Global Ghost Stories: I'm Investigating Ghosts in My Nightmare!

Chapter 115 The Blade of Severing Thoughts and the Guardian in the Mirror Sea

boom--! ! !
The giant katana crashed down with terrifying force, capable of splitting mountains and shattering rocks. The once-solid tunnel floor instantly cracked, and shards of rock scattered like shrapnel. A chasm several meters deep stretched from the Oni Warrior's feet all the way to behind Bai Yu, as if the earth had been cleaved in two by this single strike.

Amidst the swirling dust, Bai Yu's figure resembled a black feather, drifting backward with the force of the violent shockwave just as the blade was about to strike.

"What a heavy knife."

Bai Yu steadied himself, his gaze sweeping over the shocking knife mark at his feet, his eyes narrowing slightly.

This was more than just physical destructive power. Countless visible dark red resentments swirled around that rusty katana. As the blade sliced ​​through the air, these resentments emitted shrill screams, like the wailing of ten thousand ghosts, frantically assaulting Bai Yu's mental defenses.

If he hadn't absorbed a large amount of "Izana's resentment" in the carriage, strengthening his soul's resilience, the mental impact of this strike alone would have been enough to put him into a brief state of paralysis.

In a battle of this magnitude, even a second of stun can mean death.

"Roar--!!!"

Having missed its target, the Oni Warrior let out a thunderous roar. Its massive body, far from appearing clumsy due to its heavy armor, instead displayed an agility far exceeding its size.

It gripped the hilt with both hands, the blade swung horizontally, and its massive body charged forward like a chariot, sweeping across the battlefield and aiming straight for Bai Yu's waist and abdomen!

The wind howled, sealing off all escape routes.

"Since we can't avoid it, then we won't try to avoid it."

A cold glint flashed in Bai Yu's eyes, and he slightly bent his right leg, causing black ripples to explode instantly beneath his feet.

"Phase Step!"

hum!
Just as the blade, sharp enough to cleave a person in half, was about to touch the hem of their clothes, Bai Yu's figure suddenly vanished from the spot.

The next instant, he appeared directly above the Oni Warrior's head!

This is the domineering nature of "phase step"—it ignores spatial distance and forces displacement.

"Big guy, you have too many blind spots!"

Bai Yuren was in mid-air, his body inverted, and a jet-black ethereal blade condensed in his right hand. Using the force of gravity as he fell, he stabbed fiercely at the Oni Warrior's huge demon helmet!
clang--! ! !
A deafening clang of metal clashing echoed through the tunnel.

Bai Yu felt a numbness in his hand, and the ethereal blade in his hand was actually deflected!
A dark red aura emanated from the seemingly worn-out helmet, forcefully blocking the fatal blow.

"Hmm? A rule-based shield?"

Bai Yu was startled.

"Foolish mortals..."

The Oni Warrior let out a deep, muffled growl; it didn't even raise its head, but merely jerked its shoulder.

boom!
A surge of powerful dark red energy erupted from its body, like a circular shockwave, directly blasting Bai Yu away from mid-air!
Bai Yu did several somersaults in the air to dissipate the force and landed steadily more than ten meters away.

He glanced at his trembling right hand, and a smile of excitement appeared on his lips.

"Interesting. Not just brute force, but also knows how to use energy to protect yourself. It seems you're not the kind of punching bag that just passively takes hits."

“That’s ‘battle intent’,” Hei Yan’s voice echoed in his mind, tinged with amusement. “This guy must have been a seasoned warrior in life. Even after death, his obsession lingered, and his fighting instincts from his past life were etched into his very bones. His armor and sword are armed with rules formed from countless dead souls and battle intents, making them difficult to penetrate with ordinary attacks.”

"The will to fight?"

Bai Yu licked his slightly chapped lips. "Let's see if his fighting spirit is stronger, or if my 'Void' is sharper!"

The Oni Warrior gave Bai Yu no chance to catch its breath. Dragging its sword with both hands, it charged again with heavy steps.

Boom!Boom!Boom!
With each step, the ground trembled.

As it charged forward, the crimson flames in the surrounding air became even hotter, as if turning the entire tunnel into a giant steel furnace.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

The Oni Warrior let out a muffled roar, his nodachi flashing with a blinding bloody light, and slashed down at Bai Yu!

This strike was faster and more ruthless than the last one!
Bai Yu's eyes were calm as still water. He did not use Phase Step to dodge again, but stood still and took a deep breath.

The power of nothingness within his body began to circulate wildly, like boiling asphalt, surging through his meridians to his hands.

"Since you have a shell, I'll peel it off first!"

Just as the blade was about to strike, Bai Yu made a move.

Instead of retreating, he advanced, his body moving like a slippery fish, darting into the Oni Warrior's embrace along the side of the blade!
This is a risky move. If it goes wrong, the terrifying blade energy will shred them to pieces.

But Bai Yu won the bet.

He successfully slipped into the inner circle of the Onimusha's defenses.

"Let me... open it!"

Bai Yu formed claws with both hands, and the pitch-black power of nothingness transformed into ten sharp black spikes, which fiercely dug into the gaps in the armor on the Oni Warrior's chest!
Zizzi——!
The power of nothingness collided violently with the dark red battle shield, producing a piercing sound like boiling oil being poured onto snow.

"Swallow!"

Bai Yu roared, unleashing the full power of the "Gluttony" concept within his body.

He stopped trying to break through the shield and started...eating!

Like a high-powered water pump, the battle shield on the Oni Warrior's body thinned at a visible speed, and the continuous energy was forcibly plundered by Bai Yu and swallowed into his body.

"Roar?!"

The Oni Warrior had clearly never seen this fighting style before. It was horrified to discover that its proud defenses were rapidly crumbling, and even its internal energy was draining away.

It roared angrily, trying to swing its sword in defense, but the nodachi was too long and couldn't be used effectively at this distance.

It could only loosen one hand, clench it into a huge iron fist, and smash it down hard on Bai Yu's chest!
"too slow!"

Bai Yu sneered, and the moment the iron fist landed, a flash of black light appeared on his right leg.

Phase step!

His figure vanished instantly, reappearing behind the Oni Warrior.

boom!
The Oni Warrior punched himself in the chest, denting his armor and staggering backward.

Bai Yu, like a leech, clung tightly to its back. Its hands once again dug into the gaps in the armor, continuing its frenzied devouring!

“Ahhhhhh——!!!”

The Oni Warrior let out a painful roar. It twisted its body wildly, even slamming its back against the wall, trying to kill the "parasite" on its back.

boom! boom! boom!
The tunnel walls were smashed, sending stone chips flying everywhere. Bai Yu felt his internal organs trembling, and a trickle of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

But he refused to let go, even in the face of death.

There was a ruthless glint in his eyes. It was the madness of someone who had crawled out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood.

"Trying to get rid of me? Dream on!"

Bai Yu gritted his teeth and intensified his devouring.

As energy continued to flow in, he felt his power steadily increasing. Fifty percent... fifty-five percent... sixty percent!
The Oni Warrior's aura was visibly weakening. The crimson flames on its body began to extinguish, the luster on its armor dimmed, and its movements became sluggish.

This is a long time.

Finally, after a violent impact, the Oni Warrior let out a weak moan and collapsed to his knees.

"ended."

Bai Yu released his hands, jumped off the back of the Oni Warrior, and landed in front of it.

He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and made a fist in the air with his right hand.

A black longsword, entirely formed from the power of nothingness, appeared in his hand. This sword was more solid than any before, with strange patterns even appearing on its blade, radiating a chilling aura.

This reflects his increased control over the rules after his strength recovered to 60%.

"As a soldier, I'll give you a quick death."

Bai Yu held the knife in both hands and raised it high.

The Oni Warrior raised his head, and a hint of relief appeared in his eyes that were burning with flames.

It seems it has been waiting for this moment for a long time.

In this endless dark tunnel, guarding a door with no end is a torment more cruel than death itself.

"……Thanks……"

The Oni Warrior lowered his proud head.

brush!
A black blade flashed.

The enormous demon helmet, along with the head inside, rolled to the ground.

The massive body collapsed with a crash, turning into countless black specks of light that dissipated into the air.

As the Onimusha perished, a miniature nodachi fell to the ground with a clatter.

Bai Yu walked over and picked up the knife.

The blade is about 1.5 meters long, entirely black, with an eerie purple sheen on the edge. Holding it in your hand, a chilling killing intent instantly rushes to your head.

【Severing Thoughts (Conceptual Armament)】

[The Oni Warrior, in life, wielded a sword and slew over a thousand people. After death, he was baptized by the rules of the rift. Special characteristic: Ignores physical defense and can directly sever spirits, obsessions, and low-level rule bindings.]

Those who harbor obsessions, cut them down with this blade.

"Severing all thoughts..."

Bai Yu gently stroked the blade, feeling a slight tremor emanating from it, as if it too yearned for blood and battle.

"Good knife."

He tucked the knife behind his back with his other hand—although there was no scabbard, the power of nothingness would automatically form a thin film to envelop it.

Besides the sword, Bai Yu also absorbed all the energy left by the dissipated Oni Warrior.

He closed his eyes, feeling the surging power within him.

Seventy percent.

His strength has recovered to 70%. In the real world, this would be enough to suppress powerful figures, and even in this strange "rift," he would have real say.

"Looks like this delivery was worthwhile."

Hei Yan joked, "Not only did you get the equipment, you also replenished your mana. Now, it's time to collect your 'ultimate prize'."

Bai Yu opened his eyes and looked into the depths of the tunnel.

There, at the end of what was once pitch black, a faint light appeared.

The light was not dazzling, but it carried a sacred and solemn aura, as if it were the only salvation in this world of despair.

Bai Yu straightened his tattered clothes, picked up the Soul-Guiding Lamp, and strode towards the light.

……

The moment Bai Yu stepped out of the tunnel, he subconsciously squinted his eyes.

Accustomed to the darkness, I was deeply awestruck by the magnificent sight before me.

This place is no longer a repressive underground, nor a desolate wasteland.

This is a... sea.

A boundless and magnificent ocean.

But the seawater is not water; it is countless broken pieces of glass of varying sizes and shapes. These pieces densely cover the entire field of vision, rising and falling with some unseen rhythm, refracting billions of rays of light.

Each lens reflected a different image. Bai Yu looked down at a lens at her feet.

It reflected a bustling city, with cars and neon lights flashing. That was the real world.

He then looked at another piece.

Inside was a burning wasteland, where enormous monsters ravaged the ruins. Was it a parallel world destroyed by nightmares?
Countless worlds and countless possibilities rise and fall, intertwining in this "Sea of ​​Mirrors".

And above the sea, countless enormous clocks float.

Some of these clocks are ancient, some are modern, and some are even abstract symbols made of light and shadow. Their hands are spinning wildly, some clockwise and some counterclockwise, and the ticking sounds they emit create a grand and chaotic symphony.

This is the end of time, and also the intersection of space.

Bai Yu took a deep breath, suppressing the shock in her heart, and raised her head to look at the end of her vision.

In the center of this mirror-like sea stands an enormous gate.

It soars into the clouds, as if connecting heaven and earth.

The door frame was made of countless white bones, not human, but various indescribable ancient creatures. Above the door, dazzling starlight flowed, condensing into complex runes that slowly rotated, emanating a suffocating aura of chaos.

This is... the Gate of the Rift.

The source of all nightmares is also the forbidden place that Lu Yuanshan sealed away with his life for fifty years.

In front of that giant gate, a huge circular platform floated.

The platform is paved with black obsidian and engraved with golden patterns.

At this very moment, in the very center of the platform, a solitary figure stood quietly with his back to Bai Yu.

He wore an old-fashioned research coat that was already faded and even somewhat tattered, his body hunched over, as if he were carrying the weight of the entire world on his back.

In his hand, he held a glowing object, facing the giant door, seemingly maintaining some kind of delicate balance.

Bai Yu's heart began to pound violently.

The throbbing sensation that originated from his bloodline, and the inexplicable sense of familiarity deep in his soul, instantly confirmed the other person's identity to him.

This is not the previous "Facebreaker" imposter.

This is a true...legend.

Instead of using phase steps, Bai Yu took two steps, one after another, walking towards the platform via the lens staircase suspended in the air.

With each step he took, he could feel the pressure around him increasing exponentially.

It was a repulsive force from a higher dimension, as if this place was not allowed for mortals to set foot here.

But Bai Yu gritted her teeth, withstood the pressure, and moved forward firmly.

Finally, he stepped onto the obsidian platform.

Footsteps echoed on the empty platform.

The figure trembled slightly.

"……You came."

An old, hoarse voice, yet with a steady, mountain-like quality, came from behind.

The figure slowly turned around.

When Bai Yu saw his face clearly, her eyes involuntarily welled up with tears.

It was a face etched with wrinkles, weathered by time. His hair was completely white, cascading haphazardly over his shoulders. The left half of his body had been completely petrified, turning into grayish-white rock, merging with the platform beneath his feet. His right half, however, was in a semi-transparent, energy-like state, with countless golden points of light flowing within him, sustaining his life force.

He wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses with cracked lenses. Although his eyes were cloudy, they still shone with wisdom and determination.

Lu Yuanshan.

The legendary first-generation Nightmare Investigation Bureau member, the executor of the "Gatekeeper" project, and also Lu Yueqi's maternal grandfather.

"Junior Bai Yu greets Senior Lu."

Bai Yu bowed deeply. This bow was not only because of the other party's status, but also because of his fifty years of lonely vigil.

Lu Yuanshan looked at Bai Yu, a hint of relief and a touch of complexity flashing in his eyes.

"No need for formalities." He waved his still-functioning right hand. "Being able to get this far means you've passed all the tests. Young people these days are more outstanding than I imagined."

His gaze fell on the "Severing Thoughts" sword behind Bai Yu, and he nodded slightly: "You even got that old ghost's sword, it seems you are indeed qualified to stand here."

“Senior, I’m here to take you home.” Bai Yu raised her head and looked directly into Lu Yuanshan’s eyes. “I’m also here to completely resolve this issue.”

"go home……"

Lu Yuanshan murmured the two words repeatedly, a hint of dazedness flashing in his eyes before turning into a bitter smile.

"Can not go back."

He pointed to his petrified left half, "I have become one with this rift. If I leave, this door will collapse instantly, and that thing... will descend."

"That thing?" Bai Yu keenly caught the key word.

Lu Yuanshan's expression turned serious. He turned around and pointed to the towering gate that seemed to reach into the clouds.

"look."

Bai Yu followed his finger and looked.

What they saw in the crack of that giant door was not emptiness, but a... enormous eye that was slowly opening!
That eye occupied the entire space in the crack of the door, its pupil a strange purple-gold color, as if it contained the birth and death of countless universes.

Just by exchanging a glance, Bai Yu felt as if her soul was being sucked in, and a sharp pain shot through her brain.

"What...is that?" Bai Yu asked in horror.

“We call it the ‘Abyss Gaze’ or the ‘Dimension Devourer’,” Lu Yuanshan said in a low, solemn voice. “It is one of the overlords of the higher-dimensional world behind the door. For the past fifty years, it has been pounding on this door, trying to squeeze into our world. I used all my strength, even sacrificing my own body and soul, to barely keep it out.”

At this point, Lu Yuanshan coughed violently, and a trace of golden blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.

"But I don't have much time left."

He held up the glowing object in his hand.

It was a broken sextant core.

"This is half of the 'key.' The other half should be with you, right?"

Bai Yu's heart skipped a beat. He remembered the sextant he had used up in the "Yellow Springs" domain.

"It... shattered to save me," Bai Yu said truthfully.

Lu Yuanshan was taken aback for a moment, then smiled with relief.

"It's good that it broke. It's broken because it has fulfilled its mission and brought hope here."

He looked at Bai Yu, his eyes burning with intense passion.

“Child, the key is never an inanimate object. The key… is you.”

"Me?" Bai Yu was taken aback.

“That’s right,” Lu Yuanshan explained. “That sextant is just a container used to hold and filter soul wavelengths of a specific frequency. Since it chose you and injected its power into your body when it shattered, it means that you have become the new ‘lock core’.”

"You are the only one who can replace me, or even surpass me, and reseal this door."

Lu Yuanshan's words struck Bai Yu's heart like a heavy hammer.

Replace him?
Doesn't that mean that I, like him, will be trapped here forever, turning into a half-human, half-stone monster, guarding this place alone for fifty years, or even longer?

“I know this is cruel.” Lu Yuanshan sighed as he looked at Bai Yu’s changing expression. “It’s not fair to you. You have a bright future ahead of you, and you have family and friends waiting for you. But… this is the only way.”

“If we don’t do this, once the door breaks, the entire real world will become that monster’s hunting ground. Everyone… will die.”

Bai Yu fell silent.

He thought of An Mu, Mo Fei, and Lu Yueqi crying in the hospital room.

I remembered the vow I once made—to protect.

"Are there any other options?" Bai Yu asked, her voice eerily calm.

"Have."

A glint of madness flashed in Lu Yuanshan's eyes.

"That means... not sealing it."

"We'll open the door, rush in, and kill the monster before its true form fully descends!"

"But this is almost an impossible task. In its domain, it is a god. If we go in, we'll face a nine-out-of-ten chance of death."

The sealing is a sacrifice of one person to preserve the overall situation.

Charging forward is risking one's life for a sliver of hope.

Bai Yu looked at the enormous purple-gold eye and a slow smile appeared on her lips.

"Senior Lu, do you know? The thing I hate most is sitting idly by and waiting to die."

He drew the "Severing Thoughts" sword from behind him, its blade pointing directly at the giant door.

"Since it wants to come in, then we'll fight our way in."

"The best defense is offense."

Looking at the spirited young man in front of him, Lu Yuanshan felt as if he were seeing himself fifty years ago.

He burst into laughter, the sound causing stone chips to fall from his body.

"Good! Good! Good!"

"As expected of the chosen one! Since you have the guts, then this old man will go crazy with you one last time!"

He suddenly crushed the broken core in his hand, and a surge of powerful golden energy erupted instantly, flowing into the array beneath his feet.

“Buzz——!!!”

The entire obsidian platform trembled violently, and a golden beam of light shot into the sky, crashing straight towards the giant door!

"Open the door...!"

Rumbling--

Amidst a deafening roar, the gate to the rift, which had been sealed for fifty years, slowly opened to both sides.

An indescribable aura of terror surged out from behind the door, crashing against the two of them like a tsunami.

The giant, purplish-gold eye was now fully exposed to the two of them. It turned its head slightly, seemingly mocking the two ants' overestimation of their abilities.

"Are you ready?" Lu Yuanshan roared, his body rapidly disintegrating and transforming into pure energy that empowered Bai Yu.

"Ready at all the time."

Bai Yu gripped the long sword tightly, and the power of nothingness within his body completely merged with the power of Hei Yan, transforming into a set of jet-black armor covering his entire body.

"Hei Yan, let's get to work."

"Ha, this is the final chapter I wanted to see." Hei Yan laughed wildly.

The next second, Bai Yu transformed into a black streak of light and charged into that god-like giant eye without hesitation!

This journey might be one of eternal damnation.

But this journey will surely pierce through the darkness before dawn!
(End of this chapter)