Li Wu sits in still meditation at the gateway's edge, and the terrace hums under the strain. The transferred anchor on the seal pulses through his meridians, a borrowed burden now waiting for his choice. The higher-realm qi presses in, raw and bright.
Ren
If you can take it, take it all. If you cannot, break the gate and end the problem.
The air whips around Li Wu, bending toward the opening. Chen tightens his stance, Master Wei lifts a hand as if to warn him off, and the Shadow Cultivators edge back from the flare.
Chen
Li Wu, the gateway is still feeding on you. Master it only if you can keep it from taking the terrace with it.
Master Wei
Or destroy it now, before Ren uses it again.
Li Wu feels the lattice in the gate answer his breath. It can be forced shut, or it can be turned into a path. Either choice decides whether his journey continues through this realm, or ends here in a shattered seal.
✓ Quest Accepted
Integrate the higher-realm qi
“I use my understanding of water to align myself with the higher ream qi allowing it to completely flow through me naturally integrating it instead of resisting and forcing it under my control”
SUCCESS (Great Meditation, rolled +2)
Li Wu lets his breathing thin to a single steady line, and the higher-realm qi answers. It stops battering him and begins to pass through, clear as water through reed roots.
The crimson lattice on his skin loosens its grip, then settles into the current instead of fighting it. His meridians stop straining against the pressure and start carrying it.
Li Wu
The flow is clean. It can move through without breaking.
A quiet hum rises through Li Wu's frame. The gate's light no longer pushes at his center, it circles, follows, and is held.
The terrace steadies by a breath, the groan beneath the stone easing as the seal accepts the new rhythm.
Chen's shoulders drop a fraction, while Master Wei lowers his hand and watches the change with hard surprise.
Ren
So. You can truly carry it.
The vortex remains calm, but Ren's attention sharpens. He wants the next move, and the terrace waits with him.
Quest Complete
Integrate the higher-realm qi