The shop was white. Pure white.

  It was cleaner than the Sect's medical pavilion.

  "This," Sarah announced, leading Wei into the glass cube on Fifth Avenue. "Is the Apple Store."

  Wei looked at the logo.

  " The Sect of the Bitten Fruit," Wei translated. "A warning. Knowledge comes with a price."

  "Sure. The price is a thousand dollars. Come on."

  They approached a wooden table where sleek, black rectangles were displayed like holy relics.

  Wei picked one up.

  It was cold. Smooth. Glass front and back.

  "It is heavy," Wei noted. "Denser than it appears."

  He tapped the screen. It lit up.

  Wei recoiled.

  "It reacts to Qi," Wei hissed. "It sensed my touch."

  "It's a touchscreen, Wei. It sensed your finger heat."

  Sarah pointed to the newest model. The iPhone 15 Pro Max.

  "You need this one. It has the best battery and the biggest screen for maps."

  "What does it do?"

  "Everything. Maps. Communication. Banking. It holds all the world's knowledge."

  Wei narrowed his eyes.

  "A Universal Codex? In a slate this small?"

  "Yes."

  Sarah pressed a button on the side.

  "Hey Siri, what's the weather?"

  A disembodied female voice answered from the slate. *"It is currently 72 degrees and clear."*

  Wei dropped the phone.

  It clattered onto the table (luckily, it was sturdy).

  He assumed a combat stance.

  "There is a spirit trapped inside!" Wei shouted, drawing the attention of several 'Geniuses' in blue shirts. "You have bound a soul to this artifact!"

  "Shh!" Sarah hissed. "It's artificial intelligence. It's not a ghost. It's... math."

  Wei looked at the slate suspiciously.

  "Math does not speak, Sarah. Spirits speak."

  Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  A Genius approached. "Can I help you folks?"

  "We'll take it," Sarah said quickly, handing over Wei's new debit card. "He's... Amish. Making a big transition."

  The Genius nodded sympathetically. "Brave man."

  Then came the setup.

  The Genius tapped the screen.

  "Okay, just need you to agree to the Terms and Conditions."

  He swiped up. A wall of text appeared. Small print. Endless.

  Wei leaned in.

  "What is this?"

  "Just the rules," the Genius said.

  "I must read it," Wei declared.

  "Nobody reads it."

  "If I am to bind my Qi to this artifact, must know the laws of the contract."

  Wei read.

  He read for twenty minutes.

  "It says they own my data," Wei frowned. "My location. My voice patterns. This is a Soul Contract."

  "It's standard," Sarah groaned. "Wei, please. Just click 'Agree'. The Uber is waiting."

  Wei hesitated.

  "If the Bitten Fruit Sect comes for my soul," Wei warned the Genius. "I will shatter their glass temple."

  He pressed 'Agree'.

  ***

  Back in the Cave.

  Wei sat on his mattress, holding the slate.

  He had spent an hour staring at it.

  It buzzed.

  Wei jumped.

  A message appeared in a green bubble.

  **Manager Sarah:** *Testing. Did you get this?*

  Wei looked at the letters. Communication across distance. A 'Thousand-Li Transmission Talisman.'

  He tapped the glass. It was tedious. His fingers were too calloused for the tiny keys.

  He poked at the letters one by one.

  **Wei:** *I have received the transmission. The spirit inside is quiet. I am watching it.*

  The slate buzzed again.

  **Manager Sarah:** *Good. Don't let the battery die. And don't interrogate Siri about the meaning of life again. She's just a bot.*

  Wei set the slate on the concrete floor.

  It glowed in the dark, a single unblinking eye.

  "A useful tool," Wei whispered to the darkness. "But a dangerous master."

  He closed his eyes and began to cultivate.

  The iPhone sat there, waiting to be charged.