Chapter 19 The Door Opens!
"It's open!"
Kalen shouted, and everyone hurriedly turned to look. They heard a series of clicking sounds as a large section of the stone wall caved in, and two stone doors opened, revealing a bluestone slab passage that stretched downwards.
"Forget the horses and supplies, everyone inside first, quick!"
Kalen yelled and charged in first, then stood by the stone door, beckoning to the others.
Wan Lei, Fang Xiaoyu, and the convicts raced towards the passage, with the shockwave carrying endless yellow sand right behind them.
Once everyone was inside, Kalen slapped a button on the wall, and the stone doors began to slowly close.
"No, too slow! Everyone push together, close the doors!"
Wan Lei shouted, dropped his hammer, and pushed hard on one of the doors.
Seeing the approaching shockwave outside, everyone knew it was a matter of life and death. They mustered all their strength and desperately tried to close the doors.
Creak, creak... Bang!
The doors were finally shut.
Kalen lifted a stone pillar on the wall, roared, and jammed it across the doors.
It was a bolt.
Boom!!!
Just as everyone breathed a sigh of relief, a loud crash came from outside, followed by the ground shaking from all directions.
The passage was a zhang wide and a zhang high (approximately 10 feet wide and 10 feet high), considered spacious within the mountain.
The sides and top of the passage were made of neat steel plates, while the ground was rough bluestone, increasing friction so people wouldn't slip.
After all, the passage led downwards.
In this earth-shattering quake, a rock passage would have likely collapsed. Fortunately, it was steel-plated and deep underground, making it very stable and preventing collapse.
After the earthquake, they heard many rocks falling, followed by another tremor.
"The gate won't be blocked by rocks, will it?"
Little Yellow Dog asked, wide-eyed.
If the gate was blocked by boulders, they would be trapped inside.
"It won't be."
Kalen shook his head.
"The shockwave came from the south, and the gate faces south. The collapsed mountain peaks are the weakest points at the top. They can only collapse northward following the force of the shockwave; they won't block the gate."
"Okay, let's go see your shelter then."
Wan Lei nodded.
"To be precise, it's our new home."
Kalen took the lead downwards, and the lingering convicts quickly followed.
The group groped their way down the dark passage. Kalen pressed on the wall as he walked, and finally, he found something. He pressed it, and the entire passage lit up.
Wan Lei took a closer look and realized the light came from smooth stones.
"What are these things?"
Wan Lei asked curiously.
Hearing this, Kalen and Yang Lazi looked at him like he was a monster.
"Are you even from this world? How can you not know the most basic Ka Jing mineral stones?"
"Uh... we're just convicts, how would we have seen these things? How could we not be from this world? Heh heh..."
Young Master Lei chuckled awkwardly and pulled Little Yu forward.
"Hmph, typical Munster family, so rich and extravagant, even carving Ka Jing mineral stones so beautifully."
Yang Lazi snorted.
"This is just rich and extravagant? Come on, I'll show you inside."
Kalen's vanity soared, and he jogged ahead to the end of the passage.
"See, this is what you call luxury."
They looked ahead and saw a hall with a radius of several *li* (one *li* is approximately 500 meters), with Ka Jing mineral stones arranged in square-meter blocks, illuminating the entire space.
Straight ahead, opposite the passage entrance, was a defensive structure, one meter high, made of pure steel, with many repeating crossbows neatly arranged on it.
One could imagine that if outsiders attacked from inside, they would be shot full of holes.
Of course, Young Master Lei immediately thought of many ways to break into the shelter, minimizing casualties for the attackers.
For example, using fire, smoke, or water. If that didn't work, he could block the gate and starve them out. No matter how much food they had, it wouldn't be enough for a fleeing family for several years.
The entire hall was very spacious, with only some greenery on either side. God knows how plants that never got watered or had sunlight survived.
In the distance were some simple fitness facilities.
On both sides of the hall, every five meters there was a door. No one knew what was inside.
"There are hundreds of bedrooms on both sides, with the granary and armory at the far end. Come on, I'll show you around."
Kalen proudly led everyone to the fitness area, and Wan Lei saw that there were passages on both sides.
Above the passages were iron pipes leading upwards.
"Don't bother looking, those are ventilation pipes connecting to the top of the mountain. Without them, everyone would suffocate."
Reaching the end of the passage, Kalen fiddled with a lock for a long time before finally opening the heavy door.
The space inside wasn't as large as the hall, but it was still considerable, about the size of two soccer fields, filled with layers of food.
Next, they visited the armory, which had all sorts of cold weapons, very complete.
Seeing this, Wan Lei regretted it. If he had known the storage bag wouldn't open, he would have had Little Yu take out the pulse laser gun. In this era of cold weapons, wouldn't that be able to sweep away all enemies?
But then he realized that all advanced energy in this world had been stripped away, and they had no energy themselves. The laser gun would be useless except as firewood.
Next, they visited the bar, chess room, and other entertainment venues, making Wan Lei marvel. As expected of the Munster family, this wasn't just a shelter for family members, it was practically a paradise.
"Alright, now for room and task assignments. All the bedrooms are yours to choose from except the master bedroom, which is mine. Just open the door and go in. There are bathtubs inside for showers.
As for tasks, Wan Lei, Fang Xiaoyu, and Yang Lazi, you are responsible for training the others' combat skills. I... I will also train with you. After all, more strength is always a good thing."
Kalen naturally began to give orders, acting like the leader.
But no one objected, since this was his territory.
"Wait a minute, why am I included? I didn't say I wanted to stay here."
Yang Lazi raised her hand in protest.
"Oh, Lazi, think about what's happening outside right now. Can you withstand that falling celestial body?"