Would Jin-Woo Turn Cha Hae-In Into A Shadow Upon Her Death?

This post contains SPOILERS for Solo Leveling and Solo Leveling Ragnarok.

Sung Jinwoo started out as the “Weakest Hunter on Earth,” but thanks to the System, the Korean Hunter is now being recognized around the world for his immense powers. However, this is simply the beginning of Jinwoo’s journey in Solo Leveling, as our beloved boy will someday become the strongest being in the entire universe.

Manhwa readers know that after truly becoming the successor of Ashborn, Jinwoo becomes an all-powerful and immortal being who can’t really die. So, yes, while his loved ones will someday perish, Jinwoo will continue to live on. But this does beg one question: Will Jinwoo let his loved ones, including Cha Hae-In, die? We all know that Jinwoo can extract shadows of the dead, so it’s normal to wonder if he will extract the shadow of his wife upon her death. Well, the answer is not that simple.

Related

Solo Leveling: Why Sung Jin-Woo Won’t Lose His Humanity

As Jin-Woo evolves into a powerful hunter, there is uncertainty about whether he will lose his humanity. Here’s why he won’t.

Yes, Jinwoo Can Extract Cha Hae-In’s Shadow In Solo Leveling

But The Question Is Whether He Will Turn Her Into A Shadow

Jinwoo achieved immortality in a true sense, and maybe that is why this character is still relevant in the sequel, Solo Leveling Ragnarok. He holds the powers of both Monarchs and Rulers, which basically means that Jinwoo holds a fragment of Itarim within himself. You could say that the man is basically a God. However, the sad part about this is that his wife, Cha Hae-In, is still human. Aside from their son, Sung Suho, if there’s someone who Jinwoo truly cares about, it’s Cha Hae-In. And while both Sung Jinwoo and Sung Suho will continue to live on, Cha Hae-In may not survive for eternity. She is still a human, so she is bound to die one day. Even if Cha Hae-In survives the cosmic threats like Itarim, old age will certainly kill her someday.

Of course, Jinwoo will do everything in his power to save Cha Hae-In, and yes, there’s a chance that he will find a way to make Cha Hae-In immortal as well. However, what if he couldn’t do that? In that case, extracting her Shadow would be the only option for Jinwoo to save Cha Hae-In. Of course, Shadows aren’t exactly the same as their original selves. They do exhibit some emotions, and that’s precisely why Min Byung-Gyu starts to heal Cha Hae-In without even getting the command from Jinwoo. But there’s no arguing that a Shadow Extraction is not the same as resurrection. While some Shadows do sense emotions and may have human traits, they are nothing like their original or living selves. Well, that’s exactly why Jinwoo would never use Shadow Extraction on Cha Hae-In. Unless he finds a real way to make Cha Hae-In immortal, Jinwoo would let nature take its course, and he would let Cha Hae-In die.

Turning Cha Hae-In Into A Shadow Would Be Against Jinwoo’s Morals

Even Cha Hai-In Wouldn’t Allow Jinwoo To Turn Her Into A Shadow

Remember when Jinwoo extracted the Shadow of Min Byung-Gyu to save Cha Hae-In? At that time, everyone thought that Jinwoo intended to use Byung-Gyu as his Shadow, like others, but the Shadow Monarch confirmed that he was thinking of releasing Byung-Gyu’s shadow once Cha Hae-In is saved. Of course, Jinwoo has extracted the Shadows of humans before, but he only did that with awful human beings like Kim Chul. Jinwoo himself has always been against turning good humans into shadows. So, even in his most vulnerable moment, Jinwoo would never break this rule for Cha Hae-In. Furthermore, let’s not forget that even though some Shadows have personalities, they are basically soldiers in Jinwoo’s army. These Shadows only exist for a single purpose — to serve Sung Jinwoo. And in no world would Jinwoo turn Cha Hae-In into one of his Shadow Soldiers.

Honestly, whether Jinwoo would want to turn Cha Hae-In into a Shadow or not is irrelevant if you truly think about it. Why? Well, that’s because Cha Hae-In herself would never allow her husband to use Shadow Extraction upon her death. Jinwoo would have to pay a heavy price in order to resurrect her, so she wouldn’t let Jinwoo go down that path. In the end, Cha Hae-In is a human, so she would want to die a human.

Related

Solo Leveling: Does Sung Jin-Woo’s Sister Become a Hunter?

Sung Jin-Woo’s sister is an ordinary high school student, but does she ever awaken and become a hunter like her brother in Solo Leveling?

Interestingly, this very scenario was mentioned in the Solo Leveling Ragnarok novel, where Sung Suho asks the World Tree the same question. “Would he(Jinwoo) have revived Mother as a Shadow Soldier?” asks Sung Suho to the World Tree. As expected, the World Tree replies that Sung Suho would respect Cha Hae-In’s wishes in this case. And honestly, it’s unlikely that Cha Hae-In would want to become a Shadow after her death.

Solo Leveling

Release Date

2024 – 2025

Network

Tokyo MX, Gunma TV, BS11, Tochigi TV

Directors

Tatsuya Sasaki, Toru Hamasaki

Writers

Shigeru Murakoshi, Shingo Irie, Fuka Ishii

• 
• 

  Genta Nakamura

  Yoo Jin-ho