Chapter 83. Conflict in the Secret Realm, a Suspected Transmigrator
Over the next several days, William buried himself in screening the aptitudes of the various families.
Within the Royal Family Secret Realm, the six great families and twenty-four small families all revealed themselves before him, one by one.
To his surprise, it was the smaller families with few members that often held the real surprises.
Some families had no more than a dozen people left in total, yet they still produced one or two descendants with Domain Aptitude.
By contrast, although the great families with their sprawling branches occasionally had a few outstanding individuals, their overall aptitudes were far less concentrated than those of the smaller families.
“This family only has a mother and son left, yet the child actually has Domain Aptitude.”
William frowned slightly as he looked at the name in the record book.
With talent like that, how had the family been reduced to such a desolate state?
Had they been destroyed by internal strife, or suppressed and swallowed up by the great families?
During the screening, the Spatial Rings handed to him never stopped coming.
Some contained rare magic crystals, some were stuffed with gold coins, and some held precious ancient books.
Xilan remained silent the entire time, so William accepted every one of them without complaint.
At last, the final child from the last small family had been examined.
William took a sip of High-Grade Healing Potion, and Xilan immediately stepped forward. “It’s all over. Come with me.”
The two of them walked straight through the castle hall and headed toward the palace complex behind it.
Behind them, the leaders of the families all looked rather ugly, especially the heads of several great families. They had originally wanted to take advantage of the screening to observe the aptitudes of the Royal Family’s own tested candidates and get a sense of the Royal Family’s true foundations.
But to their surprise, Lord Xilan had taken William straight to the rear palace halls.
The heads of the six great families exchanged glances, all seeing the same helplessness in each other’s eyes. They could only watch the two of them leave, powerless to do anything.
Only after their figures disappeared around the corner did they finally leave the hall with their clans in sullen frustration, the sound of their footsteps full of suppressed dissatisfaction.
“Those small families used to be prosperous, didn’t they?” William suddenly asked as they walked along a palace corridor lined with soft carpets, his gaze resting on the ancient family crests hanging on both sides.
Xilan’s steps slowed slightly, and he nodded. “At the beginning, that was indeed the case. When the Secret Realm was first established, all the families held roughly equal status, and none of them had too few members.”
His fingertips brushed across a crest covered in cracks.
“But wherever there are people, there is conflict.”
“In the Secret Realm, there isn’t much to do besides cultivate. Over time, struggles between families became the norm—for territory, for resources, even for the grudges of their ancestors.”
“And the price of defeat...” William murmured softly, remembering the children from those small families whose eyes had been timid yet stubborn. “Were they deliberately allowed to keep fighting, or...”
Xilan turned around. Sunlight streamed through the arched windows of the corridor and fell across his face, leaving it half in light and half in shadow.
“It would be a lie to say there was no intention at all,” he admitted openly. “There are only so many resources in the Secret Realm, only so many Mana mineral veins and Magic Plant production sites.”
“If every family prospered, then dividing the resources would only become even more chaotic.”
“Letting them fight—letting them decide strength and weakness through struggle—instead creates a kind of twisted balance. The strong take the lion’s share, while the weak get a few scraps. At the very least, it keeps things stable on the surface.”
“Like wolves and sheep on the grasslands?” William suddenly said.
Xilan raised a brow. “That’s a very fitting comparison, little William. Without wolves, the sheep would overrun the land. Without sheep, the wolves couldn’t survive either. That’s how balance in the Secret Realm is maintained.”
William nodded after hearing that. By then, the two of them had arrived at the end of the corridor. Two guards stood at the entrance. When they saw the pair approach, they immediately saluted respectfully, then pushed open the great doors to reveal a bright courtyard outside.
William followed Xilan into the courtyard. The stone path beneath his feet had been warmed by the sun.
Xilan’s voice came with the wind. “These collateral branches of the Royal Family and the descendants of meritorious families have all passed layer upon layer of testing. Their character and loyalty are both reliable.”
“Pick a few suitable ones to keep by your side. They can help handle miscellaneous matters and give you a bit more support.”
William nodded in agreement, his gaze sweeping over the carefully tended flowerbeds in the courtyard. The strange blossoms unfurled beneath the sunlight, giving off a faint magical aura.
After walking forward several dozen steps, the scene before him suddenly opened up.
A huge open-air plaza appeared before them. Tier upon tier of circular stands rose upward, and the stone steps gleamed with the polish of countless years, looking very much like the legendary ancient Roman Colosseum, only with less bloodshed and more solemn grandeur.
The plaza below was already filled with people, from little children to youths on the cusp of adulthood. There were thousands of them in total.
Most of them wore uniform clothing embroidered with the Royal Family crest. They stood straight and tall, their eyes filled with both anticipation and nervousness.
At the edge of the crowd, however, there were several dozen figures dressed differently.
Some wore sleeveless vests of animal hide that left their sturdy arms exposed.
Some wore plain linen robes, though faint magical light coiled around their fingertips.
Others carried longswords on their backs and wore strange metal tokens at their waists, clearly from different factions.
“Those are descendants of meritorious families. Their families gave loyal service to the Kroll Kingdom, and when the kingdom judged their aptitudes to be good enough, they were brought into the Secret Realm,” Xilan explained in a low voice.
William’s gaze moved slowly through the crowd.
The boys and girls in the plaza were all secretly sizing him up. Some deliberately straightened their backs, while others tried to display their Magic or Dou Qi, hoping to leave him with a good impression.
In the end, his eyes settled on a boy standing in a corner.
The boy wore Royal Family clothing that had been washed to a faded white. He was thin, but he stood straight. Unlike the others, he made no effort to show himself off.
He merely stood there quietly, unconsciously rubbing the patch on his sleeve with his fingers. Hidden in his eyes was a steadiness that did not match his age.
“Who is he?” William asked Xilan.
Following his gaze, Xilan looked over and thought for a moment. “He seems to be from a collateral branch of Third Royal Uncle’s family. His name is Lynn. His parents died young, so he isn’t particularly valued within the clan.”
William said nothing. He merely gave a slight nod in the boy’s direction.
The boy froze for a moment, then quickly reacted. He strode over to William, bowed, and saluted with precise movements that were standard without being obsequious.
“Greetings, Your Highness.”
His voice was not loud, but it was very clear.
Xilan raised a brow but said nothing.
Looking at the boy before him, William suddenly changed the subject and said loudly, “Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river...”
There was a trace of hidden anticipation in his eyes as he stared intently at Lynn.
However, Lynn only blinked in confusion, his face full of bewilderment, as though he had no idea what that abrupt and inexplicable line meant. After a moment’s hesitation, he asked, “Your Highness... what did you say?”
William stared at him for several seconds. Seeing how clear and innocent the boy’s eyes were, that far-fetched suspicion in his heart gradually faded.
Looks like I was overthinking it. This kid isn’t a transmigrator.
He coughed twice, covering up his earlier lapse, and his tone returned to calm.
“It’s nothing. Your stance is steady, and your gaze isn’t flighty. Very good.”
Though Lynn did not understand what that earlier line had meant, he keenly sensed the change in the prince’s tone.
“Thank you for your praise, Your Highness.”
Xilan watched the whole scene from the side. A trace of puzzlement flashed through his eyes, but he did not ask.
“If little William thinks he’s suitable, then add him to the Attendant list.”
William shook his head. “Lord Xilan, I’m afraid that if I reveal his aptitude, you won’t let him go.”