“A clever lie!”
At that moment, a mocking voice suddenly came from behind Leo.
Without turning around, Leo knew it was Dante from the Clotho Syndicate.
“A lie?” Leo sneered coldly. “How so?”
Dante squinted his eyes and scoffed, “There is no medical equipment here. How do you plan to kill the virus in the patient’s body, with your hands?”
“Yes, with my hands!” Leo’s tone was firm and confident.
Dante couldn’t help but laugh out loud, looking at Leo as if he were a ridiculous clown. “Do you think the virus is like fleas on your body that you can crush with two fingers?”
“Dante, I bet he doesn’t even know what a virus is!” A young mixed-race man behind Dante sneered.
Leo glanced at the mixed-race man, noticing his features and hair had some Oriental characteristics, deducing he was likely a product of an Atrarian and a Westerner.
“What Western medicine cannot achieve does not mean our traditional medicine cannot! With just my hands and a small silver needle, I can greatly alleviate the symptoms caused by this virus!” Leo retorted forcefully.
“Do you think we know nothing about Atrarian traditional medicine?” The mixed-race man sneered. “Traditional medicine acupuncture merely stimulates acupoints to unblock meridians and balance yin and yang.”
“But a virus is a non-cellular life form with only a long chain of nucleic acid and a protein shell. It can only survive by parasitizing living cells!”
“In medicine, it cannot be killed directly by external means; it can only be eliminated by the body’s immune system! How can you use acupuncture to stop the virus from spreading in the body!?”
The mixed-race man’s tone was full of arrogance, as if signaling to Leo that he had met someone equally knowledgeable in traditional medicine.
Leo was somewhat surprised to see the mixed-race man speak so knowledgeably. He hadn’t expected a member of a Western medical organization to be so well-versed in traditional medicine!
The mixed-race man wasn’t wrong. Simply relying on acupuncture couldn’t suppress the growth of the virus.
The reason Leo could stabilize the symptoms of those soldiers and Willow with acupuncture was due to his internal spiritual power.
Leo curiously looked at the mixed-race man and asked, “You must have studied traditional medicine before?”
“Yes, I learned it from my grandfather for a few years! It was a complete waste of time!” The mixed-race man snorted, his tone filled with disdain.
He took no pride in having studied traditional medicine. He had done so only because his grandfather and mother forced him to.
In his impression, traditional medicine was slow-acting, conservative, and worthless!
In the time it took for traditional medicine to treat an illness, Western medicine could have cured countless patients. This was one reason he abandoned traditional medicine as he grew up.
“No wonder you know quite a bit about traditional medicine!” Leo smiled faintly.
The mixed-race man snorted arrogantly at Leo’s acknowledgment.
“But knowing is one thing; understanding is another. Traditional medicine is profound and extensive. You only grasp the basics. It’s like an elementary student discussing academics with a university professor. Should I say you’re overestimating yourself or that there’s something wrong with your head?” Leo added calmly.
Monica couldn’t help but cover her mouth and laugh at Leo’s words.
The mixed-race man was furious, pointing at Leo and shouting, “You’re mocking me?”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying, nor do I care who’s right or wrong. I want you to cure the villagers’ strange illness!” The old village chief, who had been watching coldly, stepped forward.
“I only believe what I see. Don’t forget your promise. If you can’t save our people, we’ll take you to sacrifice to the mountain god!”
The old village chief was a stubborn man.
His words made the mixed-race man gloat. “The chief is right. What’s the point of arguing with me? If you can’t save anyone, prepare to be sacrificed to the mountain god!”
Monica grew worried and whispered to the captain beside her, “Sir, Dr. Bloomer came here specifically to save you. You can’t just leave him alone!”
“Don’t worry, Ms. Monica. As long as I’m here, I won’t let anyone harm Dr. Bloomer!” The captain assured her resolutely.
“Make way! Make way! The patient is here!” Suddenly, there were shouts from the crowd’s outskirts.
Everyone turned to see the bald man and others who had gone to find patients returning.
Two villagers carried a makeshift stretcher made of wooden sticks and bed sheets. On it lay an emaciated old man with a flushed face.
The villagers immediately scattered, covering their mouths and noses tightly, fearing infection.
Although they knew it wasn’t airborne, they instinctively protected themselves.
Monica was furious when she saw the patient.
This wasn’t just any patient; this was practically a dead man!
The old man’s eyes were sunken, and his skin was covered in purple-black rashes.
Clearly, he had been sick for a long time. His chest barely rose and fell, making him look like he could die any moment.
“This is too much!” Monica stepped forward angrily. “This person has been infected for at least a month. His immune system is collapsing; he could die any moment. How do you expect us to treat him!”
“Our village is full of such patients; we have no choice!” The Mediterranean man looked helpless. “Besides, if we don’t bring someone seriously ill, how will we know if you can cure this strange illness!”
“Why don’t you just bring us a dead person to revive!” Monica fumed.
“We can do that too! There are plenty of corpses in the ravine behind our village. Want me to bring a couple over?” The Mediterranean man retorted.
“You…!” Monica was so angry she couldn’t speak, her chest heaving with rage.
The villagers who had never left the mountains watched her intently.
The village chief couldn’t take it anymore and called the Mediterranean man over. “Eugene, you’re going too far. As far as I know, Bernard has been sick for almost a month! Even a god couldn’t save him now.”
“Uncle, don’t be fooled by them! We’ve already discussed this; this isn’t an illness but the mountain god’s wrath!”