Am I really hallucinating?

Chapter 584 The Story of a White Genius

……

Niu Qianliu sat on the Zero Subway. There were many people on the same train around him. As the Zero Subway became more and more famous, more and more speculators and people seeking power came here.

It's now quite difficult to achieve the same quiet and deserted atmosphere as when Zheng Fan and Lin Yilin first took the ride.

Moreover, many people still use the Zero Subway to run small businesses. While large-scale criminal networks are unlikely to be established, engaging in small-scale shady dealings shouldn't immediately attract unwanted attention.

Niu Qianliu, an ordinary-looking middle-aged man with an unremarkable demeanor, seemed to have little presence among these people.

He sat casually with his legs apart, leaning back against the hard seat of the subway, turning his head to look at his face reflected in the subway window behind him.

At this moment, a person walked through another carriage and sat down in the seat opposite Niu Qianliu.

Niu Qianliu saw the other person through the reflection in the window.

A man with black, center-parted curly hair stared intently at him.

Niu Qianliu turned his head and met the other person's gaze directly: "To be honest, the Pure White Society is even more boring than I thought. Is it really necessary? Sending a lamplighter for me? You guys should be in a very tense period right now, shouldn't you be going back to help your colleagues relieve some pressure, instead of coming to me, a long-retired good-for-nothing?"

He joked with a smile, picked up a cigarette, and since none of his students were watching him this time, he lit one and put it in his mouth as his craving kicked in.

"Niu Qianliu, the former leader of the Pure White Society, you were only in your early twenties when you made achievements that made countless people pale in comparison. Your future could be described as smooth sailing. Why did you suddenly resign and go to Sanzio?" The lamplighter in front of him looked Niu Qianliu up and down, but there was a hint of curiosity hidden in his calm gaze.

"Can't I just quit?"

"Your departure is a huge loss to the Pure White Society. Without your support, Pure Whiteism declined rapidly and has yet to recover."

"So you're not just a simple lamplighter, or are you tainted by pure white ideology like those stinking guys?" Niu Qianliu sneered.

"Pure white principles have positive implications for the Beacon, the Society, and even the capital. If we abandon those pointless gray humanitarianisms, the capital would be much more relaxed now. We would save so much unnecessary consumption and expenditure, and we wouldn't be vulnerable to the black forces taking advantage of us," the lamplighter said decisively.

Niu Qianliu shook his head and leaned forward, saying, "Young lamplighter, how old are you?"

“Thirty-three,” the lamplighter replied, “but age means nothing to me anymore.”

"Oh my, you're quite the long-lived type as a lamplighter, huh? It's meaningless, the time when the pure white factor burns out is the final indicator of your lifespan."

“…It’s what I should do,” the lamplighter paused before replying.

“Then let me tell you a story from when you were just born, before you even have any memories of it. In the great flood that almost destroyed the capital, a proud and arrogant leader of the Pure White Society took over the reins of this ‘Noah’s Ark.’ He initially thought he could save everyone, but he couldn’t. The calm yet malevolent flood swallowed countless lives.”

The young lamplighter said, "Are you talking about the Water World Impact? That should have been your most glorious achievement. You were the savior of the capital. Faced with a huge crisis, you reduced the casualties in the White City to less than three percent, and the Central District suffered no losses except for continuous heavy rainfall."

“No, no, no.” Niu Qianliu shook his head with a smile. “This genius strictly adheres to the principle of pure white, using the gray neighborhoods as a buffer. The unrecorded casualties in the gray neighborhoods were a major factor in the safe passage of this crisis.”

"That was also thanks to the help of the white people."

"But when the situation deteriorated to an extreme degree, the genius set up a ritual that covered the entire capital. He rotated the capital with white as the axis, and in order to make the ritual work, he threw away the gray, which he considered a burden and impurity, as a pawn."

Before the young lamplighter could speak, Niu Qianliu continued, "Then the ritual lost its balance. Without the parts that had been immersed in black for years and adapted to it, the white parts were far less efficient in the ritual than the genius had hoped. 'Noah's Ark' almost lost its way. It adjusted its plan in time to try to pull back the gray districts, requiring a larger amount of pure white factors to achieve the ultimate goal. But 'Eladodic' refused. Its updated plan for the genius was to also throw out a portion of the white districts, which would also achieve balance."

Eliadodic…

The young lamplighter's indifferent expression became somewhat blank, and his mouth remained open, unable to close for a moment.

Because that is… the “Immortal Lighthouse,” the sole eternal light-bearer of the capital, surpassing the limits of a light-bearer, breaking through the limitations of power and lifespan, and hailed as an “immortal” being. He is also the unseen leader of the Pure White Lighthouse, residing in the center of the capital, and few have ever seen his true face.

Rumor has it that the other party is no longer a "human" and has reached a deeper level.

Niu Qianliu casually mentioned the name, which surprised the young lamplighter.

"The genius was helpless, and at this moment, two of his classmates and friends stepped forward. They had been reminding him, but he hadn't taken their advice to heart when he was at that critical juncture. Now, they stepped forward. One of them slapped the 'Undying Lighthouse' across the face, and then used his own power to transcend everything in a short time, defying all opinions to stop the flood, and rallied a group of supporters to intercept it together. The other led a team straight to the depths of the water world, replaced the water world's spokesperson, and forcibly put the brakes on the great flood."

"This……"

"One pushed, one pulled, and the disheveled genius clumsily kept up with their pace. With ample time to perfect the ritual, they finally ensured the integrity of the capital and the stability of casualties. After that, the genius who led the charge in stopping the flood lost all his talent. Now, he can hardly exert his power without using his imagination, yet he still works on the front lines of the capital's handling bureau. As for the classmate who became the spokesperson for the water world, he was forever frozen in that rain and never returned."

Niu Qianliu slowly straightened up and smiled calmly: "As for that genius, he doubted himself and his beliefs collapsed. Amidst the enthusiastic applause, thanks, and praise he received from those around him, he fled like a stray dog, ran away from everything, exiled himself, and even now he doesn't dare to face his old classmate."

The reason for choosing the University of Sanzio was even because the Rafael School District was very close to the Sisikoko neighborhood.

Even so, Niu Qianliu never went to see him.

He didn't have the face, he didn't have the guts... even though he knew that person wouldn't blame him for this.

Just like Niu Qianliu couldn't understand why Baishi, whose face suddenly looked old and wrinkled after that heavy rain, could still smile and say to him, "Well done."

well done?
What's so good about it?
He saved a life that he could have easily saved with a little more calculation, without even having to make a choice, but only by relying on his friend to sacrifice his future and himself to save it?

What makes that guy even laugh?

What exactly is this ridiculous thing called "pure whiteism"?

What a ridiculous thing it was that arrogant self I was back then.

"That's impossible! There's no record of that in the Pure White Lighthouse!" The young lamplighter was starting to lose his composure.

Looking at him, Niu Qianliu's eyes were filled with pity and forgiveness, as if he were seeing his former self.

"Believe it or not, it's up to you. I'm just a storyteller."

As he spoke, he looked out the window again.

The rain poured down, and the raindrops hit the subway windows, then flowed backward in streams as the subway moved. Gradually, the dense streams of water even converged into a curtain of water that washed the windows.

"We're almost there." With that, Niu Qianliu straightened his rather unconventional Taoist robe, stood up, and prepared to get off the train.

"Wait, you're not allowed to step out of the car! Come back to the lighthouse with me!" The young lamplighter quickly got up.

"Oh dear, if you lantern bearers can't keep your emotions in check, the lanterns will flicker on and off, which won't look pretty," Niu Qianliu teased.

The lantern bearer on the other side had already reached out and grabbed it.

Whoosh!
He grabbed at nothing and somehow slid right past Niu Qianliu.

It feels like... violence is forbidden in a white world!
How is that possible? This is a gray neighborhood, even inside the Zero subway line!
If it were a white world, the power of the lamplighter would also become ordinary!
“Calm down. If you’re calm, you can find the flaws too. To be able to live to thirty-three and still maintain such a bright light, you must be an excellent lamplighter. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have sent you to capture me,” Niu Qianliu said with amusement.

The lamplighter felt a long-lost sense of humiliation, but just as he was about to try again, Niu Qianliu's finger was already pointing at him, a small, rough, black thorn bud forming at the fingertip.

The thorny mass rotated slowly, its spikes rising and falling and trembling violently, like a cat wary of its surroundings, ready to hiss if startled.

Looking at this tiny ball of thorns, the lamplighter felt a chill run through him and dared not move an inch.

If he were to come into contact with this thing... he would die, and possibly die a gruesome death... an overwhelming, uncontrollable fear surged within him.

People around them cast glances at Niu Qianliu and the lamplighter.

"Scared now?" Niu Qianliu grinned and tilted his head, still trying to act cute even though he's an old man.

After saying that, he suddenly reached out and grabbed the thorns back into his body, then abruptly punched the stunned lamplighter in the face.

The lamplighter's vision went black, and he fell backward without warning.

Boom!
He quickly opened his eyes, which were filled with a white light. He was already holding a lamp that emitted a white light in his hand, and he had regained the composure of a lamplighter. He leaped up from the ground, ready to fight back...

He found himself standing on the platform of the subway train No. 0, but there was nothing around him except himself.

He...didn't even get on the subway?!
"Having said that, being in your thirties is still quite young. After all, you're the one who carries the torch, and no matter how old you are, your mind is still quite simple. So, think about it more~."

The sound of that damned, unreliable old man laughing loudly lingered in my ears.

The lamplighter was already blushing.

However, doubts still lingered in his eyes, and a lingering gloom seemed to hang over his heart.

After standing there for a long time, he finally took out his communication device: "Report, the capture of Niu Qianliu failed... Okay, I'm fine, I was just tricked."

Although the disappointment on the other end of the conversation was palpable, it didn't seem too surprising that he couldn't catch Niu Qianliu.

"Did he reveal anything or say anything?" the other end asked.

The thirty-three-year-old lamplighter hesitated for a moment before saying, "I didn't get any information out of him."

"...Okay, come back soon, there's still a lot of work that needs you here."

(End of this chapter)