"All the warships are yours—given to you for free. I've hauled in reinforcements of three thousand large warships from elsewhere. The Vias Navy only has a little over a thousand ships altogether, so giving them to you is no big deal."
"But from now on, your pirate crew will have to cooperate with us. Normally, I won't make any demands of you, but at certain special times—for example... when the Dragon Mountain Empire comes into conflict with some other empire—you'll go plunder their maritime transport fleets?"
Lin Qi revealed an odd smile. "All spoils will belong to you, and every year I'll also replenish a batch of weapons and military funds for you. What do you think of those terms?"
Monk frowned and sank into thought. The pirates, meanwhile, were already dancing with excitement. An entire Vias Navy fleet—what an irresistible prospect! More than a thousand military warships built by proper shipyards, fully equipped, with heavy, large, medium, and small vessels all present, along with a complete complement of logistical transport and support ships!
This was the second most powerful fleet on the Western Continent, surpassed only by the Harlan Imperial Navy.
If Monk's pirate crew obtained these warships, combined with the pirates' savagery and cunning, not a single merchant convoy on the entire Western Continent would be able to escape their plundering! Monk would leap in a single bound to become the most powerful pirate king on the Western Continent!
Seeing Monk deep in thought, Lin Qi pulled another map from his sleeve—a complete map of the Dragon Mountain Empire.
He pointed beside the three provinces assigned to the evil ghosts and demons. One province there had been marked in pale red. Lin Qi said heavily, "This province—I'll move out all its nobles. In the future, when the brothers