The object inside the special material box finally revealed its true form. Gan Lan stared at the indescribable item. It seemed to be made of metal. Bending her index finger, she flicked it—it was freezing and hard.
It looked like a small, square block of metal. Gan Lan was entirely baffled.
She immediately made a video call to Yan Yifei. Once connected, she focused the camera directly on the metal block and asked hesitantly, "What is this? How do I use it?"
Did he expect her to use this as a brick to smash people? While it wasn’t a bad weapon, it was quite heavy...
Gan Lan accidentally caught a glimpse of Yan Yifei on the screen. He was dressed lightly. He usually looked a bit thin in his uniform, but his physique was actually incredibly well-toned. Seeing beads of sweat trail down his neck, sliding over his chest, and soaking into his tank top, Gan Lan couldn’t help but steal a few more glances.
Seeing her reaction, Yan Yifei chuckled softly. "You can look if you want. There’s no need to sneak a peek."
Hearing this, Gan Lan instantly fired off the classic triple denial. "I’m not! I didn’t! Don’t talk nonsense!"
"This is the Combat Robot. You just need to call his name, and he will automatically activate. His name is Gulu. I’ve already set your voice as the activation trigger, so only your voice can unlock him," Yan Yifei explained. He looked at her tenderly and added, "You can ask him any questions you have, like what he can do or what skills he has, and he’ll answer you. He’s just a bit mischievous sometimes. Good luck with the competition, and take care of yourself."
"I’ll take good care of myself, and you should too. Go ahead with your training; I’m going to talk to my new partner now." Gan Lan couldn’t wait to interact with her new companion. It was all so fascinating, and her curiosity was completely piqued.
Yan Yifei stared at the ended call, finding it somewhat amusing. Was she just tossing him aside after getting what she wanted? He had wanted to talk to her a little longer.
"Tsk, tsk, Captain, you’re smiling so gently! Which girl were you chatting with? You look so smitten. Ah, it’s the sour stench of romance!"
Yan Yifei’s expression hardened in a second. He stared expressionlessly at the somewhat tanned Xie Yi. "Since when did I have a girl? Spout any more nonsense, and I’ll double your training!"
Lu Ziyu put down his training equipment and leaned close to Yan Yifei. "Was it a call from our junior?"
Ignoring Lu Ziyu’s words, Yan Yifei picked up his training gear and resumed his workout. He still had to attend a commanding course in the afternoon, so there was no need to waste time on an idiot.
Seeing Yan Yifei walk right past him without even a glance, Lu Ziyu said sourly, "It must have been a call from our junior. Why would she only call you? We all get a share of her delicious food every time, so the calls should be shared too!"
Hearing his sour tone, Yan Yifei was utterly speechless. Was he dreaming? Despite knowing Gan Lan for so long, this was the first time they had a video call. Previously, they had only sent messages or had voice calls. Still, video calling felt really nice.
After hanging up, Gan Lan crouched beside the metal block and called out softly, "Gulu, are you there?"
"Ah, I’ve finally arrived on Banan Star! I slept for so long that I feel like my bones are rusting!" A lively boyish voice emanated from the metal block.
Then, the metal block slowly began to transform. First, a metal arm stretched out from within, followed by a torso, legs, and a head.
Gan Lan watched this magic trick of bringing a person out of thin air. If it weren’t for his silver skin and pink hair, he would have looked exactly like an alternative teenager at first glance. However, this boy had waist-length pink hair, making him look incredibly feminine...
She really wanted to criticize Yan Yifei’s taste. Any other hair color would have been fine, so why did he have to choose such a pastel pink?!
Gan Lan watched helplessly as Gulu dressed himself in a handsome uniform. He was over 1.8 meters tall with a slender figure and androgynous features. If his chest hadn’t been flat and his voice hadn’t been boyish, he would have passed perfectly for a girl.
Gulu dramatically tossed his long, curly pink hair, winked at Gan Lan, and extended his right hand. "Hello, I am Gulu. I will be the man accompanying you for the rest of your life~"
Gan Lan’s mouth twitched. She slowly reached out her right hand. "Hello, I’m Gan Lan."
So this was what Yan Yifei meant by "mischievous." Wasn’t this just a robot exuding sheer flamboyance?
"Gan Lan, am I not handsome? Why is your smile so forced? Ms. Xu Yashu used to praise my good looks all the time! My current appearance was also designed by her. I just love my beautiful face so much." After speaking, he touched his face narcissistically. Squinting his eyes, he sighed in admiration. "Ms. Xu Yashu is truly my soulmate!"
"Who is... Ms. Xu Yashu?" Gan Lan asked hesitantly.
"You don’t even know Ms. Xu Yashu? She’s the mother of my previous partner, Yan Yifei!" Gulu lowered his hand and gave Gan Lan a look of slight disdain.
Gan Lan was left exasperated. She genuinely didn’t know that was Aunt Yan’s name. When they met last time, she had only addressed her as Aunt Yan. So wasn’t it completely normal not to know her full name? Why was she being looked down upon by a robot!
Thinking of Aunt Yan, however, reminded Gan Lan that she hadn’t sent her any delicious food for days. She decided to send her a message later to explain the situation, or perhaps she could make some when she had free time and ship it over. Once the competition ended, she would make a ton of delicious dishes to make up for the lapse.
In her eyes, robots were always serious and proper, just like Yi and the others—gentle and only occasionally getting a bit lively. But this Gulu...
Gulu was still blabbering on about Ms. Xu Yashu’s glorious deeds, moving on to how amazing her taste was, and how she had bought him so many beautiful clothes—even a dress! He absolutely adored that dress...
Looking at the robot who couldn’t get thirsty, Gan Lan really wanted to ask if he needed a sip of water after talking so much, but alas...
She finally understood Yan Yifei’s sinister intentions! He must have despised this robot for being too noisy and an absolute eyesore, which was why he pawned him off on her!
With a slight headache forming, Gan Lan interrupted Gulu’s endless chatter. "Gulu, are you hungry? Do you want to eat some instant noodles?"
"Instant noodles? What’s that? It’s not in my database," Gulu said in confusion. He carefully observed the entire room but didn’t spot any instant noodles either.
Gan Lan breathed a sigh of relief. He had finally stopped talking; otherwise, her head would have split open from the ache. She opened a storage cabinet, took out two packs of instant noodles, and waved them in front of Gulu. "This is instant noodles. Before it’s brewed, it’s called noodles. After it’s brewed, it becomes instant noodles."
Gulu was speechless. Was that really how it worked?
"If I eat, it just gets stored in a secondary stomach that needs to be regularly cleaned out. I can only taste the flavor. If I eat too much, my stomach will turn into a trash can. That would ruin my beauty~"
"You can actually eat?!" Gan Lan’s eyes widened. She stared at Gulu’s stomach in absolute amazement.
"Ordinary robots definitely don’t have this function, but I am no ordinary robot! I can eat!" Gulu lifted his chin high and declared proudly.
Gan Lan’s interest was now genuinely piqued by Gulu. She immediately brewed two bowls of instant noodles, wanting to see how Gulu ate and what expressions he would make. Could a robot like him develop into a foodie?!
While waiting for the noodles to brew, Gulu finally remembered that he was here to protect Gan Lan, not to go on vacation. He dutifully began scanning the entire room to see if there were any unidentified or dangerous objects.