The Silver-White Book

Origin Star. Cangyuan Continent. Changhe City.

Mu Ri stood on the city wall, gazing into the distance.

That was the thirtieth year since the establishment of the Suguang Civilization.

The city wall was built of bluestone and bricks, about three zhang high and wide enough for two horse-drawn carriages to pass side by side.

At the foot of the city wall were neat fields planted with various grains. Between the fields were straight roads, on which ran those rumbling, black-smoking iron machines used to transport goods and manure.

The manure was transported outside the city for composting, fermented, and then spread back into the fields, doubling the grain yield.

Further away, there were several factory buildings belching black smoke; those were an ironworks, a textile mill, and a machinery factory.

The Steam roared, driving a huge flywheel to rotate, which in turn drove various machines through belts and gears.

The Suguang Civilization has entered the Steam Age.

Mu Ri glanced down at his own panel.

[Previous Civilization Stage: Stage 3 - The Steam Age]

[Current Exclusive Civilization Event - [Golden Age (Unlocked)]]

[Golden Age: Technological development speed +30%, civilization stability +20%, technological gap Suppression increased, philosophical development speed +20%. Unlock condition: Enter the third stage - the Steam Age, and the population reaches 500,000 or more.]

Population.

It's about population again.

The Suguang Civilization currently has 420,000 people, which is 80,000 short.

Somewhat unwillingly, Mu Ri slammed his Fist against the city wall in front of him.

"Bang."

The city wall remained unmoved, and his hand ached a little.

He stared at the factories billowing black smoke in the distance, his expression complex.

In just thirty years since the founding of the People's Republic of China, we've leaped from a primitive civilization to Steam civilization. Was that fast?

That's far from enough.

Mu Ri has already felt his body starting to decline, no longer at its peak.

After Mu Ri leaves this world, who will lead the Suguang Civilization to its end, and guide humanity back to its Mythic status of "supreme humankind"?

Population!

Time!

Mu Ri's gaze returned to the panel.

The panel in his mind underwent a major change more than a decade ago.

The original simple display has now become somewhat complex, including various coefficients for a civilization: population, territory, technology, development speed, etc.

In short, it's very detailed.

There's also a new Civilization Points, which can be used to buy things in the Civilization Shop on the panel.

For example, the technology, information, and enhancements... are completely different from before.

However, there are no options for increasing lifespan or strengthening the body.

The main quests and regular quests that were common in the past have not appeared for several years.

The control panel is like a teacher who leads him through the door; once he has truly learned about the development of civilization, it hands over the reins to him.

This is completely different from other civilizations.

Mu Ri this period, Mu Ri has made contact with the other four civilizations of the Cangyuan Continent many times, and even opened up smooth trade routes, trading Tracing Light's ironware, silk, and Steam for their timber, ore, and grain.

He discovered the problem.

Other civilizations had Gods.

There really is a God.

Nora, the Boss of the Pingyun Civilization, would kneel down and pray whenever a major event occurred, and then the gods would give instructions.

The Mirror Civilization is even more outrageous. Their Boss, "Qing," is said to be able to see other people's thoughts and Copy their abilities—which must be a gift from the gods.

And what about the Suguang Civilization?

There is only one panel.

I've thought about Mu Ri many times.

If his information is correct, the Suguang Civilization and other civilizations basically began developing at the same time, as if some behind-the-scenes force "activated" all civilizations at the same time.

The Gods and this panel likely appeared around the same time.

So, what is this panel?

Or, its Essence is the same as the Gods of other civilizations.

This God simply prefers not to show itself and has chosen to communicate in this way.

Or perhaps something went wrong with this God, causing His Authority to fall into the Mu Ri.

But this possibility is too low.

Mu Ri much deliberation, I finally opened the panel and examined it carefully.

The background is a book, a book woven from countless fine, silvery-white metal wires. The pages gleam with a faint light, and each wire seems alive, slowly weaving together.

"The silver-white pages in the background are strange; the panel wasn't like this originally."

Mu Ri pondering for a long time, Mu Ri finally reached out and tried to "touch" the book.

He just wanted to give it a try.

Unexpected--

He got his hands on that book!

It wasn't an illusion, nor a figment of my imagination; I actually held it in my hands. It was a physical object, tangible, and had weight. The silvery-white metal wire was cool and smooth, and the pages made a slight rustling sound when turned.

The instant he touched the book—

An inexhaustible power surged forth from the book!

The power surged into his body, rushing wildly along his blood vessels, muscles, and bones. He could feel his strength surging, soaring, and breaking through one limit after another.

I unconsciously put more pressure on my feet.

"Boom--!"

The city wall beneath his feet instantly exploded, scattering fragments of bluestone and sending dust billowing several feet high.

Mu Ri stood in the center of the ruins, looking down at his hands.

The hand was still the same hand, rough and calloused, with scars from blacksmithing.

But he knew that this hand could now kill a giant elephant with a single punch.

"... ah?"

He raised his head blankly and looked around.

The soldiers on duty on the city wall stared at him in disbelief, the workers in the factory in the distance peeked out, and the merchants queuing to enter the city at the gate fell silent.

Mu Ri remained silent for two seconds.

Then, as if nothing had happened, he dusted himself off and put the book back into the depths of his consciousness.

"What are you looking at?" he said. "Go do what you're supposed to be doing."

The soldiers looked at each other, then turned back, pretending they hadn't seen anything.

Mu Ri stood in the center of the ruins, looking at his hands, lost in thought.

"The lost Authority..."

"I've already maxed out my level."

Kundina stood in front of Su Luo, her long golden hair falling over her shoulders, her face expressionless, and her tone flat.

"Let's begin."

Su Luo snapped out of the Dreamscape and looked up at her.

"Okay." Su Luo nodded and called Yun Xiaoxiao over.

Yun Xiaoxiao was lying in the corner, lost in thought. Since she had nothing better to do, she heard Su Luo call her and immediately sat up, her eyes blinking a few times.

"You'll be in charge of collecting the data later," Su Luo said.

"No problem!"

Yun Xiaoxiao agreed instantly; this was the most enthusiastic she had ever been.

After all, there's nothing fun in Pure White Space; it can't consciously leave because it doesn't even have consciousness.

Su Luo took out a stone from the System Space.

The stone was made up of countless layers of crystal flakes, each flake engraved with fine patterns.

This is an enhanced version of the previous [Spell Recording Crystal]. Although it cannot hold the complete model of a blue level 40 Spell, it can inscribe a portion of the data.