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

"We've discovered that Qiao Yuan boarded the vessel at Wen Bu. He was riding on one of the vessels we lost! He then entered the city alone from the forest with a large quantity of wild animal pelts on his back." Yan Pei was flushed red, and his voice was as clear as a bell. After so many days with no progress, the old man had become distraught. Now, to suddenly have found a clue, the old man's spirits were stirred.

While Zeng Yushan had been looking at the description of Qiao Yuan in the Black-Line Star Listing, he had wondered whether he had any connection to the snow shuttle vessels being seized. An ace suddenly showing up among the top 100 in the Black-Line Star Listing had gotten his attention. When he had told his suspicions to Yan Pei, Yan Pei had immediately organized a party to investigate the matter.

Qiao Yuan certainly knows what actually happened! Zeng Yushan and Yan Pei had the same thought simultaneously.

Before the Storm