I heard your house is quite big

The group caught the clothes and began dressing.

In an instant, the once-serious Sword Prison shimmered with golden light—transforming as if into a night-club for a wild disco party.

“Haha! Xiao Yu, you really came at just the right time!”

“Appreciate you coming over!”

“Too bad these clothes are a bit tight…”

“What?! Why is my outfit a skirt?!”

“Be glad you’ve got something to wear. That’s the last one left. Just deal with it for now.”

Brushing off Liu Shicheng’s complaint, Xiao Yu turned his gaze toward Tie Yanran inside the prison.

A faint golden glow outlined his figure. He still wore the same daytime attire, but perhaps due to the prison setting, he had removed the outer robe resembling a cape, revealing a tighter, more practical martial artist uniform underneath.

Tie Yanran had a good build—clearly trained, likely with some muscle tone. Compared to the muscular giants like Fan Hai, though, he looked almost delicate.

He wasn’t short either—nearly matching Xiao Yu in height—but on the slimmer side.

What surprised Xiao Yu most was the smooth curve of his waist leading down to a well-defined rear and long, firm thighs.

……

Looking closely…
If Tie Yanran ever dressed as a woman, he might actually pull it off.

Even the skin visible around the mask was paler and smoother than many women’s. There was no way he could look bad.

Was this… a natural female-like appearance?
Wow… Brother, you smell nice!

Cough cough…

Wiping away imaginary drool, Xiao Yu snapped back to reality and pleaded on behalf of the detained Fan Hai:

“Ah, Brother Tie, looks like Big Brother Fan and the rest have gotten dressed. It’s getting late—mind letting them go?”

“Let them go?”

Tie Yanran glanced at Fan Hai and the others, now properly clothed and sitting upright.

His eyes landed on Liu Shicheng in the ridiculous floral skirt, prompting an involuntary twitch at the corner of his mouth before he turned away.

“No. Their offense wasn’t that severe. Except for the skirt guy—just one night of reflection should suffice. The residual sword intent won’t harm these Zenith martial artists anyway. No need to plead for them.”

“Eh! So I don’t have to stay the whole night?!”

At Tie Yanran’s words, Liu Shicheng perked up excitedly from the crowd.

“Yes. You’ll stay for three days. Yours was the worst case. Three days is already lenient.”

After all, the rest had their Adamantine Unyielding Youth Body shielding them. Liu Shicheng was the only one who’d been completely naked.

Liu Shicheng: “Huh?!”

“This… haha… Brother Tie, why be so strict? Liu Shicheng’s new here—he’s a first-timer. Cut him some slack. One night okay?”

“A first-time offender?” The grotesque mask turned toward Xiao Yu, its hidden gaze oddly ambiguous.

“Uh… isn’t he?” Xiao Yu asked cluelessly.

Tie Yanran let out a cold snort, then pulled out a book filled with records:

“Hmph! Liu Shicheng—the rising star of the Liu Clan—has repeatedly been reported by island women for flirting and dating multiple women simultaneously, charged with harassment. Most of his targets were widows and married women. High-risk individual.

Three days is leniency—considering there were no women nearby this time. Otherwise, minimum seven days.”

You lecherous bastard…

Xiao Yu shot Liu Shicheng an impressed look upon hearing that.

Going after widows was one thing—but married women too?
Respect.

“I… was just trying to help those lonely wives! I’m a good guy!”

Liu Shicheng tried to defend himself, but Tie Yanran shot him a disgusted glare, hand resting on his blade:

“Silence. Scum.”

Liu Shicheng shut up instantly. Knowing Tie Yanran’s reputation as the Jade-Faced Demon, he wouldn’t put it past him to draw blood.

Alright, no wonder he got three days while Fan Hai only got one night—he had a record.

Xiao Yu had planned to bribe Tie Yanran slightly, maybe whisper a favor in his ear to reduce the sentence.

But the moment he took a step forward—

Tie Yanran’s hand tensed on his sword hilt. His body subtly shifted into a defensive stance, clearly wary of Xiao Yu:

“Take another step closer, and I’ll slice you open!”

Xiao Yu quickly backed off, hands raised in surrender.

Probably recalling the earlier incident, the grotesque mask flushed slightly beneath—its pale skin tinged with red.

“Alright, Xiao Yu, don’t worry about us. One night’s fine. This prison’s sword intent is actually great for refining our martial bodies.”

Fan Hai called out. Xiao Yu looked closer and saw—indeed, Tie Yanran hadn’t locked them in chains. Free movement remained possible. In Sword Prison, the lingering sword intent itself was the best restraint.

It was said that pure martial artists deliberately sought sparring sessions against sword cultivators with soul-bound blades—just to let the sharp sword qi temper their bodies.

In short, martial artists were just masochists. The harsher the pain, the stronger the punch.

Fan Hai grinned casually:

“We’ll use this chance to train under the pressure of sword intent. Little Liu might even break through Martial Stage One tonight. And we can teach him Adamantine Unyielding Youth Body too. A miscalculation earlier—that’s how we ended up here. If you want, Xiao Yu, you can stay and learn too.”

“No thanks, no thanks!”

Xiao Yu immediately declined.
Adamantine Unyielding Youth Body?
Nope.

Still wanted kids someday.

Come to think of it—Tie Yanran accused Liu Shicheng of dating two women, making Xiao Yu briefly fear Liu had already taken the adult path ahead of him. Now, it seemed not.

Just as he thought this, Liu Shicheng cried out in horror:

“What?! Make me stay the night in a cell full of naked men?! God kill me already! Xiao Yu… save me! Your room isn’t fixed yet, right? Or else you’d have nowhere to sleep tonight!”

“Then I’ll just crash at your place!”

Xiao Yu smiled sweetly, already heading for the exit. If Fan Hai forcibly kept him here, things would get worse.

“If you dare do anything with Bai Yan on *my* bed tonight, I’ll never forgive you!!!”

“Alright alright, save your energy. Time for body tempering begins now!”

“NOOOOOO!!!”

A mournful cry echoed behind him.

Xiao Yu shrugged indifferently—best of luck.

Fan Hai forcing Liu Shicheng to refine his martial arts was ultimately for his own good.

Though sword cultivators naturally trained their bodies—far sturdier than mere spirit gatherers—Liu Shicheng’s style was extreme.

He didn’t care about defense. All he pursued was raw attack power.

Not glass—paper-thin. Every clash felt like dancing on a blade’s edge. One slip, and he’d shatter.

Especially vulnerable to Sword-Swallowing Talismans, which targeted soul-bound swords directly. If faced with such a talisman, Liu Shicheng would likely be finished.

Liu Shicheng was strong—dominating peers, a sword genius. His soul-bound sword was sharper than most at his level.

But if his body shattered too easily at the start of battle, his strength meant nothing.

Offense-only tactics—unbreakable until you’re broken beyond repair. Did he think he was Demon Blade Thousand Slashes?

Xiao Yu inwardly grumbled.

Stepping out of the prison, Xiao Yu gazed at the darkening sky. Where to sleep tonight?

Not with Xiao Yan.

He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but Bai Yan had been acting strangely lately. During sleep, she always liked touching him, clinging tightly—showing zero regard for personal space. Her soft, warm curves pressed against him constantly.

Back when they were younger, it was fine. But Bai Yan was a grown woman now.

If not for his iron willpower, last night could’ve become a live broadcast for Liu Shicheng.

So, better sleep outside tonight.

But where?

Staying with Bai Yan was risky.

Sleeping at Liu Shicheng’s was impossible—he was joking earlier.

If Fan Hai weren’t imprisoned, borrowing a spot at his place would work, despite the occasional male bonding session.

How about Guest Reception Peak?

There were spare rooms there. Just needed Sect Leader Gong’s permission.

But the moment he thought of Xia Nianmo being there, Xiao Yu dismissed the idea instantly.

Better keep distance from heroines.

Otherwise, he might wake up in the middle of the night with someone drilling him from behind, yelling:
*Brother, bear with it—it’s almost done!*

Demon Gathering Island had its fair share of freaks.

Ah… pity the heavens. Never did he expect a day when he couldn’t return home.

As Xiao Yu pondered—

A tall figure emerged from the shadows.

It was Tie Yanran, preparing to head home.

Oh?

Spotting the masked Jade-Faced Demon, Xiao Yu suddenly knew where he’d spend the night.

Fixing his hair, Xiao Yu stepped forward confidently:

“Brother Tie, I heard… your house is pretty big.”

Tie Yanran: ?