[The realm above the Dao Embryo was the Heaven Gate.]
[By knocking open the Heaven Gate, one could draw the five energies back to their source and gather the three flowers above one's head.]
[From then on, one's body would be flawless, one's lifespan would reach four hundred years, and one could glimpse still higher mysteries.]
[Such cultivators were the pillars of sects large and small throughout the world. Whether in the Righteous Dao, demonic sects, or Outer Dao, they served as stewards of the mountain.]
[Zhuang Xiuyin kept her eyes closed for a long time, her heart full of regret. She was a direct disciple of Western Kunlun and had considered herself cautious, even preparing a contingency, yet she still could not escape death. How heartbroken would her master be when she died? How could she repay all her sect had invested in her? A thousand sorrows twisted through her heart, and a tear slid down her cheek.]
[Yet the annihilation of her Primordial Spirit and the destruction of her body that she had expected never came.]
[Only a violent surge of Astral Baleful Force swept over her, lifting her plain white veil and sending her ink-black hair whipping through the wind.]
[The sharp currents skimmed her cheeks, leaving a faint sting.]
[She snapped her eyes open.]
[Her red lips parted slightly, disbelief spreading across her serene face.]
[Reflected in her bright eyes was the young child pressing one palm against the Drought Demon's skull. Baleful force from all twelve principal meridians soared skyward, while the three stars above his Spirit Platform shone in answer to the heavens.]
["Roar—"]
[The Drought Demon threw back her head and howled, her voice like iron scraping against steel.]
[Blazing righteous qi poured from the child's palm, and the force of the divine