I was a lord farming, how did I become an emperor?

Chapter 302 Missing
……

……

Salido's denial immediately stirred a surge of anger in Luxem's heart.

Li Minghui attaches great importance to his research findings.

Salido didn't even glance at it, but casually dismissed its words as worthless.

This is extreme contempt for Dawn.

Luxen straightened up, about to speak, but Leon interrupted him first.
“Bishop Salido, I have commanded and participated in dozens of battles, and experience tells me that it is best not to underestimate the enemy.”

Leon's expression was serious, and his tone carried a hint of authority.
"I think you should take this seriously, after all, it affects His Majesty's impression of you."

Leon's words made Salido frown slightly, a hint of displeasure appearing on his already wrinkled face.

If this were in the land of the gods, such a questioning of divine power would surely be subject to judgment.

Unfortunately, this is the Shattered Rock Empire.

So Salido remained silent for a moment, then a faint smile appeared on his face.
"Since Lord Leon says so, I will take it seriously."

Salido looked at Lucien and said, "Then please give me the Dawn Society's research data."

Salido still had a smile on his face.

But all Luxem saw was arrogance and contempt.

Lucien did not show his anger; instead, a smile appeared on his lips as he turned to look at Leon.

"Perhaps Bishop Salido is right; the Holy Council really does have a powerful weapon against the dead."

Luxem slowly stood up.
“We can let Bishop Salido try it first.”

“Lusen, you…”

Leon was about to say something when Lucien interrupted him.

"I have other things to take care of, so I'll be leaving now."

After speaking, Lu Sen nodded and left the tent without waiting for Leon to reply.

Salido watched Lucien's retreating figure, chuckled, and shook his head. "That's just how the Dawn Society is—rude, arrogant, and utterly ignorant of etiquette."

“Talking about others behind their backs is not a noble thing to do, Bishop Salido.”

Leon glanced at Salido, his tone slightly cold.
"Since Bishop Salido thinks the undead are easy to deal with, then please investigate the person who stole the knight's corpse as soon as possible."

……

……

Luxen slowly walked back to his tent, the smile on his face gone, replaced by a hint of solemnity.

Despite trying to convince himself, Luxem still hated sitting with the church.

The best option would have been to cooperate with Salido, but seeing that hypocritical face made Lucien unable to resist his disgust.

"If they can really easily and completely resolve the issue of the undead, then we need to make plans sooner rather than later."

As Lu Sen thought to himself, he reached out and lifted the tent flap.

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside.

"Lord Lucen! Lord Lucen!"

A young soldier came running up, panting!

"What's wrong, Corey?"

Luxen immediately lowered the curtain, turned around, and stared intently at Corey.

Corey tried to regulate his breathing and speak more clearly.
"My lord, urgent news has arrived from Blood Raven Keep!"

Miss Zhuoya has gone missing!

"what happened?"

Luxem frowned and stared.

"What happened? Tell me slowly!"

Corey took a deep breath and gave a detailed report.

"Our personnel stationed at Bloodraven Castle have discovered that Miss Zoya has not shown up for a whole day!"

"Our people knocked on her door but received no response. In desperation, they broke down the door and found that she wasn't even in the room!"

"Could she have gone to see her father, Baron Harlan?"

Luxen frowned and pressed for an answer.

"Baron Harlan escorted the grain away the day before yesterday!"

The soldier's words made Luxen's heart clench instantly, and he nervously clenched his fists.

"Send out all our men to search, search every inch of land around Bloodraven Keep!"

"Yes, my lord!"

The soldier nodded solemnly and quickly left to carry out Luxem's orders.

Luxen stood alone in front of the tent, lost in deep thought.

Zoya's disappearance occurred precisely during his meeting with the Holy Council.

"Could it be that Zoya was captured by Salido's men?"

After much thought, Luxembourg felt that this was the most likely outcome.

Without much hesitation, Luxem quickly ran towards Leon's tent.

Seeing Lusen rush over, the guards immediately stepped forward to inquire.

"Your Excellency Luxembourg, the Commander-in-Chief is resting. Please wait."

"I have an emergency and need to see the Commander-in-Chief immediately."

Luxen's expression was serious. "Please inform them."

"I apologize, Your Excellency Luxembourg..."

"Please come in, Your Excellency Luxembourg."

Leon's voice came from inside the tent.

Upon receiving the order, the soldiers made way without hesitation.

"Thank you."

Luxen lifted the tent flap and strode inside.

Leon sat up in bed and saw Lucien's anxious expression.

"What happened?"

Leon's tone was filled with concern and vigilance.

Without any formalities, Luxem went straight to the point.

"Zhuoya has disappeared!"

"Zhuoya?"

Leon frowned, quickly recalling that Zoya was the witch who helped research and deal with the undead.

Leon suddenly stood up and asked, "Do you think this has anything to do with Salido?"

As the commander, Leon's wisdom naturally surpasses that of most people.

Without needing to be reminded, Leon realized the key point.

Luxem did not hide anything and nodded silently.

"I'll send someone to investigate immediately!"

Leon quickly stepped out of the tent, whispered a few instructions to the guard, and the guard ran out immediately.

“You just wait here, Lucien.”

Leon turned around and walked to Lucien's side. "Don't worry, as long as it involves the Holy Council, I will make sure nothing happens to Miss Zoya!"

Hearing Leon's promise, Lu Sensen breathed a slight sigh of relief.

"Thank you, Commander."

Luxem's voice was filled with gratitude.

Leon nodded and reassured him, "Don't worry, everything will be alright."

Time passed by minute by minute.

The two people inside the tent waited quietly for the investigation results.

Not long after, a tall, middle-aged officer with a robust physique, wearing silver plate armor, entered the tent.
"Commander, I have investigated carefully as you instructed."

The officer reported, "All the personnel from the Holy Council are in the camp, and there is no sign that anyone has left."

Upon hearing this result, Luxem was visibly taken aback, stood up, and asked,

"Has everything been checked? Didn't the people from the Holy Council leave last night either?"

The officer glanced at Leon and continued.

“We investigated the sentry records around the camp.”

“From the evening before yesterday until now, no member of the Holy Council has indeed left the camp.”

Leon was puzzled by Lucien's astonished expression.

If the Holy Council was indeed not involved, then where did Zoya go?
"You may leave now," Leon instructed the officer.

"Yes, my lord."

The officer bowed slightly in salute, then turned and left the tent.

"I can assure you that my men will absolutely not show favoritism."

Leon cautiously assured him.

"I know, Lord Leon, but I don't know where Zoya went?"

Luxen’s voice was filled with a deep sense of powerlessness: “She couldn’t have just vanished into thin air.”

"I will continue to send people to investigate."

Leon frowned. "You'd better go to Bloodraven Keep and take a look. I can send someone with you."

"Yes, thank you for your trouble, sir."

Luxem bowed respectfully. "I'd like to depart now."

"it is good."

Leon immediately summoned the guards and gave them a few instructions.

Lucian then followed the guards to find the officer from earlier, and left the camp for Blood Raven Castle.

However, disappointingly, no clues were found in Bloodraven Keep.

Luxen carefully inspected every corner of the bedroom and the living room.

The furniture was neatly arranged, the windows were in good condition, and there were no signs of violence or struggle throughout the house.

The lack of any clues deepened Luxembourg's suspicions.

There are only two possibilities for this situation.

Either she was secretly taken away by highly professional personnel.

Either she left voluntarily.

Lucien felt his mind was in complete disarray. After ordering his men to continue searching Bloodraven Castle and the surrounding area, Lucien returned to camp with a heavy heart.

Throughout the journey, his mind was constantly analyzing various possibilities.

Ultimately, the most suspicious target in his mind was the Holy Council.

The Holy Council had previously arrested members of the Dawn Society, and things only gradually calmed down after the Dawn Society hid in the western provinces.

They are now likely targeting the Dawn Society again.

night.

Upon returning to the camp, Luxem did not go straight back to his tent.

Instead, they stopped at the edge of the camp.

Luxen silently observed the area where the members of the Holy Council were stationed in the distance.

The place was brightly lit, and the knights on night watch sat by the fire, vigilantly observing their surroundings.

After thinking for a moment, Lu Sen walked into the shadows of the tent, took out a shadow potion from his pocket, and swallowed it.

……

……

Inside Salido's tent in the Holy Council.

Two clergy members of the Church of Dawn gathered around Salido.

The Shattered Rock Empire has always maintained a neutral stance towards church personnel, and will not interfere as long as they behave themselves and do not spread negative information that could affect the royal family.

—The so-called "ignorance" refers to the lord's attitude towards the church.

There has never been a presence of the church within the royal domain.

Only in the fiefdoms of a few lords will churches exist for reasons of self-interest.

Therefore, the Church of Dawn has some foothold in the Shattered Rock Empire.

This assistance was also led by the Church of Dawn.

"According to the information provided by Commander Leon, those undead should be hiding in this mountain range."

Salido drew a circle on the map with his finger and said, "Tomorrow, Morian, you will lead two deacons and three Templar Knights, carrying the Holy Emblem's Glimmer, to search and see if you can find any traces left by those evils."

The Holy Emblem Glimmer is a magical artifact possessed by every priest in the Church of Dawn, capable of detecting traces of evil left within a 30-meter radius.

"Yes, Lord Bishop."

The young man in the white robe bowed respectfully.

At this moment, another young priestess, also dressed in white robes, respectfully asked, "Your Excellency, what will I be responsible for?"

"You stay here and pray with me to make holy water."

Salido looked at the young priestess with a gentle expression and said with a smile, "If those undead attack again, ordinary soldiers will need more holy water to kill the skeleton monsters."

"Very well, Your Excellency."

The young priestess nodded in response with a hint of helplessness.

"You should go and rest now, Morian,"

Salido looked at the priest and thoughtfully advised, "Tomorrow's mission will be very physically demanding."

"Thank you for your concern."

The male priest bowed respectfully and said, "May the glory of our Lord protect you in your peaceful sleep tonight."

"The glory of our Lord also protects you."

After Salido responded, the priest quickly left the tent.

Salido turned around and looked at the priestess with a gentle expression.
“Nabila, your Holy Light spellcasting is still a bit stiff… I’ll personally guide you through it tonight.”

He pointed to the thick animal hide cushion next to him.
"Go, sit down."

"Okay, Lord Bishop."

Nabila moved over hesitantly, smoothed her robe, and slowly sat down, a hint of panic in her eyes.

Salido walked up behind her, leaned down slightly, and whispered in her ear:
"Remember, the key to building a spell model is to maintain a steady pace, don't rush, and definitely don't panic..."

Salido reached out and took the priestess's hand, gently pressing her palm against it.

"Come, follow my guidance, feel my power... Don't resist."

Nabila's ears turned bright red instantly, and she stiffly hummed in agreement.

"very good."

Salido smiled with satisfaction.
"Remember, spell models should start with small-scale loops and then gradually expand."

"You're too impatient. You always want to achieve things in one step, which makes it easy for your energy to explode."

"Explode...explode?" Nabila's voice was somewhat puzzled.

"Yes, they're exploding everywhere."

Salido said with a serious expression, "So, you have to control the direction and magnitude of your force. Don't just focus on speed; learn to build up slowly... until it's fully formed."

Salido's fingers traced the flow of magic along the priestess's hand.
"Come on, try again, gather all the energy in your body."

Nabila was so nervous that her whole body stiffened, her breathing became rapid, and she was completely unable to control her body's energy.

"Phew... Relax, follow me."

Salido whispered in her ear, "You'll find that when the spell model is truly stable, the exhilaration of releasing it... is unprecedented."

"Your Excellency, I... I'll go back and practice on my own first!"

With that, Nabila nimbly got up and ran quickly out of the tent!
"you!"

Salido quickly stood up and chased after her, but by the time he reached the tent, Nabila had already disappeared.

The Templar Knights on night watch were just a dozen meters away by the campfire, and Salido dared not pursue them any further.

"What an interesting little guy."

Salido smiled, put his hand to his nose, and took a deep sniff.

Just as he was reveling in the fragrance left by the goddess's light on his hand, a cold dagger silently pressed against his neck.

“Bishop Salido, you’d better not move.”

Lucien's voice was icy.

"I won't move, Your Excellency Luxembourg, please be careful!"

Feeling the coldness of the blade, Salido's voice trembled, "You can have whatever you want, just don't be impulsive!"

"I don't want anything, just tell me where you've taken Zhuoya?"

Luxembourg coldly demanded, "Why did you arrest her?"

"Zhuoya?"

Salido's voice was filled with doubt, "Who is she? Your wife? Or your woman?"

"Don't play dumb, Bishop Salido!"

Lucian's dagger pressed against Salido's tender flesh once more. "She's one of our Dawn Society members. She was captured by your people at Blood Raven Keep!"

Salido was visibly taken aback, then breathed a sigh of relief and a smile appeared on his face.

He carefully took Luxem's hand.

“I really want to help you, Your Excellency Lucien, but this matter has nothing to do with our Church of Dawn.”

Before Lucien could speak, Salido said without hesitation:
“I swear to the great Lord of the Dawn that if I am lying, evil will tear my soul apart.”

As Salido finished speaking, it was Luxem's turn to be stunned.

Church charlatans often tell lies, but if they are willing to swear an oath to their god, it is usually true.

Unless this bishop of the Church of Dawn is a false believer.

"Okay, please trust me."

Salido slowly pushed Lusen's hand away.

Lu Sen also took the opportunity to retract his dagger and took two steps back.

Actually, there was nothing Lusen could do if he didn't let go, because he couldn't really kill Bishop Salido.

At this moment, Luxembourg calmed down and even realized that he had made a mistake.

"I'm sorry, Bishop Salido, I acted impulsively," Lucien apologized.

"Assassinating a bishop is a serious crime, punishable by burning at the stake."

Salido said slowly.

The bishop is the highest-ranking official in the Church, above only the archbishop and the pope.

A bishop carries out a mission alone, representing God's authority. Assassinating a bishop is not only murder, but is also considered blasphemy.

“However, my lord is merciful, Lord Luxem, I forgive your rudeness.”

Salido straightened his robes and smiled. "I understand. After all, there are some unfriendly figures in the Holy Council."

"But our Church of Dawn is filled with love and mercy under the light of the Holy Light."

"If you'd like, you can learn more about it."

Salido, no longer arrogant, looked at Lucien and gently advised, "Perhaps you will, like me, come into the embrace of my lord."

Luxem was somewhat surprised, not expecting Salido to forgive his impulsiveness so easily.

"Thank you for your kindness, Bishop Salido."

Luxem bowed to Salido again, saying, "Excuse me."

After saying that, Lu Sen turned around, feeling dizzy.

If it wasn't Salido and his group who captured them, then who was it?

Just as Luxen was pondering, a fire suddenly lit up on the distant hillside.

"Emergency gathering!"

The officer's order instantly rang out across the camp, followed closely by the sound of bugles!

Luxen immediately turned to look at Salido, who also looked bewildered!
Without much thought, Luxem ran toward Commander Leon's tent, and Salido followed immediately.

When the two arrived at Leon's tent, they found it already brightly lit.

Lifting the curtain, he found the guards helping Leon put on his armor.

When Leon saw Lucien and Salido enter together, a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes, but he quickly regained his composure.

"The messenger has returned with news that a large number of skeleton monsters have been discovered in the western valley!"

Leon's expression was serious. "Put everything else aside for now. Please inform your respective people to come with me and clear out those skeleton monsters!"

"Please rest assured, Commander, this time the Church of Dawn will definitely wipe out evil!"

Salido straightened his chest and assured them, then left to gather the others.

Luxen nodded in response to Leon, and was about to leave when Leon called him back.
"Is it them?" Leon asked.

Luxem shook his head slightly.

“Take care of those skeleton monsters first, then I’ll send someone to help you find Miss Zoya,” Leon promised.

"I understand, Commander."

After speaking, Lu Sen quickly left to find members of the Dawn Society.

(End of this chapter)