Heroes Return

"Master, my phone has been malfunctioning ever since the fog started," Thirteen said to the incompetent master. "And for some reason, I can't connect to the external network. Master, are you sure this is just ordinary fog?"

"This..." Upon hearing Thirteen's words, Master Wuneng immediately took out his phone, his face instantly falling: "Amitabha, how am I supposed to contact the female benefactors in District M? What if they blame me for not answering the phone?"

"Master, are you sure this abnormal phenomenon is what you need to worry about?" Lin Jie asked, looking at Master Wuneng.

"Rest assured, Benefactor Lin. Now that I'm on this boat, I believe that whatever happens will turn out well," Master Wuneng said to Lin Jie.

"Are you sure?" Lin Jie glanced at Master Wuneng and asked, "You know, these past three days you've been constantly lowering my expectations of monks."

"Don't worry, Lin Jie." Thirteen patted Lin Jie on the shoulder at this moment: "Actually, I was worried at first, but I felt relieved after seeing that the master was also on the ship."

"Thirteen, you haven't been brainwashed by Master Wuneng, have you?" Lin Jie looked at Thirteen in confusion: "Are you sure this flowery monk is that powerful?"

"Don't worry, Lin Jie," Thirteen said to Lin Jie. "Master's Bachelor Temple is famous for dealing with all kinds of dissent. Besides Zero, the people I admired most in the past were the masters of Bachelor Temple. Especially the four great monks of Bachelor Temple, they are really powerful. Even the eight major families in District C have to give face to Master's Bachelor Temple. Do you know what the masters' G Temple is called outside?"

"What is your name?" Lin Jie became interested when he heard Thirteen's name, and Master Wuneng nodded as he listened to Thirteen's words.

“A no-go zone,” Thirteen said. “Why do you think Guanggun Temple is so famous in high society? To this day, no criminal has ever been able to get out of G City after going there.”

"It's just an empty reputation," said Master Wuneng.

"You mean this flower monk is very powerful?"

Thirteen nodded: "G City, District C is the only city without superheroes. How could Master Wuneng, one of the four great monks, possibly want to appear so incompetent?"

"Amitabha, you flatter me, Thirteenth Benefactor. In truth, this humble monk only knows a little bit of martial arts," Master Wuneng said, his hands clasped together as he addressed Lin Jie and Thirteenth.

"In that case, we'll have to rely on you, Master, if anything happens," Thirteen said to Master Wuneng.

“I’ve already told you, Thirteenth Benefactor, not to think the worst of things,” Master Wuneng said. “It’s just a fog; you two are worrying too much.”

“Master, you have no idea about Thirteen’s abilities at all.” Lin Jie said to the incompetent master, “Speaking of which, seeing the thick fog at sea reminded me of some bad memories.”

"Lin Jie, have you thought of anything?" Thirteen asked.

"It's nothing." As soon as Lin Jie finished speaking, their identity cards beeped, and the admiral's face appeared in front of them.

"Due to some special circumstances, all crew members are requested to return to their cabins now. I will host a banquet tonight and then explain the situation to all passengers."

……

“Kuhuhu, this is getting more and more interesting.” Alice looked out the window and said to Delis, who was watering a plant beside her, “Kuhuhu, my intuition tells me that something very interesting is about to happen. It was definitely the right decision to join this ship.”

"..."

"Dales, should we kill everyone on the ship?" Alice said excitedly, "and then we'll watch the ship sail towards that huge shadow."

"Are you sure that's not a mirage?" Dai Lisi asked, looking at her.

“My intuition doesn’t lie, Kuhuhu.”

chapter eight

In the ship's banquet hall, almost all the passengers had gathered. They were all talking amongst themselves, and many wore expressions of underlying worry.

After all, the sudden appearance of that enormous, seemingly endless shadow in the distance was hardly calming, and coupled with the sudden thick fog and the strange loss of network signal, it led many to have unsettling associations. After all, this is an era where disasters and strange occurrences are commonplace.

If we could turn back time a few decades, almost no one would truly believe in the existence of God. But in this era, there is countless pieces of evidence proving the existence of mysterious forces. Moreover, this era is one of frequent disasters.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the admiral appeared in the banquet hall.

As soon as he appeared, a large number of passengers surrounded him. A barrage of questions erupted in the banquet hall.

"Everyone, please be quiet!" The admiral raised his hand to signal everyone to quiet down. After a moment, once all the passengers had calmed down, the admiral said, "I'm sorry to have startled you all. I will now explain the situation to you."

As soon as the admiral finished speaking, a radar scan image was projected onto the future beside him.

"As you can see, according to radar detection, there are no unusually large creatures or objects within a thousand nautical miles, so you can all rest assured. We are not in any danger at the moment," the admiral said.

“Admiral,” Swain suddenly interjected, “do you think we’re blind? There’s such a huge shadow right there, and you’re telling us there’s no danger around? Is the radar on your old ship malfunctioning?”

Swain's words elicited a response from quite a few people.

"Everyone can rest assured." Xiang appeared in the hall at this moment: "This is my senior machine expert certificate. You can check it. I have just checked all the equipment on the ship and there is nothing abnormal."

As he spoke, Xiang showed his identification.

When the World Alliance's Senior Machine Master's credentials were seen, there were quite a few surprised voices from the crowd.

"Is an advanced machine master certificate that impressive?" Lin Jie asked Thirteen beside him, "How does it compare to our H City excavator advanced technician certificate?"

"Even those who hold the World Alliance Advanced Machine Master certificate can practically assemble a mech from a junkyard," Thirteen said thoughtfully. "Guess how it compares to an excavator certificate?"

"Damn! Someone this awesome is working as a waiter?"

“Benefactor, what’s the big deal? Never underestimate humankind,” Master Wuneng said. “There’s an old saying in District C that you’ve probably heard: ‘True masters are often found among ordinary people.’ Before I came here, I encountered an unemployed beggar who single-handedly took down a gang. Why don’t you think he’s a bodyguard or a hero with that kind of skill?”

“Master, this seems to be completely different from what you described,” Lin Jie said.

"Amitabha Buddha, what I'm saying is that capable people don't necessarily occupy the corresponding positions; this has always been the case. Everything has a cause and an effect..."

"Master, speak like a human being."

"Well, actually, I think there must be some special reason why he's still carrying plates here if he has this ability."

"You could just say it like that, instead of rambling on and on."

"After all, I am a monk, and in other districts I would be a priest. If I don't speak in a mysterious way, who would believe me?"

"Alright, you win," Lin Jie said. "Forget about it, let's not dwell on this. Since his machine skills are so advanced, what he said must be true, right?"

"Not so," Master Wuneng said. "Don't forget that he and that admiral are accomplices. If the admiral is just trying to appease people, then what they say is likely half true and half false. It's a pity my junior brother would have come out of boredom. He's best at handling unexpected situations. Amitabha... Benefactor Lin, why are you looking at me like that?"

At this moment, Lin Jie was looking at the Incompetent Master with a strange expression: "Master, you actually have intelligence?"

"Amitabha, how could someone like you possibly understand the profound wisdom of this humble monk?"

Just as Lin Jie and the master were whispering to each other, Swain's voice rang out again.

"Who knows if you're lying? Such a huge shadow suddenly appeared on the sea."

“If you don’t believe me, you can check it yourself,” Xiang said to Swain. “If any of the passengers here are knowledgeable in this area, they can also check the Future’s communication and radar equipment themselves.”

"Hmph, I'll check that myself," Swain said, and then fell silent.

"Alright, everyone, please listen to me," the admiral said to the crowd. "According to the detection results from the Future, we have discovered that we have suddenly found ourselves in an area where signals are cut off. This area appeared without any warning. It is very likely related to this sudden thick fog."

After hearing the admiral's words, the passengers began to discuss the matter again.

"However, everyone can rest assured that although we have lost satellite navigation, the ship's positioning device has not malfunctioned. This means that we are still moving in the original direction. Therefore, it will not affect the Future's sailing time. I believe that as soon as we leave this area, we will restore communication with the outside world, and this journey will not delay your time. As long as we proceed according to the original plan and direction, the sailing time will not change in any way."

"What's with that shadow?" someone asked.

"We don't know either, but according to our detection, there are no such huge creatures or objects within a thousand nautical miles, so we deduce that it is very likely a mirage-like phenomenon." The admiral said to the passengers, "However, because we are in dense fog, I hope that all passengers will stay on board for the time being and not linger on the deck, and also not go into the sea unnecessarily, to avoid unnecessary danger..."

Just as the admiral was about to say something, a sailor ran in and whispered something in his ear.

Everyone could clearly see that the admiral's expression changed at that moment.

"Let's go, let's go take a look!" the admiral said to the person beside him, and then ran towards the deck.

……

Humans are always curious creatures, and following the admiral's actions, a large number of passengers appeared on the deck.

"My God!"

"Amazing!"

"so beautiful!"

……

This is how most passengers feel standing on the deck at this time.

Night had fallen, but the entire sea was now clearly visible. A huge, beautiful moon hung in the sky, its soft light illuminating the entire sea.

Brilliant stars hung in the deep blue sky, like a beautiful jewelry box. Most astonishingly, beside the enormous moon, two strange celestial bodies, much smaller than the moon, floated silently, like its satellites, adding a touch of mystery to the deep blue sky.

Not only that, but the sea surface was also sparkling with light, making the entire sea surface look magical and beautiful.

As the thick fog dissipated, the entire sea area exuded a soft and fantastical beauty, and was exceptionally calm.

Strange fish occasionally leap out of the water, and strange creatures frequently fly in flocks across the sky.

As the ship sailed, transparent creatures resembling dolphins would occasionally leap out of the water from the bow, as if guiding the Future.

Occasionally, one can see strangely shaped stone pillars protruding from the sea, scattered here and there. These pillars bear no trace of carving or decoration, some appearing as if they were broken off from the surface, adding to the mystique of this area.

"This is definitely not a known sea area!"

"This place is like a sea from a fairy tale."

Many passengers couldn't help but sigh when they saw such a view.

Looking at the scenery before him, Lin Jie finally realized where he was, because he had been here once seven or eight years ago.

"Fantasy Sea? Damn! How did we end up here?" Lin Jie exclaimed.

"This is the Fantasy Sea?" Thirteen asked in surprise, "Lin Jie, how did you know?"

Although most people have heard of the Fantasy Sea, very few have actually seen it. After all, it is the birthplace of the sea creatures. To this day, only a few sea heroes know how to enter the Fantasy Sea.

“I fought against the sea creatures before,” Lin Jie said, “about eight years ago.” Lin Jie said to Thirteen.

Thirteen gave Lin Jie a deep look: "It seems you weren't just a delinquent as your sister said. If I hadn't seen Zero's aura with my own eyes, I might have suspected that you, this idiot, were Zero. But the difference between you and Zero is just too great."

“Amitabha, many people fought against the sea creatures back then. Benefactor Lin must have been one of the participants in that war.” Master Wuneng said to Lin Jie, “Actually, there are still many things I don’t understand about that war back then. I wonder if Benefactor Lin could explain them to me.”

“Of course, no problem,” Lin Jie said. “Now that this is the Fantasy Sea, I know what that thick, big shadow is.”

As if confirming Lin Jie's words, a series of exclamations and screams rang out from the railing on the other side.

Almost everyone was drawn to the railing on the other side.

At this moment, everyone could see the true form of the huge shadow.

It was a huge, snake-like creature, and from a distance, its body looked as massive as a series of towering mountains.

Looking along the body of the enormous creature to both sides, one could not see the head or tail of the snake at the end of the line of sight.

"what is that?"

"Wow, it's huge!"

"My God!"