Rulu stepped out of the car and walked toward the hotel, entering directly through its wide-open front doors.

  The moment Rulu stepped inside, a middle-aged man of about forty appeared in the lobby. With an eager smile on his face, he said to Rulu: "I'm sorry, but this hotel is currently undergoing renovations and is temporarily closed. We're unable to accept guests at this time."

  Rulu gnced around and said, "But your front doors are wide open — how can you say you're not taking guests?"

  "The thing is, our electrical system has run into some problems and is undergoing emergency repairs. If you absolutely must stay here, you're welcome to come back tomorrow — everything should be fixed by then."

  "That's fine." Rulu said casually, surveying the hotel. "I'm not here to check in. I'm here to find someone."

  "Find someone?" The man was taken aback. He studied Rulu carefully, and after confirming he didn't recognize him, said, "Who are you looking for, and why are you looking for them here?"

  "His surname is Huang. He's a man around thirty with curly hair. He's the one who told me to come find him here."

  A fsh of wariness crossed the middle-aged man's eyes. "What is your name, sir, and where did you hear about this man surnamed Huang?"

  "Don't give me all that. If he's here, just take me to him — I'll expin everything when the time comes."

  "I'm sorry, sir, there is no such man here by that name. If you really need to find him, you're welcome to leave a message, and if I happen to run into him, I'll pass it along."

  Rulu said, "That won't do. I don't have time to waste. Just tell me — is he here or not?"

  The smile faded from the middle-aged man's face. In a slightly impatient tone he said, "I'm sorry, but the person you're looking for is not here. I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

  "Alright then." Rulu sighed and turned to go — but just at that moment, he noticed movement in a concealed corner of the lobby, shadowy figures shifting about. And outside the front entrance, five or six strangers in grey clothing had appeared without his noticing, their gazes drifting toward him with a studied casualness, their waists conspicuously bulging — clearly armed.

  "Hmm, security this tight... Captain Guan might actually be here after all." Taking in the situation, Rulu turned back around. A strange gleam flickered in his eyes as he fixed them on the middle-aged man and said in a commanding tone: "Take me to that man surnamed Huang right now. Or more precisely — surnamed Guan."

  "You—" The middle-aged man furrowed his brow, on the verge of snapping, but the moment the words reached his lips, the stern look on his face softened. He said, "I understand. You're here to see Captain Guan, is that right? Captain Guan is here, but he's currently meeting with an important guest and has asked us not to disturb him unless it's urgent."

  "An important guest — who?" Rulu asked.

  "I'm not sure, but this person is of very high standing. Captain Guan and the leaders of many other Rebel organizations are meeting with this guest in a secret chamber right now, discussing something of great importance."

  "I see. Take me to them."

  "Of course. Please follow me." The middle-aged man agreed and set off down the corridor into the interior of the hotel. Rulu followed. The man led him to a room on the first floor, drew back the curtains in the corner, reached behind them, and pulled hard on a wall-mounted rack.

  There seemed to be some kind of mechanism in the rack. A creaking sound rang out, and a crack appeared in the wall — growing wider and wider until it formed a hidden door just wide enough for a single person to pass through. Beyond the door was a spiral staircase leading downward, into unknown depths.

  "Please go ahead — Captain Guan and the others are inside." The middle-aged man stopped at the entrance of the hidden door. Rulu stepped through, and with another creaking sound, the door automatically swung shut behind him.

  Rulu descended the spiral staircase to its end, where a bck iron door stood before him. A guard holding a rifle was posted at the door. Noticing Rulu's approach, the guard immediately raised his rifle and called out: "Who goes there? Identify yourself."

  "Quiet. Stand right there and don't move — act as if I was never here." Rulu met the guard's eyes and spoke in a commanding tone. The guard froze, then lowered his rifle and stood to the side without another word.

  Rulu reached the iron door and gently pushed it open, peering through the gap. Beyond was a spacious, well-lit stone chamber. A long conference table sat at its center, around which roughly twenty people were seated, with several dozen more standing nearby.

  Rulu took in the room. The people were dressed in varied attire — most were men in their thirties and forties, with hard, fierce faces and weapons including firearms on their persons. One gnce was enough to tell that these were not people to be trifled with.

  "Looks like just about everyone here is a member of a Rebel organization. I wonder what they're discussing." Rulu continued scanning the chamber. He spotted Captain Guan, the man he was looking for, seated at the conference table, while Kallen, A-Bing, and the others stood not far behind him. Every eye in the chamber was fixed on an elderly man with white hair seated at the head of the table — a man who appeared to be around fifty years old.

  Though his hair had gone white, the old man was sharp-eyed and vigorous, his gaze keen and piercing, carrying an air of unmistakable authority. He spoke in a resonant voice: "Fellow leaders of the Rebel factions, comrades — the newly appointed Governor of Blue Sea City, Prince Suwen, has unched a rge-scale campaign to exterminate us. He has killed many of our brothers and sisters, and is now demanding we hand over an assassin. If we refuse, he has threatened to execute our five hundred captured prisoners in five days' time. I would like to hear your thoughts on this matter."

  A bald, powerfully built man with a scar across his face said in a rough voice: "What is there to think about? We've confirmed it over and over — no one pnned any such assassination. There is no assassin. That bastard Governor is just looking for an excuse to come after us."