The sheer destructive power of the Infested Brood Lords was something Fang Senyan understood well. It was on Pandora that Fang Senyan had tested the collective bombardment capabilities of Brood Lords against the Viper packs; the splash damage from their expelled spores was astounding. However, being the target of that assault now, the experience was far from pleasant.

Yet, the weakness of the Brood Lords was equally clear: insufficient range, placing them in the mid-to-close combat spectrum. Thus, for a large number of Brood Lords to attack a single target, they inevitably had to coalesce into a tight formation. Once the Brood Lords clustered, the Protoss's formidable Psionic Storm could eliminate them with relative ease.

Even the High Templar’s area-of-effect Plasma Surge was something the Brood Lords deeply feared. The irony was that their team possessed a powerful High Templar, Aldaris! He could unleash both the devastating Psionic Storm and the Plasma Surge; given the right opportunity, annihilating the entire incoming host was not just a dream.

More importantly, Fang Senyan had already conferred with Aldaris: in other worlds, the High Templar transformation could only be used as a trump card with a very short duration. But due to the unique nature of this mission, Aldaris could maintain the High Templar combat state indefinitely without any energy expenditure! The Brood Lords dove, their descent accompanied by shrill cries and the piercing whistle of the wind.

Their primary target, naturally, was Aldaris, who stood enveloped in a soft, white radiance. The individual remained rooted to the spot. He appeared paralyzed by shock, yet only Fang Senyan knew that this being was likely one who gained strength against superior foes; he must be calculating every trajectory, every possibility at high speed.

In Aldaris's mind, these terrifyingly numerous Fliers were destined to become the cornerstone of his victory! “Now… is the time!” Seeing the swarm of Brood Lords diving within fifty meters, Aldaris suddenly raised both hands high. Terrifying ionic energy danced and crackled between his fingertips.

Immediately, a fearsome Psionic Storm erupted in the sky, seemingly poised to sweep away everything! Just seconds after this Psionic Storm engulfed the incoming Brood Lords, three other Psionic Storms materialized ahead of the swarm—to the front, the left, and the right! Aldaris had almost simultaneously unleashed four Psionic Storms!

The sheer area covered was unprecedented! In terms of raw power, a Brood Lord would be ripped apart by the horrific force within two seconds of being trapped in a Psionic Storm. But the area covered by these four storms made it virtually impossible for the swarm to achieve this, unless they could instantly halt their dive and reverse course like a backing vehicle—a feat that existed only in fantasy.

Thus, in Aldaris’s view, these terrifyingly numerous Brood Lords, once grouped, were nothing more than the perfect attack opportunity: a large influx of Protoss reputation and considerable loot. He held absolute confidence in his concealed maneuver, the Psionic Storm Matrix (borrowing the terminology from Rogue Master II). In his eyes, this massive wave of Brood Lords was already doomed!

However, there are always exceptions to every rule. These Brood Lords, serving as the final defensive line deployed by the Queen of Blades, Moriggan, had naturally accounted for their greatest weakness! Especially when facing a Protoss faction skilled in area-of-effect attacks.

Their key weakness was compensated for by a single Hero unit. A seemingly unremarkable Hero Brood Lord—visually indistinguishable from the others, blending into the swarm like a stone hidden on a riverbank. But just as gold eventually shines, when the formidable Psionic Storm descended, all the other Brood Lords began converging toward it.

This Hero Brood Lord instantly manifested a massive protective shield around its body, shimmering with a faint green aura that cleverly deflected the Psionic Storm’s attack. The result? Aldaris, having exhausted his MP deploying the Psionic Storm Matrix, hadn’t even scratched the hide of a single Brood Lord!

What he now faced was the enraged, full-strength counterattack of the Brood Lord swarm! In an instant, Aldaris transformed from a victor certain of success to a loser about to sacrifice everything, even his life! Fang Senyan unhesitatingly struck Aldaris with his awakening skill: Survival Mark.

Fortunately, he was still bolstered by the passive talent Death God's Sigh, meaning he wasn't worried about being instantly vaporized. Protected by the massive shield, the Brood Lords plunged downward, blotting out the sky, an awe-inspiring sight. Fifty meters, forty meters, twenty meters!

Aldaris was instantaneously within the Brood Lords’ effective range. Even with the protection of the Survival Mark, he was still highly likely to be instantly annihilated! But just then, a nearby Zealot suddenly ignited, swelling outward.

Yes, it was enveloped in a deep crimson flame, rapidly transforming into a colossal orb of light, looking exactly like Aldaris, save that the orb’s color was now black-red, and the figure within radiated astonishing pressure. This unit, much like the High Templar, possessed no inherent offensive capabilities, relying entirely on its psychic might to strike terror into the hearts of its enemies. Its appearance mirrored that of Aldaris.

The distinction lay in the color: Aldaris’s transformation resulted in a white orb of light, whereas the entity named Noos appeared as a black-red sphere, as if freshly dredged from a hellish molten pool. These potent beings, composed of living plasma energy, are imbued with eternal fury granted by the Dark Archon. They can be formed by the fusion of any two Dark Templar and wield mastery over the mysterious energies of spacetime.

These terrifying aerial units were so powerful that the Dark Templar refused to acknowledge their existence for nearly a thousand years. Only after the Zerg destroyed Aiur did the Dark Templar recognize the necessity of unlocking this most potent weapon. His full designation was… Dark Archon!

And what had just manifested was a Hero-grade Dark Archon! Sensing the overwhelming pressure, Fang Senyan knew this entity was Noos, the Executor chosen by the powerful Ulnarqi to lead this assault force! This creature had been lurking beside them all along, perhaps believing that "those not of our kind must have divergent minds," viewing himself as the most unstable element in the entire squad.

Unexpectedly, he chose this moment to reveal himself. The Dark Archon’s deep red, blazing form induced dread in all witnesses on the battlefield, including the descending Brood Lords. But led by the Hero Brood Lord and shielded by a powerful radiation field that absorbed any damaging psionic energy, they charged forward relentlessly!

However, amidst the blood-like radiance, Noos raised his left hand, aiming it at the enormous radiation shield in the air—no, more accurately, at the Brood Lords furiously beating their wings inside, spewing torrents of spores! His will instantly connected with the vast power of the distant cosmos, resonating, and a terrifying spatial vortex exploded open. This vortex exerted no direct damage, but it bypassed the protection of the radiation shield (which only blocked harm), causing the vast majority of the Brood Lords to become eerily suspended in time, utterly immobilized!

Seizing this instant, Fang Senyan lunged forward, kicking and shoving Aldaris off the Brood Lords’ direct line of descent. Then, in an act even more unbelievable, after unleashing the Great Vortex, Noos’s black-red flames surged wildly, coalescing into an ancient Protoss symbol two meters in diameter. He then roared out, “Darkness is inevitable!” The ancient symbol shattered instantly.

Above the heads of the large group of Brood Lords trapped by the Great Vortex, the space abruptly split open, emitting streams of vast, yellow, ring-like light, and then… and then… every Brood Lord within the area was simultaneously subjected to psychic control, meaning they became units commanded by Noos! Group Psychic Domination! The Hero Brood Lord, naturally, could not be controlled, but this presented a new reality: it was now perfectly positioned within the firing range of the newly enslaved Brood Lords.

In mere moments, an incalculable volume of offensive spores slammed into it. This powerful Hero unit instantly dissolved into a cloud of flying gore! Such a brutal outcome, such a tortuous process!

It was no wonder there was an adage that the deadliest weapon is not the sword; on the battlefield, units devoid of direct offensive power often inflict the greatest destruction. Noos had no concern for Aldaris's life or death; his absolute priority was ensuring his spells took full effect. Therefore, Aldaris did sustain some portion of the Brood Lords’ attack, and the cumulative damage was significant.

It could be said that without Fang Senyan’s awakening skill protection, Aldaris would likely be dead; even so, he was now in a state of severe injury and unconsciousness.

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