The clone function! This was one of Luo Feng's biggest advantages in Swallowed Star.
The Golden Horned Beast was powerful not only because of its innate secret techniques and internal world, but more importantly because it could nurture clones.
And now, this system had actually given him a "clone-making machine" of his very own.
And the system's ability was even more powerful, even more ridiculous.
It required no contact and no resources to nurture a clone. It could even speed up the process by consuming True Self clones.
Although doing so would put his True Self clones on a 24-hour cooldown, it was still absurdly powerful.
Lin Fan's mind raced. What was the strongest life-form on Earth right now?
The Tentacle Beast Emperor? The Thunder Dragon Emperor?
No.
At this point in the original story, there was another being with a bloodline truly at the pinnacle of the universe, hiding beneath the Atlantic Ocean. It had just hatched and was in its weakest juvenile stage.
The Starry Sky Behemoth—the Golden Horned Beast!
Of course, there was also a Zerg Mother Empress in Shennongjia.
But Zerg like that couldn't comprehend laws at all. Before reaching Immortal or, rather, World Lord, they had almost no combat strength, and nurturing Zerg would consume a massive amount of his resources.
Even all the money he had right now might not be enough to raise Calamity and Sky Splitter to Tier 3. If he got a Zerg Nest on top of that, he might as well start selling himself.
"I was planning to rest for a few days, but it looks like I won't get to sit still."
"Golden Horned Beast... You haven't finished eating your eggshell yet, have you?"
At the thought of the Golden Horned Beast, Lin Fan could no longer hold back. He hadn't left the house in seven days, so this was the perfect chance to get out for a while.
Lin Fan left the villa and headed straight for the Wilderness Zone.
He arrived at the familiar basement in Wilderness Zone 003, summoned the X-101 battleship, and headed directly for the Atlantic Ocean.
Deep beneath the Atlantic, the X-101 battleship moved like a ghost, cutting through the immense water pressure as it descended toward the deepest part of the trench.
The ship's "Ghost-IV" stealth system was running at full power, concealing every heat source, magnetic fluctuation, and engine vibration.
"Master, we are approaching the target coordinates."
"These coordinates were derived from records of anomalies in the HR Alliance's restricted sea zone and the battleship system's calculations of the impact energy trail."
"Depth: 7,800 meters. Water pressure is extremely high."
"A weak but extremely advanced life-field response has been detected... This frequency does not belong to any known species on Earth."
101's voice echoed through the command cabin.
Lin Fan stood before the holographic screen, staring fixedly at the pitch-black seabed.
"We're here."
He took a deep breath, his heart beating faster despite himself.
On the rugged seabed lay a massive crater, as though something had smashed into it with tremendous force.
At its center crouched a beast with a completely black body, as if it had been cast from dark metal.
It was about twelve meters long. A pair of scale-covered wings on its back had yet to fully unfold, but the most eye-catching feature was the dark-gold horn on its forehead, thrusting proudly upward. Its surface was covered in intricate, ancient golden markings.
The young beast was clutching a huge eggshell that shimmered with an unusual light, munching on it with a series of crunches.
With each bite, the shell shattered and turned into pure metallic energy that flowed into its body. Its aura grew stronger by the slightest degree.
The Starry Sky Behemoth—the Golden Horned Beast!
And it had only just been born. It was a juvenile, devouring its eggshell to get through its period of weakness!
This was a being with a bloodline at the pinnacle of the universe. Upon reaching adulthood, it would become a World Lord. It possessed an internal world and the talent to create clones.
"101, hold position. Don't approach, and don't emit any active detection waves."
Lin Fan lowered his voice. Even inside the ship, he didn't dare let his guard down for a moment.
The Golden Horned Beast possessed inherited memories and had incredibly sharp senses. If he startled it, the X-101 might be safe, but secretly obtaining its genes would become much harder.
After all, he had never used the system's new function before. Who knew exactly how it worked?
If the target resisted and the gene extraction failed, he'd be wasting his time.
"System."
Lin Fan spoke silently in his mind.
"Activate the [Origin Placenta] analysis function."
"Target: Golden Horned Beast."
[Command confirmed.]
[Locking onto target... Starry Sky Behemoth · Golden Horned Beast (juvenile).]
[Gene chain successfully recorded.]
[Reconstructing and optimizing with the "Origin Placenta"...]
[Congratulations, host. You have obtained a clone embryo: Golden Horned Beast (gene-completed version).]
"???"
Lin Fan was stunned by the system's notification.
It was done just like that?
Looking at the Golden Horned Beast in the distance, still munching on its eggshell and completely unaware of him, Lin Fan's mouth twitched.
For who knew how many times, he marveled,
"The system is freaking awesome."
As his consciousness sank into his sea of consciousness, he saw that the Bronze Hall, which had originally contained only one True Self, now held ten of them standing on the floor, all practicing the first level of the Calamity Killing Art.
Above these True Self clones, a massive golden placenta slowly writhed before finally turning into a black giant egg wrapped in countless golden markings.
"So this is the system's new function?"
Lin Fan stared at the black giant egg, his eyes filled with shock.
Without lifting a finger, he had obtained what could be called one of the top three opportunities on Earth!
"This is incredible."
Now that he'd achieved his goal, Lin Fan didn't want to stay here any longer.
He had already reached the Planetary Level. There was nothing left on Earth worth keeping him there.
So...
Wait.
Lin Fan suddenly realized there was a serious problem. Hu Yanbo had blocked the spatial coordinates around Earth. Without a star map, it was impossible to travel to another planet beyond Earth.
If 101 didn't have a star map, then...
Wouldn't he have to go find Babata again?
Lin Fan's mouth twitched. He looked at the owl in front of him and asked tentatively,
"101, do you have a star map for traveling beyond Earth?"
"Of course, Master."
101 bowed elegantly, then continued,
"My system contains not only all the spatial coordinates around Earth, but also a detailed route to Qiu Long Planet."
"And the battleship has enough energy for three round trips."
At that, the unease vanished from Lin Fan's eyes.
"System, you're freaking amazing!"
"101, set the course. We're going to Qiu Long Planet!"
"Yes, Master!"
At Lin Fan's command, the X-101 battleship quickly climbed, silently broke through the surface, and slipped into the clouds before heading into outer space.
In just a few seconds, the once-blue sky grew deeper and deeper until it turned into an endless black.
"Activate 100% exterior simulation!"
At 101's words, Lin Fan saw the walls of the cabin, the control console, and even the floor beneath him disappear in an instant.
Then an unprecedented sense of solitude and vastness engulfed him. It was as if he were floating naked in the dead vacuum of space.
Lin Fan held his breath.
Beneath his feet was a huge blue planet, so vast it was almost suffocating.
Along the enormous curved horizon, the atmosphere formed a thin blue halo, gently embracing the land. White clouds slowly turned above the oceans and continents.
When Lin Fan raised his head, he saw a distant sun, unobstructed by any atmosphere, releasing its fierce light and heat without restraint.
Its light was no longer the soft golden hue seen from Earth. Instead, it was a piercing, pure white.
On one side lay the cold, silent expanse of space, dotted with stars.
On the other was the magnificent blue home that nurtured all life.
The stark contrast struck Lin Fan's soul, making even him, a newly advanced Planetary Level powerhouse, feel his own insignificance.
"So... this is the starry sky."
Before you continue