Chapter 231 The System's Standard
When flames filled the entire sky, and red became the only color, everyone stopped fighting, staring blankly at the scene before them.
Even Thor and the others, who had previously witnessed Finney unleash 'Explosion Magic,' couldn't help but be shocked again.
"Boom!"
Some of the mocking and taunting enemies hadn't even had time to fade their expressions before they vanished forever into the flames.
This 'Explosion Magic' only saved a small fraction of the powerful, well-equipped, and those on the edge of its range; the vast majority were instantly vaporized, leaving no trace.
After unleashing the magic, Finney immediately descended from the sky, even dispelling 'Demon Possession.' While the 'Explosion Magic' unleashed at full power was incredibly potent, its consumption was also terrifying, leaving him in a state of extreme weakness.
If it weren't for the 'Fourth Bullet's' time reversal as a trump card, he wouldn't have dared to act so recklessly; at the very least, he would have summoned the Blue-Eyes White Dragon to protect him.
However, with most of the surrounding enemies already eliminated, he didn't want to waste time recovering.
Upon reaching the ground, Finney immediately began assessing the spoils, while the others on the battlefield gradually recovered from the shock of the 'explosive magic'.
The two sides stared at each other, both seeing disbelief in each other's eyes.
The people of Vanaheim no longer cared about reinforcements; Finney had already nearly wiped out the enemy's reinforcements, and even without reinforcements, they were certain of victory.
The rebels, however, felt a more complex mix of emotions. They had been at a disadvantage since Thor's arrival, barely holding on until reinforcements arrived, their hope seemingly within reach, only to have it extinguished by a single person.
This blow was far more devastating than before; if Vanaheim's morale had previously plummeted, the rebels were now utterly demoralized.
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Weapons slipped from their hands involuntarily. Many rebels stared blankly at Phineas, who lay on the ground not far away, his armor removed, frowning in apparent displeasure.
"Who is he…?"
a Vanaheim man couldn't help but ask the Asgardian soldier Thor had brought beside him. They could tell the enemy had given up; the battle was over.
"Lord Helsey, a friend of His Highness Thor, our esteemed guest from Asgard, a powerful mage from Midgard!"
the soldier said proudly. If it weren't for the last sentence, it would have seemed as if Phineas was one of their own.
"Midgard!?"
The man's face showed surprise. Earth's backwardness was notorious throughout the Nine Realms; he clearly hadn't expected Phineas to be from Earth.
However, powerful people, regardless of their origin, were respected. So even though Phineas was from Earth, that explosive spell alone was enough to earn the awe of everyone present.
Phineas, who had single-handedly turned the tide of the battle, was now frowning in thought, his experience once again falling short of his expectations.
The previous wave of enemies numbered at least tens of thousands, but he only gained around two hundred experience points, averaging one experience point for every fifty enemies.
Although some of them might have been low-level grunts, the experience gained was still far less than he had expected.
Finney thought of the Chitauri fleet he had encountered before; he had eliminated far more enemies then, but hadn't gained much experience either.
"Could it be that the system doesn't support such large-scale experience farming?!"
Finney pondered. If once was a special case, then twice might be a rule, just like how victories and killing targets grant more experience.
"What about the standard for the quantity?!"
Finney became troubled again. This was the system's weakness—no manual, not intelligent enough; everything had to be figured out by himself.
Putting aside the question of experience for the moment, Phineas looked back and realized that the battle over there was already over. One by one, the rebels were discarding their weapons and accepting their captivity.
Returning to the battlefield, Phineas noticed that everyone's gaze towards him was different.
The rebels looked at him with hatred mixed with immense fear; that crimson flame would probably never be erased from their minds.
The Vanaheim soldiers looked at him with gratitude mixed with curiosity. Without Phineas, even if they had received reinforcements, they might have suffered heavy casualties.
The first two were fine, but the proud looks from the Asgardian soldiers puzzled him slightly. He eventually concluded that they were all there to provide support, and the better he performed, the more face the others would have to save.
"Is this how you dealt with those Chitauri?"
Thor suddenly asked, looking at Phineas, who had wiped out an entire army without a scratch.
As Heimdall's friend, Thor had also discussed other things with Heimdall when he asked him to spy on his girlfriend, such as the Battle of New York with Phineas.
"Yes, but the Blue-Eyes White Dragon helped back then!"
Phineas nodded. In fact, both of his large-scale attacks had elements of surprise, and the Chitauri and these rebels clearly knew nothing about Phineas. If they had been even slightly prepared, they wouldn't have been wiped out so easily.
"You are the strongest mage I have ever seen!"
Fandral walked over and looked at Phineas with admiration, saying that wielding an army single-handedly was something he, a rapier user, would never have dared to dream of.
Phineas smiled but didn't speak. He felt that after this battle, everyone present would surely spread his name as a mage. Earth was one thing, but in the universe, he wanted to be a proper mage.
Soon, Hogan and Volstagg arrived with reinforcements. At the same time, Heimdall told Thor that the previous enemy reinforcements were from several other battlefields where they had converged after victories.
Therefore, there was no longer any fighting in the vicinity, so Phineas didn't need to use the 'Fourth Bullet' to recover and rushed to the next battlefield.
In the evening, Phineas and his group temporarily camped at a fortress called Tammy.
Around the campfire, everyone ate their dinner.
Volstagg, while eating a 'Violet Chicken Wrap,' looked at the smiling Finney and asked incredulously, "You mean Finney single-handedly wiped out an army of eight thousand?"
"At least eight thousand!"
Sif also turned to look at the seemingly harmless Finney; she hadn't expected this man from Midgard to possess such terrifying power.
Recalling their first meeting, if it weren't for the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, she probably would have underestimated Finney because of his handsome appearance.
Fandral pointed to the ground in the distance, bombarded by 'Explosion Magic,' and added to Volstagg, "See that area? It was all caused by Finney alone!"
Hearing everyone's praise of Finney, Thor ate his food, feeling somewhat conflicted.
At this time of year in previous years, their post-battle discussions usually revolved around his glory, the enemies he had defeated, and so on.
Having his limelight stolen for the first time, Thor felt a pang of jealousy, and the bet he had made with Finney before the trip further fueled his discouragement.
Based on what Finney did earlier, even after he quelled all the wars, he might not be able to kill half as many enemies as Finney.
He lost again!
Sigh~
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(End of Chapter)