I am destroying the protagonist in the fantasy world!

"We appreciate the clan leader's kindness, but this matter is of great importance, so we need to think about it again." Lei Yi calmly rejected Xuanyuan Bo's proposal, with a hint of alienation in his tone.

A hint of gloom flashed across Xuanyuan Bo's eyes, but he concealed it well and said with a smile, "Since that's the case, I won't force you. Please do as you please."

Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli knew each other tacitly: they knew Xuanyuan Bo would never let them go so easily. After leaving the hall, they deliberately slowed down their pace, paying attention to the movements around them.

"It seems we have to find another way out." Lei Yi lowered his voice and said to Dongfang Liuli.

"Well, I noticed that the Xuanyuan family has a forbidden area with strict defenses. It may be related to the entrance to the underground maze." Dongfang Liuli's eyes flashed with wisdom.

"Forbidden area? Looks like we have to take a risk." Lei Yi nodded.

Late at night, when everyone was asleep, Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli avoided the patrolling guards and quietly sneaked into the Xuanyuan family's forbidden area.

The forbidden area was located deep in the mountains behind the Xuanyuan family. Surrounded by towering ancient trees, a chilling wind blew, and an eerie atmosphere permeated the air. Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli advanced cautiously, taking every step with extreme caution.

"Be careful!" Dongfang Liuli suddenly grabbed Lei Yi and pointed to a bush ahead, saying, "There's a trap there."

Lei Yi looked closely and saw a few silver threads as thin as cow hair faintly visible in the bushes, shining coldly in the moonlight.

"That was a close call!" Lei Yi couldn't help but gasp. If Dongfang Liuli hadn't discovered it in time, they might have triggered the mechanism.

The two of them bypassed the trap and continued to grope forward. As they went deeper, the atmosphere in the forbidden area became increasingly eerie.

"Wait, look..." Dongfang Liuli pointed to an open space not far ahead and whispered, "What is that?"

Lei Yi looked in the direction Dongfang Liuli pointed, and saw an ancient stone tablet standing in the open space. The stone tablet was engraved with dense runes and emitted a faint fluorescence.

"Could this be the entrance to the underground maze?" Lei Yi's heart moved and he walked quickly towards the stone tablet.

"Be careful, there might be a trap!" Dongfang Liuli warned, but Lei Yi had already walked to the front of the stone tablet.

Lei Yi carefully observed the runes on the stone tablet, trying to find a way to decipher them. Suddenly, the runes on the stone tablet glowed brightly, and a powerful suction force sucked Lei Yi into the stone tablet!

"Lei Yi!" Dongfang Liuli exclaimed, wanting to reach out and pull Lei Yi away, but it was too late...

The stone tablet returned to its calm state, as if nothing had happened. Dongfang Liuli stood there, her face gloomy and her eyes filled with worry.

"It seems that the Xuanyuan family had already expected us to come here..." Dongfang Liuli muttered to himself, with a glint of determination in his eyes, "Lei Yi, wait for me, I will definitely find you!"

Dongfang Liuli took a deep breath and resolutely stepped into the light emanating from the stone tablet... Dongfang Liuli felt a flash before her eyes, and when she opened them again, she found herself in a dark chamber. The walls of the chamber were inlaid with night-shining pearls, emitting a faint light that illuminated the cramped space.

"Lei Yi?" She called softly, but only heard her own echo echoing in the empty secret room.

"Liuli, I'm here!" Lei Yi's voice came from not far away. Dongfang Liuli looked in the direction of the voice and saw Lei Yi trapped in a huge iron cage. The outside of the cage was covered with dense runes, flashing dangerous light.

"What's going on?" Dongfang Liuli was shocked and quickly walked to the iron cage, carefully observing the runes, trying to find a way to break it.

"Be careful!" Lei Yi suddenly shouted. Dongfang Liuli was startled and subconsciously jumped back. At this moment, a dazzling light passed across her cheek, leaving a small bloodstain.

Dongfang Liuli's heart trembled as she realized that this secret room was not as simple as it seemed. The walls, the floor, and even the air were all filled with deadly traps.

"This should be the place where the Xuanyuan family imprisoned prisoners." Lei Yi said in a deep voice, "We must find the exit as soon as possible, otherwise..."

Before he could finish his words, he saw several cold lights shooting out from all directions, heading straight for Dongfang Liuli's face! Dongfang Liuli reacted quickly, dodging nimbly, but those hidden weapons seemed to have eyes and kept chasing him.

"Liuli, over here!" Lei Yi shouted anxiously. Dongfang Liuli dodged and hid beside the iron cage. With the cover of the iron cage, she temporarily avoided the attack of the hidden weapon.

"Damn it!" Lei Yi looked at the scars on Dongfang Liuli's face, a trace of heartache and anger flashing in his eyes. He knew that all this was because of him. If he hadn't insisted on finding the entrance to the underground maze, Dongfang Liuli wouldn't have fallen into such danger.

"I will definitely get you out!" Lei Yi clenched his fists, a flicker of determination in his eyes. He began to observe his surroundings more carefully, trying to find a way to break the mechanism.

Dongfang Liuli also endured the pain of her wound and carefully observed the surrounding environment, looking for any possible clues. Suddenly, her eyes focused on an inconspicuous corner on the wall.

There seems to be a strange symbol engraved there...

"Lei Yi, look there!" Dongfang Liuli pointed at the symbol and said.

Lei Yi looked in the direction Dongfang Liuli pointed, and saw that the symbol had a strange shape, like some kind of writing, but not like any writing they knew.

"What is this?" Lei Yi asked with a frown.

Dongfang Liuli shook her head, indicating that she didn't know either. At this moment, a light sound of footsteps came from a distance, which was particularly clear in the silent room.

somebody is coming!

Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli looked at each other and saw a glimmer of hope in each other's eyes.

The footsteps were getting closer and closer, and an old figure gradually appeared in their sight. It was an old man in a gray cloth robe, with a hunched body and gray hair, but his eyes were bright and sharp.

"Who are you? Why are you here?" The old man looked at Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli with a hint of vigilance in his tone.

"We are..." Lei Yi was about to explain but was interrupted by the old man.

"I know who you are." The old man looked at them coldly, "Are you here to find the entrance to the underground maze?"

Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli were both shocked when they heard this. They didn't expect that this old man actually knew their purpose.

"Who are you?" Lei Yi asked in a deep voice.

The old man did not answer, but walked to the symbol on the wall, reached out and gently stroked the symbol, with a complicated look in his eyes.

"I can tell you where the entrance is," the old man said slowly, his voice low and hoarse, "but I want you to do me a favor."

Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli looked at each other, and a sense of vigilance arose in their hearts.

"What help?" Lei Yi asked.

The old man turned around, staring at Lei Yi with sharp eyes, and said word by word: "I want you... to help me kill someone!"

The old man's words resonated like thunder in Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli's ears. Killing? They had never considered killing, let alone trying to obtain information about the entrance to the underground maze.

"Who do you want us to kill?" Dongfang Liuli frowned slightly, a hint of coldness in her tone. This old man's origins were unknown, his purpose unclear, and his request was too dangerous. Dongfang Liuli was filled with vigilance.

The old man's cloudy eyes flickered with an inexplicable light, and he slowly uttered a name: "Xuanyuan Xiongba."

Xuanyuan Xiongba! The current patriarch of the Xuanyuan family, and the most powerful person in the entire family! The old man actually wanted them to assassinate Xuanyuan Xiongba? This was simply a fantasy!

Lei Yi's heart was filled with shock. He was well aware of Xuanyuan Xiongba's terrifying strength. He was the man standing at the top of this continent. How could they deal with him?

"Are you kidding?" Lei Yi lowered his voice, a hint of disbelief in his tone, "Who is Xuanyuan Xiongba? Asking us to kill him is no different from sending ourselves to die."

The old man seemed to have anticipated their reaction. He sneered and said, "Of course I know how powerful Xuanyuan Xiongba is, but since I dare to make this request, I must be somewhat confident."

"What are you sure of?" Dongfang Liuli asked.

The old man did not answer directly, but asked: "Do you know who I am?"

Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli exchanged glances and shook their heads. This old man had appeared so suddenly and acted so secretly that they knew nothing about him.

"My last name is Sima, and my given name is Hunter," the old man said slowly, "I was once one of the best hunters in the world."

Sima Hunter? He seemed to have heard this name somewhere before... Lei Yi tried hard to recall. Suddenly, a light bulb went off in his head, and he remembered a legend he had read in ancient books before.

Legend has it that hundreds of years ago, a legendary hunter named Sima Hunter appeared on this continent. He was proficient in various hunting techniques and was able to track down all kinds of prey, even legendary beasts.

Could it be that... the old man in front of me is the legendary Sima hunter?

"You...are you really the legendary Sima hunter?" Lei Yi asked in surprise.

Sima Hunter nodded slightly, acknowledging his identity.

"Why do you want us to kill Xuanyuan Xiongba?" Lei Yi suppressed the shock in his heart and asked again.

"Because he and I have an irreconcilable feud!" Sima Hunter's eyes flashed with hatred. "Back then, he wiped out my entire family just to get a treasure! I must avenge this!"

Only then did Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli realize that Sima Hunter actually had such a deep hatred for Xuanyuan Xiongba.

"I can help you kill him." After a moment's silence, Lei Yi said in a deep voice, "But you must tell me where the entrance to the underground maze is."

A hint of admiration flashed in Sima Hunter's eyes. He knew that Lei Yi had agreed to his conditions.

"Alright! As long as you agree to help me, I will keep my promise." Sima Hunter said, pulling out an ancient parchment from his bosom and handing it to Lei Yi. "This contains the entrance to the underground maze, but I must warn you that it is fraught with danger. You must be careful."

Lei Yi took the parchment scroll and carefully put it away. He then bowed deeply to Sima Hunter and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Senior. I am deeply grateful."

"There's no time to lose. Go now." Sima Hunter waved his hand. "I'll be waiting here for your good news."

Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli didn't dare to delay and turned to walk in the direction Sima Hunter pointed. The dark passage of the secret room was like the throat of a giant beast, waiting to devour them...

Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli followed the direction Sima Hunter had pointed, passing through the long, narrow, winding secret passage. The deeper they went, the damper and colder the air grew, a nauseating stench of decay filling their faces. The flickering torches on the walls illuminated the solemn expressions of the two men.

"Be careful, I have a bad feeling." Dongfang Liuli said in a low voice, holding a dagger emitting a cold light in his hand.

Lei Yi nodded; he, too, sensed something was amiss. Since Sima Hunter and Xuanyuan Xiongba held an irreconcilable feud, it was likely that Xuanyuan Xiongba was already aware of his existence. Their journey was unlikely to be peaceful.

The two slowed down their pace and groped forward cautiously. After walking for an unknown amount of time, a faint light appeared ahead, accompanied by a burst of noise.

"who?!"

An angry shout was heard, and then several figures rushed out from the corner, surrounding Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli. These people were dressed in black, holding sharp blades, and their faces were all unfriendly.

"Who are you?" Lei Yi asked calmly, his eyes quickly scanning the surrounding environment.

"Hmph, you dare to trespass into the Xuanyuan family's forbidden area and ask who we are?!" One of them sneered, "Now that you're here, don't even think about leaving alive!"

"It seems we have been betrayed." Dongfang Liuli said in a low voice, with a cold light flashing in her beautiful eyes.

"Xuanyuan Xiongba!" Lei Yi suddenly said loudly, his voice echoing in the empty passage, "I know you're nearby, why hide!"

Just as he finished speaking, a deep voice came from the back of the crowd: "Lei Yi, you are smarter than I thought."

The crowd parted, and a burly, middle-aged man slowly emerged. He was dressed in a golden robe, his face stern, his hawk-like eyes gleaming with a sharp light. It was none other than the patriarch of the Xuanyuan family—Xuanyuan Xiongba!

"You are here indeed." Lei Yi sneered, "Why, are you planning to do it yourself?"

"I don't need to do anything myself to deal with you." Xuanyuan Xiongba said disdainfully, "Kill them!"

At a command, the surrounding men in black immediately pounced on Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli.

"Looking for death!" Dongfang Liuli shouted, her figure flashed like a ghost, the dagger in her hand turned into cold light, and in an instant several men in black fell in a pool of blood.

Lei Yi was not to be outdone. Although he was not good at close combat, with his extraordinary reaction speed and keen insight into danger, he was always able to avoid the enemy's attacks at the critical moment and wait for an opportunity to counterattack.

However, the other side had a large number of people and each of them was a well-trained elite. Lei Yi and Dongfang Liuli gradually felt a little tired.

"What should we do?" Dongfang Liuli asked anxiously while resisting the enemy's attack.

"The entrance is nearby, we must find it as soon as possible!" Lei Yi said gritting his teeth, his eyes constantly scanning the surrounding walls, trying to find some clues.

At this moment, Lei Yi suddenly discovered that there seemed to be a strange pattern carved on a wall not far away...