Chapter 972

【Transmission complete. Hunter has returned to private room.】

【Private room is an absolute safe zone; no one may enter without the Hunter’s permission.】

【Hunter has returned to the Cycle Paradise. Beginning reward settlement for this world.】

【Reminder: No derivative world or war world entered this time; no world calculation applied.】

Su Xiao stood in his private room, the familiar scene coming into view, causing him to unconsciously relax; after a series of high-intensity battles, he had finally returned to the Cycle Paradise.

【Verification in progress. Hunter’s Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Intelligence all reach 80 points. To break through the 80-point barrier, the following conditions must be met.】

1. Reach third tier (completed)

2. Complete one World Conquest War (completed)

3. Break through physical limits (completed)

4. Proof of the Strong (unclaimed)

……

【Reminder: Hunter has completed the Demon Castle game. Game Winner Badge has been reclaimed. Hunter may claim the Proof of the Strong at any time. Claim? Yes/No.】

Su Xiao selected to claim.

【Proof of the Strong is being constructed…】

【Reminder: After using the Proof of the Strong, world reward settlement will change. Ordinary attribute points will no longer be awarded; instead, attribute points will become True Attribute Points.】

【True Attribute Points: Can only enhance body attributes above 80 points. Attributes strengthened by True Attribute Points are immune to suppression under any circumstances. The effect of True Attribute Points is five times that of ordinary attribute points.】

【Reminder: After using the Proof of the Strong, the Hunter’s Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Intelligence will become primary attributes. Charm will become a secondary attribute. Luck and Willpower remain special attributes, unchanged.】

【If ordinary attributes enter dangerous zones like the Black Abyss, physical stats are suppressed by 50%–60%. True attributes ignore this suppression.】

【Reminder: True Attribute Points can be converted into ordinary attribute points via special means, at a 1:12 ratio.】

【Reminder: After using the Proof of the Strong, Strength, Agility, Stamina, and Intelligence become primary attributes. Charm becomes a secondary attribute. Luck and Willpower remain special attributes, unchanged.】

【If the Hunter’s secondary attribute reaches 80 points and they attempt to break through it, they must undergo a second 80-point barrier assessment. The difficulty of the second assessment is twenty times that of the first. Choose primary and secondary attributes with caution.】

……

A faintly glowing medal appeared in Su Xiao’s hand. The medal was entirely black, engraved with mysterious patterns, heavy to the touch, radiating a sense of depth and solemnity.

This was the Proof of the Strong. To obtain it, Su Xiao had nearly died multiple times—and now, he finally had it.

The Cycle Paradise provided a wealth of information. After reading it, Su Xiao’s heart pounded—he learned new concepts: True Attributes, Secondary Attributes.

According to information Su Xiao had previously obtained, there were two ways to break the 80-point barrier: one was to spend 500,000 Paradise Coins and a Large Soul Crystal to purchase “Type-O Energy Body Protein Injection.” After injecting it, each point of body attribute above 80 required nine attribute points to raise, with extremely slow growth—and it was not a True Attribute.

The second method was to obtain the Proof of the Strong—the very method Su Xiao was now using.

Su Xiao had previously guessed that after obtaining the Proof of the Strong, the attribute points needed to enhance attributes above 80 would decrease—perhaps 3:1, meaning three attribute points would raise one point of body Suzhi . But now it was clear: it was the opposite—1:5. One True Attribute Point enhanced body stats by five times the effect of an ordinary attribute point.

This comparison isn’t obvious enough. If Su Xiao were compared to a Contractee using the “Type-O Injector,” Su Xiao’s enhancement from one True Attribute Point equaled the effect of forty-five ordinary attribute points.

Yes, it was that extreme. One True Attribute Point’s enhancement equaled five ordinary attribute points. But after using the “Type-O Injector,” each point above 80 required nine ordinary points to raise. 5 × 9 = 45. The effect of forty-five ordinary attribute points equaled one True Attribute Point. No—that’s inaccurate. Even if a “Type-O Injector” user spent forty-five ordinary points, their result still fell short of one True Attribute Point. The numerical increase was identical, but the tier was vastly different: in evaluation, True Attributes crushed ordinary attributes.

Contractees who could obtain the Proof of the Strong were two entirely different kinds of people. The former could adapt to nearly all environments—vacuum danger zones, high-intensity battlefields. The latter, if entering certain vacuum regions, would suffer 50%–60% suppression of their physical stats—a near-half reduction in capability.

Su Xiao had been right: whether one could obtain the Proof of the Strong was the greatest distinction between the strong and the weak. The strong grew stronger; the weak grew weaker. That was the Cycle Paradise—no fairness, no mercy.

The Cycle Paradise gave everyone a similar starting point. The faster one moved forward, the more resources they gained—like True Attribute Points now.

Every point of True Attribute Point Su Xiao gains now equals the effect of five ordinary attribute points. The difference is obvious.

After reaching 80 points, each point is hard to gain—but the effect of becoming stronger is far more pronounced. Now, if Su Xiao gains ten True Attribute Points in a derivative world, it equals the previous reward of fifty ordinary attribute points.

Su Xiao exhaled slowly. The 80-point barrier will “eliminate” a large number of the weak. Imagine: True Attributes at the same numerical value will crush ordinary attributes. This crushing effect isn’t obvious yet at around 80 points—even if Su Xiao’s current 80 points convert to True Attributes, it doesn’t mean his 80-point stats suddenly become five times stronger. The fivefold effect applies only to enhancements made after this point. His 81-point Strength now equals a weakling’s 85-point Strength. The fivefold multiplier doesn’t apply to the 80-point baseline—it applies to everything beyond.

Su Xiao fully understood the details. From now on, when he receives world settlement rewards, he will no longer gain ordinary attribute points—he will gain True Attribute Points directly.

Su Xiao once believed body attributes would eventually reach hundreds of points. But now, that seems unlikely. With his current growth rate, gaining 5–8 True Attribute Points per derivative world is already a substantial reward—equivalent to 25–40 ordinary attribute points.

This doesn’t mean his growth is slowing—it’s accelerating. Reaching hundreds of attribute points? That’s years away. With Su Xiao developing all four primary attributes simultaneously, reaching 100 points in any one will require countless derivative or war worlds.