"This is the kind of liquor with real kick!" Bernd raised his cup and took a huge gulp. His already ruddy nose turned even redder. "This is the liquor truly suited for dwarves! Ever since I had it at Stone Fist Village last time, I haven't been able to forget it. Not even the finest yellow wine can compare to the taste of this baijiu!"
"Yellow wine and baijiu each have their own merits. I still prefer the texture of yellow wine. Actually... the Demon Realm's Muguo Wine and Purple Berry Wine are quite good too." It was Fenoya, the dwarf Grandmaster's old friend, who chimed in. The elf Grandmaster's face was slightly flushed as well. Clearly, he was unaccustomed to baijiu's fierce kick and was already feeling the effects of the alcohol.
Chen Rui laughed and took out a bottle of Purple Berry Wine, handing it over. "Both wines you like are specialties of the Shadow Empire. This bottle is the last of my stock. But since you'll be staying here for at least another week, I'll head to the Shadow Empire's palace and get you a batch of the finest imperial fruit wine to take with you."
"Then I won't stand on ceremony. Since you're the consort of the three Empresses, I'll abuse your power for personal gain just this once." Fenoya immediately switched his baijiu for Purple Berry Wine and raised his glass. "My friends, though we don't know what the future holds, let us drink to the present."
The three clinked their glasses together, smiling.
The two mysterious Grandmasters who had attended the alchemy academic conference were none other than Chen Rui's two Grandmaster friends from the Surface World, Fenoya and Bernd.
Both Grandmasters knew about the Abyss, so Chen Rui had not needed to expend