Cave Refuge

Since electricity had become widely distributed among the populace, it had become an essential part of everyone's daily lives. Although the Imperial Court ensured that, regardless of the cost of communication materials, all devices came with solar charging capabilities.

However, anyone who had used solar charging knew its efficiency was particularly low—it could be described as charging for three hours to use for just two minutes. Under normal circumstances, if conditions allowed, many people still preferred to use chargers.

But when the Corrosion Wind appeared, the damage was not limited to the steel-constructed Water Base; even the electronic devices stored in the Water Base encountered problems.

Unlike the initial electronic pulses that only damaged the core components of the electronic devices, the Corrosion Wind completely corroded and damaged all metal products.

It should be known that although manufacturing charging equipment seemed very simple, before the Natural Disaster struck, anyone with even a slight understanding of electrical knowledge could buy various parts and assemble them. However cheap the parts for those charging devices might seem, creating those parts required either manual labor or, if in large demand, a robust industrial system.

Although the city's charging facilities couldn't yet be freely used, the already-constructed shared charging buildings indicated that the industrial system here wouldn't need to start from scratch.

After observing the shared charging buildings, Dong Tianyu didn't go looking for work straight away. Instead, after carefully observing the situation in the city, he silently left.

After all, it was a decree issued by the Imperial Court; although some changes might occur at the level of local Officials, from a broader perspective, there weren't significant problems—it might be because it was just the beginning, and some people were hesitantly refraining from acting rashly.

After leaving the city, Dong Tianyu headed toward another city near Ye Liuyun's construction camp. This time, Dong Tianyu didn't enter to experience it firsthand but observed the city through Divine Sense from the air. After finding that the situation was much the same as the other city, Dong Tianyu returned directly.

By the time Dong Tianyu returned near the camp, what had originally been in a phase of construction had now taken shape, with not only the residences within the camp but also the walls outside the camp constructed to some extent.

Ordinarily, before the Natural Disaster, cities basically had no walls—maybe some retained a segment of the wall, but that was merely for scenic purposes and had no practical function.

But now, the walls constructed around the camp, from their thick appearance, were clearly not for viewing; they possessed significant defensive power.

Before Dong Tianyu entered the camp, he saw Ye Liuyun leading people out of the city gate. Upon seeing Dong Tianyu, Ye Liuyun was initially startled, then quickly came forward with a smile and asked, "Was the trip smooth? What's the situation like over there?"

Dong Tianyu glanced at the group following Ye Liuyun and casually countered, "Are you sure you want me to discuss this here?"

Hearing that, Ye Liuyun casually spoke up, "Just go ahead and say it. These things can't be hidden. Instead of secretly keeping it from others, better to let everyone know. Those who want to leave can leave quickly, and those who want to stay can continue to stay at the base with peace of mind."

Since Ye Liuyun said so, Dong Tianyu no longer concealed anything, quickly and concisely sharing his experience in that city.

Hearing that to process the registration one must surrender all stored food to the Officials for unified handling, expressions varied on the faces of those following Ye Liuyun—some were pleased, some were disappointed, some skeptical, some confused.

Even without looking back, Ye Liuyun seemed to grow eyes on his back, fully grasping the scene behind him.

Just as Dong Tianyu was wondering if anyone would openly doubt, as if on cue, an indignant voice from the crowd burst out, "How can you guarantee that everything you said is true?"

Seeing someone actually questioning, Dong Tianyu glanced at Ye Liuyun and then, noticing Ye Liuyun making a signal, quickly guessed Ye Liuyun's thoughts.

He retorted, "Why should I need to provide proof what I said was true or not? You listen to what I say, believe it or not, that's up to you. If you insist that what I say is wrong, you can go there yourself to verify. I don't think anyone here will speak up to stop you."

Hearing Dong Tianyu's words, the challenger was momentarily silent then burst out angrily, "What do you mean, we can't even question or refute what you say? Are you trying to enforce monologue here?"

Seeing the individual becoming aggressively unreasonable, Dong Tianyu didn't indulge him further, directly snapping back, "You need to understand, I am currently talking to Ye Liuyun. As an adult, if you knew the slightest bit of etiquette, you would know not to eavesdrop on others' conversations. Even if you accidentally overhear, you should not interrupt or even start to refute."