Pokémon's Lord of Fear

Teng Shu had some ideas about the future development of horror films, but not many. After all, for Teng Shu, these things were mostly not worth paying attention to. Thinking about this, Teng Shu had a few thoughts. Looking at the things in front of him, he decided to use "The Terrifying Ghost" as his comeback film in the horror genre. However, it wasn't really a comeback, since Teng Shu was already very tired. He was actually quite indifferent to the filming of these movies. For Teng Shu, he had already dedicated horror films to the world. The only thing he wanted to do was probably to explore the genre of horror filmmaking and see how people would solve the problem of horror films not being scary enough.

Teng Shu himself had his own thoughts on this issue. His camera, a tool of cinematic language, could create an immersive experience for viewers, but because of this, people's fear threshold would continue to rise. He didn't know what the future held. Thinking about this, Teng Shu couldn't help but chuckle. He had originally planned to do something else for the world, but unexpectedly, he had dug the grave of horror films himself. He would see when people grew tired of horror films, but Teng Shu was already planning a dramatic retirement. Looking at the things before him, he pondered what kind of work he would create as his retirement piece.
Saying he's retiring might be a bit of an exaggeration, since Teng Shu is still quite young. However, he genuinely doesn't have much of a desire to continue filming. The main reason is that he's almost finished filming, and he doesn't see much to film in the future. He's already made the most famous horror films in history, and some horror films, limited by their era, don't seem worth making anymore. Thinking about this, Teng Shu has decided he really will retire. After finishing "The Terrifying Ghost," he'll make one more film, then he can say goodbye to being a director, become a company boss, and enjoy life to the fullest. However, he hasn't decided what kind of film to make yet; it's a very difficult question for him. But he still intends to give it a try.

"Ghost, Ju-on, One Missed Call, The Haunted Village, The Ring, The Office Ghost, Annabelle, I've done almost all of those. I've even done some Thai horror. Now, finding a suitable film to shoot is honestly quite difficult. If that's the case, then there's not much to say. But the problem is that a finished work must be shocking, but what kind of work is shocking enough?" Teng Shu pondered. He had been struggling with this question, as it made him feel quite complicated. However, Teng Shu still planned to shoot it as soon as possible. After all, he had already decided that after Scary Ghost, this would be the last film in his directorial career. But the problem was that he had already made most of the classic horror films from his previous life, and other horror films had already been made in this world, such as Whispering Corridors.

So how to film it is a question, but Teng Shu still intends to give it a try. After all, he has some ideas about this, but how to proceed with them is a rather perplexing issue. Teng Shu yawned and then fell into deep thought. The most terrifying horror film—so what exactly makes a horror film truly terrifying? Most horror films, however, give viewers a sense of security after watching them because they realize they are not in such a dangerous world. This sense of difference and comfort is one reason why people enjoy watching horror films. But in other words, if the audience ultimately can't leave the film and can't feel that sense of security, but instead feels fear, then would that achieve the effect Teng Shu wants?
Tengshu thought this was a good idea, but how to achieve this effect? ​​This was actually a rather troublesome problem. Thinking about this, Tengshu also felt a bit troubled. How to solve this problem, how to operate it, these were all difficult questions for Tengshu. After all, the idea was good, but how to turn the idea into reality was a real challenge. Thinking about this, Tengshu felt a chill run down his spine. If he wanted the audience to be unable to leave the film afterward, he had to break down the dimensional barrier, that is, let the horror in the movie spread to people. Speaking of this, Tengshu remembered a classic school legend that once caused many elementary school students in Japan to be afraid to go to school, and even became a social phenomenon. This legend was "Hanako-san, the Ghost Doll".

Well, some clever folks might be wondering, "A school legend about pigs scaring elementary school students so much they're afraid to go to school?" But these people are looking at the issue from an adult perspective. Adults naturally think this is absurd and completely fake. However, the problem is that this school horror legend is specifically designed for elementary school students. In other words, the legend itself is like this, with a special effect on elementary school students, so naturally, they're terrified. These things have become strange and unusual. But why do people talk about such fabricated stories for so long? It's because this is a problem we might encounter in real life. In other words, it transcends the fiction of horror movies and becomes a "fake reality," so people are naturally afraid.

The ghost doll Hanako is typically depicted as a little girl ghost wearing a red dress and sporting a bob haircut. She haunts the girls' restrooms at schools, usually appearing in the third stall. Legend has it that Hanako was once a student at the school, but there are various accounts of how she died. A common version is that Hanako was murdered by a thug in the restroom, or that she was locked inside and starved to death, eventually becoming a bound spirit. Another version claims that Hanako was in the restroom when a fire broke out, burning her to death and turning her into a vengeful spirit. There are indeed ways to summon Hanako.

The method involves knocking three times on the door of the third stall in the girls' restroom at school, while shouting, "Hanako, let's play together!" Hanako will then open the door and bring the summoner inside. The summoner will then disappear without a trace. Of course, in some regional legends, Hanako also has the ability to grant people's wishes, but this comes at a huge price, often resulting in a tragic death. So, that's roughly the story of Hanako. It seems quite ordinary, but it's the "false reality" that evokes fear. In other words, if Fujiki could construct a false reality in a movie, he could achieve a similar effect. As for cursed movies like "Coming Soon," they achieve a similar effect.

The films *Coming Soon* and *The Curse* actually aim to enhance the horror by using a kind of "curse" to make viewers feel uneasy, as if they would suffer terrible misfortune. However, people clearly don't accept this kind of curse, so it was heavily criticized. Teng Shu felt that he might be able to propose some thought-provoking ideas to solve this problem. If so, Teng Shu thought of a very interesting concept: the "brain in a vat." The "brain in a vat" concept is a common trope in science fiction films, and it has been discussed to some extent, though not extensively. People's ideas are mostly rather bizarre and unique.

The so-called "brain in a vat" is actually a hypothesis. Imagine a scientist removes your brain from your body and places it in a vat filled with nutrient solution to sustain its life. Then, connect your brain to a supercomputer that can simulate all sensory input, similar to virtual games or novels, allowing you to experience a complete world—but this world is actually fake. The question then arises: how can a person distinguish between being a human being and a brain in a vat? This is a rather unique question, which can be traced back to Descartes's demonic deception hypothesis. After being refined into a theory, it became an important point of discussion in skepticism and virtual reality theory.

Many movies feature similar designs, the most classic being The Matrix. In The Matrix, people live inside a virtual computer, becoming virtual characters living their own lives, but never truly seeing the difference between reality and illusion. This is how it all ends up. However, The Matrix didn't evoke deep terror; people simply found the concept cool. This fell short of Teng Shu's desired effect, causing him a headache. He thought the concept wasn't bad, though. Drafting how to integrate horror elements was a challenging task, but fortunately, Teng Shu had his own ideas. He felt he could try something different…

But right now, the most important thing is to get the filming of "The Ghost That Scared to Death" underway. So Teng Shu entered the intensive pre-production phase. Afterwards, "Hachiko: A Dog's Tale" continued to generate a lot of buzz, and people were still discussing the movie. However, to Teng Shu's surprise, he didn't expect that the movie would give him "fear points," and quite a lot of them at that. This left Teng Shu somewhat bewildered. Had something happened that he didn't know about? Why would it give him fear points? This is clearly not a horror movie! Teng Shu couldn't figure it out, but seeing the fear points that amounted to 100,000, he silently chose to compress them, targeting a fixed opportunity for extraction, and then selected the direction of "leaving the audience with lingering impressions." Then, Teng Shu chose to use it.

Congratulations, you have mastered master-level camera language!

[Masterful cinematic language: Your films are unforgettable, enhancing audience engagement and immersion without causing viewers to contemplate suicide.]

Seeing the notification, Teng Shu paused for a moment. What was going on? He had actually drawn a Grandmaster-level skill! This surprised and delighted him. The skill was quite good. Teng Shu was worried that if he used the skill, the audience would be unable to leave and might even commit suicide, which would be a grave sin for him. But now it was much better. Thinking of this, Teng Shu felt happier. This way, he could further refine his plans in the future. Afterward, Teng Shu obtained 20,000 Fear Points through Hachiko, and once again chose to exchange them. This time, he also obtained a Grandmaster-level skill that would allow the audience to live a second life, spending it in the movie. Teng Shu paused again upon seeing this, and then smiled.

"Old buddy, it seems you've figured it out too. I'm planning to retire." Teng Shu's tone carried a hint of a smile. This kind of life was truly unique, but Teng Shu himself was quite happy.

The afterglow of the setting sun spilled outside a unique movie theater, its distinctive appearance attracting the attention of passersby. The theater resembled a giant Growlithe, quietly crouching on the street. Its exterior walls were painted in alternating light brown and white, mimicking Growlithe's fur, while its warm eyes transformed into bright windows, watching over every moviegoer. At the theater entrance, a huge bronze statue of Hachiko stood solemnly yet playfully, its slightly tilted head seemingly listening to the voices of every customer, its familiar tail held high, radiating a welcoming joy. Customers stopped before the sculpture, taking photos or gently stroking its head, hoping for a pleasant movie-watching experience.

Upon entering the cinema, a spacious lobby comes into view. Star-shaped lights hang from the ceiling, creating a dreamlike atmosphere. The ticket booth staff, dressed in uniforms embroidered with Growlithe, greet customers with smiles. This is the Hachiko-themed cinema, an IP license granted by the cinema manager. (End of Chapter)