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

Chapter 87 The Shadow of Pleasure

The morning sunlight, like carefully filtered golden honey, cast a warm and tranquil dappled light on the floor through the heavy one-way privacy windows of the Bureau of Investigation headquarters dormitory.

The fresh air system is operating silently, bringing in a breath of fresh air carrying the scent of grass and dew.

Bai Yu has been awake for a while now.

He didn't get up immediately as usual, but simply leaned against the headboard, watching the golden dust floating slightly in the air, feeling the insignificant warmth of the sun baking his skin.

Just then, there was a gentle knock on the dormitory door.

"Bai Yu, are you awake?" Lu Yueqi's voice came from outside the door, with a hint of cautious probing.

Bai Yu got up and opened the door.

Outside the door, Lu Yueqi was dressed in a clean white tracksuit, which made her look energetic. Her bright eyes were filled with vitality, like the morning dew. She was holding a tactical tablet in her arms, which was displaying densely packed data.

"Good morning." Bai Yu nodded and stepped aside to let her in.

"Good morning!" Lu Yueqi smiled a little shyly, handing the tactical tablet in her hand to Bai Yu, her face showing an undisguised excitement and pride. "Look! This is the 'Dream Enterer Basic Training Outline' that Brother Lan Ce prepared for me last night! It includes many courses such as meditation, mental barrier construction, and dream stealth!"

Bai Yu looked at her face, which was filled with longing and determination, and a smile appeared in her eyes.

"It was very hard work," he said slowly.

“I’m not afraid!” Lu Yueqi shook her head vigorously, a stubborn flame burning in her bright eyes. “I know I may be stupid and have no talent. But I don’t want to be like before, always hiding behind you and becoming a burden to you. I also want… I also want to have the strength to fight alongside you. I also want to protect some things that I cherish.”

Although her voice wasn't loud, every word she spoke was powerful.

Bai Yu gazed at her quietly, at her profile that seemed to glow in the morning light, at her eyes filled with unwavering determination. After a long while, he spoke slowly.

"You won't be a burden."

"you are very brave."

"Besides, you have already helped us a lot."

……

This rare peace and warmth is destined to be short-lived.

Just as the two were discussing the details of the training plan, a sudden alarm sounded throughout the entire team's private floor.

"All Class A investigators, assemble immediately in Tactical Conference Room Three! Repeat, all Class A investigators, assemble immediately in Tactical Conference Room Three!"

Anmu's solemn voice was clearly heard by everyone through the broadcast system.

Bai Yu and Lu Yueqi exchanged a glance.

A new job has started.

Tactical Conference Room No. 3

At the large circular conference table, the core members of the team were already in their places. An Mu sat in the main seat, with Mo Fei and Lan Ce on either side of him, their expressions serious.

“The situation is urgent, so I won’t waste any more words.” An Mu’s gaze slowly swept over everyone present. He pressed a button on the remote control in his hand, and the holographic projection equipment in the center of the conference room immediately started, projecting a dynamic image.

That was an advertisement video that was wildly shared online.

The video is set against the backdrop of a colorful, fairytale-like theme park. The park's entrance is designed as a giant clown's smiling face, with its mouth stretched to its ears serving as the entrance for visitors.

A clown dressed in a brightly colored clown costume, with his face heavily painted, is performing a captivating show in front of the camera, walking with comical and exaggerated steps.

He wore a perpetual smile and sang a simple yet incredibly catchy song.

"...Are you...exhausted by the troubles of life?"

"...Do you...lose sleep at night because of past hurts?"

"...Come...come to this magical land...come to this never-ending paradise of joy..."

"...Here...you only need to offer up all your pain...and you will reap...eternal...pleasure!"

As the song ended, the clown made an inviting gesture towards the camera. Immediately afterward, countless colorful balloons rained down from the sky, obscuring the entire screen. When the balloons dissipated, a slogan composed of distorted cursive script appeared in the center of the screen: "Happy Paradise, giving you a reason to smile forever."

"What is this thing? It makes me feel uncomfortable just looking at it." Mo Fei frowned deeply, the discordant image giving him goosebumps. "These businesses are really going to have no bottom line when it comes to marketing. Clowns are for kids, and making them look so weird and weird, what kind of customers can that attract?" "That's the problem." Lan Ce pushed up his black-rimmed glasses and linked his tactical tablet to the central holographic projection device. The advertising video on the screen was immediately replaced by a series of analytical reports filled with complex data and charts.

"According to our IT department's monitoring data over the past 24 hours, this promotional video called 'Happy Paradise' swept across the entire social network in a very short time, without any promotion from mainstream media, and with a dissemination model that completely deviates from conventional marketing logic. Its number of reposts, likes, and comments all showed an exponential explosive growth."

Pointing to a global network topology map filled with countless tiny points of light, he continued his analysis: "We traced the video's propagation path and discovered that its initial source was an anonymous server. Moreover, during the video's spread, we detected extremely faint, infrasound-like mental pollution memes. These memes can bypass human logical thinking, directly affecting the subconscious, amplifying the viewer's negative emotions, and implanting a psychological suggestion that 'only going to a happier place can bring relief.'"

“This is no longer commercial marketing.” Lan Ce’s face showed a solemn expression. “This is a nascent form of a nightmare spread through online media.”

A moment of silence fell over the meeting room.

Everyone knew what Lance's words meant.

"Have you found the address of Happy Paradise?" An Mu's voice was deep.

“Found it.” Lan Ce nodded, and the holographic projection switched again, displaying a satellite map. “It’s located in the western suburbs of this city, on the site of the former ‘Grimaldi’ amusement park, which has been abandoned for nearly thirty years. According to our intelligence, this new ‘Happy Park’ sprang up overnight. There were no construction records or any approval procedures. It’s like a giant tumor that appeared out of thin air in the real world.”

“Grimaldi…” Bai Yu’s eyes narrowed slightly; he seemed to recognize the name.

“Yes.” Lancer seemed to know what he was thinking. He pulled up an encrypted file marked “Historical Archives.” “Thirty years ago, a massive fire shocked the nation at Grimaldi Amusement Park. The cause of the fire remains unknown. More than three hundred people, including tourists and staff, went missing in the disaster. The park’s founder, a strange man named Roderick, also disappeared after the fire. According to the records at the time, Roderick was an extreme believer in “hedonism” and was obsessed with researching how to “create” eternal happiness using scientific methods.”

"It seems that our Mr. Roderick has returned with his happiness after thirty years." A cold glint flashed in An Mu's eyes.

Bai Yu remained silent. He simply stared at the clown in the holographic projection, whose face wore an eternal smile. He could clearly sense that the clown emanated an aura completely different from the nightmares he had encountered before.

It seems to disregard your logic and your will. It only requires you to do one thing—that is, "be happy."

Just then, the conference room door was flung open. A young investigator in an IT department uniform stumbled in.

"Captain... Captain! Something terrible has happened!"

An Mu's face suddenly darkened: "Calm down! Explain clearly what happened!"

“It’s…it’s the central square!” The young investigator’s voice trembled violently with overwhelming fear. “Just five minutes ago…there…there suddenly appeared a large group of people wearing clown masks…they…they…”

An Mu didn't wait for him to finish speaking and immediately gave Lan Ce the order: "Immediately connect all the surveillance footage in the central square!"

"Yes!"

The holographic projection changed its image once again.

What was presented to everyone was a terrifying scene, like the end of the world.

The square had now become a chaotic hell.

Hundreds of people wearing eerie, smiling masks identical to the clown in the advertisement are having a mindless party in the square, like zombies infected by a virus.

They burst into hysterical laughter.

The laughter spread rapidly throughout the area like a contagious plague. Anyone who heard it was assimilated within seconds, their faces involuntarily displaying the same eerie smile, before they too joined in this chilling, maniacal laughter party.

Even more terrifying is that the assimilated people, while laughing wildly, begin to indiscriminately attack everything around them!

A white-collar worker in a suit, with a bright smile on his face, repeatedly and forcefully slammed his briefcase at the person next to him.

An elderly man with white hair, walking with a light step that was completely out of character for his age, like a mischievous child, pushed over a roadside trash can, then rummaged through it and pulled out all sorts of garbage, which he then threw gleefully at the scattering crowd around him.

Violence, destruction, chaos...

There was deathly silence in the conference room.

Everyone was stunned by the horrific scene before them, a scene that resembled a painting of hell.

"Immediately seal off all areas surrounding the central square! Notify all squads to enter maximum alert status! Medical and purification departments to stand by immediately!" An Mu suddenly stood up from his seat, his eyes burning with raging anger.

"Team One, everyone!"

"Get dressed! Prepare for battle!"

"Our city will not allow this kind of 'clown' to run rampant here!"

(End of this chapter)