Translator: RITF_Rain Editor: Chrissy
"Jun Yinglian!" Xuan Bing had drunk a few. Her face was all read. She looked at Jun Yinglian and said, "How many years do you think we have left with our current cultivation?"
Jun Yinglian was surprised and then smiled bitterly. She felt bitter in the heart because of the question. "If we don't want to die… and we don't get killed in any accidents, I would say thousands of years."
"What if we get some significant improvements during the thousands of years?" Xuan Bing's eyes were scorching.
"That would be difficult to say. Maybe we will live longer…" Jun Yinglian said.
"Have you ever thought that during those long lives, we may have to live on and on in this lonely way?"
Xuan Bing's eyes were shiny.
"Maybe I am doomed to live this way. But you… you are different." Jun Yinglian showed a wan smile and said, "I believe you understand me. There is an essential difference between a person with a dead heart and a person with hope!"
Xuan Bing was choked.
[Of course, I understand you.]
[Because I understand you, I came to talk to you, to make friends with you… to become sisters with you…]
[Do you think I honestly have so much leisure time to waste on fuddling myself here?]
"Heaven's will is unpredictable. Nothing was bound to happen! Even if we are destined to die on a certain day, even if we know that we have only a few days to live, we still need sisters!" Xuan Bing looked at Jun Yinglian seriously, "In the last few days, if we have sisters to share our last secret to, it would make our lives less regretful. Don't you think?"
"Men have brothers. Women have sisters!"
Xuan Bing's words resounded.
Jun Yinglian's eyes were full of colorful glow. She slowly repeated, "That's right. Men have brothers, and we shall have sisters. He was an arrogant person, but he still had several brothers around him. I used to dislike his brothers, because… I was jealous! He had brothers, and I can have my sisters…"
"That is exactly why I came to you today."
Xuan Bing took a deep breath. She finally revealed the purpose of this conversation. She felt relieved.
She had been thinking about this conversation for a long time. She started this idea before she met Ye Xiao. She had thought of such a conversation for more than once.
Yet she never was brave enough to do it.
She wanted to but she was too proud to.
She needed to take the first step forward to make sure the plan worked. Besides, she needed Jun Yinglian to say yes. These were the two essential conditions. If one side failed to agree with the other, it would end up to be pretty terrible!
If Xuan Bing took the first step in a friendly manner, showing her will to make friends with others, but only got a negative response, she could never accept such failure. It would only lead to hostility and fighting.
It wasn't because she was narrow-hearted that she would become enemy to the person who turned down her kind friend request. She was too powerful and influential to endure other's rejection. If she didn't turn hostile to the person who refused her kindness, in Qing-Yun Realm, where only the bigger fist had the louder voice, she would be underestimated. People would think she was weak. She couldn't let that happen!
That was why she had been hesitating all the time after she had that idea.
Until now!
She came to Jun YInglian because she wanted to be sisters with her. In fact, she had another reason to do so, which she could never tell anybody, that she had buried in her heart.
"Qing-Yun Realm is full of powerful figures." Xuan Bing spoke in a deep voice, "Ninety-five percent are men. Women only took five percent of the seats."
Jun Yinglian stayed silent for a while and said, "Maybe we are less than five percent."
"Hmm?" Xuan Bing looked at her.
"Young men who are talented would be chosen and trained in accentuation. Some talented girls will be chosen too. But when they are in certain ages, they stopped improving."
"Because men's lust for women is always the source of misfortunes!" Jun Yinglian blandly said, "The more talented a girl is, the more beautiful she will become."
Xuan Bing nodded.
That was true. After all, when a girl was gifted in all aspects, she would definitely become beautiful.
If a woman didn't even have a perfect shape, how could she be talented in martial arts?
A woman had to be in good shape, then she can possibly be in an excellent martial arts condition.
Physical condition was the key to a woman's potential.
There were just a few kinds of particular physical condition.
For example, Pure Yin Body, Yin Cold Body, Natural Body, Cold Moon Body… Women were attributed Yin. Yin and coldness were the most charming part of a woman.
A woman with such a physical condition was bound to be outstanding.
And a woman should also be pure and smart.
A perfect body shape, an excellent physical condition and the specialty of pureness and cleverness were the three things that could make a woman invincible to all.
In fact, a woman with only the first two conditions could be powerful enough!
However, such a woman must be the focal point of all men.
Nobody didn't like a woman like that.
Nobody didn't want to have a woman like that.
The favor of a man, the ownership of a man, at some point, cut off a woman's path to improvement.
Once she fell into a relationship, she was owned by one man.
Either in a soft way or in a tough way, if a man had a woman like that, he must be somebody very influential and dominant in the world!
Such a man always got a young and beautiful girl that he wanted.
Once they got the woman, her talented life was ended.
What's left of her future was no longer extraordinary.
Men always showed their power by conquering the women they wanted! Men always did!
When they couldn't get them, they would fight for them. When they got them, when they were satisfied, they might not cherish them always! That was the nature of men in all history!
"Men's lust for women ruined ninety percent of the talented girls."
Jun Yinglian drew a conclusion.
"Maybe that is why the world is patriarchal" Xuan Bing sighed and said, "It is difficult for women to become stronger and independent."
"That is why although there are lots of talented girls, only several in centuries can rise to the height as you and I did." Jun Yinglian blandly said, "Yet there are a lot of men who have become top-class cultivators."
The two ladies sighed at the same time.
"Xue Danru is one of the top-class female cultivators." Xuan Bing casually said. She sounded uncomfortable, but she had to admit it.
Jun Yinglian laughed.
Xue Danru was not just a female top-class cultivator. Although she was a little weaker than Xuan Bing, she was much stronger than Jun Yinglian. In all the cultivators in Qing-Yun Realm, she was among the ten most potent figures!
However, Jun Yinglian understood how Xuan Bing felt. Xuan Bing and Xue Danru didn't really hate each other that much. That war between the two palaces began tens of thousands of years earlier.
Xue Danru, just like Xuan Bing and Jun Yinglian, had already reached the peak of a female martial artist's life.
In fact, in Qing-Yun Realm, Xue Danru, Xuan Bing, and Jun Yinglian were the only three female cultivators who were at the same height in the martial world.
"If Xue Danru heard what you just said, she would be glad. However, the Moon Queen of Qiong-Hua Palace should also be powerful in cultivation. She should be more powerful than me. Why didn't you mention her?" Jun Yinglian said.
Xuan Bing blandly smiled and said, "The prime master of Qiong-Hua Palace is a female cultivator who is a little stronger than you indeed but… There is a huge difference between her and us. She is married. She has a more important identity… A wife of a man. Most importantly, most of her achievements are from her man's support." Xuan Bing was sneering.
Jun Yinglian was stunned. "What?"
Apparently, it was such breaking news. Jun Yinglian, such a calm, and steady woman couldn't even stay calm. She actually exclaimed!
"It's definitely is a secret in Qing-Yun Realm. Well…" Xuan Bing blandly smiled, "We don't talk about other's privacy."
Jun Yinglian was apparently shocked. "Well… It turns out… She has a man…"
In her voice, there was actually… a sense of… jealousness!
Xuan Bing raised the bowl and drank up. Then she noticed Jun Yinglian's strange reaction. Her eyes lit up.
She casually asked, "Sister Jun, why do you look like you are troubled?"
Jun Yinglian was alarmed, then she raised the bowl and drank up. However, the liquor didn't bring the pleasure to her throat anymore; instead, it brought grief and sorrow. She felt utterly lonely at the moment. She said, "Who doesn't have troubles in the heart?"
Xuan Bing tested, "Back then… when Xiao Monarch…"
Jun Yinglian heard his name and her face turned pale. She felt like her heart was stabbed hard. She smiled bitterly and said, "In fact… Xuan Bing, what do you think we women live for?"
Xuan Bing was stunned by Jun Yinglian's question.
Before this, she might answer, 'For dignity, for achievements, for dreams!'
However, as she heard the question now, she didn't know what to say.
In fact, it was a question Xuan Bing already had in mind. She would ask the same question. However, now Jun Yinglian asked first and she was the other one to answer. She was suddenly lost for words.
What did a woman live for?
"I don't believe you are chasing after the position of invincibility in the world!" Jun Yinglian took a breath.
Xuan Bing was silent.
One year before this, Xuan Bing would definitely answer her, 'I am only chasing after the position of invincibility!'
However…
"Great Elder Xuan, have you ever thought that women are a group of disadvantaged and vulnerable people, including you and me." Jun Yinglian quietly spoke, "I never admitted it. But now I am saying it."
"A woman always needs a company, a shelter." Jun yInglian sadly spoke, "A man, a shelter, that we are never forced to love… that nothing compels us to love… that we love with our full hearts… with all our souls… out hearts…"
Xuan Bing quietly said, "Your shelter, your man… was Ye Xiao. Xiao Monarch! Was he truly such a shelter to you?"
Jun Yinglian blandly smiled, "Elder Xuan, if you have ever loved someone… you will understand that if a woman, just like me or you, falls into it, we fall with our entire lives. Once we fall for that man, then he is the shelter!"
Was he that kind of shelter to her?
As long as she loved him, he would always be the shelter she wanted!
It shocked Xuan Bing, touched her heart.
They rambled for a long time after that, in the clouds, on top of a mountain. Sometimes Xuan Bing was speaking, and Jun Yinglian was listening.
Sometimes it was the other way around.
Unnoticeably about eight jars of liquor were finished by the two ladies. They didn't seem to be tired; instead, they were more and more into it.
Jun Yinglian felt alerted at the beginning. Xuan Bing was acting weird after all. However, Jun Yinglian entirely set free of her heart at the moment.
If somebody told her that Xuan Bing was doing this for some unspoken purpose, Jun Yinglian would punch the person on the face for Xuan Bing!
"Sister Jun, you are right. Let's drink!"
"Sister Bing, drink!"
In the end, Xuan Bing suggested something and Jun Yinglian agreed.
"Sister Jun, I feel like we were good friends a long time ago. What do you think… that we take a vow to be sisters? As you and I are sisters, we can have more chances to share our secrets to each other in the future. What do you think?"
"This is exactly what I am thinking about. Since you are so nice to me, I think I will just agree to relate to a sister of a higher position!"
"Sisters like us never say things like that! You are disgracing me by saying that higher position stuff!" Xuan Bing pretended to be mad.
"I don't dare anymore. I was stupid. Sister, please forgive me. Don't hate me." Jun Yinglian apologized with a smile.
They were two forthright and great-hearted persons. The way to swear sisters never bothered them. They just kneeled on the floor and bowed eight times to each other. Then they were sisters. They both felt glad.
Xuan Bing was definitely older than Jun Yinglian, so Jung Yinglian was the younger sister.
One day after, they parted each other sorrowfully.
Xuan Bing was heading back to Misty Cloud Palace, while Jun Yinglian kept going to Oracle District.
"Sister Jun, if you encounter any troubles on the road, send me messages." Xuan Bing said before they parted. "Besides, when you are going to have the final fight against the three factions, I won't just sit and watch. Your trouble is my trouble, sister!"
"When you start the fight, I will join you in the battle!"
That was a promise.
…