Chapter 284: Blood Rose!
After following in the alley, Li Xiang didn't track for long before realizing he had lost the target.
With Li Xiang's current speed, even Monsters of level seventy or eighty would be difficult to lose.
Li Xiang couldn't determine the other party's identity; perhaps it was an NPC, or perhaps a player specializing in speed.
After all, there are a great many top-tier Assassins in Scarlet City!!!
Suddenly, Li Xiang noticed a piece of paper on the ground.
"Is it a hidden quest?"
Li Xiang picked up the paper, and there was a line of text written on it.
"What you want is in the underground space of the tavern north of the city. The code is 'Don't like eating fruit, don't be so ostentatious.'"
Putting away the paper, Li Xiang could already determine the other party's identity.
The last sentence already indicated that the other party was a player.
But...
A player with such high speed...
A top-tier Assassin like Merciless Ice?
As expected of Scarlet City...
"If I'm not ostentatious..."
Skin - Undead Skeleton Soldier!
Instantly, Li Xiang's appearance changed to that of an Undead Skeleton Soldier.
Although this skin wasn't common yet, there were already quite a few players wearing it on the streets.
By transforming like this and hiding his ID, no player would know who he was.
Coming out of the alley, sure enough, most players just glanced at Li Xiang in this form and then withdrew their gaze.
Soon, Li Xiang arrived at the tavern in the north of the city.
There was only one tavern in the entire north of the city. The tavern occupied a large area, and to Li Xiang's surprise, this tavern was not opened by the official game but by a player.
Assassin's Home.
Official game buildings wouldn't have such names.
As for how Li Xiang knew at a glance, he could tell from the greeter at the door.
The greeter at the door was an NPC with long black-stockinged legs wearing a bunny girl outfit. One had to admit, the owner of this tavern had good taste.
After walking in, it was indeed as Li Xiang had thought. There were many modern-style decorations mixed with the unique ancient ornaments from the game, creating a different kind of feeling.
The internal space was even larger than what could be seen from the outside. There were many players, and at a glance, they were all Assassin class, with not a single other class.
Hmm...
It was indeed very pure.
Li Xiang entering wearing the Undead Skeleton Soldier skin still attracted some attention.
After all, everyone who came here was for drinking and trading information.
Undead Skeleton Soldiers couldn't drink.
Coming to the bar, Li Xiang noticed that the server behind it was actually a player, a female player wearing a mask. The mask was a leopard.
Seeing Li Xiang's skin, the female player smiled and said, "I am the owner of Assassin's Home - Golden Leopard. You look like you're here for the first time. Are you here to drink or for something else?"
Li Xiang didn't rush to say the code but glanced at the counter behind Golden Leopard. "Give me one glass of each of the best-selling drinks."
Golden Leopard laughed heartily. "My drinks here have special effects. Don't blame me if you drink too much and can't go fight Monsters."
After speaking, she waved her hand, and several empty wine glasses landed in front of Li Xiang.
Li Xiang's eyes narrowed slightly.
A skill that can control objects?
A hidden profession or... a special skill?
The next second, Golden Leopard took out several bottles of wine and started mixing them right in front of Li Xiang.
And several types of wine were all being mixed simultaneously.
It was as if there were several invisible hands operating behind the small bar, interacting with each other without any collision, seemingly chaotic but orderly within the chaos.
Having a rare moment of leisure, Li Xiang began to appreciate it.
After a while, Golden Leopard finished mixing the drinks, and every empty wine glass in front of Li Xiang was filled.
Golden Leopard reached out and pointed to the first bright red wine on the left, like blood.
"Our signature drink - Blood Rose. It has no special meaning, it's just to commemorate the founder of Scarlet City - Lord Blood Rose."
Li Xiang lowered his head to look.
It was bright red like blood, but upon closer inspection, one could vaguely see a dark red, blooming rose within the wine.
Li Xiang picked up the Blood Rose and looked at Golden Leopard. "It seems you really like this game."
Golden Leopard smiled slightly. Her mask only covered the upper half of her face, so her lower half was visible.
Her red lips, in that smile, were extremely alluring. " I like all women with stories. Lord Blood Rose is one of them."
Li Xiang nodded.
It seemed she was a lore enthusiast.
Some players play games just to understand the lore, delve deep into it, and become attracted and captivated by the characters in the story.
He unequipped the skin, but it didn't attract much attention. Li Xiang had already changed into a set of ordinary equipment beforehand.
He drank it all in one gulp.
The entrance was smooth, like rose petals brushing against the skin, but as the liquid went down, a spiciness could be felt, like the thorns on a rose stem.
After drinking it, a refreshing rose fragrance seemed to permeate from his stomach towards his limbs and bones.
「Ding! Drank 'Blood Rose', Drunkenness 60%, Skill Cooldown increased by 10%, lasts for 30 minutes; Damage increased by 50%, Defense reduced by 20%, lasts for 30 seconds.」
Seeing this prompt, Li Xiang was shocked.
The effect of this thing was absolutely a top-tier BUFF!!!
Although the skill cooldown increased by 10%, it didn't affect much. On the contrary, the beneficial effect of increasing damage by 50% for 30 seconds was extremely heaven-defying.
His Magic Power Soaring to the Sky skill was already known as a divine skill.
It only doubled damage within 10 seconds.
Although Blood Rose didn't double damage and had a DEBUFF, it lasted for half a minute!
A 50% output increase for half a minute, for a high-output player like Li Xiang, this extra output was just too much...
Even for ordinary players, against an originally evenly matched opponent, drinking a glass of this could instantly create suppression.
So strong!!!
Golden Leopard pointed to the remaining glasses of wine. "Only Blood Rose has this effect. These others are very ordinary... After all, they don't have the perfect woman's intent like Lord Blood Rose infused in them, they are just ordinary mixed drinks."
Li Xiang drank the remaining glasses of wine one by one. As Golden Leopard said, they only had ordinary beneficial effects, but they also brought Li Xiang's Drunkenness to 90%.
Li Xiang already felt dizzy and took out the paper.
"You left this, right."
Looking at the paper, Golden Leopard feigned anger and said, "If it were any other player who didn't use the code or follow the procedure, I would be angry, but you... I'll let you off this time without using the code."
After speaking, she called a player to take her place. "Come with me."
Li Xiang followed behind Golden Leopard to the back door of the tavern. Through the back door, Golden Leopard opened an underground passage.
"Let's go."
Li Xiang hummed in agreement and followed her down.
"Is Bartender your life profession?"
"Yes, isn't it great?"
Li Xiang thought of the effect of Blood Rose and nodded seriously. "Such a strong ability, it's too wasteful to just open a tavern."
Golden Leopard pursed her lips and smiled, revealing a hint of captivating charm. She extended her slender finger and pointed at her ID. "Guess why I chose this ID?"
Li Xiang was stunned for a moment, his mouth twitching. "How... how much money?"
"Blood Rose is 10,000 gold coins per glass. The other glasses... well! They're not worth much, consider them a gift from me~"
Li Xiang felt his eye corners twitching.
Golden Leopard put her hands behind her back, turned around, bent slightly, revealing a cleavage, and looked at Li Xiang with a smile in her eyes. "Surely the dignified Title Giant, President of Gods Guild, wouldn't be unable to even take out ten thousand gold coins, right?"