Top-Class Comprehension: Start with Basic Fist Techniques Chapter 1254 373: Joining the Secret Alliance, Experiencing Poverty Again!

Departing from World Heart City, Lu Changsheng once more commanded the Water Mansion to resume his travels.

Eight months afterward, he reached the Secret Alliance headquarters, the Secret City!

No troubles crossed Lu Changsheng's path during the journey.

From afar, Lu Changsheng spotted the Secret City, a flicker of surprise crossing his features.

He had probed it moments before with his consciousness.

To his shock, it registered as utterly empty.

Yet his bare eyes distinctly revealed a vast city looming ahead.

This Secret City was evidently most unusual.

Visibility came solely through eyesight.

All other senses detected absolutely nothing.

Lu Changsheng shifted his build and visage.

He adjusted his aura as well.

Shifting into a mighty body at Ancestor Realm strength.

Still, this aura capped at peak Ancestor Realm, short of Strongest Ancestor Realm.

Ordinary Ancestor Realm cultivators faced no barriers to joining the Secret Alliance.

Lu Changsheng saw no need for undue flashiness.

Every entrant to the Secret Alliance conceals their true self and stays remarkably discreet.

Toward the Secret City Lu Changsheng flew.

A lone gate marked the Secret City's entrance.

Guards stood posted there too.

A faint scan by Lu Changsheng revealed the guards likewise at peak Ancestor Realm.

Passing the gate, he released just a hint of Ancestor Realm aura, enough for clearance.

The guards then presented Lu Changsheng with a mask.

Known as the Thousand Illusion Mask.

Worn on, it veiled every aura, utterly impervious to detection.

The wearer's form could morph into endless varieties at whim.

Even fate alteration presented no problem.

Quite the wondrous artifact indeed.

Yet the Thousand Illusion Mask required return to Secret City upon exit.

Lu Changsheng donned the mask, experimenting with various looks.

His own body could alter appearance too, but the Thousand Illusion Mask offered far greater ease.

Effortlessly, Lu Changsheng gained entry to Secret City.

The instant he stepped inside, the thriving spectacle left Lu Changsheng stunned.

He had envisioned a hidden-identity alliance as a squalid hive of paranoia and deceit.

Secret City's reality stood in stark contrast.

Vibrantly prosperous it was.

Outshining every locale Lu Changsheng had witnessed.

Goods traded with utter abandon too.

Origins of wares went unquestioned by all.

Deals alone mattered.

Treasures flowed alongside job postings.

Direct offers: enlist masters to slay mighty foes, and similar.

Including commissions to eradicate entire groups.

Countless quests even challenged Strongest Ancestor Realm powers.

"This really... opens one's eyes."

Softly, Lu Changsheng muttered.

So audacious, so booming, so freewheeling.

Reflection showed it all made perfect sense.

With identities shrouded in Secret City, none knew their counterparts.

What fears could trading hold then?

Not the slightest hesitation.

Secret City's flourishing likely eclipsed the Ascension Alliance, Strongest Holy Temple, and Heavenly Realm Association combined.

Such was Secret City's strength.

Dominating as currency remained Dao fragments in Secret City.

Celestial items even caught Lu Changsheng's eye.

Priced exorbitantly at hundreds of Dao fragments.

Pure highway robbery it seemed...

No—thievery itself wouldn't fetch such sums.

Scarcity drove the worth.

Undoubtedly, some craved celestial items desperately?

In World Heart City, Ancestor Realm folk Lu Changsheng met bid merely ten Dao fragments for celestial items.

Yet none parted with theirs.

In Secret City, any craving found fulfillment.

True longing stirred in Lu Changsheng now.

Penniless as he was.

Not a lone Dao fragment in possession.

Sky City's lord though honored as, Lu Changsheng felt profoundly destitute amid Secret City.

"How long has it been since I've experienced the feeling of 'poor'?"

Astonishingly, as Strongest Ancestor Realm now, poverty's bite returned.

"No, I must find a way to earn Dao fragments."

"And once I've earned Dao fragments, I can't easily refine them anymore; I have to accumulate them."

"If I stumble upon treasures I desperately crave, lacking Dao fragments means I simply cannot seize them..."

A glint of resolve ignited within Lu Changsheng's eyes.

He currently commanded three branches of the immortal path.

Which among them showed the most advancement?

Without question, it was the Physical Immortal Path.

Lu Changsheng's Physical Immortal Path had surged to a horrifying 83%.

Merely 18% more progress remained to claim the peak.

Once achieved, Lu Changsheng could dare to assault the Immortal Realm.

Still, advancement at 83% appeared to have stalled completely.

Not even refining bloodlines or formidable entities proved effective.

Lu Changsheng had nearly grasped that only true Immortal Realm flesh and blood could propel further gains.

Besides the Kui Ox Corpse, where else might Immortal Realm flesh be sourced?

Earlier, Lu Changsheng deemed no hope existed.

Yet now, upon engaging with the Secret City, Lu Changsheng perceived an opportunity.

So long as Dao fragments abounded—plenty of Dao fragments.

The Secret Alliance might harbor Immortal Realm level flesh.

But how exactly to obtain Dao fragments?

That presented a true hurdle.

The Heavenly Ancestor of old most likely leveraged Sky City to painstakingly collect Dao fragments over time.

This strategy could indeed yield a modest haul of Dao fragments.

Nevertheless, it probably demanded prolonged effort through steady buildup.

Ultimately, even the Heavenly Ancestor failed to gather vast quantities of Dao fragments.