Chapter 513 - 513: Underestimated

Zhao Yuan's eyes went wide. He muttered to himself, 'No way. Are those Dixiu and Ghost Grass being used as potted plants? Does this Cheng Haoyu not know what they are, or is he just obscenely rich?'

Hao Li came over and asked curiously, "What are you looking at?"

Zhao Yuan said vaguely, "I'm just amazed at how luxurious this villa is."

Hao Li glanced around, then nodded and said, "You're not wrong. The decor in this villa is truly amazing. Way better than my bedroom."

Hearing this, dark lines instantly materialized on both Ying Ji's and Zhao Yuan's foreheads.

Fatty Hao actually had the gall to make a comparison. His bedroom, built above the kitchen, had virtually no decoration. The space itself was quite large, but it was stuffed to the brim with anime and gaming merchandise like figurines, manga, and video games. It was a completely different style from Cheng Haoyu's resplendent villa.

Seeing the three of them stop to look around, the beautiful woman leading the way didn't rush them. It was only after they looked away that she said with a radiant smile, "The Young Master is upstairs. This way, please."

The three followed the woman up to the second floor of the villa.

This time, it wasn't just Zhao Yuan; even Ying Ji's and Hao Li's eyes went wide.

Because they saw that hanging on the walls on both sides of the second-floor hallway were numerous exquisite picture frames.

A normal person might have just thought the frames held some avant-garde, abstract works of art. But the three of them—Zhao Yuan, Ying Ji, and Hao Li—could tell at a glance that these weren't art at all. They were Talismans!

Thunder Light Talismans, Five Ghosts Binding Talismans, Mirage Talismans... Several types of incredibly powerful Talismans were being used as decorations, hanging on the second floor.

"What a colossal waste!" Hao Li couldn't help but complain.

Ying Ji nodded in agreement.

Not a single one of the Talismans hanging here was of poor quality. And Cheng Haoyu had actually sealed them in picture frames to hang on a wall instead of carrying them for emergencies... If this wasn't a colossal waste, what was?

Just then, a soft, pleasant voice drifted out from a nearby room. "Fatty Hao, I heard you talking smack about me. Hmph, don't you feel any shame, bad-mouthing people behind their backs?"

Hao Li was a little embarrassed, but he retorted, "Why should I be ashamed? I'm just telling the truth. You sissy, you have all these great Talismans and instead of using them, you hang them up like paintings. If that isn't a colossal waste, what is?"

The soft, pleasant voice instantly became exasperated and furious. "I've told you many times, don't call me a sissy! Believe it or not, this la—no, *I* will fly into a rage with you right now?"

Immediately after, a person walked out of the room.

Zhao Yuan took a closer look. The person's clothes were very masculine, but he had a face even more delicate and bewitching than a woman's. If one didn't know the situation, it would be truly difficult to associate him with being a man. You'd just assume he was a woman—and a devastatingly beautiful one at that, the kind that could topple nations.

There had once been such a man in history, more womanly than a woman: the famous Longyang Jun. Fortunately, although Cheng Haoyu looked extremely feminine, his sexual orientation was straight.

Seeing that Cheng Haoyu was about to genuinely lose his temper, Hao Li quickly raised his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright! I won't call you that, I won't."

After a huff, Cheng Haoyu said, "You think I *wanted* to seal these Talismans up? I didn't want to. But these are all high-grade Talismans, incredibly rare and hard to come by. It took me a great deal of effort and money to acquire just these few. I can't bring myself to use them casually, and I'm afraid of them getting damp or eaten by insects, so I can only seal them up and hang them like this. But this time, to deal with the Raccoon Power, I plan on bringing them all."

"Rare and hard to come by?"

Zhao Yuan was a bit surprised. The moment he had looked at these Talismans, the Information Leaf had provided their corresponding descriptions and drawing methods. It had even pointed out the flaws in each Talisman and suggested corrections. Because of that, he had assumed these Talismans were actually quite ordinary.

Cheng Haoyu overheard him, and the questioning tone made him frown. He asked, "And who is this?"

Ying Ji said, "I almost forgot to introduce you. This is Zhao Yuan, a Fellow Daoist we invited to help us capture the Raccoon Power."

"Hello." Zhao Yuan smiled and extended his hand.

But Cheng Haoyu was not receptive. He gave Zhao Yuan an arrogant glance, not only refusing to shake his hand but also asking Ying Ji with a sullen face, "What's the meaning of this? Why did you bring an extra person?"

Hao Li explained, "The Raccoon Power is an Exotic Beast that has existed since Ancient Times. It's no ordinary creature. With more strong support, our chances of successfully capturing it will be much higher."

Cheng Haoyu mulled it over for a moment, then asked Zhao Yuan, "May I ask what your account name is on the Cultivator Forum?"

Zhao Yuan gave a wry smile. "I failed the test, so I couldn't get an account."

Cheng Haoyu was stunned for a second, then scoffed, "Ying Ji, Hao Li, are you kidding me? He couldn't even successfully apply for an account on the Cultivator Forum. What kind of 'strong support' is he?"

The expressions on Ying Ji and Hao Li's faces instantly turned ugly.

They were the ones who had brought Zhao Yuan. For Cheng Haoyu to mock Zhao Yuan was a slap in their faces.

Ying Ji said in a cold voice, "We can guarantee that Zhao Yuan's strength is formidable. There's no doubt about it! It's true he didn't get an account, but that wasn't his fault..."

She was about to recount Zhao Yuan's deeds but was stopped by a gentle tug from him from behind. She could only swallow the rest of her words.

Zhao Yuan had his reasons.

He didn't know Cheng Haoyu well and didn't want him to know too much about his affairs.

Hao Li picked up the conversation, saying, "If you don't agree to let Zhao Yuan join this operation, then Sister Ying and I will pull out!"

Cheng Haoyu was stunned again, not expecting Ying Ji and Hao Li to back Zhao Yuan so staunchly.

"Are you crazy? That's the Raccoon Power! Its entire body is a treasure, and you're just going to quit on a whim?"

Cheng Haoyu was truly in a bind.

Because it wasn't easy for him to find replacements.

Unlike Ying Ji, he wasn't from a Cultivation Family. His family was just wealthy, and he had loved cultivation since he was a child. It was only after visiting numerous famous masters that a Daoist priest finally initiated him into the world of cultivation and taught him a Dual Cultivation technique. Therefore, he couldn't be like Ying Ji, who could just summon a group of Cultivators from her family to help whenever a problem arose.

Although he knew many people on the Cultivator Forum, he had few close friends, and even fewer who were suitable for this operation.

Hao Li was indispensable.

Cooking an Exotic Beast had to be done by a Cultivator from the Tripod Cuisine School like him. Anyone else would just waste the ingredients—a colossal waste of a precious treasure.

The same was true for Ying Ji.

Putuo Mountain is vast, and the Raccoon Power likes to dig tunnels underground. Therefore, they had to rely on Ying Ji's ability of Inquiring Ghosts to pinpoint the Raccoon Power's location. Otherwise, even if he led a huge group of people to seal off the mountain and search, they still might not be able to find it.