Shepherding Humanity

Chapter 3: Epoch

The blue plants were the size of ants and had delicately shaped leaves. Floating on the ocean’s surface, they were able to survive even without direct sunlight by photosynthesizing the pale light of the moon.

Quickly, in a matter of seconds, the plants grew, matured, and then once again died.

It was like an accelerated home video.

After they’ve survived the first extinction event, the plants rapidly evolved from generation to generation. Adapting frantically to the night environment, they gradually turned dark blue, and took on the shape of rhomboids and round discs. Like seaweeds, they began to spread across the ocean’s surface in order to better absorb the moonlight shining on the yard.

Survival of the fittest!

Another hour passed.

As the only marine species in the sandbox, the aquatic plant that Xu Zhi had named the "Blue Moongrass" had no competition and was soon out of danger. They began to multiply extensively in the ocean.

Soon there were blue silhouettes everywhere, and the entire ocean turned a beautiful azure color under the moonlight.

Another hour passed.

The plant has evolved over tens of thousands of generations and began to form various sub-branches.

There were angular types, slender types, oval types, deep-sea types, shallow-water types… and eventually, they split into two divergent species.

A part of the species continued to absorb moonlight, evolving to enhance the efficiency of their photosynthesis. Another part of the species turned carnivorous, and began preying on other Blue Moongrasses. They still collected moonlight, but used it to emit a soft glow that lured other Blue Moongrasses closer so that they could devour them.

Xu Zhi saw this and marveled at the tenacity and wonder of life. He sighed: "Having weathered the first extinction event, this sole surviving aquatic species has developed into a most diverse collective."

Such an amazing species.

Truly the perfect example of nature’s survival of the fittest!

He silently took out his pencil and notebook, and started recording the sandbox’s evolutionary progress.

"I’ll imitate Earth’s geological time scale when recording the progress of evolution within my sandbox. The Cambrian Age’s evolutionary explosion was the origin of all life. Here in my sandbox, following the evolutionary explosion, the world now faces 5,000 years of darkness… I'll call this period of time the Dark Age."

He put down his pen and paper and suddenly smiled, feeling refreshed.

Fun…

This was so much fun!!!

He excitedly turned to the first page of his black notebook, and wrote down the following lines:

"During the Dark Age, the world was plunged into 5,000 years of darkness as the sun set and the moon rose in the sky. This sudden change drove 99% of marine life to extinction. The Blue Moongrass, which could photosynthesize moonlight, became the sole surviving species. They quickly reproduced, flourished in the dark ocean, and became the masters of this era.”

He put his pen down. As a terminally ill cancer patient who had been up all night, he was already exhausted, but he was nevertheless in high spirits.

"According to the Earth's evolutionary history, life originated in the ocean. After the Cambrian explosion, the first true life-forms – aquatic plants – first appeared in the ocean. Then next in the evolutionary ladder, marine animals should soon appear! What kind of sea creature would evolve from Tyranis cells…" He looked at his miniature primordial ocean in silent anticipation.

He stayed awake all night, waiting until dawn.

The seventh day has finally begun!

But contrary to Xu Zhi’s expectations, the first marine animals did not start appearing in the ocean on the seventh day. Instead, another horrific extinction was ushered in!

Because the sun has risen!

The moment the sun rose, the diverse Blue Moongrass species flourishing in the ocean rapidly withered.

The plants accustomed to the gentle moonlight burned when suddenly exposed to the sun’s harsh glare. They shriveled and sank to the bottom of the sea.

Their structure which enabled them to absorb light with extreme efficiency and thrive under the moonlight instantly became the direct cause of their extinction, setting them on the path of destruction!

Such is the thin line between success and failure.

In an instant, the Blue Moongrass began to become extinct en masse!

"The second extinction event, it’s here…"

In just a few minutes, a large expanse of the azure ocean quickly turned gray from the corpses of the withered Blue Moongrass floating on the ocean’s surface. The complete destruction of a once thriving community was gruesome to behold.

Such is death.

The long evolutionary journey lasts billions of years. Countless species are born, and then die. Such is the epic of a vast planet.

The Tyranis spores’ evolution had been a long and inspiring journey. In just a few hours, Xhu Zhi has witnessed the rise and fall of a species. Turbulent emotions stirred within him.

This time, the extinction event wiped out more than 90% of marine life. The ocean withered away.

By afternoon, a blue patch appeared amidst the sea of dead plants, signaling the gradual return of life. A pentagram shaped Blue Moongrass had mutated and evolved, successfully surviving the second mass extinction. Under the scorching sun, it was born anew.

In order to adapt to the environment with strong sunlight, it quickly reproduced and evolved. In just a few minutes, countless generations were born and then died, making way for the next generation. Its blue color gradually darkened, slowly taking on dark purple hues… The final result was a pentagram shaped seaweed with a mystical deep blue color.

It had beautiful, mysteriously symmetrical leaves with a unique pentagram shape that could open and close.

At night, it opened its leaves and flattened them on the surface of the ocean to absorb the moonlight, and in the daytime, the leaves closed into buds to protect themselves from the harsh sun rays.

In that, it was similar to the touch-me-not plant.

Extinction events brought death and destruction, but were also opportunities for weaker species to rise.

There were no longer any species in the entire ocean to compete with it for resources, and it began to rapidly reproduce and flourish, with its many offshoots flooding the entire ocean.

"You have survived five thousand years of blazing sunlight and five thousand years of darkness."

"With the five thousand years passage of the sun and moon, you remain the only survivor from among countless species, and have withstood both the fiery sun and the endless dark. You are a true champion, and so I name you Violet Herograss."

Xu Zhi laughed, silently picking up his pen and turning to the second page of his black notebook. He started a new chapter, and began to record the second extinction event to have occurred in the evolutionary history of the world he had created.

"With the coming of the Radiant Age, the world abruptly changed. The moon set and the sun rose. Thus began a five thousand year long period in which the sun blazed in the sky. The Blue Moongrass which had dominated the Dark Age died en masse, and one of its weaker offshoots, the Violet Herograss rose to become the protagonist of the new era!"