For the first time since receiving the card, Lin Wei slept soundly.
No nightmares. No anxiety. Just peace.
Maybe it was the satisfaction of helping someone. Maybe it was the clean air of the penthouse. Or maybe—just maybe—it was the beginning of something more profound: a life with meaning.
But peace never lasts in a story like this.
The morning came with a knock.
Not a buzz from the intercom. Not a delivery alert. A knock—sharp, deliberate, echoing off the marble hallway.
Lin Wei opened the door, already suspicious.
A man and a woman stood outside, dressed in dark suits and polite expressions. Government types. The kind who knew your blood type before you opened your mouth.
"Mr. Lin Wei?" the man asked.
"Yes," Lin Wei said slowly.
"We're from the Ministry of Finance. May we come in for a moment?"
Lin Wei hesitated. "Do you have ID?"
They showed it. Real enough.
He stepped aside.
The woman spoke first. "We've been alerted to several high-value transactions linked to your name over the past week—real estate, luxury purchases, and several anonymous wire transfers. All perfectly legal, of course, but... unusual."
"I came into some money," Lin Wei said.
"Understandable," said the man. "Still, our department is tasked with monitoring financial anomalies. China's economic stability is no laughing matter."
"Are you accusing me of something?"
"Not at all," the woman replied smoothly. "We're just... curious. We've never seen a payment card like yours before."
Lin Wei's pulse quickened.
The card was still in his pocket. But it suddenly felt like a loaded weapon.
"I don't know what it is," he said truthfully. "It showed up one day. No explanation."
"You must understand," the man said, "when an individual appears to gain wealth without any identifiable source, alarm bells ring. Tax evasion. Foreign influence. Fraud."
"I'm not doing anything illegal," Lin Wei said. "Everything's been paid for. No loans. No tricks."
The woman raised an eyebrow. "And yet, no records exist for the funds you've used."
Lin Wei stayed silent.
After a long pause, the man slipped a card onto the table. A government business card.
"If anything comes up—strange requests, unusual messages, suspicious behavior—you contact us. Immediately."
They left without further comment.
As soon as the door shut, Lin Wei locked it.
Then he took out the black card and held it in the light.
Still smooth. Still blank.
But the air around it felt charged.
That night, his phone buzzed again.
"The world has noticed.The higher you rise, the more shadows follow.Chapter Five has begun."
He sighed. So much for peace.
Later that day, Lin Wei opened the Balance of Impact app.
New entries had appeared.
Karma: PositiveLevel: 2Ripples Created: 11Observers: 2
Observers?
He tapped the term. A popup appeared:
"Entities outside the influence of the Infinite Card system may take interest in your activity. Some seek knowledge. Others, control."
He closed the app quickly, unsettled.
This wasn't just about money anymore. Or even influence.
Something bigger was watching.
The following evening, Lin Wei met Jiang Yue again.
This time, it wasn't an accident.
He called her.
They met at a rooftop bar near Sanlitun, where lights twinkled and the city stretched endlessly below. She wore a dark blue dress and carried herself like someone who belonged to a different world—one Lin Wei had only recently stepped into.
"You've been busy," she said, sipping her wine.
"So have you."
"I heard about your parents' move. And someone told me you bought an Omega worth more than a small apartment."
Lin Wei laughed softly. "News travels fast."
"You've changed, Wei. Not just your clothes. Your eyes. You look like you're hiding something."
"I probably am," he admitted.
She smiled. "Good. That makes two of us."
They talked for hours. About university. About regrets. About how life never turns out the way you think it will.
Then she asked something unexpected.
"Have you ever heard of the Black Foundation?"
He froze.
"No," he lied.
"You will," she said. "Eventually. If you keep climbing."
The next morning, his phone buzzed again.
But this time, there was no message.
Just an image.
A chessboard.
His king was in the center.
Pieces were moving.
He recognized a pawn that looked like Chen Peng. Another like Jiang Yue. Another with the shape of a government badge.
Underneath the image was a single line:
"Choose your allies carefully.The game has begun."
Lin Wei sat in silence.
The card had given him money.
But now it demanded choices.
And every choice… would cost someone something.