Facing the expectant gaze of the crowd, Karsipengpas shook his head with self-mockery: "You guys got it wrong, I'm no wise man. I'm as foolish as you, thinking we can freely acquire wealth from the sea, even Rome can't stop us, humph humph!

The true wise man is Nix Tribe Chief Maximus. A few years ago, he began to remind me, 'Our reckless actions at sea will inevitably anger Rome. Once this Mediterranean overlord takes it seriously, not only the Adriatic Sea but the entire Mediterranean will have no place for pirates to hide.'—"

Karsipengpas suddenly stopped talking and fell into thought. In fact, at first, he didn't take Maximus's warning to heart. But later, as the Nix Tribe grew stronger and Maximus's fame increased, the rumors of him being favored by the Divine also affected outsiders like Karsipengpas who were closely associated with the Nix people. Over the past two years, Maximus repeatedly reminded Karsipengpas, which made him start to take the matter seriously.

However, since the iron mine was entrusted to the Alde Tribe in the western mountains to manage, due to the success of this matter, it could greatly improve the impoverished conditions of various mountain tribes. Yet, the Nix Tribe's demand for iron ore was increasing daily. Once the supply to the Nix Tribe couldn't be completed on time, it would give the southern tribal chiefs like Ambrosius an excuse to seize control of the iron mines, severely impacting the upward momentum of the mountain tribes.

Therefore, as the leader of the mountain tribes, Karsipengpas had to spend a lot of time personally overseeing the iron mine to ensure unobstructed and smooth mining operations. Thus, his time for maritime plundering gradually decreased, and eventually, he entrusted Onomabatis to manage his pirate crew on his behalf.

Even though he had started to restrain his men from maritime plundering, he hadn't planned to completely disband them. However, the arrival of these people today shocked him: since what Maximus warned about had come true, would the subsequent developments he spoke of also come to pass?

Karsipengpas pondered for a long time before speaking again about Maximus's past words: "Once the Romans fully clear us out, merchant ships in the Mediterranean can sail for trade without worry, which greatly benefits Rome. I believe that from then on, the Romans will view the Mediterranean as their inland sea and will strive to maintain it.

If piracy against merchant ships occurs again, they will certainly dispatch fleets to rigorously suppress them. So, don't imagine slipping out to plunder at sea once the Roman maritime suppression ends!

For the sake of your safety, I suggest you give up continuing to be pirates and return to your tribes, settle down, and farm and herd."

Before Karsipengpas could finish, several pirate chiefs led by Agatakus shouted: "We turned to piracy because our tribe was impoverished. If we return now, the already scarce food in the tribe will be even less, and everyone will starve to death."

"You're fortunate to have a tribe to return to, hehe… My tribe was wiped out by others ten years ago. Otherwise, I wouldn't be roaming the sea with my brothers."

...

Even Onomabatis approached Karsipengpas, whispering, "Boss, knowing the brothers, most have become accustomed to roaming. It might be tough to get them to settle in their tribes and farm, and it might even cause trouble!"

"Living is better than losing their lives and having their bodies hung on crosses by the Romans," Karsipengpas solemnly warned.

"…Maybe dying in battle seems easier for them," Onomabatis muttered under his breath.

Karsipengpas glared at him, then turned to ask the others, "How many of you are there now?"

"I have forty-seven brothers under me."

"I have thirty-six."

"Thirty-one."

"Twenty-eight."

"Nineteen."

...

Including the 105 brothers from his own men who escaped the pursuit, there were over 250 people, over two hundred fierce, battle-hardened men ruthless like wolves… Karsipengpas calculated carefully, slightly shocked, quickly asked, "Where are these brothers?"

"They all came along, but to avoid any misunderstanding, we had them wait in the mountains over there," Kobrunbodus pointed toward the distant hills.

Karsipengpas breathed a sigh of relief, giving his eldest son an approving look: these people managed to bring so many men from the tribe to here, a significant part of which must be due to Kobrunbodus. It seems he's well aware if so many people stayed close to the tribe too long, there would inevitably be problems…

He pondered for a while, then said, "Since some of you don't want to return to the tribe, some have no tribe to return to, and you can't continue being pirates. Perhaps there's only one way to live well… and that's to join the Nix Tribe."

"The Nix Tribe?" Except for Onomabatis, the other pirate chiefs were unfamiliar with this tribe. After all, they weren't Aldeans but from the southern mountains, commonly roving the Adriatic coast, naturally unfamiliar with the Nix matters.

Karsipengpas briefly introduced the Nix Tribe, of course, hiding the true origins of the Nix people.

The pirate chiefs were shocked to learn that the Nix people, just a few years ago, were a mercenary army invited by the Aldeans to come here but took only a few years to defeat the powerful Pannonian Tribe Alliance and occupy vast lands…

They were also attracted by the tribal policy of the Nix Tribe to accept tribesmen from all ethnicities and allocate them more than fifty acres of land, deciding to first go discuss this with their men, including Onomabatis.

Watching them hurriedly head towards the distant woodlands, Kobrunbodus worriedly asked, "Father, you suggested they join the Nix Tribe. Will the Nix people agree to accept them?"

"I need to seek the Nix people's opinion, of course. But I believe Leader Maximus will agree," Karsipengpas confidently stated, "because currently they are quite short of labor. Not long ago, they took away five hundred Pannonian slaves from us and suggested that I should ensure the slaves are well-fed and housed, and their safety guaranteed…

Heh heh, if I hadn't had the brothers risk capturing more prisoners from the coastal towns of Afeilica over the past few years to bolster our mining crew, our iron mine would have also lacked labor. Maximus owes me a favor!

This time, I received an invitation from Maximus to attend the Nix Tribe's summer festival. I'll take the opportunity to propose letting these pirate brothers join the Nix Tribe. He shouldn't refuse.

However, until I gain his consent, so many people certainly can't all be taken into Nix Territory. I'll have to keep them here first—"

Karsipengpas looked at his son and solemnly said, "While I'm gone, you will stay here and manage the iron mine for a while. The important thing is to keep these guys under control. Don't let them cause trouble here. I'll leave Onomabatis too, with my brothers to assist you."

"Don't worry, Father. I'll take good care of this place, ensuring nothing happens!"

Kobrunbodus's confidence stemmed from managing the iron mine the past few years while Karsipengpas couldn't resist going out to sea to plunder. He was very familiar with the iron mine affairs and also well-acquainted with the 800-plus tribe warriors guarding the slaves here. With their support, he wasn't worried about the recently escaped-by-the-skin-of-their-teeth pirates causing unrest.

Half an hour later, Onomabatis led a team of over two hundred people to the nearby simple dock. The destitute pirates, after discussions, finally agreed to join the Nix Tribe. Of course, Karsipengpas's personal prestige among the Adriatic Pirates played a significant role.

Although Temisplous strongly opposed, Karsipengpas insisted: the iron mine is now under the management of tribes in their mountain area, so he naturally has the authority to allow these pirates to temporarily reside at the iron mine camp.

The iron mine camp is also by the Kupa Riverbank, not far from both the mining site and the dock. Before the Nix people ventured into the mountains, it was merely a barren land. Later, the Alde Tribe decided to reopen the iron mine and tasked tribes like Budocaribas and Xisaites, who had lost their territory, with management. To accommodate thousands of slaves and the nearly thousand warriors guarding them, tribe leaders like Budocaribas led their tribesmen to build dormitories, houses, warehouses, and fences on the desolate land near the mine.

When Karsipengpas and his people took over, they further improved the camp, which now has a wooden wall and lookout towers, with houses spread throughout, and its scale surpasses any of the Aldean tribes living in the mountains. Some Aldean warriors stationed here even requested to bring their families to reside here, but Karsipengpas ultimately did not agree.

The camp once housed over ten thousand people at its peak; now, with the Nix Tribe repeatedly taking slaves and for other reasons, about six thousand people reside there, with enough spare wooden houses for these two hundred plus pirates.

Early the next morning, Karsipengpas, Temisplous, and two Aldean elders set out with the iron ore-laden fleet. Along with them were several pirate chiefs including Agatakus, and Karsipengpas's pirate subordinates, Diocles and Nikaradas, who represented their brothers to first witness the Nix Territory.

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