Synopsis of Chang'an Code: The Whale Rises
Li You, a poet of the prosperous Tang dynasty, falls into a winding passage through time on the Night of the Hungry Ghost Festival. When he wakes, he finds himself in the cybernetic Chang'an of the twenty-second century. Here, neon lights and vermilion towers stand side by side, drones fly alongside the Whirling Hu Dance, human memories are commodities monopolized by the powerful, and ancient poetry is the most dangerous weapon of all.
Li You discovers that the verses he recites can become keys for breaking through torrents of data, as well as blades capable of cutting through illusions. The mysterious hacker group "The Ink Wanderers" sees him as the "key" to salvation, while the all-powerful "Universal Group" has marked him as a "virus" that must be eliminated.
In this war for the survival of civilization, he meets Ling, a young woman skilled in neural programming, and they brave danger together. They must face AI that devours poetry, megacorporations that distort history, and cultural ghosts wandering the data wasteland.
This is the ultimate adventure in Eastern cyberpunk. When Li Bai meets cybernetic implants and regulated verse becomes code, what will the poet wield as his sword, and how can he preserve the last of humanity's romance and spark?
