Sword Art Online - Vol 2 Chapter 2.4: Warmth of the Heart (Aincrad 48th Floor, June 2024) Part 4

She woke up from her sleep to the divorce papers that the original owner’s husband tossed at her.

Shu Yan picked up the document and took a look. She gets the house and the savings, but not the car.

Oh! And her son and daughter.

She had been a single woman in her 30’s in her previous life, and now she’s a mother?

How exciting is that?

She searched her memories. Two million dollars in savings. How much is two million dollars in the 90s?

What’s a husband? The other woman can have him. I’m taking the money and my instant son and daughter to go and enjoy ourselves!

In the late years of the Daqian era, tyrants roamed freely, war erupted endlessly, and the people could not sustain their lives.After transmigration, Chen Jie finds himself as a drunken gambler with a pair of unfortunate sisters at home.The elder one, Su Yunjin, is his wife, and he also has a five-year-old sister-in-law, Su Yunrui.Their family is so poor they can barely make ends meet.Then suddenly, his beautiful wife comes smiling, bringing him a bowl of hot porridge.“Husband, I was wrong yesterday. Please have some porridge while it's hot.”Seeing the bruises on his wife's face, Chen Jie feels something is amiss.Ding~[Daily Information has been updated][1. Yesterday, you gambled away the last three acres of good land, beat Su Yunjin while drunk, and planned to sell the five-year-old Su Yunrui, to recover your losses.][2. The Su sisters rely on each other. Su Yunrui is Su Yunjin's only hope.][3. Su Yunjin, having lost hope, traded her mother's hairpin three days ago for a pack of arsenic.]...Arsenic!Staring at the hot porridge brought to his lips, Chen Jie looks up at his wife, seeing the faint bruise on her face and her eyes shifting away, avoiding his gaze.“Honey!”“Yes?”“You're not going to kill me, are you?!”

He is Xi Liang’s legendary emperor: a decisive and ruthless king; a man of supreme wisdom; a cunning strategist.

According to legend, he once conferred the love meant for the three thousand concubines in his harem onto one woman, while the world watched in envy.

According to legend, he once executed a hundred people for her, turning the palace into a purgatory overnight.

According to legend, he ultimately sentenced that same woman to death by execution…

A conspiracy that swept through the country resulted in her tragic end. This lifetime seems to be a repeat of her past life. Can she escape the clutches of fate to attain true love in this life? In both lives, she was the Emperor’s wife, but is that ruthless man really her true love mandated by Heaven?

Did she really die, just like that?

In the end, beyond the veil of lies and mysteries, who exactly was she? Was she a woman that he truly loved, or was she merely a chess piece to be used in his political machinations?

The stories passed onto later generations remain fraught with conflicting opinions.

- Description from Novelupdates

Leon Vale’s world stopped when the chamber labeled him F-Rank, no spark, just Empty Core.One dozen sparks in a sea of a thousand chances. A near-miracle of failure, somehow flopped harder than flatlining.In Neo-Veridia, strength rules the game, no exceptions. Those who are tough get hailed as champions; others? They're stuck cleaning up messes. Might makes right here, plain and simple.Leon ended up on the ground. That’s where he landed, no surprise there.Later, the red moon climbed into view. Right after, creatures smashed past the shield. His siblings stood near death yet deep in his Empty Core, an old force stirred awake.[ SHADOW EXTRACTION SYSTEM ACTIVATED ]Leon takes energy from whatever he defeats. Each time a creature falls, he gains more strength. As shadows vanish into him, he drifts toward a mystery - something waits in a space beyond places: a seat atop no land, while a voiceless headpiece calls out to him through empty dark.Yet taking what’s not yours brings trouble.On top of everything else, the Evernight Alliance caught wind. Not just vampires - werewolves too. Old creatures that oughta be myths are poking at the city’s walls, messing up dungeon cores, chasing whatever’s pumping out that dark energy signal.Hunting for him.Leon’s stuck in a risky move, quietly getting stronger so he can shield his folks, hitting school while sneaking around to pull out shadows, acting powerless even though some old, grim force now names him successor.That F-Rank tag? Total fake. His Empty Core isn't broken, it fights. Each darkness he swallows drags him nearer to a reality he can’t face yetNot every seat of power fits a hero.Some crowns come from shadows, built on bones.Some kids just inherit stuff whether they like it or not.The Crimson Moon marked the start. What’s coming next? Things are about to heat up.