I picked up skill fragments in the demon world.

Chapter 931 Rush
"You have already sensed that the Book of Life and Death is in my Gong family. Now I invite all of you from the eight great families to come and investigate. If you can find the Book of Life and Death within my Gong family, my Gong family will absolutely not protect the murderer. What do you say?" The head of the Gong family said.

His attitude demonstrated his utmost sincerity, but to the Zhang family members, his words sounded like absolute confidence—confidence so great that even if the eight major families searched the Gong family together, they would absolutely not find any clues to the Book of Life and Death.

The head of the Lei family said, "We witnessed firsthand that the aura of the Book of Life and Death originated from the Zhang family. Now that all eight families are working together, we refuse to believe we can't find it! Zhang family brothers and sisters, we eight families are of one mind. We will only mediate conflicts, not escalate them. Why don't we search first? If we find the Book of Life and Death, all will be happy. If not, we can discuss the plan. The aura of the Book of Life and Death appeared in the Gong family, but that doesn't mean the Book of Life and Death is in their hands. What if there are villains causing trouble, or someone in the palace plotting to turn us brothers against each other? Wouldn't that be painful for our own people and joy for our enemies? We've gathered here today to find the Book of Life and Death. Let's confine all the Gong family members in the courtyard and search them one by one. The Book of Life and Death is within the Gong family; it can't escape. As long as we search diligently, we'll find it." The head of the Lei family acted as a peacemaker.

None of the eight major families wanted to see internal conflict, and they all tried to dissuade the conflict if they could. Now that they had identified the scope of the Book of Life and Death, were they afraid that they wouldn't be able to find it?

The other six families also gathered around and started talking. The head of the Zhang family had no choice but to agree, and the group entered the Gong family's residence to begin a search.

Zhang Chen walked through the Gong family mansion, a hint of embarrassment in his eyes: "These old guys are really cautious. I've pushed things to this point, and they haven't even started fighting yet? Looks like I need to add fuel to the fire!"

Zhang Chen held power over the Earth element, and the Gong family had several secret rooms, which of course could not be hidden from Zhang Chen. He was seen directing the fox spirit Nannan to secretly suppress the aura of the branches of the Longevity Tree with the talisman, and then transport them to the secret room of the Gong family.

At one point, Zhang Gaoyue, the most outstanding member of the Zhang family's younger generation, led a group of his underlings and young people from several other families into the house of the Gong family head. They ransacked the house from top to bottom. Although the Gong family members were displeased by this, they were powerless to stop it and could only swallow their anger.

Zhang Chen followed the group discreetly, his figure shifting in an instant, transforming into a young man from the Gong family, and unobtrusively accompanying the younger generation of the eight major families as they searched high and low.

Suddenly, at a certain moment, Zhang Haoyue accidentally triggered the secret chamber mechanism, and the secret chamber where the fox fairy Nannan hid the branches of the Longevity Tree was opened. Upon seeing this, the younger members of the family immediately lit up: "There is a secret chamber here, let's go in together quickly."

Zhang Gaoyue shouted and led the younger generation of the Zhang family directly into the room. When they saw the gold and silver treasures and various spiritual medicines in the secret room, they couldn't take their eyes off them. However, since there were people from the Gong family who were knowledgeable, they glanced at the younger generation of the Gong family but did not do anything.

Until one moment, Zhang Gaoling opened a box, and a verdant aura from inside illuminated the entire secret room, causing everyone to stop and look. The verdant light carried a fragrance of grass and trees, and radiated an indescribable life force that actually extended people's lifespan.

“Those are branches of the Tree of Immortality! I saw the Tree of Immortality with my own eyes after it was opened in the Great Tomb of Gods and Demons in the North. These are definitely branches of the Tree of Immortality!”

"Wasn't it said that the coffin of the Tree of Immortality was lost? How come the Gong family has branches of the Tree of Immortality?"

……

The group of people no longer cared about searching for the Book of Life and Death; they all crowded forward, their eyes fixed intently on the branches of the Tree of Immortality in the box.

After all, the Book of Life and Death belongs to the Zhang family, so it can't be distributed among everyone once it's found. But the Tree of Immortality is currently the only known divine object in the world that can prolong life!

Most importantly, the Tree of Immortality has disappeared, so why is it appearing in the Gong family's home?
"They've discovered the secret of the Tree of Immortality! Everyone, join me and let's keep them here! This is the Tree of Immortality of my Gong family. We absolutely cannot let them leak the news, or my Gong family will be in big trouble." Zhang Chen, who had been hiding in the corner, had been waiting for this moment. He drew his long sword and, without saying a word, slashed at the young talents of the other seven families.

Zhang Chen's slash was ruthless and merciless, cleaving Zhang Gaoling's head off instantly. Blood spurted out, and the proud young man died on the spot.

"Little brother!" Upon seeing this, Zhang Gaoyue's eyes immediately turned red: "We've discovered the Gong family's secret! The Gong family stole the Longevity Tree Coffin, and now that we've found their trail, they want to kill us to silence us! Everyone, fight me!"

As Zhang Chen ruthlessly drew his sword, the youths of the eight great families were inexplicably drawn into the fray, drawing their knives and engaging in a bloody battle.

The disciples of the Gong family were still in a daze when they saw disciples from other families draw their long swords and slash at them with murderous intent. They immediately retaliated without showing any weakness.

A bloody massacre surrounding the Tree of Immortality began inexplicably, its origins unknown. The other families, upon hearing the words "silence," and seeing the crimson-stained blades, had no time to investigate. Their priority was to kill the enemy before them and ensure their own survival. The killing continued relentlessly within the secret chamber until Zhang Gaoyue, covered in blood and gore, clutched a branch of the Tree of Immortality. Under Zhang Chen's deliberate "escort" and "pursuit," she escaped the chamber and reached the courtyard. Her scream alerted all eight families within the courtyard: "The Gong family stole the coffin of the Tree of Immortality from the North! We discovered the clues, and the Gong family is going to silence us!"

With a roar, Zhang Chen, now a member of the Gong family, rushed in front of Zhang Gaoyue and slashed down with his long sword, swiftly cutting off the blood-stained section of the Longevity Tree, which fell to the ground.

"You dare, junior!" A Zhang family expert, seeing this scene, was furious. He didn't bother to ask for details. Seeing the junior from the Gong family ruthlessly kill Zhang Gaoyue, he rushed over without saying a word, slashed Zhang Chen's long sword away, and then plunged the sword into Zhang Chen's heart.

"Haoyue, what happened? Why are the Gong family chasing you?" The Zhang family expert quickly helped Zhang Gaoyue up and asked.

"The Gong family stole the coffin of the Tree of Immortality, and we accidentally discovered the clues. They want to kill us to silence us!" Zhang Gaoyue hurriedly staggered over and raised the Tree of Immortality in her hands.

"Kill!"

Meanwhile, the killing in the secret chamber continued. Some people escaped while others chased after them. News of the Longevity Tree and the Gong family's attempt to silence them spread like wildfire. Zhang Chen's corpse on the ground had also disappeared without a trace. The eight major families began to fight each other, stirring up trouble and causing the situation to spiral out of control. In an instant, the situation became a siege of the Gong family by the seven major families.

The elders of the Gong family were furious to see their family members being hunted down and began to rescue them. However, with Zhang Chen taking advantage of the chaos and constantly sowing discord, after an elder died at Zhang Chen's hands, both sides turned on each other and the Gong family was soon covered in blood.

The head of the Gong family was dumbfounded, wondering why the other families were acting like madmen, slaughtering their own members. They had agreed that they would only search the Book of Life and Death.

Even worse, under Zhang Chen's deliberate guidance, the story gradually became more and more distorted, turning into the seven major families wanting to plunder the Gong family, and even taking the initiative to search for the Gong family's treasures. When an elder of the Gong family tried to stop them, he was killed by Zhang Chen with a single blow, and the situation became increasingly out of control.

When Zhang Chen became a member of the Gong family, he relentlessly slaughtered the disciples of the seven major families, giving them no chance to recover. He shouted, "The seven major families are going to plunder the Gong family! This is a conspiracy against the Gong family! Don't hold back, you must protect the Gong family!" Then, amidst Zhang Chen's screams, he hacked to death several members of the seven major families before finally being hacked to death by them. He lay lifeless on the ground. This scene immediately enraged the Gong family. Hearing that the seven major families wanted to plunder their treasures and had even personally killed their own brothers? Shouldn't they defend their home and avenge them?

At this point, no one bothered to ask why; they simply offered their help.

When Zhang Chen transformed into a member of one of the seven major families, he chased after the Gong family members while shouting everywhere: "The Gong family stole the coffin of the Tree of Immortality. We discovered their secret, and the Gong family wants to kill us to silence us. Everyone, come and help us suppress the Gong family." With Zhang Chen fanning the flames, the entire Gong family was thrown into chaos.

Zhang Chen even transformed into a disciple of one of the seven major families and attacked the head and eldest son of the Gong family, causing friction and death between the two sides. The direct descendants of the Gong family died one after another, and the head of the Gong family was already caught in the fierce battle before he could ask any questions.

While the patriarchs and elders of the seven major families were still trying to figure out the reason for the incident, Zhang Chen had already transformed back into a disciple of the Gong family, calling upon a group of Gong family members to launch a preemptive attack on Zhang Shenqi and his companions.

Although Zhang Shenqi and the others sensed something was amiss, the enemy had already arrived with knives. They couldn't use their bloodline power, nor could they simply let themselves be slaughtered. So they could only passively retaliate.

The killing was an endless cycle. At this moment, an elder of the Gong family saw Zhang Shenqi and others killing Gong family disciples. His eyes turned red, and without saying a word, he drew his sword and joined the battle.

At this point, the scene was in complete chaos, with everyone killing each other. No one cared about the reasons for the incident anymore; the priority was to kill the opponent first.

However, it was ultimately the Gong family's home ground, and the Gong family had too many people. With more and more Gong family members arriving to provide support, the seven major families quickly became overwhelmed and gradually fell into a passive state.

(End of this chapter)