…
And so, that day the Intelligentsia Guild received an utterly ridiculous task that made them curse:
Develop a giant electronic device that a star could operate.
Of course, such a bizarre mission was also interesting enough to attract some researchers willing to study and prove its feasibility.
But the main reason was simpler:
The funding was unlimited.
They could report a huge budget, quietly divert some of it to other projects, and no one would ever notice.
…
Zhuxing suddenly slapped her forehead and complained about herself.
"I think I have a strange talent."
"No matter the situation or topic, I somehow always end up going off-topic."
Dongfang Qiqing smiled.
"It's not your fault, Little Zhuxing."
"That's mostly because I don't know anything, so you have to explain everything."
Zhuxing shrugged.
"Alright then, back to the topic."
"This star system has already had all harmful radiation filtered out, and the entire system is sealed by the barrier field."
"Of course, the teacher also filled the area with breathable air."
"And Sister Ruan Mei conveniently released a special kind of vacuum fungus that circulates through the system."
"It's harmless to humans."
Just then, a massive mechanical structure orbiting the Space City entered their field of view.
Zhuxing pointed toward it.
"Sister Qiqing, see that satellite-like mechanical structure orbiting the Space City?"
"I see it."
"What is it?"
Zhuxing clasped her hands behind her back and imitated Lin Yi's tone in a playful, exaggerated way.
"That is the Differential Partial Gravity Balance Gyroscope, a gift from Teacher Screwllum when the Space City was officially delivered."
"It stabilizes and harmonizes the gravitational forces throughout the entire star system."
"With the computational support of Laplace's Demon, it can adjust the gravitational field around each individual."
"Thanks to that…"
"Every intelligent being in this star system—so long as they aren't on the system blacklist—can move freely."
"Almost like flying in a dream."
Seeing that Dongfang Qiqing still looked uncertain, Zhuxing said:
"You still look confused."
"No matter how much I explain, it's better to try it yourself."
"Come on, Sister Qiqing."
"Try flying for the next part of the journey."
Qiqing hesitated.
"Ah… can I really?"
Zhuxing reassured her.
"Relax."
"For Laplace's Demon, reading biological signals is trivial."
Then she pointed to Qiqing's feet.
"You realize something?"
"You've been walking in outer space this whole time."
"That's already abnormal."
Zhuxing shouldn't have said that.
The moment she did—
Qiqing suddenly forgot how to walk.
She began flailing around awkwardly.
Zhuxing grinned mischievously.
She quietly moved closer—
Then pushed her.
"Sister Qiqing!"
"Remember when you flew back on Kasberlinyat?"
"It's basically the same as using that transformation device!"
Qiqing shouted and panicked while trying to stabilize herself.
Zhuxing kept pushing her while laughing.
Eventually Qiqing figured out how to control it.
Then she let out a wicked laugh and flew toward Zhuxing.
Zhuxing sighed dramatically.
"Uh-oh."
"This is bad."
Soon the two of them were laughing, chasing, and flying around.
The people passing by didn't seem surprised at all.
Apparently this kind of thing happened frequently.
Eventually Qiqing stopped, exhausted from the chase.
Zhuxing put her hands on her hips proudly.
"Sister Qiqing, your stamina can't compete with mine."
"Flying itself doesn't consume energy."
"But flailing around trying to catch me definitely does."
Qiqing surrendered.
"Alright, I give up."
"But this ability to control gravity and move freely…"
"Can you do that inside the Space City too?"
Zhuxing nodded.
"Of course."
"But inside the city there's a speed limit."
"Outside the city, as long as your body can handle it, you can go as fast as you want."
"I see."
Qiqing nodded.
Zhuxing didn't notice that during their conversation—
Qiqing had quietly moved closer.
"Ah! Sister Qiqing!"
"That's cheating!"
"Let go! Let go!"
In the end, Qiqing happily released Zhuxing's cheeks after pinching them.
Zhuxing covered her face indignantly.
But after checking the time, she gave up the idea of revenge.
"The cake shop is about to close."
"The opening hours are very short."
"Even though we could use special privileges, it's not worth using them for something this small."
Qiqing nodded rapidly.
"Right!"
"Let's hurry."
"After all that flying, I really feel like eating something."
"Then let's go full speed!"
"You'll love this feeling."
"People race outside Meteor Shopping Street every day."
"To the people inside, they are the meteors."
"Sister Qiqing, don't hold back."
"Just accelerate."
"I'm wearing Gravity Walk, so I'll escort you."
…
Dongfang Qiqing looked extremely excited.
At first she was cautious.
But once she got used to it—
She became even more reckless than Zhuxing.
Zhuxing shouted in alarm.
"Calm down! Sister Qiqing, why are you so excited?"
"…Wait. Oh no."
"I forgot to suppress the passive emotional influence of the Path of Elation."
"So this is actually my fault."
Zhuxing quickly tried to calm her down while thinking.
Then she suddenly realized what happened.
She had just recently become an Emanator of Elation.
She still wasn't used to controlling that power.
The passive emotional influence had spread to nearby people.
Honestly, Zhuxing herself didn't know how much Path power Aha had given her.
It just felt limitless.
She had once told Lin Yi she wanted to run tests.
But Lin Yi stopped her.
He said no testing for now because he had plans for it.
Zhuxing used her Elation power to quickly calm Qiqing down.
Qiqing couldn't help marveling.
"So this is the power of Elation?"
"That's incredible."
"I didn't even notice it."
Zhuxing apologized.
"Sorry, Sister Qiqing."
"I didn't control that passive emotional influence properly."
Qiqing waved her hand.
"It's fine."
"To be honest, that feeling wasn't bad."
"But earlier you mentioned Gravity Walk…"
"Is it the same Gravity Walk invented by the legendary Primitive Doctor?"
Zhuxing nodded.
"Yes."
"The teacher found a damaged Gravity Walk device."
"He successfully replicated it."
"It might not be as good as the original, but it can be mass-produced easily."
"And Sister Qiqing, it's actually listed in your benefits package."
"When we reach your residence later, a lot of equipment will be delivered together."
Qiqing smiled brightly.
"Then I'll look forward to it!"
Zhuxing pointed toward a large asteroid ahead.
"Ta-da!"
"We've arrived!"
"Sister Qiqing, this is the shop."
'Catcake House.'
Qiqing began thinking when she heard the name.
"Catcake House…?"
"That name sounds…"
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