Fallen Golden Crow? No! It's the Evolution of Stars!

PS: This is a Prehistoric World expansion and construction story, not a hegemony-focused one; it is a lighthearted, happy tale.

[Buzz... Warning!]

[Abnormal drop in stellar temperature detected; core activity weakening; entering terminal cooling phase.]

[Preparing to evolve into an alternative celestial body configuration!]

A string of highly "scientific" synthesized sounds rang in Lu Jun's ears.

The tone sounded exactly like the AI in the science museum that explained the Big Bang.

Hmm? Did the museum system glitch? Did the broadcast room cross-connect to a sci-fi channel?

He instinctively tried to turn his head to find the source of the sound, but suddenly froze.

Something was wrong!

Why couldn't he stand up?

He looked down, and good heavens!

Two... three sturdy bird legs covered in brilliant golden feathers?

He raised his "arms" in a panic, only for a pair of giant wings burning with raging flames to come into view!

The temperature of the flames was incredibly high; while his body remained unharmed, it made his heart crawl with dread.

What the hell! How did I turn into a bird? And a self-roasting chicken at that!

Lu Jun's brain buzzed, his CPU effectively frying on the spot.

He instinctively tried to flap his wings, but a heart-wrenching, agonizing pain erupted from his chest.

Looking down, he saw a giant arrow radiating bone-chilling cold, piercing straight through his chest!

"Drip... drip..."

"Sizzle... sizzle..."

Golden blood, like burning liquid fire, gushed down the shaft of the arrow.

The moment it hit the ground, it exploded into destructive golden sparks.

It frantically ignited everything in its vicinity, even causing the rocks to wail as they melted into magma!

Right in the midst of this near-death agony and the chaotic confusion of who am I, where am I, and am I about to be roasted, a torrent of memories as vast as a sea of stars slammed into his consciousness.

Pangu Creates the World!

Hongjun preaches the Dao!

Nuwa Creates Humans!

Ten Suns Crossing the Sky!

Da Yi Shoots the Suns!

I... I transmigrated? And I transmigrated into the Sixth Prince of the Prehistoric World Golden Crow clan, that unlucky guy who is also named Lu Jun?

Lu Jun was dumbfounded, forgetting even the excruciating pain in his chest.

One second he was at the science museum explaining to children that "the sun is a star."

The next second, he became that very "star" himself, the sun in the flesh?

And the version that got shot to pieces by an arrow!

Just because we share the same name? Is this transmigration mechanism decided by drawing lots? That's too sloppy!

And this original body, to save Tenth Prince, the future Daoist Lu Ya, he actually used his own chest to take the fatal arrow Da Yi fired at Tenth Prince!

Tenth Prince lived and became the Daoist Lu Ya who wanders around in the Investiture of the Gods, but me? I'm just straight-up finished!

As expected, you can't mess with a Child of Luck! Wang Mang couldn't beat the Child of the Plane Liu Xiu, and I, the Sixth, can't beat the destined Tenth Prince Daoist Lu Ya!

If I had transmigrated just five minutes earlier, I would have run for my life; whoever wants to be a human shield can go right ahead!

Lu Jun was filled with grief and indignation; he was the Sixth Prince, so why did he end up doing something so un-scheming?

He could clearly feel the bone-chilling cold brought by the Xuanming Ice Arrow, which was extinguishing the True Sun Fire on his body at a speed visible to the naked eye.

This was a battle between the Great Dao of Ice and the Great Dao of the Sun.

Clearly, the strength of the Ancestral Witch Xuanming was directly suppressing him, a mere Primordial Unity Golden Immortal.

Ominous black spots began to appear on his brilliant golden feathers, spreading like lethal sunspots on the surface of a star.

The coldness of death was rapidly devouring his final warmth.

Immediately after, his consciousness focused deep within his mind.

There, characters were flickering.

[Preparing to evolve into an alternative celestial body!]

Lu Jun instantly grasped this straw of hope!

"The Golden Crow is regarded as the sun... so that's why I'm bound to this 'Star Evolution System'?"

"But the Golden Crow is a divine bird! How can it be the same as a proper celestial body?"

"Whatever! Can you apply science to a golden finger? Existence is reasonable! Evolve! Hurry up and evolve for me!"

[Evolution process initiated. Please do not rush; this unit is currently executing...]

[???]

[Warning! Severe warning!]

[Abnormal world rules detected! High-activity life soul signal present within the target star! Non-standard celestial body model!]

The system's alarm suddenly turned sharp and piercing, even carrying a hint of "what the hell" panic.

Lu Jun: "???"

Good grief!

This system doesn't even know its own host's soul exists?

Is it a second-hand defective product?!

[Emergency protocol initiated! Emergency protocol initiated!]

[Forcibly scanning underlying rules of the local universe... Re-modeling and deducing adaptation plan...]

[Deduction complete! Initiating dual-stage evolution protocol!]

[Stage One: Stellar core collapse (Egg form)]

[Stage Two: Innate Divine Being form reconstruction (Soul origin detected as Human Race template, locking to humanoid)]

[Stage One evolution, forced execution!]

The moment the system's voice faded, Lu Jun felt as if a cosmic singularity had been shoved inside his "cooling and shutting down" Golden Crow body!

"BOOM--!!!"

An irresistible, terrifying Gravitational Field capable of warping space-time generated at his collapsing core!

His body, vast as a scorching sun, collapsed inward frantically, being forcibly stripped and shedding massive amounts of energy!

The lethal Xuanming Arrow embedded in his chest was shaken off like a toothpick in the face of this violent power originating from the deepest level of matter!

The source of the deadly Law of Ice was severed!

The massive "sun" that once illuminated the Prehistoric World collapsed a million times over in an instant!

In a billionth of a second, it was compressed into a terrifyingly dense, white-hot "egg" shaped celestial body, spinning at high speed and surrounded by visible Gravity Wave ripples!

Neutron Star Egg!

The ultimate form of material collapse!

An immortal prototype under the rules of the Prehistoric World!

"Big Brother! Look! How did Sixth Brother turn into an egg again?"

A voice filled with shock and weakness rang out not far away.

"This... what kind of divine ability is this?! Nirvana? Atavism?"

Another voice, equally faint yet unable to hide its horror, sounded.

"Big Brother? Second Brother? You're still alive?!"

Lu Jun's consciousness fluctuations rippled outward, filled with disbelief.

In his memory, the speakers were none other than the Crown Prince Bo Huang and the Second Prince Zhong Lang.

I'm alive because I have a system.

How are you all still alive?

Could it be that everyone is a transmigrator?

He struggled to "look" around. Eight other equally massive fireballs, their flames extremely dim and their life force like candles in the wind, were scattered across the scorched earth.

"It's us, Sixth Brother!" Bo Huang's voice carried deep exhaustion.

"Second Brother and I are at the Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal realm, so we can barely resist a sliver of the Ancestral Witch's Law of Ice erosion, but we won't last much longer."

His voice grew weaker and weaker, as if it would extinguish in the next second.

"So, being a Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal gives you a thicker foundation."

Lu Jun realized, relieved it wasn't a group transmigration.

"Sixth Brother! Stop worrying about why we're alive!"

"Tell us quickly! How did you do it! To be struck by the Ancestral Witch's lethal arrow and still return to your origin, reforming into an egg!"

The voice of the Second Prince Zhong Lang suddenly rose, filled with the excitement and ecstasy of a drowning man grabbing a piece of driftwood.

"Yes, Sixth Brother!"

Crown Prince Bo Huang's dying will seemed to be ignited by this glimmer of vitality.

The residual flames on his body flared brilliantly for an instant, forcibly repelling a portion of the Law of Ice.

"Could it be that our Golden Crow Clan also possesses a supreme divine ability similar to the Phoenix's Nirvana Rebirth? As long as we form an egg, we have a chance to be reborn?! Tell us the method quickly!"

Lu Jun (Egg): "..."

He felt his "eggshell" tingling.

How was he supposed to explain this?

Should he say that their dear sixth brother was already dead, and inside was now a soul from Earth?

One that also came with a slightly dim-witted but incredibly fierce system?

This had absolutely nothing to do with Phoenix Nirvana!

Just as he was feeling incredibly "egg-pained" and at a loss for how to explain, the system's cold, yet somehow "finally finished" sounding notification rang out once more:

[Ding! Stage One evolution preliminarily complete!]

[Star body (egg form) has successfully evolved into "Neutron Star State" (reconstructed based on world rules, limit of material collapse, possesses the limit strength of a living being's physical body)!]

[Detected eight dying stars (Golden Crow remains) within the host's Gravitational Field range. Host, please choose a disposal plan immediately:]

[Option One: Accretion!]

[Activate the host's core Gravitational Field to forcefully absorb the dissipated energy and residual material essence of the eight dying stars to strengthen yourself.]

[Extremely high probability of pushing the star body to continue collapsing from the Neutron Star State, evolving into the ultimate celestial body--"Black Hole State" (reconstructed version of world rules).]

[Reward: If Stage Two "Innate Divine Being" evolution is initiated in "Black Hole State," it will directly trigger the "Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal Tribulation"!]

[If the tribulation is successful, the starting point of the Innate Divine Being form will be--Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal Realm!]

[Option Two: Empowerment!]

[Utilize the system's special protocol to consume a portion of the host's energy to stabilize the eight dying stars.]

[Guide them to simultaneously initiate Star Evolution (Stage One: Egg State). This operation will help the host deeply understand the system's operating principles and their own state.]

[Reward: When the host initiates Stage Two evolution while maintaining the current "Neutron Star Egg" state, the Innate Divine Being form will directly possess physical strength comparable to an Ancestral Witch!]

[Option Three: Indifference!]

[Ignore the eight dying stars nearby and let them completely collapse and perish. The host immediately initiates their own Stage Two evolution.]

[Reward: None.]

Lu Jun (Egg): "!!!"

Holy crap!

This system is truly fierce!