As the second Titan Ape hit the ground with a heavy crash, Chris didn't waste a second. Ignoring the pain radiating through his ribs, he quickly extracted the crystal core from the creature's skull and rushed it over to Ethan.
Ethan took the core, tossed it into his mouth, and swallowed it whole without blinking.
With two high-grade crystal cores now in his system, Ethan's strength surged dramatically.
The change was immediate and obvious—where once a direct clash with the Tier 10 Titan Ape would send him flying like a ragdoll, now he was only getting pushed back a dozen steps. It still hurt like hell, and he wasn't miraculously stronger than the enemy—but he wasn't getting tossed like a sandbag anymore.
He could stand his ground now.
Fueled by new power and adrenaline, Ethan grinned wide, battle-drunk and bold. His poleaxe slashed and chopped through the air in wild, sweeping arcs—each swing full of fury.
The Titan Ape, meanwhile, was livid.
