Earth, Fire, Water, Wind: The Evolution of Life

In the Star Lord Class, out of thirty-four Star Lords, only nineteen, including Liang Ji, went up to receive the Spotted Star Snake demon cores.

The remaining fifteen had not chosen the Spotted Star Snake demon cores. Clearly, their families had prepared better options for them.

Liang Ji could only sigh. There really are so many rich people.

"Next, activate your 'Star Compasses' and teleport the demon cores into your Natal Stars for refinement!"

"I explained the specific procedure clearly this morning and even demonstrated it for you. There shouldn't be any problems now, right?"

Teacher Du, the homeroom teacher, called out from the podium.

"No problem."

The students answered in unison, then each activated the Starlight Treasure Mirror before them.

Liang Ji watched as a beam of starlight shot from the Starlight Treasure Mirror and landed before him, swiftly sketching and outlining itself before condensing into a starlight spell formation in the blink of an eye.

He placed the Spotted Star Snake's demon core in the center of the formation. As the starlight circulated, the demon core vanished instantly.

At the same time, he used the Starlight Treasure Mirror and the Dragon Soul to inspect the condition of his Natal Star.

He saw the demon core transform into a meteor, streaking through the starry void before crashing down onto his Natal Star.

The Dragon Soul coiled around the Natal Star raised its head at that moment and opened its jaws, swallowing the falling demon-core meteor. The demon core circulated once through the Dragon Soul's body before finally falling into the Natal Star.

"The next month will be the critical period for the demon cores to merge into your Natal Stars and evolve First-Order Spiritual Veins."

"The Celestial Star Array Diagram will accelerate the flow of time where your Natal Stars are located—ten thousand years in a single day—to assist your Natal Stars in evolving spiritual veins and giving birth to life."

"When Half-Demon dependents are born on your Natal Stars, it will prove that the First-Order Spiritual Veins have stabilized. Your Natal Stars will advance into First-Order Stars, and you will successfully advance into First-Order Star Lords."

"Of course, that only means you'll be the weakest First-Order Star Lords."

Teacher Du explained this to the students and reminded them:

"Over this month, you must frequently observe the condition of your Natal Stars."

"Under this kind of accelerated time, the birth of spiritual veins and the evolution of life are both exceedingly rare phenomena. The Great Dao lies within them."

"It doesn't matter if you cannot understand them now. Leave behind some memories and impressions. Once you cultivate to higher levels in the future, those memories and impressions will become your most precious wealth, greatly benefiting your comprehension of the Dao and cultivation."

"This is also an opportunity unique to the path of Star Lords. Do not waste it."

"Of course, if you discover anything wrong while observing the evolution of your Natal Stars, report it to me immediately."

"I will help you inspect them and resolve the problem."

"If you conceal anything and problems arise, you alone will bear the consequences."

"I hope everyone cherishes their own lives."

Liang Ji listened below as his homeroom teacher explained and cautioned them. He noted down the important points while cross-checking them against the knowledge and information about Star Lords that he had learned and understood.

The Xiantian Spiritual Treasure, the Celestial Star Array Diagram, could accelerate the flow of time on a Star Lord's Natal Star, aiding its growth.

However, the different orders of Natal Stars allowed the Celestial Star Array Diagram to adjust time flow at different rates.

Liang Ji and the others' Natal Stars had not even given birth to spiritual veins yet. They were merely the most ordinary Mortal-Order Stars, limited in size, mass, energy, and other aspects. The fastest the Celestial Star Array Diagram could accelerate them was ten thousand years in a day.

Once Natal Stars gave birth to spiritual veins and increased in size, mass, and energy, adjusting their time flow would become increasingly difficult. The higher the order of the Natal Star, the less its time flow could be accelerated.

Generally speaking, First-Order Natal Stars could be accelerated to at most one thousand years in a day; Second-Order Natal Stars, one hundred years in a day; Third-Order Natal Stars, ten years in a day; Fourth-Order Natal Stars, one year in a day; Fifth-Order Natal Stars, one month in a day. By the time one reached Sixth-Order Natal Stars, the Celestial Star Array Diagram could basically no longer control or accelerate the flow of time upon them.

Over the following month, the Star Lord Class had fewer lessons, and they were all relatively unimportant.

This gave Star Lords like Liang Ji more time and energy to observe the development and evolution of their Natal Stars.

On Dragon Soul Star, Liang Ji observed its evolution and growth through both his Dragon Soul avatar and the Starlight Treasure Mirror.

In the sky, the sun, moon, and stars revolved, forming the passage of day and night and the cycle of the seasons.

At first, Dragon Soul Star had only land. As time passed, tens of thousands of years of continental movement and collision produced flames, and earthfire and magma erupted. Then, after another tens of thousands of years, under the burning and smelting of flame and earth, water began to emerge and gradually formed oceans. Water vapor rose and ascended, giving birth to wind and air, which formed an atmosphere after tens of thousands of years.

This opening of earth, fire, water, and wind lasted one hundred thousand years. At last, Dragon Soul Star possessed the conditions for life to arise.

Yet from the creation of an environment for life to the birth of the first living thing, Liang Ji waited another full hundred thousand years. After all, this was a breakthrough from zero to one, from nothing to something—the hardest kind of breakthrough.

After life was born, however, it began to evolve rapidly beneath the flying passage of time.

From the earliest and most ancient fungi and mosses, insects and algae began to appear after tens of thousands of years of evolution. After another tens of thousands of years came fish and ferns; after yet another tens of thousands of years came amphibians, grasses, and trees.

The entire process of life's evolution likewise lasted one hundred thousand years. At last, Dragon Soul Star's dependent Half-Demon Snake People evolved into existence.

Throughout the evolution of the star and the development of life, the First-Order Spiritual Vein within Dragon Soul Star was gradually born and condensed, participating in the entire process of stellar evolution and life's evolution.

By the time the Half-Demon Snake People appeared, it signified that the First-Order Spiritual Vein on Dragon Soul Star had completely formed and stabilized. The entire process had lasted nearly three hundred thousand years—one month in reality.

This was basically consistent with the timeframe Teacher Du had described.

Within the Star Alliance, the path of Star Lords had developed for countless years. The experience of cultivation and advancement was already exceedingly mature. Under normal circumstances, as long as students did not recklessly tamper with things themselves, no unexpected changes would occur.

Yet as he examined the dependent Half-Demon Snake People born on Dragon Soul Star, Liang Ji's expression became somewhat subtle.

He had not done anything reckless, but the dependent Half-Demon Snake People born on his star had nevertheless undergone an unexpected change.

Liang Ji discovered that the scales on these Half-Demon Snake People were far larger, thicker, rounder, glossier, and more spiritually resonant than ordinary snake scales.

They did not look like snake scales at all. They looked more like dragon scales!

At the same time, these Half-Demon Snake People seemed somewhat taller and larger than the Half-Demon Snake People he knew of.

"Is this... the Dragon Soul's influence?"

"Perhaps I shouldn't call them Half-Demon Snake People. Perhaps they should be Half-Demon Dragonfolk?"

Liang Ji pondered inwardly and could not help looking toward the Dragon Soul coiled around his Natal Star.

He discovered that the Dragon Soul had also undergone a new change. On its illusory-yet-real body, some dragon scales had begun to shine with spiritual light, as though they had been lit up, turning from illusion into reality.

Liang Ji withdrew his consciousness and looked again at the information displayed on the Starlight Treasure Mirror. There had already been more changes.

Star Lord: Liang Ji.

Cultivation: None.

Natal Star: Dragon Soul Star.

Star Diameter: 700 kilometers.

Star Composition: Earth (43%), metal (13%), water (24%), wood (10%), fire (5%), air (5%).

Spiritual Vein: First-Order (1%).

Dependents: Half-Demon Snake People (mutated).

Dao Fruit: 0.01%.

The opening of earth, fire, water, and wind, the birth of the spiritual vein, and the evolution of life had brought nearly earth-shattering changes to Liang Ji's Natal Star.

Below that set of data, another new set appeared, listing the condition of the dependent Half-Demon Snake People.

Dependents: Half-Demon Snake People (mutated).

Order: None. (Bloodline not awakened, intelligence not born, not advanced.)

Number: 356.

Religion: None.

Politics: None.

Economy: None.

Military: None.

Skills: None.

The information on the newborn stellar dependents, the Half-Demon Snake People, was exceedingly simple.

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