"Then I'll have to trouble the Emperor Consort!" Baili Zhou immediately nodded.
In his eyes, a man who could become the Empress's husband was bound to have something extraordinary about him.
Since the Emperor Consort intended to do the cooking himself, he might as well observe carefully from the side.
Perhaps he could gain some great insight.
Sharing the same thought, more than a hundred people in the kitchen set aside their work and gathered around Lin Xuan.
They all watched Lin Xuan with eager anticipation, waiting to see what he would do next.
Lin Xuan took their attention in stride.
With the system's tutorials, he could pair ingredients for delicious dishes as easily as breathing.
After asking about the flavors and uses of the various ingredients in the kitchen, he began cooking himself.
With master-level culinary skills, he was thoroughly familiar with all the kitchen's utensils.
He handled them with ease, and his speed was astonishing.
In less than half a stick of incense, he had prepared more than ten plates of novel dishes.
Baili Zhou and the other chefs stared at the ingredients on the plates, stunned.
They had never heard of combinations like these.
Baili Zhou hurriedly asked, "Emperor Consort, could you tell us what these dishes are called?"
Lin Xuan smiled. "These are Red Bean Immortal Taro Porridge, Savory Thunder Python Egg Custard, Sizzling Iron-Plate Ink Tentacles, and Red-Braised Ice Bear Paw..."
As soon as he finished speaking, a wave of astonished cries rang through the kitchen.
"Incredible! So you can combine ingredients like that!"
"Emperor Consort, you've truly opened my eyes!"
"Brilliant! Brilliant!"
Baili Zhou quickly summoned a deep-blue flame to light the stove and said ingratiatingly, "Emperor Consort, please!"
Lin Xuan nodded and began with the first dish: Red-Braised Ice Bear Paw.
Sizzle—
As soon as the dish hit the pan, its rich aroma spread throughout the kitchen.
Baili Zhou and the others wore looks of admiration. They had never smelled anything so richly fragrant without being greasy.
"With the Emperor Consort's skills, maybe after his guidance today, I can advance my cultivation another step!"
Baili Zhou's eyes shone.
He had cultivated the Dao through cooking for three thousand years, but had reached a bottleneck five hundred years ago and had not made the slightest breakthrough since.
But today, he had a powerful premonition that he had a chance to advance another step.
Profound Ice Palace, main hall.
Donghuang Ziyou sat upon the Ice Phoenix Throne, gazing down at the group of ministers below.
They were all rulers of the hundred thousand kingdoms of Northern Profound Heaven.
Yet before Donghuang Ziyou, they were nothing but subjects.
Song Yan, the ruler of Min Kingdom, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the Ten Thousand Devil Kingdom of the Heavenly Devil Realm has been making trouble lately, repeatedly causing chaos along our borders."
"Please issue an order to send troops against the Heavenly Devil Kingdom and raise the prestige of Northern Profound Heaven!"
Du Yunlong, one of the Four Divine Martial Generals under the Profound Ice Palace, stepped forward with cupped fists. "Your Majesty, I am willing to lead the troops!"
Donghuang Ziyou said, "This time, I will personally lead the expedition against the Ten Thousand Devil Kingdom."
The ministers below were all taken aback.
Song Yan hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, the Ten Thousand Devil Kingdom is just a minor country in the Heavenly Devil Realm. They're not worthy of Your Majesty personally leading an expedition."
Donghuang Ziyou waved a hand. "The matter is settled."
Her intelligence network covered all of Northern Profound Heaven and even reached into the Heavenly Devil Realm.
The information she received was naturally more accurate than what Song Yan and the others had.
From what she knew, the Ten Thousand Devil Kingdom dared to invade Northern Profound Heaven this time because they had gained a tremendous advantage.
The old devil who had vanished without a trace ten thousand years ago, the Bloodthirsty Devil Lord, had appeared!
And the Bloodthirsty Devil Lord's strength had reached the Emperor Realm.
If Du Yunlong and the others went, they would likely be nothing but cannon fodder delivered to his doorstep.
Only by leading the expedition herself could she ensure victory.
Besides, everything beyond the nine heavens belonged to the Heavenly Devil Realm.
Donghuang Ziyou suspected that the Ten Thousand Devil Kingdom was not the only power in the Heavenly Devil Realm eyeing Northern Profound Heaven.
As the ruler of Northern Profound Heaven, if she did not teach the Heavenly Devil Realm a lesson, even more devil kingdoms might come to wreak havoc.
Most importantly, she had only assumed the throne of Northern Profound Heaven four years ago.
Among the ministers below, quite a few still secretly refused to accept her.
She would use this battle against the Ten Thousand Devil Kingdom to silence everyone who doubted her.
In the end, there was only one thing to say: this battle could not be lost!
The Crystal Palace kitchen.
"The Emperor Consort truly is a divine being!"
"Watching the Emperor Consort cook is better than reading for ten years!"
"The Emperor Consort has truly opened our eyes!"
Praise from Baili Zhou and the others rang out one after another.
Today, they had finally seen what true children's cuisine was.
The dishes Lin Xuan had made were not only enticing in color and rich in fragrance.
Their ingredients were also thoughtfully paired, with flavors unfolding one layer after another.
After tasting a few bites, Baili Zhou knew these dishes would let the children eat their fill and enjoy every mouthful.
Lin Xuan said, "When it comes to children's food, it all comes down to twelve words: balanced nutrition, just the right amount of sweet and salty, and varied textures."
Baili Zhou and the others immediately committed those twelve words to memory.
The more they turned them over in their minds, the more profound they seemed.
"Emperor Consort, I've learned so much!" Baili Zhou bowed respectfully.
Those twelve words alone had made the clouds part in his mind.
He was certain that the bottleneck that had troubled him for five hundred years would soon be broken.
Lin Xuan said, "Memorize how to make all these dishes. When I have time, I'll teach you how to make more."
He would be looking after the four children from now on, so he would not have much time to cook himself.
Having Baili Zhou serve as his apprentice would save him a lot of trouble.
With Baili Zhou's talent, he could grasp things from a single hint. There was no need to worry about the dishes' flavors.
"Yes!" Baili Zhou was overcome with excitement.
Simply observing the preparation of these dozen or so dishes had already brought him immense benefits.
If he could learn even more from the Emperor Consort, he would have struck it rich.
Lin Xuan then had the dishes carried to the dining room.
Before they even entered, the four little foodies inside let out delighted cries.
"Wow, that smells so good!"
"I want to eat!"
"Papa is amazing!"
"Papa must have made this!"
The four little girls all turned toward the doorway.
Their eyes sparkled like little stars.
When they saw that Lin Xuan really had brought the dishes in himself, the girls were overjoyed.
Xuanyou jumped down from her chair and raised both hands high. "Papa, I want some!"
Lin Xuan picked her up and put her back in her chair, then placed a ball made from a Purple Shadow Snow Flood Dragon into her bowl. "Don't rush. There's enough for everyone."
"Okay!" Xuanyou looked down at the ball in her bowl, her little nose twitching as she caught its delicious scent.
Just then, the Heavenly Dog Beast came over to Xuanyou's feet and looked up at her expectantly. It seemed to want a Purple Shadow Snow Flood Dragon ball too.
Xuanyou kicked it away. "You can't have anything Papa made!"
With that, the little girl stuffed the ball into her mouth.
"Mmm!"
The little girl's eyes suddenly lit up, and she looked utterly enchanted.
"It looks so delicious!"
When Xuanzhu and the other two saw how much Xuanyou was enjoying it, they hurriedly picked up a ball each and put them in their mouths.
In an instant, the entire dining room filled with the children's joyful cries.
At that moment,
the system's mechanical voice suddenly rang in Lin Xuan's mind.
Ding!
"Your cooking has completely won over your eldest daughter, Xuanzhu. Reward: Rakshasa Divine Sense!"
"Your cooking has completely won over your second daughter, Xuanxi. Reward: Mysterious Absolute Heavenly Book!"
"Your cooking has completely won over your third daughter, Xuanhan. Reward: God-Speed Bracelet!"
"Your cooking has completely won over your fourth daughter, Xuanyou. Reward: Ten Directions Array Map!"
Before you continue