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

<p>Twenty-five different kinds of parts had been placed in front of Chen Mu, flashing with the metallic gleam of just having been processed, each one shiny. Chen Mu picked each one up to inspect it, until he had set down the last part, when his face showed a satisfied expression.</p>

<p>Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. After working so hard to make those parts, if they didn't meet the master's demands, that would have been enough to frustrate those impetuous youths to the point of spitting blood. Most of them wouldn't be considered very good with metal work, that basically being a time to let the rookies strut their stuff. It was a good thing that the instruments had a lot of intelligence. That, together with Alfonso's on-site teaching, meant that they had been just barely able to make them. The most tired for the past couple of days included Alfonso, who had gotten a size skinnier.</p>

I’m Ugly, and I’m not Gentle