Starting from South America, speeding through the world

Chapter 254 A Mysterious Chicken Farmer's Ecstatic Joy

Chapter 254 A Mysterious Chicken Farmer's Ecstatic Joy
2:43 AM.

Searchlights swept across the distance.

Lieutenant Colonel Eckhart stood silently in front of the broken armored vehicle, his hands in his coat pockets.

The military truck, originally numbered S-317, has now been completely flattened.

It turned into a twisted metal plate less than half a meter thick, so thick that even the basic frame was no longer recognizable.

His adjutant vomited twice while trying to examine the wreckage and was eventually ordered to "get back in the car."

There were at least seventy corpses lying in the open space.

Some were so compressed that their bones were exposed, while many more could not be pieced together at all.

Troops from four different companies have already formed a perimeter blockade.

The radio was filled with noise and repetitive commands.

There were no traces of the murderer.

Even whether there was a "murderer" at all is unknown.

The helicopter that had been hovering in mid-air finally dared to land.

The pale-faced pilots kept claiming that they had "seen something".

Eckhart ignored him.

He crouched down and surveyed the horrific scene before him.

The body parts were stuck to the steel plate, and the transition was so natural that it seemed as if it had been formed by nature itself.

High temperature, gravity, impact, some inexplicable force.

"Did you see any signs of an explosion here?" Eckhart casually asked the sapper behind him.

The other party paused for a few seconds, then shook his head: "There are no shell craters, and no gunpowder residue."

“Tell me your guess,” Eckhart said, looking up at the dark sky. “What could it be?”

The engineer was somewhat conflicted.

He hesitated for a moment before whispering, "Our initial suspicion is that it is some kind of heavy object that fell from a high altitude at high speed."

"Meteorite?"

"No residue was found at the scene, and it doesn't look like a natural object."

"That means—it's man-made?"

The sappers suddenly tensed up.

“Size, weight,” he took a deep breath, “far exceed the size and weight of the airdrop platforms we have.”

This time, Eckhart remained silent.

He stood up and walked toward the pilot who had just taken off his helmet.

The man looked flustered, his forehead covered in cold sweat.

"You said you saw it?" Eckhart asked.

"Yes, Your Excellency."

"See clearly?"

“Not entirely sure,” the pilot swallowed, “We were at an altitude of nearly 700 meters, visibility was poor, and the lighting was inadequate, but—”

At this point, he became increasingly hesitant, as if weighing something.

"But there was something, huge and shining."

"It only lasted for a few seconds, and then it exploded below."

What shape is that thing?

The pilot lowered his head, his lips trembled, and his voice was so soft it was almost inaudible:

"It looks like a ship, a very large warship."

Eckhart immediately frowned.

But he didn't rush to deny the man; he just sighed softly.

"You mean, someone threw a ship down from the sky?"

"Sir, that's not what I meant. I was just saying it looks—"

"Do you have a video recording?"

"Yes, but due to equipment limitations, the picture is very blurry."

Upon hearing this, Eckhart couldn't help but sigh.

However, before he could say anything more, a car stopped not far away.

Several people in black uniforms then came down.

Eckhart could guess who it was even with his eyes closed.

He straightened his clothes and went to meet them expressionlessly.

"Mr. Düsseldorf." The other party didn't return the greeting or exchange pleasantries, but went straight to the point:
"Lieutenant Colonel, I heard there's been some trouble here."

“The situation is still unclear.” Eckhart barely suppressed his displeasure. “But preliminary tests have determined that it is not related to a conventional attack or explosion.”

Upon hearing this, Düssel's lips twitched slightly, but he didn't show much of a smile.

"Whose command area is this?" he asked, his tone scrutinizing.

"At the time of the accident, the 14th Mechanized Infantry Battalion was assisting in an emergency pursuit mission targeting an out-of-control military vehicle."

Who's in the car?

There were two passengers, one male and one female.

"What about your identity?"

No documents were found at the scene for comparison.

"But the military police claimed they had broken out from a local resistance stronghold."

"Are they involved in this?" Düssel asked cryptically.

Eckhart gazed at the horrific ruins, his tone restrained: "There is currently no evidence of a direct link."

When you say "currently," do you mean it's still under investigation, or do you privately believe it's "impossible"?

"If you're referring to my personal judgment—"

Eckhart paused. "I don't think those two had enough firepower to cause that much physical damage."

"Based on records from the past decade, the resistance has not demonstrated any resources that come close to that level."

Düsseldorf gave a soft hum.

"There were more than seventy bodies at the scene, but those two were not among them."

Do you think this is a coincidence?

“If you have any other explanation,” Eckhart said nonchalantly, “I’m all ears.”

The atmosphere fell into a brief stalemate.

In the end, Dussel looked away and gave up asking further questions.

He turned and walked toward the open space that still smelled of burning.

There, corpses, metal, and soil blended together, making it difficult to distinguish their original state.

Düssel stood there, hands behind his back.

After a long silence, he spoke again:

Where is your recorder?

"Two preliminary investigations have been conducted, and the autopsy team is still en route," Eckhart said.

Düssel, however, seemed not to hear and suddenly bent down.

Then, he tapped one of the steel plates a few times, as if trying to identify what it had once belonged to.

Eckhart watched his series of actions from the side, and after a few seconds, he said coldly:
"This doesn't resemble the effect of explosives, nor is it typical—"

"Of course I know."

Dussel interrupted him bluntly, "Now remind me, what did that pilot say?"

Upon hearing this, Eckhart frowned even more deeply.

"He claims to have witnessed an unidentified heavy object falling from a great height," he said.

Dussel glanced at the man and asked lightly:

"Did you ask him to make this up? Or is it actually true?"

“I have no right to interfere with their reporting process,” Eckhart said, taking a deep breath before patiently responding.

Upon seeing this, Düsseldorf laughed.

“You are a disciplined and good officer,” he said, straightening up and brushing the dust off his hands.

"Honest, decisive, and loyal."

"That's why you'd better get used to the situation you're about to face."

"This matter will be handled by a higher level."