At an altitude of 8,000 meters, they were already near the top of the troposphere, where temperatures fell below minus twenty degrees Celsius. Combined with the violent winds whipped up by the aircraft in flight, the cold was bitter and brutal. An ordinary person exposed to such extreme conditions of low temperature, low pressure, and low oxygen would soon freeze to death.
Although there were occasional reports around the world of people surviving after stowing away on planes, they had all hidden inside landing gear compartments. Outside the aircraft, survival was impossible.
Just who could be knocking on the door of a moving aircraft at an altitude of 8,000 meters?
Or rather, was it really a person?
An uneasy tension immediately spread through the cabin. Captain Hawk and the soldiers looked uncertainly toward the windows, their expressions grim.
"Ha ha ha, something outside the plane probably wasn't fastened properly. That's what's making the noise."
After freezing for a long moment, one soldier forced a laugh.
Despite his words, his slightly pale face and shaky voice made it clear that he wasn't very confident himself.
"Think about it. This is a plane! We all know how fast and how high it flies. How could anyone be knocking on the door outside? Unless it's Homelander."
The soldier had only wanted to crack a joke and ease the tension.
But as soon as he spoke, Captain Hawk's dark face grew even darker. With his smooth, bald head, he looked like a braised egg.
Homelander was an anti-superhero from an American television series that had become hugely popular in recent years. He was ruthless and vindictive. More importantly, nothing good ever happened when Homelander appeared on a plane in the show, and he had shot planes down with his laser eyes more than once.