Reinforcements were completed within a week.
Once the troop strength was sufficient, they no longer confined themselves to the railway lines and instead advanced towards the construction zones.
The priority was to reclaim the prosperous areas, such as major cities, starports, coastal harbors, and transportation hubs. The cities had been completely overrun by flora and fauna. Upon entering, the troops encountered an incredibly bizarre scene.
The windows of the buildings were shattered, and thick vines, like pythons, snaked out. Palm-sized leaves covered the exterior walls of all buildings. When the wind blew, the entire city was filled with sounds like clapping.
The roads were also covered with vines and soft trees, with green leaves blanketing the ground. Numerous brightly colored fungi bloomed like flowers. Beside withered flowers were various fruits that, when stepped on, would spurt out juice and seeds.
Birds had built nests inside residential and office buildings. An astonishing number of birds of all kinds perched on sofas, in wardrobes, and on top of televisions. Opening a door would cause flocks of birds to fly out, their feathers like snow, with shattered eggshells littering the floor and egg yolks flowing across the floor tiles.
Various small animal nests had also taken over convenience stores, hospital outpatient departments, and post offices. Rats gnawed open snack packaging, ate all the contents first, and then filled the bags with their droppings. Snakes climbed onto the ceiling along IV drip stands, their posture resembling morning glories growing towards the sky. Anteaters and weasels made their nests in bookstores, using hardcover books as building materials. Bitten pages were scattered everywhere, resembling those of some giant moth, and were stained with animal urine.
The troops' modus operandi was simple and brutal: kill.
Any animals that refused to leave human buildings were shot, and their carcasses were disposed of in garbage trucks.
Once the garbage trucks were full, they were transported to Bai Xiaobai's company employees for the production of alien canned food.
Of course, all these actions were strictly confidential, with no videos or photographs allowed. Otherwise, the wrath of the animal protection associations would be more than Jiang Ye could handle.
The occupation of the major cities proceeded in an orderly fashion.
However, problems arose along the coast.
Garrison troops in several small towns near Meteorite Star reported smelling roses drifting in from the sea.
Initially, only a few soldiers with sensitive noses noticed it, and they didn't pay much attention.
But the scent grew stronger. As the sea breeze continuously encroached upon the towns, from the patrolling troops to the command center in the town center, everyone could smell it. The smell of the sea was completely overwhelmed, and the world seemed to have transformed into a grand flower shop, a vast garden of fresh roses. Some soldiers were even awakened at night, not by sound or changes in temperature, but simply by the intense rose fragrance.
Jiang Ye inquired with Li Nannan. Li Nannan had not heard of anything similar but confirmed that the seawater must have undergone some change. When unusual things happen, they usually signal trouble, especially when seawater emits a fairytale-like aroma, making it even more suspicious. Li Nannan suggested immediate investigation and elimination.
The atmosphere in the coastal towns changed abruptly. From their usual leisurely pace, they became as if facing a formidable enemy. A large number of human soldiers were withdrawn and replaced by mechanical soldiers. The remaining soldiers began wearing gas masks and underwent comprehensive physical examinations. Air composition detectors were erected at intersections and on beaches. The instrument readings indicated that the rose fragrance was indeed not produced by roses but by a very complex chemical substance, whose properties were temporarily unknown.
Submersible mechanical soldier models arrived. Carrying detection equipment, they leaped into the water like penguins and began their underwater investigation.
Soon, the investigation yielded a discovery.
A large area on the seabed was covered with human corpses.
The corpses had lead weights tied to their feet, standing upright on the seabed. Their bloated faces were tilted towards the surface of the sea. As the seawater flowed, some corpses would bounce up, their movements slow and leisurely, like Armstrong on the moon. Many corpses drifted away with the currents, while others were brought in by them. Marine life of various kinds clung to the corpses, indicating they had been traveling in the sea for a long time, more troublesome than water ghosts.
The mechanical soldiers felt no fear. They took photos and videos and transmitted them back, which greatly startled the human officers at the command center, nearly causing them to reach for their heart medication.
After calming down, the military officers found it utterly baffling.
These towns had been uninhabited for dozens of days. These corpses could only have been thrown into the sea by the local residents before they evacuated.
After such a long time, they should have decomposed.
Even if they hadn't decomposed, given the abundance of marine life, they should have been completely consumed.
How could there be so many intact human corpses?
The mechanical soldiers explored the surrounding waters and quickly discovered something unusual: a patch of dark yellow gelatinous substance on the seabed, like jelly but with a firm texture. Near each corpse, several pieces of the gelatinous substance were shattered, giving the impression of broken eggshells. The mechanical soldiers collected samples from the corpses and soon found trace amounts of the firm gelatinous substance.
The truth became apparent.
These people had originally been encased in this gelatinous substance and thrown into the sea. After dozens of days of seawater erosion, the gelatinous substance gradually shattered, exposing the corpses within. This was why the corpses had not yet had time to rot and disappear.
The mechanical soldiers counted the corpses in the nearby sea area, totaling 273, with possibly more having drifted away with the currents.
Jiang Ye immediately called Xu Aoqing.
Xu Aoqing's answer was simple.
"They were from the Galactic Separatist Alliance, attempting a terrorist attack. I ordered them thrown into the sea to feed the sharks. That gel is produced by a nearby factory and is used as an adhesive for food packaging bags."
Jiang Ye felt a chill run down his spine.
Xu Aoqing's methods were indeed ruthless; this person was a formidable character.
However, the information she provided gave Jiang Ye a sense of vigilance.
Could the beast tides on Meteorite Star be related to the Galactic Separatist Alliance?
Although a large number of corpses were found at the bottom of the sea, these corpses had no connection to the rose scent.
The mechanical soldiers had to continue their investigation, expanding the search area on the seabed.
Soon, the mechanical soldiers were attacked by marine creatures.
Schools of fish suddenly appeared like a tornado, crashing into the mechanical soldiers with frenzied intensity, pushing them towards the shore like a tidal wave.
A seabed beast tide!
The number of fish was astonishing, so much so that even satellites could clearly see a vast, dark mass on the sea surface suddenly coalesce, more expansive than a red tide, as if the ocean had formed a fist to strike the mechanical soldiers.
Most bizarrely, large and small fish participated in the beast tide together, neither devouring nor fleeing from each other, behaving like an organized army.
The schools of fish first pinned the mechanical soldiers to the seabed, possibly attempting to drown or crush them. When they discovered that the mechanical soldiers would not die, the fish changed tactics, engulfing the mechanical soldiers and smashing them against the reefs, finally pushing them to the shore.
The battered mechanical soldiers were stranded on the beach, covered in sticky fish oil and scales, resembling large fish themselves. Many small fish were also stranded on the shore, gradually suffocating. The mechanical soldiers crushed the heads of the small fish and, as expected, found miniature electronic parasites.
Upon receiving the report, Jiang Ye immediately mobilized twenty thousand mechanical soldiers to the coast.
He had a feeling that such a frenzied school of fish must be protecting something.
That something must be very close, within reach with a little effort.