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

Chapter 121 The God of Joy Awakens, Disaster Approaches

Those pale eyes reflected the flickering red candlelight, like a stagnant pool, devoid of any sign of life.

Lu Yueqi stared blankly ahead, her body stiff as a puppet. Behind her, the figure dressed in black burial clothes and wearing a pale white mask was emitting a chilling low laugh.

"Hehehe... Since our distinguished guest has arrived, why not... stay and be a witness?"

The voice was hoarse and dry, like the sound of wind rubbing against dry bones.

Bai did not answer.

His gaze was fixed on the masked man.

Under the "true vision," this seemingly hunched and frail old man contained dark energy ten times more terrifying than that of the woman in red. This energy was neither fire nor ice, but a viscous, asphalt-like black thread that densely wrapped around Lu Yueqi's body, seeping into her pores and corroding her soul.

"who are you?"

Bai Yu gripped the "Ember" in his hand tightly, the tip of the blade drooping slightly, a gesture of preparing for an attack.

"who am I?"

The masked man seemed to have heard a funny joke. He raised his hand and gently combed Lu Yueqi's long hair with his withered, twig-like fingers. "People call me 'the matchmaker,' and some call me 'the god of marriage.' Of course, here, I am the host of this joyous occasion."

A major matchmaker?

Bai Yu's heart stirred.

In ancient folk legends, matchmakers are not only responsible for arranging marriages, but in some eerie rituals, they are also intermediaries for communicating between the living and the dead and buying and selling souls.

"That woman in red just now, wasn't she just a puppet you put on the show?"

Bai Yu said coldly, "The real owner of Joyful Manor is actually you."

"clever."

The matchmaker nodded approvingly, "That fool only knows how to covet flesh and blood, he doesn't understand what true 'righteousness' is. He thought this was just an ordinary ghost marriage, but he didn't know that he himself was just an appetizer at this banquet."

As he spoke, he pulled an old-fashioned long pipe from his sleeve.

Bah, bah, bah.

It took two puffs and exhaled a cloud of grayish-white smoke.

The smoke didn't dissipate; instead, it seemed to come alive, twisting and swirling in the air, eventually transforming into blurry human faces that whispered secrets.

"Since you're here, don't be in a hurry to leave."

Through the smoke, the matchmaker's eyes, hidden behind a mask, gleamed with an eerie light. "The auspicious hour has arrived. The bride is to be carried into the sedan chair. Once this final step is completed, the 'God of Happiness' will descend. At that time, everyone's wishes will be fulfilled... including yours, young man."

"The God of Happiness?"

Bai language captured this keyword.

In his mind, Hei Yan's voice suddenly turned serious: "Be careful, this is not an ordinary Nightmare codename. In some lost ancient texts, 'God of Happiness' represents an extremely twisted primordial concept—to exchange a pure soul for a false eternity and bliss. This guy is playing with fire."

"I don't care about any god of happiness or anything like that."

Bai Yu took a deep breath, his muscles tensing instantly. "All I know is, if you want to touch her, did you ask my knife first?"

boom!
Before he finished speaking, Bai Yu had already moved.

Without any unnecessary words, they launched a sudden attack.

Phase shift!

His figure vanished instantly, reappearing above Da Mei's head.

The "Embers" in his hand, imbued with black, ethereal fire, slashed down with the force of splitting a mountain!

"Young man, you have too much of a temper."

Faced with this deadly strike, Da Mei didn't even try to dodge.

It simply raised the pipe slightly and pointed it lightly into the air.

clang--!
A resounding boom, like the grandest bell.

Bai Yu felt as if the long sword in his hand had struck an unshakeable mountain; the immense recoil caused his tiger's mouth to split open, bleeding profusely. He was also thrown back by an invisible force, crashing heavily into the wall.

"This is……"

Bai Yu got up from the ground, his eyes filled with horror.

In that instant, he felt as if he hadn't just cut down a person, but rather... a set of rules.

A feudal code of ethics that has been accumulating for thousands of years, making it hard to breathe!

"The marriage is arranged by the parents and the matchmaker."

The matchmaker slowly exhaled a smoke ring, his voice becoming authoritative and grand, as if it came from the long river of history: "Heaven, Earth, Ruler, Parents, and Teacher—the laws of propriety must not be abandoned. In this wedding hall, I am the matchmaker, and you are the guest. The guest follows the host's lead, and there is an order of seniority. If I don't let you move, you can't move."

[Rules in detail: Three Letters and Six Rites.]

Rule 1: Arranged marriages are ordained by fate; those who disobey will be deprived of their ability to act.

[Rule Two: Witnesses must kneel and bow in respect; otherwise, it will be considered a grave disrespect and punishable by thunderbolts.]

hum!
As the rules took effect, a terrifying pressure descended from the sky.

Bai Yu felt her knees buckle, and she felt an uncontrollable urge to kneel down.

It was a tremor from the depths of his soul, as if countless voices were roaring in his ears: "Kneel! Kneel! Kneel!"

You want me to kneel?

Bai Yu gritted his teeth, using the scabbard to brace himself against the ground, barely managing to keep his body upright.

His bones were creaking, and fine beads of blood seeped from his skin, but he still held his head high, his eyes defiant.

"In this life, I only kneel before Heaven, Earth, and my parents. What are you to me?!"

"Stubborn."

The matchmaker shook his head, a hint of regret in his voice, "Since you don't want to be a guest, then be a sacrificial offering."

It waved.

The smoke-like faces floating in the air suddenly became ferocious, screaming as they rushed towards Bai Yu, like countless evil spirits trying to tear him apart.

At the same time, Lu Yueqi, who had been frozen in place, suddenly made a move.

She slowly raised her hand, and a pair of scissors appeared in her hand without her noticing.

The scissors were gleaming coldly, pointed directly at her own throat!

"do not want!"

Bai Yu's pupils constricted sharply. He instinctively wanted to rush over, but his body was firmly suppressed by the rules, making it extremely difficult to even take a step.

"You see, this is fate."

The matchmaker's voice was full of temptation, "If you kneel down and kowtow three times, acknowledging this marriage, I'll let her die a quick death. Otherwise... she'll slowly slit her own throat, the pain of that, tsk tsk tsk..."

This is a naked threat!

It's a scheme that strikes at the heart!

Bai Yu looked at Lu Yueqi.

Her hands trembled, and the tip of the scissors pierced her skin, a drop of bright red blood rolling down and staining the neckline of her wedding dress.

In those pale eyes, Bai Yu saw a faint, desperate struggle.

That was her plea for help.

She was also the one who fought against it.

"Damn it... damn it!!!"

Anger erupted in Bai Yu's chest like a volcano.

This feeling of powerlessness reminded him of that night, and of the teammate who sacrificed himself to save him.

"Black language!"

Bai Yu roared inwardly, "Stop playing dead! Kill it!"

"That's a very rude request."

Hei Yan's voice remained elegant, but this time, it carried a hint of barely concealed anger. "However, I also find this old pimp very distasteful. To treat this rotten, foul garbage as the rule is simply the greatest insult to 'aesthetics'."

"Bai Yu, open your mind."

"Since it insists on following the rules, let's play along with it using a different set of rules."

Another set of rules?
Bai Yu was taken aback, then a sudden inspiration struck him.

To the astonishment of the media, Bai Yu, who had been suppressed and unable to move, suddenly laughed.

That smile was insane, malevolent, and carried a destructive, murderous aura.

"You're right, I'm a guest."

Bai Yu slowly straightened up, his bones cracking like popping beans. He raised his hand, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and his eyes became clearer than ever before.

"Since it's a wedding, there's naturally one essential part."

"What?" Da Mei asked instinctively.

"Bride kidnapping!"

boom!
As these two words were uttered, a brand new, violent force of rules erupted from Bai Yu's body.

That was neither the Bureau of Investigation's justice nor the Nightmare's evil.

That is the most primal, savage, and vibrant impulse of humankind—love and possession!
[Dark Words: Rule Manipulation: Barbaric Marriage Customs.]

[New rule: At the wedding, might makes right. Whoever defeats the matchmaker and the groom becomes the bride's prize!]

"You...you can actually rewrite the rules?!"

For the first time, the matchmaker showed a look of horror.

Its prized "arranged marriage" suddenly began to falter. The heavy burden that had been weighing on Bai Yu crumbled in an instant.

"Now, it's my turn."

Bai Yu grinned maliciously, and the "Ember" in his hand was no longer for defense, but for offense.

This time, the flames burning on the blade were no longer black, ethereal fire, but a deeper, more chaotic purplish-gold light.

That is the origin of black language, and the burning of the soul of white language.

"Get out of here!"

brush!
Bai Yu's figure vanished instantly.

Faster and more ruthless than before!

Da Mei frantically raised his opium pipe to defend himself, but this time, the so-called "mountain of etiquette" was as fragile as a piece of paper in the face of absolute violence.

Click!

That pipe, which had consumed the souls of countless people, was cleaved in two!
The blade's momentum didn't wane; it aimed straight for the head of the great mediator.

"Impossible! I am the Grand Matchmaker! I am the embodiment of the rules! How could you possibly hurt me?!"

The mediator screamed, his body turning into countless plumes of smoke as he tried to escape.

"rule?"

Bai Yu's figure appeared in the smoke, one hand grabbing Da Mei's neck (or rather, the core of the smoke) and forcibly pulling it out of the void.

"My blade is the rule!"

puff!

The long sword pierced through.

The purple-gold flames exploded instantly within the large media outlet, sizzling as they burned its decaying soul.

“Ahhhhhh——!!!”

The mask let out a shrill scream, and the pale mask instantly cracked, finally shattering with a "bang" to reveal a face as dry as tree bark, devoid of features.

"I'm not reconciled... I'm not reconciled... God of Happiness... save me..."

It stretched out its withered claws, desperately trying to grab Lu Yueqi, as if making a final struggle.

"go to hell."

Bai Yu flicked his wrist, unleashing a burst of sword energy that instantly shredded the matchmaker into countless ashes.

The battle ended faster than expected.

This is not only due to the emergence of the White Language, but also because the Black Language completely crushed the Great Media on a conceptual level. Those corrupt old rules are utterly vulnerable when faced with a more advanced and purer force.

As the large matchmaker disappeared, half of the surrounding red candles instantly went out.

The oppressive atmosphere dissipated as a result.

Bai Yu was panting heavily, her body swaying precariously.

That attack had almost drained him of all his strength. The rift deep within his soul widened again, and the excruciating pain nearly made him faint.

But he didn't dare to stop.

He staggered to the bedside and grabbed Lu Yueqi's wrist.

"Yueqi! Wake up!"

He shouted, trying to wake her up.

However, Lu Yueqi did not respond.

Although the scissors fell from her hand, her body remained stiff. Her pale eyes continued to stare straight ahead, her lips moving slightly as if she were muttering something.

Bai Yu leaned closer to listen and immediately felt a chill run down his spine.

She was chanting: "The God of Joy descends... eternal bliss... The God of Joy descends... eternal bliss..."

"not good."

Hei Yan's voice suddenly became extremely solemn, "The ritual... has not stopped."

"What?" Bai Yu exclaimed in surprise.

"That old man was just a prelude. The real ceremony was completed the moment you walked in."

Hei Yan had barely finished speaking.

Rumble——! ! !
The entire embroidered building, no, the entire Joyful Manor, suddenly began to shake violently.

The ground began to crack, and blinding red lights shot out from the cracks, soaring into the sky.

An aura, far more terrifying than that of a matchmaker or a beautiful woman, awakened from the depths of the earth.

It was an ancient, barbaric will, filled with greed and malice.

"Roar--!!!"

A deep roar came from underground, so loud that Bai Yu's eardrums bled.

Immediately afterwards, Lu Yueqi's body suddenly floated up.

Her phoenix coronet and wedding robes disintegrated on their own, transforming into countless red specks of light that entered her body. Her skin began to turn transparent, and the blood flowing in her veins was no longer blood, but golden magma.

A powerful repulsive force erupted from her, sending Bai Yu flying into a corner.

"This is……"

Looking at Lu Yueqi suspended in mid-air, Bai Yu felt an unprecedented sense of powerlessness.

At this point, Lu Yueqi was no longer the timid anchor.

Behind her, a huge, blurry phantom vaguely appeared. The phantom had a thousand hands and a thousand eyes, each hand holding a torture instrument, and each eye flowing with tears of blood.

"This is... the nightmare within her?"

Bai Yu muttered to himself.

"Do not."

Hei Yan said coldly, "That is a 'false god' that was forcibly awakened. If we don't stop it, this area within a hundred miles will become a true hell on earth."

"How do we stop it?" Bai Yu asked through gritted teeth.

"Kill her."

Hei Yan gave a cruel answer: "Kill the container before she fully awakens; that's the only way."

Kill Lu Yueqi?

Bai Yu's hand holding the knife trembled slightly.

He looked at the girl floating in the air, and at the single tear that slid down her cheek.

That was her last conscious act of crying.

"Do not."

Bai Yu stood up again, his eyes as firm as iron.

"The first rule of the Nightmare Investigation Bureau: Never abandon any innocent person."

"Even if it's a god, I will drag it out of her body!"

He raised his knife and aimed it at the terrifying phantom that was taking shape.