Cave Refuge

But his method of using the explosives was almost always to stuff them inside massive monsters, and even when detonated at a close range, he could still rely on the bodies of those creatures to mitigate some of the blast radius; therefore, the safety aspect was actually quite high.

If Dong Tianyu hadn't been able to scan directly with his Divine Sense and confirm that the metal rods Thomas Jefferson took out were all hollow and filled with the same stuff, Dong Tianyu wouldn't have gone ahead with this trade at all.

After all, even if he didn't lack alcohol, he couldn't be easily deceived; especially since, compared to knowing how to test the quality of C4 Explosives, Dong Tianyu was unfamiliar with the so-called CL-20 explosives mentioned by Thomas Jefferson—he hadn't even heard of this new type of explosive until it had come up in conversation with Thomas Jefferson.

However, after verifying with Divine Sense and considering Thomas Jefferson's behaviour during the transaction, Dong Tianyu was willing to gamble that the supposed CL-20 explosives bought from Thomas Jefferson were the real deal; otherwise, Thomas Jefferson shouldn't blame Dong Tianyu for 'seeking his rights' personally later.

After completing the trade, Dong Tianyu naturally reached out his right hand to Madeline and said, "Pleasure doing business with you, looking forward to next time."

Seeing Dong Tianyu extend his hand for a handshake, Thomas Jefferson was slightly taken aback for a moment before reaching out his hand to express mutual satisfaction with the deal.

The handshake between the two was merely a brief second or two, long enough for Dong Tianyu to set a positioning mark on Thomas Jefferson, which would be fine if the verification turned out successful, and they could possibly become long-term partners in the future.

Should the verification fail and the goods Thomas Jefferson sold turn out to be fake, Dong Tianyu wouldn't treat him too harshly; at most, he might invite him to stay for a while in the Netherworld amusement park.

After they let go of their handshake, as Dong Tianyu was the first to reach the door and open it, Thomas Jefferson quickly circulated his cultivation technique to metabolize the alcohol in his body, instantly restoring his slightly flushed cheeks from drinking back to normal.

It's a mystery how Thomas Jefferson managed it, but by the time they walked out of the room back to where Father Dong, Mrs. Thompson, and Leo King were waiting, the scent of alcohol that had once lingered around Thomas Jefferson had disappeared without a trace.

The three people in the room saw Dong Tianyu and Thomas Jefferson return quite naturally and didn't say much, perhaps because Leo King noticed something extraordinary about Dong Tianyu, so he took advantage of Dong Tianyu taking Thomas Jefferson to the adjacent room for the trade to take out quite a few things from his Storage Space and trade directly with Father Dong in this room.

Leo King's purpose in coming here was to foster good relations with the Thompson Family, so though the items he brought for trade weren't the finest from his collection, he ensured there were no ordinary items intended to mislead anyone.

It should be noted that Father Dong once ran a shop in the Black Market during the flood disaster, so while his eye for goods may not be as sharp as Dong Tianyu's who can use Divine Sense to inspect, it was still quite proficient, and since Leo King brought openly favorable items, their trade went very smoothly and pleasantly.

When Dong Tianyu heard that Father Dong had completed the trade with Leo King, he didn't say much, since alcohol was just a routine supply for him and not the luxury item it was in the eyes of others.

Since the trade was finished, naturally, Leo King and Thomas Jefferson didn't stay long; as Father Dong and Dong Tianyu were seeing Leo King and Thomas Jefferson out the front door, they noticed a group of people coming up the stairs.

The Thompson family lived on the top twelfth floor, and both apartments on that level belonged to them, so the group ascending must have the Thompson family as their destination, unless they had mistaken the person or were headed for the rooftop.

Leo King, noticing the clothes of the people coming up, frowned and then looked at the Thompson family with confusion. The Thompson family reciprocated the look, as if asking whether the visitors were brought by Leo King and Thomas Jefferson.

Seeing the puzzled expressions and inquiring gaze of the Thompson family, Leo King didn't speak but shook his head to indicate that he had no connection with the group; he was also a bit puzzled because the Thompson family had only just settled in yesterday, with the paperwork processed by him, and it should not have attracted those people's attention.

While Leo King was still pondering the reason, the group had already arrived at the Thompson Family's doorstep. Seeing the five people standing at the entrance, the leader also frowned slightly because, according to his investigation before coming here, the family of three had only registered their new household at the base yesterday. They hadn't listed any introducers related to them within the base, so he was wondering when and why these two people standing at the doorway had made contact with the Thompson family trio.

However, to him, these matters seemed trivial. If he wanted to investigate, he could find out the details anytime, so he preferred to focus on the main issue first.

Since the household registration had included photos, they had already seen what the Thompson family of three looked like, so there was no way they could mistake their identities.

"Hello, I am Toby Hart from the Special Team. I am here to find Dong Tianyu, as there are some matters that I wish to understand with him."

Hearing that they were looking for him, Dong Tianyu's expression turned puzzled. Then he glanced over at the group that now occupied the stairway access, effectively blocking the exit, and said, "Since it's me you're looking for, let's go inside to talk."

Dong Tianyu did not head back to his residence but instead walked into the very room where he had made the deal with Thomas Jefferson.

Seeing Dong Tianyu enter another apartment, Toby Hart was not surprised. He gestured to the crowd behind him and then followed Dong Tianyu into the apartment with two other people.

Leo King and Thomas Jefferson, looking at the Special Team members who brazenly blocked off the stairs, felt somewhat helpless. They knew they definitely couldn't leave now, so they did not reveal their identities nor did they try to see if they could leave. They could only stand obediently outside, waiting for the event to conclude.

After Toby Hart and the two team members behind him entered the room, the last member who entered closed the door behind them, blocking out the curious gaze of Leo King and Thomas Jefferson.

Upon entering the room, Toby Hart first looked around to confirm that it was indeed an undecorated bare apartment, just as the information they had seen before had indicated, and then he scrutinized Dong Tianyu from head to toe.

Dong Tianyu did not show any signs of fear or avoidance under Toby Hart's scrutinizing gaze. Instead, he asked with a quizzical tone, "I don't know what you want, bringing so many people here. Are you looking for trouble?"

Although he didn't know why the other party had come to find him, seeing that they were sizing him up with a speculative gaze as if a constable would survey a criminal, Dong Tianyu naturally wasn't inclined to be polite.

Seeing that his gaze did not intimidate the other party, Toby Hart didn't feel discouraged. He went straight to the point and asked, "Did you leave the base through the air yesterday and participate in the operation to seal the spatial passageway?"

Hearing Toby Hart's question, Dong Tianyu immediately realized the purpose of their visit. First, he nodded, then shook his head, and finally looked at Toby Hart with disdain.

Toby Hart had imagined all sorts of reactions from Dong Tianyu, whether calm, arrogant, or somewhat apprehensive. But he had never expected Dong Tianyu to show contempt after realizing his purpose.

Before Toby Hart could speak again, Dong Tianyu cut him off, "Alright, stop pretending. You guys already fooled me once yesterday; isn't that enough? What, after finding out where I live, you're here to start trouble again today?

I don't care what your reason for coming here is this time. Just go back and tell that guy Leonard, if he's committed a dirty deed, he shouldn't hide in the shadows. What, after taking advantage? He can't let others show him disapproval? If he's got guts, come here and talk it out one-on-one. If it weren't for his uniform, I'd have killed him on the spot."