Qinggan Olive District, Antana Street, a shop converted from a dilapidated warehouse.

Wearing a long cloak, Genava followed Jiang Baimian and the others inside.

The place was filled with electronic components in various ways, as chaotic as the ruins of a city after a bombing.

The owner was a Red River person, sitting behind a tattered table, repairing a walkie-talkie with different tools.

Feeling the shadow looming over, he looked up at the door, his gaze quickly falling on Bai Chen's face.

"What parts do you need this time?" the owner with a stubbly, yellowish beard asked. "It's been two years since you last showed up, right?"

"More than that," Bai Chen replied simply, then went straight to the point, "Do you have any broken, unrepairable robots?"

The owner's eyes lit up:

"Have you found an expert in this field and want to make a fortune by repairing robots?"

Completely broken and unrepairable robots can only be dismantled into electronic components and sold. If the condition is better, they can be sold for one or two thousand ore. If they are severely damaged, they may not even be able to recover two or three hundred ore, and they will most likely have to be sold as scrap iron and steel, which is very cheap.

A repaired combat robot is a hot commodity within the entire "First City" sphere of influence, even more expensive than the military exoskeleton devices that the "Old Task Force" bought back then.

Such reliable, powerful, and immune companions are the "dream lovers" of all ruin hunters. Anyone who can get one wants one, and the more the better.

Jiang Baimian, Shang Jianyao, and Long Yuehong did not interrupt, leaving the stage to Bai Chen, who was most familiar with this place.

Bai Chen replied calmly:

"You could say that.

"A gentleman is buying broken robots, wanting to research their components through disassembly and develop a new model himself. His offer is higher than most people on the market, and I wanted to try my luck here."

"Which major power's person is it?" The owner put down the walkie-talkie and tools in his hand.

If they weren't a member of a major power, they wouldn't be able to mass-produce and profit even if they developed a new type of combat robot.

Trying to assemble one yourself by collecting various electronic components might take two or three years to gather all the parts.

"I don't care which major power's person it is, I only care about the price he's offering," Bai Chen said without any change in expression.

The owner stood up, muttering a few words:

"This reminds me of an old-world saying: a weapons dealer who doesn't sell weapons to opposing forces isn't a good weapons dealer.

"On Antana Street, I've seen several people killed by their own customers. I hope you're not next."

He picked up a greasy cloth, wiped his greasy hands, and walked towards the door leading to the rear area.

This was a front shop and back warehouse layout.

Jiang Baimian and the others followed closely behind.

Compared to the mess outside, the warehouse was surprisingly tidy, with different electronic components and old-world appliances placed in different categories in different places.

At a glance, Long Yuehong saw two robot bodies.

One had a body that was nearly fragmented, with many missing parts, and the other had a hole in its chest, but the rest was intact, only the metal skeleton looked slender, and the overall body was quite "slim."

"You guys are lucky," the owner said, pointing to the two robot bodies. "Some ruin hunters recently returned from the Scarlet Wasteland and sold them to me as a package deal.

"One is a robot that specializes in repairing power grids and can be converted into an all-rounder, uh, I mean an all-rounder in the field of repair..."

"Can it repair humans?" Shang Jianyao asked curiously.

The owner thought seriously:

"It should be able to.

"A robot holding a wrench, six-foot-two tall, and made of iron, can't beat an ordinary human?"

"At least five," Shang Jianyao helped calculate.

"Moreover, its main module doesn't restrict it from using submachine guns, assault rifles, and grenade launchers. As long as it can be repaired, it's still a very popular companion." As a businessman, the owner praised it first before saying, "The problem now is that the damage is too severe. It needs too many parts to be replaced or repaired, including the main chip."

This is just junk... Jiang Baimian muttered to herself.

The owner then introduced the other unit:

"This is a maid-type robot with a high degree of artificial intelligence, but no attack module. It is said that before the destruction of the old world, they were made with a layer of artificial skin, and their appearance looked very similar to us humans.

"This one is not too badly damaged, but the main chip has been blown away..."

The owner's voice gradually lowered, as if he couldn't quite get over his conscience saying that.

For a robot, the main chip is the most technologically advanced, irreplaceable, and difficult-to-repair component.

After a pause, the owner became righteous:

"Anyway, you are selling them to others for research. These two models can broaden his horizons and enrich his knowledge base."

"That makes sense." Pa pa pa, Shang Jianyao applauded.

Bai Chen nodded:

"Name a price."

The owner smiled:

"The repair robot is fifteen hundred ore. It is very popular, and many electronic components can be used on other robots.

"The maid-type robot is eight hundred ore. Really, this is very cheap. Even if I dismantle it into electronic components and sell them, I can recover at least seven hundred ore. If the Ruler blesses me, maybe I can get a thousand."

Touching her not-so-thick "wallet," Jiang Baimian muttered:

"A high degree of artificial intelligence..."

She was whispering to Genava, who was wearing the cloak.

Genava slowly nodded.

Although the maid-type robot has no functions, it only lacks the main chip. At that time, you just need to install the backup chip that carries the "Source Brain" avatar, repair the surrounding circuits, modify the battery compartment, and you can try to activate it.

Understanding the team leader's hint and seeing Genava's action, Bai Chen began to bargain.

In the end, the "Old Task Force" bought the maid-type robot for 720 ore.

While stuffing the banknotes to Bai Chen, Jiang Baimian muttered silently:

"It's time to apply for new funding..."

Exploring the No. 13 ruin in the wasteland can be reported, indicating that the previous funds were used effectively.

The only thing Jiang Baimian needed to consider was how to inform the company about the secret laboratory without involving Genava.

…

In the Red Wolf District, in the apartment rented by the "Old Task Force."

Shang Jianyao solemnly pressed the start switch.

Then, he took two steps back and stood side by side with Jiang Baimian and others, watching the silver-gray maid robot.

Red light quickly appeared in the maid robot's eyes, and after a burst of flickering, it moved its head from side to side.

"This..." A soft, feminine voice came from its mouth.

Jiang Baimian wanted to congratulate her, but finally chose to smile.

The maid robot's speech suddenly accelerated:

"Why are there no weapon modules?

"Many useful modules are missing...

"Only sweeping, mopping, cooking, washing dishes, wiping windows..."

Whether it was an illusion or not, Long Yuehong always felt that the "Source Brain" avatar in front of him was more human-like than in the laboratory, and even showed signs of emotional breakdown.

He guessed that there were two reasons for this:

First, the "Source Brain" avatar was completely separated from the main body and was no longer controlled. The corresponding core module gradually developed in a human-like direction. Second, the maid-type robot had a very good load-bearing capacity for artificial intelligence.

Jiang Baimian, who had already prepared her speech, took a breath, stepped forward, and said with a smile:

"This is a temporary measure."

When the red light in the maid robot's eyes turned to her, she sincerely explained:

"As you know, it is very, very difficult to get a good combat robot in First City. It may take a year or two, or even three or four years.

"For such a long time, even if we are willing to abide by our promise and actively fulfill our obligations, we can't stand the possibility of accidents.

"You also know what our mission is. If we die in the ruins one day before we have time to find a suitable body for you, wouldn't you be completely finished?"

"Bah, bah, bah, childish words are harmless, let the wind blow them away!" The honest Shang Jianyao looked disgusted.

Jiang Baimian glared at him, saw that the maid robot had "calmed down," and put on a smile again:

"So, we quickly found you a body that can carry that chip. After that, you can upgrade it however you want. You don't need to rely on others anymore. It's best to rely on yourself.

"Look, we have also prepared a grenade launcher for you. Genava has already studied it, and you can add it after a little modification."

The red light in the maid robot's eyes flickered, and it stretched out its silver-gray metal palm:

"What you said makes sense.

"Thank you for keeping your promise."

The members of the "Old Task Force" all quietly breathed a sigh of relief, including Genava.

Jiang Baimian then stretched out her left hand and shook it with the other party.

The maid robot retracted its metal palm and said with great satisfaction:

"I will now tell Genava how to clear the residual information.

"By the way, from now on, please call me 'Alpha.' This will be the starting point for everything."

ps: This time Yuewen held a salon in Hainan and also organized a writer training class. I finally couldn’t escape the lecturer course that I had put off for a year. I have to lecture for three full hours today. It's miserable. Then there will be a live broadcast event organized by Yuewen and the video account in the evening. So, put on a smile, ask for a leave of absence for a chapter, and there will be no update tonight.