Chapter 35: Expeditionary Force
Tom had initially added a total of 100 embryos cultivated from Monster Birds’ bodily fluids, but at this moment, only a dozen or so embryos exhibited superior physical qualities; the majority remained ordinary, and some even showed signs of deformity, clearly indicating cultivation failure.
But it didn’t matter.
This was very likely due to his own extraction and filtration techniques not being up to par.
This wasn’t important.
What was important was whether the bodily fluids of these Monster Birds truly possessed higher nutritional value and the potential to cultivate higher-quality Clones even before breakthroughs in his biotechnology.
If he could further improve his filtration or purification techniques later, would it mean that by using Monster Birds’ bodily fluid as an "additive," he could cultivate a large number of high-quality Clones on a massive scale?
At that time, he would not only have more consciousness link shares, but the average quality of each Clone would also improve—a dual enhancement in both quantity and quality—leading to a significant increase in the mental power he could utilize...
Watching this scene, Tom’s heart burned with excitement.
Although he still didn’t know how many Clones these embryos could connect to once cultivated, Tom had already made up his mind.
None of the Monster Birds that came to Loshen Star would escape! He would capture them all!
Some Monster Birds would be directly killed for their fluids, while others would be kept for research, for artificial breeding, and then continue to be killed for their fluids!
Under these circumstances, Tom again dispatched Clones to build over a hundred off-road vehicles, then sent them all out, along with the previous reconnaissance vehicles, to search the surface of Loshen Star.
Under the dim shroud of Loshen Star, a convoy of off-road vehicles sped and searched.
Just as one of the off-road vehicles had rounded a mountain peak, intending to continue its search, the driver Clone suddenly noticed an unusual sign.
A bright pillar of light suddenly appeared in the dim sky.
The light pillar shot straight up, rising hundreds of meters before suddenly vanishing.
"What is that?"
With a hint of doubt, the Clone stepped on the accelerator, and the vehicle swiftly sped forward.
The further it went, the fewer the obstacles, and the more things it saw.
Thus, the Clone witnessed an extremely shocking scene.
It was a small plain nestled between two mountain peaks, with a total area of no more than two hundred square kilometers.
At this moment, this small plain was densely packed with Monster Birds everywhere!
Monster Birds continuously spewed hot, bright gas and flames from beneath them, propelling their bodies like rockets straight up hundreds of meters into the sky, then they either allowed their bodies to slowly fall back down, or changed direction in the air, flying like jet planes.
Countless Monster Birds continuously took off and landed, and on the ground, countless Monster Birds jostled shoulder to shoulder, making this plain seem like a bizarre, magical world.
Tom finally understood.
At this moment, it was likely that all the Monster Birds that had come to Loshen Star had gathered on this plain, approximately 1000 kilometers from the Main Base!
"Why are they all gathered together? This is..."
After observing for a while, Tom understood.
It must be the Monster Birds’ breeding season...
They had all gathered to mate and reproduce!
No wonder they were all gathered here!
The Monster Birds constantly taking off and landing must all be males. They were using this method to display their strength and the richness of their nutrition to their female counterparts, thereby seeking mates!
The Monster Birds resting on the ground, too lazy to fly, were all females. They quietly watched the male Monster Birds perform, and if they found one they liked, they would approach and form a pair.
On this plain, Tom even saw many newly hatched, still unable to walk, small Monster Birds, who could only survive on the oxygen ore and organic matter brought by the large Monster Birds!
"Very reasonable, this is very reasonable."
Tom thought rapidly: "Matter in space is thin and resources are scarce, so it’s clearly not suitable for reproduction. Only by finding a planet rich in resources and obtaining supplies from it can they have enough nutrition to reproduce the next generation.
Clearly, Loshen Star is one of the breeding grounds they have chosen.
Once the Monster Birds multiply more and more, and the resources on Loshen Star are depleted, they will abandon this planet, collectively migrate to another planet, and then reproduce again..."
However, whether the Monster Birds were reproducing had little to do with Tom. What caught Tom’s attention was another point.
Since they had entered the breeding season, this proved that these Monster Birds seemed to have recovered their nutrition.
And recovering their nutrition... meant they already had sufficient flight capabilities!
Even if it wasn’t enough for space travel yet, at least flying near the planet’s surface was completely fine.
Thus, what he was facing was no longer merely over a million Monster Birds capable only of ground combat, but over a million flying monsters...
Tom’s mind raced, and he immediately made a decision.
"We must immediately send out the entire army to eliminate them. Otherwise, as they grow stronger, their flight capabilities increase, and their numbers multiply, I might truly be no match for them..."
In an instant, out of the 1100 Clones performing reconnaissance missions outside, all but a few near the Monster Bird flocks disconnected their consciousness links, and all their link shares were recalled.
As for their lives, Tom no longer cared. The worst-case scenario was losing over a thousand Clones.
Tom transferred all of the recalled thousand-plus link shares to backup Clones, driving them all to the factory.
At the same time, all technology research and development activities ceased. The Clones originally involved in R&D were all transferred to production.
At this stage, production was the most important; research could be temporarily put aside.
And, since all the Monster Birds had gathered there and would not pose a threat to him for a short time, only a few were needed for outer perimeter Guard, and the majority of consciousness links were also recalled and put into the factory.
Thus, out of Tom’s total of 21,000 consciousness link shares, a full 20,500 shares were put into production.
At this moment, Tom truly unleashed his full power.
Tens of thousands of Clones worked in shifts, operating the machines day and night without a moment’s rest.
Large quantities of steel and minerals were transported from other bases, rapidly processed at the Main Base, with some being transformed into tanks, armored vehicles, fuel trucks, logistics support vehicles, etc., while others became countless bullets, countless firearms, and numerous cannons.
After approximately half a month of intensive production, all the weapons, equipment, and logistical supplies Tom needed were finally ready.
So then...
"Expeditionary force, depart!"