The station held its first public furnace cycle after the repair. Workers and families stood behind the marked line. Two neighboring watch officers took positions by the regulator, while Sella checked the new collar and the cracked outer conduit.
Qinghe explained the symptoms that required a break from duty: trembling, dizziness, numbness, and trouble breathing. Han showed the crew the revised board and the appeal route. No worker would be assigned beside Yan as an attendant.
Lian asked to stand where she could see the regulator. Han pointed to a place outside the heat line. “There. Close enough to watch, far enough to leave if it changes.”
Yan entered the furnace chamber and began the complete circulation art. Blood Ignition added the strength he needed to hold the cycle steady. The art’s personal life cost reversed into vitality; the furnace’s heat stayed hot around him. When the current began to rise, Sella called the reading. She ordered the flow down before the outer conduit overheated.
Yan stepped out feeling vigorous and ready for another task. Sella bowed first to the station crew, then to him. “The reading held.”
“You made the reading hold.” He bowed back. “I only stood in the hot place.”
