"Your tea, sir. Please enjoy!"
Before long, the waiter came up with a teapot, set it on Chen Lin's table, and laid out an exquisite tea set.
"Wait a moment."
Just as the waiter was about to leave, Chen Lin stopped him.
"What can I do for you, sir?"
Chen Lin looked around, then glanced out the window.
"I've noticed that the people in this city don't seem very willing to talk. Is there some taboo?"
The waiter also looked around at his question.
"Have you only just arrived here, sir?" he asked quietly.
"That's right."
Chen Lin nodded.
The waiter wore an expression that said he had guessed as much.
Yet he did not answer immediately, looking as though he wanted to speak but hesitated.
"What, is it inconvenient to say?"
The waiter hesitated for a moment.
Finally, he answered, "There's nothing we can't talk about. It's just that the atmosphere in the city has taken a turn for the worse. The Sword Cultivators from the various Sword Pavilions are obsessed with challenges, so nobody wants to talk to anyone for fear of inviting trouble."
"Challenges?"
Chen Lin raised an eyebrow.
He recalled how he had been challenged by that White-Clothed Swordsman outside the city simply for asking directions.
Puzzled, he asked, "If you don't want to accept a challenge, couldn't you just refuse to fight? What's there to fear? Surely the Sword Cultivators in this city can't kill people at will?"
"They certainly can't kill without cause."
The waiter glanced at the two other customers.
Only after seeing that neither was paying attention to them did he lower his voice further.
"You should know, sir, that under normal circumstances, when a Sword Cultivator challenges someone of a higher rank, the challenged party must fight or be demoted. But