Chapter 1: The Magic Radio

“Xiaoyu, now that you’re back these few days, go take a look at the Old Family House. Find some useful things to keep.” A middle-aged woman spoke to the young man in the yard.

“Got it, Mom. I’ll go right now. Huzi, let’s go.” The young man said, somewhat helplessly. He called for his family’s big yellow dog and headed towards the Old Family House.

The young man’s name was Zhou Yu. He had graduated from university a year or two ago and had tried a few jobs. But for various reasons, he quit each one. Not long ago, he had just returned to his hometown. On one hand, he wanted to relax and unwind. On the other hand, he wanted to see if there were any ways in his hometown to get rich and become well-off.

The name of his hometown was very poetic. It was called Taoyuan Village. Along with some nearby villages, it was right next to the Sea, boasting a beautiful coastline. Plus, it had maintained its original ecology. In recent years, it had become a place many tourists visited. Although it wasn’t among any famous scenic spots, it had still driven the development of the entire countryside.

Zhou Yu walked along the village’s flat cement road with his family’s big yellow dog. Thinking of his mother’s instructions, he couldn’t help but show a bitter smile on his face. He hadn’t been home for more than a few days, and his parents were already talking about selling the Old Family House. They wanted to use the money to build him a wedding house, and had even started asking the village’s many aunts and relatives to help find him a wife.

This Old Family House was located at the very edge of the village, near the Sea. Because of its remote location, and because the village roads weren’t very good many years ago—becoming muddy whenever it rained—his parents had used all their savings to buy their current house when he was in junior high school.

As he neared the seaside area, the quiet environment became lively. There were various shops surrounding the Beach. There were seafood barbecue restaurants and shops specializing in Beach supplies. Their business looked very brisk.

Although these tourists disturbed the village’s peace, they had helped the entire village develop. One had to admit there were both advantages and disadvantages.

It was just that Zhou Yu’s family hadn’t caught the peak of the village’s development. His parents were honest, simple farmers all their lives. They didn’t have much long-term vision and didn’t understand business. After seeing others make money, his family had also rented a small shop. However, they didn’t last long; they lost money and transferred it to someone else.

That’s how the world was. Some people got rich relying on something, but you might not be able to copy their success.

“Xiaoyu, where are you going?” Just as Zhou Yu was reminiscing, a question came from a shop by the road.

Zhou Yu snapped back to attention and looked towards the shop. Immediately, he said with a smile, “Uncle, my mom told me to go to the Old Family House and pack up some useful things.”

This was his eldest aunt’s husband, Li Guomin. Among all the relatives, it was his eldest aunt’s family who had always been very caring towards them.

“Haha, your aunt told me. She said your mom plans to sell the Old Family House to build you a house and get you a wife. Don’t worry, I’ll definitely have your aunt introduce you to a pretty and virtuous girl.” Hearing Zhou Yu’s words, Li Guomin laughed loudly inside the shop.

Zhou Yu showed a bitter smile on his face. “Uncle, please don’t mention this matter.”

“You, a man should marry when he’s grown, a woman should be wed when she’s of age. What’s there to be shy about? Biaozi is two years younger than you, and he already has a child now. If you don’t hurry up, how is that okay?” Li Guomin had the expression of someone frustrated with another’s lack of ambition. He pointed at Zhou Yu and started his nagging mode.

“Well, uncle, I’m going to the Old Family House first. I’ll talk more when I come back later.” Hearing these words, Zhou Yu felt his head growing bigger instantly. He tossed out this sentence and ran off with his family’s big yellow dog.

Li Guomin watched Zhou Yu’s figure running away and shook his head. “This kid, he went to university, how come he became more thin-skinned?”

After leaving Li Guomin’s shop, Zhou Yu arrived at the gate of his family’s Old Family House. Looking at the somewhat dilapidated wooden door, he showed some emotion on his face.

This Old Family House was some distance away from the bustling Beach. Although it backed onto the Sea, it was still a bit remote. However, now with the village’s development, many people had begun to see the potential of this area.

Some people had repeatedly expressed their desire to buy it from his parents. Apart from wealthy merchants from other places, there were also people from nearby villages. It was just that his parents felt this was a house passed down from their ancestors, and they couldn’t sell it casually.

And now, in order to build him a wedding house and get him a wife, his parents had made the decision to sell the Old Family House.

Zhou Yu took out a key and slowly opened the door. He walked into the yard and immediately saw the water pump platform facing the door. He couldn’t help but show a smile of reminiscence on his face, remembering the times he pumped water by hand as a child. The sweetness and coolness of the well water couldn’t be compared to tap water now.

This Old Family House had accompanied him through the most carefree time of his life. Although his family was very poor in childhood, they lived very happily.

Over the years, although his parents would tidy up the Old Family House from time to time, it had ultimately been deserted for a long time. Without the liveliness of people, any house would appear lifeless.

His family’s Huzi, after entering this big yard, started running around joyfully, seeming somewhat familiar with this place. And the place they lived in now had a yard far smaller than this one. It also didn’t have the rich and colorful memories of here.

Zhou Yu walked step by step in the yard. The yard was covered with fallen leaves and some weeds. It seemed his parents hadn’t been here for a while. Since starting junior high, he rarely came here. Every spot held memories from his childhood.

On the outer wall of the house next door, the two grapevines still existed. However, the leaves were somewhat withered and yellow, and the branches weren’t as lush as in childhood. It seemed their vitality was fading. Even so, they had still produced some green grapes. Only these grapes were very small and so green they were almost opaque.

When he was little, looking at these grapes, he was very puzzled. Because these grapes were very sour and hard. They could only be looked at, not eaten. It wasn’t until he grew up that he gradually learned it was because their family’s grape variety was too poor.

Besides the grapevines, there was also a cherry tree and a pomegranate tree in the yard. The cherries were barely edible. As for the pomegranate tree, like the grapes, they were very sour.

Actually, these weren’t the most frustrating things. The most frustrating thing was the tallest tree in the yard, the tree of heaven. Other families grew edible Chinese toon trees, but their family’s tree was a stinking tree of heaven.

These were the things he regretted most during his childhood and even for some time afterwards. Their home had so many plants, but most of them couldn’t be eaten.

After standing in the yard for a while, Zhou Yu gazed at this big yard. Images of his grandmother playing with him kept appearing before his eyes. It was just a pity that when his grandmother passed away, he didn’t yet understand what death was.

After standing there for a long time, he sighed softly. He opened the old wooden door and walked into one of the houses with Huzi. Before he even stepped over the threshold, he smelled a damp, rotting odor.

Looking inside, Zhou Yu couldn’t help but shake his head. Although his parents came to tidy up from time to time, these houses hadn’t been repaired for many years. Rainwater naturally flowed in. There were streaks of water stains on the walls, and the floor was also very damp.

Afterwards, he started going through some things in the room, wanting to find things of sentimental value to keep.

Just then, Huzi suddenly started barking loudly in another room. He ran over, tugged at Zhou Yu’s pant leg, and pulled him towards that room. This made Zhou Yu somewhat puzzled. He followed Huzi to the other room.

Standing before a corner, looking at what Huzi had found, he couldn’t help but shake his head and smile. He didn’t understand why a Radio made it so nervous.

Speaking of this Radio, it had also accompanied him through his childhood. After playing to his heart’s content during holidays, he and his grandmother would sit together in the yard, listening to opera on the Radio while basking in the sun. Only, he would often fall asleep while listening.

The reason he remembered this Radio most deeply was because one year, he and his grandmother were listening to the Radio. That day, the sky was clear and cloudless, but a Lightning bolt suddenly struck the Radio.

Fortunately, he and his grandmother were fine, but it scared their family greatly. They didn’t dare stay in the yard for long periods for over half a month.

The strangest thing was, after this Radio was struck by Lightning, there wasn’t the slightest trace of damage on the outside. However, it couldn’t receive broadcasts anymore. Probably the Lightning had damaged the internal parts.

Thinking about it, Zhou Yu took the Radio out from the corner. He casually flipped through it a couple of times and couldn’t help but feel surprised. Placed in this damp place, the Radio actually didn’t show the slightest sign of erosion. It was really strange. He decided to take it home as a keepsake. After all, it was something that had accompanied him and his grandmother.

Afterwards, he found a few other things in the Old Family House, put them into a handbag, locked the main gate, and walked quickly towards home. Passing by Li Guomin’s shop, he ran past at full speed, really worried that his uncle would start nagging about matchmaking again.

Daytime quickly passed, and night arrived. Zhou Yu lay in bed reading a book for a while, thinking about his future prospects. If he couldn’t find a suitable path, he decided he would become a farmer at home, doing breeding and planting.

Thinking and thinking, he fell into a deep sleep. While in the midst of a dream, he was suddenly startled awake by the sound of thunder and Lightning. He looked up towards the window. Streaks of Lightning kept striking down from the sky.

He shook his head. The weather changed just like that. When he withdrew his gaze, his eyes suddenly fixed on the table in front of the bed. A look of surprise appeared on his face. The Radio he had taken from the Old Family House was now emitting a pure white light.

This… this Radio couldn’t have been struck by Lightning again, could it? Zhou Yu widened his eyes. But that pure white light didn’t look like electricity. It gave people a very warm feeling.

He sat up from the bed and tried touching the Radio with a book. The pure white light on it slowly disappeared. The entire room fell into darkness again.

Seeing this scene, Zhou Yu quickly got up and turned on the table lamp by the bed. He gently touched the Radio with his hand. After not detecting any electric current, he picked up the Radio.

After examining it up and down, he showed a strange expression on his face. How could this Radio emit light? Then, he pushed the Radio’s switch. Zizi sounds actually came out from inside it.

Wasn’t this Radio broken? Moreover, he hadn’t put any batteries in it at all. At this moment, Zhou Yu suddenly thought of various miracles from novels. Looking at the Radio, he showed a strong look of anticipation on his face.

He slowly rotated the tuning knob with his hand, wanting to see if this revived Radio could receive any magical programs.

He rotated it a few times, but it was still just zizi sounds. Zhou Yu didn’t give up and continued rotating. Suddenly, voices of conversation came from the Radio.

“You two, did Junior Brother Qi send you here?” A somewhat aged voice sounded in the Radio.

“Uncle-Master Wu, it was Uncle-Master Qi who sent us to you to learn how to take care of Spirit Grass.” Two somewhat childish voices answered.

“Haha, Spirit Grass isn’t something just anyone can casually take care of. They are born containing the Spiritual Energy of Heaven and Earth. Many are naturally delicate and precious. You two have no experience in caring for them. If I hand them over to you and something goes wrong, I can’t bear the responsibility. Start from the basics.” That Uncle-Master Wu spoke again.

Hearing the voices coming from the Radio, Zhou Yu widened his eyes. Spirit Grass, sect… Could this be the audio version of some Cultivation novel? He suppressed his inner curiosity and continued listening.

“Please give us your guidance, Uncle-Master.” The two childish voices said, carrying some nervousness.

“Spirit Grass needs to absorb the Spiritual Energy of Heaven and Earth for many years, reaching a certain age, before they can be used for medicine or alchemy. And in the world, the number of people practicing Cultivation is countless. The amount of Spirit Grass needed is also enormous. Like this, it’s simply impossible to wait for Spirit Grass to mature. Some Cultivation Seniors thus created the Spirit Gathering Array.”

“Using Immortal Stones as a base, carving profound Formation Diagrams on them, and burying them in the soil around the Spirit Grass can gather the Spiritual Energy of Heaven and Earth in one place. It can also enhance the effect of Spiritual Energy and accelerate the maturation of Spirit Grass. Now I bestow upon each of you one Low-Grade Spirit Gathering Array. Bury them near the lowest grade Spirit Grass in the Spirit Herb Garden. Familiarize yourselves with the usage of the Spirit Gathering Array.” Uncle-Master Wu explained slowly. His voice seemed to have a kind of magic that soothed the mind.

Zhou Yu gave a bitter smile. It looked like this really was a novel broadcast channel. Only, weren’t midnight programs supposed to broadcast supernatural ghost stories? How come they’re broadcasting this Cultivation novel? Spirit Gathering Array… if only he could obtain a set of Spirit Gathering Arrays.

Just as this thought passed through his mind, the Radio in his hand emitted pure white light again. Afterwards, a mass of light actually rose from the Radio, floating in mid-air. And within this light, he seemed to see several pieces of Jade Stone with patterns carved on them.