Cave Refuge

Although the L-shaped area was not large, there were still three tables set up near the back of the warehouse.

Under normal circumstances, there would be no conditions to cook here, let alone something like an induction cooktop. However, due to the arrival of Dong Tianyu, the third and fourth sons of the Thompson family managed to start a fire and make some cooked food using wood that had been stored for a long time.

The seating arrangement was still arranged according to the Thompson family tradition: one table for men, one for women, and one for children.

Despite each table seating more than a dozen people, the dishes on the tables were ample and varied.

With the arrival of Dong Tianyu, the family seized the opportunity to enjoy a good meal, consisting of all sorts of vacuum-sealed foods that were close to their best-before dates, providing a diverse mix of both meat and vegetable dishes.

In addition to this, Mr. Thompson brought out two bottles of edible alcohol, diluting them to make four liters of wine. One bottle was given to the women's table, the remainder was left with the men.

When Mr. Thompson opened the cap of the alcohol bottle, the smell of alcohol wafted around, causing all the men to swallow instinctively.

Dong Tianyu's uncles and great uncles would usually enjoy a couple of drinks every day, but since their arrival at the Refuge Center they've been reluctantly sober. The smell of alcohol was almost too much for them to resist.

As the only elder present, Griffin Benjamin led the toast, signaling the start of the banquet.

The younger generation who had been eagerly anticipating the meal didn't waste any time digging in after hearing they could start eating.

Dong Tianyu, who according to tradition should have been sitting at the children's table, was now seated at the men's table. Most of the conversations at the table revolved around Dong Tianyu's experiences outside the Refuge Center.

In response to their relatives' inquiries, Dong Tianyu laughed it off, refraining from going into details. All of his relatives at the table were adults, and when they realized he didn't want to elaborate, they neatly stopped with the questions.

At this point, the laughter and mirth of the Thompson family dinner inside the L-shaped space painted a stark contrast to the figures huddled in blankets outside the front door.

Although the heating system inside the Refuge Center was operational, it could only maintain a temperature of around minus ten degrees. This was much warmer than the outside temperature of minus sixty or seventy degrees, but it was still cold for those who weren't dressed warmly enough.

Unlike the Thompson family who had thoroughly prepared before entering the Refuge Center, many others had been forced to move in a hurry. In their haste to pack their belongings, they prioritized valuables over winter clothing.

After the temperature drop, the Officials used the subway network to distribute a batch of pure cotton army coats. However, each person only received one set, so those who didn't have a replacement have had to wear the same coat continuously.

They quickly discovered after arriving at the Refuge Center that their valuable items were worthless here. Initially, you could exchange gold for a variety of items, but now, even gold jewelry couldn't get you a single piece of warm clothing.

Under Mr. Thompson's guidance, their family didn't pack any valuable items when they left their home. Instead, they packed a variety of practical items, especially winter clothing.

While others were shivering from the cold, the Thompson family were immune from frostbite due to the cold weather.

After dinner, Dong Tianyu didn't linger at the Refuge Center. Despite his mother's worried expressions, he said goodbye to his parents and relatives and then left.

No one in the Refuge Center tried to stop Dong Tianyu from leaving. After all, he was known to be working under the Officials, and the current situation was still under the control of the Officials, so no one in the streets would dare to cause trouble.

Once he was away from the Refuge Center, he mounted his motorcycle. The original plan was to find a suitable vehicle in the City Center during this visit and take it back for modifications.

However, due to conversing while eating, the whole dinner took much longer than expected, resulting in Dong Tianyu leaving later than planned.

To avoid wasting the quantity of daily cultivation sessions, Dong Tianyu didn't continue wandering around the City Center. Instead, he first returned to the Refuge Center to use up the day's quota of cultivation sessions.

As his cultivation realm improved, Dong Tianyu hadn't gotten more proficient at practicing his cultivation technique, simply because he was only familiar with the course of the cultivation technique since he was always cultivating automatically.

In fact, he could cultivate more than two complete cycles each day if he were patient. Similar to those characters in many novels who would cultivate for many years at a time.

However, this method necessitates a deep understanding of the operation method of the cultivation technique. If something were to go wrong during the practice, he would risk falling into the so-called deviated cultivation state.

Dong Tianyu knew that relying solely on automated cultivation was wrong. But, the first time he tried autonomous cultivation, he had issues. Several attempts later, not only did things not improve, but he also ended up getting injured.

With no other choice, Dong Tianyu temporarily gave up, planning to try autonomous cultivation again once he reached the Foundation Building Stage and could change to a better cultivation technique.

The weather outside was getting colder by the day. Although it was not dropping as rapidly as before—ten or more degrees a day—there was no sign of the temperature rising.

Contrary to many disaster movies where snow accompanies the cold, there was no frost or snow even though the weather was very dry after the disaster struck.

Normally, when the temperature drops low enough, water molecules in the air would change from liquid to solid, resulting in snow or hail.

But this was not happening in Pengcheng. The ground remained dry, and there was no sign of frost or snow in the air.

The peculiar weather had ironically made it easier for the Officials to distribute supplies to the various Refuge Centers, strengthening their control over Pengcheng.

Having some free time, Dong Tianyu expanded his Reed Chicken operation from just over a hundred to more than a thousand. Their daily egg production rose to over nine hundred.

Over a few months, Dong Tianyu occasionally brought cooked Reed Chicken eggs, as well as Reed Chickens past their peak egg-laying period, to the subway station-based Refuge Center where his parents were staying.

When the people at the Refuge Center saw what Dong Tianyu brought, his parents' standing in the Refuge Center subtly improved.

Apart from what was given to the Thompson family, the rest of the items brought by Dong Tianyu were given to the neighborhood community and the soldier patrol squad.

When leaving, Dong Tianyu would stroll around the West City District. Firstly, he was on the lookout for suitable transportation. Secondly, he hoped to stumble upon some unexpected gain.

However, he didn't spend any time in the old city districts of Pengcheng. The densely populated living conditions meant the stores surrounding the Refuge Center, including the small roadside shops, were picked clean.

Operating under the principle that returning empty-handed was a loss, Dong Tianyu helped clean up the abandoned vehicles on the streets, making West City District a cleaner and tidier place.