u/Significant-Creme961

How far can our Ruler Vessels go, how many Monarchs can they clear from weakest to strongest?. How would you categorise the difficulty for each Monarch?
Also including GoGunhee because I forgot to edit him into the frame

Quick note just to make it a tad bit fair for our Ruler vessels. For their battles, the Ruler vessels who have access to Spiritual Body Manifesation can use it and do not suffer the draw back of death when using the technique, so they can freely use it without worrying about turning to dust.
Which I guess are only Sung Il-Hwan and Christopher Reed correct me if I’m wrong.
How far do they get?.

I so wished we got more lore expansion on the old world of Solo Levelling, especially the fragments of Light, It honestly could have made the story alot more better overall imo.
I really love Solo Leveling World building but the story execution kinda felt bland for me.
Like I know it’s more so focused on the new world and Jinwoo and the old world is treated as distance past but I still wish we got more expansion on the Fragments of Light and their personalities.

Like imagine a solo Levelling prequel before earth was
even relevant, seeing the Fragments Of Brilliant Light in their prime and as well as the Monarchs contesting in the eternal war, and then showing in depth how the Fragments of Brilliant Light went from Fragments of Brilliant Light to Rulers.

Wish we got to see more of the Rulers interact in the series instead of being background characters, would have liked to see them interact with the story more.

I don’t think this topic has ever really been discussed, but I was wondering: who would win between a Four-Winged Silver Soldier born from the Tree of Life and a Chosen/Nam ed Apostle under the Itriam (Apostle of Conquest, Paradise, Evolution, etc.)?

Now, this is obviously based more on speculation, since the only Four-Winged Silver Soldier we’ve actually seen in the verse is Bellion. However, I tend to believe that Bellion isn’t necessarily the only Four-Winged Silver Soldier in existence.

If we assume that there are other Four-Winged Silver Soldiers serving among the Rulers’ forces, and that some of them could potentially hold positions as commanders under the Rulers, could these hypothetical Four-Winged Silver Soldiers be comparable to the Named/Chosen Apostles under the Itriam?

Obviously, there isn’t enough direct information to give a definitive answer, which is why I’m more interested in the interpretation/speculation side of things.

What do you guys think? Would a Four-Winged Silver Soldier commander be able to match a Named Apostle, or would the Apostles be stronger?.

Top 10 strongest in my opinion, I may of forgot some people so remind me if I did, but imo this is the strongest shown in the anime, you can argue GoGunhee above Current Jinwoo but it feels safe as it is. Show me your guys own top ten as well or tell me where I went wrong.

(Edit)
Factoring new information my new list looks like this:

1. Silad monarch of frost 2. Rakan monarch of fang 3. Sung Il-Hwan 4th Thomas Andre 5th Liu Zhigang 6th God Statue 7th Go Gunhee 8th Sung Jinwoo 9th Ant King Beru 10th Demon King Baron

Basically asking the question of why Sung Il-Hwan did not change in appearance using SBM (Spiritual Body Manifestation). As some know, when a being uses SBM they reveal their true form and power. Antares used SBM, he became a dragon, Frost Monarch became a Frost storm, Beast Monarch, a Beast, etc.

We know SBM revealing true forms isn’t just subjected to Monarchs as we even know a human who drastically changed in appearance when using SBM

However we only have like two instances where a human actually uses SBM including Sung Il-Hwan so the sample size is really low, however our second user is Christopher Reed, a Human who used SBM and transformed into a four meter, giant magic fire creature, which to me implied that this was Christopher Reed true form, however it’s still a inference, but we know humans are capable of transforming.

So when Sung Il-Hwan uses SBM, he never changes, he still retains a human appearance even when using SBM so why is that?, can somebody list down there thoughts or theories to why he doesn’t change in appearance like literally everyone else who uses SBM?.

Just minding my own business defeating a boss, just to see that in one of the cutscenes my lower half body was invisible. Confused I checked my inventory and my gear system, and in that I saw I was wearing lavender for my joggers???

Just to clear things up, I’m not talking about the fragments of Light and Dark (the Rulers and Monarchs). I’m referring specifically to the concepts of Light and Dark themselves.

We know that these two forces are described as primordial, and this has been mentioned multiple times. However, I’m unsure what exactly that means in the context of the lore.

Does it mean they were the first things created by the Absolute Being, making them “primordial” because they were the first major creations? Or does it mean that Light and Dark are fundamental forces that existed before creation itself?

From what I understand, the novel doesn’t make it entirely clear whether the Absolute Being created the concepts of Light and Dark, or whether the Absolute Being simply gave form and substance to already existing primordial forces.

In other words, did the Absolute Being create Light and Dark itself, or did he shape them into beings/entities (the Rulers and Monarchs) without creating the underlying concepts?

What do you guys think? And if there’s already a confirmed answer and I missed it, please let me know.

I seen a video of this and did not expect it to be a spider from New Zealand, I believe it’s something a long the lines of Porrhothele antipodiana?, so creepy and cute.

It’s scary to think we have this type of spider but at the same time it’s kinda cool.

Does anybody have any more cool facts about our nature?

This isn’t a discussed topic, but when Go Gunhee was attacked by the Frost Monarch and the Brightest Fragment Of Light used Go Gunhee body did he activate Spirtual body manifestation? Or did he not, I mean he was strong enough to force Frost Monarch base to avoid his attack and even shattered a hole through the dimensional crack?, so did he use SBM? Or nah?

Angor Goat or varvatos Vex?

Interesting match up imo

Who wins this matchup?
Christopher Reed using Spiritual Body Manifestation with no death backlash vs. not just the Architect, but
the entire Double Dungeon.

Assume Christopher can use his full power without suffering the usual drawbacks. Does he have enough raw strength to clear the Double Dungeon and defeat the Architect, or does the Architect and everything inside eventually overwhelm him?
Curious to hear everyone’s thoughts.

I've been rereading the Solo Leveling novel recently, and I think there's a pretty interesting misconception in the fandom regarding Spiritual Body Manifestation (SBM).

For years, most of us have treated SBM as a standard Ruler ability. The logic seemed simple:

Every Ruler Vessel can use Ruler's Authority (telekinesis).Christopher Reed and Sung Il-Hwan are Ruler Vessels who use Spiritual Body Manifestation. Therefore, every Ruler Vessel should be capable of using SBM.

It made perfect sense, and for a long time I believed it too. But after going back through the novel with a more open mind, I found some information that made me question that assumption.
The first thing comes from Chapter 242.

When Jinwoo surrounds himself with his shadows, Antares briefly mistakes the form for Spiritual Body Manifestation before immediately correcting himself, saying that Rulers don't possess the innate ability to manifest a Spiritual Body because they already exist in one.

That line is surprisingly important.
For years we've treated SBM as if it were one of the Rulers' natural abilities, similar to Ruler's Authority. But if Antares is correct, then SBM isn't actually an innate Ruler ability in the first place.

That weakens the original argument that all Ruler Vessels should automatically be able to use it simply because they're borrowing Ruler powers.

After noticing that, I started looking into the ability more deeply. Then I came across something from the Solo Leveling: Arise developer stream during Liu Zhigang's release.

While discussing Liu's Ultimate Skill, the developers explained that they had asked Chugong for background information so they could faithfully recreate Liu's abilities from the original setting.
One comment completely caught me off guard.

The developers stated:

"There was originally a setting in the lore that Liu Zhigang cannot use what's called Spiritual Body Manifestation."

That honestly changes quite a bit.
Liu is one of the seven Ruler Vessels, yet according to Chugong's own background material, he simply cannot use SBM.
So now the old assumption doesn't really hold up anymore. If Liu can't use SBM despite being a Ruler Vessel, then being a Vessel clearly isn't enough on its own.

That raises the obvious question:
Why can Christopher Reed and Sung Il-Hwan use SBM while Liu cannot?

My own theory comes from Christopher's introduction in Chapter 176.

Most people remember Christopher arrogantly claiming that no one alive could kill him.
"Only other lions can bite another lion to death."

Most people dismiss this as pure ego.
And yes, Christopher is definitely arrogant.

But there's another scene immediately beforehand that often gets overlooked.

Christopher thanks Norma Selner because her awakening ability had greatly strengthened him.

The novel specifically says:
"Thanks to her ability, his own power had become much stronger. He had surpassed the limits that felt like an insurmountable wall."

That wording has always stood out to me.

It doesn't sound like Christopher simply received a modest power boost.
It sounds like he broke through some kind of ceiling.

My theory is that Ruler Vessels normally have a limit placed upon the amount of divine power they can access, since the Rulers only lend a portion of their power rather than fully possessing their vessels like the Monarchs do.

If that's true, Norma's enhancement may have pushed Christopher beyond that ceiling rather than simply increasing his strength by 20–30%.

That could explain both his overwhelming confidence and why he was able to use SBM despite Liu being unable to.

Then there's another detail from Chapter 182.
When Christopher activates Spiritual Body Manifestation against the three Monarchs, they're visibly surprised.
The novel says:
"Spiritual Body Manifestation...? A human using Spiritual Body Manifestation."

That reaction is interesting.

These are primordial beings.

If humans using SBM were completely normal among Ruler Vessels, why would the Monarchs react with surprise?

To me, it suggests that a human capable of using SBM is either extremely rare or something they simply didn't expect to encounter.
Then we have Sung Il-Hwan.
Unlike the other Vessels, Il-Hwan wasn't an ordinary Vessel at all.

The Rulers intentionally empowered him far beyond the others because he needed enough strength to oppose the Shadow Monarch's Vessel.

If Il-Hwan received additional power directly from the Rulers, then it would make sense that he could access SBM as well.

Putting all of this together, my current theory looks something like this:

Simply becoming a Ruler Vessel does not automatically grant Spiritual Body Manifestation.

SBM doesn't appear to be an innate Ruler ability according to Antares.

Liu Zhigang is explicitly stated in Chugong's background material to be incapable of using SBM.

Christopher Reed may have surpassed the normal limits of a Ruler Vessel after Norma Selner enhanced his power.

Sung Il-Hwan may also bypass those limits because the Rulers artificially empowered him.
If that's true, then SBM may depend less on being a Ruler Vessel and more on reaching a certain level of power or closeness to a higher-dimensional existence.

As for Thomas Andre and Go Gunhee, they're harder to place. Thomas could potentially qualify if Norma's enhancement affected him the same way it affected Christopher, but we simply don't know. Go Gunhee is another possibility, although the story never explicitly confirms whether he could manifest SBM.

At the very least, I think this is one of those topics where the fandom should be a bit more cautious. For years we've treated "all Ruler Vessels can use SBM" as established fact, but both the novel and Chugong's later lore suggest the reality may be more nuanced.

I'd be interested to hear what everyone else thinks.

The three highest tier National Level Hunters against the combined might of every Hunter guild, association, government and military on the planet.
I’ve broken this down into three scenarios. Curious to hear how far you think they get.

Scenario 1: Every Hunter, Guild, and government military in the world (excluding other National Level Hunters, Rulers vessels, and Jin-Woo/international arc)

Scenario 2: Everything above, plus every other National Level Hunter and Ruler vessel (still no Jin-Woo or Il-Hwan).

Scenario 3: All of the above, plus Jin-Woo (international arc)

This post isn't about specific character power scaling it’s more about the structural hierarchy of power, the following characters are used as examples.

The core question is: Can raw physical dominance ever bridge the gap created by Spiritual Body Manifestation (SBM)?
could Big Boi Andre a beast relying purely on peak durability and strength through his human Skill Reinforcement overwhelm Chris, a inferior hunter at base values but in this context is influenced by SBM?

SBM is objectively superior as a transformative state, this discussion lies in whether a "natural" peak can ever invalidate a "supernatural" boost.

Can a human (Ruler Vessel) who has pushed their base capacity to its absolute limit ever render the SBM advantage irrelevant between humans, or is SBM a threshold that raw, base level power simply cannot cross?

Recently have been given information regarding Liu boi, that specifically note that he does not have the ability to manifest what’s called a “Spirtual Body”. Why is this the case?, as we know, Sung Il-Hwang, potentially GoGunhee and Christopher Reed manifested a Spirtual Body, and I believe Christopher (Base FP) is inferior to to Liu Zhigang in direct combat (FP), yet Christopher has the ability to manifest and not Liu Zhigang. So is the transformation process to entering a spiritual body somewhat circumstantial?. We know officially that Chris only manifested because he had calculated and was left with no probabilities of where he’d come out on top against the Monarchs, Il-Hwan did manifested to save his son, GoGunhee is more of a theory.

But the underlying fact is that all three Humans manifested in dire situations, so if Liu was put in the same situation of overwhelming odds, or heroic sacrifice, could he manifest as well, despite the original lore dictating he does not possess the inherent ability to do so?.

SBM power multiplier? Does the form increase human mana capacity letting them absorb more power from the rulers/Monarchs/higher existences?.

I want to discuss what the main properties of a Spirtual Body are, specifically focused on the human part.

Right now all I know is that if a human manifests a spirtual body they basically die shortly after due to the merging of soul and physical body, but with a spirtual body their Mana capacity or “void” increases drastically letting human vessels hold vast amounts of mana from beings of higher existences (Rulers/Monarchs), with their human souls and physical bodies becoming one with another, exactly how Monarchs and Rulers have their souls and physical bodies merge together.

However the main point I want to discuss is the dimensionality tier of a spirtual body, specifically for humans. If a human manifest a spirtual body do they also exist on a higher level of existence just like Monarchs and Rulers?.

I believe the Monarchs can still exist in this higher plane of existence whilst still in their human vessels given they fully take over their vessels but despite still being in a vessel they are still said to be of higher existence when in a spirtual body.

So essentially what I’m trying to say is, do humans also have this trait of being in a temporary higher state of existence before dying? Aka Sung Il-Hwan and Christopher Reed? (Only known humans who had a spirtual body) and would they also be able to kill a immortal shadow Soilder like Rakan if they focus their power inherent in their spirtual body, or is the higher tier of existence thingy only applicable to Monarchs and Rulers who naturally exist in their spirtual body?.

Am I the only one who was disappointed when the Rulers got little to no screen time in Ragnarok?, like I was hella expecting to get to know them more, such as personalities, but from all I’ve seen at the moment they seemed to get little to no plot relevance, I know the plot doesn’t allow them to interact much with the main characters, but come on, they are hella cool.

I remember seeing some brief comments in old forum posts about a seventh Ruler vessel.

The lore behind this guy was pretty much nothing but the fact that he was the strongest awakened Hunter in Africa, who was also said to be a evil dictator who ruled Africa with a iron fist but then was taken out by either Thomas Andre or Liu Zhigang, I forgot who took him out, but apparently he was the original Ruler vessel, but after his death he was replaced by Sung Il-Hwan.

Does anyone know if this is true? Or a huge story
Retcon or maybe fake news???

Well when I first saw this I thought this was just simple narrative to show and emphasise on how destructive Christophers transformation and power was and he didn’t literally shake the earth, however I recently came across some content from Ragnarok and in the Novel specifically, when Liu Zhigang fought against Suho (correct me if I’m wrong) their fight was strong enough to shake the entire earth and in that fight it’s narratively implied that Liu Zhigang is weaker than he was in the previous timeline, and in response Christopher from OG, being a Ruler Vessel should narratively he above Ragnarok Liu Zhigang especially when manifesting a Spirtual Body, so in my opinion Reed shaking the earth may of actually been an actual feat and not something to hype up the destructive capacity of Christopher’s attacks, just my thought tho.