I reign supreme in the Western fantasy world for eternity.

The next morning, before the sun had fully risen, the air on the island was already filled with the smell of charcoal and grease.

The streets were several times more bustling than yesterday. Most of the pirates had knives hanging from their waists, and some were even wearing silk shawls they had stolen from merchant ships, looking like a group of nouveau riche who had just attended a banquet and were rushing to a meeting.

"I heard that Lone Reef is going to become king," a bearded pirate whispered.

"What king? He's already the Pirate King!" The tall, thin man next to him sneered. "I bet they're teaming up to pull off a big heist, like wiping out Valen's entire fleet."

At sea, the Seven Sea Lords mostly have fixed locations of activity, and pirates are not in danger as long as they don't go there.

Valen was the only exception. He had no fixed abode and often hunted pirates, making him the most notorious figure among the desert pirates.

"If I could really take down that old bastard Valen, I'd be willing to go three months without touching a woman."

There were many more people along the way than yesterday, and groups of pirates of all kinds joined the main road. The air was filled with the smells of sweat, sea salt, and strong liquor.

A rough shout came from not far in front of Ji Tian, ​​and a burly man with a red face was waving at another group of people.

"Hey, old Pike! Where's your leader? Why haven't we seen him?"

The second-in-command waved his hand: "The leader was injured a few days ago when he hijacked a merchant ship and is recuperating on board."

"How badly are you injured?"

"It's nothing serious, just a few scratches from the merchant ship's guards. It'll be fine in a few days. He asked me to come and listen to what important news the pirate king has to say."

The burly, red-faced man grinned: "Your leader is a smart man; he knows what he should do in person and what he should have someone else listen on his behalf."

Ji Tian noticed that similar conversations were taking place in the crowd on more than one occasion.

Some pirate crews only sent their second or third leader, for various reasons—"on duty," "an emergency at sea," "the captain is on his way"...

The excuses may vary, but the underlying logic is the same:

Those seasoned pirate leaders did not fully trust the call of the isolated reef.

The main venue was decorated in a very grand manner.

In the center of the island, a natural depression has been transformed into a semi-circular open-air venue. The surrounding area is surrounded by tiered stands made of rough wood, and in the center is a low stone platform with a chair made of whalebone. The back of the chair is carved with wave patterns, making it look both rugged and majestic.

Many people were already seated in the stands, and Ji Tian and his group took their seats at the back.

The pirates around were talking loudly, discussing their loot, bounties, and mocking some of the merchant ship captains.

A burly man with a face full of scars slapped his thigh and said, "I robbed four merchant ships this year, and the kingdom's wanted poster has a mark of 320 gold coins on me! You guys who only have a few dozen gold coins, go back and train properly, don't embarrass yourselves in public."

A tall, thin man next to him was not to be outdone.

"Three hundred and twenty is something to brag about? Last year, the merchant at the docks gave me five hundred gold coins in cash for the spice shipment I robbed. That's the real deal!"

"Then why didn't you rob that consignee too? That would have been enough to feed you for ten years."

"You think I haven't thought about it? Those are people from the Lion Fang City Chamber of Commerce. If we mess with them, we'll get into trouble."

"..."

Similar conversations echoed from the stands, filled with boasting, comparisons, and mutual disparagement. It was as if they didn't have to worry about being besieged or betrayed by their companions here.

About half an hour later, a deep horn sounded at the entrance of the venue, and the noise from the stands gradually subsided.

Everyone turned to look in that direction and saw a tall figure slowly walking up the stone steps to the central stone platform.

Pirate King Lonely Reef has arrived.

He was about two meters tall and had very obvious werewolf features. He wore a dark gray sleeveless short robe, revealing the old, healed scars that ran across his arms. He walked slowly to the whalebone chair and sat down, his gaze sweeping over the crowd in the stands.

"Gentlemen, I didn't call you here today to treat you to drinks and meat, although I have indeed prepared some food."

A few bursts of slightly unrestrained laughter came from the stands, but soon fell silent again.

After the laughter subsided, Lonely Reef continued, "I invited you all here today to say something that we all know in our hearts, but no one is willing to say first: Seven Seas Lord has been riding on our heads for too long."

Before anyone in the stands could say anything, the pirate king continued:

"We go to sea to make a living, and we rob ships because there is nowhere for us to stay on land! But what about those sea lords? They were pirates themselves, and now they take pride in hunting us, using our flesh and blood to pave their titles and reputations!"

Seven Seas said they were maintaining the safety of the shipping lanes.

But let me ask you this: Who first forged those shipping routes? We did. Who first discovered those ports? We did. Who braved storms and reefs to carve out those trade routes, one by one?

A voice from the audience joined in, shouting, "It's us!"

Lilith couldn't help but mutter under her breath to Ji Tian, ​​"Wasn't it discovered by those sea explorers? How did it become the credit of these pirates?"

Then, a voice resounded from the whalebone throne:

"Indeed, the Seven Sea Lords can keep your ships out of port by simply signing a few documents in their office on the dock. They call themselves 'the maintainers of order,' but whose order are they maintaining? The kingdom's, not ours."

These words ignited the emotions of the entire audience like a fuse.

The gazes in the stands began to heat up.

"I didn't call you here today to incite you to your deaths! I'm saying that if we continue like this, fighting each other, hiding and running away, then ten or twenty years from now, only a new batch of people will be sitting here, while we'll be nothing but skeletons sunk to the bottom of the sea!"

After saying that, Gujiao raised his right hand and gestured behind him.

Two burly orc servants carried a huge wooden plank up the stone platform. Several lines of text were written on the surface of the plank in charcoal.

"I propose that we establish a 'Joint Maritime Front,' where we pirates manage everything ourselves. We'll support each other, share intelligence, rotate shifts, develop new tactics, and research new plundering methods to prevent those people from the Kingdom from figuring out our strategies."

If you talk to the Pirate King about the bad things about the official henchmen like Sea Lord, these ordinary pirates have no objections and may even agree with him.

But when their own interests were involved, they immediately calmed down.

For a moment, whispers arose from the stands.

Seeing that no one in the audience responded, the lone reef continued:

"Why were the Seven Sea Lords able to chase us like stray dogs? Because they had unified command, supply lines, and an intelligence network. And what about us? We were all fighting our own battles, and when trouble struck, we didn't even know where to run. If we could share information and cover for each other, it's hard to say who would be chasing whom."

The pirates below the stage began to look on with eager eyes, but still no one spoke.

Fortunately, the pirate king had already arranged for the actors to cooperate secretly.

"I agree!"

"Well said!"

"Let's do it!"

As the cheers rose and fell, more and more pirates raised their fists in support. Several senior pirate leaders exchanged glances, and in the end, no one stood up to oppose them.

Lone Reef nodded, took out a roll of parchment from his pocket, unfolded it, and had his men hang it on the wooden frame next to him before reading out the specific terms of the alliance.

Meanwhile, on the sea near the island to which the reef belongs, where pirates anchor their ships, a change is quietly taking place.