Chapter 191

Chapter 191

"That’s fine then, machines having their own thoughts or whatever…" Li Shu wore a half-smiling expression.

In many science fiction novels, robots in the future world possessed their own consciousness. These mechanical beings often grew dissatisfied with human rule, leading to a series of complex stories that impacted the entire world.

"No need to think of mechanical life as something bad. As long as we can firmly hold their lifeline in human hands, wouldn’t that be enough?" Qi Huang, a sci-fi literature enthusiast, had a fondness for robots.

"What if a robot disguises itself as a human? Who could tell? The world would be in chaos!" Wu Mingbai disagreed, his imagination running wild.

The group eagerly dove into the topic, and neither the teachers nor the guide stopped them. Many students, upon arriving here, would start pondering such questions. It was a good thing for students to think, and there was no need to forcibly suppress it.

Mechanical life created by abilities and those crafted purely through technology were entirely different. The latter could indeed break free from control, while the former was almost certainly under the ability user’s grasp. Thus, Zhang He, representing Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd., didn’t feel offended.

As usual, Su Bei didn’t join the discussion. He was observing Mu Tieren. Probably no one else noticed, but Mu Tieren’s expression was extremely grim at that moment.

Standing at the back, despite his tall stature, his position made him less noticeable. He kept his head down, silent. If Su Bei hadn’t been watching him, he wouldn’t have noticed the increasingly sour look on Mu Tieren’s face since Jiang Tianming started speaking.

After the discussion wound down, Zhang He clapped his hands, smiling. "Everyone’s got quite the imagination, but the mechanical life in sci-fi films is completely different from the ones in our factory. You can touch some parts without adhesive to feel them—they’re truly lively and adorable little beings."

They could actually touch them! The group was thrilled and immediately rushed to the assembly line. Everyone scrambled to grab a part, but these parts were mischievous, hopping and dodging their attempts.

The area near the assembly line turned chaotic, with everyone showcasing their skills. Mo Xiaotian used Air Cube to trap some parts, easily snagging one. Zhao Xiaoyu activated her ability [Happiness], making the part she wanted feel content and calm, letting her catch it obediently.

Lan Subing uttered a [Word Spirit], barely expending mental energy to freeze a rivet. Jiang Tianming had it even easier—his [Object Control] ability worked on any object, especially small ones, which he could effortlessly manipulate…

While everyone displayed their talents, Su Bei, with quick reflexes, grabbed a gear that foolishly jumped right in front of him.

To be honest, despite the secrets he was hiding, this was indeed a novel experience for him. Su Bei was intrigued by these living parts, especially the gears, which were so similar to his ability.

His initial ability had been the basic [Summon Gear], so he naturally felt an affinity for gears.

The lively little gear seemed to sense a familiar aura from him. Though it was energetic moments ago, it now sat obediently in Su Bei’s palm, even nuzzling his fingers to show its affection.

Zhang He, noticing this from behind, smiled in surprise. "It really likes you. Usually, these parts don’t get close to anyone but the boss. I didn’t expect it to be so friendly with you right away, not making a fuss at all. Seems like you two are fated."

He then asked curiously, "May I ask what your ability is? If it’s suitable, perhaps you could join our company after graduation."

A gear brought to life by the boss should, in theory, only be close to the boss. Freshly made, it hadn’t had time to bond with others, so its inexplicable fondness for Su Bei struck Zhang He as odd.

This was something to take seriously. Despite his cheerful demeanor, Zhang He was inwardly on high alert. To pinpoint the issue, he dangled the carrot of "a job at a big company" to probe Su Bei’s ability, checking if it was related.

If Su Bei’s ability was tied to life and could influence the boss' creations, he’d need to report it to the boss pronto. If it was something else, understanding it would eliminate a potential threat.

Hearing their conversation, Meng Huai naturally understood Zhang He’s concern and answered for Su Bei, "His ability is related to gears."

Relieved, Zhang He subtly relaxed. Life created by abilities was a product of abilities and could sense others’ abilities to some extent. Similar abilities attracted each other, so a gear-related ability drawing a gear was normal.

He didn’t suspect Meng Huai was lying for the student. If someone wanted to dig, they could easily find a student’s ability. Even if specifics were elusive, getting the ability’s name was simple.

Gear-related ability names likely included gear-related terms. If Meng Huai was lying, it’d be easy to expose.

Though 90% certain Meng Huai wasn’t lying, Zhang He, out of caution, sent a message to his subordinates to investigate Su Bei’s ability, demanding results before the event ended.

Su Bei ignored their subtle clash. He understood Zhang He’s intent in asking about his ability but, having a clear conscience, didn’t mind the inquiry.

Carefully examining the lively little gear in his palm, Su Bei summoned a gear and placed it beside it.

The living gear showed no disdain for its lifeless kin, rolling around the ordinary gear in his palm twice, looking excited.

Pretty cute. Su Bei’s lips curled slightly.

"You like it a lot?" Mu Tieren suddenly asked, noticing his expression.

Su Bei was stunned. This was the first thing Mu Tieren had said since the event began, and it was to him, about this.

"It’s alright," Su Bei said, setting the gear down. It reluctantly tried to cling to him but failed.

Chuckling, Su Bei looked at Mu Tieren. "You don’t like these mechanical beings? I haven’t seen you touch them."

Because he suspected something about Mu Tieren, Su Bei had been observing him and noticed this odd detail.

Caught off guard that Su Bei noticed him, Mu Tieren awkwardly touched his nose. "No, I’m just not interested."

Despite saying this, he didn’t attempt to pick up any parts to prove his point, which didn’t align with his claim of mere disinterest.

Noticing this, Su Bei thoughtfully picked up the little gear still lingering around him and offered it to Mu Tieren. "This one’s pretty friendly."

But before he could bring it close, Mu Tieren stepped back. "I’m going to ask where the restroom is. Want to come?"

"No, you go." Su Bei shook his head with a half-smile, watching him leave. Then he looked at the gear in his hand. "Oh, looks like someone doesn’t like you."

The gear in his palm wiggled, as if indignant. But Su Bei ignored it, tossing the gear aside like a heartless cad, and sat on a nearby chair to rest.

Seeing everyone had mostly finished exploring, Zhang He led them to the next workshop. This one wasn’t special—just an inspection workshop, checking products for quality issues or active parts.

This workshop had the most staff—six people, split into two groups of three, inspecting each product twice.

While Zhang He boasted about their meticulous product checks, Su Bei and others with no buying interest listened halfheartedly. Those with purchasing intent, like Ai Baozhu or Feng Lan, sent by their families, listened intently, seeking suitable products.

"Beep beep beep beep—"

Suddenly, a piercing alarm blared through the factory, accompanied by flashing red warning lights, signaling something terrible had happened.

The six workers nervously stopped, standing in place, looking to Zhang He. As workshop director and their direct superior, they trusted his lead in such emergencies.

The only leader, Zhang He, immediately grabbed his walkie-talkie, listened briefly, and his face turned grim. He turned to leave but remembered the group still needed his arrangements and turned back.

He first addressed his staff. "Return to the dorms and stay there until I message you."

Then he turned to Meng Huai. "Sorry, we’ve had an issue. How about we end today’s event early and reschedule?"

That was obviously impossible. Even if the academy agreed, Meng Huai wouldn’t. They had the Tri-School Competition next, and per the academy’s reasoning, any revisit would be before the competition.

But where would they find time for activities? They had training!

"Can you tell us what trouble you’re facing?" Sensing Meng Huai’s disapproval, Lei Ze’en asked proactively. "If possible, we’d like to help, as a training exercise for the students."

This wasn’t just polite talk; he meant it. If the issue wasn’t too serious or dangerous, they could use it to train the students’ problem-solving skills. Even if the visit yielded little, it wouldn’t be a wasted trip.

Hearing this, Zhang He hesitated. It was an internal company matter, and he shouldn’t involve outsiders. But they were short-staffed. To accommodate the visitors, the factory had minimal staff, mostly technicians, with many security personnel given time off.

With their current manpower, finding the culprit would be tough. Plus, they had a big order to rush, so sealing the factory long-term wasn’t feasible.

If they lifted the lockdown, the butler assistant, familiar with the factory’s layout and highly intelligent, could slip out unnoticed, causing significant losses.

Secondly, the boss had instructed him to meet the visitors’ requests as much as possible. They clearly didn’t want to leave and saw this as a training opportunity.

So Zhang He wavered. Should he agree?

"Sorry, please wait. I need to consult the boss." Ultimately, he found a safe solution—pass the decision to the boss, sparing himself the mental gymnastics of guessing intentions.

If the boss approved their help, it’d be ideal. If not, and the butler assistant wasn’t caught, he could use it as an excuse to shift blame.

The call connected quickly. Zhang He briefly explained the situation, nodding repeatedly. Hanging up, he flashed a warm smile. "The boss agreed. Thank you for offering to help. Shall I explain the situation?"

It was simple: a butler assistant robot had escaped. Before coming here, Si Zhaohua had mentioned his family’s butler assistant, which had high intelligence, vast knowledge, a sturdy body, and excellent combat skills.

Butler assistants were all-rounders, making their escape highly dangerous.

"We’ve sealed the entire factory, so it likely hasn’t escaped. If possible, we’d like your help to find it." Zhang He showed them a photo on his phone.

The photo showed a pink robot with a standard blocky head and body, two antennas on its head, and a pink exterior that made the antennas resemble twin ponytails.

Curious before, Su Bei and others had seen Si Zhaohua’s family butler assistant photos, which were the same model but different colors. Si Zhaohua said theirs was a black classic model.

"The butler assistant’s core is its brain. Its body parts are detachable or foldable, so it might shrink itself and hide in a factory corner, waiting for a chance to leave." Zhang He highlighted the challenge, explaining why they couldn’t find it immediately.

After hearing the situation, Lei Ze’en was puzzled. "Why not hire ability users with tracking abilities? They could find the escaped butler assistant quickly."

"Because they’re not independent entities; they’re created by the boss. Tracking abilities might lead to the boss instead." Zhang He gave a helpless look.

He added, slightly embarrassed, "Also, we’d prefer as few people know about this as possible. Please don’t spread it. Most of our butler assistants are reliable. Escapees like this won’t be sold without thorough reprogramming to ensure quality."

"Rest assured, our students are tight-lipped. But since it’s a life created by your boss, shouldn’t he be able to sense its location?" Lei Ze’en raised another question. As a teacher responsible for student safety, he needed to clarify all doubts in this task.

Zhang He understood and answered patiently, "Butler assistants are special. After creation, the boss severs their connection. Otherwise, if they could be controlled by the boss at all times, buyers wouldn’t feel secure, right?"

That made sense. It was like buying a security camera only to find the seller could control it remotely. Any cautious household would avoid such products. For reputation, Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd. couldn’t afford such flaws in their butler assistants.

Unable to think of other questions, Lei Ze’en nodded to Meng Huai, accepting the task. "Thank you for your trust. We’ll do our best. Whether we find the butler assistant or not, we won’t leak this."

He’d heard of butler assistants. Lacking abilities, they weren’t too dangerous. Confined to the factory, it was a suitable training task.

"We can help, but we hope you’ll provide some support." Meng Huai and Lei Ze’en played good cop, bad cop as usual. Meng Huai was far less diplomatic, bluntly demanding assistance.

His request wasn’t excessive. They were helping for free, expecting no reward, so Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd. should provide aid during the process.

Zhang He didn’t refuse, pulling items from his storage space. "Here are five walkie-talkies and a factory map. There’s only one map, so you can decide who takes it."

Given the sudden situation, he couldn’t have prepared much, so this was decent.

Wu Mingbai suddenly thought of something. "What about the whistle? Can we have it? With it, finding the butler assistant should be easy, right?"

"Sorry, butler assistants, due to their advanced chips, are less affected by the whistle. Unless you blow it very close, it’s hard to summon them." Zhang He shot down the idea. "For the same reason as before—if they could be easily controlled by a whistle, our clients wouldn’t feel safe buying them."

"Why did it escape?" Mu Tieren asked softly. Seeing Zhang He act as if he hadn’t heard, he raised his voice. "Why did it escape? A life created by your boss shouldn’t be loyal to him?"

Right, they hadn’t considered this. Ability creations shouldn’t betray their creators, just like Qi Huang’s summoned phoenix wouldn’t betray her. Life forms made by [Life Essence] shouldn’t betray the boss either.

Zhang He couldn’t dodge this. His expression stiffened, but he calmly replied, "Because they’re playful. Newly created, they’re curious about the world and often sneak out. But they’re just born, with no money or resources. Even with uploaded knowledge, they can cause trouble in human society, so we need to catch them quickly."

As expected of a director at Life Tech Machinery Co., Ltd., his explanation was flawless, fooling everyone except Su Bei and Mu Tieren.

Mu Tieren’s face was grim, but with his head down, few noticed. Su Bei, of course, caught his reaction, a glint of intrigue in his eyes.

This reaction was fascinating. Did Mu Tieren know something?

Recalling his question, it was clear he believed the butler assistant’s escape had hidden motives. For an ability creation to betray its creator, the secret was no small matter.

But how did Mu Tieren know? Was he once a staff member here? Or—could he be an escaped butler assistant himself?

Since the event had begun, it was time to check something. Su Bei used his ability [Destiny Gear] to view everyone’s Destiny Compass above their heads.

Currently, everyone’s small pointer leaned right, indicating the upcoming actions wouldn’t go smoothly. The large pointer, unsurprisingly, was in the upper half of the compass.

With the task pressing, Zhang He didn’t linger. After briefly saying he needed to direct other staff to catch the butler assistant, he left the workshop.