Chapter 1648 - 1493: Yin Yang Inn 49
Chapter 1648: Chapter 1493: Yin Yang Inn 49
As soon as the sunflower seeds touched her lips, Shuangshuang recognized them as Yuan Chongyuan’s handiwork. He liked to add various herbs when frying the seeds, making them retain their original fragrance while creating a mouthwatering sensation.
With the sunflower seeds in hand, Shuangshuang quickly abandoned the idea of having Yuan Chongyuan skimp on Luo Yao’s meals, and began to focus on cracking the seeds.
Seeing Shuangshuang eating, Luo Yao pulled out another little pouch from his sleeve, opened it, grabbed a handful of seeds, and continued to crack them.
To prevent the seed shells from attracting the attention of people in the troupe, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao used mana to burn the leftover shells, leaving not even a trace of ash.
Their actions were quite extravagant. If seen by cultivators or Ghost Messengers from the Underworld, who valued their mana heavily and were reluctant to use it lightly, it would surely incite jealousy.
Soon, night fell. Everyone in the troupe was sound asleep. Shuangshuang and Luo Yao lightly jumped down from the tree and walked into the encampment where the performers resided.
Earlier, while up in the tree, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao had already figured out the location of the puppet performers’ tents. Now, they headed straight for their destination.
From their previous divine sense scanning while on the tree, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao determined the most skilled puppet performer was a pale, seemingly frail young man.
The man’s appearance was quite delicate, without any trace of evil aura, and he seemed rather reclusive, rarely speaking with anyone in the troupe.
Despite the number of people in the troupe, he kept to himself. Since the tent was set up, he had been staying in there without coming out to communicate.
Unlike other puppet performers, he never held a puppet in his hands to rehearse or practice scenes, seemingly maintaining perfect skill without any need for practice.
The troupe people rarely interacted with him, and seeing him always in the tent, they assumed he was rehearsing inside.
But Shuangshuang and Luo Yao were different. Though he stayed hidden in the tent, their divine sense could penetrate inside. Shuangshuang was certain he hadn’t practiced puppet shows, which was very unusual.
Besides this man, everyone else in the troupe seemed normal, appearing to have little camaraderie with the odd puppet performer.
Oddly enough, the troupe leader took great care of the man, asking about his well-being, but ultimately treating him as if he were a cash cow, concerned only with not offending him. All the attention seemed superficial, lacking sincerity.
Having studied the situation, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao concluded that this puppet performer was likely the sole suspect within the troupe, as everyone else appeared normal and uninvolved in wrongdoing.
At the moment of investigation, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao were inside his tent, which was larger compared to others due to his higher status in the troupe.
Once they stealthily entered inside, they spotted a simple screen dividing the living area from the external part of the tent.
Indeed, the tent resembled a puppet master’s tent, filled densely with various puppets.
Each puppet sported vibrant makeup, intricate hairstyles, and even dressed in little clothes, appearing even more exquisite than real people.
While some might adore dolls, Shuangshuang herself never liked them, feeling they looked quite eerie.
Often, humanoid dolls attracted evil spirits unable to possess humans, favoring these doll-like figures instead.
Even though Shuangshuang wasn’t afraid of ghosts and gods, she felt uncomfortable with these humanoid dolls. Seeing so many lifelike puppets made her skin crawl.
Luo Yao seemed indifferent, but Shuangshuang and Luo Yao both released their divine sense to explore the puppets, unexpectedly discovering that they were simply puppets without any evil presence.
They persisted in reexamining the puppets using their divine sense and senses, yet found nothing suspicious.
Exchanging glances, they repeatedly checked the puppets scattered around, confirming they were normal, ordinary puppets.
In sync, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao bypassed the screen to observe the sleeping puppet performer, whose aura appeared completely normal, plainly an ordinary mortal.
Failing to find the abnormal presence, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao planned to avoid alerting the man, wary of alarming the malicious entity.
Given the entity’s ability to conceal its aura, once spooked and escaped, capturing it would be extremely challenging.
Silently retreating from the tent, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao decided to monitor and observe for a few days. Being there reassured them they could control any harm caused by the entity.
By day, the troupe finally began performing, and Shuangshuang and Luo Yao openly attended, enduring several traditional operas before reaching the puppet show.
Throughout the puppet performance, Shuangshuang and Luo Yao observed closely, acknowledging the performer’s outstanding skill.
Firstly, the puppet show’s plot was captivating, far more engaging than the typical dry narratives of traditional puppet theatre, rich with humor and intrigue.
Additionally, the puppets handled by the performer exhibited agility akin to real humans. His exceptional ventriloquism further enhanced the appeal of his show.
Shuangshuang perceptively monitored the performance and the puppeteer, detecting no trace of evil.
This overwhelming feeling of being so close yet unable to grasp anything was infuriating. Shuangshuang exercised patience, but hot-tempered Luo Yao couldn’t sit still.
If not for Shuangshuang restraining him, Luo Yao might have rolled up his sleeves, intending to apprehend the puppet performer first.
Though keeping Luo Yao in check, Shuangshuang also suspected the puppet master as most dubious.
Despite his normal demeanor, Shuangshuang trusted her instincts that this guy wasn’t innocent.
Fortunately, Shuangshuang had procured a strand of his hair earlier, ready to use the Mystic Light Mirror for observation, avoiding the risk of repeated personal visits and possible exposure.
With the Mystic Light Mirror, they didn’t need constant surveillance. Shuangshuang and Luo Yao checked into an inn, no longer needing to endure tree climbing for monitoring purposes.