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第55章

the return of tarzan-第55章

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and the dungeon in which he had been hidden?



As the moon crossed the opening of the shaft its light

flooded the whole interior; and then Tarzan saw directly

across from him another opening in the opposite wall。

He wondered if this might not be the mouth of a passage

leading to possible escape。  It would be worth investigating;

at least; and this he determined to do。



Quickly returning to the wall he had demolished to

explore what lay beyond it; he carried the stones into the

passageway and replaced them from that side。  The deep deposit

of dust which he had noticed upon the blocks as he

had first removed them from the wall had convinced him

that even if the present occupants of the ancient pile had

knowledge of this hidden passage they had made no use of

it for perhaps generations。



The wall replaced; Tarzan turned to the shaft; which was

some fifteen feet wide at this point。  To leap across the

intervening space was a small matter to the ape…man; and a

moment later he was proceeding along a narrow tunnel;

moving cautiously for fear of being precipitated into another

shaft such as he had just crossed。



He had advanced some hundred feet when he came to a

flight of steps leading downward into Stygian gloom。

Some twenty feet below; the level floor of the tunnel

recommenced; and shortly afterward his progress was stopped

by a heavy wooden door which was secured by massive wooden

bars upon the side of Tarzan's approach。  This fact suggested

to the ape…man that he might surely be in a passageway

leading to the outer world; for the bolts; barring progress

from the opposite side; tended to substantiate this hypothesis;

unless it were merely a prison to which it led。



Along the tops of the bars were deep layers of dusta further

indication that the passage had lain long unused。  As he

pushed the massive obstacle aside; its great hinges shrieked

out in weird protest against this unaccustomed disturbance。

For a moment Tarzan paused to listen for any responsive

note which might indicate that the unusual night

noise had alarmed the inmates of the temple; but as he heard

nothing he advanced beyond the doorway。



Carefully feeling about; he found himself within a large

chamber; along the walls of which; and down the length of

the floor; were piled many tiers of metal ingots of an odd

though uniform shape。  To his groping hands they felt not

unlike double…headed bootjacks。  The ingots were quite

heavy; and but for the enormous number of them he would

have been positive that they were gold; but the thought of

the fabulous wealth these thousands of pounds of metal

would have represented were they in reality gold; almost

convinced him that they must be of some baser metal。



At the far end of the chamber he discovered another

barred door; and again the bars upon the inside renewed

the hope that he was traversing an ancient and forgotten

passageway to liberty。  Beyond the door the passage ran

straight as a war spear; and it soon became evident to

the ape…man that it had already led him beyond the outer

walls of the temple。  If he but knew the direction it was

leading him!  If toward the west; then he must also be

beyond the city's outer walls。



With increasing hopes he forged ahead as rapidly as he

dared; until at the end of half an hour he came to another

flight of steps leading upward。  At the bottom this

flight was of concrete; but as he ascended his naked feet

felt a sudden change in the substance they were treading。

The steps of concrete had given place to steps of granite。

Feeling with his hands; the ape…man discovered that these

latter were evidently hewed from rock; for there was no

crack to indicate a joint。



For a hundred feet the steps wound spirally up; until at a

sudden turning Tarzan came into a narrow cleft between

two rocky walls。  Above him shone the starry sky; and before

him a steep incline replaced the steps that had terminated

at its foot。  Up this pathway Tarzan hastened; and at

its upper end came out upon the rough top of a huge

granite bowlder。



A mile away lay the ruined city of Opar; its domes and

turrets bathed in the soft light of the equatorial moon。

Tarzan dropped his eyes to the ingot he had brought away

with him。  For a moment he examined it by the moon's bright

rays; then he raised his head to look out upon the ancient

piles of crumbling grandeur in the distance。



〃Opar;〃 he mused; 〃Opar; the enchanted city of a dead

and forgotten past。  The city of the beauties and the beasts。

City of horrors and death; butcity of fabulous riches。〃

The ingot was of virgin gold。



The bowlder on which Tarzan found himself lay well out

in the plain between the city and the distant cliffs he and his

black warriors had scaled the morning previous。  To descend

its rough and precipitous face was a task of infinite labor

and considerable peril even to the ape…man; but at last he

felt the soft soil of the valley beneath his feet; and without

a backward glance at Opar he turned his face toward the

guardian cliffs; and at a rapid trot set off across the valley。



The sun was just rising as he gained the summit of the

flat mountain at the valley's western boundary。  Far beneath

him he saw smoke arising above the tree…tops of the forest

at the base of the foothills。



〃Man;〃 he murmured。  〃And there were fifty who went

forth to track me down。  Can it be they?〃



Swiftly he descended the face of the cliff; and; dropping

into a narrow ravine which led down to the far forest; he

hastened onward in the direction of the smoke。  Striking the

forest's edge about a quarter of a mile from the point at

which the slender column arose into the still air; he took to

the trees。  Cautiously he approached until there suddenly

burst upon his view a rude BOMA; in the center of which;

squatted about their tiny fires; sat his fifty black Waziri。

He called to them in their own tongue:



〃Arise; my children; and greet thy king!〃



With exclamations of surprise and fear the warriors leaped

to their feet; scarcely knowing whether to flee or not。

Then Tarzan dropped lightly from an overhanging branch into

their midst。  When they realized that it was indeed their

chief in the flesh; and no materialized spirit; they went mad

with joy。



〃We were cowards; oh; Waziri;〃 cried Busuli。  〃We ran

away and left you to your fate; but when our panic was

over we swore to return and save you; or at least take

revenge upon your murderers。  We were but now preparing to

scale the heights once more and cross the desolate valley to

the terrible city。〃



〃Have you seen fifty frightful men pass down from the

cliffs into this forest; my children?〃 asked Tarzan。



〃Yes; Waziri;〃 replied Busuli。  〃They passed us late yesterday;

as we were about to turn back after you。  They had no woodcraft。

We heard them coming for a mile before we saw them; and as we

had other business in hand we withdrew into the forest and let

them pass。  They were waddling rapidly along upon short legs;

and now and then one would go upon all fours like Bolgani;

the gorilla。  They were indeed fifty frightful men; Waziri。〃



When Tarzan had related his adventures and told them

of the yellow metal he had found; not one demurred when

he outlined a plan to return by night and bring away what

they could carry of the vast treasure; and so it was that as

dusk fell across the desolate valley of Opar fifty ebon

warriors trailed at a smart trot over the dry and dusty

ground toward the giant bowlder that loomed before the city。



If it had seemed a difficult task to descend the face of

the bowlder; Tarzan soon found that it would be next to

impossible to get his fifty warriors to the summit。  Finally the

feat was accomplished by dint of herculean efforts upon the

part of the ape…man。  Ten spears were fastened end to end;

and with one end of this remarkable chain attach

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