Evil Beast Attack

An utterly ordinary day.

Ye Qing had just returned to his rental, tossed his backpack onto the sofa, and shed the mask and restraint he wore outside along with it.

He had thought it would be a leisurely evening, one where he could briefly agonize over what to have for a late-night snack.

Before he could even open a delivery app, an emergency news alert forcibly popped up on his phone.

Emergency news broadcasts would immediately take over any electronic device with the relevant app installed.

Whether someone was flying high in the air or mining deep underground, no one could avoid an emergency news interruption.

It was not an app people were required to install, but one that anyone who wanted to survive would install.

Crises had always struck suddenly and silently, and this ensured that civilians could receive the news and seek shelter at once.

The app had originally been developed specifically for Spatial Rifts.

As Spatial Rifts became less frequent and smaller in scale, forced emergency broadcasts were more often used for attacks by evil organizations or news of earthquakes.

Like this time, which had likewise been classified as a vicious incident orchestrated by an evil organization.

The broadcaster appeared in one corner of the phone screen, while live footage occupied most of the display.

"Several giant cockroaches have appeared in Canglan City, at the southeastern corner of Bailan City in District 28. They are feeding on vegetation and buildings. It is unknown whether they will feed on living creatures. Residents are advised to temporarily leave the streets and remain indoors while awaiting rescue."

The broadcaster smoothly described the situation on-screen as the footage zoomed in on several cockroaches the size of half a house.

It nearly scared Ye Qing into throwing away his phone, making him physically sick.

"Why Bailan City again? Bailan City really can't catch a break."

Ye Qing could not help complaining. Clutching his head, he sank into troubled hesitation.

By all rights, she had to go.

But it was really disgusting.

The image of those gigantic, many-legged creatures kept replaying in her mind, making Ye Qing nauseous.

She wondered whether the Bailan City residents who had been flying or mining would be shocked into despair by this sudden news broadcast, never to fly again.

Just thinking about it was terrifying.

There was not enough time for Ye Qing to hesitate. In the blink of an eye, the person on the sofa had become a cold-faced, indifferent young girl.

She had signed a contract with the Association and become a magical girl. She would do her part.

Her magic connected to her Contract Beast, and after only a few seconds, Qiubo tore open a passage before her.

"Lady Qingyin, what does Qiubo need to do?" Qiubo asked, instinctively wanting to look around after crawling out.

Qingyin pinned his head in place with two fingers before he could turn it.

"Don't look around. This is private." Qingyin continued,

"Take me to the Otherworld. I need to find Youyue."

"Understood!"

Qiubo was disappointed to learn that this was Qingyin's residence but be unable to inspect it right away.

He quickly recovered his spirits and tore open a black hole through which a magical girl could travel to another world.

Qingyin stepped into the black hole and instantly arrived in the Otherworld.

Once her vision focused, she saw a magical girl mascot flying in the air before her.

If Qingyin remembered correctly, this was Youyue's Contract Beast.

"Sister Qingyin, Sister Youyue knew you would come to the Otherworld first, so she sent me to tell you to head to Canglan City immediately. She's holding back the Evil Beasts' invasion," Shita said joyfully upon seeing Qingyin.

"Qiubo, open a passage to Canglan City in Bailan City," Qingyin immediately ordered.

Qiubo scratched his head, his expression awkward as he stammered,

"The Otherworld cannot sustain a passage for magical girls to travel back to reality."

"What does that mean?" Qingyin asked, slightly confused.

"We can only bring magical girls in, not take magical girls out. To return to reality, you have to use a fixed passage," Qiubo hurriedly explained.

The Otherworld was like a transfer station.

With a Contract Beast, one could enter from anywhere, but could only leave through fixed passages.

In other words, the "door" could not be opened from this side.

"Then what use are you?" Qingyin could not help saying.

"Please calm down, Lady Qingyin! I'll take you to the passage closest to Canglan City right now!" Qiubo replied anxiously.

The Otherworld was itself another world, not too different from the other worlds.

Tearing open a spatial passage through a Contract Beast would not affect the spatial barrier.

But creating a passage large enough for a magical girl to pass through would damage the barrier and might trigger a Spatial Rift.

Not only would it greatly drain the Contract Beast's energy and magic power, it could also cause incalculable damage to the real world.

They were already doing everything they could to avoid Spatial Rifts. How could they possibly want to trigger a disaster themselves?

When all was said and done, it was only a one-way passage.

The Otherworld and Contract Beasts were even more useless than Qingyin had imagined.

Had she known, flying directly from home to Canglan City probably would not have been much slower.

Qingyin returned to the real world at a speed too fast for the naked eye to perceive.

The night was hazy, and a magical girl seemed tiny compared to an entire city.

Guided by Shita, the mascot, Qingyin efficiently reached the Evil Beasts' location.

"Qingyin, you finally came!" Youyue rushed toward her as if she had seen her savior.

"Where are the Evil Beasts? What's the situation now?" Qingyin asked.

Evil Beast was common knowledge, the full term being "monsters developed by evil organizations."

Setting everything else aside, Qingyin herself had released who knew how many Evil Beasts into cities.

She had just never released research monsters this disgusting before.

"They've been temporarily contained in this park," Youyue said dejectedly.

"Why?" Qingyin tilted her head in confusion.

"Because they're disgusting!" Youyue immediately poured out her grievances.

"I feel like even binding those creatures with my Magic Weapon would dirty my Magic Weapon! I can only barely use intangible purple mist to painstakingly stop them."

Qingyin silently nodded.

Understandable.

The Evil Beasts that appeared this time were as intimidating as a mop smeared with shit during a fight.

"Do you have a way to confine the Evil Beasts within this area?" Youyue asked.

"Shouldn't we just kill these creatures that could cause panic and endanger the residents?" Qingyin countered.

"We definitely have to kill them, but we won't be the ones doing it." Youyue shook her head.

"How pitiful," Qingyin suddenly said.

"Yes, very pitiful." Youyue nodded in agreement.

They would not be the ones killing them.

That meant only those three new-generation magical girls could do it.

Qingyin felt inexplicably fortunate that she had skipped the beginner stage.

Magical girls needed to grow, and every Evil Beast that appeared was the best nourishment for actual combat experience, this time included.

"So, can you trap them?" Youyue asked again.

"Of course."

Though Qingyin had never tried it, her magical girl instincts told her such a minor task would be effortless.

She flew into the air, summoned her Magic Weapon, casually flipped open a page of her book, and gathered magic into words corresponding to her thoughts.

A square barrier enveloped the entire park, completely sealing the Evil Beasts within. Youyue happily flew to Qingyin's side.

"You know barrier arts too, Qingyin? You're amazing!" Youyue happily embraced her.

If her Magic Weapon got contaminated by these Evil Beasts, she absolutely would not use it again without washing it for a full month.

She had not expected the problem troubling her to be solved so easily.

"A suffocating feeling..."

A moment later, Qingyin let out a muffled voice with little emotion in it.