The Registry captain held a bronze command seal against the river gate’s control plate. The barrier above the waiting civilians brightened as the seal drew from the local field. Qinghe watched the gauges from the side console and saw the load climbing toward a dangerous surge.
The captain said he was keeping the wall stable. “Only Wuchen can revoke a Registry command.”
Yan anchored himself to the plate with Heaven Crossing cultivation. The mechanism pressed against his palm. His practiced control strengthened his channels under the inward force, but the barrier’s load remained external. He could hold the plate still; he could not reverse the pressure for every person beneath the wall.
Wei placed his troops between the captain and the families. Ning directed people across in small groups, keeping the infirm close to the clinic cart. Bai’s runners passed colored strips down the line.
“Keep it still,” Qinghe called to Yan. “The load is rising but hasn’t reached red.”
The captain kept one hand on the seal. “If you interrupt it, the barrier will fail.”
Gu leaned over the side console. The release marks were cramped and partly hidden beneath a carved river emblem. He compared them with Yun Cang’s old records and traced the sequence with a finger.
