"Sir, do you have any evidence for this claim?" Upon hearing Daniel Davis mention that Dittany's death had another cause, Hank Pym's expression immediately turned serious. After glancing at Lois, who seemed somewhat at a loss, he quickly asked.
For Lois, given her background, she had always held a favorable impression of the Temple of Compassion and the Buddhist community. However, Daniel Davis's words completely shattered her perception of them. Now, with the mention of her mother's death, the sheer volume of information was overwhelming, and even Lois found it hard to accept.
"No, but I am certain that the Temple of Compassion played a dishonorable role in this. Have you ever considered that someone of Dittany's strength would so easily die from a qi deviation, especially while trying to decipher the Undying Seal Technique? As far as I know, the Undying Seal Technique is now in Miss Lois's possession, isn't it?"
Who was Dittany? She was the Temple of Compassion's representative in the world, one of the few grandmaster-level experts. Even if she had suffered a qi deviation, it would not have killed her so quickly.
"Miss Lois, may I ask you a few questions?" After seeing Lois nod, Daniel Davis continued, "It's widely rumored in the martial world that Dittany married Ryan to 'tame the demon' with her body. So, I want to ask: Did Dittany love Ryan?"
This question immediately piqued Sophia's curiosity, and she looked at Lois with interest. Sophia had always been curious about the relationship between Dittany and Ryan.
Lois didn't answer verbally but simply nodded again.
"It seems she did love him. That makes it even stranger. If Dittany loved Ryan, why would she try to decipher the martial arts of the man she loved? Why would she want to harm the person she loved? Miss Sophia, if I may ask, if you were in Dittany's position, would you try to harm someone you loved?"
"No," Sophia replied after a moment of thought, shaking her head solemnly.
In fact, aside from a few abnormal individuals, such as certain yandere types, most people would not think of harming someone they love. Even within the Demon Sect, this holds true. Look at how many times Morgiana spared Simon Westeros. If it weren't for Ryan abandoning her and causing her master's death, Morgiana wouldn't have sought to die together with Ryan.
Of course, the relationship between Hank Pym and Morgiana doesn't count. Hank Pym loved Morgiana, but the problem was that Morgiana's heart belonged to Ryan.
Back then, Morgiana was willing to relinquish her duties as the leader of the Yin Kui Sect to assist Ryan in unifying the Demon Sect.
"See? That's the point. Of course, if it were just this, I wouldn't dare to assert that Dittany's death was suspicious. But if you knew what was happening during the time of her death, it would be a different story." Daniel Davis paused here before continuing.
"At that time, it was during Yang Guang and Pei Ju's first campaign against Goguryeo. You should know that Pei Ju is Ryan, right?" Aside from Sophia, both Hank Pym and Lois nodded slightly.
The fact that Pei Ju was Ryan wasn't common knowledge, but as Ryan's daughter, Lois, and as Dittany's close friend, Hank Pym, naturally knew.
Strictly speaking, it's not accurate to say that Pei Ju was Ryan's alias. In fact, if we're being precise, Ryan was the alias. Ryan was born into the Pei family, a prominent noble clan.
"I've spoken with Yang Guang. The first campaign against Goguryeo should have been a sure success. Although Ning Daoqi wouldn't intervene, Pei Ju—that is, Ryan—was on the verge of breaking through to the grandmaster level. With his Undying Seal Technique, he could definitely hold off Fu Cailin. As for what actually happened, you already know. At that time, news of Dittany's death suddenly spread, causing Ryan to suffer a mental breakdown. Not only did he lose the chance to advance to the grandmaster level, but the first campaign against Goguryeo also failed. I must say, the Temple of Compassion played a masterful hand—killing two birds with one stone, no, three birds with one stone."
Initially, Daniel Davis had only been suspicious of Dittany's death. But after speaking with Yang Guang, he became almost certain. Since he had met Yang Guang, Daniel Davis naturally took the opportunity to ask about some events from that time.
From a strategic perspective, Daniel Davis admired their methods. After all, if Yang Guang's campaign against Goguryeo had succeeded, and Ryan had advanced to the grandmaster level, there would have been no need for the Temple of Compassion's "Choosing the Emperor" plan, nor would Ning Daoqi have had any role to play.
In martial arts, there is no second place. Once Ryan became a grandmaster, even if Ning Daoqi were at the same level, he would never be Ryan's match.
"Securing the 'Choosing the Emperor' plan, preserving Ning Daoqi's status, and eliminating a thorn in their side—I must say, Fan Qinghui is quite skilled."
After hearing Daniel Davis's words, Sophia's mouth opened as if she wanted to say something, but in the end, she remained silent. Her impression of the Temple of Compassion plummeted.
Even though Daniel Davis didn't provide concrete evidence, Sophia didn't doubt his words at all, as everything he said made perfect sense.
Hank Pym and Lois were both in a daze. They never imagined that so many things were connected to this. Even though they had previously trusted the Temple of Compassion, they now couldn't help but doubt it.
"Miss Lois, if I may ask another question, after Dittany's death, did the Temple of Compassion quickly handle the funeral arrangements? Did Ryan not get to see her body?"
"That's correct." Lois's face turned pale. While others might not know the details, she remembered everything clearly, even though she was very young at the time.
"They were afraid Ryan would discover something," Daniel Davis murmured softly, causing Lois's body to tremble slightly.
"Speaking of Ryan, I have great respect for him. From what I know, the reason he entered the imperial court was because Dittany wanted to see peace in the world. So Ryan wanted to give Dittany a peaceful world. Whether it was dividing the Turks or campaigning against Goguryeo, it was all for the sake of peace. Yet, in the eyes of the Temple of Compassion, he became the source of chaos in the world. How shameless."
"I need to step out for a moment." Lois stood up and quickly walked toward the door.
"Sophia," Hank Pym immediately gave Sophia a look, signaling her to follow Lois and keep an eye on her. Learning so much information at once, especially about her mother being schemed against and killed, was a heavy blow to Lois.
"Don't let her leave the ranch. It could be dangerous," Daniel Davis quickly added.
"All of this is just your speculation, isn't it?" After a long silence, Hank Pym finally regained his composure.
"Whether it's speculation or not depends on what you think," Daniel Davis said, smiling at Hank Pym. He was using a blatant strategy—one that the Temple of Compassion had no way to refute. Just as the Warring States couldn't refute the so-called "employment agency" incidents, because the deeds had already been done.
"What is this?" Hank Pym looked at the content displayed on the tablet in his hands, his expression filled with excitement. Over the years, Hank Pym had cultivated a calm demeanor, even regarding his own life and death with indifference. But now, holding this device, he seemed like a completely different person.
"The mechanical arts of the Mo Family and the Gongshu Family."
Originally, Daniel Davis hadn't planned to reveal something as advanced as a tablet. But he soon realized that without it, teaching Hank Pym the mechanical arts would require him to personally instruct him, which would waste too much of his time.
Then it occurred to him that in this world, he was invincible. There was no need to worry about issues like overshadowing the emperor. In the Qin Dynasty, after handing over the relevant materials to Ying Zheng, he rarely showed himself. On one hand, he had no interest in those matters, as they wasted his cultivation time. On the other hand, it was to avoid conflict with Ying Zheng. Emperors despise powerful ministers.
Daniel Davis chose not to help Yang Guang pacify the world but to conquer it himself, precisely for this reason. No matter how far-sighted Yang Guang was, he couldn't compare to Daniel Davis. Rather than becoming enemies in the future, it was better to avoid such problems from the start.
Their philosophies and ideas were vastly different, and conflicts were inevitable. As an emperor, Yang Guang's priority would always be imperial power—a trait shared by all emperors.
But now, things were different. Daniel Davis was going to become the emperor. There would be no "one person above, ten thousand below." He would be at the very top. In such a position, there was no need to hide certain things.
Daniel Davis had also considered whether to become emperor after unifying the world. After all, there were many systems in later eras, but in the end, he abandoned those thoughts. He wasn't a fool like Kou Zhong, who would hand over the empire he had fought for to someone else to rule. In this era, imperial authority was deeply ingrained in people's hearts. Trying to negate it would be too difficult.
Not to mention, his subordinates would be disheartened. If he didn't become emperor, how could they become founding heroes? Did anyone really think that the people in Li Shimin's Tiance Mansion were all about bringing peace to the world? The Sui and Tang dynasties had no loyalty.
Look at the people who followed Kou Zhong. How many of them achieved fame and glory under Li Shimin? Even the Song Clan declined afterward.
"What is this?" After briefly reviewing the contents of the mechanical arts, Hank Pym began to inquire about the tablet itself.
"You don't need to understand this for now. This era doesn't have the technology to create such a thing. Focus on mastering the mechanical arts first. I need a mechanical beast army. Once that's done, we can research other things."
"I understand. I'll focus on this first. As for you, sir, if you're not in a hurry to go to Luoyang, could you help deal with the Four Great Bandits?" After their earlier conversation, Hank Pym had changed his tone, addressing Daniel Davis as "sir." This was likely due to the influence of pre-Qin era titles.
In this era, "sir" was a common term, but in the pre-Qin period, it carried a completely different weight.
"The Four Great Bandits? You haven't dealt with them yet?" The Flying Horse Ranch, with its large number of warhorses, had always been a focal point for various factions.
Cavalry was the dominant force in this era. The reason the Turks were so powerful was precisely because they had a large cavalry force. In the Central Plains, anyone wanting to build a cavalry had to rely on the Flying Horse Ranch.
While one could buy horses, they were prohibitively expensive. Relying solely on purchases would require an immense amount of wealth. It was much faster to simply seize the Flying Horse Ranch.
Moreover, the Flying Horse Ranch wasn't just about horses—it also held considerable wealth.
It was under these circumstances that the Four Great Bandits had gathered to capture the Flying Horse Ranch. Under normal circumstances, no matter how bold bandits were, they wouldn't dare target the ranch.
After all, the Flying Horse Ranch was a fortress built against a mountain, easy to defend and hard to attack. Even if the Four Great Bandits were replaced by a regular army of the same size, they might not be able to take the ranch.
Daniel Davis knew a bit about the conflict between the Four Great Bandits and the Flying Horse Ranch. In the original story, it was the intervention of the Twin Dragons that resolved the crisis.
But that was when Hank Pym was severely injured and on the verge of death, unable to act. Now, things were different. Hank Pym had recovered from his injuries. As one of the top grandmasters, dealing with the leaders of the Four Great Bandits would be effortless for him. After all, this was his daughter's business.
"While it would be easy for me to deal with them, I'm more interested in finding out who within the ranch is colluding with them," Hank Pym explained why he hadn't acted yet.
Hank Pym was a polymath. Even though he hadn't studied military strategy extensively, his broad knowledge made him far more capable than most. The way the Four Great Bandits were making such a bold move suggested they had confidence in taking the Flying Horse Ranch. Given the ranch's defenses, the only way they could succeed was with inside help.
"I see. I understand. I'm not in a hurry anyway," Daniel Davis nodded, then suddenly remembered the Twin Dragons from the original story.
"I wonder if they've shown up at the Flying Horse Ranch yet." Curious, Daniel Davis activated his Observation Haki but didn't detect the presence of the Twin Dragons.
"The Flying Horse Ranch... I never knew such a place existed before." What Daniel Davis didn't know was that, after he deactivated his Observation Haki, about twenty miles away from the ranch, the Twin Dragons were following a group heading toward the Flying Horse Ranch.
Daniel Davis, who had flown to the ranch on his sword, seemed to have forgotten that this method of travel was unique to him.
"They're looking for a cook. Do you think our scallion pancake skills are enough? And don't forget, we need to get to Luoyang as soon as possible," Simon Westeros said helplessly, looking at Daenerys. Originally, he had wanted to avoid this, but Daenerys insisted on coming.
"Sir Daniel said, 'Read ten thousand books, travel ten thousand miles.' I may not be able to read ten thousand books, but I can travel ten thousand miles. It's a good way to broaden my horizons, isn't it? As for Luoyang, a few days won't make a difference," Daenerys said softly.
"I don't think you're here to broaden your horizons. You just want to see Helen Herman, don't you? Have you forgotten what Sir Daniel said?"
"I know what you're saying, but I really want to see her one more time. Don't worry, I'll just take a distant look," Daenerys said, his expression filled with melancholy.
"Fine, do as you wish. Just don't regret it."
"Don't worry. After this meeting, I'll forget her completely. We're from completely different worlds. We never should have met in the first place."
Seeing Daenerys's pained expression, Simon Westeros didn't say anything more. Instead, he immersed himself in the Dao De Jing. Ever since parting ways with Daniel Davis, Simon Westeros would recall the contents of the Dao De Jing whenever he had a moment. The profound wisdom of the text had captivated him.
(End of Chapter)
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