3. He also needed to gain enough time to develop, while simultaneously meeting the above two conditions.
Karl reopened his eyes and looked at Sylvie's curvaceous figure: "I guess I'll have some fun before I die, and gamble on whether I can transmigrate again."
Of course, such an impulse was suppressed by his rationality as soon as it emerged.
Karl sat silently on the Gem Throne, deep in thought.
He tilted his head slightly, his eyes closed, contemplating the only possibility.
As time passed, Karl suddenly felt a slight urge to eat from his abdomen.
"I'm hungry?"
Karl frowned. As a black dragon, his body possessed extraordinary endurance and physique; even a month without food would not affect him.
But the sensation of hunger proved one thing: his body was still losing energy normally in this stopped time.
Yet, he couldn't eat during Time Stop.
After all, in movies, actors don't usually go eat after stopping time.
This discovery filled him with a sense of urgency.
Karl narrowed his eyes. He had inherited Evil Dragon Karl's memories. The professional system in this world was very peculiar; every professional needed to uphold their professional code, gain the favor of corresponding deities, and then continuously grow stronger.
Just like inherited warriors, their strength came from continuous combat and tempering.
Sylvie, as a Brave, her strength also came from upholding the path of the Brave, helping others, and challenging the Demon King.
Karl dared not approach Sylvie, fearing her desperate attack once Time Stop ended.
If he could make Sylvie waver in her path as a Brave, it might become his only chance for survival.
Karl's gaze turned to the distant door, gradually refining his plan.
He dared not go for Sylvie, but if it were her mage companion, he would be bolder. A mage who suddenly found herself violated.
Her first reaction would be to protect herself, most likely not to charge in recklessly like a warrior.
His first step was to prevent her teammates from continuing to hide.
Karl sat back on the throne, his posture majestic, like an emperor looking down on all living beings.
Time around them began to flow in an instant.
Sylvie gripped her greatsword, her eyes burning with anger. Karl's remarks about being her father had truly broken her.
But she did not attack rashly. Instead, she steadily stepped up two steps and stopped, her gaze fixed on Karl.
"Karl!" Sylvie's voice was full of determination: "I have always lived in the fear you brought me, an experience more terrifying than death. But now, I feel no trace of fear! I Will personally slay you!"
Karl's red pupils flickered with a profound light, his voice deep: "Have you still chosen to go down? You really want to be my daughter, don't you?"
"What are you…" Sylvie's angry expression suddenly froze on her face, and a flicker of astonishment crossed her resolute eyes, as if she realized something incredible.
She suddenly looked down and found that she had indeed retreated two steps from her previous position.
"Impossible!" Sylvie blurted out, her voice trembling slightly.
She once again stepped forward three paces, trying to prove that she had not retreated.
However, from her perspective, Karl seemed a little further away.
Sylvie only felt the entire surrounding scene become eerily silent and unreal.
Karl just sat quietly on the throne, his gaze deep and calm, as if everything was under his control, his voice low:
"You seem to be wavering, Sylvie. Are you feeling fear, or is it that although you think you must climb the steps, you subconsciously retreated because you were too afraid?"
"I…" Sylvie felt an inexplicable sense of apprehension.
Everything happening before her was too bizarre, making her hesitant to act rashly.
Just at that moment, she was protected within a suddenly erected giant oval magic barrier.
The barrier emitted a faint blue light, separating her from Karl.
At the same time, two figures, a man and a woman, appeared beside her.
The man, one meter eighty-five tall, wore a magnificent robe, held a staff, and gravely stood in front of Sylvie.
He looked directly at Karl, his eyes wary: "Sylvie, calm down, don't be swayed by him. He used some kind of power to instantly move your body back."
Another nun, dressed in a pristine white robe, gently supported Sylvie.
Karl smiled on the throne, watching it all. Everything was within his plan.
Now, Sylvie and her companions had all entered within 100 meters of his ability range.
Chapter 3: We Will Win
"Evil Dragon Karl, my name is Violet Will." Will stepped two steps up the stairs, his face stern, looking up at Karl, his magnificent staff glowing faintly in his hand:
"By the honor of the Grand Prince of the Duchy, I swear, today is the day you pay for the sins you have committed for over a decade."
Will's posture was tall and straight, his golden fragmented hair gently swaying with the magical fluctuations, making his demeanor appear even more handsome and extraordinary.
"I am Chris, Chief Nun of the Holy Light Church." Chris also stepped two steps up the stairs, standing in front of Sylvie.
Her smooth black hair fluttered in the magic array, and her pure white nun's habit was like a soft moonlight, making her appear sacred and mysterious.
She looked directly at Karl: "Karl, the souls who died because of you Will find peace today."
Though a nun, her words were incredibly firm.
Sylvie was still immersed in the eerie sensation of her body retreating earlier. Seeing her two companions walk in front of her and successfully ascend two steps.
The fear in her eyes gradually disappeared, replaced by a firm belief.
She tightly gripped the longsword in her hand, took a deep breath, and took two determined steps forward, successfully ascending two steps.
She stood again in front of Chris and Will.
"Thank you. Stand behind me. I have nothing left to fear."
After Sylvie finished speaking, she looked at Karl again: "Brave Sylvie, Evil Dragon Karl, let's fight."
Karl sat on the Gem Throne, watching Sylvie's aura soar after being encouraged by her companions.
It was as if an invisible force was gathering around her, making her appear even more heroic and fearless.
Karl could clearly feel that this female Brave's aura was already much stronger than before.
The power system of this world was indeed speechless.
Karl sighed inwardly. Upholding one's professional code could make a person stronger.
And a Brave like Sylvie, when encouraged by factors like friendship and bonds, had her beliefs strengthened, which was truly a great buff.
He was also helpless. These three people walked up one after another, leaving him no chance to use his Time Stop ability to move them down one by one.
The three did not attack rashly.
Will's expression visibly relaxed when he saw Sylvie steadily walk up two steps without inexplicably retreating as before.
He lowered his voice: "The magic array can resist the strange magic he just used."
Chris nodded in agreement, clasped her hands, and began to chant a spell with focused concentration.
As her incantation sounded, a layer of holy light, flowing like water, began to emerge around Sylvie's silver-white armor, eventually forming an armor that completely enveloped Sylvie's entire body.
Sylvie felt the change in her body. She tightened her grip on the longsword and looked directly at Karl, her voice firm: "I'm going in, as always, defeat the enemy, and then go celebrate with a drink."
"Sylvie." A rare hint of shyness flashed across Will's resolute face.
He stared at Karl, his voice trembling slightly: "I like you."
Sylvie was slightly stunned, but there was not much surprise in her eyes, which remained fixed on Karl, a hint of tenderness flashing through them.
She gripped the longsword in her hand even tighter: "I know. After this, let's get married."
Chris, who had been maintaining her vigilance towards Karl, curved her lips into a charming smile: "Then I'll officiate the wedding."
She said with a smile, but her eyes never left Karl: "But now you must be careful, Evil Dragon Karl is at least a seventh-tier."
"Don't worry." Sylvie responded, her gaze firm and sharp, looking directly at Karl: "We Will win."
"Your gaze has become firm, Sylvie." Karl waited for them to finish speaking before slowly opening his mouth, his voice, unique to a black dragon, deep and magnetic: "I'm glad to see you've grown."
Sylvie clenched her fists tightly. Behind Karl's seemingly gentle words, she was reminded of his earlier theory about being her father.
She broke down again.
"I want to personally experience your growth." Karl's tone was regretful: "Unfortunately, to step on ants without killing them, this power is very difficult to master."
Sylvie's face darkened, and anger flashed in her eyes.
She slowly walked out of the light blue magic shield, each step cautious, but her back was held straight: "Then let's see the anger of an ant."
Karl's lips curved into a smile: "Why do you think this childish magic can withstand my power?"
As he spoke, he raised a finger, his sharp nail pointing towards Chris, who stood silently to the side.
The next second, the entire world was put on pause.
Sound and space were frozen in this moment.
In the stopped time.
Karl sighed softly, stood up from the throne, and slowly walked towards the frozen Sylvie.
"Ugh, acting is so tiring."
Karl murmured to himself, walked to Sylvie's side, and reached out towards the blue barrier.
The boundary of the magic shield seemed non-existent; his finger easily passed through this seemingly impregnable defense.
"As expected, it has no effect."
Karl muttered, without much surprise on his face.
After numerous experiments and explorations, he had gradually figured out the rules and boundaries of his Time Stop ability.
This ability was limited to special Japanese movies.
In those movies, the male protagonist would not be stopped by strange things.
He looked at Chris.
The Saintess in the stopped time was like an exquisite sculpture.
Her beauty, unlike Sylvie's enduring appeal, was the kind that could stun people at first glance.
Karl walked in front of Chris, gently lifted her chin with his finger, and carefully examined her face.
Chris's black hair was as smooth as silk, forming a stark contrast with the pure white nun's habit she wore.
Her face was exquisitely picturesque, every detail meticulously crafted, breathtakingly beautiful.
This was not unexpected; even the church would, of course, choose good-looking people as its facade.
"Truly beautiful." Karl praised sincerely. His gaze then shifted to Chris's figure, probably due to the loose nun's habit.
Her figure was not prominent. Although she was over one meter seventy tall, her chest was somewhat flat, completely lacking the large breasts that traditional healers are supposed to have.
Karl extended his finger, his movements cautious, fearing that his sharp claws might accidentally tear her nun's habit.
His plan was to operate in a way that left no visible traces.
As the nun's habit slipped, Chris's skin, as white as jade, was fully revealed before Karl's eyes.
Her skin was smooth and delicate. Karl lightly traced it with his finger, feeling the warm, moist sensation from her skin: "So smooth."
Chapter 4: I Have Gradually Understood Everything
"So it really is flat." Karl's expression was subtle, then he released his hand. He did not undo Chris's nun's habit.
It wasn't that he thought wearing clothes would have more of a uniform appeal.
Chris's nun's habit, made to display sanctity and purity, was crafted into an exquisite work of art. If he were to undo it.
While it would be satisfying, putting it back on perfectly intact would be almost impossible, especially with the layered skirts and delicate corsetry.
Fortunately, the nun's habit was a long dress design.