Yeah, I realized your brain was backwards when I started pulling things apart haha.

So, the reason for the repairs was a creak in the drivetrain. All in all, I regreased the bottom bracket threads, greased and tightened the pedals, cleaned the chain, straightened the chainline, tightened and greased the chainring bolts, trued my rear wheel, and got a vintage Brooks B15 narrow with an aluminum post from the parts bin. All in all, a pretty productive 2 hours. However, I still have a creak. Whenever I change pedal directions with any force, it creaks like an old office chair. What am I missing here? Also, the Brooks has some cracking. Is there a way to fix that, or should I just oil it up so it doesn't crack anymore?