Chapter 24: Seizing Weaknesses, Grandmother's Gift

Chapter 24: Seizing Weaknesses, Grandmother's Gift

"What exactly is the mission?" Ji Yan asked quietly.

"You'll find out at midnight tonight. Go back and rest early."

"As for this mess, I'll handle it for you. Normally, I wouldn’t bother chatting this much with you."

"Whoever makes the mess should be the one to clean it up."

"But since you’ve got a sharp mind and quick hands, I’m giving you this opportunity." The Landlord stroked his beard and spoke slowly.

"That Long Yuan guy seems pretty capable. Why not ask him?" Ji Yan deliberately brought up Long Yuan.

"You can’t compare to him. That kid hasn’t made any mistakes, and he hasn’t missed any rent."

Ji Yan understood: "Got it. He’s got no weaknesses to exploit."

"I messed up, and you caught me red-handed."

Landlord: "Smart."

"..."

"Alright, go back now. Don’t linger here."

The Landlord picked up his pipe and stepped aside.

Ji Yan didn’t press further. Chatting too much with an Instance boss like this might trigger another deadly mission.

As Ji Yan headed upstairs, the Landlord shook the ash from his pipe and called out toward the corridor: "Come out and get to work. Hurry up—it’s almost dark."

In the corridor, as his voice echoed, the walls on either side began to squirm slightly, revealing pairs of pale, ghastly eyeballs...

...

Meanwhile, Ji Yan confirmed the completion of the Announcement Task as he climbed the stairs. The game’s notification chimed.

Ding! Congratulations, Player! You have completed the Announcement Task: "Resolving the Drainage Ditch Rat Plague to Create a Better Living Environment for the Apartment." All residents’ favorability toward you has increased by 5%!

Ding! Due to incorrect mission completion methods, first-floor residents collectively harbor 15% Malice Value toward you.

Announcement Task Rewards: Your residence, Room 404, will enjoy a Rent Reduction for the next seven days. You have obtained a Collector's Grade Purple Treasure Chest!

Congratulations! You have collected one [Talent Fragment]. Current progress for Talent upgrade: 1/3. Keep up the good work and continue collecting!

Two more fragments?

Ji Yan frowned. He felt tricked—this wasn’t made clear at all earlier, misleading him into thinking one fragment would be enough for an upgrade.

Did the system learn this "one more cut" scam from Pinduoduo?

If he collects all three, will there suddenly be another progress bar?

Shaking his head, he glanced at the fluctuating favorability values and felt even more exasperated.

So after working like a volunteer for the apartment, not a single "thank you," and now he’s made enemies with several residents?

Ji Yan couldn’t figure out—if his method of completing the mission was wrong, what was the right way?

If he hadn’t let the Kanjing Gui in, its unresolved grudge would’ve kept it lingering. Forcibly driving it away wasn’t an option either...

But seeing the mission rewards, Ji Yan managed to console himself a little.

He wasn’t in a hurry to open the treasure chest. Instead, he returned to Room 404 first to report the task to the Grandmother.

As soon as he stepped inside, he received another prompt.

Congratulations, Player! Because you secured a seven-day Rent Reduction for Room 404, both [Mother] and [Grandmother] now see you as a responsible and mature child. Their favorability toward you has increased by 20%!

Ji Yan’s eyes gleamed.

In the living room, Liu Yitong had returned early and was sitting at the dining table, eating dinner.

Seeing Ji Yan covered in filth, he was almost unrecognizable—at first glance, one might mistake him for a rogue Supernatural Entity barging in. Upon closer inspection, however, the observer couldn’t help but gape in shock.

“You… weren’t you just delivering a sachet?”

“How did you end up like this?”

“It’s a long story. Just pretend I fell into a ditch,” Ji Yan replied helplessly.

“By the way, the first floor seems pretty lively. I heard some idiot actually broke through the apartment wall and flooded the hallway with dirty water. The Supernatural Entities living there are furious.”

“I bet that unlucky fool died horribly!”

“How could someone possibly cause such a mess?”

“……”

Too exhausted to explain, Ji Yan stripped off his shirt and headed for the bathroom.

After washing off the grime, he knocked on the Grandmother’s door and entered.

“Grandmother, I delivered the sachet. The Landlord accepted it.”

On the bed, the Grandmother sat with her reading glasses on, knitting a sweater, her expression kind and gentle.

“Good, you delivered it.”

“But now you’ve landed yourself in a heap of trouble.”

Without looking up, she already knew Ji Yan’s predicament.

Just crawled out of the pit of an Announcement Task, only to tumble into another one dug by the Landlord.

Ji Yan forced a stiff smile. “Doing some volunteer work for the apartment is only right. It’s no trouble.”

The Grandmother chuckled softly. “You’re like a duck.”

Ji Yan: “Huh?”

“Even when boiled alive, your beak stays hard.”

“……”

Setting the sweater aside, the Grandmother finally looked at him. “That old Landlord is shrewd—he never makes a bad deal.”

“This apartment building may seem sturdy, standing unshaken in this world, but it’s actually riddled with holes.”

“And he’ll always find a way to make you outsiders patch them up.”

“He ‘helped’ you clean up the mess on the first floor, making you think you got a good deal. But in truth, he dumped an even worse mess on you.”

“You shouldn’t have read that Announcement.”

Ji Yan stayed silent.

There was no point in arguing now.

“What kind of job did that old man dump on you?”

“Not sure yet. Only know it’s after midnight.”

Hearing “after midnight,” the Grandmother shook her head. “A rotten task.”

Clearly, she knew more but wasn’t saying. Ji Yan wisely didn’t press.

“Alright, this one’s knitted by me personally. How does it look?”

She handed him a sweater—a dark red, high-necked cardigan that didn’t look tacky at all.

As Ji Yan took it, a hidden information panel popped up:

“Congratulations, Player! You’ve obtained the Supernatural Artifact—[White Silk Ghost’s Sweater]. It can block three fatal supernatural attacks and increase your Mental Resilience by 25%.”

(Higher Mental Resilience strengthens immunity to supernatural assimilation.)

“Hidden Information: When the sweater is 95% damaged, it will trigger a Backlash Effect, causing a burning reaction.”

“Backlash Effect?” Ji Yan’s brow twitched.

The Grandmother continued, “I added a little ‘extra’ to this sweater.”

“If you’re in danger at night, it’ll protect you—but only for a limited time. Use that time to save yourself.”

Her words indirectly confirmed that tonight’s Mission would be far from safe.

The Grandmother had deliberately left him with a riddle.

But she didn’t know that her little riddle had already been completely deciphered by the Talent 【Omniscient Understanding】.

"I understand."

"Then I’ll take my leave now."

Ji Yan accepted the Grandmother’s additional rewards and prepared to exit the room.

Perhaps due to the steadily accumulating favorability, the Grandmother added another reminder: "If you ever face trouble you can’t shake off, find a way to run back home. Once you’re inside, Grandma can lend a little help."

"But not much."

"Thank you, Grandma." Ji Yan nodded and left the room.

Ding! The Player has completed today’s Mission assigned by 【Grandmother】. Current accumulated favorability with this Supernatural Entity: 45%.

Congratulations! You have triggered the "Generational Affection" effect. The Grandmother Supernatural Entity now feels protective of you. Within the bounds of Room 404, if danger or threats arise, Grandma will provide you with some level of protection.

Keep it up and strive to unlock even closer relationships!

Ding! You have received today’s dinner from the Grandmother Supernatural Entity. She personally prepared a nutritious meal for you. The food can be collected in the kitchen.

"So this is the benefit of high favorability? Damn it, I’ve been surviving in this Instance for days, and only now do I finally get to enjoy it."

Just thinking about it made Ji Yan furious.

It was all because of that damned Nightmare Devourer, giving him such a disastrous start.

Even if that deadbeat drunkard father of his had already turned to ashes and logged off, Ji Yan still wanted to dig him up and give him a good thrashing.