The two troublemakers were quickly taken away, but Secretary Zhu still refused to give up on persuading Shen Ying to change her stance.
Gone was his initial composure as someone aiming to become the prison's de facto administrator. He trailed behind Shen Ying, anxiously pleading, "Warden, you can't do this."
"His Highness the Crown Prince enjoys overwhelming public support. He has achieved countless military victories on the battlefield, protecting the empire from foreign invaders. Politically, he has worked tirelessly to reduce class disparities. He is the empire's hope."
"You cannot treat him like an ordinary prisoner, subjecting him to confinement and humiliation. This is a crime."
Shen Ying tossed the file in her hand backward without looking, and it landed perfectly in Secretary Zhu’s arms. "Unfortunately, as it stands, the one committing crimes is the Crown Prince."
Seeing that Secretary Zhu still wanted to argue, Shen Ying said dismissively, "Secretary Zhu, as a prison administrator, your duty is to ensure prisoners serve their sentences properly, uphold prison regulations, and treat every inmate equally."
"It’s not just the prisoners who must forget their past identities—we must too. Remaining unaffected by a prisoner’s status, undeterred by threats or temptations—that is our integrity."
"If you continue speaking like this, Secretary Zhu, I may have to consider suspending you for a while."
Secretary Zhu’s face paled. The Sky Prison was no ordinary place. Once the warden decided to cut off communications, a mere secretary’s suspension would hardly warrant an escort out.
Already stripped of most of his authority, if he were "suspended," he’d likely spend the next year confined to his room—effectively imprisoned in another form.
Secretary Zhu dared not say more. Even if he couldn’t sway the warden, he had to remain in his position to do anything for the Crown Prince.
So he wisely changed the subject. "Understood. Thank you for your guidance, Warden."
"Today is your first day in office. As per tradition, you’ll need to make an appearance before the inmates."
The "inmates" referred to the prisoners, of course. The guards and other staff had already met her.
Shen Ying nodded. "Fine. I’ll go during dinner."
"I’ll return to my office to handle some official matters. Do not disturb me."
Secretary Zhu didn’t question it, respectfully watching Shen Ying leave.
Meanwhile, the Crown Prince and the pirate were being escorted to the medical center.
Shen Ying had already revoked the previous warden’s special permissions for the Crown Prince in the system, and the metal restraint on his mouth had been removed.
As the two were marched forward by robotic guards, Lien suddenly placed his hands on one guard’s head and twisted violently, rotating it 180 degrees.
But he didn’t let go. Instead, he used the motion to lift his entire body, raising his legs so the shackles around his ankles coiled like living snakes toward the Crown Prince’s neck.
The move was too sudden, too fast—even the remaining robotic guard beside the Crown Prince failed to react in time.
As the metal chains threatened to wrap around the Crown Prince’s neck—adorned with a thin black inhibitor collar—his first instinct wasn’t to dodge.
Instead, he ignored the chains capable of crushing bone and extended an arm, his palm striking like a blade toward the weak point of Lien’s knee.
His strength was enough to shatter a kneecap. Even if Lien’s physique surpassed that of an ordinary man, a strike to the reflex nerves would force his leg to jerk upward, breaking his momentum and neutralizing the threat.
Lien immediately grasped his intent. Unfazed, he shifted his stance, effortlessly evading the Crown Prince’s strike.
By then, however, the robotic guards—along with the deterrent weapons lining the walls—had snapped into action, their barrels instantly trained on both men.
Lien landed on his feet, clicking his tongue in disappointment. "Pity. I was planning to kill you in under a second—a grand welcome gift for myself in prison."
The Crown Prince removed his white gloves. Though they hadn’t yet been stained with blood, he treated them as if they were filthy, tossing them to the ground with disgust.
His tone was indifferent. "If the rankings of interstellar pirates were based on delusional fantasies, you’d undoubtedly take first place."
Lien smirked coldly. Having failed this time, he knew today’s opportunity was lost—but there would be others.
Without further resistance, he raised his hands in a lazy surrender and was promptly seized by the surrounding guards.
Perhaps to prevent further threats to the Crown Prince’s safety, the two were taken to separate areas for medical examinations.
First, their health status was assessed—whether they had undergone genetic modifications, whether they had cybernetic limbs or auxiliary organs, whether they carried contraband.
Every detail was scrutinized. Only after confirming the prisoners carried nothing unauthorized would they undergo full-body sterilization.
Finally, they would be issued black-and-white prison uniforms and escorted to their assigned cells.
Neither of them was cooperative. Though Shen Ying had left Lien with a razor blade "for self-defense," there was no guarantee he didn’t have other tricks up his sleeve.
As for the Crown Prince, he resisted every step of the way—complaining that the medical pod had been used before, demanding the guards perform a deep sterilization in his presence.
He found the disinfectant’s smell offensive, forcing the guards to summon the biotech department to concoct a milder, odorless version on the spot.
The standard high-pressure spray disinfection used on ordinary prisoners? Out of the question for the Crown Prince.
Despite the warden’s orders, the Crown Prince’s privileges remained brazenly intact.
Shen Ying despised this culture. She was deeply dissatisfied with the two troublemakers’ behavior and highly alert to the procedural loopholes it exposed.
So she decided to oversee the process personally.
Admittedly, surveillance technology in the interstellar era was impressive. The 1:1 holographic display allowed Shen Ying to observe every unrepentant expression on the prisoners’ faces with perfect clarity.
Just as her blood was boiling from their antics, Secretary Zhu knocked and entered her office.
Distracted from her "supervision"—no, her viewing—Shen Ying’s face darkened with displeasure.
"What is it?"
Secretary Zhu had no idea why the usually unflappable warden looked so irritated. Cautiously, he said, "Earlier, you instructed me to compile a report on the prisoners’ living conditions. I’ve finished organizing it."
Shen Ying nodded. Secretary Zhu swiped his terminal, and a flood of data appeared before her.
"The prison’s inmates can be broadly categorized into four types," he explained.
"The first consists of vicious, battle-hardened criminals with a history of Class A or higher violent offenses."
Lien, for instance, fell squarely into this category. He had directly robbed military installations, engaged in open combat with imperial forces multiple times, and was classified as a Class S violent criminal.
"The second type comprises economic and political offenders. They—or their families and affiliated interest groups—often wield significant influence outside."
"Although the Sky Prison doesn’t accept direct funding, these individuals donate to headquarters to improve prison conditions across the cosmos."
The implication was clear: since headquarters accepted their money, it couldn’t very well ignore their requests. Even in the Sky Prison, these inmates enjoyed implicit preferential treatment and security assurances.
"Another category consists of genetically modified individuals. Not all of them are combat-oriented, but this group has strong cohesion. No matter the internal dynamics, anyone who dares to target them will face their relentless and costly retaliation."
Shen Ying nodded thoughtfully as Secretary Zhu continued, "The last category comprises relatively ordinary prisoners."
"They don’t possess superhuman combat abilities or extraordinary backgrounds, and their destructive power might not be remarkable. However, they’ve committed crimes so heinous they defy humanity."
"They’ve caused extremely negative social repercussions."
This type is easy to understand—think of serial killers who specifically target vulnerable groups like women, children, or the elderly.
They may not be physically formidable, but they’ve repeatedly directed their cruelty toward the weak, each case shocking society in its time.
Secretary Zhu flicked through the air, pulling up images of a few individuals. "These are the prisoners who require special attention."
To put it plainly, they were the faction leaders among the inmates. Shen Ying skimmed through them, only pausing to take a longer look at one particularly striking face before dismissing the rest.
Then she said to the secretary, "It’s almost dinner time. Let’s go."
Secretary Zhu hurried after Shen Ying as the two made their way to the centralized cafeteria on the 17th floor of the prison.
The food in the Sky Prison wasn’t bad, but it was standard fare—nowhere near luxurious.
Tonight’s dinner, however, was unusually lavish. The spread of meats, main courses, and desserts rivaled a high-end barbecue buffet, even featuring a few signature dishes from distant star systems.
The prisoners weren’t oblivious—those with sharp ears had already heard about the change in leadership.
Tonight’s feast was clearly a welcome banquet for the new warden.
Most inmates didn’t care, focusing solely on the extravagant meal.
But those at the top of the prison’s hierarchy couldn’t afford to ignore it. In a Sky Prison where the warden held absolute authority, understanding the new boss’s style was crucial.
Thanks to the Crown Prince’s pickiness, neither he nor Lien had been able to return to their cells after the inspection—dinner time arrived before they could.
Given that the Crown Prince’s royal constitution couldn’t endure hunger, the guards had no choice but to escort them to the dining hall first.
Even then, another issue arose: the Crown Prince’s pride refused to let the lowly prison uniform defile him.
He adamantly refused to change into it. The guards, too intimidated to persuade him, reported the matter to Shen Ying.
Instead of going to him in person, Shen Ying initiated a holographic call with the Crown Prince.
She observed him sitting with perfect posture, arms crossed, clad only in his pristine white royal undergarments.
Her words were firm: "Either you wear the prison uniform, or from now on, you wear nothing at all here."
The Crown Prince scoffed, but Shen Ying didn’t give him a chance to speak.
In an instant, two football-sized drones swooped in, lasers scanning over his body. His clothes dissolved into dust, fluttering to the ground.
Shen Ying commanded, "Escort His Highness to the dining hall in five minutes."
Her gaze swept over the Crown Prince’s noble figure, as tangible as a touch.
"Regardless of what he chooses to wear—or not wear—by then."
And so, minutes later, a pirate clad in prison garb and a sullen Crown Prince, also in prison attire, arrived at the dining hall together.
