(Futu has been really sick lately.) The code word is a bit difficult, please be considerate. This is a 5000-word chapter. ）——

Port Taylor.

In a rather remote tavern, Sauron sat in the corner waiting, outside were pirates acting as guards, and near the bar there were three or five maids wearing heavy makeup, and from time to time they showed off their feminine physical beauty to attract Sauron's attention. The strength is enough, the fame is also there, and the wealth naturally begins to increase, and even the younger brothers with his subordinates have increased. Sauron wasn't the kind of person who liked to call for hugs, but his current status naturally couldn't be without a group of men to serve.

The owner of this tavern is 'Sturgeon', a chubby middle-aged man.

He looks like a merchant, but he's a merchant, but he's the leader of a small group of pirates behind the scenes. This guy defected to Sauron early in the beginning, and now this tavern is also Sauron's territory. He did not plunder and collect his assets, as it was self-digging of his own grave, but he demanded that everyone must be at his disposal. He still doesn't care about this bit of wealth in Port Taylor, as long as he can open up the overseas islands and occupy a gold and silver mine at will, his wealth can increase rapidly.

There are some rules in this world.

Many places don't use their real names, and they like to use their titles to act.

It's like Sauron's 'Throat Slitter', there are really few people who know that his real name is Sauron, and most people call him 'Lord the Throat Slitter'.

The real name sometimes carries taboos.

Sauron had no interest in the heavily dressed barmaids, and he sat in the corner and smoked the kind of tobacco that came from the halfling area, rather expensive. It may be that he has killed too many people in recent times, and Sauron feels that his pressure is much greater than in the past, and he is also a little tired from seeing bloody killings, and he needs to relax and numb his spirit a little. After all, it's really uncomfortable to be too tight, and even the strongest man will have moments of tiredness.

Sauron doesn't drink.

It's almost not a drop of alcohol. Then he will only have to smoke some tobacco.

No one in the vicinity dared to disturb him, and the thugs outside expelled the others who wanted to enter the tavern, and there were more than a thousand pirates under Sauron's command, but only about three hundred were actually under his command. After all, he couldn't break up all the small groups of pirates who came to join him, it was easy to form a backlash effect, and Sauron just accepted the allegiance of those small pirate leaders. In layman's terms, Sauron is the leader of the entire South Coast, and there are many small bosses who have taken refuge below.

He ordered the little bosses, the little bosses to control the minions. It's hard to do it if it's too strict, after all, pirates themselves are a bit special.

The same goes for other pirate kings.

There are many people they can influence, but the only ones who can really pull out and fight hard are their own cronies.

Minutes and seconds passed.

Sauron seemed to be waiting for someone, and he seemed patient, not at all anxious.

After about half an hour, a young man who was obviously half-elf walked in, he was the first mate promoted by Sauron, and now he was in charge of a pirate ship on his own. Behind him was a grade in his thirties, looking a little thief-eyed. But the guy with very clever eyes, this guy's fingers move from time to time, and his wrists and fingers are very flexible, just a glance at Sauron shows that he is a wanderer. And he's the kind of wanderer who specializes in stealing.

This kind of person is more shrewd!

"Your Excellency."

The first mate leaned over slightly, and then said, "It's him." ”

Sauron nodded and glanced at the thief in front of him, the other party was a little frightened when he met his gaze, and quickly bowed his head and said, "Your Excellency the Throat Cutter." I don't know what I can do for you! ……”

Sauron's eyes narrowed slightly. There was a hint of murderous intent in his eyes, and there was a special coercion.

That's the effect of the frightened gaze.

The obscene-looking thief in front of him seemed a little scared, and a cold sweat appeared on his forehead. But still standing in front of him, this guy is still a little timid.

Sauron nodded slightly, and said in a deep voice, "What's your name?" ”

The somewhat obscene looking man in front of him hurriedly bowed his head and said, "My name is Slonoko, and they all like to call me Skinny Monkey." ”

Sauron frowned slightly, and then said, "Starting today." ”

"You are responsible for gathering all the useful intelligence on the continent, and I will mobilize people and resources for you. Regardless of whether it is useful or useless news, as long as there are any serious rumors on the mainland, you can send them all to me. The main staff is located in Shipwreck Bay, Fortune City and Port Taylor, which is the core area connecting the mainland and the Gulf Islands, and a lot of news flows from here to the north and south. ”

"Your job is to spread people out and deliver important news on a regular basis."

"No problem, right?"

The obscene-looking guy in front of him couldn't help but show a hint of surprise on his face, his expression seemed to be a little excited, and he muttered, "I...... I will certainly live up to your expectations! ……”

Even an idiot can understand one thing, that is, he has been promoted by His Excellency the Throat Slither in front of him.

It may not be a very important position, but it seems from your Excellency's orders that he will be able to manage a lot of men in the future, from the Shipwreck Bay to the City of Fortune, and then to the port of Taylor, which Your Excellency intends to allow him to establish a simple intelligence network. As for why Your Excellency is interested in those rumors, and not to gather information about the fat sheep of the sea.

Who can control so much at this time?

The lewd man in front of him knew one thing very well, that is, if he had done an errand this time, he would be a close confidant of His Excellency the Throat Cutter. You must know that almost all of the pirates who have been promoted now are those who have followed him in the first place, especially those survivors who participated in the battle against the Lord of the Swamp, and now almost all of them are at the level of a small boss. In terms of reward, this lord is still very generous, and many of those small leaders have one or two ships in their hands.

Sauron explained a few words to the first mate next to him, and then asked him to lead the thin monkey in front of him away.

Some things are just so wonderful.

Before the battle of the Marsh King, Sauron had few men to trust, and no particularly loyal men. But after the battle of the Marsh King, he had a lot of men at his disposal, especially those who survived the battle. These guys thought they had helped Sauron defeat the Lord of the Swamp. It's the kind of cronies who have merit, and their loyalty has automatically risen.

This is how the minds of many guys change.

At first, they were afraid of Sauron, believing that the Lord was a terrifying being with little loyalty to him.

The main thing is to control them by fear.

But after the battle of the King of the Swamp, they thought to themselves, "Oh, I also have a credit, I have sacrificed my life for this Excellency, and no matter how cruel your methods are." It's impossible to punish people who have sold their lives for themselves at will, right? I have fought for your honor, and if I am promoted in the future, I will definitely have my share, right? Your Excellency seems to be a very disciplined person, and I have sold my life for your Excellency to have a lot of cronies than those guys, right?

It's as simple as that.

The group of men who had experienced the battle of the Lord of the Swamp automatically shifted their mentality to Sauron's cronies.

Then loyalty starts to soar on its own!

Why is this happening? Maybe that's the power of humanity and power! It's as if you have done something for the leader, and it is a very important thing, you will consciously think that you have gained extra points in the eyes of the leader, and you will also start to get closer to think that the weight is heavier than before. There was less fear in their hearts, more respect, and their attitudes began to change. Immediately after that, it was a matter of course, and the group of guys quickly changed their mindset to become Sauron's cronies.

So.

A lot of things are really interesting, and sometimes you really should give your subordinates a little more chance to work hard!

After they sold their lives, they had an extra sense of identity.

For example, the first mate in front of him was promoted by Sauron at the beginning. The most in his eyes was awe. But after the battle against the Lord of the Swamp, his loyalty was arguably the highest of all, and there was a hint of fanaticism and adoration in his eyes as he looked at Sauron. He believes that he has contributed to the defeat of the King of the Swamp, and that he should be Sauron's number one fighter. Even higher status than Adele Isabella, the red-haired female pirate who followed Sauron in the first place.

I helped you defeat the King of the Swamp, and I proved my loyalty to you, so I should be ranked above that woman. Even if it's temporarily lower than her. As long as I am given a little opportunity to show my strength and loyalty, sooner or later I can replace that woman as your most trusted helper.

This kind of mentality is actually common among Sauron's men.

Because the rise of a new pirate king also means that many vacant positions are created, and the pirate kings are not bare-bones commanders, most of them control a lot of trade in the sea, and these positions can promote at least a hundred people. Now many people are gearing up to show themselves, the most obvious of which are those pirates who survived, their strength is not bad, all of them think that they have the ability to fight for the qualification of the leader, and all of them are looking for opportunities to further show their abilities.

It was fast to noon.

Sauron put his pipe away, his fingers tapping lightly on the table, as if waiting for someone to come.

A maid next to him carefully brought him a bowl of delicate food, and when she put down the food, she deliberately showed the white greasy furrow on her chest in front of Sauron. However, Sauron only glanced at it lightly, and then reached out and pinched the bread and took a bite, power is a man's best partner, and there is power This group of women will not necessarily rush over like moths to a fire, but there are always many women in power who try to seduce him. Sauron wasn't without desire, but he didn't think it was time yet, and now was not the time to relax and have fun.

About an hour later.

A red-haired female pirate in a tight leather suit walked in.

She walked quickly to Sauron's face, leaned over slightly, exposed a pair of plump white greasy on her chest, and whispered, "Your Excellency." What you have commanded is ready. We have prepared sufficient quantities of food, medicine, weapons, etc., and we have also used our influence to borrow some of the cargo ships of other chambers of commerce. The heads of the six chambers of commerce said that as long as you take care of them more in the future, they are willing to collect these supplies for free and send them to the place you want to send them. ”

Sauron is the Pirate King.

What is Pirate King? It's the people who specialize in looting these merchants, or collecting protection money!

These chambers of commerce are not without strength, but their guards can't defeat these fierce pirates at sea. The guards of the Chamber of Commerce need to be compensated when they die, and there are not many who are willing to fight desperately, so many times they spend money to buy peace. Almost every Pirate King has some influence over trade in the nearby seas. In addition, the pirate king also controlled the sale of stolen goods throughout the sea. Naturally, they curry favor with Sauron not only for protection and care, but also to use Sauron's power to fight competitors, or buy stolen goods at a low price and sell them.

Not many of these merchants engaged in cross-sea trade were clean people!

Sauron reached out and took a list and looked at it, then nodded slightly, "Not bad." Let them have all the supplies ready, and I will be of immediate use. ”

"That's right."

"What about the slaves I need? How's the preparation? ”

The bright-looking red-haired female pirate couldn't help but show a hint of embarrassment on her face, and whispered, "At present, there are only a few of them. Some time ago, the mines in the City of Fortune collapsed, which increased the demand for slaves in the market. Because you need a strong workforce, you can't get enough of them at the moment. ”

"But just give me a little time, and I promise to complete your mission!"

Slave.

A critical part of Sauron's plan.

He decided to develop in the overseas archipelago, and this inexpensive labor was almost indispensable.

And due to the south coast manor economy. and a variety of mining needs, the slave trade was more vigorous in this region than elsewhere. The mines controlled by the nobles were absolutely unwilling to hire civilians to work, and they would do everything possible to get slaves to work, which would greatly reduce the cost of personnel. In these mines, it is definitely a very dark and bloody place, there is almost no law in it, and when there is a shortage of labor, let alone slaves, even civilians may be caught and work to death.

Needless to say, this is basically true.

Because even in the 21st century, there is a lot of shady inside the mines.

Sauron frowned slightly when he heard this. He glanced at Adele in front of him and noticed that the other party's expression seemed to be a little nervous. Because she did not participate in the battle to defeat the Lord of the Swamp, many people during this time had the heart to challenge her position in front of Sauron, ready to prove that she was worth more than the woman in front of her. So it made her a little nervous. This woman had now regained the power her father had wielded, and she was a well-known pirate leader, but she clearly didn't want to lose her value in Sauron's eyes.

Her current status is second only to Sauron, and this woman is naturally unwilling to be squeezed down by others. So she always wanted to improve her status in Sauron's eyes now. A little bit of a small trick is also used for this.

The most obvious point.

It's that she basically didn't wear makeup in the past, but now every time she sees Sauron, she actually puts on a little makeup on her face.

The meaning is self-evident!

………………

Sauron frowned and pondered. Then he said: "Do your best to finish this matter." I'll have a new arrangement in a week at most. Let them send the goods to Viper Island, leave a group of men to sit in, and then recruit men from the coastal areas. ”

He paused and continued: "In the name of the Chamber of Commerce, there is no need for any combat effectiveness, as long as it is an adult labor force. ”

Adult workforce?

Adele didn't dare to think much in her heart, and hurriedly said, "Yes." I'll arrange it right away. ”

The red-haired female pirate had a hesitant face before leaving, and glanced back at Sauron, not knowing what she was thinking, but her face turned slightly red.

Temple of the Sea.

The Naga priest frowned and sat at the back of the main hall, looking at a human man in front of him, and wondered, "So many supplies? Still preparing slave manpower? Is he preparing to expand overseas? ”

The person in front of him didn't answer, just stayed quietly in place.

The Naga priest waved his hand lightly and said, "Go down." Continuing to follow his movements, I became more and more curious about what he wanted to do. ”

Overseas expansion.

It's not like no one did this at the beginning, but the indigenous people in overseas areas are very xenophobic, coupled with the harsh living environment and all kinds of dangerous creatures, most of the pioneers finally failed. Because it is very difficult to survive in overseas islands, population transfer is a big problem, and all kinds of diseases, monsters, enemies can be defeated even by professionals, and it is even more difficult for ordinary people to survive there. Without ordinary people as a foundation, it is basically impossible to talk about overseas development.

Not to mention, there are also the Amazons who are eyeing each other, as well as the indigenous people who have a strong sense of territory.

She was curious how Sauron could stand on his feet!

………………

in the room.

Sauron spread out a nautical map and observed that the overseas archipelago was large, but there were few suitable places for development. Because there are too many monsters, enemies, and dangerous environments, the combination is a variety of needs, which greatly increases the difficulty of exploration. Sauron, however, had the advantage of knowing which area had been carved out of the port town. These locations have been selected by many people before, and basically have natural harbors, as well as various terrain advantages, plus the surrounding environment.

For example, whether there are strong enemies, whether there are any resources, whether they are suitable for farming crops, and so on.

At the beginning, many people failed to expand overseas!

But there are some successful people among them, and these successful people are because they have found some good geographical locations.

Sauron is now trying to recall the best piece of land of all.

……………… (To be continued......)