47 Bon Odori
After spending the whole morning and afternoon at the beach, the trio decided it was time to return to their hotel to rest up.
Blake too, after consulting Elder Lv about the mysteries of the 3rd plane of reality, bid farewell to his elder before throwing his black token into his storage space.
After returning from the beach, Blake brought his classmates to a hot spring resort to check in.
The hotel reservation was under Blake's name but the one who actually paid for it was Prince Carl.
Why? Because his Sacred Ancestor ordered him to.
The Sacred Ancestor of the Swordsaber Royal Family did not have faith in Blake when it came to making reservations.
He was scared that Okinawa would be erased off the map along with everyone in it if Blake did the reservations himself.
After washing up, Zack, Amelia and Willford gathered in Blake's suite to discuss their next plans.
Willford was the first to give his thoughts.
"In my opinion, I'd rather just have my dinner at the resort's sushi bar instead of going out to find food. We're not locals here, it'll probably take us 3 hours to find a decent restaurant."
"Yes but, since we're cultivators, we can fly, you know?"
"Is food all that you can think of? Flying is prohibited within the Okinawa Prefecture."
"Since when?!"
"Since Mystic Medicine Hall declared that it was!" Willford snorted as he doubted whether he was dealing with a child or a high schooler.
"To Bon Odori it is!" Blake ignored the quarrel between Willford and Amelia and declared.
This in turn, confused the trio greatly.
***
Everybody there was wearing yukatas of various designs and colors.
Food and game stalls lined the streets while a giant stage was erected in the middle of a grassy field.
The atmosphere was filled with joy and laughter.
When the sun finally set into the horizons, the hall leader of Mystic Medicine Hall, Hajime Habu , went up on stage to give an opening speech.
Performances began after the speech.
Without hesitation, Zack and Amelia went to enjoy themselves, leaving Willford and Blake in the middle of the grassy field.
Blake already expected this outcome.
He brought Willford to sit under a tree, before proceeding to share his experiences with his classmate.
Willford listened attentively since the experiences of a Magic Emperor were considered priceless in this day and age.
After listening to Blake for about an hour or so, Willford showed a look of enlightenment.
Turns out, Mystic Medicine Hall's founder was a close friend of Blake in the past.
Blake didn't disclose the name of his friend but Willford already had a guess.
After all, Mystic Medicine Hall is a famous pharmaceutical organization that even the leaders of Who come to ask advice from.
The founder's title was Mystic Medicine Monarch.
He was recorded in the hall of fame along with many other big shots like Ancient Emperor and the Angel Executioner.
Another hour passed when Zack and Amelia came back with snacks and drinks.
Zack's yukata was loose while Amelia's hair was messier than usual.
Blake also noticed that Zack had a bite mark on the side of his neck yet kept quiet about it.
Amelia has clearly marked Zack as her man.
Willford on the other hand, was still sorting out the information he received from Blake just now so he didn't notice anything.
He merely glanced at the two for a moment before entering into a meditative state again.
Each breath he took was filled with martial qi, making him look like a secluded immortal that came out to enjoy the scenery.
Blake ignored the trio as he began to stuff himself with the snacks his classmate couple brought back.
Love was temporary, food was eternal.
A veteran cultivator like Blake has already endured several centuries of loneliness before passing away. What was love to him when loneliness was already his partner?
Only young cultivators who were wet behind their ears would chase after love, pleasure and accompaniment.
Food however, will always exist no matter how many generations have passed.
In the past, Blake was hungry for a century, fought for a century and then slept for another century.
After waking up from his century-long slumbered, he began to stuff himself with food and liquor for a half a century before his teacher sent him a vision.
{Die for me, my disciple. Your presence will be needed in the future.}
Without hesitation, Blake halted his eating, severed the hunger sensation from his soul, before leaving his palace to prepare his passing.
Now that he has reincarnated into a world full of peace, a sensation he had severed during his final days resurfaced once again.
'I'm hungry.' was all Blake could think of at that moment.
Candied apples, takoyaki, cotton candy and many more, Blake savored each and every snack in front of him as if he hadn't eaten anything in a century.
Several hours passed when the fireworks show started. Bright, colorful lights decorated the night sky above Okinawa Prefecture.
This marked the end of the Bon Odori Festival.
Blake had just finished a year's worth of food at that moment as well.
When he looked up from his empty plate, he was met by the brightly lit fireworks.
Zack and Amelia had already disappeared by then.
As for Willford, he seemed to have comprehended the next step in his cultivation art and was in deep meditation. He didn't realize that a man in a green yukata was staring at him intently.
"Good evening, Hajime-dono. What can I do for you this fine evening?" Blake asked the man in green enthusiastically.
