Blue Exorcist: Section 13, Explained

Key Takeaways

• Section 13 was created to make clones of Demon Kings & provide Lucifer with a vessel, leading to elixir research.
• The facility was destroyed during the Blue Night, leading to the formation of the Exorcist Cram School.
• Mephisto Pheles stored Section 13 in a separate dimension, preserving it for investigation but risking clone deterioration.

Section 13 is an experimental facility created by Mephisto Pheles to prevent Lucifer from destroying the world. The primary goal of this research facility was to specialize in mass-cloning production; later, the elixir research as a human vessel was not enough to sustain Lucifer’s body.

Section 13 no longer exists in the present timeline of Blue Exorcist, as it was destroyed during the Blue Night. As a result, the Exorcist Cram School was rebuilt in its place to conceal its existence. Section 13 holds vital information about why the Illuminati exists and the Blue Night.

What is Section 13?

To Subdue Lucifer’s Anger, Section 13 Was Created to Produce A Vessel For Him

Section 13 was a restricted area within the True Cross Academy to research methods that would prolong the life of Lucifer, the King of Light, in Assiah. It was a restricted area within the Academy, so the Asylum was created to cover up the research facility. Section 13 had been conducting experiments for decades before Yuri Egin was taken in. However, Section 13 and the Asylum was shut down after the Blue Night as Satan’s rampage killed many and destroyed the facility.

In Section 13, researchers conducted illegal human experimentation to create an immortality elixir. In addition to the elixir production, the facility also mass-produced clones of the Demon Kings. Section 13 was created as a last resort to persuade Lucifer not to destroy the world. In Chapter 86, Lucifer has reached his limit and cannot endure the pain and suffering from feeling his vessel deteriorate.

Through this cajolery, I persuaded Lucifer. Then I established Section 13 with the Asylum as its front. I gathered the world’s most prominent cloning researchers and proceeded with the research.

As Mephisto Pheles mentioned, he created Section 13 with the Asylum as a front. Thus, he gathered the world’s most prominent cloning researchers and proceeded with the cloning experiment. Mephisto had always been on the side of humanity, as he and some of his brothers taught humans to fight demons around 100 years prior. In doing so, it preserved the world’s equilibrium; however, to prevent Lucifer from destroying the world, Section 13 was created.

As mentioned above, the Asylum was the front for Section 13. The Asylum would take in orphaned children who were related to demons or had a mashou. A mashou refers to a wound or illness inflicted by a demon. If an individual wishes to become an exorcist, they must participate in a mashou rite. After sustaining an injury inflicted by a demon in a controlled environment, the individual will see demons for the remainder of their life. As for the children that the Asylum has taken in, the Asylum would train them if they have the adequate qualities required to become an exorcist, as mentioned by Lightning in Chapter 85.

Lightning and Suguro Ryuji could investigate Section 13 with Mephisto Pheles’s guidance. Here, they discovered the previous exorcist training dormitory known as the Asylum. Fujimoto Shiro and Arthur Auguste Angel, the current Paladin, hailed from the Asylum. However, the True Cross Order of Knights shut it down 16 years prior due to the Blue Night.

Lightning and Ryuji could conduct this investigation because Mephisto Pheles stored Section 13 in a separate dimension to preserve it entirely after the Blue Night. In the current timeline, the Exorcist Cram School was built to remove all traces of Section 13. To do this, Mephisto Pheles preserved the space by splitting it from the original timeline; however, the time still passes at the same rate, and as a result, the remaining clones at the facility have been stagnant for ten years. However, if the clones are exposed to open air, their deterioration will accelerate.

Mephisto Pheles is one of the Eight Demon Kings known as Samael. Because he holds the power of Time, Mephisto can manipulate it to his liking. As mentioned above, Father Fujimoto and Arthur Auguste Angel came from the Asylum. This was because they were products of mass cloning and human experimentation. However, Angel is unaware of his heritage as he suffers from amnesia following the Blue Night.

What Additional Goals Did Section 13 Have?

Section 13 Also Produced Vessels for Amaimon and Satan

• Section 13 was tasked to create a suitable possession body for Lucifer.
• The possession body was insufficient to sustain Lucifer in Assiah, which commenced the elixir research.
• Section 13 trained novice exorcists in the Asylum to cover up the research facility.

As mentioned previously, Section 13 mass-produced clones of the Eight Demon Kings. Section 13 was initially created for Lucifer, and the search was to provide him with a body to reside in Assiah. As all demons hail from Gehenna, they exist in a spiritual form with no substance. Additionally, this means they do not experience the same senses as humans.

As Lucifer was the oldest son of Satan, he was also the most powerful of the Eight Demon Kings. Due to this, finding a body best suited for him was a challenge, as the vessel would quickly deteriorate, leaving Lucifer in immense pain.

I’m at my limit. It has all come to naught.

Section 13 was tasked with creating a suitable vessel for Lucifer and an elixir to stop the human body’s deterioration. However, as most of the bodies created were unsuitable for possession, additional elixir research was later implemented. While Section 13 was primarily used to give Lucifer a human body, it also enabled the other Eight Demon Kings to receive one, which is how Amaimon received his human body.

Although it was not primarily the main goal, the Asylum was a means of training upcoming Exorcists from the orphans who lived in the dormitory. Mephisto was one of the demons who assisted humans in exorcising demons. As a result, the Asylum was also a means of recruiting more exorcists. However, after Section 13 was shut down and the Blue Nights occurred, the number of exorcists likely diminished, as seen in the Exorcist Cram School.

Does Section 13 Have Ties to The Illuminati?

Inspired by Section 13, Lucifer Created the Illuminati to Continue Their Research

Section 13 does not have ties to the Illuminati. However, after Satan destroyed Section 13 during the Blue Night, Lucifer founded the Illuminati. Lucifer had still been searching for a human vessel that could reside in Assiah; his father, Satan, had also been looking for a vessel.

In competition with Mephisto, Lucifer offered to present Satan with a human body before Mephisto. Lucifer had known many humans in Assiah who revered him with great respect. Using this faith, Lucifer continued human experimentation and elixir research. The individuals who survived the Blue Night followed Lucifer to continue and help him with the research, and with this came the production of the Far East Laboratory that focused on the elixir research.

Blue Exorcist is now available to stream on Crunchyroll.