Scouting the Terrain

[...3,2,1]

The familiar dizziness washed over him again, much gentler than the first time.

When Lin Mo opened his eyes, he found himself back in the stone chamber of the Water Curtain Cave.

Thirty-six clones lay scattered on the ground, frozen in the poses they were in when he logged off last night, as if time itself had stopped here.

"Hoo—"

Lin Mo sat up, his first action being to check his status panel:

[Name: Lin Mo]
[Level: 3 (40/300)]
[Occupation: Lord (Legendary)]
[Essence Blood: 200/200 (Full)]
[Status: Healthy]

"My Essence Blood is full!" Lin Mo's eyes lit up.

Not only was his Essence Blood replenished, but even the set of leather armor he'd stripped from the mountain bandits, stained with bloodstains, was now as good as new, as if refreshed by the system.

"During offline time, the game world time is relatively static, but Essence Blood automatically replenishes when offline..."

Lin Mo stroked his chin, lost in thought, then slapped his thigh in annoyance:

"Damn it! What a loss! If I'd known, I should have depleted my Essence Blood to 20 points and fainted before logging off!"

He had wasted 100 points of Essence Blood, enough to create 10 clones!

Lin Mo's mouth twitched, feeling like he'd lost eighty million.

"Next time, I must remember to go crazy creating clones and drain my Essence Blood dry before logging off!"

He took a deep breath, suppressing his annoyance, and began to ponder serious matters.

Since he had already decided to find unclaimed land to establish a territory, he had to act now.

He glanced at the clones on the ground, still "asleep," and willed them to wake.

The sleeping clones trembled in unison and gradually opened their eyes.

"Ah... I slept so well." Lin San stretched, but his head hit the stone wall. "Ouch!"

"Main body, what are we doing now?" Lin Yi asked, rubbing his eyes.

Lin Mo stood up and brushed the dry grass off his clothes. "Meeting."

Three minutes later, thirty-six identical men sat in a circle.

Lin Mo looked at the sea of "himself" before him and nodded with satisfaction:

"Our primary task is to find a suitable place to establish a territory. Black Stone Village and Black Wind Stronghold are not suitable; we must find another location."

He quickly made arrangements:

"Lin Yi, select twenty-nine clones in the best condition and divide them into six groups, five people per group. Centered around the Water Curtain Cave, explore in a fan shape in six directions. The exploration range... twenty li."

"Requirements: terrain that is easy to defend and difficult to attack, a water source, arable land, and at least five li away from existing forces."

"Yes!" Lin Yi took the order and began calling names rapidly.

Lin Er, Lin San, Lin Xi, Lin Wu, Lin Liu... one clone after another was called out.

"Bring your weapons, and pack enough dry rations and water," Lin Mo instructed.

"If you discover anything unusual during your exploration, report it immediately through the mental link. Don't engage in direct combat if you encounter danger; dodge if you can, run if you can."

"Lord, rest assured!" the clones said in unison.

Soon, thirty clones were assembled, five per group, with water bags and dry ration packs at their waists. They carried various weapons, from captured mountain bandit sabers to homemade poison blood wood spears.

"Depart!"

The six groups of people drilled out of the Water Curtain Cave one after another, disappearing into the misty mountain forest.

Only Lin Mo and six remaining clones were left inside the cave.

"Alright, time for me to get to work," Lin Mo looked at his status panel: 200/200 Essence Blood.

"Since I wasted one opportunity, I can't miss this one."

He walked to a wider area of the cave and sat down cross-legged.

"Create clones, ten."

A familiar sense of detachment washed over him.

[Essence Blood -10], [Essence Blood -10]...

Ripples like water waves spread through the air, one after another.

Ten naked bodies appeared one by one in the center of the cave.

"Holy crap! Again?!"

"They didn't even give us a piece of cloth this time?!"

"Main body, you're going too far!"

The new clones erupted in an uproar, and the scene became chaotic for a time.

Lin Mo waved his pale hand:

"Quiet! Solve the clothing issue yourselves!

Lin Thirty-One, you guys take them to find materials, leaves, vines, grass... anything will do!

In short, before dark, I don't want to see anyone running around with their butts bare!"

"Yes..." Lin Thirty-One replied with a grimace.

He led the other six remaining clones, along with ten newly born, naked companions, to start gathering materials near the Water Curtain Cave.

The scene was quite... primitive for a time.

The ten new clones shuttled through the forest.

Some picked large banana leaves, some cut flexible vines, and some gathered slender grass stalks.

"I feel like we've gone back to the Stone Age," one new clone grumbled, trying to string together a few large leaves with vines to make a crude apron.

"Stone Age people at least had animal hides," another clone complained, "We don't even have animal hides!"

At the Water Curtain Cave, Lin Mo found a relatively flat rock to sit on and closed his eyes.

Through the mental link, he could clearly perceive the vision and feelings of each clone.

The sensation was peculiar.

It was like having dozens of surveillance cameras running simultaneously, with each feed transmitting in real-time.

It was dizzying at first, but after adapting, it gave him a sense of complete control.

"The group on the east has entered the dense forest; the trees are too thick, not suitable for building a city."

"The group on the west found a stream; the water is clear, but the terrain on both banks is too flat, with no defensible positions."

"The group on the south encountered wild beasts and avoided them."

"The group on the north..."

Meanwhile, the clones' weaving efforts proceeded with stumbles and difficulties.