〈Parallel Universes〉 平行時空

16、〈隱士之書〉
1︰書店與古書
黃志華是市中心一家書店的年輕店員。書店開在鬧市的一條狹窄街巷裡，外牆的紅磚已經風化剝落，仿佛在低語著過去的繁華。志華喜歡這裡的寧靜，特別是當他在書堆中獨自整理時，彷彿進入了另一個世界。
某個陰雨綿綿的午後，店長讓他清理地下倉庫中那些落滿灰塵的舊書。在書架最底層的陰影裡，他發現了一本泛黃斑駁的古書，封皮上印著銀色字跡：《隱士之書》。
翻開書頁，紙張已經變得脆弱，像風乾的樹葉。書中記載的是一種失落已久的隱士哲學，探討著宇宙與自我之間的神秘聯繫，以及通往「至善之境」的修行之道。
志華無法抑制自己的好奇心，這本書的內容似乎在呼喚他。

2︰ 隱士之地
在閱讀中，志華得知隱士哲學的源頭來自於一位名叫「應無愁」的隱士，他隱居在某個遙遠的山谷中，拒絕所有的訪客，只與真正渴求真理之人對話。
志華下定決心前往那個山谷，試圖尋找應無愁。
旅途中，他遇見了幾個重要的角色：
林婉君——一位精通占星術的女子，她預言志華的旅途將充滿試煉與抉擇。
郭子龍——一位自稱曾見過應無愁的老者，卻因為自己未能通過試煉而悔恨不已。
黑衣人——總在暗處監視志華，似乎別有目的。
志華經歷了荒原、密林、冰川與火山的交替，漸漸明白這段旅程不僅僅是對隱士的追尋，更是對自身內心的探索。

3︰應無愁
在一處幽靜的山谷中，志華終於找到了應無愁。這位隱士是個銀髮老人，面容平和，眼神卻如深海般難以窺探。
應無愁告訴志華：「智慧並非來自書本，而是從內心的探索。你的旅途雖然漫長，但真正的修行才剛剛開始。」
志華在隱士的指引下，學會了如何從內心中尋找答案，而不是依賴書本或外在的知識。隱士教導他的，不是具體的技藝，而是一種「無為而有為」的智慧。

4︰回歸
回到都市後，志華放下了對書本的執著，轉而專注於自己的內在修行。他開始寫下自己的心得，並將這些經驗分享給那些渴望找到自我的人。
書店裡，他重新翻閱《隱士之書》，卻發現書中的字跡正在逐漸消失，仿佛這本書本來就是為了引導他找到應無愁而存在的。
就在這時，黑衣人出現在書店中。
「看來你已經完成了這趟旅程。」黑衣人低聲說，露出一抹詭異的笑容。

5︰ 意想不到的反轉
黑衣人揭露自己真正的身份——正是應無愁。所謂的山谷和隱士，從來都不存在，一切都是應無愁為了測試志華而設下的幻境。
「真正的智慧，從來不在遠方，而是你面對幻象時的抉擇。」應無愁淡淡地說道。
原來，旅途中所有的奇幻景象與人物，皆是應無愁透過書中哲學引導志華所產生的心靈投影。林婉君、郭子龍、乃至於隱士的身影，都是他內心各個部分的化身。
志華驚訝卻又豁然開朗。
應無愁離去後，書店重新恢復平靜，彷彿從未發生過任何事情。
黃志華將《隱士之書》收入書店的深處，卻知道真正的隱士之書，已經在他的心中展開。

16. “The Hermit’s Book”

### 1: The Bookstore and the Ancient Book

Huang Zhihua is a young clerk at a bookstore in the center of the city. The bookstore is located in a narrow alley in a busy part of the city, and the red bricks on its exterior walls have weathered and peeled away, as if whispering of the prosperity of the past. Zhihua enjoys the tranquility here, especially when he is alone organizing the stacks of books, as if he has entered another world.

One rainy afternoon, the store manager asked him to clean out the old books covered in dust in the basement storage room. In the shadows at the very bottom of a bookshelf, he discovered a yellowed and weathered ancient book. Silver lettering was printed on its cover: “The Hermit’s Book.”

When he opened the book, the pages had become fragile, like dried leaves. The book recorded a long-lost hermit philosophy that explored the mysterious connection between the universe and the self, as well as the path of cultivation leading to “the realm of supreme goodness.”

Zhihua could not suppress his curiosity. The contents of the book seemed to be calling out to him.

### 2: The Land of the Hermit

Through reading the book, Zhihua learned that the origin of the hermit philosophy could be traced to a hermit named Ying Wuchou. He lived in seclusion in a distant valley, refused all visitors, and spoke only with those who truly yearned for the truth.

Zhihua made up his mind to travel to that valley in search of Ying Wuchou.

During his journey, he encountered several important characters:

**Lin Wanjun**—a woman skilled in astrology who predicted that Zhihua’s journey would be filled with trials and choices.

**Guo Zilong**—an old man who claimed to have once seen Ying Wuchou, yet was filled with regret because he had failed to pass the trials.

**The Man in Black**—someone who was always watching Zhihua from the shadows, seemingly with an ulterior motive.

Zhihua traveled through alternating wastelands, dense forests, glaciers, and volcanoes, gradually realizing that this journey was not merely a search for the hermit, but also an exploration of his own inner self.

### 3: Ying Wuchou

In a secluded valley, Zhihua finally found Ying Wuchou. The hermit was a silver-haired old man with a peaceful expression, yet his eyes were as unfathomable as the deep sea.

Ying Wuchou told Zhihua, “Wisdom does not come from books. It comes from exploring your own heart. Your journey has been long, but true cultivation has only just begun.”

Under the hermit’s guidance, Zhihua learned how to search within himself for answers instead of relying on books or external knowledge. What the hermit taught him was not a specific skill, but a kind of wisdom: “doing nothing, yet accomplishing everything.”

### 4: The Return

After returning to the city, Zhihua let go of his obsession with books and instead focused on cultivating his inner self. He began writing down his insights and sharing these experiences with those who longed to find themselves.

In the bookstore, he reopened “The Hermit’s Book,” only to discover that the words within it were gradually disappearing, as if the book had existed from the very beginning solely to guide him to Ying Wuchou.

At that moment, the Man in Black appeared in the bookstore.

“It seems you have completed this journey,” the Man in Black said in a low voice, revealing a strange smile.

### 5: The Unexpected Reversal

The Man in Black revealed his true identity—he was Ying Wuchou himself. The so-called valley and the hermit had never existed. Everything had been an illusion created by Ying Wuchou to test Zhihua.

“True wisdom has never been in some distant place. It lies in the choices you make when facing illusions,” Ying Wuchou said calmly.

It turned out that all the fantastical sights and characters Zhihua encountered during his journey were projections of his own mind, brought forth by Ying Wuchou through the philosophy in the book. Lin Wanjun, Guo Zilong, and even the image of the hermit were all manifestations of different parts of his inner self.

Zhihua was astonished, yet at the same time, everything suddenly became clear to him.

After Ying Wuchou left, the bookstore returned to tranquility, as if nothing had ever happened.

Huang Zhihua placed “The Hermit’s Book” deep inside the bookstore, yet he knew that the true Hermit’s Book had already unfolded within his heart.