Mo Bai resisted the hints provided by the rules, but the mom in front of her was already in a frenzy just from hearing her call that name.

"Mom! Mom! You called me Mom! Yes, I'm your Mom! Hahahahaha!"

Mom pressed both hands to her face, trembling with excitement and laughing hysterically.

She used so much force that pieces of flesh fell from her face, making her expression even more grotesque and terrifying.

Seeing that, Mo Bai instinctively slipped her right hand beneath the blanket, gripping the metal bat tightly.

If this Mom dared to reach out with those rotting hands, Mo Bai was ready to die fighting with this monster.

But even on the verge of losing control, Mo Bai remembered the rules, especially Rule Four, and tried to use it to awaken Mom's love.

She'd start by soothing the creature. If that failed, she would resort to force.

Rule Four indicated appeal value, which meant appearing more beautiful. Mo Bai didn't have many options in this situation so she could only smile.

She put on the sweetest smile of her life as she forced back the urge to swing the bat and said, "Calm down... You came here for a reason, didn't you?"

There was no way she could bring herself to act cute in front of this thing, so she could only try to divert Mom's attention.

Hearing her words, Mom slowly lowered her hands, revealing a cratered face that looked like the surface of the moon. She stared at Mo Bai's trembling but beautiful smile.

The dangling eyeball on her face flashed with a hint of amazement. She seemed to regain some composure and bared her teeth in a distorted grin. "Mom came to bring you dinner. It's so late, you must be hungry. Come on, eat."

With that, she opened the thermos container and pulled out several foul-smelling dishes.

"This is braised rotten pork, moldy tomatoes with spoiled eggs, steamed fish bones, sweet-and-sour death-cap mushrooms, and some leftover-flower soup. These are Mom's favorites. You must eat them all, okay?" Mom introduced with manic enthusiasm.

Each dish was an assault on Mo Bai's sanity, as none could no longer be described as merely bad cooking. Any of this dish could literally kill someone!

Forget it. Let's just end this.

If someone needs to be destroyed, it would either be her or this monster.

This kind of motherly love was far too heavy. She was just an ordinary human, and she certainly couldn't bear it.

Mo Bai steeled herself for a desperate fight, but she couldn't confront the monster head-on. That would be suicide.

If she wanted to win, she'd have to strike from the shadows.

As Mo Bai was calculating her next move, Mom, overflowing with twisted affection, picked up a bowl and said, "Be good, let Mom feed you."

The stench of the food hit her face, and Mo Bai could only hold her breath as she recalled Rules Two and Three:

Don't say the food is bad, don't directly refuse Mom.

"Wow, your cooking is really… unique. But I'm not feeling well. I need to take my medicine before eating. Could you help me get it?" She pushed herself to respond.

Then, she tilted her head slightly, forcing a cutesy expression despite the nausea.

Her act of obedience seemed to ignite Mom's warped affection, causing the dangling eyeball to soften with pity.

She set the bowl down and said, "My poor child, so pretty and fragile. Don't worry, Mom will love and cherish you… very, very much."

When she reached the word cherish, she extended her long nails and gently traced them along Mo Bai's neck. A sharp sting followed as a shallow cut opened on her skin.

It wasn't deep, but it hurt and caused blood to trickle out.

Mom licked her fingers excitedly, then ran off to find the medicine.

Her way of opening the cabinet was brutally straightforward. She simply clawed at the wooden door, tearing a hole through it, and rummaged inside.

Mo Bai rubbed her neck, then quietly moved behind the monster.

Its back was turned with head buried in the cabinet. The perfect chance to strike.

But attacking this mom definitely wasn't the act of a good child. If she didn't kill her in one hit, the retaliation would be horrifying.

Where to strike? The legs, the heart, or the head?

Mo Bai's gaze traveled upward. If only she could test the monster's weak spot first...

Then she noticed the hole Mom had clawed into the cabinet door. Through it, Mo Bai could see a hook on the inside panel.

There was a small hook attached inside that door, which was used to hang things. Now, it was perfectly aligned with the back of the monster's head.

If she lifted her head, she would hit it right on the back of her skull.

But it was just a tiny, blunt hook. Not hard or sharp enough to hurt a monster like her.

Mo Bai stared at the hook's edge and imagined: If only it were a sharp fishhook instead.

If the fishhook could pierce the monster's skin, it means her body could be harmed by metal weapons too.

Unfortunately, it was just a hook. Wishful thinking.

As she glanced regretfully at it, the hook suddenly blurred before her eyes. She blinked and saw that it really turned into a fishhook.

Its tip gleamed sharp as a blade, and the tungsten-steel curve was solid and deadly.

Mo Bai blinked again, twice, to be sure. But it wasn't an illusion. The hook truly changed.

What… was happening? Did she cause the transformation?

It was possible.

If resurrection was real, then awakening a supernatural power wasn't so far-fetched.

Still, she didn't have time to figure it out now. What mattered was that with this power, she finally had a real chance against this monster.

Thus, Mo Bai decisively called out sweetly, "Mom, the medicine's not in there."

Her voice was soft and sugary, exactly how Mom liked it.

Hearing it, Mom let out a delighted shriek and jerked her head upward, straight into the door.

The sharp fishhook drove into the back of her skull, causing Mom to scream in agony as she ripped the door away with her bare hands.

But the hook clung to her flesh, tearing off a chunk as she pulled.

She turned, snarling furiously with bloodshot eyes, "Was it you? Did you try to hurt your Mom?"

Mo Bai didn't flinch. Tilting her head at her most flattering angle, she looked up at the monster with wide, trembling eyes and replied pitifully, "No, I just wanted to tell you that the medicine wasn't there. I didn't know you hadn't opened the door. There's a hook on it."

"Hook?" Mom's head twisted stiffly toward the door.

The panel still had strands of her hair hanging from it. She reached up and plucked them off.

Mo Bai stared intently, silently repeating hook, hook, hook in her mind.

The air shimmered again.

When her vision cleared, Mom had already removed the hair, which revealed an ordinary hook.

She frowned, grabbed it with one clawed hand, and crushed it easily.

Her expression was puzzled. How could something like that hurt her?

Meanwhile, Mo Bai's head throbbed violently. Her ears were ringing as fatigue washed over her.

It turned out that the transformation was her ability.

But she couldn't use it continuously. After just two uses, she felt like her brain was burning out.

Mom looked around. After finding nothing suspicious, she finally believed her.

Still, she glared darkly, "You'd better not lie to me. Mom will punish naughty children."

Ignoring the throbbing in her skull, Mo Bai replied gently, "I wouldn't lie to you. Oh, there's gauze in the medicine box. Let me bandage you, okay?"

For some reason, that sentence seemed to trigger another frenzy. The monster began muttering, "Bandage, bandage, bandage… I'll bandage my pretty daughter," while looking at Mo Bai up and down.

"Yes, your skin is so white, so tender. You must get hurt very easily. You need bandages. Mom will bandage you." She stroked Mo Bai's neck lovingly. "My poor child, you look so beautiful when you're hurt."

Mo Bai: "…"

At this point, she fully understood what the appeal value in Rule Four really meant.

From the moment she'd opened the door, this Mom called her beautiful.

The food Mom made could poison someone. It would cause cramps, dizziness, nausea, and even death.

And that cut on her neck earlier... It wasn't an accident.

To this monster, beauty meant injuries, bleeding, and suffering.

If she were wounded or poisoned, it would awaken Mother's love, which would delay her death temporarily.

But Mo Bai had no intention of surviving that way.

"The medicine box is in the side cabinet, on the middle shelf."

Mom smiled strangely and moved toward it. Afraid that she'd crawl inside the cabinet again and ruin her plan, Mo Bai quickly added, "Watch out for the hook."

Touching the bleeding spot on her head, Mom snarled and threw the entire cabinet door aside after ripping it off.

Mo Bai positioned her wheelchair behind her, waiting as the monster crouched to rummage through the middle shelf.

There was no medicine box there. Mo Bai had only said that to make the creature lower her head and align her skull with the height of Mo Bai's swing.

Once the monster was in position, Mo Bai quietly prepared. She pressed the wheelchair's brake to lock herself in place, ready to strike.

Now or never.

She pulled the metal bat from under the blanket and swung it with all her strength at the back of its head.

The fishhook had already proved that the monster's skull could be injured by metal.

Mo Bai's arms were powerful, and the bat was heavy. Even if it didn't kill, it would seriously injure.

As she swung, she heard a faint ding-ding sound. Like a phone notification.

She didn't have time to check as the bat smashed straight into the back of Mom's head.

It connected with a sickening crack, and blood sprayed as the creature screamed in agony, thrashing and trying to turn.

But Mo Bai didn't give her the chance. She struck again and again until her arms went numb and the monster stopped moving altogether.

Panting and drained, Mo Bai silently sat in her wheelchair. She was still gripping the bat, watching the motionless body by the wardrobe.

When it didn't move, she released the brake, nudged forward, and prodded the body with the bat.

The monster's back was clear. If it suddenly lunged, Mo Bai could still retreat.

She decided to hit it a few more times just to be sure. Thankfully, it stayed still.

When there was no response at all, she finally exhaled.

"Did I… pass this round?" she wondered.

Just then, the ding-ding sound was heard again.

Keeping one eye on the body, Mo Bai took out her phone. There were several new notifications.

She opened them in order.

[

Congratulations, player Mo Bai, on awakening a supernatural ability. The System is generating your personal information.

Name: Mo Bai

Gender: Female

Age: 23 (Age of death)

Status: ProbationaryCitizen (Pending Confirmation)

Level: Beginner

Points: 0

Days Survived: 0

Props: 0

Group: Observation Group

Ability: Environmental Optimization

Ability Description: You belong to the Observation Group. You were born with the power to make yourself more beautiful. You can subtly alter your surroundings. A beautiful environment not only enhances your appearance but also calms your opponents.

Ability Range: Within a 10-meter radius, you may alter one decorative object's physical or chemical properties. Object size must not exceed one cubic decimeter. (Range increases with level.)

Usage Condition: You must fully understand your environment. If your understanding is below 50%, ability activation will fail.

]

After carefully reading through it, Mo Bai realized her power allowed her to change the environment itself.

Some details remained unclear. Like what Observation Group and Days Survived really meant.

She opened the next message.

[

Clever player, you have awakened a supernatural ability.

With your intellect, you have surely deduced the hidden meanings behind the rules.

Here is a hint: Use your power to make yourself increasingly beautiful. Awaken Mommy's love, and you will earn her protection.

]

"Protection?" A chill ran through Mo Bai's heart.

She quickly tapped the final message.

[

Mommy is dead. Player awarded 1,000 points.

Mommy is dead. System difficulty upgraded.

Mommy is dead. Player will face Dad alone when he returns home in 2 days.

]

Mo Bai: "…"