Chapter 213: Arrival

Xinjiang, a military camp area somewhere in Lop Nur.

Major General Chen Zhongyuan glanced at the time on his wristwatch once again; his forehead was already covered in beads of sweat for some unknown reason.

"The appointed time is almost here..."

In a few more days, it will be December. This desert region is not only dry but also possesses a bitter cold unlike that of the Central Plains.

Just like that, as soon as a small breeze picked up, Chen Zhongyuan could not help but shiver.

He hurriedly reached out to wipe his forehead, only to discover that the beads of sweat on his brow were already chillingly cold.

Unable to help it, he tightened his military uniform and looked to the side, where a young non-commissioned officer, also dressed in military attire, was waiting.

"What is the situation with the Early Warning Radar? Have any suspicious targets been detected?"

"Reporting to the Chief, no anomalies have been discovered!"

Chen Zhongyuan nodded, though his brow furrowed.

Having no discoveries at all was likely the worst news right now.

Chen Zhongyuan originally served in a unit of the Beijing Garrison District Guard Division. Because his family background was impeccable and he had performed excellently throughout his more than twenty years of service, he was one of the young, promising officers the military was focusing on cultivating. It was for this reason that he obtained this opportunity and was specially transferred by the higher-ups to serve as the person in charge of "Project 4728," making him one of the few people aware of this project.

The so-called "4728" was named after the establishment date of the Arctic Yellow River Scientific Research Station.

Because this project was a product created to cover up contact with extraterrestrial beings that might descend upon Earth, every participant was an elite drawn from various domestic departments and military-industrial enterprises. For the sake of secrecy, many people, including Chen Zhongyuan himself, had undergone detailed investigations.

A series of hurried footsteps soon came from behind. Chen Zhongyuan quickly turned his head to look, and his eyes could not help but brighten.

The person who arrived was also a young military officer; he was walking with a rapid marching pace from one of the tents.

"Report, I just received an inquiry call from the Chief's office. The leaders in the central government are still waiting for us on their end..."

"Understood. Please immediately convey to the leaders that no suspicious targets have been discovered yet!"

"Yes!"

The young officer quickly turned and returned to the tent. Chen Zhongyuan looked up at the sky again and shook his head helplessly.

Half a month ago, when he was suddenly summoned by his superiors and told that an important Task would be entrusted to him to execute, Chen Zhongyuan was both excited and thrilled.

However, when he was not transferred to Zhurihe as expected the next day, but instead picked up by a military vehicle from the General Staff Department, everything he encountered thereafter made Chen Zhongyuan suspect even now whether he and this country had been deceived by some hackers.

Someone had actually told him that aliens had descended upon Earth and had even contacted China through the Arctic Yellow River Scientific Research Station, saying something about wanting to make a deal with China.

Heaven knows, even though he was appointed as the person in charge of this project, Chen Zhongyuan remained highly skeptical about the authenticity of the aliens to this day.

However, personal skepticism could not influence the will of the state.

Chen Zhongyuan also knew that if everything were true, then for a China that had been suffering from technological blockades by powerful European and American nations for more than half a century, it would be no less than an opportunity to overtake them on a curve.

Therefore, even though the higher-ups could clearly realize the risks.

The central government still specially allocated a portion of funds from the budget, and after comprehensive consideration by the military, they finally selected the desolate Lop Nur region, renovating this camp that had once been used for nuclear test personnel to serve as the meeting location.

To prevent any accidents, in addition to deploying a certain number of Warriors around the camp, the military also blockaded thirty kilometers around the camp and made other arrangements in the vicinity.

Of course, these were only necessary precautions.

If aliens really had descended to Earth and were willing to make contact with China, the enthusiasm of this country would definitely make other countries feel ashamed.

Time flowed away second by second while waiting.

Chen Zhongyuan could not sit still in the tent at all; he kept staying in the camp, pacing back and forth from time to time, his gaze never moving away from the sky, as if he wanted to find those suspicious traces with his naked eye.

Inside the camp, communications from various sources kept coming in.

"... Report, news from the Liangguang region, the radar has not discovered any anomalies!"

"The strategic Early Warning Radar has also not discovered any anomalies..."

As the appointed time drew near, more and more communications kept coming in from all over the country.

Chen Zhongyuan's mood gradually sank to the bottom with each passing communication.

"Damn it, I'm afraid this really is a scam..."

His gaze kept looking at his wrist. When the time showed that less than thirty seconds remained and he still had not seen the so-called extraterrestrial life arrive for the appointment, a trace of anger could not help but appear on Chen Zhongyuan's face.

He took a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and lit one for himself, feeling depressed and uncomfortable.

Chen Zhongyuan knew that besides himself and the others here, countless eyes across all of China were now watching this place. If not for safety considerations, one of the central leaders even had the intention to personally arrive on the scene to make contact with the aliens.

Now it seemed they had very likely been subjected to a prank and a joke!

He could not help but look up at the sky, letting the frustration and anger in his heart turn into tears that flowed down.

However, Chen Zhongyuan did not expect that just as the time on his wristwatch reached the second before the appointed time, a dull sound of a heavy object falling from high above suddenly rang out on the vast open ground of the camp in front of him.

"What? What is that sound..."

Chen Zhongyuan subconsciously turned his head to look toward where the sound came from. Upon looking, he immediately saw on the flat ground in front of him, constructed with reinforced concrete, that one could faintly see a pair of massive footprints smashed into the ground, with several cracks spreading out from the footprint-shaped pits.

"Footprints? Could it be..."

Joy filled his eyes; the cigarette Chen Zhongyuan was holding even fell to the ground. He did not notice it himself, as his gaze and attention were entirely focused on the open ground in front of him, where the footprints had suddenly appeared.

It was not just him; the sound of the heavy object falling on the camp's open ground immediately attracted most of the attention within the entire camp.

Two squads of fully armed Warriors with loaded weapons quickly rushed over to protect the area near Chen Zhongyuan. At the same time, several infantry fighting vehicles that were on alert at all times also arrived quickly, coordinating to establish a defensive perimeter nearby.

Seeming to sense that everyone's gaze was focused on them, a burst of electric light suddenly flashed at the footprints.

Accompanied by the flickering of electric light, the figure of a hulking, ferocious mechanical Warrior gradually appeared before everyone.