Previously, Snow Empress only focused on cultivation and guarding the Eye of Chaos and was not familiar with these trivial matters. However, she learned extremely quickly. Three days later, she was already able to skillfully review various documents, and five days later, she could pick out the problems from the densely packed accounts at a glance.
One afternoon, Elder Xuanheng came to see her. He stood at the entrance of the courtyard, watching Snow Empress working at her desk, and remained silent for a long time. Snow Empress looked up and saw him, put down her pen, and invited him in to sit down. Xuanheng did not enter the house, but only said, "Senior Brother Qingxuan has entrusted you with the responsibility; you are better than him."
Snow Empress looked at his graying beard and hair, unsure how to respond. Xuanheng had already turned and left, his hands behind his back, his back hunched, walking very slowly.
That night, Snow Empress finished processing her documents well past midnight. She got up, stretched her stiff shoulders and neck, and walked into the courtyard, looking up at the sky. The bamboo forest behind the mountain shimmered with a silvery-white luster under the moonlight, rippling like flowing silver waves in the wind. Standing in the moonlight, she suddenly wondered if he was also looking at the same moon. The sky in the Demon Domain must be different from the sky in the Ziwei Sect, right? Is the night sky there perpetually shrouded in Demonic Qi, so that such bright stars cannot be seen?
She shook her head, dismissing these inexplicable thoughts, and went back to her room to rest. But the Xuantie token was right beside her pillow, and when she turned to her side, her fingertips could touch its cold, hard edge. She held it in her hand and slowly squeezed it for a while before closing her eyes and falling asleep.
Another half month passed, Snow Empress's injuries had mostly healed under the nourishment of the jade pendant's Spiritual Power. Although her foundation was still weakened, at least she wouldn't faint from exhaustion so easily anymore. She began to work on promoting the establishment of a covenant on prohibited items among the major sects of the world, sending envoys to all directions to deliver letters to the various sects. She handled this matter with great care; every letter was well-written and clearly organized, giving the major sects ample face while ensuring the terms were watertight.
One afternoon, she was watering the buried purple flower in the yard—and a little green sprout had actually emerged from the soil, its tender little Yezi trembling as it poked its head out—when suddenly a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the yard. It was her personal disciple, Shen Qing, a girl of eighteen or nineteen, running with sweat beading on her forehead, holding a vermilion letter in her hand.
"Master! A letter has arrived from the Demon Domain!"
The water ladle in Snow Emperor's hand paused for a moment, then she put it down steadily and took the letter. The vermilion cover was stamped with the word "Yin" in ancient style, with a strong pen and an iron hook with silver hooks. She opened the envelope and took out a thin page of paper inside, with only a few lines of words on it:
" The Demon Domain has been pacified. Two of the three disobedient ones have been dealt with, and the other fled overnight; I doubt he'd dare return. How are things on your end? Don't tell me you've taken the blame again. Do you have your token? If anything happens, use the token to enter the three cities of the Demon Domain, and someone will guide you to me. Also: that flower should have withered by now; don't worry about it. --Yin Wujou."
Snow Empress turned the letter over and over twice, making sure there was no more content, and then the corners of her mouth involuntarily curved into a smile.
"Master?" Shen Qing cautiously observed her expression. "What did the letter say?"
"It's nothing." Snow Empress folded the letter and put it in her sleeve, then turned back to water the green sprout. "Everything is fine in the Demon Domain Realm."
Shen Qing said "Oh," scratched her head, and felt that her master seemed to be in an exceptionally good mood today, but she couldn't quite put her finger on why. As she left, she glanced back and saw her usually stern master squatting on the ground, smiling broadly at the tiny sprout in the soil.
Shen Qing rubbed her eyes, thinking she might have seen wrong.
That evening, Snow Empress leaned over her desk and replied to Yin Wujou's letter. Hers was much longer than his, detailing the recent situation of the Ziwei Sect, the attitudes of the major sects towards the covenant, and the progress of her recovery—filling two pages in length. At the end, she paused, the pen hovering over the paper for a moment, then added, "I buried that flower in the soil; it has sprouted. It's alive. If you have time, you can come and see how it blooms."
She dried the letter, put it in an envelope, and summoned a messenger magpie, tying the letter to its leg. The magpie flapped its wings and flew northwest, quickly becoming a small black dot on the horizon. Snow Empress stood at the courtyard gate, watching the magpie fly further and further away until it was completely out of sight before turning back.
As night fell, she sat at the table, reading an ancient book by lamplight. The lamp flickered, and she looked up at the window. The distant main peak was dotted with lights, like stars inverted on the Heavenly Screen. The wind rustled through the bamboo forest, carrying a familiar sound. She reached out and touched the Xuantie token in her bosom; the cool touch made her feel at ease.
Days passed. Replies from various sects arrived one after another. Most sects expressed their agreement with the Snow Empress's proposal to jointly establish a covenant on prohibited items. After all, the world knew that the Source of Chaos had almost caused a catastrophe, and no one wanted to plant another ticking time bomb on their territory. A few sects had some ulterior motives and tried to bargain on the terms, but the Snow Empress was prepared and replied to each one with composure and reason. Three months later, the covenant was officially signed on the main peak of the Ziwei Sect. The Seven Great Sects, sixteen medium-sized sects, and dozens of independent cultivator forces were all present. The Snow Empress, as the initiator, signed first.
At the banquet on the day the agreement was signed, the leaders of various sects toasted her one after another. She declined, citing her incomplete recovery, and instead drank tea. However, no one dared to underestimate her. Everyone could see that this seemingly aloof and taciturn woman had, without making a sound, pried open a crack in what had been an impenetrable barrier in the cultivation world for hundreds of years, and smoothed out the terms of the agreement to make all parties feel that they had saved face. Such skill and shrewdness were extraordinary.
After the banquet, she returned to the back mountain alone. The moon was high in the sky, illuminating the bamboo forest as bright as day. She pushed open the door and saw something extra on the table—a letter with a vermilion cover and the character "Yin" embossed on it. She paused for a moment, then quickly went over and opened it. As the letter unfolded, a dried purple petal fell out.
Yin Wujou's letter was a little longer than the last one:
"The treaty was well signed; I've heard about it even in the Demon Domain. Those old fogies from the Ziwei Sect should be convinced now, and your words will carry more weight from now on. As for the flower—I've kept a petal and buried it behind my palace in the Demon Domain, waiting for it to sprout. If you have time, you might as well come and see for yourself how it has grown. Don't worry about the Demon Domain being unsafe when you come; I'll be waiting for you at the entrance."
P. S.: I forgot to mention last time, you actually talked in your sleep, calling my name. I remember it. --Yin Wujou.
Snow Empress stared at the last line of text for a full ten breaths, her ears slowly burning and turning bright red.