This is inciting internal strife among them!
Yue Yunqiao angrily accused, "Despicable!" She looked toward the house, "Senior Brother Bai, you must think carefully. If you go down this wicked path, the sect will surely come to cleanse its ranks!"
Guan Mowen chuckled, "Fairy Yue speaks the truth, but the heartlessness of this world is something a privileged one like you could never understand."
The blood on the ground flowed faster and faster. The Bai family members gathered under the Yellow Springs Tree began to shrivel, some making gurgling sounds as they twitched and convulsed.
They couldn't hold on much longer.
"Father! Mother!" Bai Siyao wept, her respect for Bai Zhong'an now replaced by hatred. "Great Uncle! My father has always shown you the utmost respect—how can you be so heartless? And my third sister, she's only twelve!"
After a moment of silence, a sigh finally came from the small house, as though in pity, but nothing else followed.
Bai Siyao's heart sank. Now she believed it—Great Uncle must truly be possessed, intent on following the demonic path. If that's the case...
Seeing her draw her sword and slowly stand by Huo Chongxiao and Yue Yunqiao's side, Guan Mowen understood her decision.
"It seems the eldest miss has chosen them. What a pity. You were once the most valued and beloved junior of this household."
Bai Siyao coldly responded, "That was my Great Uncle in the past. Now, he's nothing more than a heartless demon!"
Guan Mowen shook his head, offering no further explanation. He turned to another. "And what about you, eldest young master?"
Bai Mengxing was at a loss. "I, I..."
Guan Mowen spoke gently, "No need to be nervous, young master. If you choose your father, just stand by my side."
Bai Mengxing had never encountered a situation where he had to make a decision himself. His life revolved around three things—eating, drinking, and bullying others. If anything happened, he'd just call for his mother.
"Mother..."
Instinctively, he called out and turned to see his mother's anguished face. She wasn't a good person—cruel and domineering, with a terrible reputation in the family—but she loved him dearly. His father, too, secretly siphoned money from the shop, saying it was to save up spirit stones so he could one day enter the Danxia Palace.
"No." Bai Mengxing shook his head and backed toward Huo Chongxiao. "You harmed my father and mother..."
Guan Mowen was surprised. "Well, well, the eldest young master is truly unexpected."
Huo Chongxiao and the others were also taken aback. Bai Mengxing, who was useless and bullied the weak, had actually held his ground at a critical moment.
Finally, it was Bai Siyao's turn. Everyone thought there was no need to ask, and Guan Mowen didn't have high hopes. She had rushed here as soon as the trouble began, clearly siding with Yue Yunqiao. There was no way she would...
"I choose Great Uncle," Bai Siyao said before Guan Mowen could ask, stepping toward him voluntarily.
Huo Chongxiao and Yue Yunqiao were shocked, and Bai Mengxing and Bai Siyao were even more dumbfounded.
"Second Sister?!" They spoke in unison.
Standing beside Guan Mowen, Bai Siyao faced them. "Elder Sister, Elder Brother, you both have parents, but I do not. Everyone dying here today has, in one way or another, bullied me before. I have no reason to make a pointless sacrifice for them."
Yue Yunqiao's anger flared up. "Junior Sister Bai, I thought you were kind and compassionate! You even saved me when we didn't know each other, and now you're aiding a villain!"
Bai Siyao regretfully replied, "I'm sorry, Senior Sister Yue. If it were anyone else, I would stand by your side, but my Great Uncle and I share the same blood. Compared to everything else, I still want him to pass through this ordeal safely."
"You..." Yue Yunqiao fumed with rage. Huo Chongxiao held her back. "Junior Sister, let it go."
"Very well!" Guan Mowen clapped his hands after hearing the conversation, admiringly looking at Bai Siyao. "Second Miss, you truly are the smartest person in this family. If we succeed today, you will be the sole heir to the household."
Just as he finished speaking, the Yellow Springs Tree suddenly emitted a deep rumble, and the Yin-Yang Umbrella atop it began spinning faster. The Bai family members beneath the tree screamed in agony as the blood drained from their bodies at an alarming rate.
"Ahhhh..." One family member collapsed, followed by a second, then a third...
"Mother! Father!" Bai Mengxing saw his parents lose all signs of life and wanted to rush forward, but his elder sister held him back.
Tears streaming down her face, Bai Siyao clung to him tightly. "Don't go! You can't save them, and you'll only lose yourself in the process..."
At last, all of them fell. The blood in the trough overflowed, and the once-withered leaves of the Yellow Springs Tree seemed nourished, gradually regaining life.
This kind of dark sorcery startled both Huo Chongxiao and Yue Yunqiao, their faces turning pale.
The Yin-Yang Umbrella spun rapidly, channeling the vitality it absorbed toward the house. The restless demonic energy swirling around began to stabilize, slowly solidifying.
"No! His demonic heart is about to form!" Huo Chongxiao shouted. "Quick, stop him!"
With that, he raised his sword and charged at Guan Mowen.
Bai Siyao had never seen Guan Mowen in action before, only knowing that his cultivation was high. As he raised his hand, dark energy surged forth, forcing Huo Chongxiao back a step, nearly knocking him off balance.
"Senior Brother!" Yue Yunqiao called out, drawing her sword and rushing forward. "I'll help you!"
The three clashed in fierce combat.
Bai Siyao gripped her sword tightly, preparing to join the fray.
But Bai Siyao moved swiftly, blocking both her and Bai Mengxing. "Elder Sister, Elder Brother, I don't want to fight you. Why don't we make a deal? As long as you don't attack, I won't either. There's no need for us to kill each other."
"Spare me!" Bai Siyao glared at her, seething with anger. "Who's on your side? Since you made your choice, we are no longer sisters!"
Bai Mengxing, shoved by his elder sister, stammered, "I—I agree. You're not my sister anymore either."
Bai Siyao sneered. "As if you ever treated me like a sister. Elder Brother, how many times have you called me a bastard? Did you think I wouldn't remember? And Elder Sister, though you never bullied me, when I was mistreated, did you ever help?"
Bai Siyao's face turned red with fury. "Didn't I help you whenever I saw it? What could I do when I didn't?"
"So, you weren't sincere! This cheap pity—I don't need it!"
"Fine! Fine!" Bai Siyao gritted her teeth and drew her sword. "Since you no longer care about sisterhood, I won't hold back either!"
She lunged, and Bai Siyao raised her hand to block, retreating a step. In her emotional state, Bai Siyao pursued her immediately.
Bai Mengxing glanced around, unsure what to do, before finally deciding to follow his elder sister. He wasn't skilled enough to intervene in their fight, so he resorted to haphazardly grabbing things and throwing them to create trouble for Bai Siyao, shouting nonsense like, "Stop running! Taste my brick!"
The three siblings chased each other in a chaotic frenzy. Bai Siyao stabbed here and threw a talisman there, quickly turning the once-serene Courtyard of Fallen Leaves into complete disarray.