Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

"Of course it's true," Bai E nodded calmly, turning to gesture toward the giant figure on the other side of the distant gate, "But right now, I don't have time to discuss this with you. Maintaining the stability of the city is also our duty as soldiers. I just want to ask you, can you make that big fellow stop?"

"A soldier's duty..." The old man was taken aback, a look of agreement smiling across his face.

Yes! A soldier's duty.

It was their duty as artificial humans as well.

Maintaining the stability of the city had once been a deep-seated commitment for every artificial human.

But... he had never intended to disrupt the city's stability either.

"We, we just want to let this city see..."

See our determination.

See our faith.

See whether we artificial humans truly deserve trust.

The old man stared at Bai E, whose indifferent face somehow gave him a complete sense of relief and familiarity, filling him with absolute trust.

Artificial humans had no kin, but every artificial human was a brother!

"We have no intention of disrupting the city's stability, 'he' will not take any harmful actions, you can be completely assured. We only wish to present this item, with no other intentions."

"..." Bai E squinted his eyes, "But your actions are too extreme."

The old man gave a wry smile, "I'm sorry, but... we have no other options left."

They had considered expressing their current thoughts more peacefully.

They had repeatedly approached the city's research institutions, offering to donate their artificial brains for study, but each time they were flatly rejected, told that artificial humans posed deadly risks and were wholly unsuitable as the foundational units for such core technology.

If no one would accept them even when they willingly offered themselves, what power did these exiled soldiers have to change everyone's fixed perceptions of artificial humans? How could they clear the name of the old Field Marshal who had been implicated by the artificial humans?

Only by establishing indisputable facts could they challenge everyone's prejudices.

The "ultimate weapon" of tonight was the final statement of their efforts to vindicate artificial humans.

"We... just want to let everyone see."

"But you could have chosen a milder way to proactively submit new technology to the city, I believe the Scientific Research Institute would never refuse to gain a completely new technology directly..."

"We've tried that... but we couldn't even get through their doors."

The old man's rationale was somewhat frustrating.

Even Caesar, who was overhearing, couldn't help but curse those institutions under his breath as "idiots."

The anger and frustration of these old soldiers, expelled from the barracks, had been pushed to such an extent that they triggered tonight's major crisis – a ludicrous misunderstanding.

So he quickly reminded them, "Then quickly get it under control and bring it back. We've seen your creation, and the city has seen it too. As soon as it's reported up, it will definitely attract attention, and scholars from the Scientific Research Institute will come personally. As long as your technology has no issues, it will be a great contribution to the city!"

Having a "brother" from their own ranks of artificial humans and even a de facto ruler of the city in attendance, the old man seemed to finally be at ease, "Alright, I'll speak to the other brothers right away."

However, after the old man picked up the communicator prepared by Zhou Wenjie and spoke a few words into it, his expression slowly turned to one of confusion.

"What's wrong?" Seeing this, Caesar's heart skipped a beat, and he proactively asked.

The old man didn't make a sound, only turning his head to look into the darkness behind him, "Wolfscorpion, bring Wenjie over."

In the midst of the battle with the security forces, Wolfscorpion, in order to protect Wenjie, did not engage directly in the fight.

Now called by the old man, the two emerged from the darkness not far off.

The old man handed over the communicator designed to communicate with the "giant" directly to Wenjie, "Is this thing broken? Why isn't there any response to the communication commands I'm sending?"

Although the wills of the old brothers had been altered to become more mechanical in nature, the basic response function was built into the system by Wenjie from the start. It shouldn't be malfunctioning, should it?

Wen Jie casually fiddled with the communicator before handing it back to the old man, his words full of conviction, "The communicator is not the problem."

"Then why has there been no response to my calls?"

"The signal's transmission and reception are both fine, but it hasn't been carried out correctly." Wen Jie's gaze drifted into the distance, through the light and shadow streaming from the gate, to the giant seemingly about to lift its foot, "The issue must be on their side!"

In the world of technology, it's either one or the other.

Wen Jie was quite sure of this answer.

"But I didn't instruct them to take the next step," the old man said, his expression slightly stunned.

His intention from the beginning had been only to make the city "see," not to let it suffer any harm.

Entering the Upper City was their final step; he certainly had not issued the next set of instructions to his old comrades.

"Wen Jie, those android brains made into biological main brains, do they still possess a will of their own?" Bai E, smelling a hint of ominous air, turned to Zhou Wenjie and asked, bypassing protocol.

"Responding to the master... theoretically, they shouldn't have any. Apart from a slim chance to 'recognize a person' and grant control permissions, they no longer have the subjectivity to act on their own," Zhou Wenjie respectfully replied.

Bai E had not hidden his identity at all. Upon Bai E's arrival, Zhou recognized the one who had first welcomed him into the organization and assigned him his missions.

Zhou was unfamiliar with "loyalty," but he was equally unfamiliar with "betrayal."

He only knew that if he agreed to something, he had to carry it through—not because he was dull, nor because he was dumb.

It was simply about being straightforward, saying what he meant—it was just less worrisome...

He belonged to the master, so naturally, he laid everything out when questioned.

"So, it's 'that' which has malfunctioned," Bai E turned to look at the mechanical foot raised in the distance. With a flash, he shot out towards it.

Conspiracies and deceptions swirled, an evil presence surged.

[Warning! Warning! Current turmoil level: 9999! Please prevent the situation from worsening as soon as possible!]

The warnings on the panel turned a blood red, the alarm sounding more piercing than ever.

"Boom!"

The mechanical foot, crashing down, was suddenly countered by a small "steel needle," prompting the "giant" to look down curiously at what had stopped its step.

But looking down was merely a human habit; its countless sensors had already mapped out everything beneath its foot, laying it all out within its processing center without fail.

A creature as insignificant as an ant had its hands raised high against the sky, pressing against the sole of the foot that was meant to move forward.

Within those glowing green skulls, the hollow eye sockets emitted a sinister purple light, flickering eerily amidst the dim, misty air.

The giant, unwilling to yield, lifted its foot high again and brought it down once more.

The giant's frame, several times larger than the standard mecha in the military camp, made it seem like a pillar holding up the sky. With a forceful stomp, it pressed the resisting "steel needle" into the ground beneath its foot.

Only after feeling that the ground underfoot was finally level did the giant, satisfied, once again raise its trailing foot, ready to stride forward.

The dazzling lights of the human city were in the distance, beckoning it to take a closer look...

Caesar turned his head towards his subordinates as he watched the one viewed as the "savior," General Bai E, effortlessly crushed underfoot by the giant, realising that they were unaware of the full extent of the giant's capabilities, his fur bristling instantaneously, "Have the Mechanical Court's people arrived yet?"

Upon seeing the giant for the first time, Caesar knew the situation couldn't be resolved by their law enforcement team alone, so he immediately had his men contact the city's highest authority—the Mechanical Court.

Though it hasn't been long since the incident occurred, given the Mechanical Court's superior equipment, they should have arrived by now...

"They're here, they're here!" his subordinate received a response from the Mechanical Court at the same time—

"Our mech pilots have arrived on the scene and are assisting you in subduing the target."

A streak of light rushed towards them from afar, crossing the city's skies in the blink of an eye...