The Xel'Naga conceived of the Protoss and the Zerg with different philosophies. When creating the Protoss, they aimed for a form of perfect biology, thus the Protoss perfection was external: they possessed mighty technology and psychic linkage, creating a splendid civilization—all foundations laid by the Xel'Naga.

Unfortunately, the history of the Protoss included a dark epoch. During this time, they forgot the Xel'Naga teachings, severed their psychic connection, and fractured into warring tribes, descending into ceaseless civil conflict. Only the establishment of the Khala reconnected the Protoss minds. During that dark period, the Xel'Naga lost faith in the Protoss and departed, abandoning them.

Later, the Xel'Naga arrived on a world teeming with volcanoes. They resolved to engineer a being of inherent perfection here, choosing one of the most unremarkable crawling things. Utilizing their profound knowledge of bio-engineering and gene biology, they cultivated the Zerg—a pure, unified race, also possessing psychic linkage.

The Zerg's perfection was internal. To prevent the Protoss's fate from being repeated, the Xel'Naga decided to erase the Zerg's individual thoughts, consolidating their consciousness into a single, potent, unified entity: the Overmind.

However, to the Xel'Naga's astonishment, the Zerg proved too perfect, surpassing their imagination. The Overmind extended its tendrils into space and discovered its creators. Thereupon, the Overmind severed the psychic link that allowed the Xel'Naga to monitor it, unleashed a devastating swarm, breached the Xel'Naga vessels, and absorbed and assimilated its creators.

The creators destroyed by their creation—what irony! And the Zerg Overmind, now possessing all the knowledge and memories of the Xel'Naga, became the true master, wielding unparalleled power.

Do not assume the Zerg lack intellect; the Overmind’s wisdom far surpasses that of any human or Protoss!

Nor should you believe the Zerg lack technology; Zerg technology is entirely biological! Bio-engineering is in no way inferior to mechanical engineering; perhaps even superior!

Only after absorbing the Xel'Naga knowledge did Yang Ying truly grasp the Zerg's might. By employing various means of bio-engineering and gene biology, the Zerg's strength could be multiplied exponentially.

The Protoss and the Zerg possessed spiritual technology and biological technology, respectively. In terms of technology, either one, if taken in isolation, was not beneath the True Human Empire. Only the Terran race lagged slightly behind. Yang Ying began to consider that if the True Human Empire's technology could be adapted to the Terran race, it would be perfect.

Absorbing the Xel'Naga knowledge took Yang Ying’s main body and two avatars ten days. The sheer volume of data in the light sphere already exceeded the entire knowledge base of the core library at the Glacial Central Academy. Yang Ying wondered if even the comprehensive Royal Library of the True Human Empire held such a vast amount of knowledge—perhaps the equivalent of a million Level Ten courses.

The Xel'Naga excelled, naturally, in biotechnology. Yang Ying now knew how to create a Cerebrate, something nobody would believe if told. A mere Level Four entity creating one? Preposterous!

Yet, it was fact. Xel'Naga technology could produce Level Four entities, and perhaps even Level Five ones!

Setting aside other considerations, the Zerg Overmind that consumed the Xel'Naga was, in Yang Ying's estimation, a Level Five entity. Perhaps when it attacked its creators, the Overmind was not yet Level Five, far from its peak strength. But after gaining the Xel'Naga's wisdom and power, after the Zerg had expanded across half the galaxy, and when it used psychic force to open a wormhole, teleporting the entire Zerg armada to the Protoss homeworld of Aiur—that was an act beyond the capabilities of Level Four, or even the limit of Level Four.

Of course, the Overmind's emergence involved an element of chance; even the Xel'Naga did not fully understand what they had wrought. Yang Ying’s chances of replicating the process that created the Overmind were extremely slim.

And even if the probability were significant, Yang Ying had no intention of trying. The Zerg already had one Overmind; the fate of the Xel'Naga served as a stark warning should a true Level Five Overmind ever arise.

The power at the limit of Level Four represented the highest known force in the galaxy; there was no immediate necessity to seek greater power.

As for the Cerebrates, Yang Ying felt it worthwhile to create a few. Many tasks within the Swarm did not require his personal attention. With Cerebrates handling the more trivial work, his control over the Zerg would form a true pyramid structure, making it much more stable.

The appearance of Cerebrates would not diminish his authority over the Zerg; rather, it would streamline the command system, increasing efficiency. Furthermore, it would add several Level Four subordinates. What was there to lose?

At this time, the True Human Empire’s retaliatory campaign against the Perseus Arm was drawing to a close; twelve out of fifteen races had already been annihilated. Where the Imperial fleet passed, scorched earth remained for thousands of miles, leaving no blade of grass alive.

Regarding the conflict in the Perseus Arm, Orion's Belt had gathered some intelligence. The Singers, being the fifth-ranked race in the Orion Arm, were quite well-informed. Blade had been persistently prying information from Lion, and Jia You'na would not refuse to divulge details, as the matter involved neither of them directly.

However, according to Jia You'na, many races planned to capitalize once the True Human Empire withdrew. At least the top three powers in Orion’s Belt—the Gallanians, the Cycroans, and the Loyans—were already expanding their forces. Clearly, as soon as the True Human Empire’s fleet retreated, they intended to march into the Perseus Arm.

Thus, Yang Ying decided to move the modification of a Cerebrate onto the agenda, intending to cultivate a few as soon as possible so they would be ready by the time the True Human Empire withdrew.

As for the first Cerebrate, Yang Ying decided to entrust this opportunity to Baal.

"Supreme Master! How honored is your humble servant Baal to receive your consideration as the first Cerebrate. Baal is truly unable to express the depth of his excitement!"

Baal’s flattery flowed incessantly like a surging river. Had Yang Ying not struck him into unconsciousness, the flattery might have continued for another half hour detailing his agitation.

Yang Ying brought Baal to the highest-grade Hive Cluster and tossed him into a large incubation vat. A layer of translucent membrane immediately began secreting from the vat’s edges, quickly sealing it. After a while, numerous tube-like structures appeared on Baal’s body, connecting him to the Hive Cluster.

Every Hive Cluster was a living organism and a location where Yang Ying could perform genetic manipulation. Yang Ying spent over fifty hours controlling the Hive Cluster to synthesize a long DNA segment, coating it with a viral shell, and injecting it into Baal’s body. These viruses would alter Baal’s structure, granting him new characteristics.

This process was akin to installing a piece of software in a computer system.

Some Zerg units, like the Hydralisk, could instantly evolve into Lurkers with a single command. This evolution did not require a Spawning Pool, because the necessary genetic modifications were already latent within it, like a program residing on a hard drive, waiting to be executed with a double-click and confirmation.

But Baal was different. The required genetic segment for a Cerebrate did not exist in any current Zerg form; the Swarm lacked the necessary DNA sequence for a Cerebrate.

Only the current Yang Ying, armed with Xel'Naga gene biology knowledge, could author the Cerebrate's code based on his understanding of the Zerg. This was why the process needed the Hive Cluster—the Hive Cluster served as the "equipment, instrument," or "laboratory" for precise genetic manipulation.

Genetic biologists, to a certain extent, share similarities with programmers. They understand the code of life and use it to write life’s programs, endowing living things with myriad functions.

Cultivating a Cerebrate requires more than just the right code. A Cerebrate is a Level Four existence; its growth demands colossal amounts of energy and nutrition, unlike producing two Zerglings from a single cocoon.

This level of energy and nutrition could only be provided by a large architectural unit like a Hive Cluster; even a standard Spawning Pool was insufficient, let alone the Creep outside.

With the code, energy, and nutrition secured, it was still not enough. Clearly, the most crucial aspect for a Cerebrate is command over a Zerg army. Yang Ying allocated ten million Zerg units to Baal’s command.

He retained control over this ten-million-strong army, merely delegating partial authority to Baal for proxy management—much like when Baal was a mere Brood Lord, managing Zerg forces in specific engagements. This time, the granted authority was simply one level higher, with the numbers magnified dozens of times.

The only drawback was that the mental energy supplied by this ten-million-unit army would be halved: Yang Ying would receive five million units of psychic power, while the other five million would sustain Baal.

However, in Yang Ying’s view, this was a worthwhile trade.

Once expansion began, Baal would rapidly propagate his swarm, and that portion of psychic energy would multiply. Losing five million now would soon be offset by a return of twenty, thirty, or even more million later. Coupled with a Level Four assistant, the transaction was invaluable.

Two days later, Baal’s incubation cocoon grew massive, eventually enveloping the entire Hive Cluster and forming a giant cocoon hundreds of meters long. Thick, coarse vessels pulsed across its surface like arteries, and whitish respiratory tubes constantly inflated and deflated, violently drawing in air.

Yang Ying could sense the incubation progressing, and he also knew that the Creep within a hundred-kilometer radius had thinned by an average of one centimeter over the past two days, with a continuing trend of depletion.

The reason for this lay in Yang Ying’s clear understanding of what a standard StarCraft Cerebrate looked like: corpulent, sluggish, or even immobile, possessing nothing useful beyond the ability to resurrect on the spot if its Overmind died—an attribute effectively nullified by Dark Templar interference. Such a Cerebrate was utterly pathetic.

That was not the kind of Cerebrate Yang Ying desired. He wanted a Super-Cerebrate form possessing Level Four psychic strength, powerful combat ability, high mobility, and the capacity to transport vast numbers of Zerg forces. With the Xel'Naga's gene biology knowledge, he was confident he could achieve this. If you wish to know what happens next, please visit [Website Address], where more chapters are available to support the author and legitimate reading!