Jack hid in a shadowed corner screened by towering trees and exposed rocks.
After confirming that the surroundings were temporarily safe, he immediately crouched down to recharge.
He smashed the two communicators he had seized onto the ground, then pried apart the wreckage with the tip of his knife and quickly dug out two thumb-sized Energy Stones from inside.
He then took out the spare crystals he had searched from the two men in black earlier and placed them on the ground one by one.
Four in total. Enough.
Jack breathed a sigh of relief, glanced around, then swiftly carved into the damp earth with his short knife.
He was no longer unfamiliar with those symbols. Within a few breaths, a crude charging array took shape on the ground.
"Begin charging."
Buzz...
A faint glow rose from the soil. Six Energy Stones trembled at once, and then the energy stored within them seemed to be frantically drawn out by some invisible force. The luster on the crystals rapidly dimmed at a visible rate.
Crack!
As the final one split apart, the black metal grew faintly hot, and the system's voice sounded.
"Charging complete."
Jack did not hesitate in the slightest.
"System, strengthen my body!"
That familiar warm sensation flooded into his body once more.
Boom!
"Ah..."
Jack clenched his teeth, cold sweat instantly breaking out across his forehead.
Even though he had gone through it twice already, Jack still found it difficult to adapt when facing it again.
Fortunately, that power lasted only a few seconds before stopping.
Jack had barely taken a breath when his stomach growled fiercely.
Hunger swept through his body like a rising tide. Jack immediately tore open an energy bar seized from the men in black.
Only after wolfing down three in a row did