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

Chapter 3 Urgent Mission

Bai Yu walked to the metal door, pressed a button on the wall with his phone, and a device resembling a scanner extended out.

"Beep—Iris recognition in progress..."

"Verification complete—"

"Checking her physical condition—"

"Inspection complete—"

"Mr. Bai, welcome back."

A mechanical sound came from inside, and the door slowly opened.

"Holy crap! Bai Yu? What are you doing here? And who's this next to you?" The two had barely stepped into the metal city when a surprised exclamation came from the side. A figure rushed out of the security room and ran to them: "Weren't you on vacation? Why are you back so suddenly? Did you finish your vacation early? And who is this? Could it be... that you found a girlfriend during your vacation?"

Mo Fei, standing at 1.95 meters tall, created a stark contrast with Lu Yueqi, who was 1.63 meters tall. Lu Yueqi blushed and looked at Bai Yu, hoping he could explain, but instead saw Bai Yu helplessly rubbing his forehead.

"If I'd known it was your shift today, I wouldn't have come back," Bai Yu said irritably. "Did you do something wrong again and get thrown here by Captain An as punishment? And can you stop calling people 'sister-in-law'?"

Mo Fei, however, seemed not to have heard the first part of what he said, and continued, whether intentionally or unintentionally, "That's true. Judging from how awkward you two are right now, you're probably just a young couple. So you can't call her sister-in-law now. You can only call her that after you get married..."

"boom!"

"Ouch, Lao Bai, why did you hit me?" Mo Fei was hit on the head.

"Me? I didn't hit you. I guess you got punished for talking nonsense." Bai Yu put her hands behind her back, looking like it was none of her business, and leaned slightly closer to Mo Fei's ear, "If you keep talking nonsense, I'll have Captain An make you stay in this security room for a few more days."

"Hey! No way, brother! You're my own brother! I don't want to stay in this lousy place any longer." Mo Fei looked aggrieved, and his height, which was a head taller than Bai Yu, combined with his aggrieved expression, was quite funny.

"Come on, let's go to the registration desk. I'll take you to register your identity information," Bai Yu said to Lu Yueqi, who was trying hard to suppress her laughter.

"I'm here," Lu Yueqi replied.

"Me too! Me too!" Mo Fei shouted from the side, then remembered something and yelled to the remaining people in the security room, "You guys better get to work, I'm off!"

"Brother Mo—" The hand that someone in the security room reached out to stop him stopped in mid-air. Seeing Mo Fei already leaving with Bai Yu with great interest, he had no choice but to give up.

The three of them walked down the street and instantly became the center of attention, mainly because Mo Fei's conspicuous bag was so eye-catching. He greeted the auntie and shook hands with the uncle, swaggering through the streets, making it impossible for him to go unnoticed. Bai Yu, standing beside him, could only try to keep her head down even lower.

"Oh, isn't this Xiao Bai? Back from your vacation?" Hai Yin, the old man at the registration desk, greeted Bai Yu with a smile. Hai Yin was originally an investigator for the Investigation Bureau. After retiring, he came to this registration desk to find a job and support his family. Investigators like him who could retire smoothly were extremely rare in the Investigation Bureau, and they generally received preferential treatment in all aspects of their lives.

"Yes, something happened. This little girl is a dream enterr. I rescued her after she was targeted by the Nightmare last time, and I thought I'd bring her here to prevent her from being attacked by the Nightmare again," Bai Yu explained to Hai Yin.

“That is indeed quite dangerous. But don’t be afraid, little girl, you’ll be fine once you get here. Everyone will protect you.” Haiyin smiled at Lu Yueqi in front of him.

"Beep—" Mo Fei's phone suddenly rang. He walked to the side, said a few words to the person on the other end of the line, then his expression turned serious. He said to Bai Yu, "Old Bai, the captain said there's an urgent mission. We need to assemble immediately. I'll have to excuse myself." With that, Mo Fei turned to leave.

Bai Yu stopped him: "I'll go with you. It's a good opportunity to stretch our muscles after such a long holiday."

He then turned to Haiyin and said, "Uncle Hai, I'll leave her registration paperwork to you."

"Okay, go on your way." Haiyin waved to Baiyu.

In an office in the Central Building of the Bureau of Investigation, An Mu, the captain of Investigation Team One, is holding an emergency meeting.

“D-level investigators have been dispatched to seal off the scene. The Nightmare is not showing any signs of spreading further. Apart from those who were already inside the Dream Cafe, there have been no casualties.” At the round table, a man wearing black-rimmed glasses looked at his notebook and said, “It has now been confirmed that the infected Nightmare is a Rule-Twisting Nightmare. Some of the supernatural information has been transmitted over by the investigators at the scene.”

The strange tales displayed at the store entrance were projected onto the large screen:

Customer Guidelines: 1. Only coffee is available in the coffee shop. Please do not touch any other food or drinks that may appear.

2. The employees in black at the coffee shop are trustworthy; please buy your coffee from them.

3. There are no employees in red uniforms in the coffee shop, please do not buy coffee from them.

4. Children are not allowed inside the coffee shop.

5. If you see children, please ignore them and do not grant any of their requests.

6. If a child is following you closely, please ask the staff in red at the coffee shop for help.

7. No music is played in the coffee shop. If you hear music, please ask the staff in red for help.

8. There is no restroom in the coffee shop.

9. If you see a restroom, please do not enter.

Nine rules appeared on the big screen. The bespectacled man continued, "These are the rule hints we have so far. There may be other rules inside the coffee shop, but it's not advisable for investigators to go in. Going in might directly lead them into a bizarre tale of rules."

"How can these rules contradict each other? Lan Ce, are you sure you haven't made a mistake?" A blond, blue-eyed man leaned back in his chair and voiced his doubts.

“This kind of situation is quite common,” An Mu explained. “In the strange tales of rules, not all the rules presented are true, and the effectiveness of the rules can change under different circumstances. This is one of the difficulties that this Nightmare is hard to deal with.”

"If Bai Yu were here, could you call him back?" the blond, blue-eyed man continued.

“Indeed, Baiyu’s ability has a significant advantage in dealing with these kinds of ghost stories. But,” another person added.

An Mu shook his head, rejecting the suggestion: "I have already recalled Mo Fei. This mission can only be handled by us working together. We can't trouble Bai Yu again. You all saw his condition after the last mission. I can't let him go on another mission before he has recovered. That would be too dangerous."

Silence fell over the meeting room.

Bai Yu's investigative skills are undeniable, and his nightmare abilities are extremely powerful, making him a perfect target for this strange tale. However, as An Mu said, Bai Yu's condition is no longer suitable for missions. If he is forced to go on missions, he may not only fail to resolve the existing nightmares but also give rise to new and powerful ones.

A year ago, on a rainy night, everyone on the team waited anxiously for the return of their strongest and most capable member, only to find a mangled, bloodied body. Bai Yu lay in front of the central building, his eyes empty and lifeless. According to the doctor who later treated him, it was a miracle that Bai Yu had even returned alive; he had almost lost all vital signs, like an empty shell carelessly tossed onto the street.

The nightmares had reached their limit in damaging his body; such damage would have reduced anyone else to bones long ago. If it weren't for the team members' repeated pleas and refusal to acknowledge Bai Yu's death, the doctor wouldn't have bothered to pretend to save him.

Yes, it was all an act. The investigation team brought in the bureau's best doctor, but even he was at a loss. From the moment Bai Yu was admitted to the ward until his recovery, he did practically nothing. Aside from daily diagnoses, he didn't know how to save someone who was already dead. All of Bai Yu's stats indicated he was a corpse; even the best doctor couldn't bring him back to life. But then one day, he saw all of Bai Yu's stats return to normal, and he saw Bai Yu move like a normal person.

The doctor spoke with Bai Yu, but Bai Yu remained unwilling to discuss how he had survived. Ultimately, the doctor gave up trying to press him; after all, Bai Yu was a hero of the Nightmare Investigation Bureau, and if he didn't want to talk about it, he must have his reasons. Later, with the doctor's help, Bai Yu voluntarily applied for leave, citing excessive damage to his body from the nightmares. Although it was called leave, it was practically early retirement; after all, it was impossible to make someone who had barely survived fight for their life again.

So, Bai Yu began his long vacation. He moved out of the Investigation Bureau headquarters, saying he wanted to recuperate alone. Although An Mu repeatedly emphasized what would happen if the nightmare within Bai Yu went berserk, Bai Yu confidently told him he could handle it. This led to a big argument between the two prideful members of Investigation Team One. The team members didn't know the details of the argument, only that Bai Yu won in the end, and he was granted special permission to move into his own villa.

After that, the group basically didn't see Bai Yu again. Although they kept in touch, the team was busy with missions and it was impossible to meet every day like before.

One team continued to complete the task efficiently as before, but without their leader, only they knew how many more difficulties they faced.

"Knock knock knock—" The knocking on the door interrupted everyone's thoughts.

"Please come in," An Mu called out to the door.

"Squeak—" The door was pushed open, and Mo Fei walked in first. "Look who I brought!"

Bai Yu followed closely behind into the office, closing the door behind him, and greeted everyone with a smile: "Long time no see!"

(End of this chapter)