Internal Test Expansion

His consciousness felt like it was sinking in warm, viscous honey, floating and drifting.

A familiar voice reached him through their mental link, tinged with a hint of caution:

"Lord? Lord? It's time, you should wake up."

Lin Mo struggled to open his eyelids.

Faint morning light filtered through the carved window lattices of the north courtyard's bedroom, casting dappled shadows on the floor.

The air still held the lingering sweet, intoxicating scent from last night, a mixture of feminine fragrance and an indescribable, ambiguous aura.

He lay on the bed, his body feeling as if it had been taken apart and reassembled.

Sore, weak, and fatigued.

Especially his waist.

Even with his current Level 10 Constitution, six times that of an ordinary person, after hours of "grinding," he felt somewhat overwhelmed.

"The early stages of starting a business are indeed tough..." Lin Mo rubbed his aching temples, giving a wry self-deprecating smile.

Lin Mo gently pulled his numb arm out from under him, moving as softly as possible to avoid waking them.

He threw on a robe that lay scattered on the floor and walked barefoot out of the bedroom into the main hall.

Lin Mo took a deep breath of the cool, crisp air, suppressing the fatigue in his body, and brought up his Status panel:

[Name: Lin Mo]
[Level: 10 (11900/1000)]
[Occupation: Lord (Legendary)]
[Status: Mild Fatigue]
[Essence Blood: 210/550]

"210 points..." Lin Mo quickly calculated, "That's enough to create 19 clones."

Though his body felt hollowed out, though every cell screamed "go back to sleep," his reason told him—waste is shameful.

Especially in these early stages of starting a business, every bit of resource, every point of Essence Blood, was precious.

"Lin Er, prepare nineteen sets of coarse cloth clothing and bring them to the front hall," he called out through their mental link.

Soon, Lin Er appeared at the hall entrance, holding a neat stack of coarse cloth garments: "Lord, here are the clothes you requested."

"Put them down," Lin Mo gestured to the empty space in the center of the hall, "Get ready, I'm going to start creating clones."

Lin Er's eyes lit up: "Yes!"

He quickly placed the clothes aside, then retreated to the doorway, like a dutiful guard.

Lin Mo sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.

He willed his intent.

A familiar sense of detachment washed over him, stronger than ever before—perhaps due to his body's current weakness.

[Essence Blood -10]

Ripples appeared in the air.

The first naked figure slowly took shape.

"Uh..." As the new clone opened its eyes, Lin Er had already tossed a set of clothes at it: "Put them on yourself! Hurry!"

The second, the third...

When the nineteenth clone emerged from the ripples, fumbling to put on its clothes, Lin Mo's Essence Blood value dropped to the last line:

[Essence Blood: 20/550]

"Ahhh--!"

It was as if the last string snapped.

Boundless darkness and weakness engulfed him completely, and his body slumped forward.

"Lord!" Lin Er was quick, darting forward to support him. Then, the clones worked together, lifting Lin Mo onto the soft couch in the study to rest.

At this moment, Lin Mo's eyes were tightly shut, his face ashen white as paper, his breathing faint but steady. He had fallen into a deep coma once more.

Lin Er and the newly created nineteen clones quietly stood guard nearby.

Time flowed in the silence.

Just then—

A cold, grand system notification echoed in the depths of all Players' consciousness:

[Beta Test Day 3 (Game Time) is about to end] [Player consciousness will be drawn back] [During the drawing-back process, the game world's time will be relatively frozen] [Current surviving Player statistics:]

[Players survived yesterday: 7993]

[Players died today: 512]

[Current survivors: 7481]

[Total successful Class Changes: 36]

[In thirty seconds, all Player consciousnesses will return to the real world]

[Real world time: 8:00 AM]

[Next entry time: 12:00 AM real world]

A string of data flashed by, but immediately after, the system's tone suddenly rose, carrying a sense of solemnity:

[Special Announcement]

[Given that the first batch of Internal Test Players' adaptation progress has exceeded expectations, and 'Lord' type Players have already successfully established stable strongholds]

[To accelerate the world's evolution process and perfect the game rules]

[The Destiny system has decided to expand the scope of the internal test]

[Tomorrow in game time (tonight in the real world), the second batch of a total of one hundred thousand Internal Test Players will be drawn in]

[First batch Players, please be prepared, the world's structure is about to change]

[Countdown: 30, 29, 28...]

Lin Mo, in a state of soul withdrawal, listened to the system announcement echoing in his mind, his expression turning grave.

Second batch of Players... one hundred thousand!

This number was ten times that of the first batch!

With one hundred thousand people flooding in, the real world would inevitably become more complex and more chaotic.

[3, 2, 1]

[Returning]

Golden light swept through the hall, enveloping Lin Mo.

The next second.

In the study, all clones, including Lin Er, were frozen like statues in the time-stopped morning of the game world.

Only the eternal morning light outside the window shone quietly on the floor.

Real world, 8:00 AM.

Lin Mo grunted and woke up from his dorm bed.

The familiar smells of instant noodles, socks, and dust filled his nostrils again.

The Destiny Mark on the back of his hand quickly faded.

Lin Mo immediately brought up his Status panel:

[Name: Lin Mo]
[Race: Human Race]
[Level: 10 (11900/1000)]
[Occupation: Lord (Legendary)]
[Status: Healthy]
[Health: 550/550]
[Essence Blood: 550/550 (Full)]
[Attributes: Strength 60, Agility 60, Constitution 62, Spirit 62, Charm 56]
[Talent: Infinite Clone (Unique)]
[Occupation Skills: Lord's Majesty, Territory Construction, Troop Recruitment, Resource Command, Lord's Eye, Law Analysis]