The Sacred Burial Grounds - Chapter 8.1

What Lin Nuo Yi had claimed the other day was real. Red fruits born on the clumps of ordinary grass and were emitting an appealing fragrance.

Chu Feng’s heart was unable to calm down, his thoughts were racing.

This world had became different. It was impossible to understand what had happened!

Chu Feng’s heart was still throbbing. This change had people sitting on the edge. Soo many peculiar events had taken place – none of which, were explainable.

“Is this edible?”

Chou Quan was a very careless person. Breathing in the fruit’s fragrance, he was tempted to take a bite out of it. Even given the circumstances, he was still in the mood to eat!

“Go ahead and try it.”

“Oh no, I dare not. Who knows if it’s  poisonous! Clumps of ordinary grass bearing a bright red fruit, that’s like meeting a ghost!” Fatty Chou shook his head.

Still, he swallowed his saliva because the fruit was so enticing. Its fragrance was stronger than any other ordinary fruits he had ever encountered.

But what puzzled Chu Feng was that – this fruit had a shiny surface, like a red onyx. It looked very appealing. But how could ordinary grass bare such a fruit?

The people on the train were similarly mesmerized by it, however they weren’t shocked. It was because of the many strange events that had occurred in the past few days – especially that ancient Ginkgo tree up ahead, it terrified the people.

How grass could bare such an alluring fruit was unbelievable, but it didn’t make people terrified.

On the other hand ,that enormous ancient tree ahead did. Some were sure that it would turn into an evil creature and wreak havoc.

“We should get out of here now. I don’t feel safe.” a middle-aged man said, his face was pale and he had not left his seat to go out of his compartment to see any of the happenings.

However, after the train had stopped, it made no move to depart again.

Time ticked on, and half an hour passed. Chu Feng  got out from the carriage and peered out from the observation deck.

That ancient tree was enormous. It was bigger than any ordinary mountain, its branches and leaves were so numerous in number that it covered the entire town. It would be impossible to move this tree even if they had wanted to.

“Come see, what we’ve got!”

Up ahead, a few people were approaching. Some carried a leaf as big as a bansho fan – it belonged to the tree. The sheer size of it made people gasp in surprise.

There was also a young man who carried a fruit as big as a basin. He was puffing and wheezing as he was carrying it. That was the fruit of the Ginkgo tree. It was pale yellow in colour.

“You guys plucked it from the tree?”

“That would be impossible, we picked it up from there.”

They pointed in the distance ahead.

The ginkgo tree was colossal and its branches reached to where they were. The ground had fallen leaves and fruits.

“At the moment, there are many who wish to leave right away. All of them are very anxious.” someone said.

“The train has stopped moving for quite some time. I want to know if the front had encountered any misfortunes, this is not the first time it has.”

Some couldn’t wait to start moving again and were fidgeting in their seats.

Until now, the train attendants, still had not reported anything.

Chou Quan grabbed Chu Feng’s wrist and whispered, “Brother, I think there’s something wrong. There has never been any accidents along this trail.”

“I hope we get moving soon” Chu Feng nodded.

A full hour had now passed and many were beginning to become restless. Finally the train started to depart.

“Thank God, finally, we’re leaving.” an elderly sighed in relief. Secretly, many of the passengers felt the same.

Up ahead in the distance, black clouds were starting to brew. There was a flash and a lightning bolted. This weather was too unpredictable.

In a moment, heavy rain came pouring down.

Everything became dark and gloomy.

Fortunately, they were all already safely in the train.

“What in the name- Why is it glowing there?” someone shouted.

Outside the window pane, the gigantic tree was emitting a faint green glow, clouding the area. The sight was terrifying to all.

The tree was swaying and in the flash of lightning, the scene seemed bizarrely outlandish and ghastly.

Had the lightning covered the tree or was the tree emitting it itself?

Such a gigantic tree, its branches might get snapped in half in that storm!

“BOOM!”

Suddenly, they all heard a deafening sound. In a flash, the massive tree was bathed aglow and many of its branches were broken. Many of its enormous leaves fell on the ground.

Dark clouds covered the sky, everything was dark and people could only see where the light was.

One after the other, the ginkgo fruits started to break open. And then, a bizarre scene began to unfold – seeds like dandelion flew out and danced in mid-air.

The fruits which had fallen emitted a faint glow. The inside also carried a silvery white fluff, like mini umbrellas, they flew afar.

“Is this a ginkgo tree or a dandelion?!” Fatty Chou gulped, his throat had run dry from seeing the remarkable, yet bizarre scene.

In the compartment, everyone was caught dumbfounded. It was a strikingly weird scene, that made people anxious.

After all the seeds were dispersed, the ancient tree went silent again. Its branches no longer sway, nor broke. Its body remained in a still upright position, as if nothing had happened.

It was then, that the torrential rains began to take place. The thick pitter patter of rain clouded their windows, allowing almost no vision. The people were still lost in their senses.

In the distance, they could see nothing.

“Brother, has this world gone mad, or have we gone mad?! I’ve never seen anything like this!” Chou Quan said to Chu Feng.

It wasn’t only him who was feeling that way Everyone in the compartment was silent, still in shock of what had happened.