Cave Refuge

After multiple unsuccessful attempts, Thomas stepped down from the forklift, looking disappointed. As he gazed at the supplies piled up to the ceiling, he felt a headache. However, he just told himself that as long as the supplies were intact, it was better than having nothing.

Perhaps it was the exertion from walking down the tunnel that made them break a sweat, but after settling down and ceasing any movements, everyone started feeling cold.

The outside temperature was around twenty-five or twenty-six degrees. Most of the people were in t-shirts, with only a few wearing light jackets.

Yet, the temperature inside the War Reserve Warehouse was definitely below ten degrees. The difference of more than ten degrees made everyone feel the chill.

But after a pause, it made sense. It was the consistent low temperature that preserved the supplies and prevented them from spoiling over a long period.

Members of the senior group, noticing Thomas stepping down from the forklift, had lost interest in his actions and had started inspecting the warehouse themselves.

But the large warehouse was filled with identical crates, all wrapped in green canvas. Unless opened, no one could tell what they contained.

As Mr. Thompson observed Thomas lost in his thoughts, he began to wonder about his son Dong Tianyu's situation.

He speculated whether his son's stockpile was as abundant as theirs, filled with crates of supplies.

With the sudden abundance of supplies found here, he wondered if his son's operations could become simpler.

Mr. Thompson had always justified his son's frequent absences with Dong Tianyu's focus on his work. With his current abilities and opportunity, Mr. Thompson believed that he should push himself and make the most of it.

Hence, Mr. Thompson didn't interfere much with Dong Tianyu's endeavors. As long as Dong Tianyu came to visit him and his wife occasionally and he could verify that Dong Tianyu wasn't in danger, Mr. Thompson had no interest in meddling in his affairs.

As Mr. Thompson pondered on his son's situation, Thomas patted him on the shoulder, "What are you thinking so deeply about? Come with me to take a look around."

Thomas then led Mr. Thompson and the two young men behind him to another direction.

The young men tagging along were arranged by Smith. Considering the advanced age of the members entering the warehouse, as well as other factors, Smith decided it was best to arrange a young person to aid each senior member.

Perhaps it was due to the small number of people inside, despite the enclosed environment, no one had thus far felt short of breath.

Yet with the former and the burning torches consuming oxygen, the single tunnel's ventilation was hardly sufficient to replenish the warehouse's oxygen supply.

As the fires in the torches shrunk, everyone started feeling slightly suffocated.

At this moment, Thomas led the group to a round valve. After glancing at his arm, then at Mr. Thompson beside him, he sighed, "One really can't defy old age."

He then commanded the two young men behind him to turn the valve clockwise.

Perhaps due to lack of use for a long time, or for other reasons, despite the young men's red faces, they couldn't get the valve to turn.

Noticing the asphyxiation growing severe, Thomas calmly took a whistle off the wall and blew into it.

The others who were still wandering around the warehouse came over after hearing the sound.

"Some young men come and help turn this valve."

Upon hearing Thomas's instructions, a few young men glanced at Smith. Seeing him not object, they quickly stepped forward to help.

Luckily the valve was big enough to accommodate a lot of hands and they started to turn it after applying force together.

With the combined efforts of the group, the valve, which hadn't budged at all before started to slowly turn.

As the valve turned, strange sounds echoed throughout the War Reserve Warehouse. It resembled the dragging of stones and came from multiple places.

The others stared at Thomas with puzzled expressions, expecting him to provide an explanation.

Upon noticing their gazes, Thomas cleared his throat. Only after receiving a barrage of disdain from the seniors did he begin to elaborate.

The War Reserve Warehouse was initially designed with two functionalities in mind. One was its main purpose of long-term storage; hence it was designed as an enclosed structure.

There was also the scenario that in the event of war, it could serve as a temporary Command Post or a Refuge Center. Therefore ventilation was a significant consideration in its design.

The ventilation ducts were designed to be adjustable. However, keeping the Warehouse's purpose as a last resort reserve, multiple adverse situations were factored into the design. While the building was equipped with a stand-alone generator, a manual override was added to prevent any mishaps.

Of course, the valve they had just turned opened up only the exhaust port closest to the duct and the external exhaust port was still closed. They would need to continue to turn a second valve to open it.

However, having attempted it once before, they managed to turn the second valve much faster this time.

As the second valve turned, everyone felt a noticeable movement of air. To confirm it wasn't just their imagination, some people wet their fingers with saliva and held them up high, closing their eyes and carefully sensing the direction of the air current.

After a while, they confirmed that the space was no longer enclosed and indeed, the air had started to circulate.

Having resolved the issue with the oxygen, just as Smith was ready to leave with everyone, Thomas spoke again, "Don't you want to check out the second floor?"

Upon hearing Thomas, Smith asked in surprise, "There is a second underground floor here?"

Looking at the astonished Smith, Thomas boasted, "What a joke, there is not only a second floor but also the third. You pencil pushers wouldn't know how much preparation we made in the past to counter the enemy's nuclear threat."

After listening to Thomas, everyone halted their individual explorations and followed him to the entrance of the second underground floor.

Standing in front of the large door, which was four meters wide and three meters high, Mr. Thompson asked quietly, "How do we open this door?"

When it was Mr. Thompson asking, Thomas didn't mock him but replied somewhat helplessly, "This door was designed to resist explosions. There was previously an electronic assistance system, but considering the forklift's situation earlier, we can only rely on manpower to open it now."

Upon hearing Thomas's explanation, the young men from the senior group, realising it was their time to show their strength again, were prepared to exert themselves.

Luckily, when designing the door, the designers had anticipated this situation, so the door was designed with enough space for multiple people to put their strength into it simultaneously. This made it easier for them to open the door manually.