What happened at Jeju Island in Solo Leveling? Explained

With the latest episode of the Korean anime/manhwa Solo Leveling season 2, released on March 8, 2025, the raid on Jeju Island finally starts. As the series goes on, fans anticipate how the Island raid will progress. The Jeju Island arc is one of the most hyped arcs from the series, creating a storm of questions on social media.

Because of its significance in the Solo Leveling universe, as it established Jinwoo as a global force, fans frequently ask, "What happened at Jeju Island in Solo Leveling?"

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers from the manhwa/anime.

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The events of Solo Leveling's Jeju Island arc, explained

The 3 years ago raid on Jeju Island from Solo Leveling (Image via A-1 Pictures)

The Jeju Island arc follows the Return to Demon Castle arc and precedes the Recruitment arc. It features a second raid on the S-rank Gate that spawned on the Jeju Island. Sung Jinwoo's intervention made this second raid successful, unlike the first time, as he killed the Ant King and wiped out the entire ant colony, securing the island.

Four years before the current timeline, an S-rank gate spawned on Jeju Island. As several hunters tried their best to clear the dungeon, they failed, leading to a dungeon break. The beasts from the dungeon destroyed the island, killing thousands of inhabitants along with some of the best hunters from Korea.

Eventually, Jeju Island was taken over by the magic beasts and was no longer safe for humans. The Korean government tried tirelessly to take back the island but failed several times.

In the very first episode of the anime Solo Leveling, a raid on Jeju Island was shown taking place three years ago from the timeline. Several hunters, including S-rank hunters like Byung-Gu, Yoonho, Eunseok, and Choi Jong-In, are sent to the island to take it back again. However, as the sequence was cut shot in the anime, presumably, this attempt also failed.

Later in the series, during season 2, episode 7, ants are shown migrating from Jeju Island into the mainland for the first time. This caused a series of events that triggered the quest to return to Jeju Island. Meanwhile, Sung Jinwoo was finally able to cure his mother. On being invited to join the quest, Sung Jinwoo refused at first but joined later after learning about the death of several S-rank hunters.

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Jeju Island's role in Solo Leveling's main story

The Jeju Island arc serves as a development stage in Sung Jinwoo's character. It is also when Jinwoo acquires a new shadow to his army, Beru, the Ant King.

Beru is one of Sung Jinwoo's most powerful shadows with healing abilities, later discovered in the Webtoon, surpassing the level of an S-rank hunter. Several S-rank hunters involved in the raid thought no one could defeat Beru until Jinwoo's intervention. Sung Jinwoo not only defeated Beru, but his shadow soldiers also wiped out the entire ant colony from the island.

Jinwoo's power level being beyond an S-rank hunter also came into international recognition, as this was a joint mission between Korea and Japan. The Jeju Island arc also paved the way for Jinwoo's storyline to progress with a significant upgrade for later arcs.

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Final Thoughts

The Jeju Island raid, 3 years ago (Image via A-1 Pictures)

The Jeju Island arc is one of the more pivotal arcs from the anime/manhwa, as it adds significant depth to Sung Jinwoo's power and Shadow Monarch's arsenal. This also marks a significant change in the history of the storyline, as a long-awaited conquest was finally resolved.

As the anime progresses, the fight on Jeju Island begins. Several S-rank hunters have joined the quest from both Korea and Japan. Jinwoo, upon refusing at first to join the quest, later joins and dominates it. Fans await his arrival on the island and see his battle with the Ant King, the dungeon boss for this arc.

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