Ye Rou's Story
At the same time, back at Ye Rou's Peak, however, the silence finally ended.
"Second Senior Sister, are you going to speak your mind, or are you trying to torture me with this awkward silence." Xue Bai couldn't help but ask.
They had been sitting in silence for the past 15 minutes, and at this point, Xue Bai was about to lose his mind.
He had thought that Ye Rou would initiate the conversation. After all, she was the one who looked so prepared at the top of her staircase. It looked like she had planned out something in preparation for his visit.
So planning to take the backseat as a Junior Brother should, Xue Bai wanted to let Ye Rou take the floor.
But even after all of that waiting, she still hadn't even said a word, let alone initiated a conversation!
"You were the one who decided to visit me first instead of Senior Sister!" Ye Rou retorted with a blushed face, "I didn't have any time to prepare!"
Ye Rou was feeling more than embarrassed at this point. She knew that she was unprepared for Xue Bai's visit, but she had hoped that he had brought something to talk about in hopes she could cover up her lack of preparation, but he hadn't.
She was losing her prestige as her Senior Sister already!
Seeing Ye Rou's face turn so red that it looked almost like blood would leak, Xue Bai sighed and changed the subject.
'This Second Senior Sister of mine is too foolish. Maybe this was why she suffered so harshly.' Xue Bai thought inwardly.
"Then tell me about your family or your talents." Xue Bai suggested, "I don't know anything about you besides your name and cultivation base."
This was, of course, a lie, but it did manage to get the conversation started.
Ye Rou then started to tell Xue Bai about her less-than-carefree life that turned her into the girl she is now.
Ye Rou was born into one of the Noble Families of the Soaring Sword Sect, which gave her a much higher starting point than most others. However, she soon learned that her home wasn't all sunshine and rainbows.
Like Huo Long and his clan, her Ye House, within the Soaring Sword Sect Clans are called Houses, was in the middle of a sharp decline.
However, unlike Huo Long's Clan, her house was in decline because of a lack of people.
A few decades ago, in the year 935, more than 20 years before Xue Bai was born, the Demonic Sect had invaded the Southern Continent, engulfing it in a continent-wide war.
This was coincidentally the war that made the legend of the Duke of Snow in The Great Xuan Empire. Because before this war, Xue Bai's father was merely a high potential commander under Yan Zhenyu.
And as a Noble House in the Soaring Sword Sect, the Ye House was, of course, forced to enlist in the war efforts.
Sadly in a manner that Ye Rou didn't want to go into detail, almost all of their House members died, leaving her House with only her Father, the Head of the House, and her Mother.
However, while her Father was the only survivor of the war, he didn't come back without injuries. And his once 5th stage Law Manifestation Realm cultivation base deteriorated into the Law Engraving Realm, where it slowly worsened as the years went by.
Following the news of the Ye House's calamity, her once noble and prestigious House turned into a small three-person family. And forced to sell off their possessions, her House eventually became extinct, only leaving her half-crippled father and mother, who was merely in the Dharma Idol Realm.
Thankfully because of their past relations, they were able to survive, but it wasn't anything prestigious.
Ye Rou didn't know of their past, but from the stories her Mother told her, she could imagine how strong their House once was.
Beyond that, Ye Rou didn't talk much more about her past, as she could be visibly seen to be tearing up just thinking about it.
Xue Bai thankfully knew of all of the details surrounding the last Righteous Demon War, as the topic was obviously a heavy one for Ye Rou to talk about.
So instead of prying deeper and possibly hitting a sore spot, he let Ye Rou skip over many details before she came to talk about herself.
"I know that I'm not as talented as you are, Junior Brother, but my talents weren't bad as well!" Ye Rou spoke proudly.
Which was well within her right for someone of her caliber.
Like any Core Disciple, Ye Rou a Low Black Grade Martial Vein. After all, not everyone was as talented as Wang Yu or 'Xue Bai' and could awaken Martial Veins of higher ranks.
However, unlike other Core Disciples, Ye Rou possessed a Metal Element Martial Vein that, when combined with her identity as a Sword Cultivator, made her a force to be reckoned with.
It was all because of her rare Element that Yue Zifeng accepted her as his second disciple.
Of all the Elements that a Martial Vein could have, Metal was the one that harmonized the best with Swordsmanship. After all, the sword that most people would use was made out of metal. So how could it not be amplified?
Xue Bai also learned indirectly that Ye Rou currently was only a few months away from her 19th birthday, which, coupled with her Peak stage Organ Tempering Realm cultivation base, she was definitely a genius at the top of her generation.
Of course, compared to Wang Yu, who was currently at the 5th stage of the Qi Sea Realm at almost the same age. But compared to any other genius, she was definitely a top-tier youngster.
"So what about you, Junior Brother? What is your story?" Ye Rou asked.
Ye Rou spent her youth cultivating diligently locked up at home by her Father, so while she knew of The Great Xuan Empire's existence, she didn't know its inner workings. So she, too, didn't know of Xue Bai or any other genius from The Great Xuan.
The only person she knew from The Great Xuan Empire was Wang Yu; however, she had never interacted with or even seen him.
So she didn't know anything about Xue Bai, his parents, or even of his background. And while Ye Rou could guess that Xue Bai came from a noble background because of his luxurious clothing, which made her jealous, she didn't know anything beyond that.
And since she had already talked about her life, it was only fair for her Junior Brother to share about his own.
"My life?" Xue Bai thought about it for a moment.
Of course, he wouldn't mention anything about his previous life, but still, Ye Rou's question got him thinking.
Xue Bai, so far, during his six years in this world, had lived an extraordinarily peaceful and undisturbed life. Living inside of the Core Region in his Dukedom, Xue Bai was basically a shut-in.
And because of this, unlike Huo Long or Ye Rou, or even Wang Yu, Xue Bai didn't have much of a story. He cultivated diligently, teased Xiao'er, and stole opportunities from others, but besides that, nothing that happened in Xue Bai's life was especially worthwhile.
His life wasn't dull, of course, but it wasn't a blood-curdling adventure that would keep a listener on the edge of their seats either.
But with the threat of Xiao Mo lurking above him constantly, Xue Bai had a motivation and reason to cultivate as he did, but beyond that, there was nothing. No clan to protect, no relative to avenge or love interest to save, no reason that any standard cultivation novel protagonist would be burdened with.
Of course, Xue Bai didn't think that without a burden, it would make him worse, but still, compared to Ye Rou, who couldn't fail, or Huo Long, who lived on the edge of a blade his entire life, Xue Bai was definitely carefree.
But instead of saying that, Xue Bai spoke, "My life has just started, Second Senior Sister. I joined the sect to become the powerhouse I was destined to be."
While he said so, however, Ye Rou felt something from him.
Ye Rou was definitely a beauty by every metric, from her long slender legs to her curvy figure and even her country-toppling face, but looking at Xue Bai sometimes made her feel inferior.
Coupled with his deep, meaningful eyes that started into the Spiritual Water pond, the scene in front of Ye Rou was like a Banished Immortal declaring his destiny.
However, unwilling to accept the odd feeling growing within her, Ye Rou shook her head, banishing any strange thoughts in her head.
"That's quite the proclamation Junior Brother. Aren't you afraid of being struck down by lightning?" Ye Rou responded.
But Xue Bai shook his head, "I don't think what I said was blasphemous. If anything, if I don't become a powerhouse, it would be more blasphemous."
Not being able to retort to Xue Bai's unconcealed arrogance, Ye Rou stayed quiet once again, bringing her courtyard into an awkward silence.
"Second Senior Sister, I am going to visit First Senior Sister now." Xue Bai spoke as he conjured a flame and dried his feet.
The conversation had gotten stale, and Xue Bai had already had a deep enough talk with his new Second Senior Sister, so there was no more meaning in staying longer.
Ye Rou also agreed and didn't stop him.
Letting him leave, Ye Rou bid her Junior Brother farewell before going into her own bedroom.
Like Xue Bai's own bedroom, hers was bare of any designs, only having a desk, bed, and closet. However, Ye Rou ignored everything and instead closed her blinds, making sure no one could see inside.
After making sure that no one was around, Ye Rou jumped onto her bed and pulled out a jade token with the Ye character on it before closing her eyes in serenity.
"I'll become someone strong, Mother and Father. Don't worry about Rou'er." Ye Rou mumbled before falling asleep.
Unaware of what happened after he left, Xue Bai started to make his way to where his First Senior Sister resided.
But since her Peak was the furthest away, Xue Bai walked faster than usual, wanting to reach there before nightfall.
It was well into the afternoon at this point, and Xue Bai didn't think visiting his First Senior Sisters Peak at night would portray a nice first impression.
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I named the clans in the Soaring Sword Sect Houses as to reduce confusion when talking about clans inside the sect and the ones in The Great Xuan Empire. What do you guys think of the change?
The sourc𝗲 of this content is free(w)ebnov(𝒆)l