Qinghe opened the isolated return line and asked Gu to confirm the coil-side valve was closed. He checked it by hand before answering. The engineers connected the first reserve frame to a secondary channel, leaving the main line anchored through Yan.
A visible gap remained at the final contact plate until the readings matched. The central gauges showed a small difference between the east and reserve lines. Qinghe lowered the feed and asked the engineers to compare the plate marks.
They found an alignment pin sitting a fraction too high. Gu reset it and measured the height again. The current did not yet pass through the reserve; the crew corrected the hardware first.
Yan adjusted the inner ring as Qinghe redirected the load away from the unstable contact. His body remained the physical anchor, and the Final Offering’s own costs reversed into strength and vitality. He could carry the change while the engineers worked, but a slip in the plate would remain an external equipment failure.
The alignment pins now matched. Gu closed the coil-side valve while Qinghe opened the first test channel. A narrow current entered the reserve frame and returned to the central console. Its temperature stayed within the tested range. The main line remained active through Yan, and no buffer clock began while he continued anchoring it.
