I impersonated God in America

The archaeological team is using soft brushes to sweep away the dust that has accumulated over the centuries.

He heard the reporter's voice on television.

"An archaeological team belonging to the Pontifical Council for Archaeology discovered an extremely well-preserved ancient Greek tomb on the northwest coast of Sardinia this morning."

"Archaeologists have preliminarily determined that it dates back to between the third century BC and the first century AD. The Medusa-themed murals discovered inside are considered to be the most important archaeological discovery in the Mediterranean region in the last fifty years..."

puff!

Xu Ge stared at the screen, spitting out the drinking water he had just taken a sip.

He saw the stone snake and the stone slab in the middle; the image of Medusa coincided with what the owl had said.

[Not a buddy?]

Snapped!

The next moment, Xu Ge's eyes widened in shock, and the cup slipped from his hand and fell, scattering across the ground, but he didn't have time to clean it up.

Wait, didn't that stone snake move just now?!

Chapter Seventeen: Boss, guess what we dug up, meow!

Northwest coast of Sardinia, 9:40 a.m.

Sunlight streamed from outside the cave onto the stone walls, and the cultural heritage military police's cordon was swaying slightly outside the cave.

Inside the main chamber of the cave, several LED lights are illuminating the interior.

This is to facilitate archaeologists.

In addition, the flag of the Pontifical Council for Archaeology is prominently displayed on the support frame at the entrance passage.

The Pontifical Council for Archaeology is a specialized agency of the Holy See whose core responsibility is to protect, study, and maintain the monuments in Italy, particularly the catacombs of Rome.

It can be understood as a very special "national-level cultural relic protection unit", except that its jurisdiction is jointly confirmed by the Papacy and the Italian government through an agreement, and the main manager is the Papal States.

Dr. Marco Polo squatted beside the sarcophagus.

He was a stratigraphic consultant seconded from the University of Cagliari, and usually worked with the archaeological team.

After all, you can't do this job half-heartedly.

Looking at the mural in front of him, he slowly put down the flashlight.

"The mural is better preserved than expected. How could it be preserved so perfectly in a place like this?"

"Putting everything else aside, just look at the variations in thickness of these snake hair lines. This is not the work of an ordinary craftsman; it is absolutely the work of a master."

"That's ridiculous. If my colleagues knew, they would be green with envy."

"Hey buddy, can you adjust the color temperature of the light for me?"

Then he saw the snake and his eyes widened.

"Alessio! Keep up!"

Alessio picked up his camera and followed.

Generally speaking, when the Pontifical Archaeological Commission excavates caves, Italian national television stations like his would accompany them to record the excavations. In a sense, this is an old rule between the Papal States and Rome that has been in place for decades. Not to mention, he follows at least three or four such projects every year.

The reason for following up this time is very simple.

It's worth noting that the Medusa-themed murals are among the top three best-preserved archaeological sites in the Mediterranean.

He skillfully set up his equipment about twelve meters in front of the altar and locked the lens onto a stone slab.

The stone slab was placed in the very center of the altar's recess, and the Medusa carving on it was exquisite.

It looks just like the real thing.

They couldn't help but stare at it for almost a minute.

"This stone tablet is just too perfect."

As the focal length is continuously adjusted.

Then something that shouldn't have appeared appeared in his viewfinder.

The giant serpent sculpture on the stone wall, from the previous shot to the last, shows a wider spacing between the scales.

Alessio looked up from behind the viewfinder.

Look at the wall behind the altar with your naked eyes.

The stone snake that extended down from the cave ceiling had just coiled around a section of a perfect circle.

Is that round one now flat?

"Dr. Poirot."

His voice was very soft.

"Ah."

"PhD."

"what?"

"That snake."

Colombo turned his head.

"Were we a little too close to the altar just now?"

--------

Captain Calabresi is the commander of the Cultural Heritage Gendarmerie Unit.

He was standing at the entrance passage of the main chamber of the cave, with his back to the entire archaeological area.

Good archaeological work usually involves military police accompanying the team on the perimeter.

"Captain."

A young military policeman walked up to him, holding a satellite phone in his hand.

My voice is dry.

"The Roman side is asking if reinforcements are needed on site."

"Add what?"

"You'll see it in a moment, but don't be surprised. It seems there's a small problem with our live stream."

Calabresi picked up the phone, about to scold the military police for making a fuss.

"What else can live streaming be... Holy crap!"

On the live stream, the left eye of the stone snake on the wall was gradually opening.

Calabresi's coffee cup slipped from his hand.

Snapped!

"F*** it! It's so hot!"

The next moment, the snake raised its head.

The snake peels off the wall under the white light of LED lights.

Click!

Then the snake's body slowly slid down the stone wall.

The snake's eyes opened wide.

"Monster! Run!"

"Oh no, His Holiness the bishop is still in the fork in the road!"

"Run! Don't worry about the bishop for now! Trust that God will protect him."

Countless people began to desperately run towards the cave entrance.

The light from the miner's lamp flickered wildly, casting shadows on the stone wall.

Like a shadow puppet show that's out of control.

A young girl was still standing there.

She was an intern seconded to the Pontifical Council for Archaeology.

There's only one reason why she didn't move.

"My legs are weak, someone please help me up, waaaaah."

She lay on the ground, watching as the giant snake slowly turned its head toward the team member closest to the altar.

It did not open its mouth.

It simply turned its head to the side and looked at us with one vertical pupil.

----------

The exterior of the ruins.

"Rome, Rome, this is Calabresi!"

"The target inside the cave is not the statue! Repeat, the target is not the statue!"

"The target is a live, nearly twenty-meter-long serpentine creature! Maintaining a vigilant stance, it hasn't launched an attack yet. I need to seal off the entire area..."

The voice of the duty officer from the military police headquarters came through the satellite phone.

"Captain, how many people do you have on the scene right now?"

Calabresi turned to look at the people frantically running out of the main room from around him.

"Six military police, twelve archaeologists from the Pontifical Archaeological Commission, three film crew members from RAI, and..."

"Captain, our expedition is being broadcast live. Although not many people are watching, it will definitely be leaked."

"Notify the relevant departments as soon as possible to implement information blocking."

"There is still one question: why didn't the stone snake harm our archaeologists?"

"The snake's purpose was probably to protect that stone slab..."

As the two were talking, a girl supported by a military policeman spoke, her lips pale.

"I saw it..."

Calabresi pressed the satellite phone to his forehead, thought for a moment, and then spoke to the accompanying military police.

"Within this Sardinian territorial waters, the rock of this cave is Italian, and the contents inside should also be ours."

"Surround the entire area and then connect to the Ministry of National Defense."

Doodle.

"Boss, we think we've dug up something incredible!"

--------

Boom!

Inside the cave, Bishop Paul and the priest who was conducting archaeological work looked ahead in despair.

In fact, the Pontifical Council for Archaeology is of a higher status than one might imagine, and it even included cardinals in its history. Therefore, it is not uncommon for Paul to accompany an archaeological team as a bishop.

But Bishop Paul, who was in charge, did not expect to be so unlucky.

After the stone snake moved, it used its tail to completely block the entrance to the cave it was leaving.

Although there is the option of climbing over the other person.

But obviously no one dared to do that.

"Your Excellency, can we go back for dinner today?"

Chapter Eighteen: The Basilisk

Sardinia, temporary command tent of the cultural heritage gendarmerie.