An Junlie struggled, deploying his mech. The ten-meter humanoid machine stood like a colossal pillar in the courtyard, instantly becoming the most dazzling landmark in the vicinity.

Ziye stood on the mech's footplate, rubbing its toe as if it were a small dirt clod. The little sprout perched on her head curiously used its two leaves to stroke the nickel-colored metal, trying to climb onto the mech. Unfortunately, the body was too slippery and vast. After trying for a while to no avail, it drooped its head dejectedly onto Ziye’s head.

Ziye patted her head and turned to walk back into the house.

An Junlie stood in the courtyard, watching the hands of the clock on the wall tick by, feeling increasingly dizzy, his legs so weak he could barely stand.

The reason he had doubled back here was precisely his lack of physical strength, making it impossible to search for another repair shop. He had a **feeling that the light here was problematic. He had felt better when standing inside the house; as soon as he stepped outside, he couldn't hold up anymore.

He looked around and saw a stone-covered walkway to the left of the yard, so he moved into the shadow and sat down.

For now, conserving energy was the most critical thing.

After sitting down, his head grew heavier. Just in the final few seconds before reaching his limit, Ziye emerged, dragging an equipment case, an energy cell, and a material box whose contents were unclear.

She forcefully pushed aside the dead leaves and branches, set the boxes on the ground, opened them, donned her gloves, and glanced back at him with a look of pity. "I can only do my best. You're not very lucky; the charging unit is conveniently broken, so replenishing energy won't be fast."

Exhaustion made An Junlie irritable to the point of near rampage. "You can't even refill the energy? What kind of repair shop are you running?"

Ziye frowned, shooting him a displeased glare, clearly showing disdain for his words. "Want to try it yourself?"

An Junlie felt like cursing again. "If I could do it, would I be here?!"

Ziye didn't realize that her idol, An Junlie, could also lose his temper, making him seem much more approachable than before. She glanced at the mech, put down the tool in her hand, and said, "I'll find some metal to try."

An Junlie stood up. "You don't even know what metal it is; what's the point of finding some?!"

Ziye replied coolly, "I tested the composition and elemental sequence just now. I scraped a sample when you took the mech out."

Too fast—did that happen just when she touched the mech's toes? An Junlie thought this repair shop might not be as shoddy as he imagined. He resettled himself back into the corner of the wall's shadow, watching her work.

She connected electronic instruments to various parts of the mech for a full diagnostic, while she herself dove into a nearby pile of refuse, scrabbling through it wildly.

The already messy yard became choked with dust clouds as she tossed things about.

An Junlie wasn't usually fastidious, but even he had to cover his face. After a while, Ziye rose from the trash heap, covered in grime. A few utterly decomposed leaves clung to her messy hair, making her look utterly ridiculous. She dragged a piece of python skin, about two meters long, with one hand, and wiped sweat from her brow with the other, instantly smearing her face into a mess of dark smudges. "The metal plates were just used to recast the body for the T88. Now all I have is python skin; you'll have to make do."

An Junlie felt completely unreliable. "Are you kidding me?" He thought the technician didn't look like a technician to begin with, and now she was offering up snake skin—she looked like some vagrant kid who had wandered in from nowhere.

He suddenly had the urge to go back and check the shop's sign. Was this really a mech repair shop?

Ziye seemed to sense his doubt and explained, "It can be used. It has naturally high flexibility, and it's impenetrable by blades or guns. After polishing, grinding, and refining it with chemicals, it will offer higher maneuverability as a knee joint."

She swiftly cut the python skin into the required dimensions and began grinding it with practiced ease.

However, An Junlie was not convinced.

Instead, he was so infuriated he nearly flew into a rage again. He roared, "If you can't fix it, fine, just say so, and I won't blame you. But what kind of junk are you trying to foist on me? Using python skin for a mech? Anyone who could do that is either long dead or hasn't been born yet."

Ziye froze, stunned by the torrent of angry words hurled at her.

An Junlie struggled to suppress his fury and said coldly, "If you want to conduct an experiment, I don't care, but please, don't use my mech."

Ziye stopped what she was doing, pouted, and glared at him. "If you don't want me to use it, fine. But don't blame me if I just pry off its arm."

An Junlie raged, speaking without thinking, "I'd rather it lose an arm than be filled with a pile of junk!"

Ziye fell silent for a long moment. "I understand." Saying that, she pulled a long, slender metal rod from her tool kit. With a few quick movements, she leaped onto the mech—her speed and agility surpassed even a monkey practicing its daily jumps.

Three seconds later, the giant mech's arm crashed to the ground with a thud, kicking up a cloud of dust that billowed toward him.

An Junlie's face instantly darkened. "Why did you take it apart?" This person was so small, yet so ruthless. Had he only said a few things to her? She actually disassembled his mech!

"Didn't you say you'd rather it lose an arm?" Ziye retorted. Standing high up, her face was perfectly calm, showing no sign of vengeance.

An Junlie felt a chill. To retaliate against him with such composure—this youth was truly ruthless! He hadn't expected this primitive planet to have competent mech mechanics, but this was too much!

Seeing the severed arm on the ground, he felt a sharp pang in his heart, and his temper became uncontrollable. "Get down here!"

The mech was his primary partner; he would never allow anyone to desecrate it!

Ziye stood on the mech's shoulder, glanced at him indifferently, said, "Oh," and jumped down.

An Junlie roared uncontrollably, "Put the arm back on!"

Ziye hadn't realized that the so-called big shot from a civilized planet roared much like the locals here. Indeed, the galaxy was one big family; was roaring universally enjoyed by all ages? She pointed her tool pliers at the severed arm on the ground. "I don't have your mech's metal here, and you refuse the biological materials. We'll just have to melt the arm down first and recast the required components."

That single statement successfully silenced An Junlie.

Ziye dropped her tools, suddenly turned, and smiled at him. "Alien, aren't you feeling dizzy?"

An Junlie had been mentally strained all day, and his recent outburst meant he hadn't noticed his own exhaustion. Now that he relaxed, her sudden question hit him instantly. A wave of dizziness washed over him, his body swayed, and he collapsed.

Being tall, his fall inadvertently knocked over nearby branches, which cascaded down upon him.

Seeing his near-helpless state, Ziye had the urge to kick him, but instead, she simply raised her arm in a gesture of success and dashed excitedly toward the mech!