Extreme germ phobia

Chapter 282 Speculation
At the order, no one took action; instead, they remained at their posts, showing no intention of launching an attack.

Ouyang, who had already retreated to the back, was surprised to find that an inconspicuous off-road vehicle in the convoy had opened its back door, and a small hydraulic device was pushing a multi-barreled rocket-like object out of the vehicle, pointing it upwards at a 45-degree angle.

It is only slightly narrower than the carriage, making it both compact and exquisite.

This thing... could it be the legendary pocket-sized man-portable missile?

Ouyang couldn't help but stand up, craning his neck to get a better look.

However, the next second, a drone no bigger than the palm of a hand sprang out of its launch pod at high speed, unfolded its folding wings in mid-air, and hovered in the air at an extremely high speed.

Then came the second, the third... In the blink of an eye, dozens of drones had formed a swarm hovering in the air!

Wow, it's a swarm of bees!
Ou Yang's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He simply couldn't believe it was real. It seemed like they didn't even have this thing at home yet. How could their office in the United States have it?

No one gave him an answer, and after all the drones took off, they immediately turned around.

It certainly wasn't overwhelming, but there were definitely dozens of them.

The swarm of drones was so deceptive that the US military paid no attention to the sudden appearance of the drones and focused on dealing with the robot dogs.

The swarm flew over the enemy in the blink of an eye. With the support of advanced algorithms, the drones locked onto their respective targets, then lowered their noses and began to dive without hesitation.

The speed of the dive was astonishing; it landed in just a few seconds, and wherever it landed, the explosion spread, instantly causing American soldiers to fall and suffer countless casualties.

The overturned vehicles, blown upside down by the explosion, lay on the road and were instantly engulfed in flames.

The severely damaged US military was polarized. Some turned tail and ran, cowardly to the extreme; the rest were completely the opposite, all of them were like they were on steroids, either desperately firing at the robot dogs or shooting into the air without regard for anything else, as if they were all possessed by Rambo.

The swarm of bees is one thing, as they are consumables, but the robotic dogs at the front were damaged in large numbers by the US military, which broke Duan Shuxun's heart.

Ou Yang and the others looked at each other in disbelief. How could the fighting power of this group of American soldiers be so strong?

The US military is not weak, but it is not as formidable as portrayed in movies and television. It is extremely rare for someone to persist despite being in a position of extreme disadvantage.

Duan Shuxun didn't want to waste time and immediately urged them a few times.

Without hesitation, the guards who received the order carried a man-portable thermobaric weapon out of the vehicle, aimed it at the enemy, and pulled the trigger.

The projectile flew out of the launch tube, drawing an arc in the air. Suddenly, a burst of flames erupted on the side of the road where the enemy was located, and in the blink of an eye, the billowing smoke enveloped the enemy.

Swarms of bees are for precision strikes, while thermobaric bombs are for indiscriminate, all-encompassing coverage.

US troops stationed further away were not affected, but those closer were either burned to a crisp by the high temperature or overturned by the shockwave. Even those hiding inside armored vehicles were roasted to a crisp by the high temperature.

The subnuclear weapon is not just talk; although it is only a single-soldier version, it should not be underestimated.

If the US military's combat capability was at 100% before the thermobaric bombs were deployed, after one bombardment, the US military's combat capability would be reduced to at most 50%.

Let me just say more.

The remaining drones swarmed down, and the robot dogs at the forefront also launched an attack. In a short while, they wiped out most of the American troops who dared to resist, completely ending the battle.

Only when there was no further danger did the guards who had been hiding in the back move in.

Well, they don't need to fight anymore; they're just there to clean up the battlefield.

Having witnessed the entire process firsthand, Ouyang was deeply moved and filled with emotion.

There was a time when our poorly equipped side, facing the heavily armed American army, could only fight to the death.

Now times have changed, and we can now hide far away in a safe place and use advanced equipment to thoroughly deal with the old Americans.

The battle was over before the enemy even saw a single person.

He suddenly felt a sense of pride and superiority, looking down on the US, and had the urge to give a thumbs up and praise it: Awesome, my country!

The guards were also incredibly efficient at cleaning up the battlefield; any vehicles still stuck in the road were blown up without hesitation.

Instead of destroying the vehicles, they used precise explosives to lift the heavy military vehicles off the road, clearing a path for the convoy.

The US troops were either killed by unmanned equipment or wiped out by thermobaric weapons, and all the surviving US troops were captured by guards.

Tokyo University did not have a habit of mistreating prisoners of war. Even in this situation, they still selected American soldiers who could still be treated and provided them with medical assistance.

When Ou Yang and his team arrived at the battlefield, the passage had already been opened. A dozen or so Americans, stripped of all their gear, were lying on the roadside, and two guards carrying medical kits were disinfecting and bandaging them.

With lightning speed, the hand movements were so fast they left afterimages; in the blink of an eye, the cleaning, disinfection, and bandaging were all done.

Ou Yang strongly suspected that these two were deliberately using Lao Mi as practice. Even if they were in a hurry, they shouldn't be in such a hurry, right?
He hadn't paid much attention to the prisoners, but out of curiosity, he glanced at the two guards a few more times and inadvertently noticed that the captured American soldiers all had blank stares.

Upon closer inspection, his face had an unnatural grayish-white tinge.

Something's wrong!

Ou Yang grabbed Duan Shuxun's arm: "Stop the car!"

Duan Shuxun was stunned: "What's wrong?"

"I'll explain later, stop the car!" Ou Yang insisted.

Duan Shuxun gave Ou Yang a deep look: "Stop the car!"

Before the car had even come to a complete stop, Ouyang jumped out and quickly approached the prisoners. He first observed the conscious ones, then pried open the eyelids of the unconscious ones.

Bloodshot eyes and dark circles under the eyes – this wasn't just one person, but all the prisoners showed the same symptoms!
Duan Shuxun came up behind Ou Yang and asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"

Ou Yang took a deep breath and immediately smelled a faint spore odor, instantly becoming alert: "Something's wrong, there are spores!"

Duan Shuxun's expression changed: "Secretary Liu—have you found the spores?"

Secretary Liu leaned out of the car: "Didn't find anything!"

Duan Shuxun comforted him, "Ou Yang, are you too nervous?"

The vehicle is equipped with a portable purification device that constantly monitors whether there are spores inside or outside the vehicle.

Ou Yang didn't reply, his eyes scanning the surroundings, and soon he found a small silver-white steel cylinder under an overturned SUV.

The cylinder is only the size of a thermos, but it is very well made. When the wind blows, the spore smell becomes even stronger.

That's right, the spores came out of the gas cylinder!

But he didn't know how to explain his discovery. He couldn't very well say that his nose was different and that he could smell the spores, could he?

Ouyang hesitated for a moment, then pointed at the prisoners and said, "Look at them, they look exactly like the infected people in the epidemic area!"

Zhu Yiming and Jiang Yuwei exchanged a glance, both seeing the confusion in each other's eyes: Where are they similar? I don't see it at all.

Ouyang continued to use the prisoners as an excuse, no longer emphasizing the presence of spores in the air, but instead saying that the US soldiers had inhaled a large number of spores and seemed to still be deeply trapped in the illusion.

After hearing his words, Duan Shuxun also felt that the matter was becoming increasingly strange, but he had no intention of digging deeper. Instead, he ordered the guards to clean up the battlefield as quickly as possible and leave the battlefield in the shortest possible time.

Regardless of whether there were spores or not, he didn't want to stay in this place any longer. Just before leaving, Secretary Liu asked, "Director, what should we do with the prisoners?"

Duan Shuxun hesitated for a moment, then sighed helplessly, "Take it with you!"

So the guards loaded all ten or so prisoners onto the vehicle. During the loading process, two American soldiers, as if possessed, struggled desperately despite their injuries.

The wound that had just been bandaged reopened, and fresh blood soaked through the gauze.

With no other option, the medic resorted to underhanded tactics, knocking out the two old Americans before all the prisoners could be loaded onto the truck.

With everything ready, the convoy continued its journey to Shy Stew.

Leave an investigation?

That's impossible. First, I don't have the ability, and second, I don't have the time.

As for the causes and consequences, let the higher-ups worry about that.

In the evening, the convoy stopped in a remote place, far from any village or shop, intending to rest there for a while before continuing its journey.

From this morning until now, the convoy has traveled more than 500 kilometers, nearly half of the total journey.

If all goes well, I should be able to get to Xiushi Stew by tomorrow morning.

Upon hearing this news, Zhu Yiming sighed, "At this speed, we can walk much faster!"

Ou Yang thought to himself, "Isn't that obvious? They don't even look at what the guards are equipped with."

If he had all that legendary equipment, why would he have been stuck in White Maple Town for an entire winter? He would have blasted a passage and escaped Xiong Prefecture long ago.

"Guards, stay alert! Everyone else, resolve the issue as quickly as possible!"

Under Duan Shuxun's command, a group of men rushed to the roadside, laughing and joking, and unbuckled their belts to relieve themselves.

The few women were hiding in another direction, guarded by designated personnel.

Just as Ou Yang was pulling up his pants and walking back, Secretary Liu suddenly jumped out of the car, rushed to Duan Shuxun's side, and whispered a few words.

Duan Shuxun looked surprised: "Really?"

Secretary Liu nodded vigorously and glanced at Ou Yang.

Ou Yang was baffled, wondering what was going on now.
Duan Shuxun turned around: "Ou Yang, come with me!"

After saying that, he walked towards the vehicle... the vehicle that carried the prisoners!

After getting into the vehicle, the prisoners all looked over, and Ouyang immediately realized that something was wrong.

Their eyes were bright and alert; fear had replaced their blank stare.

Duan Shuxun approached a US soldier: "Do you know who we are?"

Mi Jun was both surprised and frightened. He avoided Duan Shuxun's gaze and shook his head vigorously.

He wasn't very old, maybe in his early twenties at most. Judging from his timid appearance, if he had a shell on his back, he would probably have shrunk into it by now.

Duan Shuxun then looked at another old man: "Do you know who we are?"

They shook their heads in unison, filled with the same fear.

Duan Shuxun stood up: "Interrogate them separately and compare their testimonies!"

A group of guards rushed onto the vehicle, took all the prisoners out, and interrogated them separately.

Soon after, the prisoners' confessions were relayed to Duan Shuxun—all the prisoners unanimously claimed that they did not know where they were.

When asked if they remembered the conflict, the answers were surprisingly consistent: they both said they didn't remember.

Duan Shuxun was completely bewildered. It was one thing for him to be confused, but why was everyone else confused at the same time?

When asked what had happened before, this time there was a different answer. One person said that their team was attacked by a dragon and suffered heavy casualties. They thought they had fallen into the hands of ogres and were about to be eaten, but after a while, they found out that this was not the case at all.

Ou Yang couldn't help but complain, "What the hell is this cannibalism?"

Another theory suggests that when the Russians landed on American soil, triggering World War III, American troops suffered heavy casualties when attacked by Russian warplanes.

Even more outrageous is the claim that someone encountered an alien UFO, and while everyone else died, only a few of them were captured by the aliens.

Ouyang continued to complain: What the hell are aliens? I'm a Zentradi person!

Duan Shuxun's mind was in complete chaos.

Even with his lack of experience, he knew these people were definitely hallucinating, but how could they be hallucinating when no spores were found?
Ouyang thought further ahead; although no spores were found, it was definitely related to spores.

Moreover, he knew that the hallucinogenic effect came from the hallucinogenic components contained in the spores, and a bold guess immediately came to his mind: Could it be that someone has extracted the hallucinogenic components from the spores?

All the prisoners looked like they were indulging in excessive sexual activity, much like those who smoked marijuana for a long time, which is quite strong evidence.

He immediately voiced his guess.

The police need evidence, but neither Ou Yang nor Duan Shuxun are police officers, so guessing is enough.

In other words, these US troops have been controlled by someone with ulterior motives using harmful substances!

Further questioning confirmed this conjecture. At least a third of the prisoners, upon discovering that the illusion was too absurd, realized that they were trapped in it, but were powerless to break free. Moreover, their reason was quickly swallowed up by the illusion, and they only slowly realized what had happened when they came to their senses.

The situation is quite clear, and the truth is somewhat complicated.

Ou Yang analyzed, "This person or force must meet two conditions: first, they must have the technology and strength to refine the material; second, they must have a large quantity of raw materials!"

Duan Shuxun nodded in agreement.

Ou Yang's eyes gleamed: "But where do the raw materials come from?"

Even a skilled cook can't cook without rice; that's the most important issue.

Duan Shuxun knew the importance of this discovery and said in a low voice, "It doesn't matter what the rice is like, as long as the raw materials being refined don't flow out of our area."

Ouyang scratched his head: "We've expanded so much, what if something goes wrong at any stage..."

Duan Shuxun nodded silently, already making plans in his mind.

There are three possible scenarios. The best outcome is that our side has absolutely nothing to do with this matter. The second is that the spores used for extraction come from our side, which is a bit troublesome, and we will have to bear some joint responsibility. The worst-case scenario is that not only do the spores come from our side, but the extraction process is also related to our side. In that case, our side will be in a very passive position.

Thinking of this, Duan Shuxun's eyes flashed with a sharp, piercing light. He immediately issued a gag order to everyone: "No one is allowed to reveal this to anyone, not even our own people!"

After saying that, he walked to the side and made a phone call to the Dongzhou—a warship with a displacement of more than 10,000 tons. The embassy that had been evacuated to the sea was now being housed on the Dongzhou!

(End of this chapter)