As Rhys walked into the True Elites Guild Headquarters with the towering Varyn and the pretty boy Kael beside him, he quickly became the center of attention. The first time he had walked through these halls, he had barely possessed any warrior’s aura, and most people had looked at him like an ordinary newcomer. This time was completely different. After everything he had experienced in the Tower, Rhys now carried himself with a natural strength that veteran Ascenders could immediately sense. Many of them turned their heads as he passed, curious about how much he had changed. “Buhahahahara!” Varyn suddenly laughed as he spotted a particularly large Ascender from the True Elites Guild. He immediately flexed his muscles at the man, apparently challenging him without saying a word. The other Ascender grinned and accepted the challenge. Within seconds, the two were engaged in an impromptu muscle contest, each one showing off his impressive physique while the people around them stared in a

After spending several hours going over the war plans, Rhys finally decided that he needed a break. The veins in his forehead were beginning to throb, and the headache creeping through his skull was becoming impossible to ignore.“My head hurts..” he murmured softly.He looked around the room and realized that everyone else was just as exhausted, if not worse.Ren had nearly every button of his shirt undone and was sitting in his chair like a tired gangster while chewing on the cap of a pen.Daren had never bothered putting his shirt back on. Instead, he was doing a headstand in the corner while reading a document upside down.Varyn was completely asleep on the floor, using a pile of papers as a blanket.Kael wasn’t doing much better. His hair was messy, his clothes were untidy, and his eyes were already half-closed as he fought to stay awake.CreekThe door opened gently, and Emma stepped into the room carrying a fresh tray of coffee for everyone. She took one look at the state of th

After placing the delivery order for his swords, Rhys moved on to the next item he needed. He had less than 200,000 TG left to spend, so he needed to find armor that was affordable without being completely useless.He opened the Merchants Web again and searched through the available armor sets. There were plenty of options, but most of the good ones were far beyond his remaining budget. Even Epic-grade armor commonly cost more than 500,000 TG, which was completely out of reach for him now.Rhys adjusted the price filter to show equipment between 150,000 and 200,000 TG. The search results immediately became much smaller, leaving him with only four armor sets that were worth considering.Even though these sets weren’t nearly as valuable as the weapons he had just purchased, Rhys still examined each one carefully. He wrote down their strengths and weaknesses and compared their abilities before making his final decision.⸻[ Abyssal Guard Set ]Grade: Dark GoldPrice: 200,000 TG[ Helmet

After having lunch with Varyn, Rhys returned to his apartment in the Upside, took a quick shower, and changed into something presentable before heading back to the True Elites Guild. He wanted to look his best for the upcoming meeting with the Guildmasters.Rhys had expected the same thing that happened during the previous monster raid meeting. He assumed most of the Guildmasters would ignore his opinions or treat him like an inexperienced young Ascender who had no business discussing war strategy with people who had spent decades fighting.This time, however, things were different.His performance during the monster raid had changed the way many of them saw him. Rhys was no longer simply the young Champion who had somehow risen to fame. He had proven himself on the battlefield, and that experience carried weight.When Rhys spoke during the meeting, the other Guildmasters actually listened. Nobody interrupted him or dismissed his suggestions. They treated his words seriously, and for

The True Elites were not the only faction that had noticed how much weaker Olympus’s grip on Floor 21 had become.Ever since Liam’s attack, several powerful factions had been waiting for the forty-five-day raid-free period to end. They had no intention of letting such an opportunity pass, especially after seeing how badly the Olympians had been weakened. As a result, more than a dozen different factions had gathered on Floor 21, all waiting for the restriction to expire so they could formally challenge Olympus for control of the floor.An hour before the raid-free period ended, the area was already packed with armies.“Holy hell…. I thought our army was massive. However, look at the size of the army beside us….” Kael commented, pointing toward one particularly enormous faction that appeared to have brought more than thirty million soldiers for the upcoming raid.The sight alone was enough to make Kael understand how serious the competition had become.Floor 21 was filled with tension.