Chapter 266 - 246: Suppressing the Desolate Barbarian Pirates’ Civil Strife
Desolate Barbarian Pirate Islands, under the successful instigation by Blood Sea Wave, the former Pirate Leader Rock and the second-in-command Barak finally broke face and started a massive battle. At the beginning of the war, Barak took a considerable number of pirates out to sea to hunt, thus holding an advantage in manpower. Rock, on the other hand, held a personal advantage in combat prowess. Both sides were evenly matched, suffering losses daily.
Everything was within the calculations of Blood Sea Wave, who watched with delight, wishing that the two of them would kill each other off and then he could profit from their feud and dominate as the king.
However, this war dragged on for a month in game time, making Blood Sea Wave anxious! Blood Sea Wave finally realized the problem—it was his own lack of strength! As a player who triggered an epic quest, he lacked the power to influence the battle! Because he was too weak, he couldn’t intervene or push the plot forward!
This was fundamentally different from Da Fei. Da Fei had giant ships and cannons, not only creating opportunities but also having the power to seize them. Therefore, Da Fei could be ahead, and be awesome. Although Blood Sea Wave could also create opportunities, taking the lead meant turning into a fool!
Thus, Blood Sea Wave could only watch helplessly and felt an immense hatred towards Da Fei who had taken his large ships. If he had his own large ships, how could this situation have occurred?
Later on, the situation developed beyond Blood Sea Wave’s expectation as other pirate powers intervened! Indeed, in the taverns strewn across Pirate Island, some pirates were actually spies placed by other pirate forces.
When internal strife occurs within a pirate power, if the leader can suppress it quickly, or the rebels can promptly replace him, there would be no problem, but a prolonged battle is troublesome. This could attract other pirate forces and even draw the attention of the Kingdom Navy. Before the Kingdom Navy could act, the united pirate powers must stabilize the situation. In any case, regardless of who takes control of Desolate Islands, they must prevent the Kingdom Navy from occupying it.
So Blood Sea Wave finally had something to do, which was to travel around convincing and uniting the Innocent Pirates, Blood Sail Pirates, Blood Raider Pirates, and Black Water Pirates. Although these people came with ill intentions and helping them meant sharing profits in return, there was no turning back at this point; getting rid of Rock was all that mattered.
Finally, the last battle began. With the help of external forces, Barak defeated Rock’s fleet. Desperate and at his wit’s end, Rock, aboard his damaged Tiger Shark pirate ship, fled eastward towards the vast ocean.
—System Prompt: Internal strife of Desolate Barbarian Pirates has ended, Barak has become the new leader of Desolate Barbarian Pirates. You have completed the Epic Quest "Internal Strife of Desolate Barbarian Pirates," receiving rewards: Experience +5 million, Free Skill Points +5, your reputation among the Desolate Barbarian Pirates has become ’Respected,’ your reputation among the Innocent Pirates, Blood Sail Pirates, Blood Raider Pirates, and Black Water Pirates +10,000.
Watching the vanishing Tiger Shark battleship in the sea horizon, and facing the tragic so-called epic quest rewards, Blood Sea Wave’s heart was bleeding! Large battleships! The large battleships have run away! Didn’t I instigate rebellion just to target his large ships!
Exhausted and bandaged, Barak sighed deeply, relieved, patted Blood Sea Wave’s shoulder, and said wearily, "We’ve won, I’m tired, you are very capable, be my second-in-command. This position is not easy to handle, you need to work hard!"
—System Prompt: Desolate Barbarian Pirate Leader has appointed you as the second-in-command of Desolate Barbarian Pirates! Your current authority is trading, which allows you to oversee the trade between Desolate Barbarian Pirates and other pirate forces and also open smuggling channels with the Kingdom.
Trading! Damn your trading! I don’t need money! I want to command your pirate fleet!
Blood Sea Wave couldn’t help but freak out, "Leader, we can’t let Rock escape! We can’t let the tiger return to the mountain!"
Barak gave a bitter smile, "Letting the tiger return to the mountain? Don’t joke, he’s already out of options, there’s nowhere in the Seven Seas he can seek refuge, this is the fate of a loser, not to mention the severe injuries he’s suffered!"
"I want his big ship, the big ship!" Blood Sea Wave said anxiously, "He must have somewhere to hide, right?"
Barak shook his head: "The East! That’s the only place he can go."
Blood Sea Wave asked in surprise, "The East? That Thousand Island Country with lots of Naga?"
Barak nodded solemnly, "Yes, that’s the only place refugees can go, but only the strong can find a place to breathe there. However, he’s been so severely injured that he’s virtually useless now, not even worthy to carry the Naga’s shoes."
Blood Sea Wave responded in astonishment, "Nagas have snake tails; they don’t wear shoes."
Barak burst into laughter, "Don’t you think my comment was funny?"
Humorous my ass, you jerk! Blood Sea Wave’s face turned as dark as a lump of charcoal. Anyway, once I become strong, I’ll replace you! I just curse my own weakness for not seizing this opportunity to strike him down while he’s weak!
Just then, several small boats approached, and a few pirates leaped from the small boats directly onto the deck of Barak’s big ship: "Barak, you seem in a good mood."
They were representatives sent by the Innocent Pirates, Blood Raider Pirates, Blood Sail Pirates, and Black Water Pirates. The skillful jumping from the boats just now had Blood Sea Wave’s eyes popping out! It was so impressive! Even having a big ship doesn’t guarantee safety against them! Any one of them, if they leaped aboard, could surely slaughter an entire ship of players clean! It appears I still underestimated the NPCs’ strength, the rebellion plan must be carefully considered and not rushed!
Barak’s face darkened: "It’s not that I want to rebel, but if Rock didn’t suspect me, I’d still be his loyal brother."
Everyone laughed heartily and said, "Let bygones be bygones, just remember how you became a leader. Hand over your share regularly every month. If you’re unwilling, then prepare to face our combined assault!" Amidst roaring laughter, they all jumped back onto their small boats and returned to their ships.
Blood Sea Wave was so angry he clenched his teeth in frustration.
Barak patted Blood Sea Wave on the shoulder and sighed deeply, "Just do your best."
Screw you!
Regardless, the situation with the Desolate Barbarian Pirates finally concluded. Although the outcome was unsatisfactory and frustrating for Blood Sea Wave, it was still far better than what an ordinary player could achieve. After all, transforming from a menial errand player to a second-in-command managing trade for a powerful faction is no small feat, not to mention the wildly valuable specialty of the Desolate Islands, Blood Pearls, could bring in huge profits.
In any case, the next step is to properly manage and develop, enhance my reputation among pirates, and lay the foundation for my rebellion. With the Epic Quest reward, opening a medium-sized pirate warship isn’t a problem. If used well, a medium warship can do a lot of great things. (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian to cast your recommendation votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian.com.)