Duels should be played with a smile.

A CPU costs over 5000, and a motherboard costs close to 3000.

Plus a graphics card costing over 10,000 yuan

I feel like my computer budget is heading straight for 3 RMB.

So you really only have a 3,000 budget for credit cards, huh...?

My heart aches so much I can't breathe

Chapter Sixteen: The Value of a Population of 50!

The prism core shimmered with a clear, bright light, and within the energy field of the crystal tower, the Protoss's mechanical platform was operating under the influence of spacetime acceleration.

Shortly after, a strangely shaped aircraft flew out and headed towards K's base on the other side of the map without stopping.

This aircraft is a Protoss transport ship, capable of carrying a small number of Protoss soldiers or other troops for aerial transport operations.

Now, the transport ship has left Leyou's base without carrying any units.

Shortly after the transport ship took off, the portal technology within the control core was fully unlocked. With the addition of the barracks that Leyou later added, a total of four barracks began to transform under Leyou's command.

Like a flower bud blooming, the portal separated, lifting up the central spacetime core. The surrounding crystal towers provided energy to the spacetime core and also guided the location of the beacons for the portal-mode barracks.

Soon, after the Light and Shadow Council was completed, an ice-blue building that did not match the theme color of gold slowly took shape in a corner of the base. Its slender, tower-like shape also seemed somewhat out of place.

That is where the Dark Templars reside.

The Protoss are a vast race, originally divided into several tribes in ancient times, which later diverged for various reasons. Ten thousand years later, facing a common crisis, the Protoss united as one, attempting to rebuild their former glory.

After opening his second mine and operating it at full capacity, Leyou did not continue to expand, even though K did not put any pressure on him.

He temporarily stored up all the surplus resources, just waiting for that moment to arrive.

Finally, the transport ship, which was neither slow nor fast, arrived at its destination and stopped south of K's base.

Without making any extra noise, the transport ship, which was originally barely recognizable as an aircraft, began to transform.

The entire structure rotated ninety degrees, and the tail fins that were originally folded together were now fully deployed. The nose of the aircraft was now directly above, while the tail fins were scattered around, transforming the entire structure into a shape resembling an umbrella.

At the handle of the "umbrella" is a crystal that is crystal clear. When the crystal emits a faint light, the tail fins around it finally show their function.

Like a prism refracting light, the brilliance of the crystal, reflected several times by the tail fins, creates a strange, small energy field under the umbrella.

This is the true purpose of the Protoss transport ship—it can be deployed anytime, anywhere, becoming an energy field. In addition to providing energy to buildings that have lost power, it also allows troops to use it as a target for direct warp-ins.

The moment the warp prism finished deforming, the space below began to fluctuate, and blocks of energy appeared out of thin air. After a process like unpacking a package, the "box" disappeared, replaced by faint ripples in the air.

The airflow was disrupted, and the light and shadow were refracted, making it impossible to see if anything was there.

"I emerge from the shadows..."

"Light and shadow bathed me..."

"I am the Blade of Nerazim..."

"In the name of the void..."

In a flash of light and shadow, cloaked figures darted past, each chanting different phrases. The four Dark Templars drew their emerald blades, then vanished into the shadows in an instant.

The Protoss's sharpest blade is about to unleash its restrained yet swift power!

Without any unnecessary movements, the four Dark Templars split into two teams. Two of them boarded the Warp Prism, which had transformed back into a transport ship, while the other two charged straight at K's base.

The Protoss perfectly exemplify the principle that quality is more important than quantity. Even with only four Dark Templars, Leyou is confident that he can turn K's base upside down!

In a battle, victory is never determined by a single decision. Whether it is a victory or a defeat, it is the result of the accumulation of countless factors.

After Leyou had laid the groundwork for a long time, the moment the four Dark Templars silently entered K's base, the scales of victory had already tipped.

The Dark Templars are the Protoss's sharpest blade. They come and go without a trace, and without special detection devices, it is impossible to find their location. The blades in their hands have long since drunk the blood of countless enemies, and their skills have been honed to the pinnacle on countless battlefields.

Once they make their move, the enemy will have no chance of surviving!

The warp prism flew towards K's main mine. Just as Leyou had initially scouted, the road to the main mine was blocked, preventing the two Dark Templars who came directly from entering. They then turned and charged towards K's second mine.

At the moment when the Dark Templar at the second mine revealed its blade beside K's SCV, two flashes of emerald green also appeared in the main mine.

"Ugh—ah—!"

"what--"

With a swift and fluid motion, four SCVs perished on the blade lurking in the shadows.

"What's going on?!"

K was shocked. The sudden anomaly in the mining area made him pause in his actions to command the Viking fighter to take off. Soon, when he noticed ripples appearing in both of his mining areas, he instantly understood what had happened.

He realized he had been completely fooled.

"Quick! Radar! And riflemen, get them all through!"

SCVs fled to other places, troops assembled in the mining area, and the command center, which had been upgraded to an orbital control base, also deployed a radar at the same time.

The most convenient anti-stealth measure for Terrans in the early game is radar, but this requires upgrading the main base and having enough energy to use.

Moreover, the main base can not only deploy radars, but also airdrop mineral slugs—almost like a super mining vehicle, which can greatly accelerate the Terran's early development speed.

Because it was confirmed from the beginning that Leyou might use the air force as its main force, K, which did not reflect the demand, only reserved the energy of one radar as a precaution.

The moment the radar was deployed, K clearly saw two faintly visible figures in his main mining area and immediately ordered all troops to concentrate their fire.

The electromagnetic rifle fired countless bullets, striking the Dark Templar, but a thin psionic shield held off the first wave of attacks.

Before the second wave of attacks arrived, Leyou, having already considered this possibility, had already ordered them to leave the radar's scanning range—the radar could continuously scan a designated area on any location on the map for several seconds, capable of both reconnaissance and anti-stealth, its only drawback being that it only had that one range.

Once the Dark Sanctuary was out of the scanning range, they immediately changed direction and launched a silent charge towards those who had fired at them.

"what--"

With another swift stroke, a human soldier was killed instantly.

Apart from the Protoss themselves, none of the basic units of the other two races can withstand a single blow from a Dark Templar!

If the Dark Templars were to take action, they could slaughter all of K's soldiers and SCVs in just a few seconds.

There was no chance of resistance.

In situations like this, invisibility is the key to invincibility!

K was unwilling to give up. He noticed that his second base was just a few seconds away from being able to use the radar again. He mobilized all his soldiers, trying to detect the location of the Dark Templars by observing the ripples in the air, and then forcibly surrounded them.

While invisibility does prevent you from seeing or attacking, your collision volume remains.

However... using a group of fragile spearmen to surround a Dark Templar who can kill one person with a single strike is somewhat like throwing lambs to the slaughter.

Leyou, of course, didn't hold back. The Dark Templar simply stopped moving and stood there, taking down machine gunners one by one with a single slash. While K waited for the base to recharge, several more soldiers were swiftly and decisively carried away.

K's eyelids twitched as he watched, a pang of heartache gripping him. The instant the radar recharged, he separated all the soldiers again—if they were cut down again, even with the radar raining down, he might not be able to win!

Finally, the radar illuminated the Dark Templars, and their psionic shields were no longer fully charged due to the previous attack.

Even if a lot of machine gunners die, we can still take them out with a few more concentrated fire rounds!

The sound of electromagnetic rifles firing echoed across the battlefield once again. Even though their shields had been destroyed and they were using their bare bodies to withstand the bullets, the Dark Templars, exposed to radar and battling a hail of bullets, did not waver in the slightest and continued to resolutely swing their blades at K's troops.

"what--"

Another wail rang out. K's soldiers were almost wiped out, but the good news was that Leyou's two Dark Templars were also on their last legs.

All we need is... just one more burst of fire! Once is enough!

"Da da da—"

The electromagnetic rifles fired sporadically, but then came the sounds of Viking fighters firing in mech mode—K had brought back all the Vikings he had just sent out.

This would put no pressure on Leyou, but K didn't care anymore; all he wanted to do now was get rid of these two troublesome guests who were causing trouble in his home.

As long as we hold this wave, we can definitely turn the tide if the Vikings launch an attack, given our air superiority!

but--

In that very instant, just as the Dark Templars were about to fall, their figures vanished once again.

They did not disappear into the shadows again; under radar, they had nowhere to hide.

However, at this very moment, in K's mining area, a warp prism is hanging high in the sky.

Just as things were about to turn around, two Dark Templars boarded the Warp Prism.

"You—"

Before K could utter a curse, the warp prism moved again, shifting its position slightly before stopping.

But the moment they stopped, two Dark Templar appeared as well.

Swish-

Two beams of emerald light flashed, and the two machine gunners fell to the ground. But as the other soldiers around them raised their guns to retaliate, a beam of light representing warp flashed by, and the Dark Templar were pulled back into the warp prism.

This is why the Warp Prism is said to be equivalent to the combat power of a 50-person army.

As long as the warp prism exists, the Protoss forces essentially have a safe haven, one that they can freely enter and exit.

I slash you once, then I leave; I slash you again, then I leave again.

Only I can hit you, not you can hit me.

"What the hell! You can do that?!"

K was now cursing loudly, unable to comprehend how such dirty tactics and gameplay could exist.

First, you're just fooling yourself; they're even doing things like loading and unloading transport planes here.

Terran Marines can attack air units, but Transport Ships are quite durable.

The Vikings are very powerful in aerial combat, but they are currently in ground mode. By the time the Vikings transform back into fighter jets, the transport ships will have already fled.

Not to mention... a few seconds later, the radar's effect disappeared, and K no longer had any means of countering stealth. This time, the two Dark Templars no longer needed the transport plane's cover.

As if entering an empty field, the Dark Templar perfectly embodied the phrase. In just a few dozen seconds, K's main mining area had been completely slaughtered.

As for the second base below... K didn't notice the fighting below at first. Before the troops and SCVs above were wiped out, the second base had already been destroyed.

Sitting in a chair next to the chessboard, K looked listless, gazing at the sky, his hands resting on the table, appearing weak and powerless.

Not much different from the last game, he was defeated cleanly again, and this time, just like last time, he lost to a trick.