mtl008 Chapter 4320 Body of Steel (25)
Chapter 4320 Body of Steel (25)
Chapter 4320 Body of Steel (Twenty-Five)
Pedestrians on the ground screamed and ran. Those further away looked back as the building slowly collapsed. Just as everyone was shouting "No!!!", a figure flew to the foot of the building and lifted up the half of the building that was about to fall.
To the average person, his figure was tiny compared to the enormous Luther Hotel. Yet, this tiny figure managed to lift the building and steadily place it on the open ground of the adjacent park.
Everyone was stunned by the sudden turn of events, momentarily at a loss for how to react. But there were always a few quick-thinking individuals who pulled out their phones to take pictures the instant the building began to collapse. Moreover, this was the heart of the metropolis, a prime location, riddled with security cameras and home to numerous newspaper headquarters. Many reporters, armed with their cameras and microphones, had already swarmed around.
Louise had already raised her camera the moment Clark got out of the car. She filmed the entire scene of Clark saving the building. However, saving the building was clearly just the beginning. She continued to point the camera at the Luther Hotel, and sure enough, she saw several figures wrapped up tightly in the lens.
Half an hour earlier, on the Kryptonian spaceship, Zod frowned as he looked at the information on his tablet. His fingers tapped lightly on the table, as if he were deep in thought.
A female adjutant walked over and sat down opposite him, then asked, "What's wrong, General?"
“I’m thinking about something,” Zod said. “This artifact is probably not as simple as it seems. If, as in the myths, Kryptonians once visited Earth and were repelled or even killed by the Emerald, and that gem was set in an artifact that is now safely kept in the British Museum, then where did the gem powder that repelled you and caused your mutation come from?”
The female adjutant frowned as well; she too had keenly sensed that something was amiss. The problem was that the number of gems was incorrect.
The internet is now flooded with legends about that mural. To prove it hadn't been stolen, the royal family opened a public exhibition, which was very successful. High-resolution images of the artifact are everywhere online, especially the image resembling their small frigate and close-ups of the beautiful emerald.
So here's the question: if this mural is real, and the gems are properly set in it, where did the military get the gem powder to make the weapons?
The average person doesn't know this because, in their eyes, the idea that cultural relics were switched might not be true; it could just be a rumor. There was only one gemstone throughout the entire exhibition—the one shown on the exhibit.
Zod knew that, of course, because they had been attacked. If the gems were properly set in the exhibits, then the thing that hit them couldn't have just appeared out of thin air.
Therefore, Zod is inclined to believe that the gem has been switched; that is, the one on display is fake, and the real one has been pried off and used as a weapon. This is a classic case of substitution; on the surface, the exhibit appears fine to the average person, but the truly useful part has already been replaced.
Following this logic, the current artifact is a fake, and the most valuable part for everyone is long gone. However, the strange thing is that various human factions highly value this "fake gem."
Zod's mission wasn't specifically to cause trouble for Clark. The small escort ship he sent had a network beacon on Earth that could connect to the main ship, allowing him to access the human internet.
Kryptonians' internet technology isn't particularly advanced, but unfortunately, humans aren't exactly hiding anything. Some newspapers' front pages are filled with headlines like, "Metropolitan National Guard continues to escort artifacts to ensure their safety," "US military deploys personnel to strengthen patrols around the Metropolitan Museum of Art," and "Members of Congress personally inspect the exhibition to ensure its security."
This is clearly very wrong. Logically speaking, the useful parts have already been taken, and significant progress has been made in the battle against aliens. Shouldn't they be striking while the iron is hot and taking some action against the aliens? Why are they all busy with artifacts?
Having eliminated all the impossibilities, what remains must be the truth. Zod felt that the gems on the artifact might also be genuine.
Or perhaps the gemstones on the artifacts were the real force that defeated the aliens, while the one that actually defeated them might have been a human-made imitation, or a mineral found alongside the gemstone. It was only because it was proven effective that people set their sights on the real gemstones.
This also explains why the artifact was rumored to have been "switched," as it was likely kept out of the public eye for so long to study the composition of the gemstones. The result of the research was that it repelled the gemstone powder.
Although this explanation had its flaws, Zod truly couldn't think of any other possibility. Even if there were, he couldn't take the risk. Even if there was the slightest possibility that the gem on the exhibit had the same effect as the gem powder that repelled them, it couldn't fall into human hands again. They had to get their hands on it.
Zod understood that since everyone wanted the gem, no one would leave the real one until the day of the exhibition; they would all try to replace it before then. Therefore, he had to act quickly, or he would lose all initiative.
But after all, he wasn't human, making it difficult to investigate discreetly, and he didn't know who had the ability to switch the gems during the process. However, there was one very simple method: the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
Zod only needs to find the person who went to exchange for the gems, follow him, see who he contacts, and then find that person. Humans have ways to get their own kind to compromise, so surely he can too.
Zod chose the military as his target. He was a general himself, and he knew very well that military officers were usually the most straightforward and brutal. They didn't bother with any subtlety or trickery; they would just kick down the door, point a gun at someone's head, and everyone would have to compromise.
If you follow politicians, you might end up going in circles and ending up back where you started. And for smaller, less powerful groups, it's even less likely they can even find the right door.
So Zod sent men down to follow the officer. This wasn't difficult, because these military personnel had such a distinctive air about them; even when they were just idly strolling the streets, they were clearly different from ordinary people. And anyone wandering the streets at this time of day was probably heading straight for that professional.
His three men, who followed along, discovered that the military seemed to have located the Luther Hotel, apparently where the professional they were looking for was staying. The military, as expected, didn't disappoint; flashing their badges and drawing their guns, they went up to find the person.
The three aliens following them knew they couldn't just swagger up there, lest they alert the enemy. So they went through the back cargo passage, knocking out only two ordinary employees, and then climbed the stairs to catch up with the officer in front.
The officer had already arrived in the corridor and was knocking on the door when three aliens lay in ambush in the stairwell leading to the escape route. But for some reason, after the door was opened, an argument broke out and a fight ensued.
Upon seeing this, the three aliens realized that one side was probably trying to silence them, and if they didn't act soon, the mission might not be completed. So they simply grabbed their guns and charged in.
The officers were no pushovers either; they drew their guns and opened fire on any intruders they saw. They were well-prepared and had heavy firepower, nearly driving the aliens away. The aliens, not to be outdone, returned fire immediately.
However, they had no proper understanding of the sturdiness of human buildings. The laser guns they carried could easily slice through the load-bearing walls of the building, and they didn't just fire in bursts, but swept from left to right, cutting through all three load-bearing walls of the presidential suite and even making a large gash in the exterior wall.
With a deafening crash, the building collapsed. Everyone, including the alien who had fired the gun, screamed and fell in one direction like laundry pods in a washing machine. Only then did they realize the utter folly they had committed.
Thankfully, Clark arrived quickly. The building was only slightly tilted, and he lifted it up and placed it aside. If he had arrived a few seconds later, all the culprits who caused the building to collapse would have been crushed to death.
After dropping off the building, Clark flew back immediately. Fearing that Schiller had been murdered, he began searching the crowd as soon as he returned, but he couldn't find Schiller.
He slowly descended and first saw the aliens. He squinted at them and said, "Where did you take him?"
The aliens looked like they'd seen a ghost, because Clark was speaking Kryptonian. For a moment, they didn't know whether to raise their guns or respond.
Clark, sounding slightly impatient, asked again, "Where did you put Schiller?!"
Even the aliens are puzzled. We came here to find experts, but before we even found any, they demolished the building.
Thinking this, they turned to look at the room, because the expert they were looking for should be in this room. However, all they could see, besides the human soldiers, was a man and a woman, huddled in a corner, trembling.
The aliens hesitated; this didn't seem like the target they were looking for. But since the military had found this place, it couldn't have been without reason. Should they take it back and try?
They charged straight in that direction. Clark scoffed dismissively, rushed forward, punched him, and sent him flying. He floated in front of him and said, "I told you, Earth isn't a place for you. Get out of my way!"
The opponent was struck hard and let out a painful groan. Seeing this, the other two companions knew that it was probably game over for them today, so they simply took their fallen comrade and ran away.
Clark glanced back at the couple, initially noticing nothing, but after looking back again, he realized the man looked familiar; he seemed to be a New Jersey state legislator.
However, the woman was unfamiliar; she shouldn't be the wife who frequently appears in the media with this senator. Has Zod gone mad, sending people down specifically to catch them in the act?
The officers reacted quickly, saying, "We did come looking for Schiller, but he's not in the room. We've got the wrong person!"
Clark frowned. The military wouldn't make a mistake with the room number they could find, so it was likely that Schiller had done something to get the officer to find the room of a congressman who was having a secret rendezvous with his lover, which led to the conflict between the two sides.
This guy is definitely not someone to be trifled with. Clark started thinking again. These smart people always have an ulterior motive. Was he unwilling to help switch the gems just to watch them fight at the exhibition?
(End of this chapter)