The bedrock shrieked as the misaligned pivot began to c***k, shedding jagged splinters of calcified stone into the boiling crimson whirlpool.
Caleb Conway did not flinch, nor did he allow the howling gale of spiritual pressure to drive him backward into the shattered dais. He planted his boots into the fractured granite floor, closed his eyes for a fraction of a second to synchronize his breathing with the rhythmic pulsing of his dantian, and stepped directly into the raging vortex at the base of the obsidian monolith.
The boiling energy tore at his skin like thousands of microscopic blades, yet the moment the chaotic earth fire touched his body, the crystalline golden root flared with blinding intensity. Caleb channeled a concentrated stream of pure liquid aura down his arms, compressin
