Chapter 631: Along The Seam

Hajin knelt along the narrow walkway, pressing his bare palm against the colossal bedrock where two foundation slabs converged.

Hajin felt the joint answer beneath his palm and marked the point where the two slabs shared one load-bearing seam.

Above him, the massive outer shell of the Choral Incarnation’s rehearsal chamber hummed with dark, steady vibrations.

His split-colored eyes flared with celestial brilliance as he activated Divine Eye, scanning the dense mineral layers.

[ Skill activation: Divine Eye ]

[ Structural analysis: Continuous expansion seam detected ]

[ Seam length: 73.2 meters continuous bedrock interface ]

[ Acoustic variance: One pitch change at physical join ]

"The old mechanic was telling the absolute truth," he whispered, feeling the subtle harmonic hum beneath his fingertips.

"The entire foundation is sealed with overlapping protective wards, except for this eighty-yard expansion seam."

Behind him, Ferra knelt with her portable forge tongs and bronze wedges, keeping the external scaffolding clear of vibrations.

"Every mechanical pump creates thermal expansion during continuous cycles," the smith explained in a hushed, focused tone.

"If the Choral architects warded this seam, the trapped heat would crack their own reservoir foundation in twenty minutes."

"The pitch changes at this repair join," he observed, tapping the mineral face with his knuckle.

"If the frequency drifts off the grain, does the Wedge dissipate into thin air?"

"It does not dissipate... it detonates prematurely," she answered, handing him an acoustic tuning fork.

"Match the resonance to this pitch before you trigger the release, or you will take thirty tons of backblast."

Ferra checked the repair join, where newer stone met the original slab without any ward.

She set a tuning reed beside the fissure, leaving the seam exposed while she tested both sides with her fork.

"It drops once here," she said. "That reed tells us where. It won’t carry the Wedge for you."

"Can the same joint take the force beyond it?" he asked.

"Yes, if you hold the second pitch. Aim for the fastening you chose, not a convenient wall behind it." ℯ

Ferra sent the maintenance engineer behind the lower turn, clearing the walkway before the thirty-second trial began.

"Nobody comes back until the gauge settles," she called after him.

The last engineer cleared the lower bend, leaving Ferra alone beside the gauge and Hajin within reach of the seam.

"I always match the pitch," he smiled, striking the fork against the shaft of his artifact.

A pure harmonic tone vibrated through the metal, harmonizing perfectly with the hum inside the bedrock seam.

"Can the Lever ride that continuous frequency without triggering their alarm sensors?"

"As long as the Wedge stays strictly inside the physical joint," he answered, drawing the ancient artifact from his belt.

The Lever of the Unmoved Foundation gleamed in the dim lantern light, its ancient runes pulsing with deep, resonant hunger.

[ Artifact trial engaged: Second seal calibration ]

[ Requirement: Continuous seam traversal under sovereign pressure ]

[ Technique duration: 30 seconds established limit ]

"Keep the gallery clear," he instructed, resting the tip of the artifact directly against the bedrock fissure.

"Once I channel the Wedge, I have thirty seconds to reach their primary hydraulic fastening before the seam closes."

"Take your shot, summoner," she replied, gripping her hammer as she watched the corridor flanks with intense vigilance.

"The scaffolding is braced and the twins are holding the lower access hatch to cut off any reinforcements."

Hajin marked the chosen fastening through Divine Eye before any sovereign force entered the stone.

"If it leaves the open joint, I end the trial," he told her. "I don’t get to steer it through their wards. If that needle jumps, I cut the trial. Their gallery matters more to me than this seal."

"And the workers stay behind the turn," Ferra answered, taking her place by the gauge instead of the seam.

Hajin focused his entire spirit core, pouring pure sovereign mana into the ancient geometric engravings of the Lever.

[ Seal unlock initialized: Incarnation Wedge primed ]

[ Traversal mode: Linear seam conduction online ]

A brilliant spike of sovereign light erupted from the tip of the tool, penetrating the hairline fissure between the bedrock slabs.

Instead of expanding outward like a normal concussive blast, the energy channeled directly along the continuous seam.

He sprinted along the catwalk, following the fixed seam while the Wedge raced ahead without taking direction from his hand.

The golden wedge raced through the dark fissure at blinding speed, humming like a drawn bowstring as it bypassed every external ward.

Ferra’s tuning reed trembled at the repair join, and Hajin held the second pitch instead of pushing more power into the rock.

"Hold the frequency steady... twenty seconds remaining... fifteen seconds!" he murmured, tracking the rapid conduction through the rock.

Through Divine Eye, he tracked the energy spike as it reached the eighty-yard mark deep inside the Incarnation’s foundation.

There, embedded in the heart of the bedrock, sat the massive hydraulic fastening that anchored the chamber’s primary blast gates.

"Found the target!" he growled through gritted teeth, clenching his fist as the internal timer dropped to eight seconds.

"Detonate the Wedge right now!"

[ Incarnation Wedge: Terminal impact delivered ]

Deep inside the mountain, a muffled, titanic explosion shook the floor beneath their feet with terrifying violence.

The continuous seam channeled eighty yards of compressed sovereign force directly into the Choral hydraulic fastening.

The massive bronze collar sheared with a deafening screech of tearing metal, spraying shattered bolts into the drainage flues.

Deprived of its primary hydraulic anchor, the entire eastern wall of the rehearsal chamber shuddered and dropped three inches.

Hajin snapped his hand back, severing the mana tether at exactly twenty-eight seconds before the foreign wards could trace his frequency.

The ancient runes on the Lever flared with blinding radiance, locking into a newly awakened configuration along the shaft.

[ Artifact evolution: Second seal of the lever unlocked ]

[ Permanent upgrade: Incarnation Wedge traverses continuous exposed seams ]

[ Operational parameter: 30 seconds maximum traversal duration ]

[ Tactical result: Primary chamber fastening destroyed ]

He exhaled a long breath of luminous steam, lowering the humming artifact with a profound sense of accomplishment.

"The fastening is gone," he announced, turning to Ferra with a confident, triumphant grin across his face.

"Their eastern blast gate is completely uncoupled from the hydraulic reservoir!"

’Thirty seconds of continuous traversal gives me reach I never possessed before,’ he thought with soaring satisfaction.

’Give me a reachable seam and thirty seconds, and I will make them regret leaving that fastening open.’

’The Choral Incarnation believes its reinforced architecture keeps it safe... but stone always remembers where it was split.’

"That means the gate cannot lock from the inside," she cheered, pumping her fist in the air with fierce excitement.

"The twins can kick that door wide open the second they reach the rehearsal corridor!"

Rumi’s cheerful voice chimed across their communication link from the outer tunnel, buzzing with playful impatience.

"Did somebody just blow up a giant door anchor?" the elder twin asked through the talisman in an eager tone.

"Nari and I are sitting on the outside catwalk, and our claws are itching for immediate action!"

"The path is open, Rumi," he replied through the talisman with an amused, quiet chuckle.

"Watch out for the route hunter outside... he rotates his defensive barrier across three fixed positions."

"You worry too much, summoner," she laughed, her voice brimming with confidence.

"I already scouted three routes of my own, and he has no idea which one carries my weight!"

"Take the exterior rehearsal road and make sure nobody escapes to warn the main garrison at the viaduct."

"Understood, boss... moving out right now!" she responded, her voice trailing off as the sisters launched their sprint.

High above the subterranean cisterns, the celestial stream broadcast exploded into deafening roars and a blizzard of golden superchats.

[ Seoul_Tactician: "THE SECOND SEAL IS UNLOCKED! Hajin riding that eighty-yard seam was the slickest maneuver yet!" ]

[ StarlightScholar: "Incarnation Wedge traveling along continuous exposed joints, what an insane utility upgrade!" ]

[ IronVanguard: "Thirty seconds of pure tactical mastery, he sheared that hydraulic fastening without triggering a single alarm!" ]

[ HearthKeeper: "Rumi is taking the outside road alone. Nari, keep the interior stair in sight!" ]

[ ShadowMage44: "The Choral Incarnation’s rehearsal is getting shredded from every conceivable angle!" ]

Ferra gathered her tools, strapping her bronze tongs to her belt with a broad, satisfied smile.

"That was textbook craftsmanship, Hajin," the smith praised, clapping a hand against his shoulder with genuine warmth.

"You proved that even an imperial mountain fortress has cracks if you know where to look."

"We just have to keep finding those cracks," he smiled back, sheathing the Lever safely at his side.

Ferra pressed her calipers to the opened seam and watched the pressure gauge settle instead of spiking toward the occupied gallery.

"The load is going into their fastening, exactly where we aimed it," she said.

Hajin signaled the workers to hold the lower passage until the final vibration passed, then sent one engineer through to confirm the exit remained clear.

Only after the engineer returned did he give Rumi the signal to take the outside road.

The breach stood open, the second seal lay mastered in his hands, and the exterior raid was primed for immediate execution.