In the year 3028, technological development has hit a bottleneck. Artificial intelligence is widespread but has yet to reach the singularity, while virtual reality technology is mature but constrained by ethical limits.
The story takes place mainly in Haichuan City, a megacity divided into four sharply distinct areas: the financial district, the old town, the tech new city, and the underground black market. Together, they create a magical realism where a technological jungle coexists with the rough-and-tumble world of ordinary life.
The global economy is in a downturn, and social classes are deeply entrenched. New forms of crime have emerged, with technologies such as dark web trading, memory manipulation, and consciousness implantation forming a complete black-market industry chain. The government establishes the Special Social Investigation Bureau to tackle high-tech crime.
