A moment ago everyone was still worried sick about two Elite Ethereals attacking Sol Mercer, yet the next instant, the two Elite Ethereals were the ones fleeing.
Ellen was a bit dumbfounded, unable to make sense of the situation.
She had never seen such a move before—where simply standing still could leave the enemy gravely injured.
"An extremely powerful barrier, and at the same time carrying an immensely strong charge," Von Lycaon observed with sharp insight, calmly analyzing. "Judging from its external manifestation, it should be a technique belonging to the same system as the Railgun we witnessed earlier."
"Just a defense alone was enough to make two Elite Ethereals suffer heavy losses… that's truly astonishing," Rina remarked in disbelief. "Judging from their condition, that special barrier seems to be the nemesis of all close-range combat."
Even the Thanatos' crescent blade could evaporate in an instant—without a specially forged weapon, the result would be no different.
As for hand-to-hand martial artists, their fate would be even more tragic.
Describing them as barbecue on an iron plate when facing Sol Mercer might be rather apt.
"Mr. Mercer, you really do enjoy surprising people." Von Lycaon took a deep breath, subconsciously pulling back the metal-armored calf of his leg.
He could already picture the scene of himself becoming crippled if he were ever to kick that barrier.
No—that current flowing on the barrier should be enough to kill him outright.
While the others were sighing in amazement…
Sol dismissed the electromagnetic barrier, frowning slightly.
If he hadn't restricted the current to flow only across the surface of the barrier, the two Elite Ethereals would have already been electrocuted alive by the ten billion volts coursing through it.
Spending one-point-five billion Denny on the draw had granted him immense gains.
Just one FGO Servant Spirit Base, when combined with his Electromagnetic Mastery, produced exponential enhancement. With the same intensity of electromagnetic control, he could flatten even the Railgun Girl's chest.
What used to be troublesome Elite Ethereals were now powerless playthings in his eyes.
He needed opponents of a higher tier.
A hundred meters away, Hati and Thanatos watched the barrier vanish, torn by hesitation.
Their combat instinct alone told them that Sol was not someone to provoke, yet their instinctual urge to attack couldn't be suppressed.
Finally, the two Notorious Ethereals made their choice, attempting to flank and ambush Sol.
Looking at the hesitant Thanatos and Hati, Sol smiled faintly. "Not coming closer? Then die over there instead!"
As he spoke, Sol raised one hand to the sky, and one toward the ground.
He declared: "Magnetic Field Rotation · Heaven Earth Furnace!"
In an instant, the magnetic field around Sol began to rotate, erupting with tremendous power.
Outside, the natural magnetic field remained unchanged, but within a hundred-meter radius centered on Sol, the field underwent earth-shaking transformation.
If anyone were to sketch the magnetic flux lines at this moment, they would see space itself crammed full of flux lines, violently twisting and writhing within that radius.
What seemed chaotic was in fact hundreds of interwoven, looping electromagnetic rails, along with invisible high-voltage, high-intensity current-heating devices.
The scraps of metal debris left by damaged buildings floated into the air, moving along irregular trajectories under the influence of the field, their motions tracing the previously invisible flux lines.
The scraps spun faster and faster, accelerating to railgun velocity within mere seconds.
The very air within the hundred-meter radius began to distort, temperature soaring upward.
Some weaker metals vaporized during the process, while the rest turned into streaks of orange-red light orbiting within the area around Sol.
Even a coin-sized fragment could annihilate a street, while the specially reinforced steel rebars from abandoned support columns became true railgun shells.
At that moment, these devastating projectiles patrolled around within the magnetic rails, resembling a sword formation.
Their temperature kept rising, as though molten gold and iron were not their limits.
Von Lycaon and the others, who had originally been spectating from a hundred meters away, retreated another hundred meters. With binoculars in hand, they watched Sol's battle with pounding hearts.
Those revolving orange-red streaks of light were truly terrifying. Von Lycaon remembered all too clearly the Railgun that once streaked across the skies, and the fact that half the Invincible Fist King's body had vanished.
A single Railgun already possessed unimaginable destructive force—yet within Sol's hundred-meter radius, how many orange-red streaks were there now? More than a hundred!
Even against the final fused monster, this move would hold tremendous promise.
But to use it on just two Elite Ethereals… it felt like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
He almost pitied them.
And moreover…
Von Lycaon wiped the sweat from his brow, speaking gravely. "What terrifying heat… even though we're two hundred meters away, it feels like we're being roasted alive."
The image through the special-grade binoculars was already warped beyond recognition by the heat. If they had stayed at Sol's side, they'd already be well-done.
"Mr. Mercer is amazing. Even dealing with Elite Ethereals looks so effortless. Is this the power of a Void Hunter?" Corin gazed at Sol with starry-eyed admiration.
Von Lycaon shook his head. He knew not every Void Hunter possessed such ability.
"Lord Lycaon, I think further probing is unnecessary," Rina said, a bit dazed. "If the ones on the other side had such strength, they wouldn't need to hide in the shadows."
Firing off over a hundred railguns in one move—even the Defense Army's firepower might not match him.
If those sewer-dwellers had such power, they'd have long since leapt into the open, recruiting soldiers and followers.
"Rina, you're right." Von Lycaon nodded in agreement. "From here on, our goal should be to win him over at all costs."
He paused, then added, "But since we're already here, we should gather as much intel as possible. Even if Sol isn't one of them, his information is extremely valuable to us."
Phew~
Hearing their conversation, Ellen couldn't help but smile.
In that case, she wouldn't have to be torn between two sides anymore.
And while they were discussing, the battle had already ended.
Thanatos and Hati, who were a hundred meters away at the edge of the domain, were shredded to pieces by the patrolling Railguns.
Thanatos didn't even have time to use his Blink, while Hati's thick armor crumpled like paper.
The two Elite Ethereals never even glimpsed the true might of [Magnetic Rotation · Heaven Earth Furnace]. They were obliterated by nothing more than its opening stance.
At this moment, the furnace's power had only just begun to reveal itself. Most of the projectiles patrolling in the air melted into liquid, while the ground itself began to transform into glowing, molten flows.
Unfortunately, there were no enemies left to test its true edge.
"The practical effect isn't bad… shame the opponents were too fragile," Sol Mercer shook his head, somewhat regretful.
He was, of course, very satisfied with the technique's performance.
But his opponents had been too weak to endure—he couldn't even experience the true destructive power of [Heaven Earth Furnace]. They'd already been reduced to ashes by a mere warm-up.
The essence of [Heaven Earth Furnace] was to use the interaction of extreme magnetic and electric fields to raise temperature with explosive speed, capable of heating an entire area to twice the temperature of the sun's surface in a short time.
That was its true face—turning an entire space into a crucible that could incinerate nearly anything.
But the two Elite Ethereals hadn't survived long enough to witness it. They were too frail.
Seeing that the two little Ethereals had lost their lives, Sol withdrew the electromagnetic force, guiding all the frenziedly orbiting metal into a single abandoned high-rise.
He could have reconstructed the magnetic rails to disperse the energy harmlessly.
But this was already a deserted zone—why bother with the trouble?
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The building collapsed on impact, dragging several others down with it.
And as Sol canceled the magnetic force, the skyrocketing temperature finally stopped climbing, never having reached its true peak.
With a single leap, Sol left behind the battlefield now scorched crimson and flowing with molten magma. He vaulted two hundred meters in an arc and landed beside Von Lycaon and the others.