That faint sensation of being watched lingered—so subtle it felt more like an illusion. Lin Tuo could never have imagined that someone, from so far away, had actually recorded his entire training session.
Switching his consciousness back to his main body.
Inside the old martial hall beside the Sand Table.
Lin Tuo felt the sweat soaking his body and the lingering soreness in his muscles. Cautiously, he examined the Sand Table from above, confirming through the overhead view that no other human activity was around his clone.
Only then did he quickly reach out and touch it. After a moment's hesitation, he refrained from physically picking it up. Instead, with just a thought, he merged the clone directly into his palm.
"Mm, this method is more discreet… otherwise, if I keep snatching him down from the sky, I'll definitely be spotted one day."
Although Lin Tuo was confident he could keep his identity hidden, unnecessary trouble was best avoided.
The results of the experiment were now clear—the refinement done by his clone could indeed synchronize with his true body.
"Perhaps, in the future, I could try letting the clone train inside the Sand Table's Creation Mode."
For now, though, it was just a vague idea—there wasn't any pressing need.
The following day, Lin Tuo spent all his time repairing and cleaning up the martial hall. He even hired workers to fix some of the broken doors and windows.
As for the Evolution Sand Table, he had already confirmed over the past few days that its projections were visible only to him.
Even if he tried to record or take photos with his phone, none of the light or images were captured.
That fact relieved him greatly. After all, he couldn't stay glued to it twenty-four hours a day.
Meanwhile, the uproar outside was still escalating.
Online, discussions of the Tak Black Box had reached a fever pitch. With expert teams dispatched, the barren land instantly captured not just national but global attention.
"Breaking news! This morning, the research team detected abnormal tremors! Some analysts believe they may carry critical information and are trying to decode it!"
"Over ten academicians have already arrived in the northwest. I hear other countries are lobbying to send their own teams."
"They say the Grand Wall is incomprehensible, impervious to all probes, and unbelievably resilient. At this rate, they may be forced to resort to high-yield weaponry to break through…"
The internet was awash with speculation. Lin Tuo only skimmed through the more reasonable reports—most of the chatter was wild rumors, the dominant theory being alien civilizations.
Some theories were so outlandish that even Lin Tuo—the real culprit—was impressed by their creativity.
"Looks like things won't calm down for a long time." He sighed, putting down his phone. But he wasn't worried about the scientists discovering anything—nor about his identity being exposed.
The two matters were utterly unrelated.
What truly drew his focus was the Sand Table World's evolution.
That evening, after dinner, when Lin Tuo returned to the martial hall, he was stunned to find a new line in the activity log:
[Year 703,410,000 of world evolution: The first true humans have been born.]
Humans had appeared!
Lin Tuo's heart skipped a beat. He rushed to the Sand Table, leaned over, and saw that after seven hundred million years of evolution, the continent had stabilized.
In the midstream of the great river, more and more primitive humans were emerging.
With time acceleration, the detailed process was hard to follow, but from the macroscopic view, he could see clusters of tiny, ant-like humans rapidly forming tribes.
"Humanity's hallmark is the use of tools," Lin Tuo murmured, clearing the clouded view. He leaned in closer and finally spotted some "cavemen" gathering by the riverbanks.
Indeed—these first humans, just learning to wield crude tools, still lived in caves, at the very dawn of civilization.
Yet Lin Tuo was thrilled.
"Based on Earth's history, once the seed of civilization is planted, development accelerates exponentially."
As he pondered this, the last light of dusk faded outside, and the second night fell.
Thunderclouds and lightning rolled across the Sand Table sky. In the forests, a sudden blaze ignited.
[Lightning struck, kindling fire in the forest. Countless creatures perished, but only humans dared to approach—and to master fire.]
In the northwest, beneath the shroud of the Grand Wall, over the once Tak Desert and now primeval continent—
The sky was dark and storm-choked, lightning splitting the heavens.
"BOOM!!"
The thunder roared across the wilderness. Beasts fled in panic.
In one dense forest, a group of primitive humans rushed toward caves, carrying their stone tools and prey.
But thunderbolts rained down with the storm, igniting a raging inferno.
The fire spread swiftly, unstoppable even by rain.
"Waaa-la-la-la!" Amid the smoke and flames, animals shrieked. Several humans were engulfed, some trampled, others lost.
The forest burned to ash. Only after a long while did the flames subside, the winds calm, and the storm disperse.
From the ruins, a single human survivor stumbled up, terrified, staring at the scorched wasteland.
He staggered toward the carcass of a burnt deer. But then, almost instinctively, his hand reached for a burning branch.
He raised it high, trembling—fearful, yet exhilarated.
"Fire grants warmth and protection from beasts. Roasted food will reshape their bodies…"
Lin Tuo whispered as he observed, eyes fixed on the Sand Table.
With fire, the weak tribe grew stronger.
And similar scenes unfolded across the river valleys, countless tribes mastering flame.
[Humans have mastered tools and fire. Tribes took root along the riverbanks. Thus began the Great River Civilization.]
The activity log typed this blunt line.
Lin Tuo smirked. "The Sand Table really doesn't bother with fancy names…"
But still…
"At this rate, by tonight they might reach the feudal stage." He leaned back, deciding not to sleep—no job to wake up for anymore.
He fetched snacks, dragged a chair over, and settled in to watch the accelerated history unfold.
Sure enough, with humans on stage, the log began updating faster than ever.
[Over the next twenty thousand years, humanity slowly advanced. Bitter cold, famine, disease, predators—at any moment, a tribe could be wiped out.]
[By Year 702,021,000, the last Ice Age ended. The continent warmed dramatically, catalyzing human evolution.]
[Humanity entered the New Stone Age: leaving caves, building dwellings, shifting from wandering to settlement, hunting with bows, fishing, planting grains, crafting pottery, bone tools, polished stone tools. Population surged; division of labor emerged.]
[Eight thousand years later, the New Stone Age ended. The Tribal Age began.]
[In the Great River Valley, large tribes rose. Metallurgy appeared. Bronze and primitive iron replaced stone. Social structures solidified.]
Night deepened.
The hall was silent, but Lin Tuo felt surrounded by noise and life.
His phone was forgotten on the table. Arms crossed on the Sand Table's edge, he stared intently at the flickering images.
With accelerated time, the continent unfolded like a rapidly flipping photo album.
Generations lived and died.
Tribes warred—sometimes over valleys or lakes, sometimes in grander campaigns that seized his attention.
At times, he felt like a child again, watching ants fight. Yet reason reminded him: these "ants" were real humans, alive and breathing, just not far from him—in the very same country, behind the Grand Wall of the Tak Desert.
That thought lent a strange weight to his role as a silent observer.
And so, he never interfered, merely watched.
Until, at last, two of the mightiest river tribes clashed in a decisive battle. One emerged victorious.
[Year 703,216,000 of world evolution: The two strongest Great River tribes have merged. Their chief takes the title of Great King. The Tribal Age ends. The Era of Laws begins.]
As this line appeared, Lin Tuo noticed time acceleration slow further, while human civilization only grew more complex.
Larger clans, denser populations, greater buildings.
"This must be the so-called rise in complexity…" he realized.
The Era of Laws, to him, was already reminiscent of the Shang dynasty—still no concept of "nations," but clearly a structured clan-based society.
He even glimpsed humans building grand altars.
Most importantly, in the top left corner of the virtual interface, the "Ether Concentration" finally shifted from blank to Faint, with an upward arrow.
World No. 1 of the Sand Table had finally generated Ether.
(End of Chapter)