322: Chapter 322: A High-Tech Civilization 300,000 Years Ago

Countless viewers frowned.

If the iron pot and metal pipes mentioned earlier were perhaps acceptable,

but now it involves nanotechnology. As of 2026, only major powers and developed nations across the globe can produce objects at the nanoscale.

In war-torn, smaller countries, they can't even build the machines to manufacture nanomaterials.

Nanotechnology from hundreds of thousands of years ago?

This left the viewers' expressions increasingly confused.

Even Xiaoyu was the same; she couldn't help but ask in surprise, "Big Brother, is this for real?"

Jiang Zhe did not answer but instead pulled up a microscope photograph.

"In 1991, in the Ural Mountains of Bear Country, a geological survey team discovered some tiny metal coils deep underground."

He used his index finger and thumb to zoom in on the image, and Xiaoyu leaned in to look.

The screen displayed a set of metal structures under a microscope; thin filaments were wound into spiral shapes—some looked like springs, some like threads, and others like precision coils!

The smallest ones were only 0.003 millimeters, dozens of times thinner than a human hair.

They were arranged very neatly and orderly, with smooth edges and nearly perfect curves at the corners!

"Xiaoyu, look at these coils; the smallest is only 0.003 millimeters, thinner than a human hair." He pointed to the screen and the translation of the Bear Country text. "They have regular structures—some resemble springs, some spirals, and others threads. Geologists ultimately determined that these metal coils were buried 300,000 years ago."

Speaking of this, he suddenly thought of something. "The former Bear Country only saw the emergence of nano-ion technology in 1992!"

Looking at the image and listening to her brother's explanation, the expression on Xiaoyu's face became turbulent.

Even the former Bear Country didn't have this technology—it couldn't be faked!

Xiaoyu couldn't help but swallow her saliva. "The former Bear Country didn't start the discipline of nano-ionics until a year after this. And this predates the former Bear Country's 1992 by one year. Furthermore, this is a much more precise metal structure, far beyond what a country that had just begun researching nanotechnology could produce. It absolutely cannot be natural!"

"Correct!" Jiang Zhe nodded with satisfaction. "And the key is, this isn't a single discovery; similar nanoscale metal structures have been found at multiple locations in the Ural Mountains."

"Their size, shape, and structure are strikingly similar, indicating that this is not a product of chance, but intentional manufacturing."

At this point, his expression suddenly turned serious. "If these are proven to be completely real in the future, it means that 300,000 years ago, a civilization comparable to 2026 existed right here!"

Xiaoyu muttered in shock, "300,000 years ago, let alone nanotechnology, how could humans who might not even have known how to use fire create something like this?"

She stared at the screen, unable to snap out of it for a long time.

At this moment, the chat in the livestream room exploded.

"Nanocoils from 300,000 years ago? Nanotechnology only existed in 1990; I remember it was created by the USA!"

"This is damn well more advanced than modern technology, right?"

"I'm getting goosebumps. Before, when I heard Big Brother talking about the metal pot and such, I could still fool myself. But hearing this, I can't fool myself at all. My heart is racing."

"Same here, it's terrifying to think about!"

"..."

Huaqing University, Physics Department professors' dormitory.

Guan Jingming looked surprised. "Nanocoils from 300,000 years ago? This is absolutely impossible; it must be a forgery!"

He took a deep breath and looked at the three people in front of him. "Nanotechnology isn't just something you talk about casually. It requires atomic-level manipulation and ultra-precision processing equipment. For us modern humans to manufacture nanocoils, we must use electron beam lithography, ion beam deposition, and atomic layer deposition. These technologies I'm talking about only existed at the end of the 20th century."

"Moreover, nanoscale metal structures have insanely high requirements for material purity; even a tiny bit of impurity would destroy the structure of the nano-device."

"300,000 years ago, let alone nanotechnology, there wasn't even the technology to refine metal."

Ouyang Baili asked curiously, "Then who made these things?"

"It's getting more and more interesting!" Professor Wu Ming clicked his tongue in wonder. "It couldn't be aliens, could it?"

Li Mo took off his glasses and suddenly grinned. "Perhaps it's not aliens, but a previous cycle of civilization, or even multiple previous cycles!"

The four of them looked at each other, their expressions gradually becoming excited and amazed.

On the big screen, on the sofa.

Xiaoyu took a deep breath, moved her gaze away from the microscope photograph, sat back on the sofa opposite, and looked at Jiang Zhe.

"Big Brother, what happened to these nanocoils later? Does the academic community have a conclusion?"

Jiang Zhe shook his head. "There is no follow-up conclusion; that is the most headache-inducing part about OOPArt. They lie quietly in the museum's storage, and no one dares to jump to conclusions easily."

"The Bear Country Academy of Sciences' test report stated that these coils are [man-made nanoscale metal structures]."

"But the question arises: who made them, how were they made, and why were they made? It's all just question marks."

"Some scholars say they are products of geological movement, where minerals naturally grew into coil shapes under harsh conditions."

"But this explanation is very perfunctory, seemingly given intentionally just to make it sound reasonable. The biggest problem with it is that naturally growing minerals would not simultaneously exhibit three structures—springs, spirals, and threads—nor would they all be hollow."

"Later, some physicists in Bear Country also suggested that they were the result of modern industrial pollution seeping underground."

"But the mineral layers in the Ural Mountains are sealed; there are no cracks, no water seepage channels. Furthermore, the rock layers around the coils are well-preserved, without any traces of modern mining."

"So, there's no answer?"

"No answer. For 50 years, no one has dared to reach a conclusion."

"Of course, there are also those who support the theory I am telling you: that they were manufactured by an intelligent civilization, meaning they are man-made."

Upon hearing this, the expression on Xiaoyu's face cooled down a bit, but soon her eyes lit up again. "Then, do these things have any connection to the South African spheres, the trilobite shoe print, and the Siberian metal pipes mentioned earlier?"

Jiang Zhe's mouth curled up slightly, seemingly very satisfied that she asked this question.

"That is the key. Xiaoyu, have you noticed? These OOPArt share a common point: they are all challenging the boundaries of our understanding of human civilization."

"The South African spheres tell you that metalworking existed 2.8 billion years ago."

"The trilobite shoe print tells you that people were walking in shoes 500 million years ago, and they landed on their heels, which is the prototype of the square gait."

"The Siberian metal pipes tell you that 200 million years ago, people were laying pipes, possibly for aviation bases or other structures."

"The Oklahoma iron pot tells you that 300 million years ago, people were casting iron to cook. As for what they ate 300 million years ago, if there were intelligent beings, they would have eaten ferns, club mosses, horsetails, and the meat of amphibians."

"And now, these nanocoils tell you that 300,000 years ago, people had already mastered nanotechnology."

Speaking to this point, Jiang Zhe's voice gradually became lower.

"Xiaoyu, have you ever thought—if all these are true, what does that mean?"

Xiaoyu did not answer, her face showing a grave expression.

At this very moment, her mind was reeling.

Those artifacts spanning billions of years were like bombs, constantly bombarding everything she knew about human civilization.

If these were all true, it meant that human civilization was simply not the only one as she had thought!

Those things submerged in the river of time were far more advanced than modern humans knew.

After pondering for a long time, the expression on Xiaoyu's face gradually turned to awe.

"If they are all real, then we should maintain awe for history. Today, human arrogance has framed our cognition, believing that everything outside our scope of understanding is false or virtual."

Hearing this, Jiang Zhe was somewhat surprised, and he secretly gave Xiaoyu a thumbs up. "Smart!"

Xiaoyu shook her head. "Big Brother, are there any more? I still want to hear."

Jiang Zhe looked at her, raised his wrist, and saw there were still twenty minutes left, so he smiled with satisfaction and said:

"Naturally, there are. They are right here in our country."

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