Upon hearing this, Ignaz immediately stepped forward and said,
"My name is Ignaz. Today, on my grandfather's instructions, I've specially come to the Breaking Clan to handle some matters."
"Ignaz?"
Titan and Tang San looked at the proud and elegant youth standing before them. Their hearts were deeply shaken—it was none other than the one acclaimed as the greatest genius of the Heaven Dou Royal Academy, Ignaz.
"The other day, I heard Ignaz had returned to the Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Now that I see you myself, your reputation is truly well deserved."
"I never expected you, old goat, to have made friends with that old poison master."
At this moment, Titan could sense the aura of a Spirit King emanating from Ignaz. He couldn't help but feel envious. So this was what it meant for a Titled Douluo to fancy someone as a son-in-law—still so young, and already at the Spirit King level.
Tang San, however, felt something different. Standing before him was the one who held Dugu Yan's heart. That alone left him unsettled, but he still greeted them politely:
"Tang San pays respects to Senior Yang Invincible. Greetings, Brother Ignaz."
"Tang San, your surname is Tang?"
The moment he heard the surname Tang, Yang Invincible glared angrily at Tang San. Titan hurriedly tried to smooth things over:
"Old goat, you've gone too far. Tang San just happens to share the surname Tang. His Spirit is Blue Silver Grass—he has nothing to do with your enemy."
Hearing this, Yang Invincible's fury gradually faded.
"Child, my apologies. I was reckless."
Ignaz, standing to the side, did not expose the truth. Partly because of his fear of that reckless Titled Douluo lurking in the shadows, and partly because of the ties between the Breaking Clan and the Strength Clan.
Although Titan's Strength Clan had a strong tendency toward servility—something Ignaz personally despised—the reality was that the Breaking Clan and the Strength Clan shared very close relations. If he revealed Tang San's true identity here, it would brand him as the villain who disrupted their bond. And once branded a villain, Yang Invincible would never treat him with the same sincerity as before. Everything Ignaz had painstakingly built as the foundation of his clan would collapse.
There was another reason too—the Strength Clan was, aside from the Blacksmiths' Association, the finest weapon-forging family in the entire Heaven Dou Empire. The mass production of both inner and outer shells for spirit tools still relied on them.
"Senior, you are too kind."
At this, Tang San silently thanked his luck. It was fortunate he hadn't mentioned his father's name. Otherwise, judging by this senior's temperament, he surely would have attacked on the spot.
Not long after, as the group passed through the poisonous mists, Titan observed the Breaking Clan's architectural style and sighed with emotion:
"Ah… I never thought I'd live to see scenery so reminiscent of the old days."
"Old ape, those people abandoned us and caused our clansmen to die miserably. And you still harbor feelings for them? If you continue like this, you'd better leave. My Breaking Clan has no patience for such sentiment."
Yang Invincible was equally frustrated at Titan's sudden bout of nostalgia. If not for the Clear Sky Clan's passable layouts and defenses, he would have designed something better long ago.
Once they entered the main hall, Titan asked:
"Old goat, why do you need my Strength Clan to forge so many spirit tool components? Could it be that your Breaking Clan has mastered some long-lost spirit tool technology?"
"Our clan hasn't mastered any such technology. We've only improved one or two spirit tools. The power isn't great—just enough to save a life in a critical moment."
Yang Invincible didn't reveal the full truth about spirit-guiding ray weapons. After all, these rays were personally crafted by the alliance leader and represented the Breaking Clan's ultimate trump card. Especially since they required only a small amount of spirit power to instantly kill a Spirit Elder—or even a completely unprepared Spirit Ancestor—third-grade spirit ray weapons had become indispensable for a Spirit Master clan's survival.
Curious, Titan asked, "Oh? Really? Do you have a finished spirit tool? Let me take a look."
"Of course, that's no problem."
With Ignaz's nod of approval, Yang Invincible took out a small, golden, round shield no larger than half a palm from his storage tool and handed it over.
"This is the spirit tool our clan relies on."
"So small? I fear even a rank-ten Spirit Scholar could smash it to pieces."
Titan picked up the third-grade spirit ray device with his huge hand, examining it closely. Meanwhile, Tang San, whose Purple Demon Eye had already reached the detailed perception stage, was deeply shocked by this weapon he had never seen before.
"Such a small precision mechanism… I wonder, Senior Yang, where you obtained this?"
Taking the spirit ray device, Tang San grew even more astonished the longer he looked. Though he couldn't see its inner workings, the fact that a weapon could be made so compact spoke volumes about the sophistication of its craftsmanship. Unfortunately, the smaller a weapon, the weaker its destructive power usually was.
"I only know alchemy, not spirit tools. In truth, these devices come from young Ignaz himself. If you want to know more, ask him."
Yang Invincible gestured toward Ignaz. The latter didn't bother over-explaining. Instead, he motioned for the weapon to be returned, then immediately infused spirit power into it.
In an instant, the small round shield vibrated rapidly, expanding multiple times over. Three barrel-like tubes, each half a meter long, extended from the enlarged shield.
Tang San stared dumbfounded at the transformed third-grade spirit ray device. For a moment, it felt suspiciously similar to his hidden weapons. He quickly exclaimed,
"This can't be! Did you modify this spirit tool using my Silent Sleeve Arrow and Godly Zhuge Crossbow as inspiration? This is plagiarism—a most shameful act!"
"Who plagiarized your stuff? This is a spirit tool I've spent a long time refining. And what's this Silent Sleeve Arrow and Godly Zhuge Crossbow you're talking about? Never even heard of them."
Ignaz was utterly speechless at Tang San's sudden attempt to flip the accusation. They had only just met today, yet Tang San claimed he had stolen his work?
Ignaz had seen shameless people before, but never anyone quite this brazen.
Immediately, Tang San produced his Silent Sleeve Arrow and Godly Zhuge Crossbow, displaying them in his palms. The crossbow was simple enough, but the Silent Sleeve Arrow, after pressing a button, folded and unfolded three times until it took the form of an iron wrist guard.
"This is my self-developed Silent Sleeve Arrow. Its transformation process may not be identical, but it bears an extremely close resemblance to your spirit tool."