In fact, Jiang Chen had already speculated about the identity of the Seventh Saint, but he had not yet been able to confirm it.
"The Seventh Saint is naturally Mother Earth from the underworld. Shortly after she incarnated as reincarnation, she merged with the earth’s way and achieved the realm of an Earth-Path Saint."
"However, since she is an Earth-Path Saint and not a Heaven-Path Saint, there was no strange phenomenon in Heaven and Earth, just a response from the great earth."
The Upper Qing Saint spoke quite casually. This was not a secret; basically, any strong being from the Ancient Era knew about this.
Although the disturbance caused by Mother Earth becoming a saint was small, it wasn’t nonexistent. The Great Divine Transcendents naturally sensed it and even came to congratulate her. It was just that Mother Earth was low-key and did not proclaim this matter, which is why so few people in the world knew about it.
"I thought as much. Besides Mother Earth, there could be no one else." Jiang Chen had guessed that the person was Mother Earth when the Upper Qing Saint mentioned the Seventh Saint. Now he simply had his confirmation.
"Rituals should not be neglected. Although I don’t place as much emphasis on ceremony as the Primordial Heavenly Sovereign does, taking a disciple is a major event. Since I am to accept you as a true disciple, it necessarily must be announced to the world so that the people may know."
After speaking of Mother Earth’s matter, the Upper Qing Saint spoke of the main issue at hand. Jiang Chen had hastened to Golden Turtle Island primarily to complete the master-disciple ceremony.
Back when the Upper Qing Saint first met Jiang Chen, he thought Jiang Chen’s cultivation was too low; though he bestowed upon him a precious treasure, he only took him as a nominal disciple, not a true disciple. It was agreed at the time that once Jiang Chen achieved the state of a Great Luo Golden Immortal, that of an Innate Dao Sovereign, and came to see the Upper Qing Saint, he would then be accepted as a true disciple.
Now, Jiang Chen had come for this reason.
After the Upper Qing Saint finished speaking, the Immortal Summoning Bell outside the Upper Qing Hall, which had not stirred in many years, suddenly began to vibrate, releasing a long-lasting bell tone.
The sound of the bell was not loud, but it carried extremely far, first breaking through Golden Turtle Island, then spreading across the boundless Chaos, making its way to the Three Realms.
"The Immortal Summoning Bell of the Jiejiao Sect!"
"It’s the Upper Qing Saint. What is he up to, and why has he suddenly sounded the Immortal Summoning Bell?"
The sound of the bell echoed throughout the Prehistoric World, startling all the Great Divine Transcendents. Even those who were in seclusion were shocked, showing expressions of astonishment.
For many years, ever since the fall of the Jiejiao Sect, the world had not heard the sound of the Immortal Summoning Bell. Hearing it now, everyone thought the Upper Qing Saint was about to make a move and were naturally puzzled and amazed.
"I, Shangqing, hereby take Yu Dou as my disciple, and specially announce this to the world, in the witness of Heaven and Earth!"
As the Great Divine Transcendents pondered their confusion, the youthful voice of the Upper Qing Saint echoed along with the bell.
Upon hearing these words, the Great Divine Transcendents couldn’t help but feel somewhat speechless. It was just the taking of a disciple, after all. Even if it was a true disciple, was there any need to create such a disturbance and alarm everyone?
People couldn’t help feeling that the Upper Qing Saint was making too much of a minor matter, alerting all his peers for such a trivial reason. But upon further thought, everyone realized something was amiss and silently noted the name Yu Dou in their minds.
The Upper Qing Saint was clearly not overdoing it, but rather sending a warning to everyone. He held this disciple in high regard, so nobody should harm him, or else the consequences would be unpredictable.
Having understood the crux, everyone naturally remembered Jiang Chen’s Daoist name; if they encountered him in the future and it wasn’t necessary, they would certainly not harm him.
Great Divine Transcendents could guess the Upper Qing Saint’s profound intentions, and naturally, Jiang Chen could too. Therefore, after the Upper Qing Saint finished speaking, Jiang Chen said with emotion, "Master, this..."
"Ah, you were born too late; you missed the golden age. Now I have fallen from grace and cannot give you much help. The most I can do for you is just these few things."
Before Jiang Chen could speak, the Upper Qing Saint had already preemptively interrupted. In his heart, he still felt that he owed his disciple Jiang Chen; he had given Jiang Chen so many Innate Spiritual Treasures, perhaps to compensate him.
In this era, compared to the Ancient and Distant Ancient Eras, it wasn’t just the environment of Heaven and Earth that was lacking; there were too many missed factors. At least when the Jiejiao Sect was around, Fate was incredibly prosperous. The Upper Qing Saint frequently gave private lessons to his disciples and expounded on the Supreme Great Dao.
All these benefits, invisible to the eye, had a profound impact; Jiang Chen had missed out on them. He was inherently at a disadvantage compared to others, which is why the Upper Qing Saint had given him many Innate Spiritual Treasures, to make up for his deficiencies.
"Disciple is grateful for Teacher’s great kindness!"
Although Jiang Chen had countless things to say, speaking them now felt weak and insufficient to convey his gratitude. In the end, a myriad of words all turned into a profound bow.
"Earlier, I had passed on the Upper Qing Immortal Scripture to you, but that is ultimately not my fundamental inheritance. Now that you have taken me as your master, I will pass on the true inheritance to you."
The Upper Qing Saint stepped forward, first helping Jiang Chen to rise, then reached out a finger to touch his forehead.
A stream of pure light emerged from the finger of the Upper Qing Saint, radiating ten thousand brilliant rays, imprinting into Jiang Chen’s Sea of Consciousness.
Immediately, in the Sea of Consciousness of Jiang Chen, a special mark appeared.
That was the Pangu Mark!
The pure light from the finger of the Upper Qing Saint entered Jiang Chen’s Sea of Consciousness and transformed into a massive figure, standing in the center of his Sea of Consciousness, emanating an aura that was divine, sanctified, and supremely majestic.