第十九回：一去紫臺連朔漠
Chapter 19
“Sent forth from royal
palace into endless northern wastes”
地面一陣晃動，瞬即裂開一條大縫。一個從頭到腳都被一種非綢非布，卻又似金似石的白色織物裹住的人形，由地縫中升了上來。
The earth heaved and surged,
and instantly a large crevice split open.
A human shape arose from this crack, wrapped from head to toe in a kind
of woven material that was neither silk nor cloth, but very similar to gold or
stone in texture.
那人一張臉紅得像豬肝，兩條濃眉像是兩把尖刀，目光炯炯，殺氣騰騰。一出地面，那道縫隙立時回復原狀。
The man’s face was liverish
red, much like a pig’s liver, and his thick eyebrows were like two sharp
knives. His eyes glistened with a
murderous light. As soon as he
emerged from the ground, the crevice was immediately restored to its original
state.
那人一再打量文祥，最後說：「我看你不是天才就是白痴！我花了十幾天，才把這十一個鬼趕到這邊來。你一個人，就憑一張嘴，難道比大法王我還厲害？」
That man eyed Wen Xiang several times, saying at last, “Looks to me like
you’re either a genius or an idiot!
It took me more than 10 days to herd these 11 demons to this place. Do you mean to say that you, with your
clever speeches, are more capable than me, the First Lord?”
不是人對文祥說：「兄弟不是人，所以說話算話……」
Non-human said to Wen Xiang, “I’m non-human.
So I honor my word…”
大法王兩手一張，說：「沒有這麼便宜的事！誰都別想走！」
The First Lord thrust both
his hands outward and said, “You’re not getting out of this so easily! Nobody leaves!”
文祥說：「哦！原來你就是那殺人不眨眼的大法王！」
Wen Xiang
said, “Ah! So you’re the First Lord
who kills people without batting an eye!”
大法王哈哈笑道：「連你也聽過我的大名！」
The First Lord laughed and
said, “Even you have heard of my fame!”
文祥說：「是的，你知道那是很惡劣的名聲嗎？」
Wen Xiang
said, “Yes. Do you realize you have
a reputation for evil?”
大法王道：「什麼叫惡劣？有道是『人善被人欺，馬善被人騎。』你想想看，你那隻驢現在到哪裡去了？」
The First Lord said, “What
does ‘evil’ mean? As the saying
goes, ‘Good people are taken advantage of; just as good horses are
ridden.’ Think now. Where has your donkey gone?”
文祥問：「你和那隻驢有什麼關係？」
Wen Xiang
asked, “What’s that donkey have to do with you?”
大法王說：「哈哈！關係可大了！你要知道，雄驢跟雌馬雜交才有騾子，所以驢有一種不定性。若牠怕了你，牠就心甘情願地做隻騾子。一旦牠當權得勢，就會自以為是隻高頭大馬，除了馬屁精，牠只聽我的！」
The First Lord said, “Ha,
ha! A very close relationship! You have to understand that mules are
the offspring of a jackass and a mare.
So the donkey has some kind of uncertainty about him. If he fears you, he’ll be content to be
a mule. But once he gets the upper
hand, he’ll think he's a powerful horse.
Aside from those who flatter him, he only listens to me!”
文祥問：「為什麼？」
Wen Xiang
asked, “Why?”
大法王說：「這一帶的驢子都是我養的，我控制了牠們，就控制了整個區域！」
The First Lord said, “I
raise the donkeys in this area. If
I control them, I control the entire area!”
不是人恍然大悟：「怪不得，上次我們就是栽在驢子腳裡！」
Something suddenly occurred
to Non-human: “No wonder. The last
time we took a tumble was because of the donkey’s hooves!”
大法王冷笑道：「那只是驢刀小試！我要你們栽得屍骨無存！」
The First Lord laughed
coldly, “That was only a little test to see what you are capable of! I want you to have such a fall that
nothing will be left of you!”
文祥說：「我不懂，這種惡名又有什麼好爭的？」
Wen Xiang
said, “I don’t understand. What is
there about ill-fame of this nature that’s worth fighting for?”
大法王說：「我也不懂，除了這個惡名，還有什麼好爭的！」
The First Lord said, “I
don’t understand it, either.
Besides ill-fame, what else is there to fight for?”
文祥說：「爭些善名呀，我以往對自己姓文不覺得怎樣，漸漸的我以姓文為光榮了。為什麼？因為我有個值得驕傲的祖先－－文天祥，他在〈正氣歌〉中說：『天地有正氣，雜然賦流形……』」
Wen Xiang
said, “Fight for a good reputation.
I’ve never felt anything special about my own name, Wen. But gradually I’ve become proud of my
name. Why? Because I have an
ancestor who I’m proud of – Wen Tianxiang. In his work, ‘The Song of Moral Sense’ he said: ‘Between heaven and earth lies a
moral sense. It is distributed
among all things…’”
大法王連忙制止他：「我不懂你那一套！你知不知道？要爭善名實在太難了。」
The First Lord hurriedly
stopped him, “I don’t know anything about such things! Do you know how hard it is to win a good
reputation?”
文祥說：「我不知道，有什麼難處？」
Wen Xiang
said, “I don’t know. What’s so hard
about it?”
大法王說：「要克制自己，要關心別人，開玩笑！那樣活得有什麼意思？」
The First Lord said, “You
have to control yourself and care for others. That’s ridiculous! What kind of a life is that?”
文祥說：「我懂了，你喜歡在地縫裡鑽來鑽去！不喜歡見天日！」
Wen Xiang
said, “I see. You enjoy sneaking
about in the earth’s crevices! You
don’t like to face the sun!”
大法王說：「胡說！我是在施展神通法力！」
The First Lord said,
“Nonsense! I’m demonstrating my
transcendental powers!”
文祥說：「我見過紅教的神通，他們都是坐著飛雲梭，在天上來來去去！」
Wen Xiang
said, “I’ve witnessed the transcendental powers of the Red Sect. All of them take the Flying-cloud
Shuttle when they travel from place to place!”
大法王說：「那是因為他們當權，成者為王，敗者為寇！你連這個都不懂。」
The First Lord said, “That
was because they are in power. The
victorious become kings while the defeated become bandits! You don’t even understand this.”
文祥說：「現在我懂了，你喜歡失敗！」
Wen Xiang
said, “Now I do. You enjoy losing!”
大法王怒道：「渾蛋小子！你是活得不耐煩了！神經病才喜歡失敗。」
The First Lord said angrily,
“Idiot! You must be in a hurry to
die! Only a lunatic would enjoy
losing.”
文祥說：「那就奇怪了，我知道你們席克曾經有幾千人，甚至可以糾集上萬。只因為有些人不相信你，你就把他們全部咒殺了！」
Wen Xiang
said, “That’s odd. I know you Seeks
at one time were able to muster thousands, even ten thousands of
followers. Just because some people
didn’t believe in you, you used sorcery to slay them all!”
大法王說：「那是當然！唯有信我者能得永生！」
The First Lord said, “Of
course! Only those who believe in
me can achieve eternal life!”
文祥說：「那現在有多少人得到永生了？」
Wen Xiang
said, “So how many of them are immortal?”
大法王說：「目前嘛，還有五十多個！」
The First Lord said, “At
present, more than 50!”
文祥說：「據我所知，紅教至少有十萬個教徒，其中真正相信教主的大概只有九個，但是他卻當權了。大法王，你認為人家相信重要，還是成功重要呢？」
Wen Xiang
said, “According to my understanding, the Red Sect has at least 100,000
followers. Of these, there are
probably only 9 people who really have faith in the sect leader, but he is in
power. First
Lord, which is more important – the faith of others or success?”
大法王被駁得惱羞成怒，大喝：「當然相信我最重要！只要本法王爽就好！」
This argument was grating on
the nerves of the First Lord and he shouted, “Of course, belief in me is
paramount! As long as I, the Lord,
am happy, that’s enough!”
文祥說：「謝謝你，我總算又懂了一點。世界上就是免不了要有蟑螂、耗子，因為他們喜歡躲在黑暗裡，只顧自己爽！」
Wen Xiang
said, “Thank you. Now I understand
things a little bit better. It’s
unavoidable that cockroaches and rats exist in the world. That’s because they like to hide in the
dark concerned only for their own happiness!”
十一個鬼不約而同地鬼笑起來。
The 11 demons all burst out
laughing.
大法王怒目切齒，喝道：「你這個渾小子！法王我看你耳聞過本法王的鼎鼎大名，這才給你臭小子面子！」他架式一擺，提高了聲量，威脅道：「你給我說清楚，到底誰才是蟑螂？誰又是耗子？」
The First Lord’s eyes flared
with anger and he gnashed his teeth in hatred. He barked, “You stupid idiot! I, the Lord, know that you’ve heard of
my great reputation so, you little twerp, I treated you with respect!” Striking a pose, he raised his voice and
threatened, “Explain it to me: in the final analysis, who is the cockroach and
who is the rat?”
文祥靜靜地說：「蟑螂、耗子不過是惡名昭彰的象徵，誰要做誰去做。」
Wen Xiang
said quietly, “Cockroaches and rats are clearly nothing but symbols for a bad
name. Who ever wants
to be like that can go right ahead.”
眾鬼大樂，七嘴八舌地說：「我們還差一個惡煞鬼，你來充充數吧！」
The demons were
overjoyed. In a confusion of voices
they said, “We still need a Cruel Demon.
Why don’t you fill in?”
大法王實在無法忍受這種羞辱，口舌上辯不過，這個臉又丟不起。急切間只得施展大搬移法，他一拍繫在腰間的小盒子，頃刻間狂風大作，黑雲銜日，一陣陣飛砂颳在眾人臉上身上，打得皮肉隱隱生痛。
The First Lord couldn’t
tolerate this kind of humiliation.
He couldn’t out-debate them and he couldn’t afford to lose face. In his impatience he had no choice but
to perform the Grand Shifting Spell.
He patted a small container tied to his waist. Instantly a windstorm materialized and
black clouds swallowed the sun. Waves of flying sand beat upon everyone’s
face and body, pummeling their flesh until it hurt.
文娃在文祥耳邊說：「不要理他，他們另外有一套超級電腦，但是能量有限。我們都安排妥當，已經查出他們的大本營了，希望這次能把席克人一網打盡，統統送到金星煉獄去。你千萬要忍耐，不到時機成熟，我們是不會出手的。」
文祥四週冒出了一幢金色電離光罩，絲毫不為狂風所動。幾個鬼怪則擠在一堆，身邊放出熒熒鬼火頡頏。只有馬立大最可憐，早已被暴風颳得東倒西歪。
A gold-colored ion shield,
impervious to the buffeting winds, emerged to enclose Wen Xiang. A few demons crowded together, emitting
a flickering will-o’-the-wisp as a means of resisting the attack. Only Ma Lida
was the most miserable. He was already
staggering under the force of the buffeting wind.
文祥試著向馬立大走去，發覺竟然行動無礙。等他走到馬立大身邊，光幢也把他罩在其中。馬立大站穩後，立刻又兩腿跪地，口呼：「大老爺、神仙、活菩薩！小人有眼不識泰山，求求菩薩救小人上天吧！」
Wen Xiang
tried to walk over to Ma Lida and discovered that he
had no trouble moving. When he reached
Ma Lida, his light shield extended to include Ma as
well. After Ma Lida
could stand on steady feet, he immediately knelt to the ground again, and
shouted, “Master, Immortal, Living Bodhisattva! This humble man has eyes but didn’t
recognize your magnitude. Please,
Bodhisattva. Save this humble man
and take him to heaven!”
文祥忙把他拉起來，說：「哪有什麼菩薩，我只是有電腦保護罷了。」
Wen Xiang
hurriedly pulled him up and said, “What Bodhisattva? I only have the protection of the
computer.”
馬立大看看左腕上的電腦，說：「那我的為什麼不保護我？」
Ma Lida
looked at the computer on his left wrist and said, “Then why doesn’t mine
protect me?”
文祥說：「不是他不保護你，是你平常沒有下功夫去學習他，瞭解他，一旦要用他，就難溝通了。」
Wen Xiang
said, “It’s not that it doesn’t protect you. It’s because you usually don’t spend any
time either learning from it or about it.
Then one day when you want to use it, it’s hard for you to understand
one another.”
正說著，風暴漸漸平息，四週卻是一片烏黑。又過一會，視線漸漸恢復，文祥四下張望，發現自己好像在一個山洞裡，十一個鬼不知到哪裡去了，身邊只有馬立大一人。他迴身四望，後面洞口有道光線透過來，往前則是一片黯黮，不知還有多深。
As they were talking, the
windstorm lessened, bit by bit. All
around them was darkness. After a
while they gradually recovered their vision. Wen Xiang
looked around and discovered that he seemed to be in a cave. The 11 demons were nowhere to be seen
and only Ma Lida was at his side. He turned to look behind him and saw a
stream of light flash by the mouth of the cave. Ahead of him was a curtain of
darkness. He couldn’t tell how
deeply the cave penetrated.
馬立大不相信自己的眼睛：「怎麼到這裡來了？是幻境吧？」
Ma Lida
couldn’t believe his own eyes. “How did we get here? Surely it’s an illusion?”
文祥說：「不是，席克人有他們自己的電腦系統，剛才是利用能量空間的轉移技術，這是物理現象，不是幻境。」
Wen Xiang
said, “No. The Seeks have their own computer system. Just now, they employed the technique
of changing energy into space, which is a phenomenon of physics, and not an
illusion.”
說著，文祥轉身往洞口走去。馬立大跟在後面，緊張地說：「他能作空間轉移，那我們怎麼辦？」
As he spoke, Wen Xiang turned about and walked towards the cave
entrance. Ma Lida
followed him and nervously said, “If he can transfer space, what can we do?”
文祥說：「怕什麼？大不了一死！」
Wen Xiang
said, “What are you afraid of? The
very worst that can happen is we’ll be killed!"
馬立大哭喪著臉，說：「我怎麼能死呢？我還沒有活夠呀！」
Ma Lida
said with a mournful face. “How can
I die? I haven’t lived enough!”
文祥說：「那等會兒大法王來，你求他饒命就是！」
Wen Xiang
said, “Then when the First Lord shows up later, just beg him for your life!”
馬立大有點懷疑，問：「他會饒我嗎？」
Ma Lida
asked doubtfully, “Will he spare me?”
文祥說：「會的，哪個人相信他，他就對哪個人好！」
Wen Xiang
said, “Yes. He is nice to whoever
believes in him!”
馬立大說：「真的？」
Ma Lida
said, “Really?”
文祥說：「當然，誰不是這樣呢？他只是心口如一而已！」
Wen Xiang
said, “Of course. Who isn’t like
that? He says what’s on his mind!”
二人已經走到洞口，一道欄柵橫擋在洞前，柵門早已深鎖。
The two of them reached the
mouth of the cave where a fence blocked the entrance. The fence gate was already locked.
洞外顯然是一個仄峽，山形陡峭，上不見天日。文祥見兩旁壁直石壘，苔綠蘚肥，棘蕨羊齒之屬相互攀援。由山洞望出去，距離對面山腳不過三四百公尺，洞口有一條黃泥小路向右上延伸，左邊則斜行逶迤而下。
Beyond the cave there was
unmistakably a narrow gorge. The
terrain was so rugged that it was impossible to see the sun overhead. Wen Xiang
noted the tall and straight walls on both sides, covered with green moss and
flourishing lichen. Thorny brambles, ferns, and plants such as the bracken,
entwined with one another. Looking
out from the cave, the foot of the mountain directly opposite them was only 3
or 4 hundreds meters away. Outside
the mouth of the cave, a muddy trail stretched
upwards to the right and circled downward to the
left.
馬立大對著洞外大叫：「救命！救命啊！」
Ma Lida
shouted from the cave mouth, “Help!
Help!”
空谷回音陣陣，救命之聲不絕於耳，半晌始息。
Echoes resounded in the
empty valley, a cry for help ringing in the ear for a long while before dying
out.
「叫有什麼用？這十里之內荒無人煙。」一個蒼老的聲音從後面傳過來。
“What’s the use of
shouting? There’s
no people around within 10 li.” An elderly
voice came from behind them.
文祥回頭一看，一個鬚髮蓬鬆，衣冠不整的老者，拄著一根木棍，緩緩自璇室深處走出來。馬立大驚問道：「你是誰？」
Wen Xiang
turned to look and saw an old man with unkempt hair and rumpled appearance, was
holding a wooden staff as he slowly emerged from the recess of a hidden
room. Ma Lida
was surprised and asked, “Who are you?”
「你管我是誰！你們是怎麼進來的？」
“Never mind who I
am! How did you get in here?”
文祥說：「我們是被席克的大法王關進來的。」
Wen Xiang
said, “We were thrown in here by the First Lord of the Seeks.”
「唉！還好，有指望！」
“Ah! That was fortunate. There’s hope!”
「有什麼指望？」
“What hope?”
「洞裡還有好些人，都是被大法王抓來的，幸而法王沒有死。」
“There are still many
people in the cave who were seized by the First Lord. Fortunately, the First Lord isn’t dead.”
「就算他還活著，你也出不去！」又一個老人的聲音從裡面傳來。
“Even if he's still
alive, you’ll never get out of here!”, came another
old voice from inside the cave.
「至少我還有希望。」
“At least I still have
hope.”
「什麼希望？多挨一天，多受一天罪！」裡面又走出來一位老者，卻是一位老嫗。
“What hope? One more day of life just means another
day of suffering!” Another old
person emerged, an old woman.
「萬一他真的死了，那永遠不會有人知道我們在這裡，受的罪更慘！」
“If he’s really dead,
then no one will ever know we’re here.
We’ll be still more miserable!”
「萬一他死了，就再也不會害人了！」
“If he dies, he’ll
never again harm anyone else!”
這時文娃對文祥說：「別理他們，門一推就開了，出去後記得趕緊向右轉，到第六個山洞，快走！快走！」
At this moment,
文祥一推門，果然「卡叉」一聲，鐵鎖斷裂，門呀然而開。兩個老人高興得大叫，文祥顧不得許多，出了洞口就往右邊跑。這裡是上坡，文祥正要數洞竅，扭頭一看，發覺崖壁上穴競門紛，大大小小的洞穴竟然不下數百個。
Wen Xiang
pushed the door. Indeed, with one
“clink”, the iron lock was broken and the door screeched open. The two old people exclaimed with
delight. Wen Xiang
had no time for anything else and soon as he reached the cave entrance, he ran
to the right. It was uphill going
at this point. Just as Wen Xiang was getting ready to count the caves, he turned his
head to look and discovered that there were countless openings on the
cliffs. Big and small, there must
have been no fewer than several hundred.
文祥忙問：「哪個山洞？」
Wen Xiang
asked hurriedly, “Which one?”
文娃說：「第六個。」
「從哪裡算起？」
“Where do I start
counting?”
「從出來的洞口數起。」
“From the cave you
came out from.”
「上面的算不算？」
“How
about the ones on top?”
「你怎麼啦？」
“What’s wrong with
you?
「妳才怎麼啦？妳看看這裡有多少洞？要多大才算山洞？」
“What’s wrong with
YOU? Look at how many caves there
are. How big an opening is
considered as a cave?”
文娃停頓了一下，她每停頓一秒鐘，就代表重新運算了數十億次。只有在重要的關頭才會有這種情況發生。過了幾秒，文娃才說：「謝謝你，如今你又幫我們解除了一個重大的難題。」
「什麼難題？」
“What problem?”
「我們一直很奇怪，為什麼和人類這麼難溝通，就像這『第六個山洞』，再明確不過了！你這一說我們才發現，很多事根本不可能用語言表明。比如這句話中，『第六個』沒有定義明白，『山洞』也沒有講清楚。想必人溝通時，也只是各說各話，講的人未必清楚，聽的人也不見得明白。究竟要怎樣定義這第六個洞呢？我們的結論是－－一切要靠自己去瞭解。」
“We’d always wondered
why it was so difficult to communicate with humans. Just like this ‘sixth cave’. It couldn’t be any clearer! But after what you just said we realized
that many things are impossible to describe by the spoken word. For example, in this sentence, ‘the
sixth’ is not clearly defined, nor is the meaning of ‘cave’. It can only be that when people seek to
communicate with one another, each speaks only their own language. The one speaking doesn’t necessarily
understand his own words and the listener doesn’t necessarily understand what
the speaker is talking about. So,
in the end, how does one define this sixth entrance? Our conclusion is – everything must
depend on the individual’s willingness to understand.”
難得聽文娃這樣長篇大論的演說，文祥知道她正在學習判斷：「恭喜了，妳不是要我趕快過來嗎？怎麼講起道理來了？」
It was rare to hear
「其實是叫你來看熱鬧，這裡就是席克人的大本營，有兩百三十三具各式機器人。大法王一幫人正在跟群鬼打架，到他們要下毒手時，就可以通通送去金星監獄了。」
“Actually, I called
you over to watch the excitement.
This is the Seek headquarters.
There are 233 robots of various styles. The First Lord and his men are fighting
with a group of demons. When the
time comes for them to kill, all of them will be sent to the prison on Venus.”
「妳這是陰謀！」
“This is conspiracy!”
「那我該怎麼辦？像你剛剛那樣，跟法王講道理去？」
“In that case, what
would you have me do? Reason with
the Lord like you did with him just now?”
「不必，要抓就抓，還要等他們下手？」
“No. If you want to catch them, go ahead and
do it. Why must you wait for them
to kill?”
「當然，在法律上，只有犯意是不夠的。就像水果一樣，要臭了才能算爛！」
“Of
course. By law, the mere
intention to commit a crime is not enough.
It’s just like fruit. It
isn’t considered rotten until it begins to smell!”
「算了吧！這些事我沒有興趣。」
“Never
mind! I’m not interested in
such things.”
「可是，有件事與你有關。」
“But there’s something
that does concern you.”
「什麼事？」
“What is it?”
「你往前面走，看到裡面有閃光的洞，進去就是，快些，再晚就來不及了。」
“Proceed straight
ahead. When you see a cave with a
flashing light inside, just go in. Hurry, or you’ll be too late.”
文祥感覺到後面有東西在動，回頭一看，原來在他與文娃談話時，身後已站了十幾個男女。那些人靜靜地等著，直到文祥轉身，這才一個個撲倒在地，恩公仙佛地喊個不停。文祥哪裡見過這種陣仗，連忙拉起身前的老人，對他們說：「各位請趕快起來，你們已經脫離牢籠，還不趕快逃回去？」
Wen Xiang
felt something was stirring behind him.
He turned to look, and discovered that while he had been talking to
老人不肯起身，說：「恩公有所不知，大法王手段高強，我們不敢擅自離開。」
The old man wouldn’t get
up. He said, “Benefactor, you don’t
understand. The First Lord is very
powerful. We don’t dare leave
without permission.”
「快起來，快起來，」他一再催促，那些人才一一爬起。文祥又問老人：「你們是怎麼被捉來的？」
“Get up, get up.” After several urgings and they rose one
by one. Wen Xiang
asked the old man again. “Why were
you captured?”
「我們都是附近安分守己的居民，幾天以前，大法王突然出現了，不由分說的就把我們拘禁在這裡。」
“We are all
law-abiding residents from around this area. A few days ago, the First Lord suddenly
showed up and for no apparent reason, locked us up in this place.”
「你們就放心回去吧，大法王即將敗亡了。」
“Go home, then. Don’t worry. The First Lord will soon be destroyed.”
「謝謝恩公。」那些人還是恭立不動。
“Thank
you, benefactor.” Though
they remained respectful, they didn’t move.
「你們走吧！我還有事。」
“Go! I still have some business to do.”
「謝謝恩公。」那些人好似兩腳生根了。
“Thank you, benefactor.” Those people seemed to be rooted to the
spot.
文祥沒轍了，只好自顧自往前走。他每走一步，那些人就跟一步，遠遠看去就像一條蠕動的蜈蚣。
Not knowing what else to do,
Wen Xiang moved ahead. With every step he took, the people
behind him also took a step. From a
distance they must have seemed like a crawling centipede.
「你們不要跟來，我是去找法王打架的！」文祥急了，只好隨口胡說。沒想到這句話真管用，那些人一聽到文祥是尋釁去的，再也沒有人敢跟過來了。
“Don’t follow me. I’m going to fight the Lord!” Wen Xiang was
becoming exasperated so he had to think of something to say. Unexpectedly these words actually
worked. As soon as they heard Wen Xiang say he was going to look for trouble, no one dared to
follow.
這一陣子耽擱，文娃又說話了：「來不及了，你站在這裡不要動，為了避免傷亡，我們決定馬上把他們送到金星去，太空船就要發動了。」
After this delay,
話才說完，就見前面數十公尺處火花迸放，一團烈火從地殼猛竄出來。緊接著一聲沸天震地的爆炸，霎時地震山移，眼前砂石橫飛。那餘熱形成的焚風被山勢一逼，已順著山谷狂掃而來。文祥趕忙臥倒，後面的人大多閃避不及，一個個被吹得東搖西倒。
She had no sooner finished
speaking, when several dozen meters ahead of them a shower of sparks shot
forth. A bolt of scorching flame
suddenly erupted from the earth’s crust, followed by an explosion that rocked
both heaven and earth. In the blink
of an eye, the earth shook and mountains shifted. Right before their very eyes sand and
stone flew in all directions.
Following the mountainous terrain, a gust of foehn, formed by the remaining
heat, came gushing toward them from out of the valley. Wen Xiang
quickly dropped to the ground, but for most of those behind him there was no
time to hide, and each of them was sent staggering and sprawling.
就在這時，一支火箭夾著熊熊的烈焰，從地底緩緩升起，一離開地面，火箭突然加速，眼前紅光一閃，轉瞬即消失在雲空中。
At this time, a rocket,
together with a burning flame, slowly rose from underground. As soon as it cleared the earth’s
surface, the rocket abruptly accelerated.
Before their eyes, a red light flashed and in an instant had vanished
into the sky.
文娃又說：「我發覺有你在場，便多一道緩衝，可以讓他們多吐露一些真相。可惜你來晚了，與你有關的那件事也查不出來了。」
「什麼事與我有關？」
“What case?”
「大法王來這裡的目的，是要搶奪衣紅由金頂寺帶出來的硅長石……」
“The reason for the
First Lord to come here was to snatch the felsite Yi Hong took from
the Golden Roof Monastery…”
「搶到了沒有？」文祥急問。
“Did he get it?” Wen Xiang
hurriedly asked.
「沒有，他只捉住了幾個人……」
“No. He just captured several people…”
「是誰？」
“Who are they?”
「我沒有查出來。」
“I didn’t find out.”
「為什麼查不出來？」文祥急了。
“Why
not?” Wen Xiang was becoming anxious.
「他們在打架呀！有誰邊打架邊聊天？」
“They were
fighting! Who would chat while
fighting?”
「現在怎麼辦？」
“Now
what?”
「你急有什麼用？這些人都送走了，怎麼查？」
“What’s the use of
getting upset? These people were
sent away. How can I check?”
「你們可以在太空船上審問呀！」
“You can question them
on the spaceship!”
「那是違法的，嫌犯在沒有正式受審以前，是不能接受訊問的。」
“That’s illegal. Suspects can’t be questioned before
their case has been officially brought to court.”
「那總可以監聽吧？」
“You can at least
monitor their communications.”
「又沒有人問，他們怎麼會說？」
“If no one asks, why
would they say anything?”
文祥看看那些剛從洞裡逃出來的人，彼此正交頭接耳，猜測剛才的變局，臉上都有幾分慶幸之色。
Wen Xiang
looked at those who had just escaped from the cave and saw they were murmuring
to one another, trying to guess what had happened just now. They all looked delighted.
文祥走過去，找到那個披頭散髮的老頭，說：「現在你們可以放心了，大法王被送到金星監獄去了！」
Wen Xiang
walked over, and finding the old man with disheveled hair said, “Now you can
cease your worry. The First Lord
has been sent to the prison on Venus!”
「金星監獄？」
“The
prison on Venus?”
「那是拘禁危險囚犯的地方。」
“That’s where
dangerous prisoners are locked up.”
老人大喜，問：「他那些嘍囉呢？」
The old man was
delighted and asked, “How about his gang of riffraff?”
「放心，統統送走了，還包括都陽十一鬼。」
“Don’t worry. They’re all gone, including the Eleven
Demons of Duyang.”
眾人聽了，莫不歡欣鼓舞，額手稱慶，一個個連跑帶跳，都趕著要回家。文祥忙一把抓住那老者，說：「先不要走，我還有話問你。」
When the crowd heard this,
there wasn’t one of them who didn’t dance for joy as they congratulated one
another. One by one, leaping and
running, they hastened homeward.
Wen Xiang quickly grabbed the old man with one
hand and said, “Wait, I still have some questions.”
老者一面掙扎，一面說：「放開我，讓我走！」
The old man struggled and
said, “Let go. Let me go!”
文祥說：「你別急，我只問你一句話！」
Wen Xiang
said, “Don’t be in a hurry. I only
want to ask you one question!”
那位老婦已經跑開了十幾公尺，見老頭沒有跟上來，回頭大叫：「老伴，快呀！」
That old woman was already
several dozen meters away. When she
discovered the old man wasn’t following her, she turned around and shouted,
“Old man, quick!”
就在這一剎，腳步快的人早跑得無影無蹤了，老者不住地哀求：「恩公，放了我吧！求求你，讓我走吧！」
By now those quick of foot
were long gone. The old man kept
pleading, “Benefactor, please let me go!
Let me go, please!”
文祥不想為難他，手一鬆，老頭跌跌撞撞地趕上老婦人，兩人相互攙扶，急急忙忙往山下跑去。
Wen Xiang
didn’t want to make it difficult for him so he relaxed his grip. Stumbling and bumping, the old man
caught up with the old woman.
Supporting one another, they quickly scurried down the hill.
文祥看看四週，只剩下馬立大和自己，兩個人孤零零地站在山坡上。
Wen Xiang
looked around him and discovered that only he and Ma Lida
were left. The two of them stood
alone on the mountain slope.
馬立大說：「大爺，我們不是在做夢吧？」
Ma Lida
said, “Sir, we’re not dreaming, are we?”
文祥說：「不是，至少不是做惡夢。」
Wen Xiang
said, “No. At least it wasn’t a
nightmare.”
「那些壞人真的都送走了？」
“Have those bad guys really
been sent away?”
「大概吧！」
“Perhaps!”
「我們能不能找些證據呢？」
“Could we find some
proof?”
「做什麼？」
“For
what?”
「好回去表功呀！當然，這完全是您的功勞！」
“So we can claim
credit when we go back! Of course,
all the credit should go to you!”
「這不是我的功勞，我也不要什麼功勞。」
“This wasn’t due to my
effort and I don’t want any credit.”
「當然，您已經是神仙、菩薩了。可是，我是個可憐人，我只要回去跟別人講，說我看到您大發神威，這我就沾光啦！」
“Of
course. You’re already an
immortal, a Bodhisattva. But I’m a
pitiful man. I just want to go back
and tell people that I saw you demonstrate the might of Heaven. That alone will allow me to share in
your reflected glory!”
文祥真不知該如何回答，讓他去吧，只要不給自己添麻煩就好。於是他向馬立大說：「證據是沒有的，你快回去吧，你怎麼說都可以，但是不許提我，聽見沒有？」
Wen Xiang
really didn’t know what to say. Let
him do it then. As
long as he won’t get him in trouble. So he said to Ma Lida,
“There’s no evidence. Go back
now. You may say whatever you
like. But you should never mention
me, do you hear?”
馬立大懷疑地問：「怎麼能不提您呢？這降鬼伏魔，都是您的本事呀！」
Ma Lida
asked suspiciously, “How can I not mention you? It was your power that subdued the
ghosts and demons!”
文祥只好說：「我是奉天命下凡來除妖的，給凡人知道就麻煩了！」
Wen Xiang
had no choice but to say, “It was by Heaven’s command that I was sent into this
world to remove evil. If mortals find
out about it, it’ll mean trouble for me!”
馬立大眼珠一轉，說：「那我可以冒充一下嗎？如果菩薩您同意的話！」
Ma Lida
shifted his glance and said, “Then, could I pretend to be you for a bit? That is, if it’s o.k. with you,
Bodhisattva!”
文祥說：「完全同意，欣然同意，你快去吧！」
Wen Xiang
said, “I totally agree; I happily agree.
Run along now!”
馬立大喜出望外，跪下去連磕了十幾個頭，這才辨明方向，往山下走去。
Ma Lida
was delighted beyond all his expectations.
He knelt and kowtowed a dozen times. Then after getting his bearings he
proceeded down the mountain.
文祥對文娃說：「現在只剩下我們了，別告訴我妳不認識路。」
Wen Xiang
said to
文娃說：「只要我願意，地球上每一粒沙在哪裡我都知道。」
「那我該往哪邊走？」
“So which way shall I
go?”
「要看你的目的而定，沒有目的就無從判斷。」
“It depends on your
goal. Without a goal there’s no way
to decide.”
「我的目的是查出被大法王監禁的人，妳不知道吧？」
“My goal is to find
out the whereabouts of those who were imprisoned by the First Lord. You wouldn’t know that, would you?”
「我不知道。」
“No, I don’t.”
「這不是矛盾嗎？妳剛剛才說地球上每一粒沙你都知道。」
“Isn’t that a
contradiction? You just said you
know every grain of sand on Earth.”
「是的，可是人的事情，二○二四有協定在先，我不能多管。」
“Yes. But according to the agreement of 2024,
I can’t get involved in human affairs.”
「你不是不再墨守成規了嗎？」
“Weren’t you going to
stop sticking to routine?”
「我發覺墨守成規容易多了。」
“I find it’s much
easier to stick to precedent.”
「看我的面子，妳就破例一次吧！」
“For my sake, make an
exception just this once!”
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