The instant the silver thread lit up, the bronze lamp beside the altar tilted inward.
Yuan Yu did not reach out to steady it. The Earth Origin Boundary-Sealing Seal landed outside the pedestal first, pinning down the cracks spreading along the stone seams. The Void-Aspect Boundary Gate hovered before him. As soon as its rim touched the silver thread, the three breaths he had managed to maintain shrank to less than one.
He withdrew the gate at once.
The bronze lamp slammed back into place, splashing oil onto the Stone Platform. Bo Saixi held the bronze plate that controlled the altar without feeding in even a fraction more divine power. Only after she saw Yuan Yu withdraw cleanly did she move the lamp farther away.
"Again," he said.
This time, he shrank the gate to the size of his palm. The Rock Seal still held the pedestal steady, while the Cloud Garment clung to his shoulders and back, blocking the stray light pouring out of the silver thread. Yuan Yu stood where he was as the nine elemental patterns lit up in turn. The space pattern braced the gate's corners first, followed by light and darkness, each guarding one side.
A strand of blue divine power passed through the little gate, but halfway through, the rims on either side suddenly squeezed inward. Yuan Yu's palm went numb. He immediately sent the blue light back and closed the gate half a breath faster than before.
The Sea God watched the light fall back onto the platform and did not make him force himself to hold on.
"As long as you can pull back, keep practicing. When you first open a gate, the worst mistake is to think only of pushing forward."
Tang San stood outside the hall. At the sound of