Water Curtain Cave was not far from the Earth God Temple, but walking through the mountain forest after nightfall was exceptionally difficult.
Branches and leaves rustled in the wind, and the howls of unknown beasts occasionally echoed from afar.
Moonlight filtered through the tree canopy, casting mottled light and shadow that formed clawing, dancing shapes on the ground.
Thirty-five clones maintained a protective formation, escorting Lin Mo as they traversed the forest.
Thanks to the boost in Tier 3 attributes, their night vision was noticeably enhanced, allowing them to barely make out the path beneath their feet even without torches.
"That announcement earlier probably blew the whole world up."
Lin San muttered as he pushed aside a blocking vine, "The Legendary Lord Heart... other players' eyes are probably turning red with envy right now."
"Let them turn red." Lin Wu said dismissively, "We're anonymous anyway. Even if they want to find us, they won't."
Lin Mo did not join the clones' discussion, simply keeping his head down and hurrying along without breaking his pace from start to finish.
In barely twenty minutes, Water Curtain Cave came into view in the distance.
The waterfall gleamed silver-white under the moonlight, its roar thundering.
The group skirted along the crevices of the rock face to reach the cave entrance, where Clone Two—now to be called Lin Er—who had been left behind to watch the fort, was currently sitting at the entrance hugging a wooden stick and nodding off to sleep.
Hearing footsteps, Lin Er snapped awake and gripped his wooden stick tightly. "Who?!"
"It's us." Lin Mo and the others stepped out of the shadows.
Lin Er heaved a sigh of relief, rubbing his sleepy eyes.
"You guys are finally back! I've been so bored out of my mind watching the prisoner here all by myself..."
He suddenly widened his eyes, counting the figures behind Lin Mo. "One, two, three... thirty-five? Holy shit! Main body, are you mass-producing clones?!"
"We have names now." Lin One patted his shoulder. "You're Lin Er. I'm Lin One, and the rest follow in order."
"Go inside and talk." Lin Mo took the lead in walking into the cave. "Any abnormalities inside?"
"No, it's been quiet as a grave." Lin Er shook his head. "It's just that prisoner... he probably won't last through tonight."
He pointed toward the corner.
Inside the stone room, the prisoner was bound like a rice dumpling and tossed into a corner. At this moment, his complexion was dark green, his lips were purple, and his chest no longer showed any obvious rise and fall.
"What's wrong with him?" Lin Xi kicked the prisoner.
Lin Mo walked over, tested his breath, and pulled back his eyelids to check; his pupils were already beginning to dilate.
"Poisonous blood entered his body, there's no saving him."
Lin Er said in a low voice from the side, "During the fight earlier, he must have gotten our blood on him, but the amount was probably small, so it took effect slowly."
Suddenly, a pale blue prompt flashed past.
[Killed Mountain Bandit ×1, gained Experience Points 30]
Lin Mo was silent for two seconds.
"Carry him outside and bury him." He waved a hand. "Deep, so wild beasts don't dig him up."
Two clones stepped forward, lifted the body—which was about to completely chill—and slipped out of the cave entrance.
Lin Mo walked up to the old hunter's white bones and bowed respectfully.
"Thank you, senior, for the clues you left behind."
With that, he glanced around the stone room.
More than thirty clones, sitting or standing, filled the small space.
Firelight shone on identical faces, giving the scene a bizarrely bustling atmosphere.
"Lin One, arrange the night watch order and take turns resting."
Lin Mo began assigning tasks. "Everyone else, get some sleep while you can. Tomorrow... we need to start moving."
"Understood!" Lin One acknowledged in a clear voice.
Straw spread out as makeshift bedding, and over thirty people squeezed into the one-hundred-square-meter space. It looked somewhat cramped, but they could barely manage to lie down.
"Pairs of two, each group watches for two hours, taking turns on night duty."
Lin One quickly settled the schedule. "Lin Er and I will take the first shift, and everyone else should hurry up and conserve their strength."
No one had any objections.
Following nearly seven hours of high-intensity activity, even bodies with Tier 3 attributes felt exhausted.
Furthermore, Lin Mo had experienced the agonizing fusion of the Heart of the Lord, and by now he was already sleepy enough that his eyelids were fighting each other.
He found a relatively dry corner to lie down. Beneath him lay a thick layer of straw; although prickly, it was much better than sleeping directly on the stone slab.
"Good night, everyone." Lin Mo closed his eyes and muttered.
"Good night, My Lord." The voices of the clones rang out raggedly.
The commotion gradually subsided, leaving only the thundering sound of the waterfall outside the cave as the sole background noise of this place.
More than thirty identical figures lay sprawled all over the ground.
The sound of overlapping breathing intertwined, unexpectedly piecing together a bizarre harmony.
Inside the inner cave entrance, Lin One and Lin Er squatted side by side, whispering in low voices.
"So, are we considered... officially registered now?" Lin Er asked softly.
"The Lord profession." Pride tinted Lin One's tone. "There were only ten global slots during the closed beta, and not only did we grab one, but we're also top-tier Legendary Lords!"
"Awesome." Lin Er gave a thumbs-up. "So what are we doing next? Build a territory? Recruit troops and buy horses? Or go wipe out Black Wind Stronghold first?"
"Depends on the main body's intent." Lin One looked past the waterfall's water curtain out into the pitch-black night sky.
"Though knowing his personality, he probably wants to find a safe place first and hunker down to develop."
"True." Lin Er nodded. "Even though there are a lot of us now, our gear is too crappy. Hunkering down a bit is safer."
The two chatted a bit longer, their topic shifting from tactics to logistics.
Time ticked away bit by bit.
Outside the cave, the sound of the waterfall remained eternally unchanged.
Inside the cave, there was only the sound of even breathing and the occasional rustle of someone turning over.
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