Shen Ying wasn't unfamiliar with forcibly purging the temple, but being compelled to operate and willingly inviting someone to tour it offered entirely different experiences.

At this moment, the temple seemed eager to display its allure, presenting all its treasures one by one. The rare artifacts hidden in its deepest recesses, never meant to be revealed, were now personally offered to Shen Ying for her enjoyment and admiration.

The temple, which usually regarded the world with disdain, felt a flutter of pride and delight at the woman's awestruck expression.

Yet that wasn't all—the Crown Prince realized he also harbored a rough, almost petulant impulse toward her. This surge of emotion only made him lose control further, and he considered it punishment for making him pine for so long.

Once he recognized this, even those violent thoughts took on a strangely sweet tinge.

Eventually, the sky’s reflection shifted from a sunset over the sea to an abyssal darkness, then to a sky full of stars.

It was impossible to tell how much time had passed before the Crown Prince finally ended his "healing" of Shen Ying.

He believed he had overwritten her pain and washed away her humiliation. At the very least, the dazed agony in her expression had faded, which satisfied him.

Shen Ying, in turn, didn’t hide her appreciation. She let her fingers wander over the temple’s beautiful form before finally patting his chest and remarking, "Not bad. Better than I expected."

The Crown Prince was clearly inexperienced, and Shen Ying had assumed his first time would be clumsy and reckless.

Hearing her praise, he felt oddly conflicted—her reaction was strange—but basking in the admiration of the woman he loved was instinctive.

Of course, he wouldn’t tell her that during the act, countless images had flashed through his mind.

It was as if he had rehearsed it in his dreams, a longing he attributed to her frequent appearances in his subconscious before his memory loss.

This desperate yearning must have spared him from complete awkwardness.

Still, once it was over, the Crown Prince was too embarrassed to discuss it further. "Let’s sleep," he said instead. "Tomorrow, we’ll figure out how to get back to land."

The flying fish vessel was running low on power, and returning safely would require careful planning.

Shen Ying nodded. "Right, it’s about time to sleep anyway. Let’s go."

The Crown Prince was startled by her words—then, in the next second, she vanished before his eyes.

First came confusion, then his expression twisted as if his heart had been violently ripped out.

A surge of terror and fury consumed him, but before he could erupt, his consciousness shifted, and in an instant, he was no longer on the island.

The Crown Prince opened his eyes to find himself inside a simulation pod, his mind still reeling from the shock of his beloved’s disappearance.

He bolted upright, ready to attack those around him and seize control, demanding answers about where Shen Ying had gone.

But before he could act, his true memories flooded back.

He froze, rigid, as one after another, the "truths" he had accepted mere moments ago exploded like landmines in his mind.

Meanwhile, in another room, Shen Ying also awoke inside a simulation pod.

Though comfortable, it wasn’t her own bed—otherwise, she might have lit a cigarette.

What a rush.

As she sat up, she saw Lu Yu, who had woken before her, already upright.

He looked at her with a complicated expression and asked, "How much did the Warden adjust the time dilation ratio?"

Shen Ying shrugged. "A lot. No point letting a simulation game eat up real-world time."

This was different from how she’d treated Lien, but Lu Yu’s thoughts only grew more tangled.

Was it what he suspected?

Still, escape was the priority now, so he changed the subject. "What happened to the Warden and the Crown Prince after I died?"

Shen Ying smirked. "They jumped out a window, fought their way through, dodged underwater weapons, and escaped to a small island."

Lu Yu sighed. "Useless subordinates. Couldn’t even avenge me."

"Even if it was just a virtual body, getting vaporized into atoms hurts like hell."

As they chatted, a commotion erupted outside.

"Prisoner 3078, return to your designated area and await escort by—"

The robotic guard’s command was cut off by a metallic crash, followed by gunfire and the unmistakable sound of machinery being obliterated.

Soon, silence fell—until their door was kicked clean off its hinges.

The Crown Prince stood in the doorway, eyes bloodshot.

He glared at Shen Ying, voice trembling with rage. "You—how dare you? You actually—"

Lu Yu turned to Shen Ying and muttered, "Someone woke up."

This was trouble.

But Shen Ying remained utterly unfazed, even tilting her head in mock confusion at the Crown Prince’s outburst.

She glanced past him at the wreckage outside and sighed. "Prisoner 3078, you illegally accessed a simulation pod without authorization, and now you’ve destroyed prison property."

"Are you asking for punishment?"

The Crown Prince’s fury spiked at her feigned ignorance. He stormed toward her, looming over her with a gaze that could kill.

Just a minute ago, he had believed this woman was his soulmate.

His words were a growl. "No one has ever dared treat me like this. No one."

"Defying me, humiliating me—fine. But you played with my heart."

Shen Ying blinked. "When? As far as I recall, weren’t we only in the simulation for about ten hours?"

"You sneaked into a pod for who-knows-what reason, accidentally linked to mine, and I even gave you the courtesy of not exposing you as a prisoner since you lacked real-world memories."

"I let you enjoy over ten hours of freedom."

"I don’t know how your code was set up, but in there, we weren’t supposed to know each other, right?"

"How does ten hours equate to me 'playing with your heart’?"

The Crown Prince finally understood.

Now he knew what those instincts had truly meant.

That unwillingness to see her humiliated, that protectiveness he’d mistaken for love—it was all just his deep-seated rivalry and pride.

Those rough impulses, those longing fantasies—they were nothing but his own grudges against her, twisted into something else.

He admitted it—during those solitary nights, the only thing keeping him going was plotting how to pay her back after escaping.

But he’d misread it all as desire for a lover.

And she had known. She had let him believe it.

His eyes, already red-rimmed, glistened for a fleeting second before he steeled himself again.

Yet in that usually arrogant gaze, there was now a trace of something wounded.

He had just woken up, still deeply remembering what happened on the island—it felt so recent, every emotion and scene vivid in his mind.

The Crown Prince was currently seething, wishing he could kick his simulated-world self to death.

He had no rebuttal to Shen Ying’s words. In fact, when he met her gaze, his entire body burned with heat.

The simulation pod was too realistic—it could directly influence reality.

Frustrated and with no outlet for his anger, the Crown Prince finally spotted Lu Yu standing with his back turned.

Then he suddenly recalled the guy’s earlier words—

"Do you even know who she is before jumping to her defense?"

The Crown Prince’s fury instantly found its target. He swung his leg sharply, aiming a kick straight at Lu Yu’s head.

Lu Yu had only turned away to avoid awkwardness, not because he wasn’t paying attention. Sensing the incoming strike, he dodged effortlessly.

Annoyed, he retorted, "Typical—picking on the weak one."

"What’s it got to do with me? You turned me into foam in the simulation earlier, and I didn’t even complain."

The Crown Prince’s rage flared. "The code was yours—this is all your fault!"

"Lien was right. You’re a useless idiot who can’t plan anything right."

Lu Yu scowled. "Oh, so it’s all my fault now? If you knew it was a bad idea, why didn’t you speak up before acting?"

"Is it my incompetence? No—the enemy was just too damn cunning."

The Crown Prince sneered. "Cunning? Your own subordinates’ code got tampered with. What else can you even do right?"

That cut deep—not just for the subordinates in prison, but likely everyone outside was in chaos now too.

Lu Yu countered while dodging, "And you’re any better? The whole prison’s guards obey you, yet you still made such a rookie mistake."

"Didn’t I hint at you in the simulation? Did you even take it seriously?"

The Crown Prince roared, "Bastard! You weren’t hinting—you were conspiring with her to humiliate me!"

Lu Yu sighed. "I was forced into it."

Their already shaky alliance had now completely shattered.

Though Lu Yu was certain the Crown Prince was just throwing a tantrum and taking it out on him.

Shen Ying wouldn’t have minded watching two handsome men fight, but they’d already brawled underwater once. Besides, she’d just finished two rounds of… activities and was running low on energy, wanting to sleep.

So she stepped in, separating them. "Alright, alright. Weren’t you two getting along fine before?"

"Partners in a prison-break alliance, trusting each other with your lives—how did it come to this?"

Both men nearly choked on their anger. Here was the instigator, standing safely on the sidelines, mocking them.

After splitting them up, Shen Ying called the guards and had them escorted back to the prisoner activity area.

Meanwhile, Lien was pacing restlessly. Ever since Lu Yu had gone to the simulation pod room, he couldn’t calm down.

His mind kept wandering—what was happening there? What kind of virtual scenario had that damned coder created this time?

Was it like his own? Probably not—this time, it was supposedly a fish.

How would that guy play with a fish? How would he treat it? Like he treated a cat?

And what kind of expression would Lu Yu, that bastard, make under such treatment?

Would they… do it?

The thought made Lien so agitated he stood up and paced, annoying Niu Xi to no end.

Niu Xi grumbled, "Go pace somewhere else."

Lien glared at the ox-man, irritation flaring. "How the hell do you look so well-fed in prison?"

"You treating this place like a vacation?"

Niu Xi shrugged. "Blame the warden for spoiling me."

"She loves feeding me good stuff. Every time she calls me up, it’s for something nice."

"Aside from being locked up, I’m living better than most."

Lien snapped, "So you’re bought off with petty rewards? I knew you were turning traitor!"

"Confess—did you leak our plans?"

Niu Xi scoffed. "As if I even know anything."

Then he eyed Lien up and down, stroking his chin in realization. "Ah, I get it. You’re scared the boss is stealing your spot as the favorite."

Lien snarled, "Favorite my ass! Have you really sunk so low you see yourself as a pet?"

Niu Xi smirked. "Don’t play dumb. My observational skills are legendary."

"Yesterday, the moment the boss offered himself up, you looked like someone stole your job. Don’t tell me you’ve grown attached to your… duties—found some sense of purpose in them?"

Before Lien could retort, Niu Xi added, "But hey, I don’t mind currying the warden’s favor to improve my living conditions."

Lien inwardly sneered but felt a twinge of alarm. This ox had no shame.

Just then, Lu Yu and the Crown Prince were brought back, both stiff-faced and grim.

Lien studied them for a long moment before asking Lu Yu, "Why’s he crying?"

The Crown Prince’s temper exploded. "You’re dead!"

Lu Yu sighed. "Can’t blame him. He gave his heart to the wrong person."

Then he added, "Probably gave his ‘noble body’ too. No wonder he’s upset."

The Crown Prince lunged again, but Lien’s voice rose sharply. "Wasn’t he meeting a contact? Why’d he end up offering himself? Are you guys seriously planning an escape or what?"

Lu Yu: "…"

Great. ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‌ ‌‌‌ ‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌‌ ‌ ‍Might as well shout the whole plan out, genius.