The chubby guy was quite talkative, his mouth never stopped from the beginning. He talked about strange and mysterious things he heard when he was studying in the west, all with a distinct air of mystery.
Tibet is full of legends, some stories are widely spread locally, and some records can trace back to their origins, truly captivating. People sitting next to each other were listening intently.
"Don't take these as myths; some of them actually happened," said the chubby man very seriously.
Upon hearing him build up suspense, someone urged him to continue.
"I once saw a small Tibetan mastiff guarding an old dying dog in a dilapidated temple, and the puppy had golden tears streaming from its eyes," Zhou Quan recounted.
"Shh!"
A chorus of hushes came from the group, none of them believed it, thinking it too far-fetched, completely unrealistic.
"It's absolutely true, I witnessed it myself." Zhou Quan got agitated, pounding his chest and swearing that his words were not false.
"Later on, I thought maybe its golden pupils were so bright they reflected golden tears," the chubby man explained.
"If you saw such an extraordinary Tibetan mastiff pup, wouldn't you rush to grab it and bring it home for training? Where is it now?" someone laughed.
"Oh, I wish I could have taken it away, but there was this ancient lama in the broken temple who couldn't communicate and wouldn't let me take it."
According to Zhou Quan, the temple was decrepit, located deep in a barren plateau, visited by few people throughout the year, almost collapsing.
The old lama was extremely aged, hard of hearing, making communication very difficult.
In the end, Zhou Quan understood the old lama's meaning - the young mastiff did not belong to anyone, destined to enter the holy mountain, capable of subduing demons in the future.
"However, the strength of that little mastiff was indeed terrifying. It tripped me over just by biting my trouser leg, very odd," Zhou Quan mentioned, still showing a strange expression on his face recalling the incident.
Others didn't believe him.
"When did this happen?" Chu Feng asked.
Because he encountered a mighty Tibetan mastiff in Kunlun Mountain, which easily killed fierce beasts in the mountains, surpassing its peers, truly extraordinary.
"About three years ago," Zhou Quan replied.
The train whistled past, scenery outside the window flew by rapidly, heading eastward, finally leaving the plateau.
"Did you buy so much food?" Zhou Quan wasn't shy at all, coming forward to share Chu Feng's burden, even asking which ones tasted good.
"These divine seeds taste pretty good," Chu Feng answered.
"What?" Zhou Quan looked puzzled.
"Weren't you saying some characters in mythology might be grown? I think these might be divine seeds," Chu Feng pointed to the broad beans and some nuts.
Zhou Quan appeared speechless, stuffing his mouth, mumbling, "Divine seeds do taste good."
People around laughed.
"Ouch!" Suddenly, Zhou Quan winced in pain, took out a bean from his mouth.
"Brother, where did you buy these broad beans? Are these edible? Harder than iron, nearly broke my teeth," he grimaced painfully.
With a clang, he threw a seed onto the table.
"My God, so hard, look how it clinks, what era is this, food safety issues are still unresolved!" Zhou Quan fumed, holding his cheek.
Chu Feng was startled because these weren't broad beans but the somewhat plump, yellowish seeds from the stone box.
He wanted to show everyone what they were, but due to chatting along the way, he forgot, placing them beside the nuts.
"This is outrageous, no conscience at all, this isn't a bean, what is this?!" When Zhou Quan saw its shape clearly, he got angry, demanding to note down the manufacturer for complaint.
Chu Feng felt slightly guilty but honestly told him these weren't packaged beans but seeds he brought back from the plateau.
Zhou Quan fell silent, his face flushed red, looking very uncomfortable.
There was a moment of silence followed by laughter.
After a long while, Zhou Quan said, "Brother, you really don't play fair, how can you casually place such things? This isn't a seed, it's an iron block!"
Chu Feng also laughed, offering various nuts as an apology.
At the same time, he placed three seeds on the table, seeking advice from those around about the type of plant they belonged to, without revealing the origin of the three ancient seeds.
"This round one looks like a bean but isn't."
"How come there's a flat one, was it crushed?"
"This shriveled one, black all over, quite rare."
...
People discussed but couldn't identify any, unable to name them, some guessing they were vine seeds from the mountains.
"I really want to smash it!" Zhou Quan puffed his cheeks, gently rubbing one of them.
"No, it's a rare species, I plan to plant it, maybe a goddess will grow," Chu Feng laughed.
"Based on Zhou Quan's account, it's unpredictable," others chimed in, joining in the fun.
"Growing a goddess? I bet it'll grow three old lamas or three old Taoists," Zhou Quan said, covering his mouth, still in pain.
Time passed quickly along the way.
However, when passing through a station, the train stopped and didn't move again.
"What's happening?"
Due to the prolonged stop, many people couldn't sit still, standing up one after another.
Soon, an attendant informed them of an accident ahead being urgently addressed, promising to resume soon.
People sat down, waiting patiently.
"Look, more news, big headlines, not only floating grass but trees in the air, this photo is very clear."
Zhou Quan called out, nudging Chu Feng beside him, pointing to the news on the communicator.
"Really bizarre, recent events are inexplicable, is this still the world I know?" others exclaimed.
Obviously, not only Zhou Quan noticed this new headline, others did too.
Chu Feng carefully observed the electronic photo, very clear, showing several trees floating in space, teeming with vitality.
Looking closely, some tree bodies were lush green, others entirely purple-brown, and even blood-red, very strange.
How could trees appear in the air? Everyone was puzzled.
For a while, the train was filled with noise, people discussing fervently, this matter too bizarre, potentially causing panic.
Only when the train started moving again, speeding away, did people's attention shift, voices quieting down.
"I'm familiar with this route, having traveled it many times during my studies in the west," Zhou Quan introduced cities passed along the way.
About an hour later, the train stopped at another station.
Meanwhile, Zhou Quan stared out the window, muttering, "This doesn't seem right, there aren't any large mountains here."
"Yeah, I frequently travel this line, there shouldn't be huge mountains nearby," others expressed doubts.
"No, look, that... not mountains, it's a giant tree!" someone shouted.
Many people pressed against the windows, observing closely.
Chu Feng looked astonished, seeing clearly it was indeed a giant tree, enormous, like a mountain, towering in the distance, almost reaching the clouds.
"Is there anyone boarding at this station? Ask them what's going on!" someone suggested.
Before long, some passengers boarded, their revelations shocking everyone into stunned silence.
It was an ancient ginkgo tree, famous locally, growing for hundreds of years. Recently, for unknown reasons, it began growing wildly.
Locally, this caused a great sensation, shocking many.
Currently, the area was sealed off, prohibiting people from approaching.
"So it's true, two days ago, someone posted photos online, then mysteriously deleted them. Turns out it's real!" Someone in the carriage exclaimed.
Such a bizarre event occurred, hard to comprehend.
An ancient tree, though it has existed for a long time, couldn't grow to this extent within two or three days, too unbelievable.
Time passed, the train stopped for half an hour, still parked at this station.
Attendants explained another emergency ahead being resolved, soon resuming.
On the train, people couldn't calm down, discussing the ancient tree, the eerie trees in space, wondering if there was any connection.
Eventually, some couldn't wait any longer, getting off to stretch their legs.
Zhou Quan also disembarked but quickly returned, looking very peculiar, saying, "Look what plant I dug up?"
His hands, covered in soil, held a common weed, but now it seemed special, green and vibrant, bearing a fist-sized red fruit emitting a fragrant aroma.
"This is a significant discovery, a common weed grew a fresh red fruit, smelling wonderful!" Zhou Quan trembled.
Chu Feng felt a chill down his spine, what was happening to this world? Changes were starting!