Godmode: My Infinite Game Odyssey

Four intense light beams shone from four directions, flooding the mermaid wax figures. For a moment, the small TV screen in front of Liam became far brighter than the others, almost blinding in its pure white brilliance.

Under the harsh light, the mermaid wax figures stiffened, raising their hands to shield their eyes. The intense light seemed to leave them dazed, and they began to retreat and curl up as if they were helpless criminals surrounded by the police. They huddled together in the center of the light, with some even attempting to bury their heads in their arms.

Like a dark sorcerer, Liam squatted before these wax figures, smiling as he said, "I knew it; you are afraid of the light."

The audience watching on the small TV screen: "..."

This scene so flustered the player who had criticized Liam earlier that his face turned red and shouted, "Impossible! How could that discounted projector possibly replicate the strong light of a flashlight? This is unscientific!"

"Hey, what's so funny? You're here looking for science? How many items in here are scientifically plausible?"

"... Em, I just checked the projector's manual, and it says it's an optical projector. Everything else is pretty useless, but it has an amazing effect with reflected light; at least it preserves 80% of the original."

"Not reading the system-provided manual and still mocking new players... kinda ridiculous..."

"I was watching and couldn't resist buying three 3D projectors..."

Meanwhile, on the TV screen next to them, the player who had been widely praised for selecting the right tool was now desperately swinging a torch to fend off the mermaid wax figures while trying to read the newspaper in the hot water pool, looking utterly panicked.

The mermaid wax figures kept advancing, their faces contorted in twisted expressions. The player was being cornered, seemingly on the verge of being overwhelmed, and the scene was tense and thrilling.

Despite the heart-pounding situation, glancing at Liam's side made everything seem strangely... uneventful.

Liam's projections, holding flashlights like police officers, surrounded the wax figures while he leisurely unrolled the newspaper next to the hot water pool, looking as if he were on vacation.

The mermaid wax figures, weak, helpless, and motionless, shrank into the center of the circle and did not move at all.

The contrast was stark! 

[347 people liked Liam's small TV, 355 people saved it, and 21 people charged Liam's small TV. Player Liam received 21 points.]

[Player Liam gained over 300 likes in one minute, and his reputation is skyrocketing!]

[Congratulations, Player Liam has earned a promotion spot and has entered the central hall game screen's edge area. Viewership is rapidly increasing...]

Some people stared at Liam's small TV screen in a daze: "...Wow, this is the first time I've seen a new player in the newbie zone earn a promotion spot to the central game hall screen, even if it's just the edge."

"I think... I'm witnessing a star rise..."

---

[Siren Town Monster Book Update: Mermaid Wax Figure Panel]

[Monster Name: Mermaid Wax Figure (Pupa State), Talisman Wax Figure (Cocoon State)]

[Weakness: Direct eye contact, strong light exposure (2/3)]

[Attack Method: Hatching]

[Player Liam is only one weakness away from completing the "Mermaid Wax Figure" page in the Monster Book. Completing this will unlock corresponding rewards upon game completion.]

Liam had already suspected that one of the weaknesses of the mermaid wax figures was their fear of strong light. 

It was fairly easy to guess.

Earlier, the driver had mentioned that big fish only came out at night because they avoided light, and the mermaid fishing event was held at night. This suggested that mermaids were likely light-sensitive creatures like many large fish.

However, Liam hadn't yet concluded whether mermaid wax figures shared this trait with real mermaids.

So, Liam observed. He noticed that Siren Town's streets had no mermaid wax figures on display during the day.

However, the hotel and the Siren Wax Museum, where the light was insufficient, had many mermaid wax figures. He had also previously deduced that mermaid wax figures had no hearing or smell but were highly sensitive to light.

The answer was becoming clear: mermaid wax figures feared bright light.

After this realization, Liam tried to test how much he could exploit this weakness to his advantage—how strong of light could repel how many mermaid wax figures? How long would the effect last? Could strong light help him break out if they surrounded him?

Liam decided to experiment. He deliberately lured the wax figures into a circle around him and then tried to use the strong light from the 3D projectors to break through.

Of course, it might fail, but Liam didn't like hesitating in his actions.

He estimated this move's success rate to be more than 10%, so he was willing to take the risk.

If he failed, he failed. Without risk, there could be no reward. It was all part of the game—both playing and developing it.

But now, his attention was still on the softened newspaper in the hot water pool.

Liam grabbed the newspaper and gently tore it apart with both hands.

[Player Liam completed separating the newspaper in the hot water pool, earning 10 points.]

[Charging points: 21. Current balance: 31. Would you like to purchase an item?]

Liam clicked "No" and continued to examine the newspaper.

Looking at the separated sheets, he noticed that the thickness was different—one sheet was much thinner.

He frowned slightly, picked up the thicker sheet, and tore it again—another layer separated.

Liam raised an eyebrow. He almost missed the task completion prompt and didn't realize the layers were still stuck. If he hadn't checked again, he might have thought he had gathered all the information from this location.

This game sure knew how to mislead players.

Liam kept tearing until he had separated seven or eight layers. The hot water pool was now full of soaked old newspapers. After confirming that no hidden layers were left, he quickly glanced at the content.

The headlines of the nine old newspapers he had collected were all missing person notices, all concerning tourists who had disappeared. The total number of missing people was considerable.

The earliest disappearance cases could be traced back to last year when the Siren Wax Museum opened.

At first, there weren't many disappearances, but the cases were linked to robberies.

It wasn't unusual for one or two tourists to disappear each month in popular tourist destinations—high-traffic areas often bred crime. Being near the sea, both drowning and abduction were common, and these incidents were typically reported and recorded…

However, from what Gerald had told him, no one knew how many tourists had gone missing here before last month, and tourism had continued to thrive.

It wasn't until the number of missing tourists grew and strange events started occurring more frequently than the twelve missing persons recorded last month that the story blew up in the media.

If Liam's guess was correct, the mayor, Harris, had used some methods to suppress these incidents to keep the tourism industry booming. It wasn't until it became unmanageable that the truth finally came out.

From the newspaper information, it was clear that the townspeople were quite adept at committing crimes.

Liam tucked the newspapers and projectors away, using his flashlight to shine on the mermaid wax figures. Once they stopped moving, he exited the corridor and headed toward the central exhibition hall where Lucy and the others were.

The central exhibition hall supposedly only had one mermaid skeleton on display, locked in a bulletproof glass case. It was the "perfect" mermaid skeleton that the driver had mentioned—everything had begun with it.

This skeleton was like a gift from the sea to Siren Town, bringing them wealth and misfortune. Yet, no one realized that their current bad luck stemmed from it.

As Liam stepped inside, he froze.

The central hall was a circular space, and a crystal coffin-like glass case stood in the middle. Inside was the mermaid "skeleton," lit by bright LED lights illuminating it from all angles. Liam, rarely taken aback, couldn't help but stare in surprise at the so-called "skeleton" of the mermaid.

At least by Liam's standards, it couldn't be called a skeleton.

Lucy admired the mermaid in the glass case, "It's so beautiful. I've never seen such... a perfect appearance. Even computer-generated ones don't look like this."

Looking deeply shocked, Gerald stood there, staring up at the mermaid, unable to believe it, as though frozen in place for quite a while.

Andrew, as always, looked down on this creature with disdain, "You've all been duped. This fishtail is attached to a human body and put in a glass case. It's just a stunt to attract attention."

After saying this, he stared at the skeleton again, almost in a trance, before adding, "But it's well done."

The mermaid's body was submerged in the glass container, its right arm and shoulder bone visible, but the rest was made of real flesh, lifelike and stunning.

Its muscles were elegant and firm, wrapping around slender bones. Air bubbles slowly rose in the deep blue liquid, drifting through the mermaid's dark brown hair, eventually becoming like pearls embedded in its long, pale lashes.

Its eyes were closed, its face exquisitely delicate, and its slightly curly hair flowed through the water, revealing ears unlike any human's.

Its left ear was a shell-like fin, iridescent under the water, while its right ear was bone-like, visible beneath the wet strands of hair.

The long, curled fish tail shimmered like a silver-blue satin ribbon draping over the glass case. The triangular scales gleamed in the light, and a translucent membrane was between its right fingers. Its bony left hand was crossed over its chest.