Chapter 2918: Hidden Mission

Crows covering the sky and the sun circled above Shipwreck Island. Shipwreck Island was indeed the Duke's territory, but the person who actually managed it was Baron Byrne.

Baron Byrne and the Duke didn't have a superior-subordinate relationship; it was more like a cooperative relationship. Baron Byrne was responsible for managing Shipwreck Island and had a group of guards with a scale of several hundred people under him.

Baron Byrne took 55% of the income from Shipwreck Island, while the Duke took 45%. Everything here was handled by Baron Byrne. The Duke just sent some pirates and included Shipwreck Island in his territory, not participating in management, but could take away more than 40% of the income.

This looked like exploitation, but it was actually the recognition of the Great Pirate Duke. According to the Duke's past style of doing things, he would have long since wiped out Baron Byrne, taken Shipwreck Island for himself, and let his confidants manage this island. In this way, all the income of Shipwreck Island would belong to the Duke's pirate group.

It wasn't that the Duke couldn't do this, but because the price paid was higher than the income.

Black Curse Crows circled overhead, dark clouds covered the sky, the temperature on Shipwreck Island started to drop, and an invisible energy was mixed in the air.

The pier was in chaos. Pirates who came here to sell stolen goods or to resupply all knew that something was about to happen. There were too many crows circling above, and coupled with the ominous feeling permeating the air, these pirates thought of a rumor: where a large number of crows gathered, the *Doom* was not far away.

Pirates all knew of the *Doom*'s existence, but few knew the specifics. Most of those who had seen the *Doom* were already dead.

"Captain, there are too many crows, at least tens of thousands."

"Let the brothers board the ship, hoist the sails and set sail."

"Load fresh water first, don't want the cargo, kill all these goods."

The pier was even more chaotic. Even if the connection between the *Doom* and the crows was just a rumor, it was enough to make the pirates vigilant.

*BANG! *

A muffled and ear-piercing gunshot made the chaotic port quiet for a moment. Everyone's gaze looked at a man holding a flintlock pistol with one hand and a small mustache on his chin. It was Baron Byrne.

"Everyone, is anyone willing to stay and assist my 'Byrne family' in fighting the Royal Navy? After the event, each person will be rewarded with 20 gold coins."

Baron Byrne spoke loudly. The pirates looked at each other, all a bit confused for a while.

"*Pfft~*"

A pirate couldn't help but let out a sneer. The next moment, a pitch-black muzzle was aimed at him.

*BANG! *

A gunshot that made people's eardrums ache spread out. The pirate who sneered stood still on the spot. His entire head and a small half of his upper body disappeared, exploding into large pieces of minced meat. The gap in his chest was vaguely semicircular, and something seemed to be wriggling on the exposed flesh.

With a *thud*, the pirate, who only had two-thirds of his body left, fell down. The pier became quiet, so quiet that a needle could be heard falling.

"Baron Byrne, if you can explain what's going on with the crows above, we are willing to assist you in fighting the enemy."

A pirate captain with a very ugly face spoke. This was simply an unprovoked disaster; they couldn't leave anymore.

"It's a witch. The Royal Navy coerced a witch to summon these crows."

Baron Byrne left this sentence and, under the escort of several guards, rushed toward the castle behind the small town, his steps somewhat hurried. His goal had been achieved. The protection he obtained through sacrifice was about to dissipate. Continuing to stay might lead to being discovered by the Black Curse Crows above.

Baron Byrne's meaning was very clear: the pirates on the pier had two choices: assist the Byrne family in attacking the "Royal Navy," or set sail immediately and stay away from Shipwreck Island. Otherwise, they were enemies of the Byrne family and also enemies of the Duke.

This move was extremely ruthless. Staying meant being cannon fodder. As for leaving, after the sky-filling crows arrived, no one could leave. No one could guarantee whether people from the Byrne family or the Duke's pirate group were mixed among these pirates on the pier.

In a place like Shipwreck Island, there were simply no civilians. They were either pirates or people related to pirates, such as slave traders, merchants buying stolen goods, etc.

"Hard to starboard, set sail."

A pirate wearing a black headscarf shouted at the bow of the ship. The captain of this ship had been slaughtered by Baron Byrne, and the pirates on the ship didn't intend to take revenge.

The ship's sails tilted. A pirate ship was the first to set sail. After this pirate ship sailed half a nautical mile away, the pirates watching on their respective ships felt relieved in their hearts and also prepared to set sail.

Suddenly, shrill screams came from the pirate ship half a nautical mile away. This ship was permeated with black fog, making it very difficult for people to see what was happening on the deck, only able to hear the screams.

In less than a minute, the pirate ship became quiet. The black fog around it dissipated. The pirates near the pier found that the ship had stopped on the sea and wouldn't move. The main sail had been cut with a dozen or so holes, and the deck was terrifyingly quiet.

*Crunch, crunch... *

Strange sounds came from the pirate ship. Various parts of the hull started to break, as if it were being dragged into the sea by an invisible giant hand. Not even a piece of wooden plank was left on the sea surface, and it disappeared from the sight of the pirates just like that.

Witnessing all this, the pirates near the pier felt fear in their hearts. The first thought was to escape to Shipwreck Island for refuge.

The sound of breaking wind struck. A black energy ball about one meter in diameter slammed into a pirate ship in front of the pier.

*BOOM! *

Deep-colored flames emerged, swallowing the hull that had already been blown to pieces. The surviving pirates in the flames wailed endlessly, turning into fire people and rushing into the sea.

Large pieces of burning wooden planks splashed everywhere like scattered flowers. The pirates soon discovered that even if these burning wooden planks fell into the seawater, there was no sign of the flames going out.

At the same time, a large four-masted ship sailed from the distance. The dark red main sail looked as if it had been soaked in blood, and the pitch-black hull released black fog, shrouding the surrounding sea area.

"The *Doom*."

An old pirate turned and rushed toward the pier, abandoning the ship and fleeing, preparing to defect to Baron Byrne.

*Caw, caw, caw. *

Crows dived down, submerging the old pirate. In the flock of crows, a sailor knife waved wildly. After barely hacking a few Black Curse Crows to death, the old pirate died miserably.

With the *Doom* in front and a flock of crows behind, the pirates could only retreat to the pier. In those pairs of terrified eyes, occasionally flashed the viciousness of being forced into a desperate situation.

"We were used by Baron Byrne. The *Doom* is here for him. He wants us to die here to buy time for him to escape."

"It's already like this, what's the use of saying these things?"

A one-eyed pirate spoke coldly. Whoever provoked him now, the knife in his hand would immediately greet the other party's throat.

"We can defect to the *Doom* first, and then defect to Baron Byrne, taking the opportunity to capture Baron Byrne. The *Doom*'s target must be him. His ancestor signed a blood contract with the *Doom*."

"Who is it? Who is speaking? Stand out!"

The pirates stood apart from each other, wanting to find the person who spoke just now.

"I'm your daddy."

The voice from just now spoke again.

"Get out here, you bastard!"

The one-eyed pirate who had gained an extra daddy was furious. His fierce one-eyed gaze swept across the faces of the pirates, preparing to find the person who spoke just now.

"I defect to the *Doom*, don't kill me, I'll go catch Baron Byrne right now."

A pirate shouted. After waiting for a moment, he tried to walk toward the small town behind the pier. Until he disappeared from everyone's sight, he didn't receive an attack from the Black Curse Crows.

"I defect too."

"Count me in."

The pirates expressed their stance one after another. Looking at that appearance, they were just short of kissing the earth to show their sincerity.

More than a hundred pirates marched toward the castle on the island. They first passed through the gate, entered the castle's courtyard, and finally stopped in front of the castle door.

The castle gate stood ajar, the interior pitch black. Due to the dim light, the castle at this moment resembled a giant beast, its dark doorway like the beast's gaping maw; anyone who entered would be swallowed whole.

The pirates couldn't help but feel afraid in their hearts, but the crows circling above seemed to be urging them, letting them walk into the castle as soon as possible.

Helplessly, the pirates walked into the castle one after another. They actually didn't intend to capture Baron Byrne alive, but were more inclined to take refuge here.

The pitch-black castle returned to silence, as if no one had ever entered. A hand covered in blood suddenly reached out from the darkness and grabbed onto the side of the doorway. This hand was covered with fine bite marks, and in some places, the bones were exposed.

Because this hand was using too much force, and its owner was being dragged in the pitch-black, the nails on the hand gradually peeled off. After leaving a few blood marks on the wall, it was dragged into the darkness. From beginning to end, there was no scream or cry for help.

In the black fog a few hundred meters in front of the castle, Su Xiao was watching this scene. He deliberately let those pirates enter the castle. Just a moment ago, he triggered a hidden mission. The mission reward was 【Overflowing Soul Box】. After opening this thing, he could obtain 100 Soul Crystals (Complete). ===== CHAPTER 2919 =====