Laptop VRM Paste or pad?

[Loch]

Hello all! I'm wondering if anyone knows what type of thermal solution ( thermal pad or thermal paste) is used on laptop VRMs. Specifically, the Zephyrus S GX531-GS. I opened up my laptop and as I was reapplying thermal paste on the GPU/CPU, I've noticed some of the VRMs had some sort of paste, in my observation. Now, I noticed that people say to avoid paste, but can anyone explain to me what that is? I can't tell if it's paste or a pad, but when I touch it, it stains my hand (which leads me to believe that a paste was used on the VRMs and not a pad). Now, I understand how stupid this post sounds, but I was curious. I need to replace the "paste" or "pad" on the VRMs, since it isn't on the heat sink properly and is coming off the sides. Any ideas what I can use to replace the thermal solution for the VRMs? Thanks all!