Chat group: People are in the sandbox, the system just ran away

Chapter 250: Astralia's Families Gather

Just as Ryu's eyes caught the crimson light flashing from the inside of the crack, a fierce slash flew past in the next moment, and the members of Astralia's family were attacked.

Unbeknownst to anyone, and even unnoticed by the girl herself, a life was about to end. Mercilessly, a giant blue-purple claw flashed, attempting to rip the girl's body into three pieces.

This is how things should have developed, but just as Zagnath's indestructible claws were about to touch the girl's body, time stopped, everything around stopped moving, even the burning flames stopped.

"No, Noin!?"

"Are you okay, Noin?"

"I was so scared that such a terrifying monster could appear in the dungeon. Fortunately, nothing happened to you, Noin."

………………Although they didn’t know what happened, the group leaders Alyse, Kaguya, and Ryu all rushed to Noin’s side to comfort her who was almost dead.

After more than a minute, the people of Astralia's family finally had the mood to think about what was going on.

"Is this time stopped?"

Looking at the stillness around them, Alyse, the leader, was stunned. What was going on? Who had saved them? Was it the goddess Astraea? But the goddess was the goddess of justice, and time didn't seem to be working for her.

And even if the goddess really has the ability to stop time, she has sealed her divine power in the underworld, not to mention that using divine power in the dungeon will cause a riot in the dungeon, so Alisha really can't figure out who would have such great ability to save them.

Time goes back to the past. Li Xuan takes Astralia and Liu upstream along the long river of time, until five years ago when all the people of Astralia's clan chased the Rudra clan and others and fell into a trap.

Seeing that history was about to repeat itself, Liu really couldn't bear to continue watching. Although she knew that the solution given by Li Xuan was already very good, she still couldn't bear to see her friend die in front of her again.

"Li Xuan, can you think of a solution? I don't want to see Alisha, Kaguya, and the others die. It's not a good experience."

"Yes, I really don't want to see the children die with my own eyes."

Not only Liu, Astralia also thought so. She didn't want the other members of Astralia's family to have the same tragic experience as before.

"Okay, this isn't a difficult problem. It just requires a bit of work. I can create their bodies to replace their deaths and then bring them back to the future."

Although he had to bear some backlash from time and cause and effect, a world like Dicuo, although not as easy to play with time as those in Devil's High School and Strike the Blood that could time travel, but with the substantial increase in Li Xuan's strength, the slight backlash from the Dicuo world was just a drizzle. It was estimated that he would have recovered before returning to the main timeline. Of course, this also had a lot to do with the fact that the people he saved this time were not important, and the extent of the change in history was almost the same.

Astralia and Liu were stunned. Why did Li Xuan suddenly become so easy to talk to?

"you……"

"What's so surprising? Our relationship is different now, so naturally the standards are different. However, Ryu, in order to prevent any changes in the past from affecting the future, your memories will remain the same and return to the past."

"It's okay. As long as Alyse, Kaguya, and the others can survive, it's just a little hardship. It's no big deal."

Seeing that her friends were able to survive this disaster, Liu no longer cared about her past self. What was wrong with enduring a little hardship? She believed that her past self would definitely understand her actions.

"Okay, then I'll do it, otherwise it will be too late."

Then the previous scene appeared. When Zagnat's claws were about to touch the members of Astraea's family, time stopped.

Astralia and Liu looked at Alyse and Liu with dark faces as they surrounded Noin, who was almost dead, and kept comforting him. Although this also reflected the deep feelings between Astralia and Liu, this was on the battlefield, and their hearts were a little too big.

Seeing that Alyse and the others were finally trying to figure out why time had stopped, and were about to look around, Astralia, Liu, and Li Xuan appeared before them...

"who is it?"

Seeing the three people suddenly appear, everyone in Astralia's family, who had been on guard, turned their heads.

"Lady Astraea, and your words, is it Ryu?"

As the leader, Alyse looked at the blond Ryu beside her, and then looked at the green-haired Ryu who appeared with the goddess Astraea. Except for the change in hair color, everything else was exactly the same as the enlarged version of Ryu.

"It's me, that's right."

"Is it really Astraea who saved us? I was wondering who else would save us except Astraea? You, Alicia, said it was impossible. What a fool! But what about this grown-up Liu? Is he your relative? Or is he?"

Gojono Kaguya, the deputy leader of the Astralia clan, couldn't help but complain about the leader, the energetic idiot Alisha, for not believing her think tank's analysis. But where did this adult version of Ryu come from? Was he Ryu's relative, or was it Ryu from the future who returned to the past?

After all, time has stopped, so it is normal to think about time travel more boldly.

"I, I don't have such a relative."

Looking at the familiar face opposite her, the young Liu was a little flustered. Although the future Liu had not spoken yet, she had a feeling that the person opposite her was her future self.

But why would my future self go back to the past alone with Goddess Astraea to save them? Could it be that this time they will...

Young Ryu had a bad feeling, and Kaguya felt the same way. It was very likely that Ryu was the only one of the Astralia Familia who escaped alive, otherwise it would be hard to explain.

"So you are Liu from the future, right? That means our fate against the monsters this time is very dire. Only Liu, a useless elf, and the Lord God can reverse the flow of time to save us."

Facing Kaguya Gojono, her comrade and nemesis, who was both sinister and venomous, Ryu was speechless and could only hug her and cry bitterly.

Chapter 251: Future Ryu and Past Partners

Kaguya Gojouno was caught off guard by the future Ryu's action, and she hugged the crying Ryu in front of her, feeling a little helpless.

"Alright, alright, don't cry, don't cry, everything is over. Look, the goddess and you are here to save us, right? Everything is fine now."

Kaguya Gojono, who was always rude and sharp-tongued, could not say anything hurtful when facing such a sad Liu. She caressed Liu's back with her hands affectionately to soothe her emotions.

Although Kaguya Gojouno appears to be very rude and sharp-tongued, she is actually from a noble family in the Far East. Her rudeness and sharp-tongued nature are only meant to distance herself from the Yamato Nadeshiko of the past. As long as she wants, she can still become very gentle.

"Everyone is dead. Noin, Leyana, and the others are all dead. Even you, Kaguya, and Leila. Alisha sacrificed herself so that I could escape. In order to hold back the monster, Alisha even gave her life to help me hold it back. In the end, Alisha was the only one killed by my magic. I killed her."

At this moment, Liu 11 vented all the guilt and anxiety he had been feeling for the past five years.

"It's okay. We had no choice. Alicia won't blame you. Besides, as long as you survive, our sacrifice will be worth it."

"Yeah, Liu, how could I blame you? Obviously, in that situation, Liu who survived was the one who suffered the most."

Alisha also understood the current situation. This adult version of Liu came back from the future to save her companions.

Just thinking about Liu's predicament made Alisha feel suffocated. All her companions had perished, yet she had survived thanks to their sacrifice, her hands even stained with their blood. I'm sure Liu desperately wanted to die, to put an end to it all, but her own life was built on the sacrifices of her companions, so she couldn't just throw it away in vain. To do so would be to make their deaths in vain. She had a mission to survive, yet she also had a deep desire to die. Just thinking about it made Alisha feel sick, let alone Liu, who had been living with this mentality.

"But, Alyse, no matter what, you should have been the one who survived. As long as you were still here, and the goddess Astraea was still here, justice could continue to prevail, instead of me, an elf who fell into the flames of revenge, lost justice, and went astray."

Liu always thought that the one who survived at that time should be Alisha, the leader, not her.

"Did you do anything afterwards?"

Alicia scratched her head in confusion.

Liu then revealed her subsequent series of revenge actions, relying solely on her own investigations, regardless of evidence, and slaughtering countless merchants, adventurers, and guild members who colluded with them. Her actions forced four major gods, including Rudra, to return to heaven, demonstrating the profound impact of Liu's actions.

"What? You did a great job! Useless Elf, I've changed my mind about you. This makes my sacrifice worthwhile."

After Liu stood up from Gojono Kaguya's arms, Gojono Kaguya also returned to her usual self. She approved of Liu's behavior. Unlike the perfect justice pursued by Liu, Alyse and Goddess Astraea, which required both factual justice and procedural justice, Gojono Kaguya herself actually only pursued factual justice. Procedural justice was too troublesome and cumbersome. Excessive pursuit of procedural justice would sometimes lead to the wicked going unpunished and escaping the sanctions of justice.

This is also the reason why Kaguya Gojouno dislikes Ryu very much. Although Goddess Astraea and Captain Alyse also pursue procedural justice, they also know how to adapt at the right time. They understand that if they pursue absolute justice, it is easy to fall into paranoia, and Ryu in the past obviously did not understand this truth.

"Yes, Ryu. Although your subsequent actions were a bit out of line, the outcome was good, wasn't it? The darkness of the city ended here. You must understand what justice we pursue is. It is only a means, not an end. Excessive demands for justice will only lead to endless paranoia and inextricable self-extrication."

Although Alisha was a fool, she also understood what to say and what not to say. Even though Liu's actions were not completely correct, being too demanding of Liu at that time would only backfire.

"Alright, alright, Captain, and Liu, although I don't know how Liu from the future came to this era, it's clear that the current situation can't be maintained forever. Time travel will cause too many problems. How are you and the goddess going to save us?"

Honestly, Gojono Kaguya felt that time travel was too crazy. She only needed to think about it to imagine all kinds of incredible changes that would happen. If the past had changed, it was hard to say what would happen in the future.

"Well, uh, Li Xuan, His Highness Li Xuan is the god who brought us to this era. The solution he proposed is to fake your death. He will create dummies of you to die in your place, and you will follow us directly into the future."

"The only problem is that you, my past self, still need to endure everything I went through to ensure the normal flow of time. So, are you willing?"

The past and future Liu looked at each other for the first time. The future Liu believed that her past self would not let her down.

"Of course. As long as Alyse, Kaguya, and the others can survive and avoid that tragic future, it's no big deal for me to suffer a little."

The blonde Ryu said this seriously. Even though she would experience a very painful time in the future, the ending would be good after all. Her tears alone could be exchanged for the survival of her teammates. There was no better exchange than this.

"Speaking of which, Lord Li Xuan, is he the new god from the lower world? I've never heard of him before."

Alyse was curious. As for Li Xuan's existence, they knew that it was Li Xuan, one of the three, who had masterminded the time travel. After all, neither Astraea nor Liu could possess the ability to time travel. The only possible person was Li Xuan, who had arrived with them.

"No, he is a god from another world, not from heaven."

"Wow, that's amazing! He's actually a god from another world."

"Does the other world really exist? That's really interesting."

"Are all gods from other worlds this handsome?"

………………

Amidst the discussion among Astralia's Familia, Gojono Kaguya, the deputy leader and advisor, remained silent. She pondered the question of what price Ryu and the goddess Astralia had paid to persuade a being from another world to travel through time to save them.

Chapter 252: Setting off for the future

It goes without saying how difficult it is to travel through time, so why Li Xuan came with Goddess Astralia and Liu to rescue people is a very serious question. The price of their survival must have been paid by Goddess Astralia and Liu.

What exactly was the price? Kaguya Gojono wanted to know. After all, the price of time travel was something even the goddess Astraea couldn't afford. As for Ryu, she was probably just a byproduct.

Gojono Kaguya really wanted to ask Li Xuan something, but looking at the companions surrounding him, she couldn't help but sigh. It was okay for the others, but why did you, the leader, also surround him? Don't you consider these things at all?

Forget it, forget it. Didn't she understand it a long time ago? Among Astralia's family, apart from her, Kaguya Gojouno, only that useless elf has some brains. It's a bit too much to call the others stupid, but it's definitely not wrong to say that they are not very smart.

Let them be happy today. Let her, as the think tank, think about these problems. There is no way to solve them. Such a big thing cannot be handled by her small family. But those who are rescued should at least understand how much Goddess Astralia has paid for them.

Li Xuan didn't have much objection to the Astralia family members who surrounded him. Instead, he wanted to ask for more.

Although the other members of Astralia's family were slightly less attractive than Goddess Astralia and Liu, the difference was not significant, and each had their own unique characteristics. This made Li Xuan wonder if the standard of justice Astralia had adopted when she chose her family was that appearance was the only criterion for justice.

"Okay, okay, let's talk about these things after we return to Orario in the future."

Astralia couldn't stand Li Xuan's demeanor. After a brief time together, she'd already seen, with her hundreds of millions of years of experience, that while Li Xuan wasn't a bad person and had his own principles, he certainly wasn't a good person either, especially when it came to beauty. Even though he was much better than Zeus, he was also a self-indulgent and extremely greedy person. She hadn't created so many followers just for Li Xuan.

"That's right, time can't be stopped for long."

Astraea had spoken, and as the leader, Alyse had to obey. It was just that at this point in time, Ryuu was going to suffer.

"Ryu, see you in the future."

Alisha hugged the current Liu and walked to the side of Goddess Astralia.

"Liu, I'm leaving now. See you in the future."

Leila, a dwarf who was very close to Liu, patted her shoulder and walked over to the goddess.

"Waste Elf, you must persevere."

Kaguya Gojono also hugged her nemesis and comrade. Her future was not going to be easy.

………………

Everyone in Astraea's family said goodbye to the past Liu one by one and cheered him up. Although the blond Liu wanted to control his emotions and not worry his teammates, he couldn't stop crying.

"I believe in myself. Come on, just get through it."

Liu also cheered up her past self, hoping that she could be strong. After all, no one knew better than her how painful her past self's future would be.

"My child, Liu, don't be afraid. No matter how tortuous the process is, the outcome will definitely be bright."

Astraea also wiped away the tears of the past Liu and comforted her.

"Yeah, it's okay, goddess, you guys can go. I can hold on."

The Liu of the past finally became strong and was mentally prepared to face his future.

Although this is of no use, after all, Li Xuan wants to seal her memory and leave it to be unlocked in the future. So even though Liu in the past had prepared herself mentally, after coming out of the still time and seeing Noin's doll being cut into three pieces by Zagnate, her mental defenses were instantly broken.

"Hey, did I die so miserably?"

Nuoyin couldn't help but complain, it turned out that she was going to die so miserably.

"I'm not the same yet."

The orc girl Nitz took over the conversation.

"This is outrageous! Even with my shield raised, I couldn't withstand its attack."

The next to die is the puppet of the vanguard Asta.

"It can also reflect magic? That's too much, and too unfriendly to magicians."

Leyana and Celty's puppets were destroyed by their own powerful magic that was reflected back at them.

Then the puppets of the attackers Iska and Malu were also killed, and then Zagnath pointed his claws at the Rudra clan on the side. For it, all adventurers are enemies that must be eliminated.

"No wonder our clan was almost wiped out. Even if we knew all the intelligence about this enemy, we would still have to make sacrifices and lose personnel if we wanted to defeat it, let alone face it completely unprepared."

Kaguya Gojouno looked at all the information Zagnat had revealed and couldn't help but smile bitterly. Zagnat was simply too powerful. A monster of this strength shouldn't even be found in the middle level of the dungeon. The other members of the clan also agreed with Kaguya Gojouno's analysis. With its indestructible claws, its tough magic-reflecting armor, its speed rivaling that of a top adventurer, and its impervious body, these attributes made Zagnat practically invincible against weaker beings, easily making it unrivaled among adventurers.

The subsequent situation was that in order to ensure Riku's survival, Leila blew herself up and destroyed Zagnate's indestructible claws, and Kaguya sacrificed herself to injure one of Zagnate's legs, making it impossible for it to use its speed as fast as the wind.