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

As though he'd found a ray of light in the dark, Chen Mu was overjoyed. He had to conk himself on the head for not thinking of what he did as daily exercise. He had finally realized how deeply different real fighting was from practice. When that finally sunk in, his body was moving like a metronome. If one looked carefully, every slightest wiggle wasn't linear but was more like an undulating line moving forward.

The oppressive wind pressure abruptly decreased while the speed of things falling behind increased. Chen Mu's mind was more carefree than ever. The distance from the female card artisan, which had been growing, was now shrinking rapidly. The people walking along the way only inadvertently saw Chen Mu from the shadows shuttling through, imagining they were seeing things.

He was a predator in the dark as he snuck along while keeping a firm eye on his prey.

The Will to Fight