Online Game: Crazy Skeleton-Chapter 1540 - 1385: Mysterious Old Woman (Two in One)_2

"Hmph, coming to me and still asking who I am, you’re quite the character."

The old woman grinned, revealing her few remaining teeth, "You look unfamiliar, you’re not from the city, are you?"

"Elder, you’re really something, aren’t you? Despite my careful disguise, you saw right through me. Yes, I’m here to complete the Fire God Trial. I just arrived today, unfortunately without a clue. I have no idea how to begin the trial, so I seek your guidance."

Su Ran had already figured out a thing or two about this online game: children and the elderly are definitely the NPCs that trigger quests, whereas those middle-aged folks... they’re just there to make up the numbers...

"The Fire God Trial? You’ve got guts to even consider attempting it!"

Upon hearing this, the old woman appeared quite astonished, her loose skin suddenly tightening, "Do you know what it means to take on the trial in this Fire God City?"

Nonsense, if I knew, would I still be asking you?

"Please enlighten me, Elder."

Su Ran kept a very humble attitude, seizing this opportunity to gather more information about the Fire God Trial.

"It means defying heaven and changing fate!"

The old woman slammed her hand down on the table and stood up, her back as straight as a rod, "Succeed, and you defy heaven; fail, and your destiny shall change!"

"How so?"

Su Ran, instantly excited upon hearing this, had not expected the old woman to actually be so knowledgeable. It seemed he had come to the right person!

"Want your fortune told? 500 celestial coins, thank you for your cooperation."

The old woman’s stern expression changed as she stretched out her aged palm, making an internationally recognized hand gesture towards Su Ran, signaling that it was time to pay up.

Damn it!

Money, money, money, it’s all about money!

Don’t you know talking about money hurts feelings?

Can’t you just spill it for free without wasting saliva?

"Elder, I’ve only just arrived here, and I only have gold coins. Would gold coins be acceptable?"

Su Ran was internally ranting, but his tone did not betray any of it, confident that the NPC wouldn’t be able to tell.

"Gold coins? They’re worthless in Fire God City! Young man, let me give you a piece of advice: if you want to make something of yourself in Fire God City, you need to have enough celestial coins to back you up!"

The old woman lost interest in chatting with Su Ran and sat back down, "Off you go. When you’ve scraped together 500 celestial coins, come find me."

"Eh, Elder, aren’t you cold? How can you sit in this damp room without wearing anything warm?"

Su Ran was ready to consider the old woman as a potential customer for his cold-weather clothing. If he could make a sale, he would get those celestial coins, right? But just as he was about to show her the clothes, the NPC threw his plan back in his face.

"I’m hot-natured."

Right.

Su Ran turned and left.

Back at the marketplace, Su Ran was surprised to find that Old Man Fan had already returned. His face was darkened with soot, and the cold-weather clothing he wore was burnt through with several holes, making him look rather shoddy.

"Ah? Elder, you’re back?"

Su Ran feigned surprise as he walked over to Old Man Fan, "The chicken-finding mission is completed, and my reward is due to be cashed in... Eh? What’s happened to you? Who’s been bullying you? Tell me, and I’ll go smash their windows for you!"

"You..."

Old Man Fan had originally planned to give Su Ran a hard time, but Su Ran beat him to the punch and his own words got stuck in his throat.

"Elder, there’s no need to get too worked up. It’s our duty as the younger generation. I want to see who is so lacking in decency, to not even spare the elderly, truly despicable!"

The more Su Ran spoke, the more indignant he became, as if his own grandfather was the victim. His tone and body language were spot on, which brought a look of confusion to Old Man Fan’s eyes.

"Are you sure it wasn’t your doing?"

"What’s going on? Come on, old man, you’re not suspecting me, are you?"

Su Ran cried out exaggeratedly. Due to his loud volume, many vendors turned to look. "If I had really been disrespectful to you, why would I dare to stand here and talk to you?"

"That makes sense, young man. It seems I’ve wronged you."

Old Man Fan frowned and muttered, "Who knows which bastard did it, setting fire to burn me out isn’t enough, then blocking the cave entrance with several coffins, leaving no way out..."

"Exactly, that person must be caught and paraded through the streets!"

Su Ran shouted indignantly, while internally repeating the mantra, children say the darndest things...

"Sir, it looks like someone hit you over the head, huh? Being bullied and still clueless about who dealt the blow, such an attacker is shameless!"

Buddies are skeletons, they have no faces, so this saying is spot on.

"Absolutely! If that scoundrel falls into my hands, I will not let him off!"

Old Man Fan’s faced turned livid with anger. Just thinking about his experience in the cave sent his blood pressure soaring, but it was then that he noticed the coat Su Ran was wearing, and with a suspicious tone asked, "Where did you get that coat from?"

"This cotton-padded coat? Sir, you may not know, I just snagged a bargain. Some guy was selling them in the city, not for currency, but trading specifically for golden equipment. I happened to have a spare golden shield and traded it for this coat. I must say, it really is much warmer!"

Su Ran had his excuses well-prepared, effortlessly spinning a tale without leaving any room for suspicion.

"What did the person look like?"

Old Man Fan suddenly became alert. The only person selling coats in Fire God City was Uncle Yu, and now there was another seller, which was indeed suspicious.

The truth was gradually emerging, and the culprit was about to expose their identity. When that happened, it would be time for revenge.

"He’s a sturdy man in his forties, about one meter ninety tall, dressed like a shield warrior. Oh right, he was trading for a shield, so he must be a shield warrior, no doubt about that. What, do you have a grudge against him? Or does he have something to do with this conflict?"

Su Ran’s description sounded quite plausible, especially since he was the sole witness; no one would discover him calling a deer a horse.

"Shield warrior... could it also be an adventurer?"

Old Man Fan’s brow furrowed. If it indeed was an adventurer, finding this person wouldn’t be easy. Suddenly he thought of something, hastily packed up his stall, and prepared to leave.

"Sir, don’t rush off, I haven’t submitted the task yet!"

Su Ran couldn’t let the man walk away easily. This was his first encounter with the currency, albeit not much, it was tough enough just to glimpse what it looked like.

"You have quite the memory! You’re getting a good deal this time, take these ten coins and don’t bother me here!"

Old Man Fan felt his heart bleeding. No good deal struck, losing a coat and ten coins to boot; who could he complain to?

No, he must get Uncle Yu to reimburse him; it was his terrible idea, so he should bear the loss!

"Good fortune to you, boss!"

Su Ran held the coins, made of platinum, looking quite upmarket. Gold coins simply couldn’t compare, no wonder NPCs here didn’t bother with gold; these were truly valuable.

However, the mere ten coins weren’t nearly enough to satisfy Su Ran’s needs. To get clues for the Fire God Trial, he had to fork out 500 coins. Lack of money can stump even a hero; this was exactly Su Ran’s predicament.

"So frustrating, isn’t there a bank or something here for currency exchange, even if it’s 10:1?"

Su Ran felt as if the world was conspiring against him. After spinning his wheels at several stalls, none accepted equipment; even at fire-sale prices, nobody cared. This indicated one thing—equipment from the God-Demon Continent was utterly unappealing here...

Gathering those 500 coins would indeed be a challenge.

With no other options, Su Ran had to pin his hopes on completing tasks. As long as there were tasks, earning currency wouldn’t be a problem. A simple chicken quest yielded ten coins; for a trickier one, wouldn’t he hit the jackpot?

Fortune favors the diligent. It was while he was patiently inquiring at the sixth stall that he heard they needed whiskers from the East Mountain Black Tiger, with a reward of 100 coins. Su Ran leaned in to accept the task without showing too much eagerness.

Old Man Fan had whiskers from the East Mountain Black Tiger. He had mentioned this before, and Su Ran hadn’t forgotten.

Just one thing—when it came to the price, hopefully, Old Man Fan wouldn’t rip him off...

With that thought, Su Ran dashed towards Old Man Fan’s home, determined to strike while the iron was hot and get those whiskers.

As to whether he could complete the task smoothly, or if Old Man Fan would take the chance to fleece him, even Su Ran had some doubts. Old Man Fan’s integrity was somewhat unreliable...