There’s a kind of silence that isn’t about being speechless. It’s just that you can’t be bothered to respond.

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This was an interrogation room.

A simple structure—so simple it was almost rudimentary. Four dull, grey-black walls with no windows, a table in the center, and two chairs.

Currently, two men sat across from each other, staring in silence.

Finally, Sha Yu couldn’t hold it in any longer. He glanced over Long Ming, whose expressionless face had been as blank as ever. It seemed that this “face paralysis” condition wasn’t something that could be cured easily. “Do you know You Ji?”

Long Ming didn’t even want to answer such a dumb question.

When this Demon King You was making waves across Grimm Space, Long Ming’s former self hadn’t even been born yet. How could he know him?

Seeing that he didn’t know, Sha Yu could only chalk up You Ji’s strange outburst today to one of his unpredictable mood swings.

As acting warden, Sha Yu had found You Ji to be the least troublesome of all the inmates, as he never cared about anything. But nothing in life is absolute.

“So, after walking through our prison, what do you think of our defenses? Do you think we can successfully stop any potential escape attempts?” Sha Yu asked, his tone shifting. After You Ji had been taken away, the veteran prisoners had quieted down when they saw the warden. Under Sha Yu’s watch, the new inmates made it through the corridor without further incidents.

And since Long Ming had been the one attacked, it was only natural for Sha Yu to interrogate him personally.

A perfect excuse.

“Trash,” Long Ming said bluntly, ignoring the warden’s now sour expression. “Not likely.”

“Is that so?” Sha Yu’s face darkened, but after interacting with Long Ming for even this brief time, he knew this man wouldn’t make baseless claims. “Go on.”

Long Ming thought for a moment. If he were to stage an escape, he’d begin with the following steps: First, he’d make sure to memorize the layout completely. That included observing all escape routes and defensive weak points.

Second, he’d need to disable any anti-escape mechanisms and decrypt any barriers along his path.

Third, he’d require unparalleled acting skills. Any slip-up, any suspicious behavior, would tip someone off. Even your cellmate couldn’t know about it. Who says you need companions to break out? What if that companion turns on you the moment you escape? Prison is a place where you enter knowing nothing, but you leave knowing everything. Sure, you can find a partner, but be prepared to get sold out at any moment.

Fourth, he’d study the patrol schedules of all the prison guards.

Fifth, he’d prepare a Plan B for any unexpected discoveries.

Sixth, having an inside contact would be ideal.

Seventh, he’d train himself up—strength would give him the best chance of getting out.

And eighth, if all else failed, he’d accept his fate and stay put, because after a failed attempt, security would be doubled or tripled.

In his mind, Long Ming privately called this the “Long Ming Eight-Step Escape Plan.”

To be a good warden, you had to master the art of thinking like a criminal. That’s the only way to build the perfect defense against escapees who would exploit any loophole they could find.

Summing these points up in short, concise sentences was second nature to Long Ming. He’d grown used to expressing his intense thoughts in as few words as possible. Habits could be scary. ╮(╯▽╰)╭

The warden started to understand Long Ming’s point. If an escapee followed these steps, there would indeed be multiple weak points to exploit. Especially if they had accomplices—it would be like adding wings to a tiger.

Then Long Ming went on to offer his thoughts. For example, while reinforcing the prison, you shouldn’t forget about the external visitors. If it were him, he’d stir up chaos among the major families, then, while the prison guards were busy maintaining order, break into the prison and release the criminals.

If the enemy decided to release all the prisoners out of spite, the consequences would be…

Long Ming trailed off, knowing Sha Yu would get the picture.

Indeed, the implications were horrifying. Sha Yu felt as though a bucket of cold water had been dumped over his head, forcing him into instant clarity.

After witnessing Long Ming’s display of insight, Sha Yu was now even more convinced that Long Ming was the warden they needed.

After all, the Dimensional Prison had a thousand-year history, but many of its rules and regulations had grown outdated. As acting warden, Sha Yu didn’t have the authority, nor the boldness, to enact reforms. But Long Ming was different—he had the strength, the youth, and the keen logic to match.

Almost instinctively, Sha Yu asked for Long Ming’s advice, “So, how do you suggest we defend against them?”

“Use their plan against them.”

Seeing the slight glint of wickedness in Long Ming’s eyes and his calm, unbothered demeanor, Sha Yu suddenly felt like… those escapees were doomed.

——

After that, Long Ming returned to his previously quiet and unassuming self, following the guards to the second-floor cells. At his request, Sha Yu refrained from putting him in a cell with the two kings.

If Sha Yu hadn’t been struck by Grimm’s lightning before, he wouldn’t have come up with such a terrible idea. From Long Ming’s observations, the four kings of the prison were practically worshiped by the inmates like gods (or demons?). Throwing a helpless human into the top floor with them—what sort of chaos would that cause?

As soon as he reached the second floor, a seemingly endless, dimly lit corridor stretched out before him.

Then came the sounds—a deep, abyssal wailing mixed with curses and vile language.

Long Ming’s heart sank for a moment, but he still followed the guard’s steps.

It wasn’t dinnertime yet, and the prisoners had just returned from their free time. Most of them were inside their cells.

Even criminals had to eat, unless they’d ascended to godhood. Otherwise, everyone still needed the basics of human life.

Once brought to a cell, Long Ming was greeted by a foul stench. Inside, a sobbing young boy with tear-streaked cheeks was being pinned down on a bed by a towering giant. The boy’s legs were spread wide, shaking with each brutal thrust from the giant. Blood and fluids mixed on the boy’s pale thighs, creating an obscene, filthy scene. The boy’s cries were faint, almost like a cat’s meow, as he teetered on the verge of unconsciousness.

Long Ming recognized the boy. He was the same one who had fainted in front of him earlier.

The giant delivered a few more forceful thrusts, then finally looked over at the newcomers.

Upon seeing Long Ming and the guard behind him, the giant whistled. “Hey, officer, wanna join in for a threesome?”

The wolf warriors could intimidate rookies, but the seasoned prisoners didn’t care about such posturing.

The guard, though not the one who had the blood pact with Long Ming, had seen how respectfully Sha Yu treated him. As a lowly demon, the guard knew how to read the room—an admirable quality in their kind.

After letting Long Ming into the cell, the guard coldly announced, “Dale, your dinner is canceled.”

Ignoring Dale’s curses, the guard locked the door and left.

Long Ming surveyed the room. There were four beds in total, and aside from Dale and the boy, one bed had a large lump on it—someone else was presumably asleep, though Long Ming wasn’t sure.

“Hey, kid, didn’t you hear me talking to you?” Long Ming turned to see Dale standing not far from him, his anger rising.

Seemed like Dale wanted to vent his frustration about missing dinner on him.

Prison life was boring, after all. You had to find entertainment somewhere, right?

“Got a sexy ass, don’t ya?” Dale suddenly leered at him, his eyes gleaming like a beast in heat, practically licking Long Ming from head to toe with his gaze.

Seriously? Long Ming thought. He was wrapped in a shapeless, baggy robe, yet Dale thought that looked… sexy?

Just as Dale’s hands reached out to grope him, Long Ming debated whether to reveal his strength or endure it.

But enduring wasn’t his style, especially when that poor boy had almost been raped to death.

Calmly, he began to gather magic energy, watching as Dale closed in.

Bang, bang, bang.

The wolf warriors appeared again outside the cell, coldly announcing that it was dinnertime.

Reluctantly, Dale stopped his assault, spat on the floor, and returned to his bed. He kicked the unconscious boy onto the cold floor with enough force to break bones. Although Dale hadn’t used any magic, his raw strength alone was enough to shatter the boy’s skeleton.

But the boy only let out a muffled groan, remaining lifeless on the ground. Long Ming glanced down at him, saying nothing, and followed the guards out.

The boy… was only going to suffer more.

In this prison, innocence didn’t last long.

——

The dining hall was a stark contrast to the dark, grimy interior of the prison. It was an elegant mix of romance and grandeur, with high ceilings, arched corridors, and statues crafted from magical crystals that hinted at luxury.

The prisoners were separated into different sections, generally falling into three categories.

Carnivores—beasts, demons, and humans alike—ate cooked animal carcasses.
Herbivores—beasts, demons, and humans—ate cooked plant matter.
And then there were the Blood Clan and other races, who feasted on various other corpses.

However, their table manners were atrocious, with blood and entrails flying everywhere, completely ruining the lavish atmosphere of the hall.

To Long Ming, it felt like a dance of demons.

His arrival caused quite a stir.

Especially among You Ji’s lackeys. They were practically howling with excitement, rushing to spread the news: The human who offended Lord You has appeared!

Word spread like wildfire, and the dining hall buzzed with even more excitement.

Long Ming’s mouth twitched slightly, though it wasn’t obvious under his perpetually stoic expression. His original plan to lay low had been completely shattered. He lowered his head to avoid the piercing glares focused on him—none of them were bothering to restrain their spiritual waves.

If his body weren’t at pseudo-Holy Domain strength, he’d have collapsed already.

Silence… more silence.

There’s a kind of silence that isn’t about being speechless. It’s just that you can’t be bothered to respond.

He’d lived long enough not to sweat the small stuff with these young brats.

Dragging his ragged, gray robe, Long Ming headed for the food counter.

As he queued up, people walking past hit, burned, or elbowed him at every opportunity. By the time he reached the front of the line, all that was left were a few pitiful plant scraps—and they weren’t even cooked.

Grinding his teeth, Long Ming thought, Hunger trumps everything.

Grabbing the sad little scraps, he comforted himself that this was all part of infiltrating the prison. Understanding the Dimensional Prison from the inside would be worth these small annoyances. Looking at the green, raw plants, he was reminded of the low-level herbivores in the Demonic Beast Forest, like the Snow Scent Rabbit—weren’t they the ones that munched on raw plants like this?

He found a quiet corner to sit down, but just as he was about to eat, the two remaining leaves on his plate were burnt to a crisp by a sudden blast of fire.

Without even looking up, Long Ming knew—trouble had arrived.