Solo Leveling: Jin-Woo Faces Opponent Stronger Than Him and Fails to Extract Shadow

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Summary

  • Sung Jin-Woo’s intense clash against Baruka showcases a formidable opponent stronger than himself.
  • Jin-Woo’s failed attempt to extract Baruka’s shadow highlights his frustration and desire for more power.
  • If Jin-Woo had successfully extracted Baruka, he could have been a force of nature in Solo Leveling.

Sung Jin-Woo’s tale in “Solo Leveling” doesn’t end with the completion of the Jeju Island arc in season 2. With speculation about season 3 brewing, now seems like the perfect time to reminisce on the significant incidents from the first two seasons that tested Jin-Woo’s might. Notably, the Red Gate incident displays a confrontation between Jin-Woo and a character who surprisingly acknowledges being stronger than him.

In season 2 of Solo Leveling, the tale unfolds from episodes 1 to 2, encompassing chapters 46 to 55 in the webtoon. This is the Red Gate incident, where our protagonist Jin-Woo ends up trapped within the Red Gate alongside fresh recruits from the White Tiger Guild and E-rank hunter Han Song-Yi. In this confined space, Jin-Woo meets not just the formidable ice bears and their leader, but also the icy elves, who are led by the ominous Baruka.

Sung Jin-Woo Fights the Leader of the Ice Elves

Enter Baruka, the S-Rank Snowfolk

In the course of the Red Gate saga, Sung Jin-Woo rescues the less capable recruits from the gate using his newly acquired powers. The lives of these individuals largely depend on Jin-Woo’s might, as their abilities fall short when compared to the ice bears, ice elves, and even a formidable A-rank hunter named Kim Chul. Absent Jin-Woo, they would likely have been prey for the enchanted creatures, escaping with significant injury.

During the course of the raid, Jin-Woo comes across the alpha of the ice bears and transforms him into one of his shadows, known as Tank. In a surprising twist, Jin-Woo also confronts an enraged Kim Chul, dispatching him swiftly and converting him into his shadow, Iron. Both Tank and Iron played crucial roles in Jin-Woo’s fierce battle against Baruka, the ice elves’ leader, who tested Jin-Woo with his immense power, resilience, speed, and mastery of daggers.

“Stop getting distracted! Do you think this lone soldier is enough to stop me?”—Baruka

Unlike other magical creatures Jin-Woo has encountered, Baruka demonstrates a superior level of intelligence. He’s capable of speaking with Jin-Woo using the language of monsters, managing to persuade him to consider his proposal for sparing human lives in exchange for Baruka’s own. Furthermore, Baruka discloses that magical creatures are subjected to an uncommon voice within their minds that incites them to hunt and slaughter humans.

Of course, Jin-Woo declines Baruka’s proposition and decides to engage him in combat using every power he possesses. He calls forth his phantom troops, among them Igris and Tank, yet none of these tactics appear to weaken Baruka substantially. However, the tide shifts when Jin-Woo invokes Kim Chul’s shadow as reinforcement to end Baruka’s existence. Surprisingly, the battle against Baruka turns out to be lengthier and tougher than anticipated, with Jin-Woo barely emerging victorious. If not for Kim Chul’s shadow, it remains uncertain what measures Jin-Woo might have resorted to in order to stay alive or how the system could have intervened to secure his survival.

Jin-Woo Thinks Baruka Is Stronger Than Him

Jin-Woo’s Failed Attempt to Extract Baruka’s Shadow

By the close of the Red Gate saga, Jin-Woo concludes that Baruka surpasses him in strength, sparking his ambition to climb higher levels and amass greater power throughout the narrative. His belief stems from his unsuccessful attempt to extract Baruka’s shadow after his demise, a failure he expresses to Baek Yoon-Ho as frustration when they both exit the gate, according to Park Hee-Jin.

As Sung Jin-Woo navigates home after their encounter, he mulls over the mystery surrounding his shadow extraction ability’s failure with Baruka. It isn’t due to the elapsed time since Baruka’s death, leaving him with only one plausible explanation: Baruka is significantly stronger than him, likely at a much higher level. Furthermore, he feels fortunate to have emerged victorious against such a formidable adversary as Baruka.

“Hm… was it due to our difference in strength? What a waste.”—Jin-Woo on extracting Baruka

In the world of Solo Leveling, it seems like the author intentionally made Jin-Woo unable to extract Baruka as a strategy to balance his power. With his shadow extraction ability, if he could raise someone like Baruka with his powerful shadow soldiers, he’d become an overwhelming force. If successful, Jin-Woo could have deployed Baruka at the Demon Castle, commanding one team of his shadow army along with Igris and others. However, at his current level in Solo Leveling, Jin-Woo is more than capable of defeating Baruka on his own.

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2025-05-05 18:15