Chapter 105: Epitaph (2)

Ding!

[Weapon obtained!]

[Weapon: Epitaph (Legendary)]

[Base Strength Scaling: Level 150]

[Tethered User: Leon Wes]

[Description: A masterwork of conceptual forging, designed to deliver absolute, unmitigated kinetic trauma.]

[Innate Ability 1: Absolute Edge]

[The razor-thin blade of the axe operates on a localized spatial frequency. Physical strikes with this weapon automatically ignore 80% of all physical armor density and magical shielding mitigation.]

[Innate Ability 2: Kinetic Rupture]

[Upon successfully striking a target, the axe injects a delayed, highly compressed kinetic shockwave. After a 0.5-second delay, the shockwave violently detonates inward, turning internal bone structures to dust and shattering armor plating from the inside out.]

[Innate Ability 3: Phantom Weight]

[The weapon’s mass dynamically shifts based on the user’s kinematic intent. During the swing animation, the axe weighs absolutely nothing, allowing the user to attack with the blinding speed of a lightweight dagger. At the exact microsecond of impact, the weapon instantly regains its true, catastrophic mass, delivering the kinetic force of a falling mountain.]

Leon stared at the three abilities. They were brutally practical. It bypassed armor. It swung as fast as a dagger but hit like a meteor. And it ruptured targets from the inside.

It was, without a shadow of a doubt, fundamentally stronger and far more lethal in single-target combat than the Blade of the Dragon God. The Legendary rank, combined with Snow’s unique scaling mechanic, had birthed an absolute monster of a weapon.

"Epitaph," Leon murmured, testing the name on his tongue. The axe felt utterly perfect in his grip, balanced with a precision that bordered on the divine.

"Do you like it, baby?" Snow asked, leaning against one of the bamboo pillars, looking slightly drained but incredibly proud of her work. She wiped a bead of sweat from her brow, offering him a tired but sexy smile. "I pushed my talent to the absolute breaking point to handle your aura. That Phantom Weight ability practically wrote itself when I felt how fast you wanted to swing it."

"It’s flawless," Leon admitted, his icy blue and golden eyes tracing the dark silver edge of the blade. "But a weapon’s true value isn’t found on a stat screen. It needs to be tested."

"Show me what you can do with it, baby," Snow purred, gesturing toward the sliding doors that led out to the backyard of the estate.

Leon stepped out of the house, his boots crunching softly on the vibrant green grass. The backyard opened up to a dense grove of towering, diamond-hard crystalline trees that bordered the rushing, glowing blue mana-waterfall.

The trees in Sector 12 were not made of standard wood; they possessed the structural density of solid steel, designed by the system to withstand the ambient magical pressure of the Adept region.

Snow followed him out, leaning against the porch railing, watching him with unabashed admiration.

Leon stood ten yards away from a cluster of five massive crystalline trees. He didn’t drop into a heavy, braced stance like he did with his greatsword. He stood casually, holding Epitaph in his right hand, letting it hang loosely by his side.

He locked his focus.

He didn’t use Abyssal Stride. He simply relied on his 235 Agility.

He vanished.

Snow let out a sharp gasp as Leon instantly crossed the ten yards. She possessed high-tier tracking, but her Level 47 eyes completely failed to register his movement.

Leon materialized in the center of the tree cluster.

He engaged the Phantom Weight ability simply by intent. The heavy, indestructible dark metal of the axe instantly lost all physical mass, becoming lighter than a feather.

Leon unleashed a five-hit combination. He swung the axe horizontally, vertically, and diagonally, moving with the blinding, frictionless speed of an assassin wielding a parrying dagger.

Swish-swish-swish-swish-swish!

He completed the five swings in a fraction of a second. The edge of Epitaph barely grazed the trunks of the five massive crystalline trees before he casually stepped back, resting the long haft of the axe against his shoulder.

To the naked eye, absolutely nothing had happened. The five steel-dense trees stood perfectly intact. There were no massive, gaping gashes in the trunks. There was no explosive shockwave of fire or void magic.

Snow blinked, leaning over the railing, a look of genuine confusion crossing her beautiful features.

"Baby?" Snow asked, her head tilting to the side. "Did you... miss?"

Leon didn’t answer. He simply raised his left hand and slowly counted down on his fingers.

Three.

Two.

One.

The 0.5-second delay of Kinetic Rupture expired simultaneously across all five targets.

There was no fiery explosion. There was only a terrifying, localized CRACK that sounded like the sky itself tearing open.

The five massive crystalline trees did not fall over. They did not snap in half.

The sheer, compressed kinetic shockwaves that had been injected directly into their core structure violently detonated inward. The immense, steel-dense trunks imploded, instantaneously turning from solid, indestructible matter into a massive, expanding cloud of ultra-fine, glittering crystal dust.

The shockwave from the simultaneous internal ruptures blew outward, violently kicking up the grass and sending a gust of wind rushing past the porch, rustling Snow’s heavy white fur coat and sending her long white hair whipping wildly behind her.

As the dust settled, the cluster of trees was completely erased from the physical plane. Nothing remained but five perfectly smooth, cratered stumps.

Snow stood completely frozen on the porch, her jaw slightly slack, her blue eyes wide with absolute awe. She looked at the cratered stumps, and then slowly shifted her gaze to the man standing casually in the center of the destruction, the sleek, dark axe resting easily on his shoulder.

Leon looked at the weapon in his hand.

He had swung it with the speed of a lightweight dagger, entirely bypassing the cumbersome, easily-parried animations of a heavy weapon. Yet, at the exact microsecond the blade had kissed the crystal bark, the axe had instantly regained its catastrophic Level 150 mass, injecting a kinetic payload that completely ignored the trees’ structural density.

If he had possessed Epitaph during his duel with the Silent Aegis, he wouldn’t have been forced into a thirty-five-minute battle of attrition. He could have matched the Guardian’s blinding attack speed blow-for-blow, while delivering internal, armor-shattering ruptures with every single grazing tap.

It was practical. And It was simple.

Leon turned around, the golden and icy blue light of his heterochromia glowing with genuine satisfaction. He looked at the beautiful, and confident girl who had just handed him the weapon.

He offered her a rare, sincere smile.

"Nice job."