Hearing the Black man shout, Shen Feng finally remembered him. ’This guy...’ He seemed to recall his name was James, a self-proclaimed heir to the Voodoo Magic of Africa.
’He’s basically like most of those Black guys who love to protest—good intentions, but completely misses the point.’ The guy believed the World Beast was some kind of ancestral spirit awakened by the oppression of white people. That’s why he’d run over to perform a ritual when the World Beast attacked San Francisco, hoping to appease the ’ancestral spirits’ and stop the creature.
For Shen Feng, it had been almost half a year since he last saw James. For James, however, Shen Feng had never left this place.
Shen Feng let out a sly chuckle, ignoring James’s shouting as he extended his hand and clenched it into a fist.
Instantly, the Gray Tide that had burst from the World Beast’s chest bloomed like a giant flower. It spread out in all directions, folding back to envelop the massive creature.
The World Beast raised its tentacles and limbs high, lashing desperately at the surface of the Gray Tide in an attempt to break the strange substance.
But each strike only allowed more of the Nanomechanical Cluster to adhere to its body, which began to silently devour and disintegrate its tentacles and limbs.
In just a few moments, its limbs and tentacles were mostly devoured.
The World Beast’s entire body was now enveloped by the Gray Tide, and the rate of consumption and absorption accelerated.
Facing the Gray Tide, the once-frenzied World Beast was like a helpless small animal. After struggling for only a short while, it fell completely silent.
Its massive, kilometer-tall body, once enveloped by the Gray Tide, began to collapse into the sea. Soon, only a hundred-meter-tall, silver-gray metal "mountaintop" remained above the surface. It then shrank into an islet, almost level with the waves.
The World Beast had been completely devoured and disintegrated.
The Nanomechanical Cluster Shen Feng had brought back had now grown several times in volume and began to devour various man-made pollutants on the seabed.
Due to the irreversible nature of this latest version of the Nanomechanical Cluster, any of Earth’s resources it consumed could never be restored. Therefore, Shen Feng’s first action was to limit the size of the Nanomechanical Cluster, directing it to only devour non-decomposable trash, rather than consuming the land and soil directly.
Shen Feng then waved his hand, and the Nanomechanical Cluster quickly dissolved into the sea, disappearing completely from the surface.
Aside from the standing water on the pier and the still-surging waves, it was as if nothing had happened at all.
This scene made James, standing nearby, tremble from head to toe. His eyes looked as if they were about to pop out of their sockets.
He had seen with his own eyes how Shen Feng controlled a miraculous ’Summoned Beast’ to eliminate that terrifying monster. Then, after the monster was gone, the Summoned Beast vanished completely.
’No, I shouldn’t call it a Summoned Beast,’ he thought. ’It was more like a humanoid creature.’
’Like a Water Elemental Humanoid or something from a video game.’
’This wasn’t technology at all. The only explanation is Magic!’
’Magic from the East!’
"Dao... Dao... This must be the Dao..." James muttered. He had heard before that in the ancient Eastern Huaxia, there existed a mysterious religion called Taoism.
It was said that the Cultivators of Taoism possessed immense power, enough to shatter heaven and earth. The mysterious power they practiced was called the Dao!
’That strange, giant, humanoid metal creature from just now was probably one of the legendary Yellow Turban Warriors from Taoist lore!’
At this thought, James suddenly threw himself at Shen Feng’s feet, grabbing his shoes and crying out:
"Master! Shifu! I beg you, please take me as your disciple! Please teach me the Supreme Method of the Dao!"
Shen Feng instinctively started to move away, but he stopped when he sensed no malice from the man. He couldn’t help but be at a loss, not knowing whether to laugh or cry at his words.
’This kid must have watched *Kung Fu Panda* one too many times to have come up with such a strange association.’
’Still, as Arthur C. Clarke once said, any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from Magic.’
’The latest version of the Nanomechanical Cluster technology was just too powerful. No wonder this James fellow mistook it for a Daoist Skill.’
"Let go," Shen Feng said flatly.
James immediately let go and knelt on one knee, speaking with a touch of fear.
"Master, please forgive my recklessness. I truly desire to learn the Dao so much. Please, in light of my sincerity, take me in! I know the mysterious religions and sects of the East have even more mysterious initiation rites. Just say the word. Even if I have to cut off my... I am willing!"
Hearing this, Shen Feng’s interest in this James was finally piqued.
After the long, grim slaughter of the Water World apocalypse, he was in the mood for a bit of fun. He asked James:
"Aren’t you a follower of Voodoo? You’d abandon Voodoo just like that to join the Taoism of Eastern Huaxia? Aren’t you afraid of punishment from your Voodoo God?"
At these words, James’s expression grew solemn. He replied with utmost gravity:
"The entire world is already showing signs of descending into chaos. The Voodoo God cannot protect humanity. That being the case, we need a greater power... Please, grant me the power of the Dao! I beg of you!"
As he spoke, James began to kowtow with such force that his head made loud THUDDING sounds against the ground. He seemed dead set on making Shen Feng his master.
Shen Feng, now feeling relaxed and amused, had Jingwei look up James’s background. He couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. Then, he spoke:
"Benedict James. Head of the Eagle Country’s Voodoo Council of Elders. A Great Mage, known as the most talented Voodoo Messenger... Tsk, tsk. And you really want to protect humanity?"
’I never would’ve thought this guy was such a big shot in North American Voodoo. No wonder he came out here alone to perform some kind of exorcism ritual against the World Beast.’
’It takes a certain kind of madness to survive, I suppose.’
James was stunned to hear Shen Feng reveal his identity. But then it dawned on him: ’Of course an inheritor of the Dao would know this.’ His admiration for Shen Feng only grew.
"Yes, Shifu. I want to protect humanity."
Shen Feng nodded. His Silicon-Based Brain suddenly released a powerful electromagnetic wave. At the same time, his voice became rhythmic and cadenced, and the Nanomechanical Battle Armor covering his body shimmered with a sleep-inducing light. He said in a low voice:
"Very good, Benedict James. You will become a member of the Salvation Army. When the world needs you, you will answer my summons... Now, you are tired. Sleep."
The moment he finished speaking, Benedict James, his eyes already vacant, fell over as stiff as a board. His head hit the concrete floor with a loud THUD, and he was out cold.
’Voodoo... now that’s interesting...’
"Yeesh... tsk, tsk, tsk..." Jingwei’s hologram appeared at his side. "Xiaofeng, your Hypnosis has gotten pretty intense. He was out in a second... I felt that thud with my own ears. I suggest you toss someone a pillow next time you use Hypnosis, or you might actually knock their brains out."
Shen Feng laughed. "Always the cheeky one. Come on, book me a flight. Let’s go home first."
Jingwei paused, surprised. "Home? Aren’t we going to the Space Wormhole to kill bugs? Knowing your personality, I’d have thought you’d want to exterminate all the World Beasts and plug up the Wormhole before anything else. You wiped out all the World Beasts in the mission world, so it makes no sense to leave the ones in our own world, does it?"
"We’re going home. The World Beasts in the mission world took decades to crush humanity, so we’re in no rush. We’ve been busy for so long. Let’s go back, rest up, and do some research first," Shen Feng said, stretching lazily. He scooped up his Quantum Backpack, slung it over one shoulder, and let out a yawn.
"Fine, have it your way," Jingwei said with a shrug. "Thanks to the World Beast alerts, San Francisco is practically deserted. We can just grab a plane and fly out ourselves. I’m still jamming this whole area, so we’re in a blind spot for all radar and signal monitoring."
"It’s a plan, then. First, home for a bowl of noodles, then a plate of dumplings with chives, egg, and shrimp, plus an entire braised pig’s trotter!"
"And what about saving the world?"
"We’ll worry about that tomorrow."