Fang Xiang

This is both a work of science fiction and an exploration of the meaning of life, love, literature and art. Brainpower is no longer the main ingredient for being human in this far distant future world.  Spirituality, physical balance, and diligence all come together as integrity for Chen Mu, the Card Apprentice.  The cards which Chen Mu masters in his own scrappy way, distill all the powers of the cosmos –  human and nonhuman –  into something that is not a book, not technology, and neither art nor magic, but is these and more.  Learn about these strange cards, which can embody everything you might imagine for the future of technology, but also a future beyond technology which promotes the best, and sometimes the worst, from mankind’s past.

The Card Apprentice

The three of them were sitting beside a small lake, since finding water was something you had to do first in the outer reaches. All three of them looked haggard and ashen, with the cleanest being Bo Wen who would wash his face clean every day, having a certain standard of cleanliness.

Chen Mu and Bo Wen hadn't been talking all along, having nothing to say.

Bo Wen presented a few small animals, swinging them in front of Chen Mu. Chen Mu didn't change his gaze as he pulled out his heating card to start a fire. The heating card could directly heat food, but to save power they would gather sticks for a fire.

The flames soon leapt up. Chen Mu started to skin the prey, which he was pretty good at after a few days.

He finished very quickly and put the prepared animal on the spit to roast. Cheng Ying, who had been gathering berries nearby, hadn't yet returned which put a frown on Chen Mu's face, since she should have returned by then.

Li Duhong