### Chapter 28: I Am… the Puppet Master
“Why…?”
Lianhua knew her stepmother hated her, but she never expected it would go so far as to let bad guys kidnap her.
She just didn’t get it.
What would these kidnappers do to her if it weren’t for the money?
The immature girl began to feel a wave of fear wash over her.
The men’s conversation continued.
“I say, instead of taking the girl to those crazies for experiments, why not have a little fun with her first? She’s quite delicate-looking; when she grows up, she’ll definitely be a knockout. I’m getting all tingly just thinking about it.”
“Eh…?”
Lianhua’s heart did a somersault, and she involuntarily stepped back two paces.
“Your kinks are not something I’d like to comment on. Is playing with a little girl really that entertaining?”
“Oh, it’s absolutely entertaining! You wouldn’t believe the thrill of it; definitely more exciting than your usual big-boobed women!”
“You can play with her, just don’t break her. Otherwise, you can be the next experiment subject for those crazies.”
“Relax, I’ll be real gentle~”
Footsteps echoed in.
Lianhua fled from the doorway and retreated into a corner.
Clack.
The door swung open, and a weak light seeped into the dim room, casting a long shadow of a frail figure standing in the doorway, looking like a demon.
“Don’t come any closer…”
“Oh? You’re awake? Now that makes things easier.”
The skinny man cackled with a wicked grin as he grabbed Lianhua’s arm.
“Let go of me!”
Lianhua struggled fiercely, but how could her strength compare to that of an adult man?
The frail man dragged her out of the dim room and threw her to the ground.
“Ah!”
That hurt…
Tears welled up in Lianhua’s eyes as she felt extremely wronged.
Three men were in the room: the skinny man and his bulkier, shorter companions.
The bulky man furrowed his brow.
“Why not do it in there?”
The skinny man chuckled, “Too dark, not enough feel! It’s way more fun in good light. Don’t you find a person’s look of despair amusing?”
The bulky man shot him a glance before rolling his eyes and deciding the conversation was beneath him.
Then came the voice of the shorter man.
“What to do with this weird box? It’s filled with some strange puppets, but nothing special.”
The shorter man had already opened Lianhua’s puppet box and inspected its contents.
The simple, humble puppets lay inside, revealing half their bodies.
“Let’s take it to the backyard and destroy it. Don’t leave any traces.”
“Got it.”
The shorter man prepared to grab the puppet box and take it away.
The moment Lianhua heard “destroy the puppets,” her emotions surged.
“Don’t destroy it! Give it back to me!”
She scrambled to her feet and rushed towards the shorter man, seemingly wanting to snatch the puppet box away.
However, the frail man was quick, grabbing her by the arm.
“Whoa, where do you think you’re going? Come play with me!”
“Let go of me!”
Lianhua gritted her teeth and, in a fit of rage, turned around to bite the arm that held her.
Her sharp teeth sank in, and a wave of pain surged through her.
“Ah!”
The skinny man yelped, his arm jerked back, and Lianhua was sent flying.
BANG!
Lianhua crashed into the wall, and the back of her head met the unforgiving surface, making her world go blank in an instant.
“Eh…?”
It felt as if the entire world had come to a halt.
Lianhua stared dazedly at the slow-motion world around her, her body gradually losing sensation as all her memories replayed like a flickering projector in her mind.
So painful…
Wait, is that pain?
Lianhua clearly remembered that ever since her birth mother passed away, her father had been in a perpetual state of gloom, even taking time off work.
During that time, no matter how well-behaved she tried to be, she couldn’t bring her father back to his former self.
Her mother’s departure had inflicted a deep wound on his heart.
Lianhua thought her understanding and obedience could somehow mend his spirit and make him feel better.
From what she had learned, time would eventually heal the wounds in one’s heart, and some sadness could be forgotten.
If she just waited patiently, her father would eventually return to his optimistic self.
But then one day, her father brought home a stranger.
That was her stepmother.
Her father said she was an old friend who had once gone to the same school as him and her mother, and they had recently reconnected.
It seemed she had harbored feelings for her father that hadn’t vanished even after he remarried.
And touched by her sincerity, her father brought her into their family.
But…
Why?
Why did disaster strike her? Why did her stepmother want to harm her?
Was it because she wasn’t being obedient enough?
It felt awful; if she truly hated her, she could just say it.
She had always tried to think about her father’s feelings and coexist harmoniously with her.
Ah…
Ugh, am I going to d*e?
No, please don’t…
She still hadn’t gotten back her mother’s puppet; don’t throw it away…
“Night Star…”
The last thing that flashed through Lianhua’s mind was that stunning silver figure.
Save Little Lian…
Finally, darkness and coldness swept over her like a tidal wave, completely engulfing the remnants of her consciousness.
“d*mn! How dare you bite me!”
The skinny man clutched his bleeding arm, furious beyond measure.
That bite had to be vicious; he might have even popped a vein!
The bulky man ignored him and swiftly approached Lianhua, who lay still on the ground, testing for any signs of life.
“d*mn, I am going to teach her a lesson she’ll never forget!”
The frail man stormed over in a huff.
However, the bulky man stood up, swung around, and delivered a punch that sent the skinny man flying.
BANG!
“What the hell are you doing?!”
The bulky man darkly scowled as he grabbed the skinny man by the collar and dragged him off the ground.
“Look at the mess you’ve made! She’s dead!”
“What? No way! I only tossed her aside…”
“Seriously? You think a little girl’s body can withstand your furious throw? You think she’s made of steel and would be fine crashing into a wall?!”
“I…”
BANG!
The bulky man landed another punch, knocking him back down.
This time the skinny man was silent, having realized the gravity of the situation.
The shorter man put down the puppet box, utterly bewildered by the sudden turn of events.
“What are we going to do now?”
The bulky man calmed his raging anger, gradually regaining his composure.
At this point, there was no use getting worked up; they needed to handle the immediate crisis.
“Just find a secluded place to dump this girl’s body, far from here.”
“I’ll do it.”
The shorter man set the puppet box aside, walked over, and picked up Lianhua’s limp body before exiting the room.
The skinny man got to his feet, feeling somewhat gloomy.
“What now? The goods are dead. How do we handle those guys’ order?”
“Just drag it out.” The bulky man replied coldly, then fell into deep thought.
…
Meanwhile, the shorter man drove a considerable distance from the city before finally stopping at the edge.
Now it was late at night, and the bright moon hung in the sky, casting chilly, eerie light.
There was a large garbage processor here; just toss the trash in, and the machine would take care of it. Perfect for disposing of a body!
The shorter man pulled Lianhua’s lifeless form from the car and unhesitatingly tossed it into a dark abyss.
Splash!
The sound of her body hitting the garbage pile echoed through the night.
The shorter man dusted off his hands and turned to leave.
That night, the outskirts of the city were filled with the roaring of machines processing human waste.
On a trash mountain.
A body with no breath left within it quietly awakened a new consciousness.
“Lianhua” opened her eyes; her heart had ceased to beat.
A strange power began to alter her body’s essence, radiating an utterly bizarre aura.
“Who am I?”
“Lianhua’s” body floated up, emerging from the void, and re-established its presence on this earth.
Memories were hazy.
What awakened “it” was the last lingering obsession within the body.
Blurred memories gradually fused with the new consciousness, ultimately creating a new understanding.
“I am… the Puppet Master.”
