The hotel room was silent—too silent.
Lin Wei sat at the desk, the Hidden Ledger now sealed in a lead-lined case provided by the app. His eyes lingered on the new icon on his phone screen: a glowing eye with a lightning bolt.
Strategic Forecasting.
He tapped it.
Instantly, the room dimmed. Holographic lines shot out from the phone, outlining invisible shapes in the air—timelines, graphs, probability curves. A voice—not the robotic assistant, but a calm, precise male voice—echoed in his ear.
"Welcome to Strategic Forecasting.Predictive matrix online. Karma-influenced trajectories enabled.Enter query."
He hesitated. Then typed:
"What will happen if I return to Shanghai tomorrow?"
The display rippled. Multiple threads of possibility branched out. Some showed peace—him walking home, reconnecting with Chen Peng, even dating Jiang Yue. Others showed… blood. Buildings on fire. His villa burning.
But the majority? A red symbol flashed beside them.
"Conflict Risk: 78%. Black Foundation engagement likely.Recommend: Delay return. Initiate alternate route."
Lin Wei sat back, stunned.
This wasn't just guessing.
It was real-time prediction using data from cameras, signals, karma alignments, and unknown sources.
The card was no longer just a tool.
It was a tactical war system.
He didn't return to Shanghai.
Instead, he followed the app's alternate route: Chengdu.
There, in a quiet teahouse nestled between hills, he met someone the system had suggested he contact.
"Profile: Lin Xue.Age: 39.Status: Former Black Foundation Data Analyst.Karma Level: Undetermined.Risk: High.Potential Value: Critical."
She was waiting before he arrived, sipping from a clay cup with the calmness of a monk.
"Lin Wei," she said without looking up. "I was wondering when your card would send you."
He froze.
"You know about it?"
She smiled faintly. "I used to track people like you. Until I realized the Foundation doesn't want to understand the card. They want to enslave it."
He sat across from her slowly, every instinct screaming caution.
"What is this card, really?"
She didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she took out an old phone—one of those pre-smartphone types—and slid it over to him.
"Play message #6," she said.
He did.
A male voice crackled to life. Clear. Sharp. Familiar.
"This is Dr. Li Zhen. If you're hearing this, then you've accessed one of the last remaining fragments of Project Mirror.The Infinite Card is not a bank account. It is an autonomous economic intelligence. A living system that reacts to human behavior, ethics, and causality.It doesn't give money. It reshapes value."
The message cut off.
Lin Wei blinked. "Wait… it's alive?"
Lin Xue nodded. "More than that. It's judging you. Every credit you spend, every favor you accept, every person you help—or hurt—feeds into a karma engine. That engine decides your privileges."
"So if I spend recklessly?"
"You'll lose access. Or worse—the card might invite others to take your place."
A chill ran down his spine.
"So I'm being tested."
"You all are."
Back in his hotel, Lin Wei pulled up his Karma Profile. It was new.
Lin Wei – Tier 3 AccessKarma Alignment: Neutral-PositiveInfluence Sphere: 3.7 km radiusObserver Count: 12Risk Rating: YellowStrategic Visibility: Enabled
Then he noticed a flashing alert at the bottom.
Warning: New Competitor DetectedCodename: WraithAlignment: NegativeRisk: CriticalStatus: Proximity Approaching
His blood ran cold.
This wasn't a Black Foundation agent.
This was someone like him—someone with a card.
And they were coming.
He barely had time to prepare.
Three hours later, as the sun dipped beneath the horizon and Chengdu's streets quieted, Lin Wei sat in a rooftop café, watching the skyline.
The app vibrated once.
"Subject Wraith approaching from east. Estimated arrival: 4 minutes.Combat prediction: 42% success without enhancement.Activate asset deployment?"
Lin Wei's mind raced.
Activate what asset?
He clicked yes.
A screen unfolded with a list:
Drone Escort Unit: ¥3,200,000
EMP Disruption Grid: ¥5,400,000
Cognitive Decoy (AI Clone): ¥2,900,000
Temp Karma Boost (+Neutrality): ¥7,800,000
He activated the EMP Grid and the AI Clone.
A small, pale light blinked beneath his jacket.
Within seconds, a streetlight across the block burst in a shower of sparks.
The air rippled—and a figure emerged.
Tall, cloaked in black tech-fabric, eyes glowing faintly blue. No face. No emotion.
Wraith.
The clone stepped out in Lin Wei's place, walking casually down the street.
Wraith hesitated—just a moment.
Then lunged.
The fight was quick, brutal, and silent.
The EMP pulsed. Drones fell from the sky. A flicker of light from Wraith's wrist died out—his tech disabled. The AI clone spun, leapt, dodged two attacks, then dissolved into binary code.
Wraith staggered, confused—vulnerable.
Lin Wei dropped from the roof behind him.
A taser-glove pulsed with kinetic current. He slammed it into Wraith's neck.
Sparks. Screams. Collapse.
He didn't kill him.
But he didn't need to.
The card didn't reward bloodshed. It rewarded smart decisions.
Later that night, the app updated.
"Wraith Detained. Karma +3.System Analysis: Tactical Thinking A-Observer Count: 14Global Ranking: 19th"
Lin Wei leaned back, sweating.
He was being watched.
He was being ranked.
And he wasn't the only one in this deadly game.