After walking for a while, the smell became stronger and stronger.

At the bend in the stream, Lin Yang indeed saw a dead wild deer lying in the water.

Judging from the degree of decomposition of the corpses, this trend of input occurred at least two months ago, which coincides with the time of the outbreak of the epidemic.

"Found it." Lin Yang couldn't help but pinch his nose. "The corpse decomposed and polluted the main water source for the nearby towns. Every household uses this stream for cooking and washing clothes. How could they not get sick?"

Ultimately, the tragedy stemmed from the underdeveloped economies of small Southeast Asian countries, which led to poor hygiene habits among their residents.

If there were other ways to deal with the drought, or if people of all ages had a stronger awareness of hygiene, the tragic consequences of tens of thousands of people dying from disease would not have occurred.

"Marilyn, we need to report the water pollution to the local officials immediately... Are you alright?!"

Lin Yang was about to turn around and tell Marilyn what to do next when he saw Marilyn's eyes glazed over, and she was so unsteady on her feet that she swayed twice and fell to the ground.

His pupils contracted slightly, and he quickly stepped forward to check.

Holding the girl's soft body in his arms, Lin Yang didn't have time to admire her beautiful figure. He put his right index and middle fingers together on Marilyn's wrist, frowning as he carefully felt it.

"broken."

Lin Yang slapped his forehead in frustration.

He was so focused on finding the cause of the water pollution that he momentarily forgot Marilyn was a patient.

He actually made a frail and sickly little girl accompany him on such a long mountain journey!

Lin Yang didn't dare to delay. He immediately took out silver needles from his pocket and, following the previous treatment method, quickly inserted the needles into Marilyn's acupoints to seal the blood vessels and prevent her condition from worsening.

During the acupuncture treatment, Lin Yang took the opportunity of inserting the needle tip into Marilyn's blood vessels to inject his own true energy into her body.

Soon, some color returned to Marilyn's pale face, and she slowly opened her eyes.

"What...what just happened to me?"

Her vision cleared, and when she realized she was lying in Lin Yang's arms, with his handsome face gazing at her so close, Marilyn's face instantly turned bright red.

Southeast Asian countries are culturally conservative, and men and women pay great attention to social distance. This was the first time in her life that she had been so close to a strange man.

"I'm sorry, young lady, I didn't take good care of you."

Lin Yang felt extremely guilty. Without thinking much, he placed his palm on Marilyn's forehead to check her temperature and then took her pulse. His heart, which had been in his throat, finally settled down.

Fortunately, her vital signs have stabilized, and apart from a slightly rapid heartbeat, there are no other abnormalities.

If anything were to happen to Marilyn while she was leading the way for him, he would have no face to go back and see Luna.

Little did she know, this action made Marilyn's face burn even more, and her heart raced again.

"Mr. Lin Yang, I... I'm awake now. You don't need to keep holding me." After a while, Marilyn finally recovered from her overwhelming shyness and gently pushed against Lin Yang's chest in a voice barely audible.

That charming and adorable appearance made Lin Yang suddenly understand something.

So that's why the little girl's heart was beating so fast just now?

Lin Yang couldn't help but smile, a strange urge to tease her stirring within him.

Instead of letting go, he lifted his arm and carried Marilyn in a princess carry, saying, "That won't do. You're weak right now and can't expend too much energy."

In the quiet mountain forest, Lin Yang carried the girl down the mountain step by step and back to the cabin.

Inside the house, Luna was chopping wood and boiling water, working up a sweat.

Normally, she and her daughter would be reluctant to waste firewood to boil water, but the troubled expression on Lin Yang's face when he picked up the bowl just now said it all; she didn't want to wrong her savior.

Upon arriving at the cottage door, Marilyn, who had been blushing the whole way, could no longer hold back and struggled slightly in Lin Yang's arms: "Mr. Lin Yang, please help me put him down. If my mother sees this later, I... I don't know how to explain it to her."

Lin Yang didn't make things difficult for her anymore and gently put her down.

Marilyn lowered her head, wishing she could bury it in the ground, and followed Lin Yang shyly, afraid that her mother would notice something was wrong, yet she couldn't hide her inner joy and coquettishness.

"You're back?"

Hearing footsteps, Luna put down the firewood she was holding and brought Lin Yang a bowl of freshly boiled water.

"Mr. Lin Yang, this water is freshly boiled and has cooled down. Please quench your thirst."

The woman's simple and honest face warmed Lin Yang's heart, and a myriad of thoughts welled up in his mind.

The differences between people in the world are truly vast.

Despite her impoverished background and hardships, Luna was still willing to treat others with a sincere heart.

Some people are incredibly wealthy and renowned both at home and abroad, yet they do utterly inhuman things!

He reached out and took it, his gaze sweeping over the bowl of boiled water.

Compared to before, it is indeed much purer and clearer.

However, high temperatures can only kill some bacteria and viruses. It cannot be ruled out that there are heat-resistant bacteria in the water, as well as harmful substances produced by the reproduction of a large number of microorganisms. Therefore, it still cannot be guaranteed that the spring water is 100% safe to drink.

Lin Yang put the water aside and briefly summarized what he had just seen and heard, which made Luna feel a chill.

"What? You mean, for the past two months, the entire city has been drinking water that has been soaked in corpses?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Luna couldn't help but gag.

No wonder you got sick!

She couldn't imagine how dirty the water was!

Marilyn froze on the spot, covering her mouth, her slender shoulders trembling slightly.

She was not fully conscious when she went up the mountain with Lin Yang and did not see the deer carcass clearly. She only vaguely remembered Lin Yang excitedly muttering things like "Found the reason" and "No wonder".

"Yes, this is probably the real reason why infectious diseases are rampant."

Lin Yang's expression was solemn. After a moment of contemplation, he continued.

The reason people get sick is not just because they are "infected" by other people of the same kind, but because they come into contact with water sources containing pathogens.

Luna and her daughter exchanged a glance, both seeing a look of confusion and helplessness on each other's faces.

Lin Yang is a doctor at the International Rescue Center, so they naturally wouldn't doubt what he said.

“I have observed the location of the wild deer carcass. It is at a bend in the stream, a very dangerous location, with a cliff not far away. We cannot handle it ourselves; we can only ask the relevant departments to send professionals and equipment.”

Thinking of this, Lin Yang shook his head helplessly.

If nothing unexpected happens, the media and newspapers outside should be filled with reports about Ouyang Jianfei and Liu Baohua, while Lin Yang's name is being fiercely cursed and criticized.

This is also why Lin Yang chose to return to the mountain village with Luna.