Chapter 342: Chapter 342: Origin (Part 2)
After getting on the bus.

The old lady’s body began to undergo a miraculous transformation.

The puppet on her hand charged with providing sensory and language abilities transformed into a young girl, about 14 years old… As for the old lady’s body, it deflated once more, transforming into a floral crimson kimono worn by the young girl.

This series of transformations indirectly indicated that the old lady was just a puppet.

The puppet on her hand used for storytelling was the real entity.

The young girl had kaleidoscopic eyes, and anyone who met her gaze found it hard to look away… except for Han Dong.

Gently tapping the seat next to her with her palm, she signaled Han Dong to come over.

“I’m not sure how I should address you now.”

Han Dong felt it was a bit inappropriate to keep calling this youthful figure in front of him an old lady.

“I am unworthy of the name my parents bestowed upon me… You can call me ‘Ling’, the pen name I frequently use.”

“A writer?”

“Yes, the origin story is related to my books…”

With that, Ling lay her cold, slightly rigid arm, reminiscent of a soft wooden puppet, gently on Han Dong’s slim body, and began telling her origin story.

“The book I’ve loved since my childhood is ‘A Hundred Ghosts Walking at Night’ by Lord Gong Zhuzheng. The demons and monsters in it fascinated me, even keeping me company in my dreams day and night.

I always hoped to write a similar book, filled with terrifying demons and monsters from my own pen, stories that would fit within a contemporary backdrop and be urbanized.

Later on, I named it ‘Strange Tales’.

I have been creating since I learned how to read and write.

For some reason, whenever I was writing, I would see all sorts of bizarre things… Initially, I thought they were just illusions in my head, a form of mental expression when creating.

Not until the day the woman squatting in the corner of my house cut my parents’ heads off, did I realize that they were real… In my creative process, I would ‘attract’ over those things that did not belong to our world.”

My ignorance led to my parents’ deaths, I do not deserve the name they gave me.

From that day on, I ran away from home.

I wandered all over Dongying, creating… Perhaps due to my excessive dedication, I starved to death while still in the process of creating, without realizing it myself.

It was probably more than a month later that I realized I was dead but still remained in the human world, visible to others.

In sum, I am probably the first ‘Strange Tale’ visible to humans.

Gradually, my powers started to manifest… Any ‘Strange Tales’ I wrote into the book would ‘break through’ the ‘membrane’ and come into the human world.

This includes the ‘Red Umbrella’, ‘Abyssal Public Toilet’ you have seen, as well as the current Mr. Aha, and the [Lamp] in charge of the amusement park.”

All are characters in my book ‘Strange Tales’.

However, some characters have a strong sense of self-growth, gradually escaping my control… I can’t make them ineffective, they can even imprison me, trying to control the Strange Tales Paradise by themselves.”

Han Dong wasn’t particularly surprised about this origin story.

In fact, when Han Dong saw Origin Granny and heard the system’s related prompt, saying that killing the old lady would grant no rewards.

And the subsequential ‘Strange Tales Invalidated’ used by the old lady.

Han Dong had pretty much guessed that all these strange tales might have come from the old lady.

His current solitude with the old lady was merely to learn what the root of the ‘origin’ was.

“Indeed, it’s not a world that is stitched together with various films… There is still a core character!

Just like how the primary subject and mastermind in Derry Town were the clown.

The reason why this world of strange tales has formed is none other than this old lady!

I even once thought ‘Strange Tales’ was a ‘melting pot world’ that blends various Dongying folk stories and movies. See now, everything originates from one subject.

No wonder some famous ghosts and monsters of Dongying, such as ‘Sadako’, ‘Kayako’ or the ‘Catyou’, ‘Wine Swallowing Child’ from the Directory of Dongying Monsters, were not found here.

All the entities in ‘Strange Tales’ were created by the old lady through her writings.

In this way, all this resonates with the very ‘Strange Tales’ book we chose at the movie store in the beginning… It’s not a hodgepodge, but a book that records various strange tales.”

At this moment.

Ling slowly reached out her hand and began to move it into Han Dong’s body through his robe.

It appeared that her century-long confinement had left her rather lonely.

“Miss Ling, this isn’t appropriate… Mr. Aha is just outside.”

Ling laughed, “Ha ha, did you really think I was his ‘wife’? I was just in a cooperative relationship with him.

Moreover, the one he married was the strange tale ‘Granny Leather’ on me… He has nothing to do with me.”

As Han Dong was staring at Ling.

A voice suddenly flashed in his mind… It was Mia yelling – “Scumbag!”

“That’s not good… My body can’t withstand your centuries-long agitation. If it’s gone, I won’t be able to capture the lighthouse. I will consider it after everything is done.”

Seeing Han Dong refuse, Ling didn’t press further and slowly withdrew her arm… However, this rare rejection seemed to make her even more interested in him.

The story over.

The bus stopped.

Right when Ling was about to change back into her old lady disguise, Han Dong suddenly reached out.

“I have a favor to ask.”

“You wouldn’t let me touch you, now you need my help?”

“I will make sure to repay you after…” In Han Dong’s plan, the Origin Granny phase could not be missing… This was also the main reason why Han Dong had approached the old lady for a private conversation.

“Go ahead, what do you want my help with?”

Han Dong handed her a letter he had prepared earlier and said,”When the time comes, just follow the contents in this letter… If this phase is lacking, the success rate of capturing the lighthouse is almost zero.”

After reading the content in the letter, Ling frowned slightly.

“It’s hard to do, it may drain all my energy.

Alright… Considering you rescued me, I’ll help. In return, you need to spend some time with me before you leave if everything is settled.”

“No problem.”

……

Inner layer of the amusement park.

A hundred-year-old abandoned power station was starting up today.

The darkness of the past is gone.

As the circuit runs, all the streetlights are lit up…

The street lamps are connected with the lighthouse, and any life illuminated by these lamps is included in the [Lamp Man]’s vision.

The alarm rings.

The amusement park has become lively, all the strange tales in the city have become restless… Warrants with the lighthouse’s seal are floating around in the streets and alleys.

The pictures of the members of Han Dong’s team are printed on them.