Clang!
Clang!
Clang!
Sparks flew!
Yang Yi controlled the Penitent Armor, hacking hard at the exquisite lock, but he only left scratches on it without cutting it apart. Instead, Fake Broken Iron gained a notch, though fortunately, it did not affect the greatsword's power.
Unable to cut the lock, Yang Yi settled for the next best thing and hacked at the desk, hoping the contents would not be affected.
First, he severed the three-finger-thick desk legs with a few swings. Then he picked up the desk and shook it, shifting its contents to one side before starting to split the drawer open with brute force.
Su Na disliked Yang Yi's violent approach to opening things, but with their current need to gather information as quickly as possible, she could not think of a better way.
As for finding the key...
The Rotting Whale might already have blown it out. Looking for it would be no different from looking for a needle in the ocean.
After several minutes of pounding and no fewer than twenty blows, a corner of the drawer finally broke open.
Yang Yi tried reaching inside and felt only something like a piece of silk, which he pulled out.
It was actually a parchment scroll, though whether it was made of sheepskin was hard to say.
Judging by the skin patterns left on it, Su Na had reason to suspect it was made from human skin.
Locked inside the drawer, it had been well preserved, and the writing-or rather, tattoos-on it remained clearly visible.
"Salt Spike: instructions for use and prohibitions"
Below were text and illustrations.
"The Salt Spike must be kept strictly within a crystal container. Personal possession is strictly forbidden. Unless necessary, no living thing may come into contact with the Salt Spike."
"Once commissioned, a