The path beside Lotus Pond.
Song Linjia watched Li Ran chatting with the old woman in the distance with great interest.
For some reason, she always felt there was a mysterious quality about Li Ran that drew her in.
It was like a struggling student looking up at a top student. Problems that stumped her were so easy for the top student that he could solve them without even breaking a sweat.
That was the difference between people, she supposed.
Perhaps in the dungeon, Li Ran was the top student she had to crane her neck to look up at.
This time would be no exception. The top student would surely complete the task without a hitch.
Mm, from now on, I have to cling to the top student's coattails and gather as much information as possible. I'll do my best to be a useful little sidekick.
Song Linjia sat on a large rock nearby, propping her chin on both hands like a flower and gazing adoringly at Li Ran as he talked with the old woman.
Though he wore a tattered denim jacket, Li Ran's calm, fearless confidence was truly captivating.
Damn, confident men are just too charming.
As soon as she finished speaking, the old woman lifted Li Ran into the air with one hand by the pond.
More precisely, the old woman's hand had turned into a terrifying tentacle, wrapped tightly around Li Ran's neck.
The plot had taken a sudden turn in the blink of an eye.
Song Linjia's face changed dramatically, and she stood up in terror.
Before she could react, Li Ran let out a scream as the old woman flung him into the pond.
"Li Ran!"
Song Linjia's face went deathly pale with fright.
Just a moment ago, she had been dreaming about how to cling to Li Ran's coattails.
The next moment, the coattails had been taken out by the old woman?
It's over. This is completely over.
Song Linjia's little face was pale. She hurriedly hid behind the large rock, covering her mouth as tears streamed down her face.
"I won't be fooled again. Don't even think... don't even think you can trick me..."
The old woman stared blankly at the pond, muttering to herself.
"Not my grandson... No... No..."
Suddenly, the old woman seemed to think of something. Her sunken eyes widened, and tentacles like an octopus's arms sprouted grotesquely from her limbs. She shot into the air and plunged into the pond.
Song Linjia's face turned ashen at the sight.
That meant the last sliver of hope that Li Ran might survive after falling into the water had been snuffed out.
In Lotus Pond.
Grandma Mi had suddenly attacked, catching Li Ran completely off guard. He had been strangled before he had any chance to defend himself.
Just as he was about to suffocate, Grandma Mi threw him into the pond.
After falling into the water, he still couldn't breathe, even though he had already been on the verge of suffocating.
At this critical moment, Li Ran remembered the underwater breathing potion he had bought.
He immediately took it out and used it.
At the very instant he was about to suffocate, Li Ran opened his mouth and began gulping in air.
The scene that should have followed—lake water rushing into his lungs and drowning him—never happened.
Instead, Li Ran could breathe in great gulps underwater.
It was just like breathing air on land.
Li Ran treaded water and moved his hands through it, his face full of lingering fear.
After gradually calming down, Li Ran realized that the reminder from the Golden Finger hadn't been wrong.
Aside from not being recognized as her grandson, the luck aura from the tattered clothes should have taken effect. The fact that he hadn't been killed outright meant the luck aura had activated.
He had also used the underwater breathing potion.
"The Golden Finger shouldn't be wrong. Which part went wrong?"
As he wondered, his gaze swept over the bottom of the pond.
"What's that...?"
Deep among the dense lotus stems on the pond floor, half a skeleton lay exposed in the mud. Judging by its size, it looked like the remains of a teenager. The clothes floating nearby had long since rotted away from soaking in the pond, while a black backpack still hung from the skeleton's left arm. One of its straps was tangled around the lotus stems...
Li Ran pushed aside the long, winding lotus stems and slowly swam above the skeleton.
"Could this be Grandma Mi's grandson?"
Yesterday, he had also found the tattered denim jacket he was wearing in Lotus Pond. The body must have rotted away, and the clothes had been swept to the surface by the current.
"The body has been reduced to bones, but the clothes and backpack have only rotted?" Li Ran wondered.
Perhaps it was because he was underwater. Microorganisms, fish, and shrimp all ate decaying matter, causing the body to decompose more quickly. Or perhaps there was some other reason.
In any case, this wasn't the time to dwell on it.
Li Ran swam over the skeleton, snapped the lotus stems, and carefully removed the backpack from its arm.
The zipper still worked, but the things inside had long since rotted away.
"Splash!"
Just then, Li Ran heard the sound of someone falling into the water.
He looked closely and saw that it was Grandma Mi, who had chased after him.
Grandma Mi's head still looked as it had before, but her body was unmistakably that of an octopus.
When Li Ran remembered that Grandma Mi was an S-rank monster with an unknown Mysterious Power, his handsome face turned deathly pale with fear.
"Holy crap!"
His legs kicked faster than a propeller.
But there was no way his legs could outpace an octopus.
Even though Li Ran used every ounce of strength he had, he still couldn't escape Grandma Mi's tentacles.
He only felt his right leg being caught. Then a powerful force yanked him out of the water.
After the world spun around him, he found himself back on land, still dazed.
It wasn't that he didn't want to fight back.
In front of an S-rank Mental Infector with a Mysterious Power value of ???, resisting was utterly pointless.
An S-rank monster could kill him as easily as crushing an ant.
Li Ran thought he was going to die. He thought Grandma Mi had chased him into Lotus Pond to finish him off.
But when he saw Grandma Mi gazing at him with a kindly expression, he was even more bewildered.
He simply couldn't connect the pitiful-looking old woman before him with the terrifying octopus monster she had been moments ago.
"Grand... grandson, is that you? Let Grandma get a good look at you."
The old woman's eyes were cloudy with tears. She reached out a hand like old tree bark and tremblingly touched Li Ran's face.
Li Ran stood there, letting the old woman stroke his face.
Had she started mistaking him for her grandson again?
Li Ran gave a wry smile. "Looks like the tattered clothes really are useful. She just didn't recognize me at first."
[Task triggered: Play Grandma Mi's grandson]
[Task reward: Mysterious Power +10, Points +100]
The sound of a task being triggered rang in Li Ran's ears.
Li Ran stood motionless, staring at the tearful old woman before him. He could clearly feel the roughness of her hand as it caressed him, as well as her tender, attentive affection.
Perhaps it was because of the tattered denim jacket he wore, or perhaps it was the black backpack in his hand.
Grandma Mi looked at Li Ran as though he were her own grandson, her gaze gentle and kind.
If Grandma Mi found out that her real grandson had died in Lotus Pond, how heartbroken would she be?
Perhaps it was better not to know the truth, so she could still hold on to hope.
At least right now, he was Grandma Mi's grandson.
It wasn't because of the task. It came from the heart: Li Ran truly felt that the old woman had it so hard, and he couldn't help feeling sorry for her.
"Grandma."
"Yes?"
"Grandma, Grandma."
"Yes, yes."
Grandma Mi was overcome with joy and tears as she excitedly held both of Li Ran's hands.
Grandma Mi was as happy as a three-year-old child.
Lying was wrong.
But what if a kind lie could give an old woman a second chance at life?
[Task completed: Play Grandma Mi's grandson]
[Completion reward: Mysterious Power +10, Points +100]
[Task triggered: Grandma Mi's Request]
[Task reward: Mysterious Power +20, Points +200]
The cold voice rang in his ears again. As he completed the task, a new one was triggered.
Clearly, there was a whole chain of tasks involving Grandma Mi. It wasn't that simple.
Otherwise, it wouldn't be worthy of Grandma Mi's S-rank status.
Not far away, Song Linjia's jaw nearly hit the ground. A few minutes earlier, she had already mourned Li Ran in her heart. Then, not even a few minutes later, Li Ran was alive again—and had become Grandma Mi's grandson.
What kind of plot was this?
Song Linjia couldn't make head or tail of it.
There hadn't been a single hint for this kind of task. Was it really something an ordinary person could complete?
Who could have guessed that before doing this task, he would have to get killed once?
Li Ran had completed the task alive. It was nothing short of unbelievable.
She was impressed by Li Ran more than anyone else.
Meanwhile, Li Ran continued playing the role of a good grandson as he chatted with Grandma Mi.
"Dear grandson, your parents haven't been back in a while. Go check on them. They run a Mutton Restaurant on the street by the north gate of Happy Home. Your father loves meddling in other people's affairs. He always says it's a sense of justice. I don't know what a sense of justice is. I just think people should keep a low profile and not be so headstrong. With his personality, it'll get him into trouble sooner or later."
"When you get there, give this to them."
As she spoke, Grandma Mi took out a letter and handed it to Li Ran.
"Okay, Grandma." Li Ran nodded and accepted it.
"If you don't give this letter to your parents, bring it back to me the next time you come to visit."
"I'll be sure to give it to them."
"All right, off you go. Grandma should head home."
"Grandma, let me—"
Before Li Ran could finish speaking, Grandma Mi turned into an octopus monster and plunged into the water.
He had thought Grandma Mi would live in one of the buildings like the other residents. How could he have known she lived in Lotus Pond?
Come to think of it, how could she have failed to find that skeleton if she lived in the pond?
"Ah, even I get mistaken for someone else by Grandma Mi. She definitely wouldn't recognize those bones, and her mind's a bit muddled too..."
"All right. I might as well keep playing the grandson to the end."
Li Ran shrugged helplessly and put the letter into his inventory.
Then he walked back to Song Linjia.
"I've transferred your 50 points."
Points could be transferred directly to a party member through the Points Mall, so there was no need to make the trip to Happiness Supermarket.
Li Ran always kept his word and never took advantage of anyone.
He wouldn't sneak a look at the letter Grandma Mi had given him either. That was a matter of basic principles.
Song Linjia gazed at him adoringly, her eyes full of little stars. "How did you manage that?"
Li Ran couldn't be bothered to explain. He had given her what he owed her, after all.
Right now, he just wanted to complete as many tasks as possible, earn more rewards, and improve his strength as quickly as he could.
"Since Grandma Mi's request is on the back street too, I might as well take care of the Bar Rich Woman's task while I'm at it."
Before you continue