Irrelevant

It was four in the morning, and the Church of the Broken God would still have to fax over the precise coordinates in an hour. Zhang Jue was reclining in his chair, his eyes closed, and his mind at ease.

His phone abruptly rang. When Zhang Jue gave it a quick peek, she saw that it was an unknown caller. While pressing the respond button, he remained silent. Both parties remained silent, while the other person repeatedly knocked, which could have been a code phrase. Zhang Jue didn't talk before making sure the code phrase was accurate.

"It's me."

Zhang Jue's voice was recognized by the person on the other end of the line, who responded, "Advisor Zhang, this is Will Smith."

Zhang Jue assigned them the mission of visiting Europe and Russia to learn more about the situation there a few days prior, on the same night that Will Smith and his Black Pearl team had just returned. He called at this very moment, believing he must have discovered something.

The first thing Smith remarked after establishing Zhang Jue's identity was as anticipated. "Something unusual has been found here, Advisor Zhang."

There was a time difference between the two locations; while it was sunny on Smith's side, it was still early morning here in Zhang Jue. However, when anything had occurred, he experienced a severe shiver throughout his body.

"Speak up." said Zhang Jue.

Smith hummed and described what had happened.

"The worst affected area in Romania was a small town named Nadavir, which was reported to be the epicenter of the earthquake when we arrived three days ago."

"The earthquake should only have been a magnitude seven, but our analysis determined that it was at least a magnitude seven and a half, if not eight."

"Additionally, the quake was felt throughout the whole Balkan Peninsula, including a dozen nearby nations and areas, not just in Romania and Bulgaria, but others."

"For whatever reason, the Foundation, a number of the nearby impacted nations, and even the United Nations kept the public in the dark about the issue, giving the impression on the news that the crisis was not significant when in fact it was."

"We entered the devastated catastrophe region while pretending to be a rescue crew. It is impossible to see the original environment because Nadavir is situated on top of a mountain, which was torn apart by the earthquake. Instead, there are nothing but broken walls and ruinous buildings in sight."

"We wouldn't be able to interact with the outside world if it weren't for the satellite phone you provided because all the nearby facilities have been destroyed."

Smith paused as he continued, "Rescue teams from several countries have come here, but the number of afflicted individuals is so great that it is difficult to take care of them all, and this area has turned into a nightmare on earth. He seemed to have been impacted as well. Smith has a military history, and after working as a mercenary for a few years, just eight hundred individuals have died at his hands.

However, using knives and guns to kill people and witnessing so many innocent people perish in a calamity are two completely different ideas. After all, having a decent heart is one of the characteristics that define someone as being human.

He changed his mood and proceeded, "We followed other rescue teams to rescue the victims. Then a curious thing happened, we discovered that those people who were fine during the day would disappear and disappear the next day."

"We initially believed they had fled after following other teams, but later realized they had actually been taken prisoner by something."

"We found their bodies after traveling the entire trail to a mountain cave with cracks in it."

"We hid that night at the cave's entrance until we saw a vampire."

Zhang Jue made her first comment during Smith's speech, asking, "A vampire?"

"A vampire, yes." Smith stressed, "We killed it. It was snow white, hairless, and had slightly elongated ears, much like the vampires in those movies."

Vampires and earthquakes did not seem to have much in common, yet Zhang Jue seemed to be left with an impression. He had to have read or run across the pertinent paperwork. He could probably find it in his memory palace if given enough time.

But with less than 30 minutes till departure, he was running out of time. Smith's remarks were also obviously incomplete.

Time is too short, he added, "We only had time to verify these clues, and now that we know where their nest is, we plan to go check it out this evening. In addition, the other squad that traveled to the Russia also has news."

As time was running out, Smith split the Black Pearl team in half, sending some of the players to Romania and the vice captain to Siberia.

There is no terrorist experimental base in the Central Siberian steppe, but a monster has appeared, according to their investigation.

Zhang Jue had figured out this straightforward blindfold long before they left. The Foundation and the governments must have worked exceedingly hard to keep such things hidden, just like when SCP-3844 was discovered in the Alps, or else it would have sparked panic.

He questioned, "What kind of monster?"

"It appears to be a one-eyed gigantic beast, according to my team mates." Smith reported back.

"A beast with one eye?"

These are all from local villagers who have visited the mountain, and at the moment they have acquired a batch of equipment to be ready to enter the mountain overnight. However, since the area has been under martial law, they have no way to approach.

"Smith, inform your team members, your two teams' current objective is confined to exploration. Once you meet danger, immediately retreat; everything is done with your life safety as the top priority. When I finish this side, I will come to you." Zhang Jue remarked after scratching his chin.

Smith gestured to the person on the other end of the line to stand up and said, "Understood!"

Zhang Jue continued to think after hanging up the phone. earthquakes, missing people, vampires, and romance. Monsters with one eye, the Siberian plateau. He always had the impression that there was some relationship between the two, despite the fact that they were obviously unrelated.

He also had a sneaking suspicion that perhaps the Church of the Broken God was performing at the time and that it was associated with these ugly events. He took some time to link all the clues, but what exactly is it?

He required a cue. Lateness was setting in. When Zhang Jue raised his head, he noticed that the sky was already blazing with a fish's belly's white color. The time was 5:00 in the morning. Standing up, Zhang Jue flexed his muscles. Old Smith entered the room after hearing a knock on the door.

"Advisor Zhang, the location of the negotiations has been informed by the Church of the Broken God."

"Good." With his palms facing outward and his fingers crossed, Zhang Jue firmly braced his hands. "Let's put everything else aside for the moment and first get to know these members of the Church of the Broken God."