Previously, it had always been Lien who repeatedly provoked the Crown Prince, but the latter never took this mere pirate seriously.
He couldn’t even be bothered to respond to such provocations. Now that he was imprisoned, with a psychic inhibitor clamped around his neck and his formidable close-combat abilities severely restricted, the Crown Prince saw no point in engaging in childish squabbles with someone like him.
But now, his usual composure and rationality had vanished. The humiliation, resentment, and fury that had been simmering since last night erupted the moment he laid eyes on Lien, that troublemaker.
Though the Crown Prince was fastidious and exacting, his combat skills were undeniably formidable, honed through countless battles.
Lien barely had time to react as a gust of wind, sharp as a blade, shot toward him. Instinctively, he dodged, narrowly avoiding the strike.
Under normal circumstances, the proud Crown Prince would have stopped after a single failed attack, unwilling to lose his dignity further.
But now, restraint was the last thing on his mind. The moment Lien evaded the first strike, the second was already aimed at his new position.
Lien, with his wealth of combat experience, knew that with both of them heavily suppressed, actually harming each other would be difficult.
Still, he quickly spotted a weakness—the Crown Prince’s stance was unsteady.
Dodging another attack, he burst into laughter. "What’s this? Just one night apart, and your legs are already this weak?"
"Seems like privilege doesn’t come for free. What did you have to trade for it, Your Highness?"
"Tsk tsk! Back when you were hunting me down, sitting pretty in your royal starship sipping cosmic nectar, who’d have thought you’d end up like this over a cup of coffee? How the mighty have fallen."
The Crown Prince nearly lost his mind at the taunts. He despised pointless verbal sparring, but now, the memory of Lien’s pathetic state yesterday fueled his rage.
"Lien, have you forgotten how you were dragged back here like a dead dog yesterday?" he sneered.
"If even these minor dodges make you unsteady, you’re hardly in any position to mock me."
"I heard you were severely punished for hiding an energy core. Once I’m out, I’ll make sure to pull up your punishment records for a thorough read."
Lien’s face darkened. The medical center was undoubtedly under surveillance, and if this arrogant prince got his hands on that footage…
It seemed he’d have to destroy some evidence before escaping.
As they exchanged words, they had already clashed several times before mechanical prison guards swarmed in, restraining them.
The incident was immediately reported to the warden.
Shen Ying’s projection appeared before them, her face provoking a flicker of shame and anger in both men.
She had just woken up, her body still aching from last night’s exhaustion.
"Add five core manufacturing quotas to your morning tasks," she said coolly. "And no desserts for today’s meals."
Lien immediately protested. "Why? Desserts are my favorite!"
"He’s the one who attacked me. I was just dodging—I didn’t even fight back. You can’t punish me for that."
The word "punish" felt oddly uncomfortable on his tongue.
Shen Ying arched a brow. "Fine. Keep your desserts. But your core manufacturing quota is now increased by ten."
"Ten’s too much!" Lien argued.
"Too much?" She smirked. "I know your psychic limits perfectly well. It’s just right."
Lien flushed with anger. Of course she knew.
Yesterday, under the pretense of "correcting" the testing department’s miscalculations, she had forced him to push his sensory acuity beyond its limits.
That was why he had been so weak, so humiliatingly carried back for everyone to see.
He shut his mouth, no longer bargaining. The Crown Prince, too, avoided looking at her projection.
Even though she wasn’t physically present, the mere sight of her image stirred an unsettling reaction in him.
For the first time, he was the one avoiding someone’s gaze instead of others cowering under his authority.
The shame of it made him even more unwilling to speak.
And so, the morning’s brawl ended with little consequence. The two joined the stream of prisoners heading to the cafeteria.
After grabbing their meals, they found separate seats—only to see Lu Yu, the leader of the cyborg faction, enter with his entourage.
Spotting them, Lu Yu raised an eyebrow and took a seat nearby, his underlings fetching his food.
Though there was some distance between them, the prison’s crowded nature meant the three formed a loose triangle.
Lu Yu glanced at them before addressing Lien. "So, you got caught stealing the energy core yesterday?"
Lien scowled. "How the hell does everyone know about this?"
If the Crown Prince knew, fine—he had his lackeys everywhere. But Lu Yu too? Was the prison leaking like a sieve?
Worst of all, he was the one caught in the net.
Lu Yu chuckled. "Relax, no one else knows. We cyborgs are the prison’s underdogs—we need some advantages to survive."
Lien scoffed. "Underdogs? If the infamous Lu Yu of the Star Seas calls himself that, what hope is there for the rest of us?"
Ignoring the sarcasm, Lu Yu said, "Reputation means nothing here."
"In this place, even the smallest gain demands ruthless tactics."
"I’m not here to chat, though. I came to warn you—even with the core, your plan won’t work."
"The combat mechs stored in the warehouse are part of the prison’s arsenal. They’re still under the warden’s system control."
"At least some of them are."
Lien stiffened. "What? Are they insane?"
"Mechs are an extension of the pilot’s body, linked through neural interfaces. You can’t just implant an override system—"
He cut himself off. Outside, mech pilots were elite warriors with formidable psychic strength.
Even civilian models prioritized neural safety—a single malfunction between control systems and the pilot’s mind could bankrupt a company.
Installing a system that overrode the pilot’s authority was like selling a car without seatbelts.
It was common sense.
But this was a prison. Thousands of high-risk convicts—control took precedence over their lives.
Lu Yu nodded. "If the Sky Prison comes under extreme military attack, prisoners might be conscripted to pilot mechs."
"But only the warden knows which mechs are rigged. The guards get safe units, while prisoners get ones slaved to the main system."
"Even if you somehow reach the hangar, if you pick the wrong mech, Shen Ying can seize control the moment you activate it."
The revelation left both Lien and the Crown Prince grim.
How many more secrets like this were hidden in the Sky Prison?
Lu Yu’s sources were a mystery, but if even he didn’t know all the hidden rules…
Every move they thought feasible might be met with a terrifying countermeasure waiting for them.
Lien felt a surge of irritation and turned to Lu Yu. "Since you’re so sincere, Boss Lu, why don’t you share your thoughts?"
"You seem to know a lot about the prison—exactly what I need."
Without hesitation, Lien agreed to cooperate with Lu Yu.
Lu Yu smiled, then glanced at the Crown Prince. "And what about Your Highness?"
When the Crown Prince remained silent, Lu Yu wasn’t discouraged. "Of course, the entire empire falls under Your Highness’s jurisdiction. Logically, you’d disdain colluding with prisoners."
"But Your Highness ended up here due to political persecution—a rebellion. We know it, most of the guards know it, but what does it matter? The only one who truly controls this prison, the warden, has no sympathy for Your Highness’s plight."
"Rather than wasting time here, the empire needs you more than ever."
"After last night’s incident, I believe Your Highness has realized that even if every guard were loyal to you, they still couldn’t oppose the warden. So why not consider a different approach?"
"Your Highness’s authority, my knowledge of the prison, and Lien’s capability—none of these can be missing. Only then do we stand a chance to pry open a crack in the warden’s defenses."
The Crown Prince regarded Lu Yu with a dangerous glint in his eyes. "You really do have eyes and ears everywhere in this prison, don’t you? Even my time in the lowest level is no secret to you."
Lu Yu didn’t seem apologetic. He merely smiled. "Your Highness needn’t be angry."
"Thanks to you yesterday, I was also sent to the warden and suffered for it."
The Crown Prince knew this well and smirked. "Wasn’t that your own doing?"
Lu Yu didn’t argue. His expression remained composed, unlike the visible frustration on the Crown Prince and Lien’s faces.
Only he knew the lingering sensitivity in his antlers, still swollen and throbbing.
After a moment of silence, the Crown Prince reluctantly agreed to join forces.
Given his arrogance, Lu Yu and Lien were competent—far more useful than most.
And if these two tried to escape afterward? He’d simply hunt them down himself.
Thus, the three formed an alliance.
Lu Yu acted swiftly. "In that case, let’s test one possibility first."
As Lien and the Crown Prince turned to him, he continued, "You must know I’ve incited three prison riots before."
"That wasn’t just to assert dominance—it was also to test the prison’s riot response protocols."
"The prison has different methods for handling violence in different areas. For example, the cafeteria—"
With that, he patted the muscular, horned man beside him.
The man stood up—dark-skinned, silver-haired, his prison uniform torn at the collar, revealing chocolate-toned, enticing muscles.
He strode over to a table of burly inmates. When they looked up, he grinned and drove his fist into one of their faces.
Within seconds, the entire prison erupted into chaos.
Secretary Zhu burst into the warden’s office in a panic.
Finding Shen Ying immersed in a holographic game with the "do not disturb" mode activated, he nearly choked on his fury.
Though the Crown Prince had instructed him to delay reporting the riot, his meticulous professionalism couldn’t tolerate such negligence from a superior.
And it was precisely this incompetence that had forced the Crown Prince to ally with prisoners!
Suppressing his thoughts, Secretary Zhu cried out in feigned alarm, "Warden, a riot has broken out in the cafeteria!"
"Niu Xi, the modified inmate, started it. Now everyone’s fighting!"
Shen Ying’s eyes lit up with urgency. "What? There are handso—I mean, men fighting?"
