"It's nothing," Su Xiao shook his head. He was just being vigilant; he hadn't been influenced to the point of developing killing intent.
He knew that Charm-type Contractors, after investing so many attribute points into Charm, would definitely have other enhancements to compensate for their lack of combat ability. Otherwise, no Contractor would bother to raise Charm.
But Su Xiao hadn't expected the effect to be so powerful, capable of influencing even same-sex individuals with normal sexual orientations, let alone female storyline characters in derivative worlds.
However, Su Xiao didn't entertain the idea of increasing his Charm. After all, his current method of adding points was to grind others, while Contractors who put all their points into Charm could only be ground by others.
From Mu Yang's perspective, each approach had its advantages. For example, after completing certain tasks, he had a high probability of receiving multiple additional title rewards.
In contrast, a certain negative-Charm Slayer of the Shadow could only receive rewards for completing tasks and eliminating enemies.
After getting acquainted with Su Xiao, Mu Yang put away his Fate Coin and walked towards the Attribute Enhancement Hall, arriving five minutes later.
Stepping into the attribute enhancement pod, a prompt from Reincarnation Paradise appeared.
"Welcome to the Attribute Enhancement Pod. Please pay 100 paradise coins for activation."
After paying the paradise coins, Mu Yang's various attributes appeared before him.
Strength: 12
Agility: 12
Stamina: 14
Intelligence: 12
Charm: 11
"Contractor, you have 14 attribute points to freely distribute."
"Beep. Detecting that the Contractor's affinity attributes are Strength, Agility, Stamina, Intelligence, and Charm. Please prioritize enhancing these five attributes."
Without rushing to allocate points, Mu Yang took out the bottle of Elven Secret Stash (Physique) and drank it in one gulp.
The taste was quite pleasant, somewhat like mint tea—cool and refreshing with a hint of sweetness. A warm sensation spread through his body.
"Stamina +1"
"Body defense slightly increased"
After the potion's effects fully manifested, Mu Yang began to ponder how to allocate his points. Finally, he decided on Strength +4, Agility +4, Stamina +5, and Charm +1.
20 attribute points marked a small hurdle, so Mu Yang first raised his highest attribute, Stamina, to 20 points to gain a trait.
As for why he didn't raise Strength or Agility to 20 points simultaneously, Mu Yang believed that raising too many at once could easily cause problems for the body.
Moreover, Strength, Agility, and Stamina are deeply interconnected. If the gap between them becomes too large, the increase in combat power won't be as significant as imagined.
Therefore, he always advocated for balanced point allocation, because with the support of a strong physique, balanced allocation unleashed far greater actual combat power than extreme allocation.
Extreme allocation meant only enhancing one attribute, such as putting all attribute points into Strength to pursue a one-hit kill, but the cost was that the body might not withstand many attacks.
Normal lone wolves never took this path because, fighting alone, they sought balance.
As for the remaining Intelligence and Charm, the former's importance was less significant to Mu Yang currently than Charm.
This was because increasing Charm meant strengthening his talent, while enhancing Intelligence provided relatively smaller benefits to Mu Yang, given that he currently used Solar Power more often than mana.
"Attribute allocation complete. Enhancement begins. As enhancement will be accompanied by immense pain, would you like to use the anesthetic function? This function is free."
"Do not activate."
The enhancement pod gradually began to operate, and a bone-deep agony swept through him.
Mu Yang's expression contorted slightly, but after the trials of the Blazing Sun and Blood Sun, his tolerance for pain had reached an astonishing level.
The intense pain lasted for an unknown duration. After the enhancement concluded, Mu Yang found his clothes soaked with sweat.
After the attribute enhancement, his bare attributes became:
Strength: 16
Agility: 16
Stamina: 20
Intelligence: 13 (Charm - Light's Grace active, +1)
Charm: 12
...
After enhancing his attributes, Mu Yang didn't rush to leave but waited for the trait options.
"Stamina is a 'Sun' affinity attribute. Bare Stamina attribute has reached 20 points. Contractor may choose one of the following rewards."
1. Robust: Stamina +2
2. Vitality: Health +200
3. Indomitable Body (Rare): When subjected to control effects, the duration and effectiveness of control are reduced by 10%.
...
Mu Yang immediately ruled out the first option, which increased Stamina, and the second, which increased Health. These could be improved later through attribute points and items.
However, traits were only available once per attribute breakthrough, so he had to make the most of it.
The third option was a rare trait that could reduce control effects. Most lone wolves would choose this.
Mu Yang could also be considered a lone wolf, so he chose this trait.
A faint warm current appeared within his body, circulating continuously through his meridians.
After the warm current disappeared, Mu Yang felt some changes in his body, though he wasn't sure of the specifics. He only knew that his resistance to control had increased further.
Exiting the attribute enhancement pod, Mu Yang walked slowly, gradually adapting to his strengthened body.
The 4-point increase in Strength and Agility gave him a feeling of "ascension," as if he could punch a cow to death. And now, he probably really could.
After leaving the Attribute Enhancement Hall, Mu Yang arrived at the entrance of the Skill Upgrade Hall, which was rumored to make people's expressions change.
As for why it made people's expressions change, it was because upgrading skills here was expensive, very expensive.
For ordinary Contractors, entering this place meant exhausting the accumulated wealth of one or even several derivative worlds, but the benefits it brought were also immense.
Skill upgrades represented an increase in strength, and strength was the foundation of a Contractor's existence in Reincarnation Paradise.
Similar to the Attribute Enhancement Hall, the Skill Upgrade Hall was majestic, like a palace. Inside the hall, which was over a dozen meters high, stood numerous pillars, and the polished floor was so reflective that one could see their own reflection.
However, unlike the Attribute Enhancement Hall, this place wasn't desolate. Occasionally, Contractors could be seen entering and exiting.
As soon as he stepped through the main entrance, a silver-haired, cat-eared loli with a black stocking on her left leg and a white stocking on her right leg quickly ran up to Mu Yang.
As he had already anticipated this, he didn't harbor any impolite thoughts, merely appreciating the beautiful sight.
"Contractor-sama, is this your first time at the Skill Upgrade Hall? I am the receptionist here, and I will provide you with a free introduction to its services."
The loli's voice was gentle, and she offered Mu Yang a sweet smile as she gestured for him to follow.
The cat-eared loli led the way, meticulously explaining the Skill Upgrade Hall to Mu Yang.
There were two main sections: one for upgrading active skills and another for upgrading passive skills.
"Contractor-sama, this is the active skill upgrade area. You may choose any skill upgrade pod here. During the process, you may experience disorientation or dizziness, but please rest assured, these are normal phenomena."
"Thank you."
After tipping the loli 20 paradise coins and enjoying her adorable expressions and movements of delight, Mu Yang finally entered a skill upgrade pod.