"Ye Xiao, do you really know how to make the Nine Dragons Playing with Pearls cocktail you just mentioned?" Jiang Miaoke looked at Ye Xiao with some skepticism. After all, she had never heard before that Ye Xiao could mix drinks.

Everyone knew that Hai Bo's bartending skills were extremely sophisticated. However, even Hai Bo couldn't make the Nine Dragons Playing with Pearls cocktail. Could Ye Xiao actually do it? At this moment, Jiang Miaoke genuinely harbored doubts.

Ye Xiao, seeing Jiang Miaoke standing beside him, chuckled softly and whispered, "Actually, I've never made it either."

"Ah?" Jiang Miaoke's mouth dropped open in surprise when she heard Ye Xiao's words. She had thought Ye Xiao was about to share some secret technique for winning. Little did she know, Ye Xiao would admit he had never mixed it before.

Although Jiang Miaoke didn't know how to mix cocktails, she was aware that making a drink wasn't just about knowing the process. It's well known that even with the same steps, the resulting flavors might not be the same, and only the most delightful one, the flavor that everyone accepts, is considered the best.

And yet, Ye Xiao said he had never made it.

Seeing Jiang Miaoke's surprised expression, everyone present also became very curious. Qi Xin, who was already close to Jiang Miaoke, saw her stunned look and immediately sensed that something must be either very good or very bad to cause such a reaction.

"It's not a problem, is it?" Actually, Qi Xin truly wanted Ye Xiao to win deep down, because here Feng Hai had invested a lot of money, and he was always very ostentatious, which coincidentally, was something Qi Xin disliked.

Jiang Miaoke looked at Qi Xin with a bitter expression and said, "Xinxin, I might have a hard time coming to Black Mood from now on."

"Ah?" When Jiang Miaoke heard Qi Xin's words, she was again startled and said, "What do you mean by that? Could it be that he..."

Clearly, Qi Xin immediately thought that Ye Xiao might be lacking confidence after hearing Jiang Miaoke's words.

Jiang Miaoke quickly whispered a few words into Qi Xin's ear.

However, after those few words, Qi Xin's expression also greatly changed, and then she looked at Ye Xiao. Initially, she had a lot of hope for Ye Xiao, but now, that was no longer the case.

The expressions of both Jiang Miaoke and Qi Xin were somewhat unfavorable, and naturally, Feng Hai noticed. He found it strange that Ye Xiao still looked as usual, as if nothing was happening.

Soon, Hai Bo returned.

At that moment, Hai Bo was carrying a bottle of Red Star Erguotou, and it was the jar type, a whole jar of it.

"Come on, why did you buy so much? Isn't there a smaller two-ounce size?" Ye Xiao bitterly laughed when he saw Hai Bo had bought a whole jin of Red Star Erguotou.

"If you can really make the Nine Dragons Playing with Pearls, even buying ten jars would be worth it." Hai Bo's face was cold, but he spoke very seriously.

Ye Xiao smiled lightly, without saying a word, he took the jar of Erguotou and started to work.

As soon as the jar of Erguotou was opened, Ye Xiao's hands began to move. He first poured some of it into a decanter, then added a tiny amount of brandy. The brandy was amber in color, sparkling and translucent, dignified without being gaudy. As Erguotou was a clear spirit, it was naturally colorless. Mixing the two, the color instantly turned amber. Then, Ye Xiao's left hand swiftly lifted the decanter, shaking it steadily in mid-air, neither fast nor slow.

At the same time, Ye Xiao's other hand was also busy, mixing various beverages, each with its own flicks and swirls.

Under everyone's rapt attention, Ye Xiao's hands danced vigorously.

Regardless of whether the drink Ye Xiao was making was the Nine Dragons Playing with Pearls, his technique alone was no less impressive than Hai Bo's, and Ye Xiao's speed was increasing rapidly.

Most astonishing was that the tasks performed by each hand were entirely different; in other words, Ye Xiao's hands were doing completely distinct operations.

Multitasking!

Even Hai Bo was stunned, confident as he was in his bartending technique. But compared to Ye Xiao's current performance, it seemed like child's play.

Ye Xiao's dragon-and-phoenix-like maneuvers were simply mesmerizing. Even Feng Hai was dumbfounded; he could never have imagined that cocktail mixing could look so stylish.

When people concentrated deeply, time always flew by swiftly, as it did in that moment. In the blink of an eye, twenty minutes had passed.

Ye Xiao didn't stop his movements. However, to the discerning eye, it was evident he was reaching the final stage.

In front of Ye Xiao was a crystal stem glass. Suddenly, stirred by inspiration, he poured the first layer of colorless liquor into the glass, which swirled within it like a colorless mighty dragon. However, that wasn't the end but the start of a procession. Immediately following was a layer of black liquor poured into the glass.

Everyone had assumed that the cocktail ingredients were supposed to blend together, but to everyone's surprise, the black and the colorless liquids were as incompatible as water and oil. Once the black liquid entered the glass, it began to swirl as well, eventually forming a black dragon. Then, Ye Xiao repeated his previous movements, only this time, the colors of the liquid changed to red, orange, yellow, green, teal, blue, and purple.

Nine colors of liquor were poured into the glass, and these nine layers each spun in different patterns.

At this point, nearly everyone was rendered speechless, having seen something similar to the Seven-Colored Divine Dragon, except that the Seven-Colored Divine Dragon concocted by Hai Bo lacked the distinct layers of this cocktail.

"Turn off the lights!" It was Hai Bo who spoke.

Everyone knew that the Seven-Colored Divine Dragon's full charm could only be appreciated with the lights off. Hai Bo thought that since Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls and the Seven-Colored Divine Dragon utilized the same concept, the effects should be comparable.

In an instant, the lights dimmed, not completely out, leaving a bright spotlight illuminating the drink. All at once, a kaleidoscope of colors shone forth, and the onlookers could almost see nine huge dragons swirling within the glass.

At that moment, Wu Pinliang suddenly said, "But… isn't there supposed to be a pearl? How can it be called Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls without the pearl?"

Hearing Wu Pinliang's words, Hai Bo looked towards Ye Xiao again.

At this time, a smile spread across Ye Xiao's face, his left hand still shaking the wine jug that hadn't stopped since he began mixing the drink. The jug contained baijiu and a small amount of brandy.

"If a pearl is what you want, then a pearl you shall have," Ye Xiao chuckled. With a sharp flick of his left hand, a pearl the size of a thumb suddenly leapt into the glass, entering not with haste, but rather gently.

Everyone thought that such a large pearl dropping into the glass would ruin the drink, but unexpectedly, the liquor remained undisturbed—far from ruined. Instead, upon entering the glass, the pearl didn't merge with any of the liquid layers but rather bounced from top to bottom.

If before the guests had felt the dragons within the drink lacked vivacity, the addition of the pearl made the nine giant dragons come to life. Now, to everyone's eyes, it seemed as if the nine dragons were truly alive, vying for the pearl as it hopped up and down, making the dragon figures appear to fight over the pearl.

"Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls!" Hai Bo's voice silenced the crowd's amazement.

"You're saying this is Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls?" some asked, looking at Hai Bo incredulously.

Hai Bo nodded, declaring, "This is definitely Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls."

Hearing Hai Bo affirming it again, everyone present was astounded that it was truly Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls—crafted by Ye Xiao himself, and confirmed by Hai Bo personally.

"It's so beautiful. Can I try it?" Jiang Miaoke's face showed overwhelming joy. She had been worried whether Ye Xiao could really create the legendary Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls, but now he had laid it out before them all.

Ye Xiao smiled fondly, gazing at Jiang Miaoke, and said, "Of course, you can. After all, I mixed this just for you."

At Ye Xiao's words, Jiang Miaoke was even more excited. She delicately lifted the dazzling glass of Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls and, under the envious gaze of many, her lips lightly touched the crystal-clear glass, savoring slowly.

Spicy, icy, fiery, sweet, smooth, strong...

These sensations, which shouldn't have all been found together, somehow all manifested as she tasted the top layer of Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls, which felt like an indulgence surpassing any liquor she had ever tasted.

And after experiencing all these distinct sensations, the liquor felt luxuriously soft!

It flowed down her throat and into her stomach, with scarcely any burn to speak of.

"Delicious!" That was Jiang Miaoke's only comment.

Yet, those two simple words made Ye Xiao feel it was all worth it.

Thousands of words couldn't equate to the praise contained in those two words, "delicious."

After all, no matter how exquisite a wine may smell or taste, if it's not enjoyable to drink, then it isn't truly fine wine.

Jiang Miaoke finished the entire glass under the scrutiny of everyone present.

No matter how delicious, no matter how fragrant, in the end, it was still liquor. So when Jiang Miaoke reluctantly drained the last of the Nine Dragons Chasing Pearls, her cheeks flushed a faint pink, adorable as a ripe, juicy red apple, provoking an irresistible urge to take a bite.

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