CHAPTER 285: UNABLE TO ENTER THE TOWER

Gabriel had more than enough extraction points to play with after completing the quest given to him by the world system back in the Monkey Paradise Dungeon.

Therefore, he didn’t shy away from using a meager 14 EP points.

"Proceed," he nodded, and a purple screen flickered before him.

[Please choose what to extract]

[Vampire Blood Crystal]

[+3 Agility]

[Mini Vampire Memory Fragment]

Gabriel looked at the options presented with a pondering expression. Apart from the agility stat, which was self-explanatory, he couldn’t really tell if the other two would be very useful.

He quickly pulled out the +3 Agility and then considered the Vampire Blood Crystal and Mini Memory Fragment.

’Crystal... maybe it could be used to craft something—maybe a blood-type treasure. The Memory Fragments... should be the same thing I got last time after I extracted Ken.’ After pondering for a moment, he decided to go with the Mini Vampire Memory Fragment.

It wouldn’t be too bad if he learned more about the other races of this world. Even in his past life, his knowledge about them was greatly limited.

The knight’s body disintegrated into ashes, and following a burst of purple light, a bloody orb appeared in his hand. He quickly stored it inside his inventory alongside several other treasures and junk, then proceeded to the next corpse.

Before leaving that floor, he was able to extract a total of +20 Agility points. Because of the vampires’ fast trait, all the corpses presented the agility option.

Gabriel chose them whenever the other options weren’t impressive, or when he didn’t want to take a gamble.

Apart from the 20 Agility points, he also obtained a Vampire Elixir.

---

[Vampire Elixir]

[Description:] — A crimson potion that neutralizes vampiric infection and restores corrupted blood.

---

’Now I won’t be worried about any of my subordinates turning into vampires,’ Gabriel smirked.

Although fiction authors depicted them as fascinating and cool, Gabriel—who knew how dark this world was—didn’t want anyone close to him to experience that fate.

Apart from their weaknesses to sunlight and holy items, humans collectively hated vampires even more than necromancers.

In total, Gabriel was able to grab about 30 of the elixirs. Just like the agility stat, most of the corpses also presented this option. Knowing there were still dozens of floors ahead, he figured one of his subordinates might need it along the way.

After taking one last look at the floor—now filled with ashes and a few unworthy corpses he had ignored to save EP points for better targets—he quickly climbed the stairs to meet up with the others.

They were waiting right in front of the massive double stone door, which had blood-violet glyphs and patterns etched across it.

"Let’s proceed," Gabriel said as he stepped past them.

However, before he could push the door leading to the next floor, a loud announcement echoed.

---

[GLOBAL ANNOUNCEMENT!]

[Olympus Guild has cleared Floor 10!]

[New Record: Fastest Clear in Valerian Sector!]

---

The notification echoed across the entire Tower and every live broadcast simultaneously.

"Of course," Bunny muttered with an annoyed look. "They’re pushing already."

"They’re going to burn out their stamina at this pace... there are hundreds of floors after all," Gabriel muttered quietly, yet somehow everyone heard him as he pushed the door open.

---

Outside the Blood Tower...

A crowd of players and reporters had gathered. Another batch of the White Flame Guild had just arrived right in front of the Tower.

Inside, the vice leader of White Flame was already present, and now the guild leader himself—Bryce Park—had appeared on the scene.

Cameras flashed continuously; it was rare for a guild leader to make a personal appearance.

Bryce Park was a tall man in white armor with a golden cloak. He appeared calm, his eyes confident.

"How are they faring inside? Any idea?" Bryce Park, who was at the peak of Hero Rank, asked in a soft voice, his gaze fixed on the tower.

"We have no idea," replied a gaunt-looking man, "but I’d say they’re doing quite well."

Unlike the Inter-Guild Display Event, it was difficult for anyone to know what was truly happening inside.

Bryce didn’t say a word and slowly stepped forward toward the swirling crimson portal that led straight into the Tower. The cameras focused on him, wanting to capture the moment.

In the real world, Doodle Brambleton’s voice echoed through the live feed.

"Here we go, people! White Flame’s guild leader—the radiant Bryce Park himself—is entering the Tower! Known for his powerful flames and light attribute mastery! One of the top ten guild leaders in Valeria!"

The crowd went wild.

"White Flame supremacy!"

"Let’s go, Bryce!"

But as Bryce touched the portal... something strange happened.

Instead of letting him through, the portal rejected him.

He couldn’t step inside—it was like hitting an invisible wall.

Bryce froze, his brows furrowing in confusion. "What...?"

The crowd went silent.

Even his senior guild member who had replied earlier blinked in disbelief. "S-Sir?"

He tried again.

The same thing happened.

Bryce frowned, his calm composure breaking slightly as he stepped back.

"Someone else should try entering the Tower," he said.

The senior guild member nodded and stepped forward.

Bryce expected the same result, but to his shock, the man passed through effortlessly and emerged inside.

Bryce’s eyes widened. He tried again, and the same thing repeated.

"What the heck...?"

It wasn’t a glitch as he had first thought—rather, the Tower was simply rejecting him.

The nearby reporters immediately began broadcasting.

"This is SBN Live! We’re witnessing something strange—the White Flame Guild leader cannot enter the Blood Tower!"

Speculation spread instantly.

"Wait, what?!"

"Did he get banned by the Tower?!"

The feed cut back to Doodle Brambleton, who looked completely stunned.

"WHAT is happening right now?! The Tower just straight up said ’no’ to one of Valeria’s strongest guild leaders! This is unprecedented!"

His co-host muttered, "It’s quite hard to tell the reason why he was restricted... but I think I have an idea why this is the case."