First Clone

Several corpses lay at its feet. One of them was the Universe-level expert they had seen before. They had not expected him to die here as well.

Beside the Void Beast stood a massive tree dozens of meters tall. Its trunk was crystal-clear, as though it had condensed from crystal itself. Its branches were laden with over a hundred Red Fruits. Their color was still somewhat green and unripe, unlike the mature Red Fruits they had seen in the valley before.

"So they haven't ripened yet." Golden Horn finally understood. No wonder so many experts were willing to wait here instead of acting immediately.

"Why had some experts died so early?" Golden Horn was puzzled. Giant Axe pointed at the roots. "Look here."

Golden Horn focused his gaze and saw marks from axes and blades around the roots. Someone had clearly tried to dig up the entire tree.

"These fools," Giant Axe said quietly. "This Red Fruit tree is obviously the lifeblood of the Void Beast race. Digging it up is the same as cutting off their path to survival. No wonder that Void Beast fought to the death without retreating."

Golden Horn nodded silently. If someone tried to destroy the foundation of the Golden Horned Beast race, he would fight desperately too.

As they observed, the Void Beast spoke again. "You hateful outsiders, I'll give you three breaths to leave immediately, or die!" Its entire body seemed to tremble with rage as it spoke.

If it had only been Golden Horn and Giant Axe facing it, they would definitely have considered running now. After all, they had witnessed its strength before.

But there were several hundred experts present now, including more than a dozen at the Universe level. Even their combined spit could drown it. Many people immediately mocked it disdainfully.

The three breaths passed in an instant.

"You're not leaving?" The Void Beast's voice sank, and the red glow in its eyes intensified. "Then—stay here forever!"

"Ah!"

With an enraged roar, its aura surged wildly. Silvery-white light exploded from within its body, and the entire space trembled.

Then it moved, attacking the crowd directly.

Before some people even had time to mock it, what happened next stunned everyone.

One Void Beast became two, two became four, four became eight. Within only a few breaths, it had formed hundreds of clones, completely surrounding every expert within several kilometers.

Someone forced himself to remain calm and shouted, "Don't panic! It must be an illusion. Only one is real!"

The instant he finished speaking, several clones attacked him at once. He did not even have time to scream before dying on the spot.

The expression of a Universe-level expert changed drastically as he shouted in a grave voice, "It's not an illusion! This is what it means to comprehend the Space Law to the extreme. Every clone is real—it's just moving too fast!"

This was simply unbelievable. They had only heard of certain geniuses leaving several afterimages in battle, while those capable of leaving dozens were geniuses among geniuses. Yet before them stood hundreds of clones, every one capable of launching real attacks. If this beast did not die, becoming an Immortal expert in the future was practically guaranteed!

While everyone was still stunned, the Void Beast's clones did not stop. They surged into the crowd like a tide, targeting the weaker experts. Its intention was obvious: kill to establish its might while reducing the number of people present.

It was not as though no Universe-level experts attacked, but just as Golden Horn and Giant Axe had experienced before, they simply could not hit it.

The Void Beast's clones were everywhere, yet nowhere to be found. Every attack came from an unexpected angle.

Nearly everyone was forced into passive defense. People died one after another.

At last, someone could no longer endure it and turned to flee.

Golden Horn and Giant Axe had never entered the core area to begin with. Watching from the outskirts now, they both felt lingering fear. Fortunately, the Void Beast had not unleashed its full strength when fighting them earlier.

Golden Horn stared at the silver figure displaying overwhelming power in the distance, and his eyes grew brighter and brighter.

My first clone will be it!

If he succeeded, not only would his ability to preserve his life increase greatly, but he would also gain an enormous advantage in this Secret Realm.

Moreover, according to his inherited memories, a special life-form at the Void Beast's level ranked extremely high among all clone choices. Spatial teleportation, affinity with laws, appearing and vanishing without a trace. It was simply the perfect first clone!

With that thought, Golden Horn no longer hesitated.

Inside his internal space, he took out several silver feathers he had collected earlier and wrapped them layer upon layer with his primal energy. The energy coiled around them like silken threads, gradually forming a huge egg-shaped mass.

Golden Horn felt somewhat uneasy. If it could not be nurtured, that would be troublesome.

Soon, information came from the giant egg: it could be nurtured. Nurturing time: three days.

Three days!

Golden Horn glanced at the fruits on the distant tree. They should not ripen anytime soon. Hopefully, the clone could be nurtured before the fruits ripened.

Golden Horn no longer hesitated and pulled Giant Axe back some distance.

They were not the only ones. Most of the experts in the area tacitly retreated toward the outskirts. The true battle would inevitably erupt when the fruits ripened, and no one wanted to fight to the death now.

The two found a thick ancient tree and sat cross-legged beneath it.

Golden Horn frantically digested the fruits accumulated in his internal space. He had originally intended to save some as capital after leaving the Secret Realm, but with the current situation so dangerous, it was better to use them to increase his strength first.

At this moment, more than forty Blue Fruits were still piled up in his internal space.

Golden Horn no longer hesitated. Activating his Devouring Talent, he swept all the Blue Fruits into his mouth at once.

Vast energy exploded inside him like raging waves, rushing through his bloodline toward every limb and bone. The muscles beneath his scales bulged one after another, his bones crackled faintly, and his aura rose steadily.

His cultivation broke through—Stellar level, fifth order!

But that was not enough. He still had a large amount of ore inside him, seized when leaving Chiyun Star. It was the most substantial and also the slowest to digest. Golden Horn did not stop, continuing to activate his devouring power and refine it with all his strength.

After night fell, the Space Storm arrived as expected.

The entire Secret Realm seemed to be kneaded by an invisible giant hand. Spatial cracks emerged from every direction. Some were as thin as hairs, while others stretched several meters long, opening and closing frantically in the air. In the distance came the thunderous crashes of boulders collapsing, while great trees were sliced into fragments by the cracks.

Golden Horn and Giant Axe hid deep inside a natural cave, listening to the howling outside. Neither spoke.

Half an hour later, the storm receded, and the cracks became sparse again.

The two looked at each other, seeing lingering fear in each other's eyes.

Beneath the great tree at the center of the Secret Realm, experts from every race had retreated to the outskirts. The Void Beast did not pursue them, instead landing beside the fruit tree and closing its eyes to recover. Around it, native creatures continuously arrived from all directions. Some carried rare fruits in their hands, while others held glistening spiritual liquid in their mouths, carefully delivering them before it. Clearly, these native creatures were supporting it in their own way.

The Void Beast's aura slowly recovered. As for the Universe-level experts, they were unlikely to make any major breakthroughs within the next few days, so they focused their efforts on forming alliances. They constantly contacted experts from every side, recruiting them into teams and attempting to form a united front, hoping to avoid being defeated one by one by the Void Beast.