 Before the Brood Wars, Protoss society was divided—the Khalai of the Protoss Empire, the exiled Nerazim, the heretic Tal'Darim, and the hibernating Purifiers.Because of the Great War and subsequent Brood War, the former body collapsed and all branches of Protoss were forced to band together in sharing knowledge, integrating technology, and for mutual survival.The Khala, or "The Path of Ascension", was the religious law of the Protoss, established after an era known as the "Aeon of Strife" that followed the departure of the Xel'Naga.