I am destroying the protagonist in the fantasy world!

Chapter 123: The conspiracy deepens, and perjury is exposed

A bitter cold wind whistled past, picking up fallen leaves and swirling them across the mountains. Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli were surrounded by a group of men armed with swords, and the atmosphere was tense.

"Who are you? Why are you blocking our way?" Dongfang Liuli stepped forward and looked at everyone vigilantly.

"Hmph, stop pretending!" The burly man in the lead glared at Lei Yi fiercely, "You are Lei Yi, right? We have been ordered to capture you, the murderer!"

Lei Yi was startled, and a sinister premonition came over him. "Murderer? I don't know what you're talking about! I've never killed anyone!"

"You still dare to quibble!" The burly man sneered and pulled out a bloody dagger from his arms. "This dagger is engraved with your name. Do you still want to deny it?"

Lei Yi took the dagger and took a closer look, his face suddenly turning pale. This was indeed his dagger, but the bloodstains on it were not his.

"This dagger is indeed mine, but the bloodstains on it have nothing to do with me!" Lei Yi suppressed the anger in his heart. He knew that someone was deliberately framing him.

"Humph, you're still stubborn even when you're about to die!" Another man stood up and pointed at Lei Yi's nose and cursed, "We saw you kill someone with our own eyes, and you still want to deny it?"

"Yes, we all saw it!" Others echoed and accused Lei Yi indignantly.

Lei Yi felt a chill in his heart. He knew that these people had been bribed. They didn't care about the truth at all and just wanted to kill him.

"What evidence do you have to prove that I killed someone? Just a dagger?" Lei Yi took a deep breath and tried to keep himself calm.

"Of course there are more than that!" The burly man sneered and waved his hand. Several people behind him came up carrying several corpses.

"Open your eyes and take a good look. Did you kill these people?"

Lei Yi took a closer look and his expression suddenly turned even uglier. These dead were all ordinary villagers. Their deaths were horrible, with multiple knife wounds on their bodies. It was obvious that they were brutally murdered.

"These people..." Lei Yi felt powerless. He knew that no matter how he explained, these people would not believe him.

"Young Master Lei, these people..." Dongfang Liuli also saw the corpses. Although she believed that Lei Yi would not do such a thing, the scene before her shocked her.

"I know someone is framing me." Lei Yi took a deep breath and tried to remain calm. "But I don't understand why they are doing this?"

"Hmph, you've committed so many evil things that even Heaven can't stand it anymore!" The strong man sneered, "Today, we will enforce justice on Heaven's behalf and bring you to justice!"

With that, the sturdy man waved his hand, signaling his men to attack. Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli were cornered, and a fierce battle was about to break out...

"Wait," a cold voice came from outside the crowd, "You say Young Master Lei is the murderer, but do you have any evidence?"

Lei Yi looked up and saw a woman in green clothes with a long sword hanging from her waist slowly walking towards him. There was a hint of coldness on her face and a heroic air between her brows.

"Who are you?" the strong man asked warily.

"My name is Zhao Qingqing, known as the Green-robed Heroine in Jianghu," the woman said calmly. "I was passing by and heard you say that Young Master Lei was a murderer, so I wanted to come and take a look."

"Green-robed Heroine?" The burly man had obviously heard of this name, and his tone became a little more polite. "Since Green-robed Heroine wants to take care of this matter, then please."

Zhao Qingqing walked over to the corpses, carefully examined them, then checked Lei Yi's dagger, frowning slightly...

Zhao Qingqing carefully examined each corpse, her eyes sharp as a torch. She discovered that although the wounds on the deceased looked like knife wounds, the blades were smooth and the angles were consistent. They looked more like they were caused by a quick stab with the same sword, which did not match the slightly bulky dagger used by Lei Yi.

"These wounds were not caused by the dagger." Zhao Qingqing stood up with a firm tone.

The burly man was stunned for a moment, then turned angry and said, "What do you mean? Are you questioning us?"

"I'm just telling the truth." Zhao Qingqing glanced at everyone coldly. "You all insist that Young Master Lei is the murderer, but do you have any real evidence? Do you think you can convict someone based on just a dagger and a few slanderous words?"

Whispers began to appear among the crowd, and the looks they gave Lei Yi became more suspicious.

When the news reached Qingyun Sect, Sect Leader Liu's face suddenly turned grim. He already had a grudge against Lei Yi, and now that this incident had happened, he was even more determined.

"Come here!" Sect Master Liu shouted angrily, "Pass the order down. From today on, Qingyun Sect and Lei Yi will sever all ties. No disciple is allowed to have any contact with him!"

"Master, this..." The eldest disciple on the side wanted to say something, but was stopped by a sharp look from Master Liu.

"No need to say anything, just do as I say!"

Soon, word of Qingyun Sect's order spread throughout the martial arts world. Other sects, intimidated by Qingyun Sect's power, also declared their stance, distancing themselves from Lei Yi. Lei Yi instantly became the target of public criticism, and everyone avoided him.

In the tavern, Sun Xiucai was excitedly recounting Lei Yi's "crimes" to everyone. He exaggerated and described Lei Yi as an unforgivable murderer, which filled everyone with righteous indignation and made them want to tear Lei Yi into pieces.

"I'm telling you, I saw it with my own eyes. Lei Yi..." Sun Xiucai lowered his voice and said mysteriously, "After he killed someone, he also..."

Lei Yi was unaware of this and was about to head to the village to find out the truth. However, when he arrived at the village entrance, he was blocked by a group of ferocious villagers...

As Lei Yi entered the village, a group of villagers surrounded him fiercely, their faces grim and their eyes burning with rage. "Murderer, how dare you come back!" A burly man with a face full of flesh pointed at Lei Yi's nose and cursed.

"I didn't kill anyone. I came here just to find out the truth." Lei Yi explained calmly, but his words were drowned out by the angry roars of the villagers.

"Find out the truth? The man is dead, and you still want to deny it!" An old woman cried out in grief, "My poor son was brutally murdered by this devil!"

The villagers grew increasingly agitated, wielding hoes and sticks, eager to devour Lei Yi alive. Lei Yi knew these people were blinded by anger, and any explanation would be futile. He could only retreat helplessly, trying to leave this troubled place.

Meanwhile, upon hearing this, Zhao Daxia was filled with doubts. He knew Lei Yi well enough to believe he would never do such a cruel thing. He decided to personally investigate the scene, hoping to find some clues.

Zhao Daxia arrived at the village, carefully observing the surroundings and asking the villagers for information. However, the villagers' accusations against Lei Yi were exactly the same, as if they had been rehearsed in advance. Zhao Daxia's suspicions grew even more intense when he noticed a patch of reclaimed earth at the entrance of the village, seemingly to cover up something.

He squatted down and gently brushed away the dirt, finding some scraps of cloth and bloodstains. The material and color of these scraps were completely different from the clothes Lei Yi was wearing. Zhao Daxia's heart trembled, knowing that he might have discovered something important.

However, at this moment, a group of vicious thugs suddenly appeared and surrounded Zhao Daxia without any explanation. "Who are you? What do you want to do?" Zhao Daxia asked vigilantly.

"We're here on the orders of Steward Zhou to take your life!" the leading thug said coldly, then swung his sword and attacked Hero Zhao...

As night falls, Lei Yi hides in a dilapidated temple, feeling anxious. He knows he's been framed, and the mastermind behind this is powerful and determined to kill him. He must uncover the truth quickly, or he'll never recover.

Suddenly, a burst of hurried footsteps was heard, and a figure flashed into the temple. Lei Yi looked closely and saw that it was Dongfang Liuli. "Liuli, why are you here?" Lei Yi asked in surprise.

Dongfang Liuli's expression was solemn. She threw a package to Lei Yi and said in a deep voice, "This is what Hero Zhao asked me to give to you. He said..."

"He discovered Butler Zhou's conspiracy. Butler Zhou killed people to silence them. These are the evidence he found at the scene." Dongfang Liuli said in a heavy tone as he opened the package. Inside were some blood-stained rags and a bloody sachet.

Lei Yi picked up the sachet and carefully identified the pattern on it, his face suddenly changed: "This is... Cuizhuxuan's cloud-patterned sachet!" Cuizhuxuan is a well-known spice shop in the city, and this kind of cloud-patterned sachet is only worn by their young master.

"That's right," Dongfang Liuli continued. "Hero Zhao said he saw Steward Zhou's men holding the sachet with his own eyes. They were clearly trying to pin the blame on Cuizhuxuan."

"What a trick!" Lei Yi was enraged. He had never imagined that Butler Zhou would be so vicious and even implicate innocent people in order to frame him. He clenched his fists, a fierce look flashing in his eyes: "I will never let him go!"

"But now we have witnesses and evidence. What are you going to do?" Dongfang Liuli asked worriedly.

Lei Yi took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. He knew that now was not the time to act rashly. He had to find a flaw in Butler Zhou to clear his name.

"Liuli, can you do me a favor?" Lei Yi looked at Dongfang Liuli, with a determined light in his eyes.

"You said."

"Help me make an appointment with Sect Leader Liu and tell him that I have something important to tell him about this murder case." A gleam of light flashed in Lei Yi's eyes. He wanted to use all the people and things he could use to turn defeat into victory!

Although Dongfang Liuli was worried, she nodded and agreed. She knew Lei Yi's character and knew he would never sit still and wait for death.

Three days later, Lei Yi met Master Liu as promised.

"Master Liu, I know you believe those rumors and think that I am the murderer who killed the villagers." Lei Yi said straight to the point.

Sect Leader Liu's face darkened, and he said in an unhappy tone, "Master Lei, I respect you as a man, but human life is at stake. If you really did it, you should bravely admit it. Why keep quibbling?"

"What if I say that I was framed?" Lei Yi looked straight into Master Liu's eyes and said word by word.

"Framed? Who would frame you? And what's their purpose?" Sect Leader Liu obviously didn't believe it.

Lei Yi curled his lips into a cold smile and slowly told his plan...

At the same time, in a teahouse outside the city, a man in a gray gown and a bamboo hat was talking in a low voice. This man was a close confidant of Housekeeper Zhou, who had been ordered to come and contact the forces outside the city.

"How's it going?" the other party asked in a low and hoarse voice.

"My lord, everything went well. Lei Yi has been plagued by rumors and can hardly protect himself." The man in gray replied respectfully.

"Very good." The other party nodded with satisfaction. Just as he was about to say something else, he suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from the next table.

"What did you say? Lei Yi made an appointment with Sect Leader Liu?"

The man in gray suddenly raised his head, staring at the table next to him, his hand unconsciously tightening around the sword at his waist.