Qi Chao for now. If we go outside, we’ll definitely be caught. For now, let’s just make do and wait for a chance to come up with another plan.”

The voices in the room gradually quieted down, and eventually, all that could be heard was the soft sound of snoring. 

The three men had clearly fallen asleep. Qi Chao stood in front of the door, his figure shrouded in darkness, his expression unreadable.

The red eyeball not far away watched this scene, hesitating as if it wanted to jump closer to Qi Chao and get a clearer look at his expression. 

However, before it could get any closer, a sudden foot appeared and crushed it.

Xiang Yue, who had been woken up and stepped outside, moved his foot away, looking down at the broken eyeball with confusion. His tail swished, but he didn’t dwell on the origin of the eye. 

Instead, he shifted his gaze to his father.

Is Dad... upset?

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