How did Sung Jinwoo become a Shadow Monarch in Solo Leveling? Explained

Season one of the Solo Leveling anime concluded with Sung Jinwoo gaining the powers of the Shadow Monarch, which allowed him to create his very own shadow army from the corpses of his enemies. This is an interesting powerup for Jinwoo, who can now take on a large number of enemies without being at a disadvantage.

Although Jinwoo was himself reluctant to accept the job title at first, he eventually realized that it would benefit him in his quest to get stronger.

While the anime showcased Jinwoo achieving the title of Shadow Monarch after completing his job change quest, the connection between him and his newly acquired powers is much deeper in the Solo Leveling manhwa.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the Solo Leveling manhwa. Reader's discretion is advised.

Solo Leveling: Explaining the full story behind Sung Jinwoo becoming the Shadow Monarch

Sung Jinwoo as seen in the anime (image via A-1 Pictures)

Towards the end of the first season of the Solo Leveling anime, Sung Jinwoo embarked on a 'Job Change Quest', where he had to face the powerful Blood-Red Commander Igris, along with an endless number of enemies. In the end, Jinwoo managed to persevere and defeat all of his enemies, following which he received the job title of a necromancer.

While he was hesitant to accept the job title at first, Jinwoo eventually ended up accepting it after considering its benefits. Surprisingly, his Necromancer class was instantly upgraded to the title of Shadow Monarch.

After achieving this upgraded class, Jinwoo received two unique skills. One was Shadow Extraction, which allowed him to turn his defeated enemies into shadow soldiers, and the other was Shadow Storage, which allowed him to store a certain number of shadows in his inventory.

Also read: Solo Leveling season 2 confirmed following first season finale

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As Jinwoo further leveled up, his shadow abilities got even stronger, which resulted in an increase in both the number and the power of his shadow army. In fact, he was capable of defeating large hordes of enemies on his own, aided by his faithful shadow army.

With time, Jinwoo gained two more skills, which included Shadow Exchange and Monarch's Domain. With these powerful abilities, Jinwoo managed to defeat more powerful enemies and add them to his ever-growing army of shadow soldiers.

Sung Jinwoo's powers remained a mystery for the majority of the Solo Leveling manhwa. That said, the truth behind his powers and the System was finally revealed during the Double Dungeon arc of the manhwa, which took place from chapters 123–131.

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In this arc, it was revealed that the System was actually created by the Hidden Boss of the Double Dungeon, who was also known as the Architect. He revealed that he had designed the System in order to find a suitable vessel for the original Shadow Monarch, Ashborn.

After a long search, the Architect had found the perfect vessel for Ashborn, and that was none other than Sung Jinwoo. However, the Architect did not believe at first that Jinwoo was the right choice to inherit the powers of the Shadow Monarch.

Ashborn, on the other hand, was captivated by Jinwoo's ability to escape death multiple times and his desperate desire to live. It was solely because of this quality that Ashborn chose Jinwoo to be his vessel.

Sung Jinwoo and his shadow soldiers as seen in the anime (image via A-1 Pictures)

As such, the Architect designed the System like a video game, which would help strengthen Sung Jinwoo's body and prepare it to eventually inherit Ashborn's power.

With each passing level, Jinwoo's body became more and more accustomed to the powers of the Shadow Monarch. In fact, it was also during this arc that he received a second heart of the Shadow Monarch, which made him stronger than ever and gave him an entirely new presence.

Therefore, it can be concluded that Sung Jinwoo receiving the powers of the Shadow Monarch was already premeditated by Ashborn, who deemed the former to be the best person to inherit his full power. That said, Ashborn's choice was eventually proven to be the right one, as Jinwoo used his powers to bring a decisive end to the never-ending war between the Rulers and the Monarchs by the end of the story.