# Chapter 8: Terrifying Skill Levels
The lessons from National Football Team and the Gold-Rimmed Glasses Man were still fresh in everyone's mind. The Catwoman and the Detective Loli decided to wait and see — one didn't dare to act, the other didn't want to be the first to stick her neck out.
At this point, it was all about who had the thickest skull. Just as Su Xiao was about to step forward, he noticed that Fatty Pi not far away had already strode ahead.
Fatty Pi was chewing on dried meat as he walked straight to the door. Without hesitation, he kicked the wooden door, a faint smile on his face.
Bang! The door was kicked open. Fatty Pi entered the room, and the wooden door slammed shut with such force that it was clear how angry the person closing it was.
Thud! Boom!
A rumbling sound came from inside the room. After a few seconds, a round figure flew out — it was Fatty Pi.
Fatty Pi landed with a thud, bounced a few times on the ground, steadied himself, then stomped the floor and charged back into the room.
Dozens of seconds later, the wooden door was pushed open. A battered and bruised Fatty Pi walked out, limping, looking noticeably thinner than before.
"I almost died. That woman is too strong."
Fatty Pi spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, looking somewhat dejected. His gait was strange — it seemed his groin had also taken a heavy hit.
"Brother, you've lost weight."
National Football Team's Third Brother stepped forward to 'console' him.
"Do I look tired?"
"Yeah."
"I'm out. No chance. My balls hurt~"
Fatty Pi walked toward another wooden door. The moment he turned his back, his expression twisted dramatically, his mouth puckered, and his eyes widened — the pain was real.
Seeing that Fatty Pi had returned empty-handed, the Catwoman and the Detective Loli began choosing their own targets.
In this kind of reward scenario, time was precious. Finding a plot character who could negotiate was the best strategy. Of course, if given the choice, everyone would pick the Wolf Butler or the Demon Servant. As important figures in the Demon Castle, second only to Alice, the side quests they issued offered the richest rewards.
The others each chose their targets, but Su Xiao didn't move. He decided to try something.
Half an hour later, the other seven contractors had all entered various rooms, negotiating or trading with the plot characters inside. Su Xiao walked up to that wooden door.
Instead of knocking, Su Xiao stood before the door and stuffed an introduction letter through the opening.
"Get lost!"
The same reply as before. Su Xiao ignored it and continued stuffing introduction letters inside.
One, two, three...
He had plenty of these, and if he ran out, he could get more. The little girl who provided the introduction letters was a cowardly foodie. Simple food temptation wouldn't work, but if he added some 'gentle' persuasion, getting more letters wouldn't be a problem. He still had his trump card — Xia's cooking.
Most importantly, the cost of these introduction letters wasn't high, as evidenced by the 2-point rating.
After stuffing in ten letters, the woman inside the room grew impatient.
"Stop bothering me."
Su Xiao remained unmoved and continued stuffing introduction letters.
With a creak, the door opened a crack. A pale arm shot out with incredible speed. Having anticipated this, Su Xiao stepped back several paces, and the hand grabbed nothing but air.
Bang!
The door slammed shut. Heavy breathing could be heard from inside the room — the woman was clearly furious.
Su Xiao remained unfazed and continued stuffing introduction letters into the room as before.
"What do you want?"
The woman's tone was hostile, but it wasn't really because she was annoyed by the letters.
The introduction letters were items certified by Reincarnation Paradise. Their main function was to make certain unapproachable plot characters in the castle negotiable.
Su Xiao's strategy was simple: since the woman in the room couldn't be negotiated with, he would keep stuffing letters until she could. If one letter wasn't enough, he'd use ten. If ten weren't enough, he'd use twenty.
The contractors who had entered this room before all had one thing in common — they all had introduction letters. But the covers of those letters were different, suggesting that the little girl on the first floor wasn't the only one who could make them.
After stuffing in a full twenty introduction letters, the wooden door slowly opened a crack.
The room was pitch black, silent as a pin drop.
After a moment's hesitation, Su Xiao, holding a stack of introduction letters, entered the room.
The room was dimly lit, about forty square meters in size. Inside was a bed and various training equipment, mostly made of stone, all old and showing signs of long-term use.
On the bed sat a black-haired woman. Her chest was wrapped in linen, and she wore tattered shorts.
Her black hair was tied back with a hemp rope. Her exposed abdomen showed clear muscle definition, though her build wasn't particularly bulky.
The most distinctive feature was her eyes. The whites were black, and the pupils were white — the exact opposite of normal humans.
"You killed Anlia?"
The woman's voice was somewhat hoarse. She sat there like a female leopard ready to pounce at any moment — wild, fierce.
"I just gave her some candy."
"This glutton, even locked in a cage, she can't stop eating."
The woman studied Su Xiao and finally shook her head.
"What's your purpose in coming to me? If you can't tell me, I'll kill you."
Hearing these words, Su Xiao felt a sense of familiarity. Bubu Wang beside him barked in agreement — it also felt familiar. 'I'll kill you' was something Su Xiao often said.
"Purpose? Of course, to get some benefit from you."
From the woman's words, Su Xiao sensed that she might be a prisoner of the Demon Castle, unable to leave this room.
"Getting something from me means giving something in return. Just like that blood-drinking bat, gaining benefits from me requires paying with souls — high-purity souls. I don't like your soul; it's too heavy with bloodlust."
The woman licked her lips, looking at Su Xiao with interest.
"High-purity souls?"
Su Xiao pondered for a moment, then took out a Soul Crystal (Small).
Whoosh~
A gust of wind rushed toward him. Black hair flew as the woman lunged at Su Xiao with terrifying speed.
A 300-point energy shield appeared before Su Xiao.
Claw marks flashed. Deep scratch marks appeared on the energy shield.
Crack! The energy shield shattered. The woman had torn through a 300-point energy shield with just her fingertips.
Su Xiao grasped the hilt of Dragon-Slaying Flash. The moment the blade left its sheath, Su Xiao's aura changed.
Clang!
The long blade clashed with sharp fingertips. Two fingernails were sliced off.
"Oh?"
The woman had already retreated, looking at her severed fingertips with surprise.
"Good reflexes."
The woman flexed her fingers. Some of her nails automatically fell off. She clenched her fists, exuding a wild aura.
Su Xiao held Dragon-Slaying Flash horizontally before him. After the woman clenched her fists, he felt a chill run down his spine.
Hum~
A strange sound echoed through the room. The woman's body went limp, and she collapsed to the ground.
"Ah!"
The woman covered her ears, letting out a pained cry. This sound was extremely effective against her, while Su Xiao only found it somewhat harsh, with no other effects.
"Ai, li, si!!"
Saliva dripped from the woman's mouth. After a long while, the strange sound disappeared, and the woman was completely drained.
"See that? I'm just a prisoner — Alice's prisoner. So give me that thing. Everything in this castle is a fair trade. You've passed my test. As long as you pay with pure souls, I can teach you my skills. With that bitch Alice's help, you'll master them quickly."
The woman lying on the ground propped her legs up on the bed, looking up at Su Xiao.
"I'm very interested."
Su Xiao tossed the Soul Crystal (Small) in his hand. But after this action, the woman's demeanor completely changed!
The previously exhausted woman suddenly bounced up from the ground, mouth wide open, catching the Soul Crystal (Small) mid-air.
Crunch, crunch...
The woman chewed the Soul Crystal (Small) — like eating candy!
That wasn't the main point. At this moment, Su Xiao felt like he had just been feeding an animal~
[Notification: You have passed Sha's test. You have obtained basic information about the plot character Sha.]
Name: Sha
Category: Human/Elf (Half-Elf · Combat Clan)
Health: 35%
Mana: Sealed
Strength: 80 (Value after sealing)
Agility: 80 (Value after sealing)
Stamina: 80 (Value after sealing)
Intelligence: 80 (Value after sealing)
Charm: 76
Skill 1: Melee Grandmaster (Passive Lv.67), Skill Effect Sealed by 80%.
Skill 2: Unarmed Combat Grandmaster (Passive Lv.63), Skill Effect Sealed by 82%.
Skill 3: Beast Instinct (Passive Lv.59), Skill Effect Sealed by 83%.
Skill 4: Combat Proficiency (Passive Lv.53), Skill Effect Sealed by 72%.
Skill 5: Scorpion Tail Strike (Exclusive Skill · Active Lv.69), Skill Effect Sealed by 96%.
Skill 6: ???
Skill 7: ???
Skill 8: ???
Skill 9: ???
Skill 10: ???
Seeing these stats, Su Xiao's pupils contracted. If this woman named Sha weren't sealed, even if Su Xiao wasn't instantly killed, he would be dead within a few moves.
Skill 5: Scorpion Tail Strike (Active Lv.69) — what a terrifying skill level. If not for the seal, the power of this move, while not enough to destroy the world, would certainly be more than enough to kick Su Xiao to death.
There was no doubt — Sha was a close-combat expert, imprisoned here.
Seeing the ecstatic trembling expression on her face as she ate the Soul Crystal (Small), if Su Xiao could produce a Soul Crystal (Large), Sha might not even refuse a more... intimate request. The way she looked when being fed, any dignity of a powerhouse had long been discarded after being imprisoned for who knows how many years.
This was a golden opportunity to improve his close-combat abilities. Su Xiao checked his Soul Crystal reserves in his storage space.
[Soul Crystal (Small) × 8]
[Soul Crystal (Medium) × 5]
His Soul Crystal reserves were still decent. As for how many he would need to pay, that depended on how much benefit Su Xiao could gain. If the cost outweighed the reward, he would stop the transaction with Sha.
PS: (Originally planned for four chapters, but couldn't write that much. Will try harder tomorrow. Today is the last day of double monthly tickets. A bit shy asking for votes~)