You bought rotten meat brother. It happened to me once. I bought one that looked fine, but when i cooked it and tore it open, it was rotten. It took it back to the store and they gave me another one.
The reason that ReqTec says not to seal the lid is because of air flow....
So, my response to that is seal the lid and keep the probe door at least partially open.
To my understanding, Recteq has specifically stated not to use the char hickory. They are causing issues. I’m sure someone has a bit more details, but I’ve seen it posted quite a number of times. I guess it would be fine to use them in a tube if you wanted.