Solomon stared down the sprawling legion of bone and rusted steel, wondering exactly how he should approach the fight.

A part of him genuinely wanted to perform flashy, catastrophic moves just like Zoro and Vlad. Those two possessed the magical skills and innate talents to pull off such spectacles effortlessly.

He knew his own physical limitations perfectly well. Leaping around a battlefield against a thousand enemies was completely impractical, especially while wielding a massive greatsword that actively resisted his control.

He decided to rely entirely on the Imperial Sword Arts and end the conflict as quickly as possible. Prolonging the engagement to boost his stream viewership and audience retention usually made perfect sense for his channel growth.

However, facing an army of this magnitude required efficiency over entertainment. Business would simply have to wait.

Curiosity about his newly awakened internal energy also gnawed at him. Before charging into the fray, he opened his floating system interface to check the updated statistics of his weapon and read the exact details of the second ability.

❖ [Item: Holy Relic - Eden’s Penance] ❖

⇝ Grade: S-Rank ⇝ Type: Greatsword

⇝ Special Abilities:

≫ [Unlocked] Echoes of Eden: The blade recognizes your mastery. Grants a 200% damage multiplier when executing any form of the Eden Imperial Sword Arts.

≫ [Unlocked] Divine Cleave: Channels the user’s Aura through the divine steel to project an immense crescent wave of energy. Bypasses standard physical defenses and inflicts critical area-of-effect damage.

≫ [Sealed] Paladin’s Vow: (Requirement not met — Mana Core unawakened)

≫ [Sealed] Weight of the World: (Requirement not met — Concept of ’World’ unachieved)

Solomon read the updated description, and a wide grin spread across his face once again. The ability to project his newly acquired aura as a ranged, area-of-effect attack perfectly solved his crowd-control problem. 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

He dismissed the glowing window and stepped further away from his companions. He planted his boots firmly onto the cobblestones and aimed the tip of Eden’s Penance directly toward the center of the approaching undead legion.

"Let us see exactly how much damage this thing can do."

Solomon closed his eyes and raised Eden’s Penance vertically in front of his face. He completely lacked practical experience with his newly unlocked power. He had absolutely no opportunity to practice channeling the internal energy pathways since his awakening in the cave.

However, he possessed the Undead Paladin’s memories, granting him a flawless theoretical understanding of exactly how aura functioned. He understood the fundamental mechanics of drawing the energy from his core and forcing it into his limbs.

Still, theoretical knowledge could never entirely replace genuine combat experience, leaving a lingering doubt in his mind as he tried to focus.

The skeletal army rapidly closed the distance, the chaotic sound of clanking armor growing deafeningly loud.

[GoonLord: BRO WAKE UP! THEY ARE RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU!]

[LazyCat: DO SOMETHING SOLO MAN!]

[SteelFang: He is frozen!]

[BloodKnight: Solo Man, this is not the time to think. It is time to act!]

Zoro shifted his weight and kept his stance perfectly balanced, feeling a genuine wave of uneasiness wash over him. Miro narrowed her eyes and subtly adjusted her fingers, preparing to cast a spatial portal.

Vlad simply watched with crossed arms, completely unmoved by the approaching threat.

The massive undead legion suddenly broke into a full sprint, charging the group with absolute ferocity.

Solomon finally forced the dormant energy out of his muscles. A brilliant white aura erupted from his body and aggressively coated the massive S-Rank blade.

The front line of the skeletal vanguard reached striking distance, raising their rusted spears toward Solomon’s chest.

Zoro instantly ignited both hands with blazing crimson fire, ready to intervene. Miro whispered the first syllable of her summoning incantation.

The stream chat descended into absolute panic, completely flooding the screen with warning messages.

Solomon stepped forward and forcefully executed the Second Form of the Imperial Sword Arts: Horizontal Cleave.

The passive Echoes of Eden ability immediately applied a massive 200% damage multiplier to the technique. The newly unlocked Divine Cleave simultaneously channeled his white aura through the divine steel.

The greatsword tore through the air, projecting a colossal, blinding crescent of pure energy directly into the charging horde.

The massive shockwave bypassed their physical armor entirely, completely atomizing the entire front line on contact. The devastating wave of force continued traveling outward, violently sweeping across the courtyard.

When the white light finally faded, over five hundred undead soldiers had been completely eradicated, leaving a massive, empty crater carved straight through the center of the marching army.

he dust settled over the massive crater carved through the courtyard.

The stream interface glitched for a fraction of a second before exploding into an absolute blur of text.

[GoonLord: WHAT THE ACTUAL...]

[LazyCat: HE JUST ONE-SHOT FIVE HUNDRED MOBS!]

[User12: Bro took a nap and became 10x stronger.]

[OldTimer: That destructive output completely defies the standard limitations of his rank.]

[SteelFang: Solo Man is actually a monster.]

Zoro stood entirely frozen, utterly unable to comprehend the sheer scale of the devastation. He stared at the resulting trench with wide eyes, struggling to process how a first-year student had just unleashed an attack rivaling a high-tier veteran.

Miro lowered her hands, letting her spatial spell fade as she watched the lingering white light dissipate into the darkness.

Vlad looked at the remaining skeletal soldiers scattered around the edges of the blast zone and let out a dismissive scoff. He remained entirely unimpressed by the spectacle.

"You missed," Vlad taunted, his voice carrying easily across the ruined courtyard. "There are still hundreds of them left. A proper strike would have eradicated the entire legion."

Solomon kept his mouth shut. An overwhelming wave of exhaustion suddenly crashed into his muscles. Combining the high-tier Imperial Sword Arts with his newly awakened aura for the very first time had completely drained his stamina.

His limbs ached violently from the immense energy output, and the sword was still acting unfriendly.

However, he refused to let the fatigue stop his momentum. He hoisted Eden’s Penance onto his shoulder and marched directly toward the surviving undead army.

Solomon plunged right into the chaotic fray. He dropped the aura projection entirely to conserve his failing strength. He relied strictly on the physical forms of the Imperial Sword Arts, seamlessly weaving standard horizontal slashes with completely barbaric, brutal downward chops.

He smashed through rusted shields and crushed skeletal skulls with absolute ruthlessness, wielding the S-Rank blade like a massive iron club to crush everything in his path.

Zoro watched the boy struggle against the sheer numbers and took a step forward. "Should we step in and help him? Fighting five hundred enemies entirely through physical means might be a bit too much for him to handle."

"He made his choice," Vlad responded coldly. "I do not care if he gets completely overwhelmed. Let him die."

Vlad reached over his shoulder and pulled the pristine recurve bow from his back. He drew the string back with a single fluid motion. A glowing arrow made entirely of condensed golden aura instantly manifested along the weapon’s rest.

He completely ignored the remaining undead monsters. Instead, Vlad aimed the glowing arrowhead directly at Solomon’s head while the boy jumped around the courtyard destroying the skeletal knights.