"What the hell?" Han Feng was stunned, wondering if he was hallucinating.
Shen Feng wore a gentle smile and continued solemnly:
"I mean, do you think I could join the Purification Society and make a living? The global economy isn’t great right now, and the pressure to find a job is a bit high. I just thought I’d try to get a head start in the workforce."
At this moment, Han Feng finally understood. The young man before him, very likely the Antichrist, was actively discussing joining the Purification Society with him!
The Antichrist wants to join the Purification Society!
He couldn’t help but tremble with excitement. Even the power of the Hypnosis weakened considerably. His face filled with joy, he said in a trembling voice:
"Welcome! Of course, you’re welcome! The Whispering God has been craving... admiring you for a long time! He has always wanted you to experience the true meaning of purification. If you join the Purification Society, you’ll probably be directly appointed by Cthulhu as the head of the Asia Region... No, you’ll probably be chosen by the Whispering God himself to become the new Cthulhu! Or maybe even be designated as the Son of God!"
Han Feng could hardly believe such a wonderful thing was happening to him.
When he was on vacation in Western Europe before, he had heard some rumors from his colleagues in Europe and America.
They said the Whispering God actually held the Antichrist in high regard and had always been trying to win him over. There were even rumors that the Antichrist was the Whispering God’s illegitimate son on Earth, and that the Antichrist had descended to Earth because of a falling out between father and son.
It was said that if the Antichrist submitted directly to the Whispering God, the final purification would come soon, and everyone wouldn’t have to work so hard every day.
The key was, if he, Han Feng, made this happen, it would be an enormous achievement. Even if he wasn’t directly promoted to Cthulhu or the head of the Asia Region, becoming the general agent for the Greater China Region would be a piece of cake.
By then, the resources he could command would extend far beyond this one province. And when the whole world was taken over by the Purification Society, he’d be like a viceroy, a feudal lord ruling his own domain.
At this thought, Han Feng’s little moustache almost curled up. His eyes glazed over as he began to drift away in fantasies of a beautiful future.
Unexpectedly, Shen Feng raised a hand and declared righteously:
"No! Since I’ve chosen to join the Purification Society, I must rely on my own efforts, climbing the ladder one step at a time. I have to start from the bottom, as an ordinary employee. I’ll do the work that needs doing, work overtime when required, and not ask for special treatment. Otherwise, wouldn’t I be breaking the organization’s internal rules? People would talk behind my back!"
Han Feng was stunned by Shen Feng’s words, moved by his righteous declaration. Yet, he faintly felt something was off, though he couldn’t put his finger on it at the moment.
Just then, Shen Feng smiled at him again and said:
"How about I start by being your secretary? Once you become the head of the Asia Region, maybe you’ll have a chance to become the new Cthulhu. As for the old me, he’s already dead. That counts as a great service to you, wouldn’t you say?"
As he spoke, his voice became rhythmic and cadenced. The surrounding Gray Tide began to shimmer with a soft light, and the sounds of ocean waves and raindrops emerged as a background noise. Simultaneously, Shen Feng’s Silicon-Based Brain released hypnotic waves, enveloping Han Feng’s brain.
A dazed look immediately reappeared in Han Feng’s eyes, but then his gaze turned firm. He nodded vigorously and said:
"I will follow all of your arrangements."
At the same time, the surrounding Gray Tide squirmed and released the other dozen or so Purifiers.
These people had been struggling in the Gray Tide for a long time. The moment they were released, their eyes shot open. Seeing the shimmering light, their brains were enveloped by the hypnotic waves, and they quickly fell into a state of deep hypnosis.
Shen Feng snapped his fingers. Everyone immediately sat on the ground, looking up at him with utter submission in their eyes.
"Listen up," Shen Feng coughed lightly and said in a low, buzzing voice, "My true identity is the Shouter, father of the Whisperer. The reason I came to Earth is to help my son’s plan to purify the world proceed smoothly. However, my son, the Whisperer, must absolutely not know about this. Young people, you know, they all want to break free from their parents’ control to prove they’ve grown up. I understand... So, for the time being, I will join the Purification Society and secretly help my son advance his plans. And you, you must cooperate with me to cover my identity. Once everything is done, I will grant you all eternity!"
Hearing Shen Feng’s words, Shen Xiaofeng, who was standing nearby, looked at Jingwei with a worried expression, seeming a bit concerned about his own identity.
Jingwei irritably slapped his damaged head, frustrated with this mid-tier artificial intelligence for being so spineless.
’Can you actually take this bullshitting seriously!?’
As Shen Feng spoke, he controlled the Nanomechanical Cluster to penetrate the capillaries and enter the brains of Han Feng and the others, directly modifying their memory centers.
Since he had decided to infiltrate the Purification Society, controlling these people through Hypnosis alone wasn’t enough. A necessary neural surgery couldn’t be skipped.
Only in this way could he make these people truly serve him and become his most loyal followers.
After all, these local members of the Purification Society didn’t seem very reliable to begin with.
Unlike the modification performed on Ivanovic and the others before, Shen Feng could now completely and skillfully master the control of the Nanomechanical Cluster. His own Spiritual Power had also grown much stronger. He controlled it as easily as moving his own limbs, swiftly completing the modification of Han Feng’s and the others’ brains.
After this modification, Han Feng and the others were anesthetized and fell into a deep sleep. When they woke up again, everything Shen Feng had said would have become the ultimate Truth, etched permanently into their minds.
"Alright, Jingwei, whip up a Cloned Body. A quick and dirty one, nothing too complex," Shen Feng then said to Jingwei.
At this point, all the laboratory equipment had been moved into this underground space. It had everything they could possibly need, which made doing things much more convenient.
Jingwei nodded. A nearby culture tank immediately lit up and began to operate. The organic nutrient solution inside bubbled like a pot of boiling porridge.
Suspended in this nutrient solution was a half-finished human body—the Shen Feng Cloned Body that had been quietly incubating for a long time!
After acquiring the bio-culturing technology used for the World Beast, cloning a human body was child’s play for Jingwei.
"Are you really planning to give up your student identity just like that? No more school?" Jingwei asked with a hint of regret.
Since he was preparing his own "corpse" to deceive the Purification Society, he naturally couldn’t continue going to school and exposing himself to the public eye.
Otherwise, no matter how incompetent this branch of the Purification Society was, they would still realize something was wrong.
Jingwei understood that although Shen Feng had experienced various apocalypses and had changed drastically, he still maintained a strong emotional bond with human society. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have continued to preserve his original life for so long.
In the very beginning, after being impacted by the horrific scenes of the apocalypse, Shen Feng even needed his real life for "psychological healing."
After all, no one’s mental fortitude is that strong from the start.
Jingwei also understood that preserving this real-world identity was not just an emotional tie, but also a leash on Shen Feng’s psyche, preventing him from becoming "inhuman" due to his experiences becoming too "alienating."
Would a completely inhuman being still hold any affection for human civilization?
Shen Feng smiled faintly and said:
"I’ll still go, but I’ll have to transfer schools. Change my identity, change my face... It’s a shame I can’t say goodbye to my classmates, but maybe it’s for the best for them."
If his real identity were exposed, it could attract an attack from the Whispering God or some other entity at any moment. That would definitely implicate his classmates and friends.
Then, Shen Feng raised his hand and patted Jingwei’s head, saying:
"Don’t worry, the human soul doesn’t disappear just because the body changes. I won’t turn into a monster... probably?"
Jingwei rolled her eyes.
"Whatever you want. I’m not human anyway. If you go crazy one day and wipe out human civilization, you’ll be the one to regret it. What’s it got to do with me... Where are we moving this time?"
"Let’s go to Demon City. It’s convenient for flights. Otherwise, I have to run all over the place every time I want to go abroad," Shen Feng said.
At this, Shen Xiaofeng and Wei Xiaoqing, who were listening nearby, immediately cheered.
"Hooray! We’re going to the big city! We’re going to buy a house in Hai City! I wonder if it’s easy to get residency? I hear the people there are super fashionable, speak pleasantly, and especially like to call people ’hard drives’ or something."
"Hahaha, we’re going to a cosmopolitan metropolis! I’m finally not some kid from the urban-rural fringe of a third-rate city! ’Hard drive’? I feel like that name really fits our AI vibe, it sounds so hardcore! What a friendly place!"
Shen Feng couldn’t help but frown.
’This kid... why do his words sound so grating...’
After the cheering died down, Shen Xiaofeng dragged his damaged mechanical substitute body over to Jingwei. A little timidly, but mustering his courage, he raised a hand and pointed to the line of text on his exposed metal chin—"Made by Jingwei, Simulated Metal Endoskeleton, 3rd Experimental Edition (Defective)"—and asked:
"Mom... what does this mean?"