The Whole World Shoots at Me

In the laboratory.

Lin Tuo held this extraordinary item covered in cracks, his emotions complex.

According to the information provided by the Evolution Sandbox, this thing seemed to be some kind of oddity naturally born from the washing of the "Spirit Tide," its principles unknown.

To draw an analogy, it was roughly akin to a monster spontaneously conceived between heaven and earth—except it had no life, merely a dead object.

Tracing back to the root, its birth was also related to his own act of collecting Aether.

As for its abilities, similar to the legends, it could indeed affect the spirit of living beings, though the restrictions were many.

Whether in terms of range, the number of people simultaneously controlled, or the duration of hypnosis... and so on, there were numerous limitations.

Considering its effects, it had clearly become the Mad Emperor's tool of rule.

With a little association, one could know that he could easily use this item to manipulate the council members, thereby forcibly pushing through certain decrees.

This could explain why the labor-intensive and costly construction of the Annihilation Bomb had not truly shaken his rule.

It could also explain why these researchers were willing to conspire in the destruction of the world.

In contrast, what drew Lin Tuo's attention more was the "negative effect" of the Secret Seal.

"It will cause a certain mental impact on the holder... amplify emotions... drive one to madness..."

Chewing over this information, Lin Tuo's heart tightened.

Previously, he had been somewhat puzzled, feeling that the Mad Emperor's behavior was incomprehensible.

Although, outside the sandbox, in Earth's true history, there had also been many mad rulers, some of whose actions were utterly illogical and breathtaking to behold...

But an emperor who overthrew the Dachi Dynasty single-handedly, no matter how mad, should still have some attachment to his own empire.

Yet the result was that he destroyed it so decisively, stubbornly terrifying.

Now it seemed, the "Secret Seal" might have had a hand in this.

"Hmm... if my guess is correct, after the Mad Emperor first obtained it, he should have frequently used it to help maintain his rule... after all, the New Dynasty had just been established, and stabilizing it quickly was no easy task...

During use, his spirit was gradually polluted by the Secret Seal's negative effects, certain emotions within him amplified... making him more and more paranoid.

In the end, it led to this tragedy..."

"Or rather, while he was hypnotizing others, he had long been self-hypnotized, yet never realized it."

Having figured this out, Lin Tuo sighed inwardly, his curiosity about the Secret Seal cooling considerably.

If before, he had still considered taking it away for daily use.

Then after understanding its negative effects, that thought faded.

"Heh, actually, in its damaged state, it couldn't be used many more times anyway..."

According to the Evolution Sandbox's analysis, this item was severely damaged, likely usable only once or twice more before it would be scrapped.

"But it's not entirely worthless. At least, before it's destroyed, it can still help me with some things. Using it just once won't pollute my spirit either—it's within an acceptable range."

Lin Tuo rubbed the Secret Seal, his eyes gradually brightening.

He hadn't forgotten that his purpose for entering the sandbox was to understand the situation, then make the next decision—body tempering was merely incidental.

Over these past few days, through observation, he had also been pondering how to deal with the sandbox.

Letting it slowly recover would take who knows how long, and Lin Tuo was gradually becoming dissatisfied with the area of Sandbox No.1.

Three hundred thousand square kilometers sounded vast, but for a civilization, it was far too cramped.

What he was reluctant to part with were the lives here.

Yes, through observation, Lin Tuo had realized with near-delight that these people possessed immense growth potential, yet they themselves were unaware.

Especially those Evolvers.

Keep in mind, just thirty years ago, they—or their parents—were ordinary people with normal gene sequences, nothing special.

Yet in just a few decades, the lives born on this land had begun to possess all sorts of Extraordinary Abilities.

Even if these abilities were still "basic," still "simple," they were extraordinary in meaning.

After all, these people didn't know the "Qi-Eating Method"; their abilities were purely self-evolved, making them an extremely precious "new species"!

To draw an analogy, it was like a laboratory, a petri dish where a "seed" had accidentally been born, excelling in all aspects...

These were the precious "genetic seeds" that had survived the harsh environment, layer by layer, from among their deformed counterparts.

This involved immense chance.

Lin Tuo highly suspected this was related to the strange "radiation" of the so-called "Annihilation Bomb," and perhaps even had some mysterious connection to Aether, much like the appearance of this "Secret Seal."

Both the Secret Seal and these Evolvers were unique new things born from the distinctive development process of Sandbox No.1.

If it were destroyed and the sandbox reset, could Evolvers be derived again?

Uncertain!

So Lin Tuo had been thinking about how to preserve these people while transforming the environment.

From a profit perspective, giving Evolvers better living conditions and expanding their population could very likely give rise to some interesting things that could serve him, such as "superpowers."

From an emotional standpoint, they were living people—flesh and blood humans just like Lin Tuo—and moreover, they had countless ties to him. He needed to treat them with equal caution.

This was also why, when he had been surrounded by the Three Major Powers earlier, he had never once chosen to kill them from start to finish.

After all, those people were all Evolvers, the elite of this wasteland.

He couldn't bear to!

Thus, Lin Tuo had been constantly thinking about how to preserve them, and had even drafted some plans in his mind, but there were always some unresolved, detailed issues.

But now, this "Secret Seal" had given him an inspiration.

"Maybe... making good use of its leftover value can help me solve this problem."

Lin Tuo murmured inwardly, beginning to calculate the feasibility of the plan in his mind.

But just then, suddenly, his expression shifted slightly.

By switching his awareness, he discovered that outside this mountain peak, near the direction of the continent.

The Three Major Powers had already followed the path he had cleared, rushing over, about to close in on the laboratory.

"Tch, they really are like clingy shadows."

Sighing softly in his heart, Lin Tuo felt somewhat helpless.

"Ah, someone's coming!"

At this moment, Hua Xi, who had grown bored and run to the entrance to keep watch, also noticed this and exclaimed.

Lin Tuo put away the Secret Seal, turned around, and walked straight toward the door.

Passing through the long tunnel, stepping out from the gap in the towering metal doors, the cold wind blew in his face, and snowflakes flew wildly in the sky.

On the platform before the metal doors, Hua Xi was nervously clutching her rifle. Seeing Lin Tuo come out, she finally let out a small breath.

"Look! They're over there!"

Hua Xi raised her short arm, pointing ahead.

Lin Tuo looked up and saw, across the low valley covered in white snow, at the peaks of the nearby Mountain Range, dense figures were surging out.

South, center, north... the elites of all Three Major Powers had arrived almost simultaneously.

Along with them came countless guns, and even cannons, from the armies composed of Evolvers.

Yes!

Cannons!

Under the dim sky, Lin Tuo clearly saw the soldiers struggling to push small, mortar-like devices to the mountaintops, adjusting their muzzles, trying to aim at the solitary peak where he stood.

Others carried weapons that looked similar to RPGs.

These were all things they had found in the ruins of the Mountain Range.

The Great Western Continent had once been the empire's largest weapons manufacturing base and research base.

Thus, there was never a shortage of these here.

Now, when the leaders of "Burning Fire," "Gray Mountain," and "Floating Apocalypse" discovered that their target had been beaten to the punch by Lin Tuo, and that the Secret Seal had most likely already fallen into someone else's hands.

Even knowing that Lin Tuo possessed some kind of teleportation ability, all they could do was temporarily join forces and raise their weapons.

"He's appeared! He really did go in already!"

At the Burning Fire Company's position.

That slightly effeminate-looking chief executive was staring fixedly at the solitary peak ahead, his eyes full of wariness and fear.

Thinking of the terrifying power of the legendary Secret Seal only made his heart sink further.

"Even if it's an ability, it has its limits. It can't be used continuously in a short time. I don't believe he can escape this time?"

The backer of Floating Apocalypse turned out to be a middle-aged woman in black and red robes, who spoke with a serious expression at this moment.

But it sounded more like self-consolation.

To the north.

At Gray Mountain Group, the leader, a middle-aged man with graying hair, had a face as dark as still water. Staring at the solitary peak and the two figures—one large, one small—he simply spat out a brief order:

"Adjust the cannons, prepare to blast the mountain!"

On the solitary peak.

Watching the countless soldiers simultaneously raise their guns and cannons, aiming at where they stood.

Hua Xi said in a somewhat panicked voice:

"Let's go quickly, teleport away!"

However, Lin Tuo just shook his head.

Hua Xi was stunned, then suddenly seemed to realize something, her small body trembling.

"Can't teleport anymore? Can't you use your ability consecutively?"

Having said that, she suddenly panicked, reaching out to grab Lin Tuo's clothes:

"Then let's hurry and hide in the lab—they won't be able to blast through the mountain wall anytime soon!"

Yet Lin Tuo stood completely still.

"No need. We'll just stand here, not going anywhere."

Lin Tuo said calmly, a faint smile even curling at the corners of his mouth.

Hua Xi stared at him blankly, her eyes full of confusion.

But over these past few days, she had grown accustomed to the strength and mystery of the young man beside her. Hearing this, she actually settled down, no longer tense.

She only moved a little closer to Lin Tuo, her face pale, then suddenly thought of something:

"Ah, are you planning to use the power of that Secret Seal?"

"The Secret Seal will indeed be used, but it shouldn't be wasted on a place like this."

Lin Tuo smiled and winked at the young girl, then, facing the gun muzzles of the entire world, he lifted his head, looked up at the dark, heavy sky, and said softly:

"I have a simpler method."

As he spoke, the light in his eyes suddenly dimmed, and in that moment, he switched his consciousness back to his main body.

Lishan Martial Arts School, in the study.

Lin Tuo, lying peacefully in the wicker chair, slowly opened his eyes, then unhurriedly raised his hand to pick up an item that had already been placed on the table.

It was a bowl—a bowl crystal clear, as if utterly devoid of impurities.

He had bought it not long ago, when his Avatar went to Yangcheng city to purchase food and stopped by a gift shop.

He remembered the shopkeeper saying it was called a "Glazed Lamp," pure and flawless, without a single pattern, symbolizing the purest of hearts.

Now, Lin Tuo held the Glazed Lamp in his hand, slowly stood up, aimed at the lone peak in the Western Mountains on the Sandbox—the one bordering the sea—and smiled slightly:

"This should do it."

With that, he casually placed the transparent bowl over the lone peak on the Sandbox.

In the snowy mountains.

Thousands of dark gun barrels and cannon muzzles had already locked onto the figure on the lone peak. Yet, just a moment before countless shells flew toward that peak—

In the high, distant sky, thick clouds suddenly churned and boiled!

An enormous, crystal-clear "Glazed Lamp," as if flying in from outer space, tore through the sky of this world, crashing down, steadily encasing the lone peak that had drawn the world's attention.

The next second.

Countless shells and flames soared into the sky, tracing graceful parabolas as they swept over the shattered earth and deep valleys, crashing down upon that immensely grand, immensely beautiful, and immensely sturdy "shield."

The mountain range was illuminated in that instant.

One by one, the shells exploded against the outer shell of the Glazed Lamp, without stirring even the faintest ripple—only lighting up the sky, falling into human eyes like a grand and dazzling fireworks display.

On the lone peak.

Hua Xi, already stunned into a daze, felt her trembling hand being pressed down, and the sound of Lin Tuo's gentle voice echoed in her ears:

"See? That's how it's done."

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