Turncoat

The effect of Qin Chuan's shout was immediately apparent.

Ironhook Jack had already locked onto Qin Chuan's position and was about to hook him over for an instant kill, but his mind was thrown into turmoil, and he even forgot to attack.

The First Mate and Second Mate's expressions changed drastically.

No one knew their secret, aside from their long-dead parents.

How did this person lurking in the shadows know about it?

Could it be that the captain had caught wind of something and deliberately staged this performance to test them?

Right, that had to be it!

The One-Eyed First Mate secretly gave the Redbeard Second Mate a look, telling him not to act rashly.

The Second Mate understood.

Even combined, they were no match for Ironhook Jack. Unless it was absolutely necessary, they could not openly turn against him.

As for the Third Mate, this dimwitted minotaur had no idea what was happening. He was still thinking about what to eat later.

Seeing Ironhook Jack's hesitation, Qin Chuan immediately knew he had successfully planted suspicion in the man's mind.

Qin Chuan decided to fan the flames. He activated Shadow Stealth, changed positions, hid behind a pillar, and shouted, "First Mate, haven't you always wanted to kill Ironhook Jack and become the owner of the Arena yourself? I'll help you."

The One-Eyed First Mate was deeply conflicted.

That was indeed what he wanted, but the problem was whether this situation was simply too much of a coincidence.

First, a Giant Wolf had appeared and thrown the audience stands into chaos, luring all the enforcers away.

Then an assassin had shown up, intent on attacking Ironhook Jack.

It looked advantageous to them, but who was to say Ironhook Jack was not fishing for traitors, trying to use this opportunity to draw out those with divided loyalties?

This trick had worked time and again. Back when they were still aboard the ship, Ironhook Jack had used this very method to get rid of the First Mate and Second Mate at the time.

It was only after that incident that the two brothers had become First Mate and Second Mate.

It was hard to say whether Ironhook Jack might repeat his old methods and purge his rivals again.

Thinking of this, the One-Eyed First Mate put on an angry expression and shouted, "My loyalty to the captain is beyond question! Don't even think about driving a wedge between us!"

The Redbeard Second Mate also declared his loyalty. "Me too!"

The Third Mate scratched his head with his heavy fist.

What was going on?

Qin Chuan took in the reactions of the several bosses and felt completely at ease.

Things were progressing exactly as he had predicted.

The seed of suspicion had already been planted in Ironhook Jack's heart. Whether the First Mate and Second Mate were brothers or not, he would now be wary of these two subordinates.

That greatly reduced Qin Chuan's pressure.

On the other side, Ironhook Jack also knew this was not the time for infighting.

He was not weak, and the candles hanging from the ceiling could reveal hidden targets, yet even now, he could not truly lock onto that intruder!

The other party's stealth skill was practically supernatural.

It was likely no worse than Idith's.

"When did the Black Market produce such a troublesome fellow?"

Ironhook Jack became wary. He decided to temporarily set aside his suspicions, join forces with the First Mate and Second Mate, and deal with the intruder first.

But afterward, he would have to thoroughly investigate the backgrounds of these two subordinates.

If they really were blood brothers, then they could not blame him for being ruthless!

Ironhook Jack sneered. "Just some petty sowing of discord. Did you think we'd fall for that? One-Eye, Redbeard, flank him and force that bastard out!"

The One-Eyed First Mate and Redbeard Second Mate exchanged a glance and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

It was a good thing Ironhook Jack did not intend to pursue the matter.

But how could Qin Chuan let Ironhook Jack have his way? He immediately said in a sinister tone, "One-Eye, do you think you'll still have peaceful days after today? You know better than anyone what kind of man Ironhook Jack is."

Those words undoubtedly struck at the One-Eyed First Mate's heart.

That was right. Ironhook Jack might be talking nicely now, but once the intruder was dealt with and the enforcers returned, the situation would once again be entirely under Ironhook Jack's control.

At that point, the two brothers would likely find it difficult to leave alive.

Many things could not be hidden if someone truly put effort into investigating them.

Once the fact that he and Redbeard were brothers was exposed, how could Ironhook Jack possibly tolerate them?

No, he would not even need solid proof.

Based on what he knew of Ironhook Jack, the seed of suspicion in the man's heart would surely take root and flourish, eventually swallowing the two brothers whole.

With that thought, a different idea arose in the One-Eyed First Mate's mind.

Perhaps he should take this opportunity to kill Ironhook Jack!

The One-Eyed First Mate gave Redbeard a look. Redbeard understood, slowed his pace, and dawdled instead of moving to surround Qin Chuan.

Seeing that there was hope, Qin Chuan added, "The Wild Arena really is a wonderful place. The ticket revenue alone pours in every day without end. I heard Ironhook Jack's bedroom is made entirely of gold. He must have raked in quite a fortune."

"Mr. One-Eye, my employer is willing to support you brothers in taking control of the Wild Arena after Ironhook Jack dies."

Whether Idith had actually said that was unimportant.

After all, the One-Eyed First Mate would not really confront Idith over it.

Even if One-Eye did go to her, Idith would probably give him an ambiguous affirmation.

From Idith's perspective, Ironhook Jack was difficult to deal with, but One-Eye and Redbeard would be much easier.

One-Eye became even more hesitant.

Seeing this, how could Ironhook Jack fail to understand what One-Eye was thinking? He immediately sneered. "Just as I thought—a thankless, ungrateful wolf!"

With that, he raised his hand toward One-Eye. The curved hook in his hand shot out with a swish, aimed directly at One-Eye's only remaining eye.

The One-Eyed First Mate dodged the attack in a miserable scramble, then hardened his heart.

Since you show no mercy, don't blame me for being disloyal!

"Brother, do it!"

With an angry roar, One-Eye grabbed a wooden barrel at his feet and hurled it at Ironhook Jack.

The Redbeard Second Mate snatched up a wine cup, gulped it down, and ignited a flame with a snap of his fingers, spraying a several-meter-long tongue of fire at Ironhook Jack.

The two bosses' betrayal instantly turned the situation around!

However, Ironhook Jack was Gold Grade after all, with superior attributes across the board. He effortlessly dodged One-Eye and Redbeard's combined attack, pulled out a flintlock pistol from behind his back, and fired a shot at the First Mate.

Blood sprayed everywhere, and the One-Eyed First Mate's Health Bar visibly dropped by a small amount.

That made One-Eye regret his decision.

He had not expected Ironhook Jack to be this strong.

He had acted too rashly.

One-Eye shouted, "You hiding bastard, aren't you going to make a move yet?!"

He had seen earlier that after Ironhook Jack took a flying dagger, the pain on his face had been obvious. That showed the intruder in the shadows was no weakling.

If they wanted to kill Ironhook Jack, they needed that person's help.

Once the bow was drawn, there was no turning back. Since they had decided to tear off the mask, they could only go all the way!

Naturally, Qin Chuan would not stand by and watch One-Eye and Redbeard get beaten to death.

He was still counting on those two to keep Ironhook Jack occupied.

Shadow Stealth had just finished cooling down, so Qin Chuan decisively threw a Shadow Flying Dagger.

-30065! (Weakness Attack)

A terrifying damage number floated above Ironhook Jack's head, making the pirate chief who had roamed the seas for years turn pale.

The next second, Rend and Poison Blood Plague took effect at the same time.

-850!

-2000!