Heloi's shocked expression further confirmed Lin Fan's suspicion—this Beast Serpent Enhancement Heart was meant for her.
"Does this thing benefit you in any way?" Lin Fan placed the heart in Heloi's palm and gently pulled her forward as they walked.
Holding the enhancement heart, Heloi's eyes sparkled with joy.
"Right now, I can only maintain my human form, which means my combat strength isn't very high. But with this Beast Serpent Enhancement Heart, it's a completely different story.
"Once I consume it, I'll be able to return to my peak state, freely switching between my human and serpent beast forms. In that state, my combat strength will be far superior to what it is now."
Lin Fan was a bit surprised.
He hadn't expected such a small green gemstone to have such a significant effect.
"As long as you can use it, that's all that matters," Lin Fan said casually.
Even though Heloi wasn't a match for him, she was still more than capable of handling other monsters.
If this Beast Serpent Enhancement Heart could truly restore Heloi to her prime, it would save Lin Fan a lot of trouble.
—---
Meanwhile, news of Lin Fan defeating the second-floor boss had already spread across the forums.
Many players who had previously left the Nine-Story Monster Tower heard about Lin Fan one-shotting the bosses on both the first and second floors and rushed back without hesitation.
"The bosses are gone! If we don't take this chance to farm some gold, we'd be idiots."
"I heard that Lin Fan didn't even bother clearing the mobs this time?"
"Yeah, he wiped out all the monsters on the first floor, but on the second floor, he left them untouched—for us."
"The first-floor monsters are worth 20 gold coins each, but the second-floor ones? 40 gold coins per kill! That's eight times the usual rate outside!"
"Monsters worth 40 gold coins each? I'm moved to tears! Just killing a few will be enough to buy a glass bottle!"
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I'd risk my life for this!"
Many people who had initially given up on the tower were now tempted back in because of the 40-gold-per-monster payout.
After all, with both bosses already dead, the danger level had dropped significantly.
Lin Fan had basically paved the way for them. If they were still too scared to enter, they'd truly be idiots.
—---
"Wait, Lin Fan one-shot the boss again?"
"Yeah, I heard the second-floor boss had 600 HP, and Lin Fan just deleted it in one strike."
"You don't understand. There were tons of zombies swarming the second floor, but Lin Fan was like a gust of wind—he charged through the horde in an instant, landed on the hydra, and killed it with a single sword strike. It was insanely badass!"
"I was there! Lin Fan was so cool!"
"I was so overwhelmed, I even came up with baby names for my future children with Lin Fan."
"I bet the two guys above are both dudes."
"HAHAHA! When Lin Fan one-shot the hydra, a bunch of grown men standing by the staircase started screaming that they wanted to have his babies. Lin Fan was so horrified, he ran away on the spot!"
"I seriously suspect that Lin Fan skipped clearing the second-floor mobs because of these guys."
"Damn it— the BL community is right under our noses!"
—---
With Lin Fan's one-shot victory, he had made things easier for everyone else. As a result, his reputation on the forums skyrocketed again.
Many people even started shamelessly idolizing him.
But apart from the boss-slaying headlines, another major piece of news was trending alongside it:
[Breaking News: Director Li Cheng of the Federation Research Division Dies Tragically in the Nine-Story Monster Tower—Eaten by the Nine-Headed Hydra! What Really Happened?]
"So it's confirmed? The person who died was really Li Cheng?"
"Damn, that's a terrible way to go. This guy was powerful his whole life, yet he ended up dying like this?"
"Honestly, he had it coming. I never liked him. Even though he was a high-ranking government official, he was arrogant as hell, always acting like he was some untouchable big shot."
"I heard that Li Cheng was actually killed by Lin Fan."
"Wasn't he eaten by the Nine-Headed Hydra? What does this have to do with Lin Fan?"
"Are you stupid? Li Cheng has tried to set Lin Fan up so many times—do you really think Lin Fan would just let it slide? Sure, the hydra killed him, but Lin Fan definitely orchestrated it."
"Exactly. When we arrived on the second floor, we saw all the monsters targeting only Li Cheng. The only person capable of pulling aggro like that is Lin Fan. There's no doubt—it was Lin Fan who got him killed."
"Haha, serves him right. He kept trying to screw Lin Fan over, and now look—he's dead."
"Not just dead—he died a horrible death."
"Tsk tsk, Lin Fan is not someone you want to mess with."
Even though many people had witnessed the Nine-Headed Hydra kill Li Cheng, they still suspected Lin Fan had a hand in his death.
After all, these two had never gotten along, and Li Cheng had repeatedly provoked Lin Fan.
Now that Li Cheng was brutally killed, there was no way people wouldn't suspect Lin Fan.
—---
As the forum discussions heated up, more and more people became convinced that Li Cheng's death was no accident—it was Lin Fan's doing.
If that were true, then Lin Fan had struck hard and without mercy.
Everyone was glued to their screens, waiting for further developments.
Before long, the Federation made an official statement.
They firmly declared that Lin Fan was responsible for Li Cheng's death, condemning him as ruthless and cold-blooded.
Furthermore, they announced to all Blue Star residents that they would be hunting down Lin Fan to bring justice to the Federation, the Research Division, and Li Cheng himself.
—---
As soon as this announcement dropped, the forums exploded with reactions.
"LMAO, ruthless? Cold-blooded? Where was the Federation when Li Cheng tried to stab Lin Fan in the back over and over again?"
"So now they wanna pull the 'protect our own' card? Are they crazy? This isn't Blue Star anymore—do they really think they can touch Lin Fan?"
"What, Li Cheng could attack Lin Fan repeatedly, but Lin Fan wasn't allowed to fight back?"
"I'm 100% backing Lin Fan on this one. Li Cheng was a snake—he deserved it!"
"+1. Besides, there's no proof that Lin Fan killed him. For all we know, the hydra really did just eat him."
The majority of players sided with Lin Fan, knowing full well how many times Li Cheng had tried to set him up.
And even though many people secretly believed Lin Fan was responsible, their attitude was basically:
"So what?"
"Where's the proof?"
"Did anyone see it happen?"
"Got screenshots? No? Then shut up."
This was exactly why Lin Fan hadn't killed Li Cheng on the first floor.
As long as no one saw it happen, no matter how brutal the death, he had the upper hand.
—---
Lin Fan scrolled through the forum threads, then casually left a comment:
"Oh no, Research Division Director Li has passed away? What a terrible loss, we actually had a pretty good relationship. Sigh~~ I hope he finds peace in heaven."
<+>
Tn: If you want to see more chapter of this story, please join my Patreon, for $5 each month, you can read all of the available chapter.
Patreon Account: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=93287265
Latest Chapter In Patreon: Chapter 80: Roland[1]
Link to the latest chapter: https://www.patreon.com/posts/minecraft-global-124112779[2]
[1] https://www.patreon.com/posts/minecraft-global-124112779
[2] https://www.patreon.com/posts/minecraft-global-124112779