Jiawu smiled and looked at the man who walked into the room, Si Ye. “Is everything handled outside?”

“Mm.” Si Ye casually leaned against the bed and sat on the floor, his brain rapidly processing everything, trying to find the connections between the events.

Jiawu watched his expression. “Do these people’s identities hold any special significance?”

“It feels like they were after her.” Si Ye didn’t hide anything from Jiawu, but his tone carried a clear sense of unease.

“The underground laboratory people?” Jiawu blurted out.

Si Ye looked at him in surprise.

Jiawu put down the towel in his hand. “Ran Ran may not have said anything, but I can tell she’s very familiar with that laboratory, and she’s wary of it. If these people know Ran Ran, there’s no reason they would attack now.”

“There’s only one possibility. They must’ve seen her make a move yesterday and figured out that her powers were exhausted.” Si Ye spoke, his voice trembling slightly at the thought.

Luckily, Nan Muran had awakened their abilities.

Otherwise, he had no idea what the outcome would have been. He was experiencing a sense of fear for the first time, and the overwhelming dread almost consumed him entirely.

He glanced at Nan Muran, who was peacefully asleep on the bed, unable to resist reaching out to pinch her delicate, fair fingertips.

Jiawu noticed his actions. “We’ll stay here tonight.”

In dangerous situations, the only people Jiawu could trust were himself and Si Ye. He didn’t hold any expectations for the others.

The next day, sunlight filtered through the curtains, and a beam of morning light gently illuminated Nan Muran’s face, causing her to gradually wake up.

She rubbed her blurry eyes and saw Si Ye sitting on the floor next to the bed, and Jiawu sleeping with his back against the wall.

Looking at their positions and the guns and hand grenades nearby, Nan Muran froze. “Si Ye, Brother Wu.”

Hearing her voice, the two men, who had been lightly asleep, immediately woke up.

“What happened last night?”

“Forgot? You had a fever last night.” Jiawu smiled as he got up and handed her a bottle of water from his bag.

Nan Muran shifted her gaze and couldn’t help but smile helplessly. “Right, I was muddled from the fever.”

“We’ll head out first. You get some food to eat; we need to return to the base.” Si Ye gently helped her sit up.

Nan Muran had been meaning to check on Guo Fei and the others at the base, so she nodded in agreement.

The four remaining researchers outside instinctively shrank back when they saw Jiawu, trying to lower their presence as much as possible.

Nan Muran tidied up her things from the bed and then went to the bathroom to wash up.

Afterward, she took out five plain buns and some soy milk from her space as breakfast.

When she was done eating and ready to leave, she realized everyone else was already prepared. Looking around at the researchers, she noticed one person was missing.

“Sister Nan, feeling better?” Chen Dong approached her immediately when he saw her and handed her a bottle of water.

“Much better.” Nan Muran smiled as she took the water.

The group split up and got into their vehicles, heading straight for the military base established at Nan Mountain Cloud Garden.

Three vehicles headed east, straight to Nan Mountain Cloud Garden.

To avoid the zombie wave the previous day, they had driven a long way, and now they were almost an hour into their return.

There were still quite a few zombies wandering aimlessly along the road, but with the Li Jian special forces clearing the way ahead, there was no need for excessive concern.

Si Ye and the others sat on the front military truck along with several researchers.

Only Nan Muran and Jiawu remained in the other vehicle.

Jiawu immediately began explaining everything that had happened the night before to Nan Muran.

After hearing everything, Nan Muran sighed. “Brother Wu, once we reach the base, let’s separate from them.”

Jiawu nodded. That was exactly what he intended. He didn’t want the entire military base to think there was any significant connection between them, to avoid anyone coming to seek them out later.

Some things were better left clear and distinct.

The military’s efficiency was high at Nan Mountain Cloud Garden, and the surrounding areas, including several undeveloped open spaces, had already been enclosed by high walls and the mountains in the back.

At the city gate-shaped entrance, three teams were lined up.

Two of the teams were long, while the third had fewer people.

“The leftmost team consists of civilians rescued from the search, the middle team is made up of those who came on their own, and work assignments will be distributed based on their individual situations. The team on the right is the ability user team. You can register and go straight in. Sister Nan, you can join us.” Chen Dong quickly got the information and came over to Nan Muran.

Nan Muran shook her head with a smile. “We’ll separate here.”

Hearing her words, the Li Jian team and a few of the other soldiers looked at her in surprise.

“I do things based on my own preferences, and I might do something inappropriate. It’s better if you don’t come with us.” Nan Muran smiled.

Her tone made it clear she was drawing a line.

“Sister Nan…” Chen Dong was puzzled.

“Chen Dong, let’s go back.” Si Ye’s voice rang out coldly from behind.

Even the others, like Eagle and Qiangzi, were surprised by their captain’s response. Did that mean he was truly drawing a line with Miss Nan?

Nan Muran stepped forward, smiling at Si Ye. “We’ll go in first then.”

“Do you know anyone inside?”

“Building 13 in District D, my brother and sister-in-law live there.” After answering, Nan Muran turned and headed for the ability user’s designated passage, not looking back.

Chen Dong watched their retreating figures. “Captain, what does Sister Nan mean?”

“If their status hasn’t changed, then there’s no need to go in together.” Si Ye’s voice carried a hint of amusement as he watched Nan Muran’s back.

He never imagined he would meet such a girl—passionate and honest, decisive in action, and clear-headed and self-controlled.

Chen Dong and Wang Qiang fell silent, wondering if they were destined to part ways with Nan Muran.

Eagle, on the other hand, glanced at Si Ye. For some reason, he felt that after last night, Si Ye seemed lighter, no longer as depressed and heavy as before, almost as if a weight had been lifted off him.

“We’ll talk about it later.” Si Ye looked at the three men, who seemed downcast.

At the registration desk, the female clerk did a double take when she saw Nan Muran and Jiawu.

Having worked at the gate for a while, she was very good at reading people. The way they dressed made it clear they were not ordinary.

She immediately smiled. “Ability users just need to register their ability levels to enter directly.”

Nan Muran took the pen and paper and simply wrote down “Level 2 Plant System.”

Jiawu also wrote “Level 2 Thunder System.”

The clerk’s face lit up with delight. Level 2 ability users? There were no more than five in the entire base. These were definitely influential people.

Her attitude became even more enthusiastic. “Please, come right in. Would you like a guide?”

“No need.” Nan Muran smiled and declined.

Once inside the base, they noticed that the entire Nan Mountain Cloud Garden, including several previously undeveloped open spaces nearby, had been encompassed.

To the left of the entrance was a large parking lot.

The previously empty land now had rows of six-story buildings, all surrounded by a courtyard, resembling a former housing complex.

“Ran Ran, Si Ye…” Jiawu was worried that Nan Muran might be upset because of Si Ye’s actions.

Nan Muran smiled faintly and interrupted him. “I understand his intentions.”

She knew that if Si Ye came to her voluntarily next time, it would mean he would unwaveringly stand by her side from then on.

If not, that would truly be the parting of ways.