The secret reason was that Jinwoo was Ashbourne's rightful successor

in Single levelingSung Jinwoo gets all the love and attention not only from the fans but also from the characters within the story. The villains try to fight Jinwoo, while his friends and allies want to stay with him as long as possible. It goes without saying that the Creator Single leveling Jinwoo went to extreme lengths to build his character, staying true to the title from start to finish.

Among the characters in Single levelingAshborn, aka the Shadow King, has always felt a connection with Jinwoo. Instead of looking at those S-Rank and national-level hunters, Ashborn was more interested in Jinwoo, who was completely below the hunter ranking. And while most hunters didn't give Jinwoo a second look, Ashborn didn't hesitate to choose Jinwoo as his successor.

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Sung Jinwu is Ashbourne's chosen human vessel

The system gives Jinwu an emphasis on Ashbourne's power

Image by Rei Penber/Game Rant

• Jinwoo is a human vessel for Ashbourne.

• The system prepared Jinwoo's body for Ashbourne's complete takeover.

Within each king Single leveling Humans are vessels, and Ashborn, the Shadow King, is no exception. His human vessel is Sung Jinwoo, whose abilities are nowhere near the strongest hunters in the story. Jinwu was weak and frail, so much so that low level goblins could kill him. He also lacked the ability to wield weapons, making him easy prey within the dungeon.

Ashborn's fellow emperors likely chose capable human ships, yet he chose Jinwu based on his personal preference. Despite the complaints of his slave, Kandiyaru, he stuck to his choice. As it turns out, there are benefits to being vulnerable Single levelingAt least for someone like Jinwoo, who was always at death's door. Being a vessel for a king is a way to enjoy extraordinary powers.

With the system designed by Kandiaru, Ashborn had no problem matching Jinwu's body to his powers. The more Jinwu grinds levels and pursues power, the sooner his body can welcome Ashborn and embrace his power. However, unlike the other kings, Ashborn has no reason to control Jinwu's body. Instead of treating her as his vessel, he decided to treat her as his perfect heir.

Jinwu's weakness and near-death experience made him the perfect successor

Ashborn wants to disappear forever

• Jinwu's near-death encounters resonated with Ashbourne.

• Ashbourne is tired of all the fighting between the rulers and the kings.

Ashbourne isn't actually a mentor to Jinwoo, but his relationship with her can still be framed as a passing of the torch. From the beginning, Ashborn's intention was to transfer his powers to Jinwu, simply because his near-death experiences resonated deeply with him. He was so impressed by Jinwu's mental resolve and ability to survive that he never hesitated to select him as his successor.

Ashborn wasn't even looking at Jinwu's overall combat power, nor his physical and magical abilities. He knew Jinwoo was weak, but that didn't stop him from choosing. Instead, it convinced him to commit to Jinwoo, especially after seeing his journey and development. Eventually, he became convinced of Jinwu's abilities, actions, and decisions, enough to resign as Shadow King.

As fans know, Ashbourne has faced hardships throughout his life. He has been fighting for a long time hoping to end the war between the ruler and the emperor in his own way. He was betrayed by his allies, a terrifying experience that left him depressed and exhausted for the rest of his life. However, seeing Jinwoo's journey convinced the new Shadow King that he could accomplish what he couldn't. In other words, Ashbourne knew his time was up, and that disappearing forever was the right thing to do.

Jinwoo inherits Ashbourne's full power

• Ashbourne hands over his full power to Jinwu as his successor.

• Jinwu is the second Shadow Emperor in solo leveling.

Imagine how powerful Jinwu could become if he inherited the full power of Ashborn. His power will certainly get a huge boost, potentially removing the ceiling imposed by the system and Ashbourne's influence on his skills. His mana reserves will likely be doubled and/or tripled, making it unlimited. If so, this would erase Jinwoo's problems with his shadows, as summoning them in quick succession would usually drain his mana.

Most importantly, Jinwu would no longer be ridiculed by his peers as an imperfect king. Like Ashborn, his presence would bring fear into the existence of the Emperors, almost as if they had no chance of winning against them even if they combined their powers. All these may happen in future installments Single levelingSo fans should stay tuned for more!

Release date

2024 – 2025-00-00

network

Tokyo MX, Gunma TV, BS11, Tochigi TV

directors

Tatsuya Sasaki, Toru Hamasaki

The authors

Shigeru Murakoshi, Shingo Irie, Fuka Ishii

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  Genta Nakamura

  This is Jin-ho