The Little Mermaid NPC kept reminding players about this.
The answer was placed in the most obvious spot in the dungeon and showed up repeatedly, but the players ignored it because it was too straightforward.
In other words, it wasn’t that no one ever suspected mermaids and merfolk.
But all the information on the surface was too misleading. From the fish-headed tentacle monster that appeared every night, to the giant snake in the dark mist outside the villa, and the countless letters from the old friend which confirmed the existence of the Sea God.
Actually, if it hadn’t been for the clues revealed by each identity card holder, it would have been hard to piece everything together, even with the Daoist’s reply on the business partner’s app. After all, merfolk were just legendary creatures. How could Mr. Wang, an ordinary human, have been connected to them?
It was even possible that all these supernatural occurrences were just fabricated illusions meant to cover up the murder of Mr. Wang.
The players who were participating in the copy didn’t dare to make wild guesses without any evidence. They could only follow the direction indicated by the clues.
After all, this was more than just a game; it determined whether they would survive.
Jiang Shishi, who had just finished eating a small burger, didn’t think too much about it.
He happened to raise his head and saw the beautiful bubbles floating on the canvas. So, he took out two Little Mermaid bubble machines from the personal panel of the system, where his bad brother had taught him to store things.
He placed one of the bubble machines into the arms of a little mermaid that could talk and move.
Then, he started playing by himself.
“If Mrs. Yun was really a mermaid, then…”
Yi Jiangnan looked at the fish-like patterns spreading on Lin Qiyue’s neck and remembered the musician’s comments about the girlfriend’s attractive and good-looking siblings in his memoirs.
Then he continued, “I think it’s very likely that the girlfriend is also a mermaid. The age difference doesn’t matter much because the lifespan of mermaids is much longer than that of humans. According to the records about mermaids in the library, their lifespan is at least a few thousand years.”
Lin Qiyue blinked suddenly. She wanted to nod in agreement, but because she had received a reminder at the beginning not to disclose any information about herself, she didn’t dare to make too big of a gesture just to be safe.
Worried that she might accidentally speak out in excitement, she covered her mouth.
“In that case, Mrs. Yun is the sister of the girlfriend, who stopped talking to her family and died early after getting married.”
Jiang Zuo rubbed his cold cheeks and spoke while shivering and stomping his feet.
Even though the girlfriend’s identity card didn’t offer many clues, there were always signs pointing to her suspiciousness. The fish scales on Lin Qiyue’s body were one of the most obvious features.
Thinking about this, he recalled the books about mermaids in the library.
Shivering, he suppressed the cold that engulfed him and said, “Let’s go downstairs and check out the mermaid records in the library. If we stay here any longer, we might freeze. Seriously…”
After the words fell, the crystal clear colorful bubbles naturally floated towards the painting of the sea.
Upon touching the blue flame, they burst apart.
At some point, faint blue fire silently spread to all the paintings in the studio. They burned brightly, but couldn’t damage the thin papers. Instead, they made the paintings even more colorful.
On the contrary, the temperature around them kept dropping.
Due to the extreme cold, the players felt increasingly tired and sleepy, knowing that if they fell asleep, they might never wake up again.
Seeing this, everyone had no intention of staying any longer. Wen Qingxue used prop to confirm that the paintings wrapped in blue flames were not what the Little Mermaid had described, and they quickly returned to the third floor.
Even so, the feeling of fatigue and drowsiness still tightly surrounded every player.
It was late at night, and rain was still falling outside the window, but nothing could extinguish the cold fire in this illusion.
It didn’t take long for the players to enter the library with You Wusi’s help.
Thanks to their previous summaries and notes on the books, it didn’t take much time to accurately find the books and records related to the mermaids.
Many stories described mermaids with fishtails for bodies, emphasizing their weaving skills and how their tears turned into beads.
They flipped through several books and finally found descriptions of the lifespan and temperament of sharks.
In the middle of a yellowed book, it was recorded that mermaids had lived in the deep sea for a long time. They were said to be able to fight sea beasts, sing songs, weave illusions, and possess the power to enchant people’s hearts.
As for the so-called Mermaid Pearl, everyone searched through all the books, even flipping through the pages of books about mermaids several times, but found no information at all. On the contrary, in some ancient texts, they came across sayings like “the lamp burned by the mermaid’s fat will last forever” and “eating its scales will prolong your life”.
“So, the place we’re in right now is likely a mermaid’s illusion,” Yi Jiangnan said as he closed the book, marveling at the power of these mythical creatures.
“Looking at Miss An an’s poor mental state despite taking medicine regularly, she probably wouldn’t be able to create such a perfect illusion. Creating illusions requires immense power, and only beings like the Ghost King can touch the threshold of illusion in the realm of evil spirits. Even if it’s a mermaid, it must be healthy, strong, and exceptional among its kind.”
Speaking of which, he looked at the scales on Lin Qiyue’s body, even slightly dry they exuded a mysterious color, and said, “Mermaids are undoubtedly cautious. They must know that humans desire them. Whether it’s Mrs. Yun or the girlfriend, they both concealed their identities very well from the start. It’s unclear how Mrs. Yun was exposed, but given the girlfriend’s caution and strength, it’s normal for her to leave no information or loopholes.”
Even though Yi Jiangnan hadn’t encountered special species like monsters before, he was knowledgeable about non-human creatures like evil spirits.
Creating such an incredibly realistic illusion was something beyond the capability of ordinary non-human creatures. Not even the Ghost King can achieve this level of realism.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Of course, some special evil spirits can also create illusions, but most of them are influenced by their life experiences.
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Listening to Yi Jiangnan’s elaborate analysis, everyone almost didn’t recognize the word “illusion.”
After listening to it once, they felt a little dizzy and wanted the other person to speak more slowly and repeat it a few times.
However, before anyone could speak up, the Little Mermaid, who had arranged the smaller burger and handed it to Jiang Shishi, suddenly spoke.
She turned her head and stared directly at Yi Jiangnan.
Speaking calmly, she said, “You’re correct, but also incorrect. This isn’t an intentionally arranged illusion, but rather an illusion formed from the lingering power.”
Yi Jiangnan was silent. So, it wasn’t deliberately arranged?
Even the Ghost King he had worked so hard with his master to seal couldn’t even compare to the remaining power of this mermaid?
Seeing that the NPC rarely spoke up on her own, Wen Qingxue quickly asked, “Is the girlfriend the mermaid with the power to weave illusions?”
The little mermaid looked away and remained silent, not answering again.
Instead, she shifted to a lying position, her hands propping up her chin as she continued to watch Jiang Shishi eat.
She seemed very focused and serious.
Wen Qingxue didn’t mind that the NPC ignored her.
After all, NPCs like the Little Mermaid, who only appear at specific times, mostly serve as ‘judges’ in endless dungeons. If the illusion hadn’t been broken, and there wasn’t a bold exception like Jiang Shishi, they wouldn’t have even known that such a little NPC could be present at all times.
Compared to before, the Little Mermaid speaking up now was a rare occurrence.
She looked at Yi Jiangnan and said, “It seems the girlfriend is a mermaid. Keep guessing.”
Yi Jiangnan was obviously shocked, and sighed silently.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of the blue fireworks climbing up the wall, momentarily distracting him from his thoughts.
He briefly summarized his speculation: “Since it’s not a fantasy but an illusion, it means all of this is a repetition of past events. The black pearl has indeed been stolen, and the thief was most likely the girlfriend, who is a mermaid. She also specifically chose the anniversary of Mrs. Yun’s death to take revenge. The moment the music teacher sang, everyone entered the illusion, so… maybe Mr. Wang isn’t dead…”
The powerful mermaid had no difficulty in obtaining the black pearl, which rightfully belonged to mermaids. Revenge was simply a breeze for her.
But how could it be easy?
How could the person who was the reason behind her torment leave so easily?
Living in agony, however unable to die— that’s the true punishment.
Constant mental torment was the best way to seek revenge against a human.
Especially for a person like Mr. Wang who was so greedy and selfish.
Yi Jiangnan has encountered various vengeful spirits in the past. When these spirits seek revenge on people, they don’t just let them die quickly. Instead, they inflict all sorts of torture and torment on their victims, making sure they suffer day and night without rest.
For these vengeful spirits, death is seen as a form of relief because it ends the suffering they inflict on their victims.
So, instead of granting relief so easily… Mr. Wang…
“He’s not dead, but he’s experiencing this night of death repeatedly?” Yi Jiangnan said firmly.
Lin Qiyue, who was somehow influenced by the evil spirits, also realized what Yi Jiangnan meant. She suddenly clapped her hands and cheered loudly.
This kind of guy who killed inhuman creatures and can’t even be punished by the law deserves this punishment!
But soon, she furrowed her brow again and said, “Doesn’t breaking the illusion mean that guy gets off easy?”
“This is just a later illusion, not the original one.” After Yi Jiangnan finished speaking, he saw the flames around him gradually growing higher. Then he said to the little mermaid, “I identify Mr. Wang as the culprit behind all of this. He…”
“The identification time has ended. Unfortunately, the guests failed to collect evidence within the stipulated time.”
The mermaid didn’t turn her head. She kept her chin propped up and continued watching Jiang Shishi.
She paused for a few seconds as if contemplating something before continuing, “According to the rules, all guests must start receiving their punishment. However, Butler An An appreciates everyone’s serious attitude in finding the murderer and uncovering the truth. The punishment will be delayed until the moment the guests come into contact with reality.”
“Warm reminder: if you don’t leave the villa before the illusion shatters, you will all stay here with Butler An An forever.”
The little mermaid finally turned to look at the players. Her voice was extremely ethereal. Her wavy black hair, like seaweed, was unconsciously dyed a light blue.
Lin Haoguang who memorized the rules of black pearl asked quickly, “Then how were we going to identify after leaving the villa?”
The identification was done in the living room every day at nightfall!
This was a rule set by the dungeon from the beginning. If it didn’t go smoothly, there was no doubt that even if they left this damn illusion, they would never be able to leave the dungeon!
“This is something that the guests should consider for themselves. You can’t rely on Butler An An for everything.”
The little mermaid lazily turned her head back and saw that Jiang Shishi had finished eating the hamburger, and stretched out his hand as if asking for more.
However the illusion began to fade, and her power was running out. She can’t do more magic.
Jiang Shishi was eagerly looking at the Little Mermaid, hoping for more brown things to eat. However, when he saw her lower her head sadly, he gently reached out with his pointed nails and smoothed her curly black hair twice.
As if he was comforting the little mermaid.
He placed the mermaid bubble machine back into the little mermaid’s arms.
Then, he picked up another one and showed the talking mermaid how to play with the bubble machine by gently pressing on its belly. Beautiful, colorful bubbles floated out of the round mouth.
The Little Mermaid NPC held a bubble machine that was as tall as herself. She gazed up at the numerous bubbles floating in the air, her dark eyes sparkling with colorful circles reflected in them.
Seeing his little wife enjoying the little NPC, You Wusi handed the newly opened learning equipment to the backbone and said with a smile, “The more you enrich yourself, the more you can achieve better improvement. There is also a lot of room for improvement for you. I know you can do much better!”
The human skin monster was grateful for the boss’s trust, but the praise about improvement, coupled with the word “also,” even if it wasn’t human, it could tell it wasn’t a compliment.
After seeing the players frowning and staring at the Little Mermaid, You Wusi dismissed the new employee and said, “Let’s leave the villa first. The fire around doesn’t seem like it’s going to wait for anyone.”
Hearing this, everyone reacted to the words.
Identifying the culprit was crucial, but escaping from the villa was equally urgent! Time was ticking away, and they couldn’t afford to waste any more time!
Players also had their own suspicions about the truth revealed by the Little Mermaid.
The first thing that came to everyone’s mind was the black pearl, and the second was the diary in Mrs. Yun’s room.
If the studio was not engulfed in flames, the painting of colorful bubbles emerging from the calm sea was also a very likely possible clue that they could look after.
Even the puppet Little Mermaid was considered someone who was related to truth for a moment.
Of course, there was also Mr. Wang’s room, which didn’t have any extra clues but had a fingerprint code lock.
Next to the library was Mrs. Yun’s room.
Players first found the diary. According to the Little Mermaid, as long as they came into contact with the truth, the punishment time would start.
For them, this was indeed a good way to identify.
Wen Qingxue picked up the diary. The little mermaid didn’t speak, and there were no surprises around her.
This wasn’t the reality they were looking for.
Instead, everyone quickly walked towards Mr. Wang’s bedroom.
As they pushed the door open, blue fireworks rushed towards their face with a biting chill. The intense blue flooded the entire room as if venting its resentment, burning and distorting everything.
It wasn’t too surprising that the room where Mr. Wang was would turn out like this, considering the mermaid’s hatred towards him.
Since they couldn’t enter Mr. Wang’s room, the players hurried to Miss An An’s room.
Their gaze accurately rested on the black pearl glowing with bright light.
After watching for a long time, everyone moved closer to the black pearl unknowingly, with only the black pearl in front of them remaining in their eyes and hearts.
They even entertained the idea of taking it and running away.
The players stood before the black pearl, mesmerized by its brilliance and allure. As they gazed at it for what seemed like an eternity, they couldn’t shake off the feeling of being drawn closer to it, as if nothing else in the room mattered except the captivating glow of the pearl.
Their minds raced with thoughts of possessing such a valuable item, and some even entertained the idea of snatching it and making a swift escape. The temptation to seize the black pearl and flee became stronger with each passing moment, overshadowing any rational thought or concern for the consequences.
Looking at the players who appeared to have lost their rationality, You Wusi gently pushed his little wife to the side of the bed and spoke calmly: “This black pearl is not just an ordinary object; it’s also a symbol of Mrs. Yun’s heart. I believe everyone should show it the respect it deserves and try not to let your unreasonable emotions cloud your judgment.”
Suddenly interrupted by such reasonable words, the players snapped out of their strange state and quickly looked away.
Even so, their minds still lingered on that brief glance from earlier.
Obviously, the attraction of this black pearl was even greater than before. It had reached the point where if they just looked at it a few more times, they would become obsessed with it and lose their rational thinking.
“Brother Si, Mrs. Yun’s… heart seems to have the ability to enchant people’s hearts.”
Yi Jiangnan used a lot of willpower to control himself from looking at the black pearl. Just now, almost everyone present was affected, but thankfully You Wusi stopped them.
This shows that even under this kind of charm, You Wusi could still control himself.
Thinking about this, he continued: “Why don’t you, Brother Si…”
“Great idea,” You Was praised, cutting off Yi Jiangnan before he could finish his sentence.
He picked out a shiny fabric called Mermaid Silk from the one-click outfit and wrapped it around the black pearl, and then tucked it into Jiang Shishi’s arms, alongside a certain still resilient tomato.
Seeing the Little Mermaid NPC holding a bubble machine, he somehow ended up sitting on his wife’s shoulder. He took the Little Mermaid’s hand and placed it on the black pearl to sit on. “Shishi is still growing, so it will affect her if you sit on her shoulders,” he explained.
Initially, the Little Mermaid seemed surprised, with a look of confusion and contemplation on her face. Her eyes widened slightly, showing she couldn’t believe what was happening. But as Yi Wusi’s words sunk in, she started to understand.
After taking a moment to think it over, she nodded heavily in agreement.
The Backbone quietly observed the big boss cleverly tricking the NPC, silently impressed by his skills. But just as it was thinking about how talented its boss was, an unexpected lamp headed straight for the boss’s wife’s head.
Reflexively, it intercepted the round lamp first.
“Nice job, Backbone,” Yue Wu Si casually complimented the employee. Observing the faint glow of the black pearls through the thin fabric, he turned his attention to the Little Mermaid and inquired, “So, Butler An’an, now that we’ve encountered the truth, how do we leave the villa?”
The Little Mermaid remained silent, disregarding Yue Wu Si’s question, and enthusiastically continued playing with the bubble machine. Bubbles popped out one after another as if they were giving their all in the game.
Without waiting for the Little Mermaid to respond, You Wusi nodded with a smile and continued, “Looks like we just need to walk out the door politely. Hey, Mr. Policeman, do you still have the villa key?”
“Always with me,” Zhou Qingxing replied promptly, but his gaze inadvertently fell on the pearl in Jiang Shishi’s arms, almost causing him to lunge for it. Quickly, he shut his eyes and turned his head away.
Suddenly, he caught the sound of wind rushing past his ears. Startled, he swiftly turned around to see the door engulfed in blue flames splitting open, narrowly avoiding hitting him.
Yue Wusi calmly pushed Jiang Shishi towards the door, which was surrounded by faint flames, while the Backbone hovered above their heads.
It wasn’t too surprising. When the blue flames didn’t touch them. That’s because the black pearl made the flames back off a bit, making a semi-circle of safety.
He glanced back at the players dodging fire and objects that were flying toward them, “Even in the illusion, Mrs. Yun is real and valued.”
Everyone was already used to You Wusi’s nonsense talk.
They quickly followed the bold You Wusi and formed a circle around each other. They aimed to be extra cautious to avoid accidents, but they were surprised to discover that within this not-so-big semicircle, neither the blue flames nor any supposed punishment could breach it.
Before they could relax, scary human skins and gray-black bones emerged from the blue flames. They looked like devils from hell, trying hard to attack the solid semicircle around them.
The surrounding azure flames flickered repeatedly.
The players knew they couldn’t keep this up. Sooner or later, those monsters would break through the solid protection circle formed by the black pearl, just like they had previously breached the barrier.
As Backbone carried the wheelchair down the stairs, everyone else also activated their skills.
Even though their skills would vanish upon touching the blue flames, they didn’t give up driving away the skins and bones monsters.
Just as they had guessed.
As the monsters continued to attack, the semicircle created by the black pearl began to shrink. Seeing the blue flames drawing nearer, Wen Qingxue and Lin Haoguang had to use defensive skill cards to reinforce this fragile safe zone.
Their skills managed to stabilize the circle momentarily. However, just a few seconds later, the monsters broke through the skills and rushed in.
So, as they were going downstairs, everyone ended up with quite a few wounds on their bodies, with Jiang Zuo being the worst off. It was unclear if it was because the human skins and skeletons held grudges or for some other reason. When he used his skills to persuade the monsters to learn medicine, he was okay. However, as soon as he made a move, all the monsters rushed towards him at once.
It felt like monsters were doing everything they could to drag him into hell.
At that moment, they had reached the living room, where they saw the villa door twisted in the flickering flames right before them.
As Jiang Zuo followed You Wusi, a monster grabbed him tightly, causing his pace to gradually slow down.
The only one who spotted this was Lin Haoguang, also trailing behind You Wusi. He clenched the cigarette tightly between his fingers, turned his face away with a cold expression, stopped watching Jiang Zuo, and moved forward.
But when the cigarette butt in his hand flashed with flame, he suddenly turned around.
He chased away the human-skin monsters surrounding him, and at the same time reached out to Jiang Zuo, who was about to touch the blue flame.
Feeling a slight chill in his elbows, he frowned. Switching his grip, he lifted Jiang Zuo, who was still talking about using his skills of studying medicine which slowed down the monsters a bit. This gave Lin Haoguang a chance as he hurriedly followed the players ahead.
Pushing Jiang Shishi’s wheelchair, Yue Wu Si glanced sideways at the two figures lagging behind, his gaze landing on Lin Haoguang’s right hand, which was now reduced to bare bones. He paused briefly.
Humans were still such complex and strange creatures.
And it never changed.
After a few steps, the players finally reached the villa gate. Zhou Qingxing skillfully inserted the key and turned it hurriedly.
Then they pushed the door open and rushed out.
One by one, transparent and bright colorful bubbles followed the players out of the villa, shimmering with colorful light under the morning sun.
Sitting in the wheelchair, Jiang Shishi suddenly felt an emptiness in his arms.
He looked down and saw nothing but the tomato seedling and the shimmering fine fabric.
The talking Little Mermaid was nowhere to be found.
Author wants to say something:
Jiang Shishi: “Where’s my big black ball? Where’s my little talking mermaid?”
Aw, Butler An’an, come back!!!
No… I wanted Butler An´an to stay with them
Sorry didn´t mean to reply to you
Eh, we’re making same emotional outburst, so it’s all good 😆
Nooo!! where’s butler An An? 🥺
Thank you for the chapter 💕
Thank you for the chapter 😍 ❤️ ❤️ ❤️
Oh, wow, victim
Thank you for your translation 💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛💛