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The surface of the sea suddenly trembled, rippling violently. The Nightmare Star was pushed back repeatedly by the crashing waves.

Suna stood on the deck, having just downed a bottle of regeneration potion to stabilize her HP. Immediately after, she witnessed the bizarre phenomenon. 

Not far away, the sea island, or rather, the corrupted whale, was trembling and shaking uncontrollably. It was as if it couldn’t contain its excitement and ecstasy, shuddering nonstop and shaking off the last bits of salt from its flesh. At the same time, the whale’s body was visibly regenerating, becoming moist and full of vitality at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Yang Yi, what’s going on? The corrupted whale... it looks like it’s fully revived!" Suna sent him a private message, but it was like casting a stone into the sea. No reply.

The next moment, the seaquake ceased, and the Nightmare Star was caught in a current, drifting towards the island.

The corrupted whale was drinking seawater, an astonishing amount, enough to alter ocean currents. Suna rushed to the bow, taking control of the ship to steer it away from being sucked into the whale’s body by the swirling tide.

From a god’s-eye view, one could see massive whirlpools forming around the island, pulling everything nearby down into the sea, or rather, into the mouth of the whale.

The partially awakened corrupted whale was beginning to show its true power. Its earlier salt-expelling behavior, inhaling sweet air and exhaling salt, was merely a pre-conscious reflex!

“ROOOOOOOAAAAARRRRRR!!!!!!”

Several jets of water shot high into the sky, blooming like fireworks. Under the refraction of sunlight, a sea rainbow appeared. All signs pointed to one conclusion, the corrupted whale… was on the verge of complete revival! Barring any surprises…

Suna continued to spam private messages to Yang Yi but sent so many so quickly that the system muted her.

"Yang Yi, answer me!!"

Perhaps her flood of messages finally triggered a response, Yang Yi finally replied.

"Can you stop spamming? I’m not dead yet! I’ve figured out the correct use for the Salt Wedge. This thing… isn’t even a weapon..."

Rewind a few dozen seconds.

Yang Yi had been swatted down like a fly by a giant hand, slammed hard into the bottom of the air chamber, buried beneath layers of salt. If not for the salt cushioning his fall, that one blow would have completely shattered his dehydrated werewolf body.

But even so, his condition was dire. Both legs were broken, like snapped pieces of dried jerky, and not a single drop of blood oozed from the fracture points. His left arm was also severed, lying half a metre away in three pieces. Only his right arm, torso, and head remained intact.

It was the best outcome he could manage, having twisted his body at the last second to minimise the impact. Of course, the right arm likely survived thanks to the protection of the Penitent's Armour.

Above, at the centre of the air chamber, the white flesh orb had completely regenerated, including the giant’s head that extended from it. No signs of decay remained. Its surface now glistened.

The massive arm that had struck Yang Yi had extended from that same flesh orb. It emerged from above the head, a full arm, chubby like a newborn’s, but enormous, five metres long, slowly retracting into the orb. If an arm could stretch out from the back of the head, one could only imagine what twisted posture the giant maintained inside the Fruit of Bounty.

After swatting Yang Yi away, the giant didn’t pay him any more attention, because anyone who touched the Salt Wedge was supposed to die, no exceptions. Not even a werewolf with incredible vitality could survive it. Only an extremely rare few could remain mobile after touching the Salt Wedge. These were people trained from childhood, with extraordinary willpower, or in other words, extremely high Spirit stats.

But someone who could move after being impaled by the Salt Wedge? Even the giant had never seen such a thing in its life. It was terrifying. That man had nearly killed his Fruit of Bounty host body.

He had infiltrated the whaling crew, used secret arcane methods, and transformed into a near-immortal Child of Bounty. His plan had succeeded!

First, he needed to purge all this disgusting salt from his body.

The corrupted whale began to inhale seawater, and the air chamber slowly filled. Once it had absorbed enough, the chamber began compressing, preparing to flush out the accumulated sea salt, including the Salt Wedge, using seawater.

That was the scene Suna had witnessed at sea: the corrupted whale spraying water.

Yang Yi floated in the brine, right hand gripping the Salt Wedge. At the same time, he finally read the full information of the item.

【Name: Salt Wedge (Imitation)】

【Type: Consumable】【Quality: ??】【Description: A manmade counterfeit of the holy relic "Salt Wedge," carrying a portion of its power and traits. Uses left: 2/3.

The original Salt Wedge is a relic of an ancient kingdom swallowed by salt. It drains all surrounding moisture and transforms any pierced lifeform into sea salt.

If thrown into the ocean, it can cause vast sections of the sea to vanish, turning into white desert. (The imitation lacks this destructive potential and will slowly dissolve in seawater.)

If the pierced body does not immediately disintegrate into sea salt and survive the initial effect, they will temporarily gain the "Authority of Salt”.

This was the Pillar of Salt’s response to the kingdom’s prayers, a divine blessing. But no one in the kingdom could withstand such immense power, leading to a catastrophic disaster.】

In short, the Salt Wedge was actually an artificial replica, a fake! If a fake was so powerful... what kind of monstrosity was the real one?

Yang Yi didn’t have time to marvel at it. He was in imminent danger. If he wanted to turn the tide, he had to gamble on the power of salt. If that previous host could suppress the corrupted whale using the Salt Wedge, then surely, he could do something similar!

While Refuse to Die was still active, his HP wouldn’t drop below 1.

The seawater flooding in was oversaturated with salt, with undissolved crystals swirling like sand grains. Yang Yi floated up. Just as he was about to be sucked into the drainage vent, he drove the Salt Wedge into his own chest.

【Salt Wedge (Imitation) Activated】

If Spirit 10: HP -100, instant death, body disintegrates into sea salt.If Spirit ≥ 10: HP gradually decreases. The impaled gains temporary authority over salt until death.If the Salt Wedge is removed: HP -100, instant death, body disintegrates into sea salt.

The item was a one-way ticket. Whether or not he gained the power of salt, death was guaranteed. Unless... someone could take a -100 HP hit and still live, like Yang Yi.

Once the Salt Wedge pierced him, his HP dropped by 100, but remained at 1. Immediately, a new transcendent path appeared on his status screen: Salt King.

In a flash, his severed limbs regenerated. The scattered parts dissolved into sea salt and reassembled on his body. The whole process took less than a second. Then, the seawater in the chamber instantly evaporated, sucked dry and crystallised into salt.

Yang Yi’s appearance changed dramatically. His body shrivelled and hunched like an ancient, dying man. A white crown made of salt appeared atop his head, and a salt-crafted royal robe wrapped around him, flowing like real fabric.

Endless salt poured from him, forming a small mountain beneath.

From that salt, countless People of Salt began to rise.

“King!” They spoke in reverent unison, a voice only Yang Yi could hear.

Unlike before, these Salt People had faces, intelligence, and towering forms. They were adorned in exquisite salt-forged armour, kneeling and bowing before him.

Some even rode warhorses.

All lowered their heads in solemn salute, awaiting his command.

"You... How is this possible?!" The giant embedded in the white flesh orb above had noticed the scene and cried out in horror.

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