Godmode: My Infinite Game Odyssey

Liam understood why the driver had described the first mermaid ever caught as beautiful and noble.

The meticulously crafted mermaid wax figures now seemed like crude, low-quality souvenirs compared to the real mermaid skeleton.

And Liam, with his fondness for expensive-looking items, couldn't help but step closer and examine the plaque next to the skeleton.

[Siren, Siren Town, XX year, XX month, XX day. A collective fishing activity resulted in the capture of this creature, which was later verified by relevant authorities to be a rare natural specimen, grown under purely natural conditions, with no synthetic human intervention.]

[... The creature was already in a skeletal state when captured and has been preserved in a solidifying liquid, displayed in the center exhibition hall of the Siren Wax Museum for public viewing.]

Liam thought to himself that this creature was probably a formidable monster.

As Liam lowered his head to read the plaque beside the mermaid skeleton, he saw the mermaid's right hand inside the glass case twitch ever so slightly.

Suddenly, the coin on his chest vibrated violently, unleashing countless red panels that overlapped on top of each other, almost like a system malfunction.

[Siren Town Monster Book Update—Siren King (2/4)]

[Monster Name: Siren King]

[Weakness: None (No requirement for players to explore this monster's weaknesses)]

[Attack Method: ??? (Unknown, awaiting exploration)]

[You have triggered the roaming god-level NPC, Siren King!!]

[Siren Town game survival rate is plummeting rapidly, recalculating... The original game completion rate was 51%, now decreasing to ??%! Warning!]

[Warning! Warning! This NPC is extremely dangerous, and there is no known weakness. Once this NPC decides to kill, players cannot escape using a weakness; only death awaits. Please accelerate your progress to solve the game and escape Siren Town before this NPC awakens!]

[Estimated time until this NPC awakens: 1 day. Please speed up your exploration!]

Liam raised an eyebrow. Had he... encountered something extraordinary?

He looked at the red warning text on the panel, still pondering his next move, unaware that this warning had nearly stunned a seasoned cloud player who happened to be passing by the central game hall screen.

Wang Shun was a veteran cloud player, someone who had been watching the large central screen in the game hall for years. He was currently fixated on the small TV screen showing Liam's gameplay.

Being a "cloud player" meant he spent more time watching others play than actually playing himself. His main role was collecting game information from players to submit to his guild.

Despite watching countless game videos, this was the first time Wang Shun had seen a god-level roaming NPC on the central screen.

He stared at the screen, double-checking the details before speaking in disbelief, "I didn't just see that, right?! This… is the roaming god-level NPC, right?! Who is so unlucky to enter a game with one of these god-level NPCs?!"

Throughout the system, there were thousands of terrifying games, each with independent game copies. Every NPC and monster within those games was different and fixed, like separate games in a store—unrelated and unaffected by each other.

Players' experiences in each game copy were independent, meaning there was no cross-contamination.

But at some point, a strange roaming NPC appeared.

This NPC would randomly appear in each game copy, moving unpredictably. Sometimes, it would possess one of the monsters, transforming it from a regular monster into a god-level one with immense power. Players would be helpless, and the moment this NPC appeared, the entire team would be wiped out instantly, leaving no chance for viewers to react.

Though the probability of encountering this roaming NPC was very low, Wang Shun had been watching the screen for years and had never once seen anyone trigger it.

However, because of this NPC's deadly power, it usually resulted in instant team wipeouts. Players had no chance to escape. For a cloud player like Wang Shun, this was the highest-level information—rare and valuable!

He might even sell the points if he could gather all the details!

Wang Shun immediately became highly focused. He decided to stay in front of Liam's small TV screen for the rest of the session.

But it was strange—this explosive video featuring a god-level NPC appeared on the very edge of the central screen. If Wang Shun hadn't developed the habit of scanning the entire screen, he might have missed it due to the small TV screen being filled with red warnings.

"Is the system's algorithm malfunctioning?" Wang Shun muttered to himself while watching the small TV, "This video shouldn't be at the edge like this. This player's performance is excellent—he's almost completed the first page of the Monster Book and is so calm despite encountering a roaming god-level NPC. He's not playing passively, either. His mental toughness is impressive..."

As he spoke, Wang Shun opened his game manager and checked the player information behind this small TV. His eyes widened in disbelief.

"… This is a first-time player?! Seriously?!"

---

[Game Forum—Has anyone seen the newbie player who just leveled up from the newbie zone and is now on the central screen?]

1l: He leveled up in his first game! Could he be the new star of this year's leaderboard?

2l: No way, this guy is doomed. I'm watching his small TV, and his luck is awful. He triggered a god-level roaming NPC, so this game will probably be his last one.

3l: He was really impressive in the newbie zone, so lucky... But honestly, he's very skilled, so he might not die immediately.

4l: Does anyone still not know that a roaming NPC is just a bug disguised as a monster? This NPC has no weakness. The players get wiped out whenever it appears because they can't run away. The system made this bug a roaming NPC to mess with players.

5l: Man, I had high hopes for him. I thought he could break the Siren Town record because his thinking is sharp.

6l: Isn't the highest score in Siren Town held by Shepherd? I remember it's over 1300 points without charging. Shepherd is now ranked 4th on the Nightmare Rising Star list. This newbie won't last; he's way out of his league.

7l: Such a shame; this newbie looks good too. If he doesn't die, he could've ranked in the top 10 most handsome players...

8l: Hah, please. With that pretty-boy face, he doesn't stand a chance for the top 10. First, it's about skills, then looks. This game is over for him...

...

[New 1 like for Liam's small TV, 416 new saves for Liam's small TV, no one is charging player Liam.]

[512 new viewers watching Liam's small TV, but no new likes. Is it strange because the player's performance isn't impressive? Come on, give him a like!]

[The number of new likes is too low, player Liam's position on the central screen edge will soon expire.]

...

Liam was unaware of these discussions and focused on examining the mermaid in the glass case—this was undoubtedly the highest-level boss in the game, and the game had clearly told him so. Players were unable to escape using any weakness when facing this boss.

Once it awakened, death was inevitable.

Although Liam didn't particularly enjoy being controlled, since the game had said so, he had no way of dealing with it.

However, this mermaid might still offer him a chance before it awakened.

Liam rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Boldly, he considered using the Siren King to gain some benefits for himself. If he voiced this idea, the spectators outside would probably be speechless and say he was just a naive rookie.

Unfortunately, he didn't know that he was dealing with the so-called game-breaking [God-Level Roaming NPC].

...

They stayed in the wax museum until evening. When the driver came to pick them up, the museum keeper, with a frail and aged voice, joyfully bid them farewell.

"It's been so long since we had a big mermaid fishing event," he said with an odd sense of pleasure. "After tonight, the Siren Wax Museum will finally be able to welcome new mermaid wax figures."

His smile held an eerie joy as his sightless eyes focused on Liam.

"Have a pleasant evening," he said.