"Of course — we'd naturally cooperate with you, officer. But my sister is very ill and can't get out of the car, so I'd ask you to please let us through." Rulu spoke calmly and unhurriedly, and a strange light appeared in his eyes as he looked at the soldier.

  "Your sister is sick, is she? Well… in that case, I suppose there's nothing to be done —" The moment Rulu's gaze met his, the soldier's stern expression softened entirely. He put away his handgun and waved at the armored soldier blocking the car: "It's fine. Let them through."

  The armored soldier stepped aside at those words, clearing the way.

  "Thank you." Rulu said to the soldier with a peculiar smile, then started the car and drove on.

  As a precaution, Rulu kept his Spiritual-power focused on the soldier, maintaining mental control over him, and only released the control once the car had driven well out of range.

  Once they were completely clear, Rulu let out a breath of relief. He thought to himself how fortunate he was to have acquired this strange Spiritual-power — without it, there would have been no safe way to bring Nana back to the Concession. He owed his thanks to that nameless green-haired woman.

  After that, every stretch of road brought another checkpoint set up by the Sanctuary's forces, and each time Rulu used his Spiritual-power to take control of the soldiers and pass through smoothly. After clearing four consecutive checkpoints, he and Nana finally entered the Concession, where Rulu bought medicine for Nana at a pharmacy and had her take it.

  Rulu continued driving through the Concession with Nana, and along the way they were stopped several more times for inspection by Sanctuary forces. Each time, Rulu used his Spiritual-power to get them through.

  About an hour or so ter, Rulu drove into a wide, deserted open area. Across the ground stood row upon row of white stone markers.

  "This pce… this is the cemetery district of Blue Sea City. Is this where Dad's secret house is?" Nana's condition had improved considerably after taking her medicine. She looked out through the car window at the vast expanse and spoke.

  Rulu replied: "Yes. This cemetery was established long ago during wartime and holds a great many soldiers who died in battle. After the war ended, the people of Blue Sea City grew quite wary of this pce and rarely come here — it's the most sparsely poputed area in the entire Concession. Uncle Qiao mentioned that the secret house he purchased is in the woods to the east. Let's go take a look."

  Rulu drove the car toward the eastern edge of the cemetery, and before long he found the woods, pressing on deeper and deeper into them. Suddenly he spotted it — standing in a clearing deep within the trees was a single-storey, pitch-bck little house.

  "This must be it. Let's get out." Rulu said, found a concealed spot to park the car, helped Nana out, and walked with her to the front of the house.

  From the bag he carried with him, Rulu produced a set of keys — left behind by Mayor Qiao during their escape. With Mayor Qiao now gone, his belongings had passed into Rulu's keeping.

  After trying several keys, Rulu managed to unlock the front door. He and Nana stepped inside to find the house completely empty, every surface thick with dust — clearly uninhabited for years. Yet despite the neglect, the water and electricity still worked, and all the appliances functioned normally.

  "Uncle Qiao mentioned there's another house beneath this one — we'd be safer staying there. He said the entrance to the basement is inside the bedroom wardrobe…"

  Rulu said this as he led Nana to the bedroom and began searching through the wardrobe. After quite some time, he found a locked metal hidden door set into a concealed section of the wardrobe wall.

  Rulu used one of Mayor Qiao's keys to open the metal door. Beyond it was a staircase leading downward. He flicked on the lighting switch beside the stairs, helped Nana through the hidden door, and the two of them descended into the basement.

  The basement was remarkably spacious — it had a living room, kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and all manner of other rooms, with a rger floor area than the house above. There was also a secret passage leading somewhere unknown; Rulu guessed it was a second exit from the basement, designed for escape in the event of an attack.

  There was also a surveilnce room in the basement, and from its rge screen one could clearly see every angle of the area surrounding the house above.

  After Rulu and Nana had explored the whole basement together, Rulu said with feeling: "It seems Uncle Qiao foresaw long ago that something might happen to him — that's why he prepared this pce in advance. To think he never got to live here himself, and instead it falls to us."

  The mention of Mayor Qiao brought a shadow of sorrow back to Nana's face: "Dad gave everything for us and worried about us endlessly. Now that he's gone, I don't know how I could ever repay him."

  Rulu said: "As long as you live well, Nana, that is the finest thing you could do in his memory. On another note — from now on it's best you don't leave this house or make contact with anyone outside. Don't trust anyone — not even old friends. And don't let anyone know this pce exists, not even Captain Guan and the others. Understood?"

  Nana was taken aback. "Do you mean we'll be living completely cut off from the outside world from now on?"

  Rulu came to her side, put an arm gently around her shoulders, and said quietly: "I know it'll be lonely for you here on your own, Nana. But you know the Sanctuary is hunting us — for the sake of surviving, this is how it has to be."

  Nana nodded. She rested her head on Rulu's shoulder and said with a soft smile: "It's alright — I can bear a little hardship like this. And besides, you'll be here with me, won't you? There's internet here too, so no matter how long I stay, I won't get bored."

  Seeing Nana smile, Rulu felt at ease. "Good then. Your body still needs to recover, so rest first. I'll take care of everything else."