Am I really hallucinating?

Chapter 641 Ghost Story

After Lu Chongming relayed the details of the meeting, Zhang Xue understood the situation: "Okay, so that's how it is. It's not surprising that the General Administration would make such a decision, given their nature. Apart from Rymanov, I don't think anyone else has any objections, right?"

Lu Chongming hadn't mentioned the other people's statements yet, but Zhang Xue seemed to already know that Lemanov would hesitate.

"It's like this, it seems like everyone made the decision a long time ago. It's such an important matter, but it seems like the decision was made very simply... It feels so strange." Lu Chongming rubbed his temples, feeling a bit of a headache.

"It's not really a decision; it's just that everyone had considered this possibility since they took office," Zhang Xue chuckled.

"Does the newly appointed chief of the Bureau need to be prepared to rebel?" Lu Chongming complained.

"You can understand it that way too. For the sake of the capital, even the capital itself, which is currently in the way, can be considered a target. This is what a truly enlightened chief should think about in advance. Xiao Lu, you should make up your mind sooner rather than later. But speaking of which, this matter was brought up in a meeting when I wasn't there. Is this an attempt to sideline me?"

"It's clearly your own problem, Chief."

"Hehe, that's true." Although she's not young anymore, Zhang Xue still handles the cuteness part quite well.

Lu Chongming sighed: "Can I not rebel now?"

“Xiao Lu, didn’t you say your mother has been cured? Then you really have no reason to participate. You’re just my representative. I’m the one who’s going to participate in this. As for you, it’s up to you to decide.” Zhang Xue said, unusually serious.

Lu Chongming paused for a moment, then said, "I have new things I want to do now, so I don't plan to leave so easily. Besides, I also have some scores to settle with the Pure White Society."

"I see. Your mindset is really suited to be the chief. After this matter is over, would you like to take over my position?" Zhang Xue asked.

"You just want to run away as soon as possible, don't you? Please do your job properly, thank you. I'm still far from that level," Lu Chongming said irritably.

Although he would still respectfully address Zhang Xue as "Chief" in public, they were practically like close friends in private. Mainly because this "Chief" really couldn't be spoiled too much.

"Hahaha! That's settled then. Remember to send me the detailed information as well. Thanks for your hard work."

Contact with Zhang Xue has come to an end.

Lu Chongming put down his phone and stared at it absentmindedly.

Even someone like Zhang Xue could make such a crazy decision, just like any other chief executive.

"What are people really thinking?" Lu Chongming stood on the balcony of a triangular pagoda, looking at the vast central landscape of the capital city before him.

The buildings in the center are neat and orderly, and the streets are spotless, with pedestrians and vehicles coming and going on the wide roads.

This tranquility is also a microcosm of the situation in Dadu.

“The members of the Processing Bureau are probably the ones who understand best that ‘there are no hierarchical divisions in the capital, and everyone is a group.’” Zheng Fan’s voice suddenly came out. In the center of the capital, the Processing Bureau’s headquarters was openly filled with a hallucinatory voice, which terrified Lu Chongming.

What form will this Zheng rebellion take?
A black sparrow? A cell phone transmitting audio? Or some other strange and unusual device?

When Lu Chongming turned his head, he saw an ordinary-looking Zheng Fan—of course, even in human form, Zheng Fan was not ordinary-looking.

For Lu Chongming, being able to spot a complete, ordinary humanoid Zheng Fan at a glance was like winning the lottery.

"Mr. Illusion!? When did you get here! Is this your true form?" Lu Chongming quickly looked around to see if anyone was paying attention to them, or if there were any surveillance cameras or anything like that, and asked in a low voice.

"I came here in a dream. After Lin Yilin tampered with you, I tried to treat the central part of Dadu as a dream and then fell asleep and came here," Zheng Fan said casually. He was sitting on the edge of the balcony railing of this high-rise building, in a very dangerous position, looking like he could fall off with a gust of wind. His tone was also very nonchalant: "Don't look. I called you to make sure I wouldn't be discovered."

"So you were actually there the whole time?"

"Yeah, I even did a street dance at the back of the venue, it was really awesome."

"So this is what you were doing while we were getting this serious?"

"That's precisely why we need to lighten the mood when you guys are being serious."

"..." Lu Chongming was speechless.

He leaned back against the balcony railing, saying wistfully, "I originally thought the Bureau of Handling Cases was just a lackey of the main government. I had absolutely no good impression of them."

“That’s right. The Bureau of Investigation and Statistics is a mixed bag. Haven’t you seen someone like Wang Shizhong? Anyone could become Wang Shizhong in places you can’t see.”

"This is terrifying, it smells like a conspiracy theory." Lu Chongming felt it was too exaggerated, but Zheng Fan's words also made sense.

"However, apart from a few people who are actually spies sent by other parties, the vast majority of people in the Disposal Bureau will remain steadfast in their support for the Disposal Bureau in this incident. At the very least, they will not choose to betray the Bureau even if they choose to withdraw to protect themselves," Zheng Fan added. "The Disposal Bureau is very complex, but it should not be difficult for you to understand how the mentality of frontline combat personnel like you will change over time."

If the dark world has been waging a secret, protracted war against the white world, then the Disposal Bureau is the frontline warrior.

Over time, they have become deeply integrated with their "army".

“Even pure white idealism probably only exists among office workers who don’t go to the front lines. Anyone who spends even a little time immersed in the gray areas of society, especially in the months following the earthquake, will find it hard not to be influenced by the current situation.” Lu Chongming nodded, then couldn’t help but sigh, “To fight for Dadu despite knowing the disparity in strength is truly…”

"Is the disparity huge? I don't think so," Zheng Fan scoffed.

"Hmm? But the highest combat power in the Bureau is only the regional chiefs. In terms of combat power alone, I'm confident I won't lose to Chief Shiraishi and Zhang Xue if I fight seriously. I don't know much about the others, but the gap between the chiefs shouldn't be too big..." Lu Chongming was puzzled.

"It seems we still need to work on our reconnaissance and judgment skills." Zheng Fan didn't mince words when he spoke familiarly. "I don't know what the previous chiefs were like, but I took a look at them at the meeting just now, and the accumulated strength of the Bureau is in no way inferior. Especially the regional chiefs, none of them are easy to deal with."

"Putting everything else aside, just look at Zhang Xue and Bai Shi, whom you mentioned. You can't even come close to their true strength right now."

"Huh?" Lu Chongming couldn't believe it.

“You should know about Zhang Xue’s abilities, right? After all, they’re very simple and straightforward,” Zheng Fan said.

“I remember it’s about accumulating power before releasing it,” Lu Chongming said.

“I suspect this ability is caused by the illusionary realm, but she doesn’t have one on her, so it’s probably a remnant of an illusionary realm that died on her for some reason. However, the transmission is very complete. This ability has almost no upper limit to its accumulation, and that upper limit depends entirely on the holder’s effort. If she maintains this ability in every action in her daily life, she can accumulate a huge amount of power in a short time. If she maintains it during intense exercise, it’s even more unimaginable. She could probably easily reach a ‘superphysical’ state in a short burst.”

"This...is that exaggerated?" Lu Chongming was somewhat taken aback.

That slacker is actually quite amazing.

Ironically, this slacker possesses an ability that requires effort from its user.

“As for Bai Shi… although he has greatly depleted himself due to something that happened in the past and is now basically in a state of self-sealing, I don’t doubt that he can return to his past level, even if only to a limited extent,” Zheng Fan said.

In terms of sheer strength in terms of the bureaus that are publicly known, Lu Chongming is more than capable of being the chief of a major region in terms of combat power.

But which of these regional chiefs doesn't have some unique skills?

Lu Chongming still needs to practice.

"However, you don't need to worry too much. Besides probing the situation in the central capital, I'm here to fulfill the agreement I made with you before."

"An agreement?" Lu Chongming couldn't recall it for a moment.

“I’m here to help you with the ‘speedrun system’,” Zheng Fan explained.

The Golden Iron Pot—Lu Chongming has only managed to gather a limited number of parts and components so far. Compared to the massive Golden Iron Pot he remembered, it's nothing special. He's already resigned himself to the fact that it might be ages before he can actually recreate this invincible spaceship.

However, it seems that Zheng Fan did say something like that before.

Show him what the Golden Iron Pot looks like, and then just "buy" one of them.

Let's also take a look at what's going on with the central bank.

……

Meanwhile, the Jungfrau Institute Research Institute.

A group representing the capital's philosophy of "grasping both money and knowledge" was also discussing the future. Among them, the president of the capital's central bank suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

He looked around, feeling like he was being watched.

"Yi Yun, what's wrong?" A friend noticed that he was suddenly trembling slightly and asked with concern.

"Everyone, do you remember the ghost stories I told you?"

"Are you referring to the story of 'The Mysterious Vanishing of Bank Numbers'?"

The title alone sounds terrifying.

"Yes, I have a feeling this ghost story is about to happen again... and it's going to be very exciting. Didn't some of you have doubts before? This might be an opportunity. This might also be a conspiracy by the underworld against us!"

By directly attacking the economic system, the underworld's move is ruthless.

And it really is deadly.

This made everyone present serious.

After all, this is one of the biggest reasons why they are sitting together so obediently now.

(End of this chapter)