Chapter 3414: The Dongxu Clan’s Greeting

Meng Bai nearly stumbled. "Master... are we visiting a clan or being received as foreign emperors?"

Cattaleya leaned toward him. "Pretend you are royalty. It will make you look cooler."

Meng Bai straightened instantly.

Lin Mu simply nodded calmly, although internally he could not help but feel amused. The Dongxu Clan certainly did not act with subtlety.

Dongxu Wang stepped forward personally and greeted them. "Honored Lin Mu, honored seniors and guests, welcome to our humble home. We are honored to host you."

Lin Mu returned the gesture. "We thank you for receiving us."

And thus the formal welcome began.

The Patriarch personally led Lin Mu and the rest of the group toward the clan’s main palace. The structure dominated the inner grounds like a monument carved from pure jade. Its walls were translucent in places, glowing with inner light, and the columns holding up the sweeping roofs were veined with patterns of green and white stone that seemed to pulse with faint Dao resonance.

Lin Mu could not help but comment as they ascended the long staircase. "Your clan has a very strong liking for jade it seems."

Patriarch Wang laughed heartily. "If jade ever vanished from the world, our clan would die out overnight. Jade is the lifeblood of the Dongxu clan. We have worked with jade for a hundred and twenty thousand years. Our jade mines and jade workshops built everything you see."

He gestured broadly as if showing off a mountain of treasure. "We produce decorative jade for sculptures, spiritual jade for formations, and immortal jade for tools. Every building here has our craftsmanship in it."

Daoist Chu admired one of the jade pillars they passed. "This level of refinement would cost several million in the Western Court."

The Patriarch puffed with pride. "We are not wealthy for no reason. Our clan began with humble rock sculptors, carving simple stones. Over time we mastered jade sculpting, then refining it, then incorporating Dao insights into it until we grew strong enough that even sects would pay us to locate jade mines or cultivate jade veins on their worlds."

As they walked deeper, murals lined the walls. Each mural told a Chapter of the clan’s story.

The first showed a barefoot man carving a chunk of white stone with a simple chisel.

The second mural showed his descendants crafting jade figurines that glowed with spiritual light.

The third depicted them forming their first jade mine, where the earth seemed to bend naturally toward them as if eager to be shaped.

Later murals showed battles. Jade warriors stood against invading beasts and rival clans, wielding jade infused weapons that sparkled with Earth and Jade Dao Traces.

Lin Mu looked closely at one of the murals. "These formations here are impressive. Your clan managed to merge jade refinement and formation mastery quite early."

Patriarch Wang nodded. "We discovered that jade conducts Qi and Dao traces much more cleanly than most stones. Once we learned to refine it properly, our formation mastery skyrocketed. The rest was history."

Cattaleya tapped a carving of a jade statue holding a massive hammer. "Do you people really sculpt everything? Even your statues seem alive."

"They are alive to us," the Patriarch said proudly. "Every statue contains a trace of jade Dao. They help guide younger generations in cultivation."

Meng Bai was fascinated by the arrays embedded in the floors. "Master, every tile contains formations. Even the walls do."

Lin Mu nodded approvingly. "This clan has layered formations to a level rarely seen outside of top sects. It is no wonder they are wealthy and powerful."

Elyon walked silently beside them, taking mental notes. He liked learning how other clans structured their territories. It gave him inspiration should he ever build his own intelligence network elsewhere.

Finally, the tour ended at the main hall doors. These were carved from a single giant block of pale green jade and polished until one could see their reflection as if looking into water.

When the doors opened, a feast awaited.

Round tables laden with steaming dishes filled the hall. At the center, a long table had been specially arranged for Lin Mu and his group, along with the Patriarch’s closest family members.

Patriarch Wang’s four wives sat beside him, each dressed in elegant jade colored robes that seemed to shimmer. His children lined both sides of the table. There were ten seated here, each showing signs of respectable cultivation and talent. The remaining dozens or perhaps hundreds of children were probably not permitted into the formal gathering.

Dongxu Ning sat closest to her father at the front, clearly the most esteemed of the junior generation.

Lin Mu studied her quietly.

Ning was three hundred years old and already at the peak of the Dao Treading realm. Considering the Patriarch was four to five thousand years old and only recently reached the Sixth Tribulation Stage, it made sense she was the eldest child. He had probably started his family later in life due to clan responsibilities or cultivation bottlenecks.

Yet Lin Mu sensed something more interesting.

Hidden deeper within the palace were three powerful auras. Each belonged to a Peak Seventh Tribulation Stage immortal. One of them carried the same spiritual signature as Dongxu Wang, but older and tempered. This man was likely the former patriarch, only recently retired.

Lin Mu made a mental note of that.

As the feast began, the Patriarch raised a cup. "To our honored guests, may your stay be pleasant and your paths prosperous."

Everyone drank.

The conversation soon flowed as smoothly as the jade wine.

The younger clan members were especially curious. They asked Meng Bai about his spear techniques, implored Daoist Chu for stories about the Zenith Dao Sect, and bombarded Cattaleya with requests for autographs.

Paintings depicting her battles were brought out, along with small jade sculptures of her mid flick, fists raised triumphantly, or standing atop defeated opponents.

Cattaleya was delighted. She signed every sculpture with a flourish, even adding extra strokes to make them look fiercer.

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