The Empty Promise
The girl's tone was light, but Luke was giving it his full attention.
He observed the key while trying to recall similar artifacts from the DC world, but couldn't find anything that matched.
The Golden Key was palm-sized, existing between the void and reality, surrounded by countless spatial ripples. If you looked closely, you could vaguely see the warping sensation of temporal distortion.
Interesting!
Luke circled the key a few times. "What is this thing used for?"
Linda shook her head. "I don't know."
"What do you mean, you don't know?"
"I just don't know!"
Linda shrugged. Perhaps realizing her answer was rather irresponsible, she cleared her throat and explained,
"For a long period in Krypton's hundred-thousand-year history, we were in a phase of colonial expansion. We conquered many planets, and when some of those planets fell, their mystical artifacts became Kryptonian collections. The Golden Key is one of them. It was always guarded by the Council and ranked number one among all artifacts."
"My father once told me that the Golden Key played a crucial role in the development of Kryptonian civilization, but what exactly that was, I'm not sure."
Luke frowned. "If it's so important, why are you giving it to me?"
Linda sighed, her expression tinged with loneliness.
"Krypton no longer exists. What's the point of keeping it? Besides, the Key isn't that easy to get your hands on." With that, she walked up to the pedestal, and to Luke's surprise, her palm passed through the Key without any obstruction.
"See? Only Kryptonians with extremely high aptitude can touch it. Clearly, I don't have that aptitude."
Luke's expression was odd. "So, if I have the aptitude, the Key is mine. If not, it has nothing to do with me."
Linda shrugged indifferently.
"You could put it that way."
Luke gave her a thumbs-up. Well played, young lady! So you've learned to pull a fast one. All this hard work for me to receive a completely worthless check.
Still, this thing was genuinely magical.
Luke had to admit, he was tempted. He was a man; who didn't have a collector's instinct? If he saw a good item and wasn't tempted, could he even call himself a man?
With that thought, he took a deep breath, walked to the pedestal, and slowly extended his right hand.
As his fingers neared the Key, Linda unconsciously clenched her fist, her expression nervous. The next moment, when she saw his finger pass right through the Key, she sighed, her eyes heavy with disappointment.
"As expected, I was overthinking it."
"Father said only those with a pure heart and honest character are qualified to be a Steward. Luke Shaw is greedy, lecherous, shameless, and loves to play tricks—a complete scoundrel. How could he possibly be favored by the Key?"
"I was so foolish to think about giving this to him."
Linda smacked her forehead, mentally chastising herself for being so presumptuous.
Luke remained silent, staring at his palm, trying to figure out what was going on.
It really passed through!
That makes no sense!
I am Luke Shaw, the unique transmigrator! Logically, this thing should be custom-made for me! Could it be the exclusive property of a "Son of the Plane"? No, I'm not some historical figure afraid of being overthrown by a destined emperor.
If once didn't work, he'd try again.
If twice didn't work, he'd try ten or eight times. Enough repetitions can grind an iron rod into a needle, let alone a Key.
Luke was defiant. When his right hand tired, he switched to his left. He crossed and crisscrossed his hands dozens of times... The rod remained an iron rod!
The girl couldn't watch anymore. She pouted and scorned him.
"If you can't grab it, stop trying! You look like a dog paddling. Aren't you embarrassed?"
Luke glared at her. You can insult me, but you can't insult my technique.
Don't think I'm out of options!
A flicker of green light appeared in his pupils. Pale green flames erupted from his palm and spread along the Phantom 1's patterns, engulfing his entire arm.
The temperature in the room plummeted rapidly. A pervasive chill spread from nowhere, freezing the very soul.
Linda hugged her arms. The sense of dread she had felt before resurfaced, intensely clear this time. Its source was the Phantom Armor in front of her.
Luke Shaw! What secrets are you hiding?
Luke wasn't one to give up easily. If the Key wouldn't yield, he would chop off its head and see if it could still look down on him.
The arm, now wrapped in green flame, reached for the Key once more.
Before contact, the Golden Key suddenly vibrated. Large spatial energy ripples erupted from its surface, seemingly resisting something.
"You think you're so tough, huh? Let's see you try now!"
He activated maximum power.
A large burst of blue light erupted from his arm, ignoring the resistance of the ripples, and he grabbed the Key firmly.
BOOM!
The Key emitted a blinding white light. A powerful shockwave exploded outward, sweeping through the room like a torrent of rain.
Linda had no time to react. She was instantly sent flying, limbs splayed, slamming against the wall like a human poster.
Luke felt even worse. The relentless horizontal pressure was like a speeding semi-truck hitting his chest. His chest was painfully constricted, his face flushed red, and a metallic, sweet taste filled his mouth.
If not for the protection of the armor, his body would have been pulp from that single impact.
Even with the armor, it groaned and creaked like a machine unused for decades, threatening to fall apart at any moment.
"Damn it! What the hell is this thing?! Why does it have such a powerful horizontal repulsion force?"
"Is this the Almighty Push? Or the Gravity Blade: Fierce Tiger?"
Luke's mind raced with wild thoughts. He snapped back to reality when he heard a crunch.
The Phantom 1, known for its resilience, was cracking. Snake-scale plates disintegrated, turning into bullets that embedded themselves in the wall under the immense pressure. Two large cracks appeared across his chest, and the energy core was affected, blinking erratically.
The pressure showed no signs of weakening; in fact, it continued to intensify.
"You forced my hand, damn it!"
Luke was furious. His pupils turned a deep, ghostly green. A chilling aura, like that of the Grim Reaper, descended upon the room. The pale green flame became deeper and more concentrated, carrying a terrifying scent of death.
The flame surged, turning from defense to offense, and began to erode the Golden Key's outer defense layer—bit by bit, layer by layer. Soon, a faint green color stained the Key's far end.
That hint of green was like a tender bud in early spring, yet it radiated a soul-deep coldness.
The Key's vibration intensified rapidly, seemingly struggling with all its might. If you looked closely, you'd realize it was like the last fading light of a setting sun.
As the green color crept up the Key, the pressure began to subside.
Luke took a breath, exerted force on his hand, and finally wrenched the Key into his grasp.
The golden light rapidly faded, revealing its true appearance: a bland, unremarkable object with a few pitted scratches and several mysterious, unknown characters.
"This thing is the number one treasure in Kryptonian collections?"
Luke examined it repeatedly. It looked like nothing more than a common bronze key.
"Hey! Linda... Linda..."
He called out twice, but there was no answer. Luke walked over to the girl. When he saw the bloodstains on the floor, his face changed dramatically.
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