Discovery

The dormitory was a mess, suggesting the deceased on the bed lived a decadent life before their death.

Lu Xi'an couldn't find any notebooks or similar items in the room, making it impossible to confirm what exactly happened before the person died.

There was a mobile phone, but its screen was completely shattered and the entire device was bent, as if it had been deliberately destroyed.

All the food in the dormitory had been eaten. The table was piled with discarded chocolate wrappers and other food packaging, and empty instant noodle bowls were scattered all over the table and floor.

This person must have eaten all their food before committing suicide.

Lu Xi'an could only hope there was something left in the other rooms.

Exiting this bedroom and continuing forward to explore, he finally found something different.

Ahead was another metal door, which reflected light when Doggy's eyes shone on it.

That door was also open. Upon entering, the partitioned rooms were no longer dormitories; they were much larger compared to the dormitories.

The first thing they saw was the kitchen, complete with a stove, sink, countertops, pots, bowls, and utensils.

But it looked like it had been ransacked too. Pots and bowls were scattered on the floor, the countertop was askew, and it was clear it had been moved.

Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei had to be careful where they stepped, tiptoeing across the broken bowls and shards of porcelain on the floor.

There was no food in the kitchen either, but in the innermost area, Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei discovered something unusual.

There was another skeleton, leaning against a metal door.

However, this skeleton was different from the previous one; it was still wearing clothes that almost covered it.

Judging by the style, it looked like a cook. A chef's hat had fallen from the skeleton's chest, now deflated.

This metal door was closed, and a mechanical combination lock secured it tightly, blocking off the room behind.

When the Mechanical Dog's eyes shone on it, there was dried, blackened blood on the door, resembling raised lines that trailed from the door to the floor.

Lu Xi'an examined the trails left by the red-black blood lines on the door and asked, "How do you think he died?"

Yao Wei shook her head.

Judging by the drag marks, it looked like he had crashed into it. But the door was perfectly flat, with no protrusions, so how could someone easily crash into it and bleed to death?

However, Lu Xi'an soon made a new discovery--

He found some broken porcelain shards on the ground, different in shape from the broken bowls and plates. Piecing them together in his mind, they resembled a knife.

"Is this... a ceramic knife?"

He looked at the ground and asked.

Yao Wei nodded: "Yes."

Lu Xi'an let out a soft sigh: "He committed suicide too. I wonder who committed suicide first, these two people?"

As he spoke, he looked at the skeleton again.

There was a nameplate still attached to the skeleton's clothes. Lu Xi'an had Doggy shine a light on it specifically, and saw it read:

Cook: Li Xun

Permission Level: Three

Yao Wei didn't say anything. She didn't know anyway and was too lazy to guess.

Lu Xi'an moved the dead person's skeleton aside, then had Doggy scan the combination lock.

There was nothing valuable in this kitchen. If there were supplies, would they be behind the metal door?

Lu Xi'an's thoughts wandered, already speculating: Could the deaths of these two people be because they were trapped here, ran out of visible supplies, fell into despair, and then committed suicide?

The deceased Li Xun was the cook in the kitchen but didn't have the permission to open this metal door. Perhaps supplies were stored behind the metal door, requiring someone with a higher permission level in this Shelter to open and distribute them.

Could these two deceased individuals in the Shelter have been here for early arrangements and preparations, only to get trapped?

Their permissions couldn't open the supplies, so they could only exhaust everything they had on hand, including edible items, and then commit suicide in despair...

Lu Xi'an didn't share these speculations with Yao Wei; they were irrelevant anyway.

How many years had passed? This was just an empty Shelter. What was the point of exploring the past?

It was better to find supplies quickly.

"Five, eight, seven, nine, four, one, seven, nine."

Doggy cracked the code, its eyes blinking rhythmically.

Lu Xi'an read out the numbers from the blinking pattern, then turned the mechanical combination lock. With a "click," the lock opened. Lu Xi'an pushed the heavy metal door, and a strong smell of mold rushed out from behind it.

Both he and Yao Wei had to cover their noses and retreat, stopping only after moving quite a distance back.

"Doggy, see if there are any problems. Can we go in?"

Lu Xi'an instructed.

Doggy, fearless, shone its dog eyes directly inside.

Lu Xi'an and Yao Wei saw plastic crates and shelves piled up behind the door, filled with vegetables and meat that had rotted and dried out over time.

"Sigh... no luck again."

Lu Xi'an sighed.

He could guess that inside was likely a cold storage room.

If the cold storage had power and the cooling effect could be maintained, the contents might be preserved.

But the current situation was that the cold storage could no longer cool, and the items stored within were ruined.

Yao Wei was also somewhat disappointed and dejected, remaining silent.

Lu Xi'an quickly perked up and said, "Let's go, let's keep looking. There are still areas we haven't checked in here, maybe we'll find something!"

But just then, the Mechanical Dog, which had already entered behind the metal door, suddenly its dog eyes lit up, the light reflecting from behind the door.

Lu Xi'an's heart stirred. He quickly focused his gaze and immediately showed a look of pleasant surprise.

"Wait!"

He grabbed Yao Wei's arm.

Yao Wei had already turned and was about to walk out. When Lu Xi'an pulled her, her body stiffened abruptly.

Lu Xi'an noticed Yao Wei's abnormality, released his hand, and said, "Sorry."

Yao Wei shook her head. "I should be the one apologizing. I almost attacked you just now."

Lu Xi'an: "..."

This violent woman...

Thankfully, it was only almost...

Yao Wei followed Lu Xi'an's gaze towards the area illuminated by the light behind the metal door. She saw quite a few bags piled up against the wall.

The bags were flat and sturdy, bulging full with their contents, forming squares and stacked layer upon layer.

"What is it?"

She had never found anything like this before and was somewhat surprised, a flicker of hope rising in her heart.

It didn't matter if she didn't understand. Anyway, this Lu Xi'an seemed to understand.

This guy always understands, understands everything, and I don't know where he learns it from...

"Rice bags, or flour bags... they should be rice bags."

Lu Xi'an said, his speech rapid with surprise, "Flour cannot be vacuum-sealed, but these bags are clearly vacuum-sealed, so they should contain rice."

"They aren't contaminated?"

Yao Wei asked.

Inside was a pile of rotten things, and the air was foul. Based on her experience, in such an environment, things were usually inedible.

Then she heard Lu Xi'an say, "It's possible they aren't... Food can be stored for a very long time in a vacuum environment, and the vacuum packaging proves that the contents are sealed very tightly.

"Besides, we have Doggy. Whether they're contaminated or spoiled, we can just have Doggy check them."