Deep within the ice palace, it felt like a different world from the wind and snow outside.
The entire palace had been carved from mystical ice that had not melted for ten thousand years. Crystal-clear icicles hung from the dome, refracting a soft glow woven from deep blue and snowy white.
Several exquisite plates of fish sashimi sat on the central ice table. Every slice was as thin as a cicada's wing, crystalline and translucent, gleaming with a faint pearly luster atop the ice platters.
They were Ice-Scaled Silverfish unique to the cold pools in the deepest reaches of the Extreme North. Their flesh was sweet and tender, melting the instant it entered the mouth. They were even the Ice Empress's favorite snack.
Gu Linyuan sat beside the ice table, showing none of a guest's restraint.
He lifted a slice of sashimi with his chopsticks and placed it into his mouth, his movements natural and fluid.
The instant the sashimi entered his mouth, an intense freshness and sweetness bloomed over his tongue. Then, wrapped in a crisp chill, it slid down his throat, making him feel as though a pure icy spring had washed through his entire body.
He picked up another slice.
Then another.
Only after eating four or five slices did he pause slightly.
"It tastes good. I didn't expect the Extreme North to have such a delicacy."
Gu Linyuan praised it.
"Of course. It's my favorite."
"These Ice-Scaled Silverfish are scarce. Even I don't dare eat too many."
"Hehe."
"Now you know how well I treat you, right?"
Resting her cheek in one hand, the Ice Empress stared unblinkingly at Gu Linyuan with her emerald eyes, which were filled with undisguised curiosity.
After watching him for a while, she turned and leaned close to whisper something into