After Xu Zhi said that, the two people in the distance agreed and took the initiative to walk towards Xu Zhi's position.

As they approached, Xu Zhi was able to see clearly the appearance of the two people. A man in his mid-thirties accompanied by a little girl who looked to be around 14 or 15 years old.

Judging from their clothing and demeanor, they appeared to be doing well. At least, they did not lack food, clothing, or water. The man even had the leisure to groom his beard.

And their eyes were clear and bright.

After entering the spirit body, Xu Zhi did not have the opportunity to look in a mirror to see if her eyes were normal, but based on the reactions of the two people, it was most likely that her eyes were fine.

Is it because the spirit body does not have a clear attribute, and she is not considered a follower of the "Cup"?

But judging from the characteristics of this spirit body, it is clearly heavily biased towards the "Cup".

Several thoughts flashed through Xu Zhi's mind. She guessed that perhaps the core invested was not sufficient enough to awaken the attributes of the spirit body, and therefore she did not exhibit any overtly obvious physical characteristics.

But if Xu Zhi were to invest more cores with the "Cup" attribute, she was unsure if she would be able to suppress the inexplicable restlessness in her heart as smoothly as she did now.

If I have the chance, I'll experiment with it. Right now, the most important thing is these two people in front of me.

Xu Zhi regained her composure and looked at the two of them, asking, "Who are you...?"

"Oh, hello. My name is Yan Songlin, and this is my daughter Yan Rui. We're residents who live nearby. And you?"

The man named Yan Songlin exuded an air of refinement in both his tone of speech and demeanor. It was estimated that before the apocalypse, he must have come from a well-off family. And despite the hardships of the post-apocalyptic life, it had not diminished his refined qualities.

"I'm from somewhere else," Xu Zhi replied simply.

The parents across from her were residents of the area, and after the city had been sealed off for so long, they must have had some idea of who else remained nearby. It would be pointless to lie.

Seeing that Xu Zhi was only willing to say so much, Yan Songlin understood that she did not want to reveal more, and he did not insist. It was not important after all.

"Do you have a place to go? Would you like to come with us?"

"Don't worry, we have a temporarily established gathering place. There are almost thirty people there now, all of them are nearby residents. We send people out every day to search for survivors. The atmosphere in the gathering place is quite good, and there are superhumans protecting us, so it's much safer than being alone outside."

"This sentence... also sounds familiar."

"Xu Zhi naturally couldn't join them, she would disappear in ten minutes!"

"It's not safe for me to stay outside, but how do I know that it's safe to go with you?" Xu Zhi asked, thinking that it wouldn't hurt to gather some information.

This was a very normal concern.

"It's understandable to have such concerns. But you can rest assured that our gathering place does not allow anyone who would pose a threat to the safety of our fellow members." Yan Songlin smiled understandingly, as if he had been asked this question many times before.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

There was an absolute confidence in Yan Songlin's words, a certainty that made Xu Zhi feel uneasy.

"How can you be so sure about that?" she asked.

Yan Songlin smiled. "I can't be sure, but someone in our gathering place can. She can ensure that everyone is safe and that the danger does not come from within our own ranks."

Although he did not explicitly state it, he had hinted at it quite clearly.

This was no longer the world of ordinary people, but one with supernatural abilities.

Within the gathering place, there was someone who could judge whether those around them were "safe."

Xu Zhi was pondering what kind of supernatural ability this was, whether it was passive or active.

Xu Zhi knew too little about supernatural abilities to definitively state that such an ability did not exist within the known attributes. If not for the time constraint, she would have even considered following them back to their gathering place to investigate further.

"How long does it take to get back to the gathering place from here?" she asked after some thought.

"About half an hour."

"That's too bad..." Xu Zhi sighed regretfully.

Yan Rui looked puzzled. She must have been well-protected by her family before the apocalypse, and had not suffered too much hardship afterwards. She was also unaware of the treacherous nature of human beings, which was why she was so impulsive and naive. Her direct gaze and questions towards Xu Zhi revealed that the gathering place might indeed be quite good.

At least it was good for this father-daughter duo.

"What's wrong? Can't you come back with us?" The innocent and childish voice of the young girl rang out. Xu Zhi thought for a moment, and if possible, she would like to speak with the supernatural being in the gathering place. So, she might as well "tell the truth."

"That's because this is just a clone created by my supernatural ability, and it can only last for a short while. I can't walk all the way back to the gathering place with you."

The reason Xu Zhi was being so "honest" was twofold. Firstly, she wanted to establish a good relationship with this gathering place, so that if she was randomly sent there again in the future, she might be able to enter and speak with the supernatural being in charge. Secondly, while she was being truthful, she was not completely so, leaving room for ambiguity.

It would be best if they mistakenly believed that her supernatural ability was the creation of clones. Such a misjudgment would not harm Xu Zhi in any way. Would they be wary of her clones?

That would be a futile effort.

Moreover, by revealing this, she was also acknowledging her status as a supernatural being, which would allow her to more quickly enter the other party's line of sight. When they met again, her words would be taken more seriously.

With this in mind, Xu Zhi directly asked, "What's the name of this place? What are the nearby locations?"

Yan Songlin was taken aback for a moment, hesitating for less than ten seconds before answering, "This is the Nanshan Villa District. Nearby are the Nanshan Subway Station, Chongming Elementary School, and Ganming Golf Course."

"Oh, I see. From the name, I know this is the 'rich people's district.'"

Xu Zhi's knowledge of the surrounding buildings was also for the purpose of quickly finding this place again if she were randomly sent there in the future.

Yan Songlin was a bit puzzled. Wouldn't locals in Yuncheng know about the Nanshan Villa District?

This should be the most famous place in Yuncheng, so famous that even some outsiders have heard of it. The young girl in front of him didn't know about it. Wasn't she a local?

After hesitating for a moment, he decided to give her the information. Firstly, Xu Zhi had not asked about the location of the gathering place. The Nanshan Villa District was vast, and even in normal times, it would take a long time to drive around it, let alone now. Finding a hidden gathering place would not be an easy task. Secondly, he trusted his companions enough.

They had quite a few supernatural beings among them, and Yan Songlin was confident that they could handle any hostile intentions from the other party, even if Xu Zhi was not entirely trustworthy.

Furthermore, he trusted "that person" to immediately recognize if Xu Zhi was acting suspiciously.

Seeing that the other party was receptive, Xu Zhi took the initiative to say, "My surname is Xu. If we meet again, could you bring me to the gathering place so we can exchange information?"

"I'm quite curious about the person you mentioned who can judge whether a companion is safe or not."

After saying this with a smile, Yan Songlin calmly agreed, but in his heart, he was wondering about the strange young girl with unremarkable appearances except for her striking, beautiful eyes.

He couldn't quite grasp her intentions. She seemed very vigilant, yet she suddenly revealed herself as a supernatural being with the ability to create clones. Now, she was unabashedly expressing her curiosity about the core figure of the gathering place. Didn't she fear that this curiosity would arouse the vigilance of others?

The fact that she didn't know about the Nanshan Villa District suggested that she was definitely not from this area or its vicinity. So, how did she end up here?

It was important to note that anyone who was outside before 5 p.m. would not reappear, and it was currently not even 5:30 p.m.!

A mysterious girl who suddenly appeared from the mist undoubtedly aroused vigilance and curiosity in Yan Songlin and Yan Rui.