After a long break, ShamanBlade has returned with a new chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own Shaman King.


Everyone began to turn around and view the area. It was bright, vibrant, and full of life. Spirits roamed freely with their given halos, doing as they pleased. It seemed perfect. As everyone was looking around, nobody noticed that Exile had disappeared. Everyone except for Yoh. Yoh began to look around for Exile. After wandering in the light and asking countless spirits, Yoh discovered Exile, speaking with one of the haloed spirits.

"I've been fine." the angel said.

"Excellent, and I am pleased that you have forgiven me." Exile replied.

"No problems, friend. Your cause was just. It is good that I sacrificed my life for the earth below."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course."

"Thank you." Exile said. He then realized Yoh was watching. "Yoh, where are the others?"

"They're still exploring. But, what did that angel mean "sacrificed their life"? You...didn't kill them...did you?" Exile was silent, but then spoke up.

"I'm sorry if this hurts you, but I have killed in my lifetime. But, I fought for the realms."

"Your whole life? How long have the realms been broken?"

"Since I was born."

"What!"

"Yes, my life is the cause of the tear in the barrier."

"How!" Yoh asked.

"I shall tell you, but you cannot tell anyone, especially Kirol." Yoh nodded. "Fine. I am the cause of this all because I am a half-spirit. I communicate with both sides."

"But isn't that what all shamans do? Shamans exist on both planes. What is so wrong with that?" Yoh asked, confused.

"Shamans and half-spirits are similar, but overall, they are very different. I am truly half-dead. Half of my blood is living, the other dead. I am half-spirit."

"You're half dead? How?"

"My father was a shaman, like the most of us. My mother was too. They lived happily in the world. Until, one day, something happened. My mother went into the area between heaven and hell, in order to strengthen her powers. She died inside. My father was alone. But, in some strange way, my mother did not become a Distorted Ghost like we saw. She kept her original form. With her original form, she could send messages to my father through trances. She told him to wait. I was never born, but I was given life by my deceased mother, and her own spiritual energy, through my father's trances. That, in combination with my father's furyoku, was able to create me."

"Wow...I'm sorry." Yoh quietly said.

"But, my combination of living and dead blood was too much for the planes to take. To gather both types of energy from both parents and both planes, a door had to be opened. This door is the tear in the barriers. Demons from hell began to slip through the tear. To make it so the barrier could not be closed, the demons killed my father. But, I didn't die. My father carried enough furyoku to keep me alive."

"But, how could you live so long without human energy?"

"I discovered a way. I needed to gain more furyoku to live. So, I began to claim other spirits as my allies, one being Suke, my guardian. I held hundreds of spirits as allies and gained enough furyoku from many oversouls to live. As I grew older, I wanted to gain the strength my mother could not. I entered the Dividing Area. Unbelievably, I came out in one piece. I eventually realized that the Dividing Area doesn't make you stronger, but it makes your furyoku last longer. By repeatedly entering the abyss, I could get more furyoku. But, each entrance nearly destroyed my human blood. You should know, you traveled through Tartarus."

"I guess."

"But the problem still rose. I had the energy, but the door was letting fierce monsters into the human world. These monsters were ruthlessly attacking people and just couldn't stand for that. I had to close the door."

"But wouldn't closing the door end your life?"

"Maybe. I'm not sure. But, I can't let this all go on. These monsters are getting out quicker than we all know. A few years ago, two extremely strong entities escaped and began attacking villages. They nearly killed everyone."

"Everyone except for Kirol." Exile sighed.

"She told you, didn't she? Oh well. She's known for that."

"If you do leave, Kirol will be heartbroken." Exile looked away.

"I can't let her suffer. But, I can't let this rampage continue. She wouldn't want the world to be in such chaos." Yoh began to walk away.

"Don't worry. Everything will work out."

"Well you're optimistic." Exile said, sarcastically.

"I'm not being optimistic. I know it will all work out." Exile caught up to him.

"Remember, don't tell anyone." Yoh grinned at him.

"I won't." The two walked back to the group.

Everyone else was exploring when they returned, either wandering around or talking to some of the angel spirits. After rounding everyone up, Exile called their attention.

"We need to stay on course." he said, coldly.

"Yeah, remember that we need to save the realms." Yoh said. Everyone nodded in agreement. "So where to next, Exile?" Exile scanned the area.

"We need to find the Great Spirit." Everyone gasped.

"The Great Spirit!" they all said.

"I originally fought Yoh to get the power of the Shaman King. Without them, we can't gain the assistance of the Great Spirit. That's where you come in, Yoh. Use your powers as Shaman King to talk to the Great Spirit. Ask him how to seal the tear." Yoh nodded.

"Okay. I'll give it a shot." Yoh said, smiling.

"So, where do we go?" Ryu asked.

"Follow me." Exile said as he walked away. Everyone began to follow him toward a bright light. Everybody shielded their eyes, except Exile. The light began to clear away, and a huge building was in front of them.

"Wow." Tamao said in astonishment.

"Exile, how did you know?" Kirol asked. Exile flushed a bit and stammered into a sentence.

"I...uh...just did some research...and it said that it was here."

"You're so smart, Exile." she cheerfully replied.

"Uh, yeah." he said. "I know." Exile smiled to hide his secret further. As they approached the building, the huge doors opened. The stone trembled the platforms and stairs, allowing the group inside. Inside was a huge room with small doorways on the sides. An altar was at the end of a long hall in front of them. "Yoh." Exile said, signaling Yoh to go to the altar. Yoh nodded and walked to the altar. Small inscriptions were on the altar in a language many of them could not interpret. Yoh placed his hand on the altar, despite him not knowing what to do. A pillar of light sprung forth from the altar. A cloud of brightness filled the room.

"Great Spirit." Yoh said. A figure seemingly made of only light burst from the altar. No features appeared to be visible. The light then began to emit a somewhat haunting sound, like the eerie shrieks that the Distorted Spirits made, only more soothing. Yoh turned around.

"It says that the key to closing the door doesn't lie here in heaven. It's saying to go below. Way below." Yoh said.

"Into hell?" Kirol asked. Yoh nodded again. He turned around and bowed to the light figure as it disappeared back into the altar.

"The Great Spirit is a bit odd, don't you think?" Pirika said. "I didn't think it'd look like that."

"It doesn't. The Great Spirit would never show itself to anyone but the Shaman King. It's just how it all works." Exile said. "But we shouldn't be talking about that. The Great Spirit says that the key to sealing the tear is in hell. So, we must travel there." Exile could tell everyone was nervous. They looked away and were distracted by the wall designs. But, they had no choice.

They traveled back to the doorway which they came in and back to the colorful abyss. Distorted Spirits did not appear this time.

"Why aren't there any Distorted Spirits?" Lyserg asked.

"I don't know." Exile said. He was fixated on his goal and did not get distracted.

"So, how do we get to hell?" Yoh asked.

"Same way we got to heaven." Exile said. "We find the other area where the furyoku slips through." They continued to walk until Exile stopped again. Another pillar of spirit energy shot up, but this one was black. Pitch black. Like last time, the pillar seeped into his palm, then opened a portal. Everyone followed Exile in.


Sorry about the wait. I've been really busy. But thanks to those who've been reading and reviewing. I've also been wondering if I should continue this storyline with a sequel. Thanks to all who've helped me, and don't forget to review!