In this extremely cold environment with temperatures below -70 degrees Celsius, no living organism can survive in the wild.
Two months have passed since the extreme cold disaster struck, and it is extremely strange that the few cats and dogs in this snow pit have survived until now.
Led by Niu Ke, Chen Yu carefully descended into the snow pit.
He had only gone halfway when he felt a warm sensation coming from below.
"Hehe, these little guys are lucky. They actually found an exposed exhaust vent on the ground. I guess it's a heat dissipation vent for some large piece of equipment in the science institute, which unexpectedly became their safe haven," Niu Ke added, his eyes sparkling with admiration for this miracle of the intertwining of technology and nature.
"Woof woof~"
"Meow~"
…………
Several cats and dogs bared their teeth at Chen Yu, clearly maintaining a high level of vigilance towards this uninvited guest.
Their voices were full of wariness, and their eyes flashed with unease and hostility, as if warning Chen Yu not to approach their territory.
"Brothers, relax, Mr. Chen is our friend, one of our own," Niu Ke said, trying to reassure the group of cats and dogs.
Chen Yu frowned upon hearing this, but didn't say anything. As long as Niu Ke liked it, that was fine.
Under Niu Ke's gentle coaxing, the cats and dogs seemed to calm down, although they still kept a certain distance, each protecting a few chicken legs under their bodies, as if afraid that the new stranger would take them away.
Chen Yu ignored them and began to focus on observing this unexpected safe haven.
He noticed that not only had the snow melted around the vent, creating a damp area, but several tenacious green plants had even poked their heads out from the cracks, adding a touch of life to the cold snow pit.
Chen Yu took off his gloves and felt the temperature inside the snow pit. In this extremely cold outdoor environment, it was like a small, warm oasis, with an overall temperature of at least 0 degrees Celsius, which was in stark contrast to the harsh cold outside.
He couldn't help but look again at the exhaust vent that was occupied by several cats and dogs.
The cats and dogs, sensing Chen Yu's gaze, immediately became wary and bared their teeth at him again.
After all, this is their only hope for survival, and they won't allow anyone to mess with it, not even Nils Holmes!
Seeing this, Chen Yu reached into his pocket and pulled out several bags of pet treats, gently placed them on the ground, and tapped the ground lightly to signal them to come over.
This scene left Niu Ke stunned. In this extremely cold environment, which was comparable to the end of the world, Chen Yu was actually carrying pet snacks with him!
When the cats and dogs saw the snacks Chen Yu had placed on the ground, they hesitated at first, but the aroma of the food quickly attracted their attention.
A slightly bolder puppy cautiously approached, sniffed the snack bag on the ground, and then looked up at Chen Yu, as if to confirm his intentions.
Chen Yu maintained his smile and made no threatening gestures.
The puppy finally mustered up its courage, picked up a bag of treats, and quickly retreated back into the group of cats and dogs.
Seeing this, other cats and dogs also gathered around, but remained wary, taking turns to try these unexpected delicacies.
Each one is neatly arranged, ensuring that the warm air vent is always protected by its companion.
During this time, something funny happened. For some reason, a mouse suddenly darted out of the air vent, and a cat quickly caught it and slapped it to the ground.
This explains their food source these days.
Seeing this scene, Chen Yu chuckled and then said to Niu Ke, "Old Niu, look at this. Even these cats and dogs, two species, understand the importance of unity and cooperation in this extreme cold disaster. Why do you think we humans still fight each other and act independently?"
"If he's always thinking about leaving the team, he's doomed!"
Chen Yu's voice was somewhat heavy when he said the last sentence, as if he meant something specific.
Niu Ke was slightly taken aback upon hearing this. Of course, he knew what Chen Yu meant; this was a warning to him.
"Hehe, Lao Niu, don't be nervous. I was just feeling sentimental, I wasn't targeting anyone," Chen Yu said with a smile. "You're very knowledgeable, why don't you tell me, what might this air vent be used for?"
Upon hearing this, the tense lines on Niu Ke's face relaxed somewhat. He pondered for a moment and said, "If I'm not mistaken, this air vent is likely part of the emergency backup heating system for the deep underground laboratory of the Academy of Sciences. Under extreme weather conditions, when the main heating system fails or cannot meet the demand, these backup systems will automatically start to ensure the stability of the laboratory's internal environment."
"As for why it's exposed, I think it's probably because the temperature plummeted on the day of the extreme cold disaster, causing the surface soil to freeze rapidly. This accidentally exposed the vent of the heating system, which was originally hidden under the soil. In this extreme situation, ice and snow covered most of the ground, but this vent, because it continuously emitted heat, melted the surrounding ice and snow, forming a unique warm area, which became a haven for these small animals."
Upon hearing Niu Ke's explanation, Chen Yu nodded thoughtfully, but he quickly realized the problem.
Judging from the heat emanating from the exhaust vents, the heating system must be quite large. Such a massive heating system would require a huge amount of energy to support it. He had been stationed outside the institute for nearly half a month, but he had never heard of any energy production facilities operating inside the institute.
Originally, the institute had a dedicated power plant, but in order to save fuel, it was shut down on a large scale, with only a small generator set remaining in operation to maintain the basic power needs of the institute's key scientific research projects.
Such an energy configuration is clearly insufficient to support the consumption of a large heating system.
Chen Yu frowned, his mind filled with doubt. He looked at Niu Kesi and asked, "Old Niu, where do you think the energy for this heating system comes from? Could it be that the Academy of Sciences has some secret energy source that we don't know about?"
“I don’t know about that. Aren’t you close to their dean? Just ask him directly.” Niu Ke shrugged.
Chen Yu smiled wryly. Ever since Zhang Xiangming read the letter Lin Hong gave him that day, he seemed to have become a different person. He was completely indifferent to everything that was not his business, and he was oblivious to everything else. He devoted all his attention to his research project. Chen Yu couldn't even see Zhang Xiangming, let alone get any information about the secret energy from him.
"Old Niu, why don't you take a bold guess?" Chen Yu asked tentatively.
“Alright, since you’ve asked, I’ll venture to share my opinion,” Newsk said.
Upon hearing this, Chen Yu's eyes lit up. This Nosk really has something to offer; he truly deserves to be called a tech fanatic.
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