To Fang Senyan's eyes, the light around Aldaris' body was faint, seemingly ready to extinguish at any moment; in such a terrifying scale of mass combat, individual strength is indeed weakened to the extreme.

A cold-blooded figure like Noros, whose calculations were pushed to the limit, would certainly prioritize targets based on the guaranteed hit of his abilities, considering Aldaris' life or death as secondary—besides, sacrifice was a virtue expected of heroic Protoss warriors!

Therefore, Aldaris surviving was truly a stroke of immense luck.

Frankly, Noros' appearance was beyond the expectations of the Queen of Blades, as his power level was already at the peak of a Hero unit, only a hair's breadth away from entering the echelon of the mighty Titans.

Coupled with his extreme aptitude for forbearance, his sudden explosion of power at this juncture inflicted heavy damage on the Zerg forces. Under Noros' prior strike, at least several hundred Brood Lords were subjected to his psychic control, all enslaved to him.

This strike arguably exhausted Noros' full strength, plunging him into a state of weakness afterward. Only then, as Fang Senyan looked at him, did the previously masked data reveal itself.

Noros (Plasma Energy Being) Category: Dark Archon Attributes: Health 5 Points / Energy Shield 35000 Points (Currently remaining 12199 points, regeneration rate 3 points/5 seconds) Base Attributes: Unknown Ability: Spacetime Vortex. Wields the dark powers of spacetime, causing enemies within range to simultaneously enter a state of temporal stasis, frozen in time, though susceptible to all damage during this state. Duration 12 seconds. Cooldown 600 seconds. Ability: Mind Control. Wields the dark powers of the soul to control the minds of other creatures; this is the ultimate weapon of the Dark Archon. Through immense effort and energy, the Dark Archon can achieve the goal of controlling other creatures' thoughts. Once controlled, the creature's power and knowledge become the Dark Archon's own. Under Noros' exertion, this ability can be cast on a single target, even enslaving powerful Hero units, or it can be transformed into an area-of-effect skill, enslaving all units within a radius instantly! Cooldown for this ability is 48 hours. Ability: Feedback. Burns away all of the target's psychic energy, dealing equivalent damage in return.

The chain reaction following Noros' successful strike was astonishing. Firstly, the Zerg side lost a powerful, highly mobile, and high-damage force; moreover, this power was transferred to the Protoss side!

This was not simple annihilation. To use an analogy, if the previous strength ratio between the Zerg and Protoss was 8:4, presenting an overwhelming twofold advantage, Noros' strike reduced the Zerg power to 6, while simultaneously increasing the Protoss strength to 6. With this shift, the Zerg's overwhelming advantage was abruptly neutralized by one powerful skill from Noros!

The ensuing battle became even more ferocious. Noros, his strength temporarily augmented, reorganized his troops and resolutely charged back into the Zerg forces lurking in the darkness! His objective was to link up with the Protoss forces that had been cleaved into several separate pockets by the Zerg.

Thanks to the suicidal charges of the terrifyingly numerous Brood Lords clearing the path, coupled with the Zerg’s lack of wide-area devastation spells like Psionic Storm, Fang Senyan and his comrades, following Noros' breakthrough, experienced a feeling of unstoppable momentum, like a heated knife plunging into butter.

However, it must be noted that such ferocious advances were achieved at the cost of massive Brood Lord casualties. Under the attacks of numerous Hydralisks, the fragile Brood Lords holding the front line perished every few seconds or minutes, interspersed with occasional Kamikaze Bat attacks delivering terrifying impacts.

After successfully merging two encircled Protoss contingents, Noros appeared set to rescue a third, but halfway there, he abruptly changed direction! Simultaneously, the nearby Protoss base staged a major maneuver: the Heroic Carrier from before roared out, escorted by Devenna’s Heroic Phoenix warship, along with various highly mobile regular flying units, charging fiercely toward this location!

Fang Senyan was initially confused by Noros' sudden shift in target, but he was involuntarily swept along in the bloodthirsty momentum of the massive host charging forward. He did sense immense pressure and resistance ahead, and soon, Fang Senyan grasped the powerful Dark Archon’s true intent: a direct thrust toward the heart of the enemy, seizing the enemy commander’s head amidst a myriad of troops!

Yes, Noros' target was the Brain Bug currently directing the battle on the field, standing in for the mighty Queen.

Although the Queen of Blades had severely wounded Ul'Aki, she could not have emerged unscathed; she must have returned to the Hive to recuperate. Thus, by capturing the leader first—taking down that Brain Bug—winning the battle was practically guaranteed.

Noros feigned a rescue of his divided forces to lure the main Zerg contingent toward that sector, then abruptly drove straight toward the location of the Zerg Brain Bug, while simultaneously dispatching reinforcements from the Protoss base—at least signaling a full-scale, decisive offensive commitment.

The Zerg response would inevitably be a hurried full recall, which would naturally lift the siege on the encircled Protoss unit. Noros would then gain the support of the base reinforcements plus the remnants of the unit the Zerg had surrounded; striking with intent against an unprepared foe guaranteed a massive advantage.

In this thrust and parry, while the Zerg Brain Bug fought for its life, the Protoss fought just as fiercely for theirs! If they failed to inflict irreparable damage upon the Zerg forces this night, once the Queen of Blades recovered, the Protoss, having used all their trump cards, would certainly be no match for the Zerg. Consequently, the resolve and will to fight on both sides were hardened to an unimaginable degree, carrying the air of fighting until the last soldier fell. The sheer brutality of this offensive and defensive struggle was beyond conception.

Among the heroes Fang Senyan knew personally, Sorkada of the Red Cape and Great Hammer was slain! The Heroic Carrier was swarmed by numerous Hydralisks and Suicide Mutalisks, crashing itself to pieces in a fiery explosion; even that Heroic-class transport was rammed and exploded by frenzied Zerg units!

Fortunately, Fang Senyan managed to rescue the transport pilot just in time, and Dochego, being a ranged unit, lost three legs; if Fang Senyan hadn't reacted quickly, this fellow would not have survived either. These powerful Hero units were decimated, with less than one in ten surviving; even the several hundred Brood Lords Noros had subdued were now reduced to a mere dozen.

But the ultimate target—the Brain Bug—finally appeared before them.

Its appearance was almost indistinguishable from the Black Spine Brain Bug, except for distinct red striations running from its head to its back. Yes, this was Fang Senyan’s old acquaintance, the Red-Striped Brain Bug that once vied with Black Spine on the distant Planet P.

It had clearly upgraded its rank, transforming from a fat, maggot-like shape into a combat unit protected by chitinous armor, resembling a cockroach.

There were no challenges or exchanges of words. Noros pointed a finger, and his great storm descended upon the meticulously arrayed Zerg positions ahead! At least several hundred Zerglings, Hydralisks, and Ultralisks were imprisoned by the powerful spatial storm and the shackles of time, instantly tearing open a gap in the seemingly impregnable defensive line.

What followed was the Protoss offensive's tried-and-true opening barrage—three devastatingly effective maneuvers!

First, a sweep with Psionic Storm, followed by positioning long-range Zealots to conduct crystal bombardment, and finally, Zealots and Dragoons crushing forward to clean up the remnants. However, the Brain Bug’s personal guard was also exceptionally formidable. The two sides clashed fiercely. Fang Senyan deeply envied Aldaris being shipped to the rear for recuperation; he, however, had to grit his teeth and charge onto the front lines once more. Even though he did his utmost to avoid conflict and tried to pick off the weaker targets, those who could stand at the forefront at this stage were all battle-hardened elites; the pressure was anything but light!

What Fang Senyan resented most was that several times he feigned critical injury and collapsed on the ground, only to immediately be met by Noros' cold, mocking gaze. Fang Senyan could only obediently crawl back up and continue fighting! Holding the front line.

What Fang Senyan didn't know was that Noros was an even more fanatical supporter of the 'Protoss Elite' doctrine than Sorkada, believing the entire Protoss race to be the pinnacle of perfection. Yet, Fang Senyan, this weak human, under his very nose, held on in the mad battle even longer than most Protoss elites. Naturally, this commanded Noros’ full attention!

“Damn it…” Fang Senyan, under duress, was forced to draw Ambition, declaring a Hydralisk before him an apostate, and then pulling the trigger. He was using Ambition's lifesteal function to restore his health! It showed the extreme pressure Fang Senyan was under.

Suddenly, a flash of light illuminated the sky, and a strangely streamlined vessel flew out of the darkness. Its crystal-blue hull was punctuated by numerous transparent windows. Its appearance was incredibly striking, truly resembling an abstract, crazed Phoenix!

Yes, this was the Hero Phoenix ship piloted by Devenna, who had arrived at the battlefield just in time.

Taking advantage of the suicidal, frenzied offensive launched by a contingent of Protoss troops, the escort surrounding the Red-Striped Brain Bug finally revealed a slight gap—only a sliver, enough perhaps only for the light to pass through. But at that precise moment, a beam of indescribable blue-white light shot from the tip of Devenna’s Phoenix ship, searing into the Red-Striped Brain Bug!!