TYMIMA Chapter 156

The moment the door opened, none of the things he’d expected happened.

 

The old madman wasn’t an Omega, but he also didn’t use visual distortions or spatial movement against them. He only rapidly changed expression upon seeing Lance, murmuring in a daze: “…Ganita.”

 

He sat slumped in a wheelchair, skeletal and emaciated as Atiya had described. All his teeth had fallen out, his cheeks sunken sickly, his hair sparse and white. A bag of milky nutrient fluid was connected to his stomach, sustaining his life.

 

All of this was accurate, but he didn’t appear mad. He wasn’t laughing maniacally about becoming a high official, nor had he become a puppet without self-awareness. He was quiet and lucid, pained yet persistent.

 

Ganita… who was that?

 

Lance silently asked himself as he approached this former deputy director of Blue Pivot Seventh District.

 

Someone who had once lived comfortably in the restricted zone—how had he fallen to this state? His companions from the rebellion suppression had all become heroes who changed fate. Even the half-informed Yan Qili had become president of Star University. Why was he locked in this prison, tortured beyond recognition?

 

“Ganita…” The old madman’s gaze was indeed drawn by Lance. He looked at Lance’s face, unsure whose shadow appeared in his heart.

 

Lance guessed this Ganita must look very similar to himself, which was why the old madman mistook him.

 

But given the old madman’s age, Ganita was probably not young anymore.

 

“Do you have anything to say to me?” Lance looked at him, his tone like a reunion with an old friend, deliberately fitting the shadow in the old madman’s heart.

 

“Sorry, didn’t protect…” The old madman’s slack neck twitched as he struggled to utter a few words. He tremblingly reached out, wanting to touch Lance’s reddish-brown hair.

 

Dream Witch’s gaze tightened. She was about to step forward but was stopped by Lance.

 

Lance actively crouched down, cooperating with the old madman.

 

To survive eighteen years in misery, mad and insane for eighteen years, required immense willpower and faith.

 

He believed the old madman had a reason to live so shamelessly. Perhaps Ganita was his obsession.

 

The old madman’s trembling, withered hand landed on Lance’s red hair, gently and lovingly stroking it.

 

Lance’s gaze shifted slightly, glancing at the old madman’s arm. From his movements, he could sense the old madman bore no ill will toward him—there was even a kind of guilt and warmth from an elder.

 

No, not toward him, but toward Ganita.

 

“Didn’t protect what?” Lance asked calmly, trying to draw out more words by leveraging the old madman’s feelings for Ganita.

 

Perhaps the old madman lived to see Ganita again, and because he looked like Ganita, he might be the key to opening the old madman’s heart.

 

The old madman paused at his words, then sadly withdrew his hand, breathing weakly: “You’re not Ganita. Ganita is already dead.”

 

Lance frowned, quickly realizing his guess was wrong.

 

The old madman hadn’t lived to see Ganita. He’d long known Ganita was dead. So what was his obsession and persistence?

 

Lance was about to speak when a huge explosion suddenly sounded on the ninth floor, and [Virtual Realm] wavered.

 

He understood he had no more time to ask. Benbu had returned with twelve S-level messengers—who knew how many had obtained miracles. If they delayed further, unless he completely revealed his identity as a divine type Awakened, he couldn’t rescue everyone.

 

But he knew that after today’s massacre, the god hidden in the Federation would completely target him, even risking a second war.

 

He would never be able to leave the Outer God’s power until all enemies were killed and all threats eliminated.

 

But then, would he still be himself?

 

The Outer God now seemed to indulge all his actions, easily deceived by him, lending power and miracles, making all his desires easily attainable.

 

But when power becomes a necessity for survival, he’s essentially inseparable from the Outer God. At that point, faith and devotion might no longer matter.

 

More terrifyingly, according to Si Hongche, he might not be able to defeat another god now.

 

If he were targeted and killed, both High Tower Guild and Ghost Eye Guild would be doomed.

 

Without absolute certainty, he could only try to delay being targeted.

 

“Take him with us—we must leave quickly!” Lance immediately said.

 

Lucas was about to tear his soul fragment: “I’ll send him away first!”

 

“No.” Lance held him back. “I need his help.”

 

When they’d fought their way down, the elevator connecting to the surface had been damaged. Although they could easily ascend along the shaft using abilities, there were too many of them, and the shaft’s space was limited. Those at the back definitely couldn’t get out.

 

They had Mad Clown’s teleportation ability, but the number of people who could be teleported was limited. It was impossible to transport everyone in a short time.

 

There was also Zhan Pingchuan’s [Void Realm], but the risk was too high. Although it could let nearly a hundred people escape through the rift, whether they could do so on Earth was uncertain.

 

So the only ability capable of instantly moving so many people to the surface was the old madman’s [Space Cube].

 

Lance crouched down and suddenly said to the withered old madman: “I’m a survivor of the rebellion suppression. For Ganita’s sake, will you help us?”

 

The old madman suddenly raised his eyes, his murky pupils trembling violently as he stared at Lance in disbelief.

 

His breathing grew rapid, his excited body shaking the wheelchair with creaking sounds. He shook his head while dryly squeezing out a few words: “How old are you—”

 

“Eighteen.” Lance seemed to know what he was going to ask.

 

Actually, he wasn’t completely clear about his own origins. He’d just connected all the information and made reasonable inferences to reach his current conclusion.

 

When he killed Erdiff, upon seeing him use the Outer God’s ability, Erdiff had said—

 

“You… rebellion suppression… the one who slipped through.”

 

So he guessed that those slaughtered in the rebellion suppression were related to divine type Awakened, and he’d survived because Lance had saved him in time.

 

From Sandro’s century-long history, it was known that divine type Awakened, after fleeing Passion County, intermarried with local native Bovnia people, whose descendants often had reddish-brown hair.

 

The old madman mistook him for Ganita because Ganita had the same red hair and was also a divine type Awakened.

 

The old madman had just said Ganita was dead, so she probably died in the rebellion suppression. That “didn’t protect…” might refer to not being able to protect Ganita.

 

So Lance mentioned the two things the old madman cared about most, breaking through his psychological defenses.

 

As expected, the old madman was very emotional, tears streaming from his sunken eye sockets, tracing his deeply wrinkled face.

 

“…How do you want me to help you?”

 

Lance straightened up. His goal was achieved.

 

He immediately grabbed Zhan Pingchuan’s hand: “Call everyone over—try to hold off the reinforcements for a while.”

 

Only Zhan Pingchuan could do this because he was the only one with miracles.

 

“Understood.” Zhan Pingchuan grabbed the bewildered Atiya and rushed out.

 

Atiya was still puzzled—how had the old madman who was just acting crazy suddenly become normal?

 

Could it be…

 

“Ah! Masochist, was that old madman pretending to be insane?”

 

Zhan Pingchuan ran at breakneck speed, humid air rushing past his face as he gritted his teeth: “He touched my wife’s head—do you know how intimate touching someone’s head is!”

 

“Why would he pretend to be insane?” Atiya asked.

 

“It’s only because I’m magnanimous and gracious that I didn’t argue with him.”

 

“How could he pretend for eighteen years?”

 

“I actually endured it for eighteen seconds!”

 

Atiya: “…” Never mind then.

 

Zhan Pingchuan forced a smile.

 

Actually, he could see that the old madman was crucial to unraveling the mystery of Lance’s origins. He even suspected that Ganita was closely related to Lance too.

 

But there was no need to let Atiya know these things. The more people who knew secrets, the less safe they became.

 

Zhan Pingchuan quickly rushed to the center of the battle. Fighting had already broken out—Benbu, like a trembling rice roll in the wind, commanded the white-robed squad’s attack. Unable to speak, he could only frantically wave his withered hand, though no one was actually watching him.

 

Twelve messengers each used their abilities, forcing Black Lantern Society members to retreat steadily.

 

Zhan Pingchuan could see at a glance that some of them weren’t affected by [Virtual Realm].

 

Oliver had already used his fourth-tier ability and was struggling to hold on, but this time, the prepared messengers weren’t so easily pierced through the heart by vines.

 

Zhan Pingchuan shouted loudly: “Everyone follow Atiya inside! Quickly!”

 

Lan Pingjing, Tira, and those Utopians without combat ability immediately obeyed, following Atiya toward the dark corridor.

 

“Stop them!”

 

“Don’t let them in!”

 

“The old madman is still inside—they’ll kill him!”

 

“Damn it, all I see are parade floats!”

 

The guards were still in [Virtual Realm], their combat effectiveness greatly reduced, which allowed the Utopians to hold out for quite a while.

 

Kuhn was accidentally hit by a messenger’s ability. His abdomen ruptured, blood seeping out. Abaddon quickly stepped in to replace him while Ling Qi hurriedly dragged him to the back for rapid treatment.

 

“Don’t worry about me, I’m fine!” Kuhn insisted.

 

“You should run with them—I don’t have much pheromone left!” Ling Qi said urgently.

 

Just then, a giant blue eye suddenly appeared in the center of the courtyard, looking down at all the messengers from above. Its cold, eerie gaze left nowhere to hide, instantly stripping away all ability to resist.

 

The messengers’ attack rhythm slowed.

 

“Ahhhhh, if you’re going to fight, hand me over to Lance! Why are you carrying me out here!”

 

Lucas shrieked, quickly hugging Adrian’s neck tight and clamping his legs around Adrian’s waist, afraid of falling and getting hit by abilities.

 

“Hold tight.” Adrian didn’t answer Lucas’s question but focused on controlling [Heaven], grinding down the enemies’ minds.

 

These twelve messengers were obviously very powerful. Adrian’s arms bulged with veins, sweat beading at his temples, but the blue giant eye still began trembling unsteadily.

 

“Run now while you can!” Zhan Pingchuan roared at the Utopians who still wanted to fight desperately.

 

“But you…” Jerome couldn’t bear it—how could they abandon their saviors and run?

 

“We can protect ourselves! Go!” Zhan Pingchuan cut him off.

 

Only then did Jerome sigh heavily and run quickly toward the corridor.

 

“Next batch—all Black Lantern Society members retreat inside!” Zhan Pingchuan shouted to the joint rescue team.

 

Many of them were also at their limit. If they kept holding on, casualties were inevitable.

 

Fortunately, these people were professionally trained and knew to follow orders in battle, so they didn’t try to be heroes, covering each other as they retreated inward.

 

Finally, only three S-levels remained to cover the rear: Zhan Pingchuan, Adrian, and Oliver.

 

Lucas was on the verge of tears, hanging on Adrian like a koala: “Annoying guy, do you think it’s appropriate for an A-level like me to be here!”

 

“Relax, I won’t let anything happen to you.” Adrian temporarily had no time to mind the words “annoying guy.”

 

“No way, I’ll squeeze you to death!” Lucas used all four limbs to bind Adrian tightly.

 

“Oliver, Uncle, you retreat too!” Zhan Pingchuan shouted to those beside him.

 

Oliver nodded: “Be careful!”

 

He and Adrian also gradually retreated, the vines and blue eye stopping their attacks.

 

After Oliver and Adrian retreated into the corridor, Zhan Pingchuan stood at the very back, holding his breath as he raised his hand to summon a barrier, sealing the entrance tight.

 

He looked at the barrier glowing with red light before him and shook his head sadly.

 

“It’s over, I’m really colorblind now.”

 

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 (advanced chapters available on kofi)