Ye Bo, Zhou Xixian, and the others stared at several plants brought out by Su Jing and observed them for a while. Finally, Ye Bo focused on a small tree with a thick stem that branched into two at the top, and its rhizome was unique.
It had four main branches branching out from the base, each of which further bifurcated multiple times. The leaves on this small tree were linear or lanceolate and were arranged spirally.
As Ye Bo continued to observe the small tree, he suddenly took a deep breath and exclaimed, "I remember now. This should be a Sealed wood, a plant that existed during the Carboniferous and Permian periods."
"Are you sure?" Zhou Xixian and the others also gasped.
"The shape and features are identical. But if you ask me if I'm certain, I can only say I'm uncertain. This is after all too astonishing and we don't have any clear pictures that we can use to compare," Ye Bo replied.
The Archaefructus Sinensis they found earlier was from over a hundred million years ago, but this sealed wood is from at least two hundred million years ago.
They compared the information and even received photos of the sealed wood fossils from someone. Regardless of how they compared them, everything pointed to one result: the plant in front of them was the Sealed Wood that existed during the Carboniferous and Permian periods, over a hundred million years earlier than dinosaurs.
"Teacher, take a look. Is this the Bennafern?" A young man pointed at a plant that resembled a tree-like fern. It had a ball-shaped or columnar stem, pinnate leaves clustered at the top, and exposed seeds on megasporophylls.
However, it had bilabiate stomata and uniquely structured sporophyll balls, which differed it from ordinary Bennaferns.
"Hmm?" Ye Bo was taken aback for a moment before he carefully observed for a moment, and exclaimed, "Xiao Wu, you have a keen eye. This seems to be the Bennafern."
"I just let my thoughts wander far, and it occurred to me," The young man scratched his head as he spoke.
Another young man found some information and read aloud, "In August 2012, geologist Duan Wei discovered and collected a batch of Early Jurassic plant fossil specimens in the Dapeng Peninsula area of Shenzhen. The fossils are dated between 180 and 200 million years old. Among these fossils, the most remarkable one was a preserved Bennafern flower specimen. The specimen had an overall oval shape resembling an open flower bud, measuring 5 cm by 3.5 cm, with complete external floral structures. Experts from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology estimated that it was a flower from two hundred million years ago. In other words, this Bennafern should be a plant from two hundred million years ago."
Inspired by the method used by the young man called Xiao Wu, everyone deliberately tried to recall and search for information from the distant past. Soon, they identified one plant after another by name.
"Oh my, this should be a Toluz Fruit. This plant was discovered in the Late Triassic strata in Ukraine and may have also been found in the Early Cretaceous strata in northeastern China."
"This is a Seed Fern, a Gymnosperm. It first appeared in the Late Devonian and thrived during the Carboniferous and Permian periods but gradually declined in the Mesozoic Era and became extinct during the Cretaceous."
"This is a Rhacophyton, a primitive fern-like plant that only has stems and no roots or leaves. It existed approximately four hundred million years ago."
One extinct plant after another was recognized by Ye Bo, Zhou Xixian, and their assistant and they thought that they had become numb to seeing extinct species. However, the more they looked, the more excited they became.
It was as if they had traveled back to ancient times, and the sensation they were feeling at this moment was overwhelming.
"A'Jing, where did these plants come from? Tell me the truth, who are you exactly?" Ye Bo's trembling lips revealed his excitement.
"A'Jing, you're like the protagonist from the movie 'The Man from Earth,' a creature that survived from ancient times, right? It wouldn't surprise us if you said that," Zhou Xixian intentionally remarked on the thought that was floating through his mind.
"You're overthinking this a lot, aren't you?" Su Jing, unsure of what to say, thought their imagination had run wild from reading too many novels. However, even if they let their imaginations run free, it seemed they were still far from the truth.
"Mr. Su, what's going on here? How come there are so many extinct animals and plants reappearing here and why now?" A young man couldn't help but ask the main question that wasn't being asked.
"This is a secret, and I can't disclose it," Su Jing couldn't reveal the truth to them. It was too unbelievable, and he couldn't come up with more lies. So he decided not to say anything further.
Feeling helpless, the others had no choice but to remain content with what they had since Su Jing refused to speak. Ye Bo and Zhou Xixian suggested taking one specimen of each plant back for research, and Su Jing readily agreed.
These plants were of no use to him personally, but if they could be studied and bring about a significant impact on Earth then that would be sufficient for him.
Ye Bo and Zhou Xixian couldn't contain their excitement and left with the plants. Since they had nothing to hide, the news quickly spread to the outside world, causing another huge sensation.
"Oh my god, what's happening?"
"It's one thing to resurrect animals extinct for nearly a century, but now even plants that have been extinct for millions and billions of years are appearing."
"I heard that many of these plants were likely the food of herbivorous dinosaurs. For example, that Bennafern might have been one of the food sources for the Stegosaurus."
"Wow, aren't these supposed to exist only as fossils?"
"I really want to see for myself what the dinosaurs' food looked like."
"I think Su Jing must have developed genetic cloning technology. Otherwise, it wouldn't be possible to bring back so many extinct lifeforms."
"By that logic, does it mean Su Jing can actually resurrect dinosaurs and create a real Jurassic Park like in the movies?"
"It's quite possible."
"You guys are thinking too much. That's impossible, that would be like something out of a movie. I believe Su Jing must have discovered some ancient relics, possibly related to the Atlantis ruins they found before. He's just presenting them separately to create a bigger sensation."
"I support the above comment. That possibility seems more plausible."
The opinions of the people varied, and Su Jing's fans, as well as onlookers, joined in the discussion. The previous news about the Zhongyun Zoo was still hot, and now with the addition of ancient plants, it ignited a new wave, making the news even more sensational.
Experts from both China and abroad were even more excited. Countless foreign experts requested to join the research, their excitement resembling the discovery of a new continent.
…
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