"Captain Qi." The Beastman leading today’s Imperial Army patrol burst through the door and saw Feng Qi. He greeted him nervously, fully expecting the captain to chew him out.

But to his surprise, Feng Qi merely gave him a cool glance and said, "Clean up the scene."

The Beastman snapped out of it and quickly replied, "Yes, Captain Qi."

Jiang Zheyu saw that the hole pierced through the chest of the body on the floor wasn’t leaking blood. The hollow space was filled with wires and machinery.

"These are all Biorobots," Feng Qi explained, noticing her gaze fixed on the assailants on the floor.

Jiang Zheyu understood. She recalled her ineffective spiritual power attack. ’It wasn’t that my spiritual power attack didn’t work,’ she realized, ’it’s that they were never Beastmen to begin with.’

"Biorobots?" Jiang Zheyu trembled slightly. "But they look so human."

She clearly remembered that in the novel, Biorobots were just machines without any self-awareness. It was impossible for them to have such rich expressions and communicative abilities.

Feng Qi naturally noticed her confusion and explained, "These Biorobots are linked to a person’s consciousness, visual perception, and motor functions. So, this was just a violent riot carried out by villains using Biorobot bodies."

"You knew they were Biorobots from the beginning?" Jiang Zheyu looked at Feng Qi in surprise.

"No." Feng Qi turned his head to look at her. "I figured it out later. Not only because of their behavior—wanting to ’play a game’—but also because even when a Biorobot is linked to a person’s consciousness, there are still subtle differences."

Biorobots have no spiritual power, so even if a Beastman was controlling one remotely, they couldn’t use spiritual power through it.

That’s why Beastmen who were unaware of the situation would assume these were also Beastmen, just of a higher level than themselves.

Furthermore, no one dared to act rashly. If you used your spiritual power to probe theirs, you wouldn’t know if their level was higher or lower than yours, let alone whether they were real Beastmen or Biorobots. If you did probe them and they turned out to be real Beastmen, such an act would undoubtedly provoke them into an even more frenzied slaughter.

Jiang Zheyu admitted that she hadn’t seen any difference at all; it felt like living, breathing people were standing right in front of her.

"Your powers of observation must be pretty good, then," Jiang Zheyu said, looking at him quietly.

"They’re alright." Feng Qi glanced back at her, the corners of his lips turning up in a slight smile.

The Beastmen cleaning up the scene overheard this, and their expressions became complicated. Looking at the Biorobots on the floor, their chips pierced by bullets with perfect accuracy, they thought, ’If the Captain is just "alright," then doesn’t that make us completely useless?’

"If Biorobots can be linked to a Beastman’s consciousness, vision, and motor functions, how are we supposed to tell the difference between a Beastman and a Biorobot in the future?" Jiang Zheyu voiced her concern.

"Don’t worry. This technology, linking a Biorobot to a Beastman’s consciousness, costs a fortune. Without immense funding and technical support, it’s basically impossible to pull off," Feng Qi reassured her. "Besides, the Empire explicitly forbids healthy Beastmen from using this technology. Only a Beastman whose physical body has died but whose consciousness still exists can apply to use it."

Jiang Zheyu understood.

"Let’s go outside and let them clean up," Feng Qi said, taking Jiang Zheyu’s hand and leading her out.

Jiang Zheyu glanced back at the Biorobots, then nodded and followed Feng Qi outside.

The two of them walked out of the coffee shop.

"Was that your Mecha earlier?" Jiang Zheyu asked, remembering the jet-black Mecha that had shielded them from the bullets. "You... you just let it take the hit like that? Don’t you feel bad for it?"

Feng Qi looked at her, amused. "What’s there to feel bad about? A Mecha like this is meant to take bullets for people. Besides, even if it gets damaged, it can be repaired."

"Can I see your Mecha again? I didn’t get a clear look at it earlier," Jiang Zheyu asked, looking at Feng Qi with interest.

Feng Qi’s gaze fell on the young woman’s expectant eyes. He stroked his chin as if in deep thought, then looked at her with an unreadable expression. "If you want to see it, you can come to my villa. I have no intention of breaking the law like Su Yan. The Imperial City not only prohibits Mecha flight, but also forbids displaying them in public places."

’There, a subtle jab at Su Yan,’ he thought.

Jiang Zheyu paused. She did indeed recall Su Yan using his Mecha to fly her across the skies of the Imperial City.

’So Mecha flight is forbidden on the Imperial Capital Star...’

’Then Su Yan knowingly and deliberately broke the law just to take me flying in his Mecha!’

For a moment, Jiang Zheyu’s feelings were a complicated mess.

"Then I guess I won’t look at it after all," Jiang Zheyu could only say.

"Why not? My villa is very close. Come on, I’ll take you to see it." With that, Feng Qi grabbed Jiang Zheyu’s hand and pulled her into a Hovercar.

It was indeed a short trip. Soon, the two of them were standing in front of a villa.

The villa’s courtyard was enormous, certainly large enough to accommodate a Mecha.

"Come on, let’s go in." Feng Qi led Jiang Zheyu into his villa.

"Is no one home?" Jiang Zheyu asked. She wasn’t sure how she’d let Feng Qi bring her here, and she felt it would be awkward if she ran into his family.

"I’m a single Beastman. Who else would be here?" Feng Qi’s intense gaze fell upon Jiang Zheyu.

"I meant your Beast Mother and Beast Father," Jiang Zheyu said, quietly looking up at him.

She remembered his matchmaking profile had listed a Beast Father and a Beast Mother.

Feng Qi chuckled softly. "My Beast Mother and Beast Father kicked me out when I turned eighteen, telling me to be self-reliant."

Besides, his Beast Mother had so many Beast Husbands and even more children. How could one villa possibly house that many people?

A Beast Mother would generally only keep her female offspring to raise by her side. The males were driven out to become self-reliant.

This wasn’t abandonment, however. After all, his Beast Mother and Beast Father would still send him some money, worried he wouldn’t be able to survive.

If a Beast Mother truly wanted to abandon one of her male cubs, she would typically abandon that cub’s Beast Father along with him.

"I earned this villa all by myself," Feng Qi said slowly. "If you check my matchmaking profile, you’ll see just how many assets I have to my name. And that’s not even counting my military holdings; everything else is clearly listed."

’He must have a lot of assets,’ Jiang Zheyu thought.

"So, want to get rich overnight? If you do, just marry me," Feng Qi said, his eyes filled with mirth as he looked at her.

"Um, why don’t we go look at the Mecha now," Jiang Zheyu said, quietly changing the subject.

Feng Qi noticed her changing the subject but didn’t get angry. Instead, he obediently summoned his Mecha once again.

A colossal, jet-black Mecha, standing with its head bowed, materialized in the courtyard. Jiang Zheyu realized it was even bigger than the coffee shop. He must have adjusted its size when they were inside, so it wouldn’t burst through the building.