17 The Beginning of a Nightmare (II)

Xueyue and Liu Bai were walking in the city streets. They couldn't believe that everywhere they turn, people were asleep.

"Xueyue, do you think this is caused by magic?" Liu Bai asked as he brought a collapsed man in the middle of the street to the sidewalk.

"Well, it's definitely not some science crap that we hear from documentaries. Because if that's what's going on, then it should've affected us as well."

"Really? I mean, we're not exactly…"

"Right."

What Liu Bai wanted to say was that, they were not beings of that world and its laws probably did not apply on them.

"But if it's caused by magic, then it's plausible. We have magic and our bodies probably negated the effects of whatever spell this is."

"Probably. But there are others who can use magic in this world as well, much less this city. How come we're the only ones awake?"

Liu Bai shrugged and decided to drop the topic. They were going nowhere with it.

"If this is magic, then this is one hell of a big spell." he commented. "How did they even manage to cast it?"

Xueyue sighed. She didn't really know the answer.

As they walked, they also took the time to inspect everything they see. However, when they turned to the street that led to where the Liu Group of Companies headquarters was located, the two froze mid-step. Both their eyes were as wide as saucers as they gazed at what was in front of them.

"What the hell is that?" Liu Bai whisper-yelled and pointed at the creature.

In front of the two was what looked to be a human whose mutation went wrong. Rather than the normal limbs a person has, it had four other arms, each swollen like an inflated balloon. Its legs were also inflated, not to mention the main body. Red splotches littered its body in random spots and its face looked more like a pig than a human's.

Liu Bai was about to comment again when Xueyue sensed a nearby presence. At first, she was a bit baffled at it since the presence showed that whoever it was, they were awake and active, but the presence was unfamiliar so she opted on dragging Liu Bai at the corner and hide themselves using a cloaking spell.

The two watched as a figure landed not that far from where they stood moments ago.

"There's no one here." grumbled the newcomer which revealed her gender. She was wearing a dirty white cloak and on her hand was a cellphone. "Damn it! Why did you have to send me here?! There's nothing here other than one of the guys that are mutating! Are you sure your sensors are working properly?"

He paused, hearing the response of the one in the other line.

"Ugh! Then let those guys from the thirteenth department deal with it! This is originally their job! Huh? Busy? Screw that!"

Xueyue and Liu Bai stared at each other, both with questioning looks.

'What's going on?' Liu Bai asked Xueyue via telepathy.

'How the hell would I know?'

'You think they're the ones responsible for what's going on?'

Xueyue shrugged and returned her attention on the cloaked individual. He was circling the mutated creature in front of him, tapping it once in a while and then gave a satisfying nod.

"The mutation is doing well." Xueyue heard him grumble, his call already over. "I should return to my duties. Damn those idiots from the seventh department. They can't even have their damn radars to work properly."

The two watched as he jumped to the shortest building and vanished, his presence getting further and further. Or at least that was what Xueyue confirmed. Once she could no longer sense him, she and Liu Bai went out of their hiding place and glanced at each other with worried looks.

"I think that answers my question." Liu Bai said in disdain. "But why? What the hell is going on?"

"I have no idea, but I think it's safe to say that we have to stay away from them." Xueyue responded in a nervous manner, glancing around hoping no cloaked figures pop up.

"Maybe we should teleport to our destination to get this over with."

"That's not a good idea." she saw him give her a looks that asked why so she pointed to the sky. "That's not good."

"Is that, a gateway to another world?"

"Not just any gateway. I think whoever's responsible for putting us to sleep as well as the mutation we just saw, is troublesome. He's pulling another world to this world."

"Wait, won't that mean whoever's doing this is trying to merge two worlds?"

Xueyue wanted to deny it. She really wanted to, but from what she had gathered so far, it seemed to be the case.

"There's a disturbance in the space-time continuum. If we use any spell regarding those two, mishaps might happen. We might end up someplace else, or worse. It's better safe than sorry." she said.

"I suppose. So now what?"

"Let's check on our respective host families, and then let's meet back on SVIS in three hours. Have you contacted Ceio and the others?"

"I did. As usual I still could not reach Phaero and Thystia via our mind link. Ceio is in another city but she's on her way here. Namet and Riai is another country, the same thing is happening to where they are. They also only awakened a couple of hours ago, but they said they'll do their best to gather here."

Xueyue nodded her head in understanding. They could not risk using teleportation at the moment, so her comrades did not have any other means to reach her at a sooner schedule.

"Namet and Riai might not arrive sooner than we hope but let's deal with it when the time comes." she responded. "Let's go now. Remember to stay hidden. Never dispel your cloaking spell, you hear?"

"Yes Aunt Euka."

With the two in agreement, they left to the directions of their respective host families.

Xueyue took about thirty minutes before she reached the main building of the Li Group of Companies, the business empire her host family runs. Fortunately, she did not come across cloaked individuals so her journey was smooth. She did see a lot of mutated humans scattered in the streets, something she dreaded. She had no idea whoever was doing the predicament the world found itself into but she did not like it.

Somehow, seeing the mutated humans with their various mutations, she was reminded of Vastia. Back in that world, long before she ruled the demon clan, the gods sent a plague to the mortal realm, causing its inhabitants to shift into monstrous forms. It affected not only humans, but also all races that lived in the mortal realm. Even the demons who sometimes ventured in human countries were affected, and yet they were blamed for such a thing.

She could only shake her head as she remembered the past.

After checking the building for any aura similar to the cloaked individual she came across with, she breathed a sigh of relief when she found none. Still with her cloaking spell casted around her, she headed to the top floor where the CEO's office was located.

When she got there, she saw both Yiheng and Weixian slumped on the sofa. From the looks of it, the father and son duo were having lunch from the packed food Qianhao prepared for them, before they fell asleep. She immediately checked the two for any signs of mutation like the ones she saw outside.

"They seem to not have any mutation, that's good." Xueyue commented after checking them. She was glad that nothing was wrong with the two.

Although…

"Their energy seems to have become more pronounced. From the looks of it, the two can definitely perform magic now."

All of a sudden, an unfamiliar aura was coming her way, so she hid herself on the first door she found, which turned out to be a small stockroom. With her heightened senses, she listened as a person enters the room.

"Hmm… Seventh department seems to have a glitch in their system. Nobody's here." Xueyue heard a feminine voice.

'Another one? Like the one form before?'

"Now let's see. This father-son duo seems to be adjusting quite well with Vastia's environment." Xueyue stiffened at those words. "I can't wait to see you two do everything you can to survive."

Xueyue heard a disturbing laugh before the presence vanished. She stepped out of the stockroom, her shock still evident on her face.

"Vastia? What the hell is Vastia's involvement in this?"