With a belly full of questions, the four of them followed Wang Zhou into the villa area, continuing until they arrived at a rather secluded villa.
The villa's interior, previously filled with corpses and cluttered objects, had been cleared out, leaving it feeling empty and desolate. There were a few damaged spots on the walls, conveying a sense of ruin and bleakness.
The team of four felt something was off about the environment but had no time to ponder. Upon entering, a strong sense of oppression weighed heavily on their hearts, leaving them struggling to breathe.
Inside the villa, apart from Wang Zhou, who led them there, were two other people.
One was a young man dressed in casual attire.
The other was a muscular man who resembled an iron tower; the loose shirt he wore looked like a tight-fitting garment on his body.
The muscular man stood behind the young man, exuding an intense Blood Evil Qi. It was terrifying to the extreme, and they could feel that this oppressive aura came from the iron tower-like muscular man.
What was going on?
They didn't understand; they were refugees, survivors seeking shelter.
Generally, even if a Sanctuary wasn't welcoming to survivors, it wouldn't immediately show its power in such a way, especially considering there were two Awakeners among them, which any Sanctuary would welcome with open arms.
Something was definitely not right.
The young man in casual attire, with his hands behind his back, swept his gaze over them, "So, what's your purpose for sneaking in here?"
The pupils of the four tightened slightly; they weren't sure where they had slipped up, or perhaps...
The leader of the four tried to butter up, "Brother, we're originally survivors from Nanling Town, constantly hiding and fleeing outside. This time we found the sign of your Sanctuary and wanted to seek shelter. We, we have no other motives."
He felt uneasy, but he was also certain that the missing squad had an inevitable connection with this Sanctuary.
This had made the Sanctuary more vigilant against outsiders.
Just like this time, the leader felt they hadn't shown any flaws.
Originally survivors in the wild, their disguise was quite natural.
He felt the Sanctuary probably wasn't suspicious of them, just maintaining vigilance, conducting routine checks. Using the expert's Qi oppression to unsettle them, then interrogating, they might accidentally reveal the truth.
Fortunately...
The leader felt relieved as they had undergone some training. They were also resolute, showing no flaws.
This meant they should be safe now.
Thinking this, the leader continued his flattering demeanor, only to find the person opposite still expressionless.
It was as if they didn't care what the response was.
He then heard Tang Yu continue, "Of course, whether you speak or not doesn't matter. I know clearly who you are. What I want to know now is for what purpose Lin Wei sent you here?"
"Well, you have the right to remain silent and can remain so indefinitely, because…" Tang Yu spread his hands, "I've already killed so many, a few more like you don't matter."
The leader, who was tall and strong, found maintaining the fawning smile increasingly difficult and stiff at this moment.
They knew who Lin Wei was; he was their superior's superior, the biggest boss behind the scenes.
Yet, he held onto a sliver of hope, without evidence, it was merely a guess. These two couldn't just act directly... could they?
The leader couldn't be sure and continued to persist.
As for taking action or fleeing, he never considered it. Just the pressure from the iron tower-like man was enough to immobilize them. If it came to a fight, they probably wouldn't last a single move.
This was a master, far beyond their match.
At this moment, a bespectacled young man among them walked out with a wry smile, "Let me speak."
"Third, you…" The leader looked incredulous.
The bespectacled young man gave them an apologetic look, "Boss, Second, and Five, what's the point of holding out now? We were just in a hiring relationship with our superiors. They sent us to investigate; we tried our best. We even sacrificed two people for this. We owe nothing more and don't need to risk our lives."
He took a deep breath, "Do you think staying silent will ensure our safety? Remember, this is the apocalypse; life is the cheapest thing. Even if we die, do you think the secrets will remain? No, even if we fall, our superiors would just send other teams; the result would be the same."
Third, the bespectacled man, saw things clearly.
After speaking, he confessed their purpose to those at the Sanctuary without any reservation.
The others remained silent.
To say they were loyal wouldn't be true.
Initially, they persisted only out of a fluke, believing they hadn't been discovered.
Even when Tang Yu mentioned Lin Wei's name, they thought it might just be a ploy to scare them.
Admitting it would mean being caught infiltrating the Sanctuary and facing dire consequences.
But denying, insisting they were merely fleeing survivors, might allow them to blend in successfully.
That was their thought.
The bespectacled youth had initially thought the same but understood more clearly.
What the other party said wasn't just intimidation. Even without evidence, even if it were just suspicion, in an era where killing was like slaughtering chickens, annihilating them would not require any hesitation.
Only by confessing could they earn a slim chance of survival.
However, the young man still wondered in his heart, where had they slipped up?
...…
The team planning to infiltrate the Sanctuary didn't know much.
They had less understanding of Lin Wei and his forces compared to the information extracted from Han Jing's team previously.
Tang Yu also understood well; Han Jing was Lin Wei's trusted subordinate, while this team might just be an insignificant squad under Lin Wei's command.
This squad naturally didn't know confidential information like the Source Crystal Mine. Their mission was merely to search for the previously missing Han Jing's team.
However, the squad sent for this mission wasn't the only one.
From the information obtained from the bespectacled youth, there were at least seven or eight such teams assigned to different areas for investigation. This team was responsible for investigating this specific area.
"This meant that their disappearance would surely draw Lin Wei's attention, and the Sanctuary would eventually come into their sights."
Such a scenario was predictable for him.
Han Jing's team members were already wiped out in various ways, but as long as Lin Wei regarded the Source Crystal Mine with enough importance, he would continually send people to investigate, discovering the truth would just be a matter of time.
However, for Tang Yu, time was the most critical factor.
Although Lin Wei was high up in the Lindong Sanctuary, unable to command the army, he had countless Awakeners under him. Currently, Lin Wei's force certainly surpassed the Territory. However, in the apocalyptic times, the difficulty in communications meant that authority alone couldn't convey messages effectively.
Arresting this squad, while the news of their disappearance reached Lin Wei's hands, dispatch the reconnaissance personnel, then the reconnaissance personnel conducted their investigation…
The back-and-forth would consume considerable time.
By using this time, Tang Yu had confidence in elevating the Territory's construction to the next level.
These squad members shouldn't be wasted; they could be sent to work as miners. The efficiency of Awakeners at hard labor exceeded that of ordinary people by far.
Tang Yu recalled Han Jing's group with some regret. Having third-layer Awakeners as laborers would have been fantastic.
However, he understood well; employing Han Jing's group as miners was too dangerous. As Landlord Tang, he would tread the path of caution and would not take undue risks.