The Chef Rules the Last Days - Chapter 538 - 536: Summer Camp

I came home from college expecting to deal with my emotionally unavailable father, an empty fridge, and a summer full of boredom.What I didn’t expect was to walk into the kitchen and find a barefoot, stunning woman in my dad’s shirt stirring eggs like she owned the place.Spoiler: She does.Her name is Elena, and apparently, she’s my brand-new stepmother—seven years older than me, way too cheerful, and totally off-limits.But try telling that to my brain when she’s bending over to grab orange juice or accidentally falling on top of me in the laundry room. Try telling that to my heart when she’s laughing at my jokes, defending me at dinner, or wearing my hoodie because “it smells like comfort.”My dad doesn’t see her. Not really.But I do.And that’s the problem.Now I’m stuck in a house full of tension, sarcasm, and slow-burn chaos.She’s married to my father.I’m supposed to be focusing on my future.But somehow, I’m falling for the one woman I absolutely, definitely, 100% should not be falling for.Oops.

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

In chaotic times, one seeks survival; in prosperous times, one seeks fame.Despite being weathered by the vicissitudes of life, the Great Yu Dynasty still found itself in an era of prosperity.In the northwest, a youth trekked nine thousand miles on foot, slaying the Great Demon alone to compete for a lifetime of glory.In Long Lake, an unmatched Grandmaster hurried to the mortal realm to establish a sect, leaving his name to be revered for a hundred generations.In the imperial capital, a saintly figure spread his teachings far and wide, with followers throughout Qingzhou, his legacy lasting forever.Yet within Qingzhou City, in the compound of a family with a long military heritage,there was a child who never engaged in serious pursuits, instead spending his days playing chess, painting, fishing, and playing the zither.Years later—……When the sword rose, dragon smoke stretched for three thousand miles, and a single strike wiped out the cities of nine provinces!Among all the laws of the world, only I, have entered the path.

In a world where Classes, Stats, and Levels are the everyday norm, Reivyn has a secret.He was unusually aware of his surroundings from an incredibly early age, and Skills and Stats were acquired easily. He was just the son of an ordinary village family, and nothing appeared out of the ordinary on the surface. But below the surface, dreams of another life help shape his mentality and growth. Why does he have some remembrance of a past life, and what is his purpose in this new one?“Soul of the Warrior” is what I call a Semi-Isekai LitRPG. I say “semi,” because Reivyn's past life is remembered like a dream, and very incomplete. It is still Isekai, though, as he remembers enough that it directly shapes his personality and his sense of self.The System that governs the world of “Soul of the Warrior” is a combination of modified versions from Selkie's “Beneath the Dragoneye Moons” and Kosnik4's “Magic Smithing.” I have changed enough of these Systems and combined them in a way that is unique that I'm mostly sure it's fine, but I still have requested permission to use these ideas. They have both graciously granted me permission.Winner of the April Writathon Challenge.