The Sacred Ruins
Chapter 7

The fatty really liked to talk; his chatter never, even once, stopped along the way . He recounted the odd stories and anecdotes from when he attended school in Western China, all of which contained hints of mystery and the occult .

Tibet was home to many legends, some of which were quite widely known in the area . Some records could even be traced back to their origins . Fatty’s narration was indeed quite captivating; many people from the nearby seats were all listening attentively .

"You guys shouldn’t treat these as mere folklore . Some of these things had indeed happened in the past . " Fatty was rather serious .

The others urged him to speak on after being left in suspense .

"I once saw, within a run-down temple, a young Tibetan mastiff guarding an old whimpering dog on the verge of death and this little dog was crying golden tears," said Zhou Quan .

"Hiss!"

The group of people began to his in disbelief . It was simply too ridiculous and difficult to believe .

"I swear it’s the truth . I saw it with my very own eyes . " Fatty Zhou was somewhat angry as he slapped his chest and swore that it was the truth .

"After pondering on it afterwards, I think it could be that the brilliance within its golden pupils was being reflected on the tears, rendering them golden yellow," the fatty explained .

"If you really found such an extraordinary Tibetan mastiff pup, why didn’t you rush in and grab him? You could keep it as a pet and train it . Where is it now?" Someone else asked .

"Sigh, I really wanted to take him away but there was an elderly llama within the dilapidated temple and I simply couldn’t convince him to let me take the dog away . "

According to Zhou Quan, this ruined and almost collapsed temple was situated in a remote corner of the highlands . No more than a handful of people would visit such a place each year .

The llama was quite old and somewhat hard of hearing . It was quite difficult to communicate with him .

Only much later did Zhou Quan understand what the elderly llama wanted to say . The little mastiff didn’t belong to anyone . It was meant to one day return to the Sacred Mountain and grow into a being capable of subduing demons .

"But that little mastiff’s strength was quite shocking . It was so oddly strong that it could throw me to the ground after biting my leg . " A strange expression surfaced on Zhou Quan’s face as he recounted his past experience .

The others refused to believe his story .

"How long ago was this?" Chu Feng asked .

Because Chu Feng had come across a mastiff of great divine might back at Mount Kunlun . This extraordinary canine was far more powerful than its peers and was able to kill ferocious beasts with relative ease .

"About three years ago," Zhou Quan replied .

The train whistled loudly as the scenery outside the window flew past rapidly . They were traveled due east and finally left the highlands .

"You bought so much food?" Zhou Quan didn’t regard himself as an outsider at all and took it upon himself to help Chu Feng share the "burden" . He even asked which ones were tastier .

"These spiritual seeds taste pretty good," Chu Feng replied .

"What?" Zhou Quan was puzzled .

"Didn’t you say some mythological characters were planted? I feel that this is a divine species . " Chu Feng pointed at the fava beans and nuts .

Fatty Zhou was rendered speechless and proceeded to stuff himself before speaking indistinctly, "The divine seeds do taste pretty good . "

The surrounding people were all laughing .

"Ah!" Suddenly Zhou Quan grimaced and began to howl in pain as he retrieved a bean from his mouth .

"I say, brother, where did you buy these fava beans? Are they even edible? My teeth are almost broken . " He grimaced as if he was in great pain .

He threw the seed on the table with a clang .

"God, it’s so hard . Do you hear that sound? The problem of food safety still hasn’t been solved up to this day and age!" Zhou Quan rubbed his cheeks in anger .

Chu Feng was shocked because that wasn’t a fava bean . It was the relatively plump and dried yellow seed from within the stone box .

He took it out and wanted to let Zhou Quan check what it was but had forgotten it while chatting along the way . He’d then accidentally put it alongside the snacks .

"Goddammit, do they even have a conscience? This isn’t a bean at all! Just what is this?!" Zhou Quan immediately became furious after seeing the appearance . He noted the manufacturing company and was planning to lodge a complaint as soon as he got back .

Chu Feng felt somewhat guilty but admitted to the case anyway . He told fatty that the item wasn’t from within the food package but was instead a seed he had brought back from the highlands .

Fatty Zhou seemed to have suddenly misfired . His face became increasingly red as if he was in great discomfort .

The people in the vicinity first became silent but then everyone broke into laughter .

Fatty Zhou choked for a long time before saying, "Brother you’re truly careless! How can you put such a thing so randomly? It’s more like a piece of metal than a seed!"

Chu Feng also laughed and selected some nuts for the fatty as an apology .

At the same time, he also put the three seeds onto the table and consulted the surrounding people to see if anyone knew what kind of plant it belonged to . Naturally, he didn’t tell them about the origin of these seeds .

"This round one looks like a bean but it actually isn’t . "

"How come one of it is flat? Did you squash it?"

"This one is so black and shriveled up . What a rare sight!"

…

Everyone broke into a discussion but none of them was able to name the seeds . Some of them guessed they might be seeds of certain mountain vines .

"I want to smash them!" Zhou Quan rubbed his chin lightly and glared at one of the seeds .

"Don’t! They’re rare treasures! I’m going to plant them and perhaps grow a goddess from it . " Chu Feng laughed .

"That might really be the case according to Zhou Quan’s theory . " The others chimed in to make fun of the fatty .

"You want to grow a goddess? You’re more likely to grow three old llamas or Daoists instead," Zhou Quan spoke, covering his mouth with one hand . Apparently, the pain hadn’t subsided as yet .

Time flew by quickly on the road .

But the train suddenly stopped moving after a certain stop .

"What’s the matter?"

People began to get up after noticing the train hadn’t moved for some time .

Very soon, the attendants informed them that an accident had occurred on the railway ahead and that they should be on their way soon .

Only then did the people return to their seats to wait in patience .

"Look, there’s more news… big news! There are not only grasses floating in the sky but also trees . This photo gives a clear view . " Zhou Quan cried out and poked Chu Feng, indicating him to look at the news on his communicator .

Apparently, many other people had also noticed this news .

Chu Feng looked closely at the digital photo which seemed to have been taken from outer space and saw several trees floating adrift, full of vitality .

On closer inspection, some of the trees were densely green, some violet brown and others a sanguineous red . The whole scene was extremely odd .

How did these trees appear in the air? Everyone was puzzled .

Voices rang out continuously throughout the train as people began to discuss this matter with great enthusiasm . The matter was simply too odd and couldn’t be taken lightly as it could lead to a mass panic .

Only when the train started moving once again did the voices die down . The sound of the train whistling loudly as it sped into the distance drew some of the people's’ attention .

"I’m very familiar with this road—I’d passed by here many times when I attended school in Western China . " Zhou Quan introduced everyone to almost every city they passed by .

After roughly an hour later, the train stopped at a certain station .

At that point, Zhou Quan was staring out of the window, "Something’s not right . There shouldn’t be a huge mountain at this station . "

"Yeah, we frequently pass through this route . There shouldn’t be any large mountains nearby . " Some other people voiced their concerns .

"Wait, look closely . That’s… not a mountain . It's a gigantic tree!" someone screamed .

Many people pushed toward the window to get a closer look .

Chu Feng was greatly astonished . He clearly saw the enormous tree . It was colossal and was rightly comparable to a mountain . It stood tall in the distance, almost piercing into the clouds .

"Did anyone board the train at this station? Let’s ask them about the situation!" Someone suggested .

Some people came aboard after a while . Their description of the situation stunned everyone .

It was a well-known maidenhair tree which had existed in this region for over a hundred years . But for some unknown reason, it began to grow madly in the recent days .

This created quite a stir in the area and many people were shocked .

The immediate area was currently under lockdown and none were allowed to approach .

"So it is true! Someone posted a photo a few days ago but was mysteriously deleted . So this tree really does exist!" Someone from within the car exclaimed .

These bizarre developments were truly baffling .

Even if it was a hundred-year-old ancient tree, there was no reason for it to grow at such an explosive rate within a few days . It was simply unimaginable .

Almost an hour had passed but the train hadn’t moved at all from the station .

The attendants explained that the delay was due to an emergency situation up ahead which should be resolved soon, allowing them to continue the journey .

The passengers could hardly stay calm . They discussed the matter of the ancient maidenhair tree, the vegetation in outer space and the possible relationship between them .

Later on, some people couldn’t wait any longer and decided to go out for a walk .

Zhou Quan also alighted but soon returned with an odd expression, "Look at what kind of plant I just dug up?"

He held a plant in his mudstained hands . Its features were similar to that of common weeds but it was obviously special—it was lush, green and overflowing with an aura of vitality . The fist-sized red fruit growing on top of it was emitting a noticeable fragrance . [1]

"This is a great find! A roadside grass had actually formed such a colorful and fragrant fruit!" Zhou Quan’s voice was trembling with excitement .

Chu Feng felt a shiver run down his back . What was happening to this world? An upheaval was imminent!

Retranslated by ALSEY - 2018/JAN