"I do belong in hell, but I will stay until the last moment to see this world crumble before returning to the place where I belong."
"There is no need for you to drag the whole world with you." In other words, if you want to go to hell, you could go alone.
"This is a ritual sacrifice," the man said with sudden vehemence as his gaze turned icier. "Ruining everything is part of the ritual; this is the fate of this world! No one can change it."
"Ritual sacrifice?" Xia Wa sharpened her gaze. "For whom?"
"For myself—" The man answered.
Xia Wa was startled. She looked at him and nodded. "I understand now. You hate this world because you have been treated unfairly by it."
"Wrong." The man smiled thinly, and his tone reverted to normal. "There is no fairness. Furthermore, I don't hate this world. As I've said, I came from hell. I enjoy the rush of destruction, that feeling will bring me the only joy in the world. And it is only through the ushering of the apocalypse that the gates of hell will open to welcome me."
Xia Wa had never seen someone who wished to go to hell so badly. She knew then she could no longer use normal negotiation tactics with this man. The man might be calm and collected on the surface, but he was rotten to the core. He could destroy the world at any moment, and he had not done it because he was waiting for the mood to strike. It was impossible to negotiate with such an individual.
His IQ was so high; morality and truth were social constructs that did not concern him. His only truth was himself. Xia Wa could kill him now, but the man sitting before her was only a puppet.
His real identity, probably other than He Lan Yuan, no one would know. Alas He Lan Yuan was similar to him in the sense that they were both antihuman. Killing him might even amount to nothing; the most dangerous aspect about this man was his ideal and not his person. If he lost his host, he would only return with another puppet and the world would still be in danger.
Xia Wa looked out the window and asked softly, "When are you going to destroy the world?"
The man thought about it and shook his head. "I have not decided on a time yet, but I believe this is the best time."
"What will make you stop?"
"I do not need anything." The man smiled indulgently.
"You have to have something you desire." Xia Wa turned to look at him. "Tell me what it is; I can satisfy your wish."
The man raised his brow slightly. "I am honored to hear that from you. I am glad to have had this conversation with you today, and thank you for allowing me to be in the presence of the most brilliant individual in the world."
Xia Wa understood what he meant. He did not need anything; he merely enjoyed talking to her. He was ending the conservation; no one was going to stop his plan, not even her.
However, no matter how dark he was, he was a man. If he was a man, then he was prone to regrets and ideals, and Xia Wa believed he as an individual was more than the rush for world destruction.
Xia Wa's calm eyes looked into his eyes, and her voice was lowered, but it sounded right beside his ears like music from heaven itself. "Think about it carefully, what is still buried at the bottom of your heart? World destruction is easy, but can you honestly say you have no regrets? Do you have anything you want to rectify in the past? Any regrets that haunt you in the darkest corner of your heart? Tell me what it is, what is it that you want to change? I can help you fulfil that dream; I can help that you in the past."