"Dan Heng, why do you think Yaoshi responded to all prayers in the beginning?"
"I don't know."
"Did They really want to save everyone, or was it just... that They couldn't stop?"
"I... am not sure."
"Dan Heng, do you hate me?"
"Why would you think that?"
Dan Heng turned his face away.
"Because you hate the Abundance."
"...You are different."
Dan Heng shook his head.
"So you don't hate me?"
"I don't hate you."
The small blade of grass on Aidan's head swayed gently.
There was a long silence between the two.
Dan Heng narrowed his eyes.
"Mm... mm... okay..." Aidan's eyes were half-closed, and it seemed like he wasn't talking to Dan Heng, "You are very lonely, aren't you..."
"Huhu mm... dear?"
— — —
The next morning, Dan Heng woke up on time and turned off his alarm.
"Good morning, Dan Heng."
Dan Heng noticed that when Aidan got up, his left hand subconsciously pressed against his chest. A golden crack flickered at the edge of his collar, looking like some kind of brand.
"Today?"
"Destruction."
Aidan said.
"...Are you sure? You haven't turned into Nanook today."
Aidan pulled down his collar, and Dan Heng clearly saw the terrifying golden wound on Aidan's chest. It extended from his collarbone to his abdomen, flowing with golden blood.
In reality, it was not a real wound, but a manifestation of the Path of Destruction.
"Does it hurt?"
"It hurts, but it's not fatal." Aidan's voice was deeper than usual, "It's like someone tearing me apart and stitching me back together, then tearing me apart again, over and over, but I'm used to it."
As expected, Dan Heng nodded secretly. As long as Aidan adapted to a certain Path, the next time he became that Path, he wouldn't be as clumsy and inexperienced as the first time.
According to what Aidan said, the power to switch Paths was actually something he had recently acquired; he didn't have this ability before.
So, who... exactly is Aidan?
This question was buried deep in Dan Heng's heart, and he didn't ask it out loud. He had his own secrets too. If Aidan chose not to say, there must be a reason.
Staring at the wound glowing with blinding golden light for a moment, Dan Heng withdrew his gaze.
Aidan sat on the sofa of the Astral Express.
He wanted, very badly, especially wanted to smash something right now.
March 7th took out the iron box she had previously found in the half-ship and tried to open it. Aidan rushed over instantly, smashed the box into pieces with three bangs, didn't even glance at the things that spilled out, and left with a look of "that feels satisfying."
She looked down at the shattered iron box in her hand, then at the gemstone hairpin rolling on the ground, stunned for several seconds before coming back to her senses, not knowing what to say.
Aidan's Destruction was very pure.
He simply wanted to smash something, no special reason, just wanted to smash it.
What was inside didn't matter, why it needed to be smashed didn't matter.
But the feeling of comfort after smashing it was very important.
Aidan turned back from the corridor.
He had his hands in his pockets, the golden crack on his chest glowing faintly with his breathing.
Sofa? No, too soft, doesn't feel good to smash.
Coffee table? It's glass, would shatter with one punch, not satisfying.
Wall clock? Not really.
"Want to take something apart?"
Himeko asked from behind Aidan.
Aidan turned his head sharply, dangerous light flickering in his eyes.
"Where?"
"An abandoned industrial space station of the Interstellar Peace Corporation. It's full of scrapped heavy machinery and high-strength alloy structures. The corporation originally planned to hire people to clean it up, but because those structures were too sturdy and the cost of conventional demolition was too high, it has been shelved. If you are willing to help, you can get a generous..."
"Heavy machinery? High-strength alloy?"
Aidan perked up.
"Yes. Alloy armor plates over half a meter thick, and reactor shells weighing thousands of tons." Himeko looked at him, "Smash it however you want, the more shattered, the better. No one will stop you."
"Good! Let's go there!...Are we leaving immediately? I can set off right now!"
"Of course." Himeko put away her terminal, "The Astral Express happens to be passing through that star sector."
Soon, the Astral Express arrived.
Huge metal structures, like the corpses of dead giant beasts, floated in space in disarray. Their surfaces were covered with the traces of time, but one could still see how indestructible they once were.
"Go on, go on, be careful, don't hurt yourself. No need to rush back, the whole day today is yours."
Aidan left the Astral Express without wearing any protective suit.
"March, what are you doing?"
"Live streaming."
March 7th replied instantly.
"A daily live stream of Aidan, I feel like it will be very interesting."
"Did you talk to him about it?"
"We discussed it before."
Although the sound couldn't be heard, a metal plate as big as a stadium was lifted at both ends by just one punch...
March 7th subconsciously shrank her neck.
Numerical values, that is the reason to become a king!
Aidan didn't use Path energy; he was simply running wild like an unleashed wild dog, causing destruction with pure strength.
If he used the power of Destruction, he would finish destroying everything at once, and he wouldn't be able to continue causing destruction.
Just like the Antimatter Legion, although their bodies vibrate with genuine antimatter, and they possess the blessing of Nanook and master various heavy weapon technologies, some members are still addicted to primitive cold weapon combat. Void Rangers implant antimatter field generators into their arms, forming indestructible field blades.
Punch after punch, he couldn't stop at all. That feeling was just too satisfying. The vibration fed back from his fist hitting the hard metal made the golden crack on his chest brighter and brighter.
He punched into an alloy armor plate, piercing it directly. The entire armor plate, with his fist as the center, cracked into spiderweb-like fissures in all directions. Then, he grabbed the cracked edge and pulled hard.
"Creak—"
The huge armor plate was forcibly torn off the main structure, the jagged metal edges uneven. Aidan casually threw the scrap metal aside and turned his attention to an abandoned reactor shell.
The cooling pipe was uprooted.
Aidan held the pipe and swung it wildly at the reactor shell.
Himeko walked behind March 7th and leaned over to look at the screen.
"It seems everyone is very interested in this kind of pure stress-relieving activity."
"People nowadays are so stressed, how satisfying it is to watch others smash things. And it's such a visually impactful way of smashing. Sister Himeko, how many Credit Points do you think he would earn a day if he went to work at a construction site with these hands?"
Boom! Boom! Boom!
"I don't know how much he would earn, but fortunately, he is very restrained in his impulse for Destruction."