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

Chapter 77 The Flaw of Eternal Reincarnation

Consciousness slowly coalesced once again in a chaos that could not be defined by the senses.

That is the eternal cycle. Awakening from the warm, dark amniotic fluid, a loud cry announces the arrival of a new life. In a loving embrace, he opens his eyes and sees the gentle face of his young mother, a face so tender it could melt the hardest ice in the world, and his young father standing beside him, tears streaming down his face from the joy of becoming a father for the first time.

His life is like a meticulously choreographed videotape, being replayed precisely time and time again.

He would wobble and run into his father's arms when he was one year old.

When he was five years old, he would use his tender hands to play melodies on the black and white piano keys, conveying a sense of sadness.

He would hold up a small umbrella for the girl who, like a fawn, burst into his frozen world in the rain when he was sixteen.

He would give his first, innocent kiss in the summer of his eighteenth year, amidst the hustle and bustle filled with hormones.

On the autumn day when he turned twenty-four, he would kneel on one knee and place the ring on her finger, a symbol of a lifelong commitment.

At the age of twenty-six, he would receive his own little life from the nurse's hands for the first time and feel the heavy responsibility called "father".

At the age of forty, due to the imbalance between his career and family, he will have his first fierce argument with his beloved wife, and then taste the bitterness of regret and helplessness alone in the dead of night.

At the age of sixty-five, he would stand quietly in front of the black and white photo frame, looking at those two familiar faces that were always smiling, and feel the pain of separation that came from blood ties.

He will lie on that white hospital bed filled with the smell of disinfectant on a winter day when he is seventy-five, and slowly close his eyes amidst the sorrowful sobs of his beloved, ending his ordinary yet fulfilling life.

With each reincarnation, the memory of the "investigator" deep within his soul becomes increasingly blurred, and his struggles grow weaker. He is like a piece of ice thrown into a warm ocean, being melted little by little by that all-pervasive love and happiness.

In the VIP box on the second floor, Qin Yixuan elegantly swirled the wine in her glass, a languid yet satisfied smile on her face. She resembled a top-tier dream weaver admiring her most prized creation.

“See? This is the perfect cage.” Her voice echoed in the empty private room, tinged with smugness. “Not with pain, nor with despair, but with the ‘happiness’ he himself most desires as the chain. The more fiercely he struggles, the tighter the chain will tighten. Until he completely forgets who he is, willingly becoming a part of this paradise. Soon… soon… this most perfect work of art will belong entirely to me.”

However, what she didn't realize was that a machine that was programmed to be too perfect could have a fatal bug in the entire sophisticated system if it had even a slight deviation of just one pixel.

In the endless cycle of reincarnation, when sixteen-year-old Bai Yu once again stood on the rain-washed path home, walking side by side with the girl named "Lin Wan," a tiny, almost negligible "flaw" quietly appeared.

Just like in countless previous cycles, the girl kept her head down, too shy to look him in the eye. Rain dripped from her dark hair, dampening a small patch of her pristine white school uniform shirt. Everything was exactly as in the "script."

However, just as the two were about to reach the crossroads where they would part ways, the girl seemed to have mustered up a great deal of courage. She suddenly raised her head, and her clear eyes, which should have been full of girlish feelings, flashed with a doll-like, empty, and numb light for a moment.

The faint light lasted for less than a fraction of a second before being replaced by a perfectly balanced blend of shyness and anticipation.

But this sudden change was like a bolt of lightning that ripped through the endless night, striking Bai Yu's soul, which was about to be completely assimilated!

His fighting instincts, which had been dormant for countless cycles, were forcibly activated by this tiny "flaw," like a dying man being injected with a stimulant!

His steps faltered slightly, and a cold wariness flashed in his deep eyes as he looked at the girl.

"What's wrong?" The girl seemed to notice his unusual behavior, and her face showed a perfunctory concern.

"It's nothing." Bai Yu shook his head calmly, tilting the umbrella in his hand a little more towards the girl, his face regaining the youthful innocence and gentleness of a sixteen-year-old boy. "I just suddenly remembered that today's math homework seems particularly difficult."

He escorted the girl to her doorstep, watched her walk through the warm door, and then, holding his umbrella, he slowly turned around and stepped into the cold rain.

The moment he turned around, all the warmth on his face vanished, leaving only calmness.

From that moment on, he was no longer a "participant" in this world, but reverted to being the cold-blooded "investigator."

He began to observe this "perfect world" he had lived in countless times with a completely new perspective.

He began conducting "reverse tests" that were full of wicked humor.

During a family dinner, when his mother, as usual, picked up a piece of his favorite sweet and sour pork ribs, he would suddenly look up and say in a nostalgic tone, "Mom, I suddenly really want to eat your braised pork. I remember when I was little, every time I got first place in an exam, you would make me a big plate of it. I'll never forget that taste."

The mother's hand, holding the ribs, paused slightly in mid-air, and a hint of awkwardness froze on her gentle smile. "Braised pork" wasn't even in this "script." Her brain raced, trying to find a reasonable explanation for this sudden "bug." Finally, she smiled awkwardly: "Silly child, what nonsense are you talking about? You've never liked fatty meat since you were little. When have I ever made braised pork for you? Eat the ribs, they won't taste good cold."

Through repeated tests, Bai Yu saw more and more clearly the cold and rigid core logic behind this "perfect world."

Every person and every event here is like a pre-programmed NPC, only able to act within a fixed "script" framework. Once any variable deviates from the "script," they immediately fall into logical chaos, and then forcibly correct the "variable" back to its original track in an extremely simple way.

"Heh... It seems that our beautiful Queen's calculation abilities are not inexhaustible after all."

A voice, full of elegance and mockery, quietly resounded deep within his consciousness.

It's black language.

"To maintain the operation of such a vast world, while ensuring that every detail is flawless, is far too much for a lowly being like her who hasn't even touched the threshold of the rules." Hei Yan's voice was full of disdain. "Does she think that as long as she replicates the 'love' in your memory, she can create true 'happiness'? How ridiculously naive. She simply doesn't understand that the most false thing in this world is precisely that kind of 'perfection' without any flaws."

"True love is never a one-way giving and receiving. It is inevitably accompanied by arguments, misunderstandings, hurt, and forgiveness. It is precisely because of the existence of these uncertain 'variables' that the 'understanding' and 'tolerance' that are ultimately achieved are so precious."

Dark words are like a sharp scalpel, dissecting the last vestige of this world's pretense.

Bai Yu finally understood.

What Qin Yixuan gave him was never a real "world," but merely a "happiness-themed park" pieced together from the most beautiful fragments of his own memories. Everything here served to make him "happy." Therefore, his parents here would never get angry with him, his lover here would never argue with him, and his life here would never experience irreparable failure.

This is not love; it is cruel "domestication."

Once he had completely figured it all out, he no longer felt any confusion or lingering attachment.

It's time to face the final test.

He methodically completed the rest of his "script" in this world: getting into university, marrying Lin Wan, having a daughter...

Finally, he reached the crucial turning point he had been waiting for—his five-year-old daughter was diagnosed with congenital heart disease.

This time, when faced with the astronomical cost of the surgery again, he did not, as he had done countless times before, throw himself into the capital market that he could easily control.

He chose "failure".

He invested all his savings in a project he knew was doomed to fail. He watched helplessly as the numbers representing his entire fortune vanished like an avalanche within just a few days.

He went bankrupt.

When he dragged his exhausted body back to the home he once cherished so dearly with this "failure," he was no longer greeted by his wife's embrace, which was full of worry and support.

Lin Wan sat on the sofa, her face displaying a programmed disappointment and indifference: "How could you fail? This shouldn't be happening. I've read your plan; its success rate was clearly ninety-nine percent. Did you do something else outside?"

The aging "father" was no longer the kind and encouraging father who always encouraged him. He sighed and said in a reproachful tone, "Xiao Yan, you have disappointed us greatly. How could you be so irresponsible? Your daughter's life is now in your hands!"

And the hospital "naturally" reported that the daughter's condition had deteriorated rapidly because she had not received timely surgery.

This world, built on the concept of "happiness," has finally revealed its cold and cruel core logic after losing "success," its most basic prerequisite.

It does not allow any "failure" to exist.

Looking at the unfamiliar faces of these "family members" he once loved so deeply, and listening to their accusatory, formulaic words, Bai Yu felt no anger or sadness.

All that remained was a still, stagnant pool.

He slowly closed his eyes.

He no longer looked at these false illusions, but instead sank all his consciousness into the deepest part of his soul to search for the true "bonds" that he had forgotten through countless reincarnations.

He "saw" it; in that dark and shattered wasteland of souls, Anmu's face was etched with worry and anger. It seemed as if Anmu was roaring at him the command he had heard countless times—"Come back alive!"

He "saw" it; Mo Fei's burly body stood before him like an unshakeable mountain, his crimson eyes roaring at the unknown danger.

He "saw" it: Lance was pushing up his glasses with a look of disgust and complaining about his illogical fighting style, but the tactical tablet in his hand was calculating the optimal route for him at a speed beyond the limit.

He "saw" that Lu Yueqi's petite face was filled with worry and tension. She was tightly clutching the old diary, praying for him with her weak but incredibly firm will.

These fragments of memory are so "imperfect." They are filled with arguments, danger, pain, and separation.

But they are so "real".

It was so real that he could clearly feel the trust and protection that transcended life and death.

"Thank you..." Bai Yu slowly opened his eyes. He looked at the false world constructed by Qin Yixuan and said softly, "Thank you for letting me understand what true 'happiness' is."

True happiness is never a pre-scripted, perfect story.

It is about recognizing the truth of life—that it is full of countless pains, failures, and imperfections—yet still choosing to love, protect, and fight bravely.

At this moment, Bai Yu's beliefs were elevated to an unprecedented level.

He no longer ran away, nor did he indulge in it.

He raised his head, his eyes seemingly piercing through the barrier of this dream, meeting the queen who was looking down upon him from above.

Then, in an incredibly calm yet powerful voice, he clearly proclaimed his true identity, which he had long forgotten through countless reincarnations.

"I am... an investigator from the Nightmare Investigation Bureau, Team One..."

"...Baiyu"

As he finished speaking, a willpower that affirmed his "true self" rapidly dismantled the world.

"boom--!!!"

Faced with this willpower, the entire "eternal world of happiness" meticulously constructed by Qin Yixuan collapsed violently from the inside out, as if it had been thrown into an antimatter universe!

The sky, the earth, the ocean, the city, the family... everything was instantly transformed into countless luminous data fragments, which were then completely swallowed up by the deep darkness and nothingness!

Bai Yu's consciousness, like a supernova breaking free from all gravitational constraints, burst through this last cage and resolutely returned to that "reality" filled with the unknown and danger!
(End of this chapter)