The wind in the Far North was nothing like the sea breeze on Sea God Island.
The sea breeze was salty, damp, and full of life. The wind of the Far North was dry and harsh, drilling into the gaps between one's bones like knives and cutting painfully across the face.
After landing on the eastern coast, Bing Yekong and Shui Bing'er headed north. It took them nearly half a month to reach this frozen earth that never thawed.
The withered yellow grass beneath their feet gave way to mud frozen hard as stone, then frozen ground mixed with gravel and ice shards, and finally thick white snow that crunched beneath their steps.
"How much farther?" Shui Bing'er's voice came out muffled from behind her fox-fur collar.
"Following the direction the hunters gave us, we'll be there once we cross that snow ridge ahead." Bing Yekong raised a hand and pointed forward.
Sure enough, a snow-white ridge stretched across the distance. It was not tall, but its slope was steep, blanketed in thick snow. In some places, the wind had sculpted the snow into sharp overhangs that hung in midair like rows of white teeth.
By the time they crossed the ridge through knee-deep snow, the sky had begun to darken.
Winter days in the Far North were pitifully short. The sun hung slanted above the horizon for only a few hours before dropping away, leaving behind a long night.
Fortunately, moonlight shone on the snow brightly enough that it was nearly as clear as day, so seeing was no problem.
Beyond the ridge, the view suddenly opened up.
An ice field surrounded by mountains stretched before them, flat as an enormous white mirror. Along its edges, several deep-blue ice cracks were faintly visible, traces left behind when the frozen