For Daniel Davis, the extent of his help to FrostNova, Talulah, the Reunion Movement, and even Rhodes Island had reached its limit. From this point on, there was no need for him to get involved further. Spending time negotiating with Ursus would be better spent on his own cultivation and research. After all, with him around, even if Talulah and the others made mistakes, he could always step in to fix things.
In fact, Daniel Davis could already guess what Talulah and the others would ultimately decide. Even if FrostNova, the Assassin, and Skull opposed it, Chernobog and Ursus would inevitably enter a negotiation phase to secure some favorable conditions. Perhaps they could even get Ursus to recognize Chernobog's independence, turning it into an independent city-state.
On the continent of Terra, aside from the major nations, there were also independent mobile city-states. Although their numbers were small, they did exist and could be considered small independent nations. Most of these independent city-states were not wealthy, barely managing to survive, as they lacked powerful backers.
Of course, there were exceptions. Some independent city-states were quite prosperous, such as Siesta, which was a well-known independent city-state among the major nations.
"Grilled sandworm legs. I never expected them to taste so good. No wonder the Doctor loves them so much." In the laboratory, Daniel Davis watched as the Doctor prepared grilled sandworm legs. Out of curiosity, he decided to try some and found the meat surprisingly delicious.
"You know, aren't you afraid Amiya will get mad? This is a laboratory meant for experiments," Daniel Davis said as he dipped the sandworm legs into the seasoning the Doctor had provided.
"It's fine. We can just say it's normal consumption."
The sandworm legs the Doctor was grilling were not ordinary sandworms but Originium slugs. On Terra, not all creatures were related to Originium; there were also normal animals.
For example, there were pack animals, feather beasts, and scale beasts, which were the primary sources of meat on Terra.
As for Originium slugs and similar creatures, aside from a few people, most would never consider eating them, fearing they might contract Oripathy. However, this fear was somewhat misplaced.
While most Originium slugs were indeed inedible, some could be eaten, provided one could distinguish between those whose shells were made of Originium and those whose bodies were infected. It was akin to telling the difference between edible mushrooms and poisonous ones.
The Reunion Movement excelled in this area. When Patriot and the others were in the icy wilderness, they survived by hunting Originium creatures when food was scarce.
"If it's normal consumption, why not try this?"
With the Doctor covering for him, Daniel Davis didn't hold back. He took out a half-meter-long Rock Crab from a nearby incubation chamber and used the Ope Ope no Mi to disassemble it, adding it to the grill.
In terms of taste, the sandworm legs couldn't compare to the Rock Crab.
Currently, Daniel Davis's laboratory stored a significant number of various Originium creatures, all intended for Oripathy research. Some were captured by the Reunion Movement, while others were transferred from Rhodes Island.
In the real world of Terra, Rock Crabs were quite dangerous Originium creatures. Encountering one in the wild required extreme caution, as their Originium-infected shells were as hard as steel, making them formidable opponents for ordinary people.
What was particularly strange was that the Originium infection in Rock Crabs seemed to only affect their shells, leaving their inner bodies unharmed.
"By the way, Doctor, I have a few questions about Oripathy. The Originium in the blood..."
While enjoying the grilled Rock Crab meat, Daniel Davis took the opportunity to ask the Doctor a few questions about Oripathy. Even though she had lost her memories, it seemed only her memories of Babel were affected. The knowledge she possessed remained largely intact.
As the former Babel Demon, the Doctor was a polymath. It was said that the earliest research on Oripathy began with her. Rhodes Island's advancements in Oripathy research far surpassed other organizations, and she deserved much of the credit.
Of course, Kal'tsit also played a significant role. She, too, could be considered a polymath. If one were to count her titles, Kal'tsit could easily hold over a dozen doctoral degrees.
"Taixu Sword Qi."
As a golden light emanated from Daniel Davis's hand and pierced through an infected individual in front of him, the infected person's eyes lost their light.
"It seems I was too naive. Trying to use Taixu Sword Qi to destroy the consciousness of Originium to cure Oripathy requires much more precise control. Unfortunately, even the Feather of Truth can't locate the consciousness of Originium."
In another biological laboratory, Daniel Davis looked at the lifeless body of the infected individual and sighed. To cure Oripathy, human experimentation was unavoidable.
Of course, Daniel Davis always maintained ethical boundaries in his experiments. The infected individuals who fell into his hands were not good people. This particular individual was one of the infected thugs who had been driven away but tried to sneak back in to cause trouble. W had caught him.
"Oripathy is much more troublesome than Honkai sickness."
"It seems you've failed again."
W had entered the laboratory at some point without Daniel Davis noticing. He hadn't intentionally hidden his experiments, as they were aimed at curing Oripathy, so there was nothing to hide. The reason he hadn't conducted these experiments in the original laboratory was to avoid making Amiya uncomfortable.
He didn't believe that the Doctor and Kal'tsit hadn't conducted human experiments in their quest to cure Oripathy.
"Yes, I'll have to abandon this method for now."
Daniel Davis had been researching Oripathy all along. Using Taixu Sword Qi to treat Oripathy was just one of his approaches. Before this, he had also experimented with the Philosopher's Stone and the Black and White Spear's effects on Oripathy.
Compared to Taixu Sword Qi, the Philosopher's Stone and the Black and White Spear had shown much better results. In fact, they could completely cure Oripathy.
Unfortunately, these methods were not scalable. So far, aside from successful experiments, no infected individuals had been cured.
Since these methods couldn't be widely applied, much like how the Doctor's blood could suppress Oripathy, only a few people knew about them—Talulah, FrostNova, Amiya, Kal'tsit, the Doctor, and W.
The frustrating part was that none of these individuals wanted to be cured of Oripathy. According to Talulah and Amiya, as leaders of an infected organization, if they weren't infected themselves, how could they convince others to trust them?
FrostNova shared a similar view. As for W, her reason for refusing was simple: Oripathy enhanced her Originium Arts. She was fine with alleviating the symptoms but not with a complete cure, at least not now. She didn't want her strength to diminish.
Although, strictly speaking, even if Oripathy were cured, one could still enhance their Originium Arts through other means, such as using Originium or staves. FrostNova and the Snowsquad had always used Originium to boost their Originium Arts, but W still refused.
According to W, since a cure was already possible, there was no rush.
As for Kal'tsit, her reasoning was straightforward: Oripathy didn't affect her much. Until a definitive cure was found, she wouldn't seek treatment.
Since Kal'tsit didn't want to be cured, Daniel Davis didn't push her. However, from the Doctor's words, he vaguely understood Kal'tsit's perspective. It seemed she was using herself as an experimental subject to truly understand Oripathy. No amount of research could compare to firsthand experience.
Since Talulah, Amiya, and the others were unwilling to be fully cured, the treatment methods had to be shelved for now. This was a unanimous suggestion from both the Doctor and Kal'tsit.
Chernobog had only just stabilized. If word got out about a complete cure for Oripathy, it would undoubtedly become a target. Daniel Davis wasn't afraid, but Chernobog couldn't handle the fallout.
"Congratulations. You're now worth a fortune. And thanks to you, my bounty has also increased significantly." W placed several bounty posters on the table in front of Daniel Davis. Among them were bounties for him, Talulah, FrostNova, and W herself.
"Who's behind this?" Daniel Davis glanced at the bounty posters and snorted. Bounty posters were nothing new to him—he had bounties in the One Piece world. However, he hadn't expected to see them in Terra as well. Although the bounties here were much smaller compared to his One Piece bounties.
"Not sure. These were issued from the Scar Market. There are rumors that you might have inherited ancient relics, which is how you defeated Ursus."
The Scar Market wasn't an actual market but the name of an underground intermediary organization. It was also the largest intermediary organization in Terra, where bounties could be placed on anyone—nobles, famous mercenaries, and so on.
In a way, the Scar Market was similar to the Bounty Office in the Naruto world. For many mercenaries, the bounties issued by the Scar Market represented their fame, much like how pirates in the One Piece world compared their bounties to gauge their strength.
Higher fame meant greater danger, but it also meant higher prices for their services. W's mercenary companions, Hoederer and Ines, were also on the list.
"The latest novel is first published on 69shuba!"
No one knew who was behind the Scar Market, but given its continued existence and growing reputation, it wasn't hard to guess the identities of those backing it.
"Tell me more about the Scar Market."
While Daniel Davis didn't care much about being bountied, the挑衅-like nature of the bounties annoyed him. If it were anyone else, they might not have been able to do much about the Scar Market, as it was just an intermediary organization. But Daniel Davis was different.
If they dared to provoke him, they would have to pay the price. Others might tolerate the Scar Market's existence for various reasons, but he had no such reservations.
"Not many people know the specifics about the Scar Market, and no one knows where their headquarters is. However, they have a base in Kazdel, which is said to be a contact point for their headquarters. Some even say the Kazdel base is the Scar Market's headquarters." W smiled as she explained the situation, also mentioning some of the Scar Market's activities.
For example, the Scar Market offered accidental injury insurance. In battles between mercenaries, accidental injuries were common, especially when using heavy weapons. Thus, accidental injury insurance was introduced.
What was particularly peculiar was that when this insurance was introduced, the Scar Market simultaneously enhanced the power of the heavy weapons they sold, ensuring that those accidentally injured would never leave the battlefield alive.
The Scar Market wasn't just the largest intermediary organization; it was also the largest arms dealer and black market in the underground.
"Kazdel, huh? Looks like I'll have to pay a visit there sometime." Daniel Davis glanced at W, not pointing out her ulterior motives. W had brought the bounty posters for him, Talulah, and FrostNova and had gone into such detail about the Scar Market. It was clear she had her own agenda.
After all, the Scar Market's decision to issue bounties for him, Talulah, and FrostNova meant they had accepted the task, which already meant they had crossed him.
"You two, head to Kazdel and investigate. Find out who's behind them." After W left, Daniel Davis clapped his hands together, and two wooden clones emerged from his body.
With his abilities, no matter how deeply hidden the Scar Market's backers were, he could find them. Considering the Scar Market's extensive influence, Daniel Davis decided to send two wooden clones to handle the matter.
"You told him about the Scar Market because you want to use his power to deal with them, don't you?"
At the Rhodes Island office in Chernobog, W, who had just left Daniel Davis, came to see Kal'tsit and the Doctor. Even though the Doctor was someone W wanted to kill, she also trusted her.
"Exactly. Back then, Her Highness said that the chaos in Kazdel was largely due to them. If it weren't for them, Her Highness wouldn't have failed in the end." As she spoke, W glared at the Doctor.
"That's a good idea, but he's not someone you can manipulate. You'd better tell him everything and let him decide for himself." Kal'tsit looked at W and shook her head slightly.
"Kal'tsit is right. W, you shouldn't approach this with your mercenary mindset." The Doctor chimed in.
"What I do is none of your business." W wasn't as polite to the Doctor as she was to Kal'tsit, though her politeness was relative.
In fact, if this matter hadn't involved all of Kazdel, W wouldn't have come to Kal'tsit and the Doctor at all, given her personality.
"Alright, I need to talk to him about something. I'll let him know." Although W's methods weren't ideal, this was indeed an opportunity to change the situation in Kazdel. Even Kal'tsit was prepared to discuss it with Daniel Davis, despite Kazdel being nominally under Theresis's control.
"So that's how it is. I understand. I didn't expect W to have this side to her." Daniel Davis was somewhat surprised when Kal'tsit approached him about the situation in Kazdel. He had suspected W had other motives but hadn't expected this. After all, in his impression, W didn't seem to care much about the overall situation of the Sarkaz race. Her only concern was the Princess.
"She is, after all, a Sarkaz."
As a Sarkaz, it was impossible not to care about her homeland. It was just that she had been powerless to do anything before.
"True, she is a Sarkaz after all."
Daniel Davis nodded slightly and repeated the words softly. If possible, he would like to return to his own world someday.
"Don't worry, I'll handle this. Even if it weren't for Amiya, the fact that they put a bounty on me is enough reason for me to get involved."
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