Chapter 291

Chapter 269: Puppet Dance

Inside the Feiteng Theatre, the orchestra members played their instruments with full enthusiasm, the melodious yet sorrowful music echoing in the vast and dim space, lingering in every audience member’s ears. On stage, under the eyes of the crowd, Adele, dressed in red, continued her self-forgetful dance.

Adele’s movements were graceful and natural, as smooth as flowing water, complemented by her bright red dress. At times, this flowing motion seemed like bl**d, driven by the heart, surging through the veins.

Adele’s elegant dancing deeply captivated all the audience’s attention; everyone was immersed in it. However, no one, including Adele herself, realized that there was a hint of danger lurking within this grand dance.

Without anyone noticing, a backup dancer silently left her position, moving towards Adele with fluid steps from behind. She danced closer to Adele, making the audience believe this was part of the performance. Although some backup dancers noticed something unusual about this dancer, they did not dare to stop and point it out, for the show was still ongoing and Adele continued to dance. Stopping would ruin the entire performance, so they could only watch as the dancer deviated from her path and approached Adele from behind.

They did not see the sharpened stone kn*fe hidden beneath the dancer’s skirt.

Dancing, spinning, the unruly dancer finally approached Adele’s back. In a carefully choreographed dance move, she drew out the sharpened stone kn*fe from under her skirt and stabbed at Adele’s back. The kn*fe was just a second away from piercing Adele’s body, staining her red dress with real bl**d.

At the moment the dancer tightened her grip on the kn*fe and aimed it at Adele, her body suddenly twitched unnaturally. The kn*fe veered off its course, narrowly missing Adele. In the shadow somewhere, a pair of eyes narrowed in concern.

This level of abnormality finally caught the attention of the audience. Many spectators exclaimed in shock, while other backup dancers, realizing something was amiss, paused momentarily. Only the musicians below the stage continued playing, as the performance seemed on the verge of collapsing due to this unexpected incident.

At this moment, Adele, who was dancing, sidestepped and grabbed the dancer’s wrist, shaking it lightly to drop the stone kn*fe. As the kn*fe hit the ground, she pulled the dancer towards her, grabbing her waist with her other hand.

In an instant, Adele and the dancer assumed a pose for a duet dance. With great force, Adele led the dancer to continue dancing on stage. The attacker and the attacked were now dancing together. The audience’s cries of alarm turned to exclamations and cheers. Amidst the dance, Adele spun in the center of the stage, her sharp gaze sweeping over the stopped backup dancers. Seeing this, the backup dancers immediately resumed dancing to the music.

Thus, the music and dance continued, with applause from the audience. Adele and the dancer she held began a spontaneous duet, a dance never planned but improvised on the spot. Under Adele’s lead, the expressionless assassin dancer started another dance, while the other backup dancers continued their usual routines.

During the dance, Adele gazed at the dancer’s wooden face and whispered, “Are you… Maria?”

As if responding to Adele’s question, the dancer named Maria’s wooden expression softened, then became natural, as if coming to life.

“You almost died. You should stop performing now.”

Facing Adele, “Maria” spoke softly, and Adele smiled slightly, continuing softly, “I know, thank you. But since the music hasn’t ended, the dance must go on.”

“Do you know how to dance, stranger?”

Holding “Maria,” who seemed to understand the situation, Adele continued smiling and said, “No.”

“It’s okay, I’ll lead. Just follow me.”

With that, Adele increased the amplitude of the dance, and “Maria” tried her best to keep up with Adele’s steps. Under Adele’s improvisation, the dance officially became a duet. The music continued, and the dance progressed.

Adele’s dance skills were impeccable. She clearly felt that “Maria” was a novice at dancing, but she skillfully guided “Maria” with advanced techniques and subtle hints, ensuring her movements remained within the bounds of the dance without any mistakes.

As the music continued, this dance, which already had a theatrical quality, began to deviate from its original script and transform into an impromptu performance led by Adele and “Maria.” Although the backup dancers were highly puzzled, they relied on their years of rich dance experience to keep up. Their dance was similar to before, but Adele and “Maria” were no longer following the original routine.

Adele led “Maria” to follow her steps. Initially, she felt that the dancer could barely keep up, but her movements were unnatural. However, as time passed, Adele sensed that “Maria” became less awkward, and her movements flowed more smoothly. Sometimes, “Maria” could even step out naturally without Adele’s guidance, showing increasing coordination.

Learning… Adele was amazed by how quickly “Maria” was learning the dance she was improvising. She learned as she danced, mastering it instantly and applying it immediately. Under Adele’s guidance, “Maria’s” dancing skills rapidly improved, transitioning from passive following to active cooperation in less than a minute.

“How interesting…”

Seeing “Maria” grow incredibly fast despite her terrifying learning speed, Adele’s smile deepened. She immediately increased the difficulty of the dance, raising the challenge as she understood “Maria’s” learning pace. Their movements became faster and more open. Following Adele, “Maria” elevated the complexity and layers of her dance moves, surpassing her original level.

The rising dance between the leader and learner drew intermittent exclamations from the audience. Staff members who had seen rehearsals were dumbfounded. The current performance on stage was completely different from the rehearsals. They nervously watched the scene, fearing that such an unplanned and unscripted performance might suddenly go wrong. Fortunately, no such issues occurred.

Adele and “Maria’s” dance grew increasingly intense, with higher difficulty and faster steps. The whole dance seemed to spiral upward, gradually exceeding the boundaries of ordinary dancing, advancing towards some unknown realm, with a hint of unease in the music.

Adele wanted to push the dance to its extreme, to madness. However, when she sensed that the music was nearing its end and time no longer allowed her to test the limits of her mysterious dance partner, she began to slow down the movements, easing the overall rhythm. Then, together with the other backup dancers, she began to conclude the performance.

Finally, after the last segment of the music concluded, Adele and “Maria” successfully brought the dance to a close. They stood in a line with the other backup dancers, bowing to the audience, and were met with unprecedented thunderous applause.