Chapter 897 - 176: "Driverless" Convoy

Schulz swore he had never seen Middle Eastern oil barons working so hard to extract oil in his life.

The Iron Ride team had already reached the border and released the drones—

The Peregrine drone really did slice through the sky like a peregrine falcon.

[Peregrine Drone "Series Three"]

[Description: After acquiring cyber-advanced technology, the Latovian research team improved the Peregrine drone, integrating a bionic imaging device capable of capturing and analyzing dynamic images at speeds exceeding 300 km/h.]

[Reward Technology Points: 1200]

[Current Technology Points: 91000]

The high-speed diving peregrine could reach speeds of over 300 km/h, and the Peregrine drone could as well, equipped with super dynamic vision like the bird.

Oil wells dotted the ground, and in the distance, thick black smoke covered the surface, evidently from clusters of oil industrial complexes.

Crowded transport vehicles moved along established routes; these roads intersected and merged into the main roads, resembling a circuit board in operation.

The "people" inside the vehicles were wrapped in thick clothes, their protective gear complete as if they were mining, with long intake channels on their masks continuously drawing in the black air.

Are these really humans?

Do people work in such an environment?

[Boom!]

A loud explosion suddenly occurred in the video, as if everything had gone blank. When the image recovered, the Peregrine’s altitude had significantly decreased, just like a falcon suddenly losing consciousness and plummeting.

The drone quickly regained normalcy, but gunfire erupted from the ground!

A hailstorm of bullets raked the sky, but it’s very difficult to hit such a fast-moving small target from high altitude.

Whoosh—

The returning drone witnessed an even more terrifying scene:

Armored vehicles were already on the road to Greece, military trucks and tanks speeding down the highway...

So, they had been prepared to attack all along!

Economic sanctions, seen by the European Union as a very serious diplomatic measure, were meant but they had been planning for war right from the start!

Schulz could only feel his hands shaking: They really had been at peace for too long and didn’t prioritize the possibility of war occurring!

After economic deterioration, war is bound to happen, but they still fantasized about the worsening economy magically turning around, dreaming that one day everyone would suddenly join hands towards a bright future?!

Naive, too naive.

Perhaps in society, there are many people living unsatisfactory lives fantasizing about destroying everything, dreaming that with the arrival of war, they could become war heroes and win it all...

But anyone with a modicum of rationality knows that once on the battlefield, those unemployed who just lay at home doing drugs would be the first to die—

And eventually, it would lead to the collapse of the remaining societal order and goodness!

[Schulz: We need your network now, now!]

[Lille: The expert team is on their way and should have already reached Berlin...]

[Lille: This group is openly traveling by road.]

Lille’s addition made Schulz pause again, the communicator’s display switching to the roads outside Berlin—

In the image was the very office building he was currently in.

Knock knock.

The door knocked, and the secretary was still considering how to report this sudden incident when Schulz breezed past him like a gust of wind.

"Mr. Speaker..."

Schulz tidied his clothes while walking and waved his hand: "Convene an emergency meeting, as soon as possible."

"But the network..."

"If the network’s down, send someone running to call people! Those who get there first get to vote, tell them it’s urgent!"

...

[Christopher: Your Majesty, the lights at the Parliament Building are on. Do you think they will make a decision quickly?]

[Lille: Schulz is a very capable politician; he just needs a little prompting to go full throttle.]

[Lille: In this situation where everyone is confused, people need firm, heartfelt encouragement and guidance...]

[Lille: Before society collapses, this tactic is usually quite effective.]

Like the various speeches made before famous battles, sometimes people are not that self-serving, especially when society reaches a turning point.

They will choose the loudest, most passionate person as their direction, which is also a turning point in societal development.

[Christopher: What about Rocksen’s advance team?]

[Lille: Blow them up and give Schulz the evidence he wants.]

[Christopher: Understood.]

Tonight was a bright night, no clouds in the sky, the moon hanging like a bright lamp.

The Iron Ride troops, lurking at the Greek border, cloaked under a shroud, distorted light and interfered with electromagnetic and radar detection.

No need for Titans to destroy the defenseless transport convoy.

Since Ellis and Rocksen began sanctioning the European Union, this highway had been devoid of traffic for ages, and now only the convoy was moving...

Boom!

A tremendous explosion thundered!

With precise calculations, explosives planted inside the highway by machines exploded simultaneously, and with a chain reaction, the entire road was collapsing!

The covers of military pickup truck beds slid away as vehicles plummeted into the deep pit, revealing combat robots one by one!

But before the robots could fully activate, the Iron Ride leaped onto these vehicles using their mobility gear and Sven-Stan, attaching various explosives!

Thermite explosives ignited during the collapse, burning through armor plating with intense heat—

Boom!

The second explosion bathed the entire pit in a fireball!

The flames soared skyward, and the other Iron Rides set up electromagnetic sniper rifles from a distance, but as expected, there were no units capable of counterattack.

The deep pit from the highway collapse consumed all the vehicles like a melting furnace.

[Christopher: Continue monitoring.]

[Iron Ride #0021: Commander, there’s something there.]

Through the telescope, a pair of arms crawled onto the burning asphalt, like a person struggling in Hell, grasping towards Heaven with all their might, hoping for redemption.

[Christopher: ...Permission to approach.]

[Iron Ride #0021: Received—Assault squad, capture the target, proceed cautiously.]

Following the instruction, Iron Ride members in groups of three jumped towards the gap, simultaneously launching heat-resistant ropes to bind the arm—

It was a mechanical arm.

The trio approached the edge of the pit cautiously, weapons ready...

Soon they saw a person in full protective gear—

The respirator’s long intake pipe indicated it was a human, requiring air and oxygen, thus, an operable mask was necessary.

"Help... help me... help me..."

[Iron Ride #0152: Captain, it’s a human.]

[Iron Ride #0021: Capture, remain vigilant. The combat manual mentions we may encounter intelligent AI, disconnect external communications upon contact.]

[Iron Ride #0152: Initiating electromagnetic shielding in three seconds, communication will be cut in three seconds, over.]

Iron Ride 0152 holstered his weapon, grabbing the person’s hand.

It was a metallic arm.

"It’s a prosthetic..."

"Definitely a human."