I'd like to see if the enemy dares to provoke the Taldarim!

Frontier World, Braxis.

The capital of Braxis Polaris, stood silently amidst the blizzard, with only the lights of the fusion power plant and the maglev train faintly visible.

From the geothermal greenhouses on the outskirts of the city to the towering city government building, everything was covered with thick snow. This white world was cold and monotonous. Even at the equator, it was a vast, desolate, and cold tundra, and the cold of the long, dark night was enough to take human lives.

The developed mining and heavy industries are the main pillars of Braxis's economy, and also the primary source of employment and income for its residents. Braxis has always traded its scarce resources for other worlds in the Terran Confederacy by exporting high-purity crystals, raw minerals, and precious metals.

In the past, Braxis was a member world under the rule of the Terran Confederacy, and due to its small population, it had never evolved into Old Families like those on other planets. A few months ago, the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet arrived here and declared Braxis to be the first planet they had conquered.

Now, with the collapse of the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet, the Braxis people have also launched a rebellion against the UED rulers. Large-scale bloody clashes broke out between the locals and the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet that remained in Braxis. Under the decisive and resolute suppression by the garrison commander, thousands of rioters were killed or wounded in just a few days.

This did not dampen the spirits of the Braxis, as they had already made contact with a Fleets of the Korhal Revolutionary Army.

The planet is engulfed in massive unrest. Even Polaris is in turmoil, with all daily activities and production brought to a standstill. Revolutionaries have stormed into the cities, and shouts of rebellion echo through the streets.

However, this was only the beginning of the disaster.

An incomparably magnificent behemoth hovered in the turbulent, cold air currents of Braxis, its deployed shields flashing with a blood-red light. It was very similar to Aiur's Protoss Mothership, but its magnificent gold and blue hull was a dark black and a bright red, and the places that originally belonged to the Kydarin Crystal Kinetic Matrix were replaced by blood crystals that looked like blood crystals.

Sharp, giant black spikes lined up one after another, standing like swords on the towering warship, their sharp, ferocious beauty extremely striking.

More black and red warships and spaceships of the same style are traversing the extremely frigid atmosphere of Braxis, and countless shimmering blood-red crystals are staining the sky crimson.

The Tal'darim, another branch of the Protoss, are vastly different from their distant relatives in Aiur and Shakuras. These highly intelligent beings are cruel and bloodthirsty. While possessing highly advanced war technology, their internal system remains akin to a form of slavery.

Fanatical, cold-blooded, cunning, and ruthless.

"What a pathetic race! Only the weak and incompetent place their hopes on the so-called faith of freedom. Insubordination and overthrow are the only ways to win." The fifth seat of the Taldarim Chain of Ascension, the great Ascended One Jinarra, sat on the high throne in the center of the bridge of the Mothership flagship, immersed in the wonderful feeling of power and the control over life and death.

Jinarra is a powerful Tal'darim with a beautiful and alluring figure. Her curvaceous body is completely covered by black and red battle robes and armor, and even her head is covered by a tightly sealed helmet, with her eyes hidden behind the blood-red helmet visor.

This actually sparks the imagination; if Jinarra took off her helmet, she wouldn't be as charming.

Women are rarely seen among the Templar Knights of Aiur, but now there are two women among the top five seats Protoss the Taldarim Chain of Ascension.

The Chain of Ascension Overmind all Tal'darim, and every Taldarim exists within this cruel hierarchical ranking system, ordered by rank numbers. The strong enslave the weak, and the stronger enslave the strong, using absolute power or intrigue. Even the lowest-ranking Taldarim has the chance to become the Overmind.

In the Taldarim, strength reigns supreme. As long as one is powerful enough, status and power are not something one needs to strive for. Unlike the Aiur Protoss, whose class system is completely rigid, the Tal'darim do not care about birth. As long as you are cunning, bloodthirsty, and ruthless, you can climb the Chain of Ascension step by step.

There is no such thing as kinship; in the ruthless Tal'darim society, power reigns supreme, and the Chain of Ascension is eternal.

"Lady Jinarra, the Observer have confirmed that the UED humans are in this city." A high-ranking Tal'darim in a red robe humbly bowed his head to the Fifth Ascended, Jinarra, in obedience.

The Tal'darim are adept at concealing their thoughts, and the mental links inherited from their ancient ancestors have long since ceased to exist due to the necrosis of their neural bundles. Although the lower-ranking Taldarim currently express their submission, they constantly plot to kill their superiors and take their place.

However, the infighting outside of the Rak'Shir Ritual would undoubtedly throw the Death Fleet into chaos and incur the wrath of Amon, the god of darkness.

"Then what are you still hesitating about?" Jinarra's voice wasn't particularly sinister or terrifying; in fact, it might even sound surprisingly sweet and charming to humans, its ethereal Psionics echoing in the bridge. But in the language of the Tal'darim, any word associated with stability and happiness meant absolute weakness.

"We're here to exterminate these humans."

"Everything is as you wish, sir. Prepare to fire the main cannon and destroy this human colony," the Ascendant replied immediately.

"These humans are so fragile; it's pointless to crush them like insects." On the 3D screen of the bridge, woven from countless lights and shadows, was footage captured by the Observer from the Braxis capital, Polaris.

On the snow-covered streets of the city of Polaris, citizens clad in thick fur coats gathered to storm the police controlled by the Braxis UED government. Both sides were armed with large quantities of weapons and even kinetic armor, and the ground was littered with the dead or frozen wounded.

Meanwhile, the United Earth Directorate Expeditionary Fleet stationed on Braxis was nowhere to be seen, presumably having already withdrawn from the planet after Tarsonis was captured by the Revolutionary Army.

Regardless, the Braxis, who had rallied together to reclaim their homeland, were completely unaware that a Protoss Mothership the size of a city and Great Fleet were hovering overhead.

"It's a pity they'll die soon." Jinarra had little interest in humans; it was pitiful that these primitive creatures with mouths were limited by their short lifespans.

"They brought this on themselves. I was truly shocked when I heard the outpost had been attacked by humans."

"The bugs are happily tinkering with their little junk, oh~" At this moment, Alarak walked out from behind Jinarra, his magnetic voice carrying a cold-blooded dark humor. When his gaze swept over the scene of humans fighting each other on the screen, the muscles on his face twitched, revealing a contemptuous expression.

"I hope they had fun before they died."

"Lord Alarak, the Fourth Ascended." Jinarra immediately stood up from her throne and bowed her head to Alarak, just as the previous Ascendant had shown her the utmost respect.

"As you command, I will destroy this human colony immediately."

The fifth seat is only one seat away from the fourth, yet that single seat makes all the difference. Alarak could easily knock Jinarra to the ground, elegantly and cruelly slicing open her soft chest and abdomen with his Psionics blade.

"You seem quite interested in watching the circus performance of primitive animals. I would be very satisfied if you could match your skill in that area with fighting a war." Alarak walked straight to Jinarra and sat down in her seat.

Today, the Fourth Ascended, Alarak, appears agitated and impatient, partly because he has not been able to draw enough of the Creator's Breath from the Terrazine, Slayn, at sunrise as he has in the past.

This cold, dirty little sphere is even more brutal than the dry Slayn, but that doesn't matter. What matters is that Braxis not only lacks Terrazine, but also has a pitifully small amount of high-energy gas.

When Jinarra tried to explain to her hated boss that she was simply enjoying human fear, Alarak immediately interrupted her.

"You don't need to rush to explain that I don't care at all." Alarak seemed completely unconcerned about the war in Braxis, and instead asked Jinarra another question.

"Jinarra, do you know why Nuroka didn't personally lead the army against Braxis, but instead sent us, his foot soldiers, here? Humph—"

"I don't know," Jinarra replied obediently.

"No, you know, I command you to answer—" Alarak's voice sounded far from cruel and ruthless, but rather carried a chilling sarcasm.

"The Dark God Amon is growing increasingly volatile today; his rage is spreading through the void and affecting the Terrazine of Slayn. Nuroka, the first to ascend, must deal with this matter," Jinarra said.

"No one knows what has happened to the God of Darkness recently; he has never been so angry."

"You only know one side of the story, you utter fool." Alarak relished the pitiful sight of his subordinate trembling in fear after being rebuked, which pleased him greatly.

"The First Ascended, Nuroka, refuses to leave Slayn because he is preparing to initiate the Rak'Shir Ritual to High Lord Ma'lash in order to take his place." He hummed in agreement. "Nuroka is already second only to the Lord; if he wants to advance further, the position of High Lord is his final choice."

"But Ma'lash is blessed by the dark god Amon and possesses great power, therefore Nuroka must seek the support of allies."

"He has already contacted you." Jinarra wanted to appear completely unaware that the First Ascended, Nuroka, had visited Alarak late at night, but that would only fool the Fourth Ascended, Alarak, and would surely incur his severe punishment.

"Yes, Nuroka wants me to support him as an ally in the Rak'Shir Ritual," Alarak said cheerfully.

"Guess what my answer will be?"

"I don't know," Jinarra said without hesitation.

"Tsk tsk tsk--" Alarak didn't make things difficult for Jinarra.

"I didn't answer," he said.

"But news of the First Ascended's visit didn't escape Highlord Ma'lash's notice, so regardless of my stance, he kicked me here. Hmph~ The Highlord is the most powerful and cunning Taldarim —at least for a very, very long time."

"Therefore, Nuroka postponed the plan to initiate the Rak'Shir Ritual, waiting only for our Death Fleet to return to Slayn."

"Those who anger Ma'lash will suffer a fate worse than death; Naeon is a prime example," Jinarra said cautiously.

"That Naeon is insignificant, but he still has some use," Alarak said to himself. "So, who should we support in the duel between the First Ascended and the High Lords?"

"I will not participate in this Hill." Before Jinarra could finish speaking, she found her slender neck easily gripped in the hands of the enraged Alarak. Alarak was tall and imposing, like Giant even in the Taldarim, and he could easily hold Jinarra in his grasp.

Although he couldn't suffocate a Protoss, strangling Protoss was still fatal.

This cunning fellow will never easily take sides—that much is certain. If two of the top ten Ascendants in the Chain of Ascension form an alliance, the other Ascendants will surely be restless.

"You think you can get away with this by hiding in your shell? Hmm~ You'd better stay in your shell and keep your neck tucked in. Poor thing." Alarak slowly put Jinarra down on the ground, feeling bored by her indifferent reaction.

"I despise traitors, Jinarra, you'd better not provoke me." He acted capriciously, but that was merely a way of masking his true feelings. "You're very honest—I'll reward you with some Terrazine —thank me later."

"Lord Alarak, the Mothership's main guns are ready." At this moment, a Taldarim crew member reported to Alarak.

"Very well, you know what to do next." Alarak's languid yet sarcastic voice returned. "This weapon is a waste in the hands of weak Templar Knights; they have no idea what the pleasure of killing and conquering is."

"I don't need to teach you how to do it. Fighting to the death is the only way for the Taldarim to succeed."

Alarak didn't care what kind of wrath the human government would provoke by destroying this human colony; the Protoss could simply raise a finger and these poor creatures would flee in terror.

He did not deny that even humans, being weak and short-lived, had admirable qualities, but they were only a tiny minority. Even if the vast majority of humanity were burned to ashes, Alarak would not feel sorry.

Even if we blow up Braxis, what can the Lord of Man do to the Taldarim? Alarak should see if he dares to attack the Taldarim.

Amidst the dazzling light visible throughout Polaris, the Taldarim's Death Fleet began a full-scale bombardment of Braxis.

The terrifying beam of light unleashed devastating flames, evaporating the glaciers and oceans of Braxis and scorching massive craters across the land. Vast amounts of water vapor entered the atmosphere, condensing into ice crystals and causing freezing rain and hail across the globe. This extreme weather, resulting from the Protoss orbital strike, created colossal, breathtaking ice cones on the scorched earth.

Polaris was burned to the ground without any doubt, and all life vanished into thin air.

This was just the first planet destroyed by the Taldarim.