The gods suggested that they hide it 23 in the earth or take it to the top of the highest mountain.
答案：(C) deep
語意「把它深藏在地底」，deep（深深地，作副詞修飾hide）符合；close（靠近）、apart（分開）、hard（努力地/困難地）都不合。
deep 在你腦中的第一個身分是形容詞「深的」，而空格前面是動詞 hide it，需要的是副詞，所以你可能覺得 deep 不能用，改挑看起來比較像副詞的 hard 或 apart。「副詞要加 -ly」這個印象在這裡會害你。
deep 本身就是副詞，不必加 -ly。要注意的是 deep 與 deeply 並不通用：deep 指實際空間上的深度（往下、往內很深的位置），deeply 指抽象的程度（深深地感動）（劍橋詞典）。本句 hide it deep in the earth 說的是真的埋進地底很深的地方，是空間，所以用 deep。這種和形容詞長得一樣的副詞你早就用過：run fast（跑得快）、work hard（努力工作）、get up early（早起），都沒有 -ly。deep 與 deeply、hard 與 hardly、late 與 lately 都是成對的陷阱，兩個都存在但意思不同。同一句還有現成的對照可以反推：眾神提出兩個建議，一個是 hide it ______ in the earth，另一個是 take it to the top of the highest mountain（帶到最高的山頂）。一個往下、一個往上，剛好對稱，空格要的正是「往下很深」。
close：靠近地，close in the earth 不成話，也與後面「往上到山頂」的對稱關係搭不起來。apart：分開地，用在 take apart（拆開）、tell apart（分辨），與埋藏無關。hard：努力地、猛烈地，hide it hard 不是英文的說法。
deep in the earth（在地底深處）、deeply moved（深受感動）、hardly ever（幾乎不曾）、take something apart（把某物拆開）、tell two things apart（分辨兩者）、the top of the mountain（山頂）。
There was once a time when all human beings were gods. However, they often took their divinity for granted and 21 abused it. Seeing this, Brahma, the chief god, decided to take their divinity away from them and hide it 22 it could never be found.
Brahma called a council of the gods to help him decide on a place to hide the divinity. The gods suggested that they hide it 23 in the earth or take it to the top of the highest mountain. But Brahma thought 24 would do because he believed humans would dig into the earth and climb every mountain, and eventually find it. So, the gods gave up.
Brahma thought for a long time and finally decided to hide their divinity in the center of their own being, for humans would never think to 25 it there. Since that time humans have been going up and down the earth, digging, climbing, and exploring—searching for something already within themselves.