Solo Leveling continues to grow and evolve into a legendary shounen anime/manga series! Perhaps the most fascinating aspect is the existence of invisible, superpowerful beings called Rulers, Monarchs, and Gods. For those not quite up on the lore, let us open the curtain on these mysterious figures.
The Absolute Being – Creator and Uncaring God
It all starts with the Absolute Being, a literal god who created the universe itself. From the light, he formed the Rulers, destined to be protectors of creation. And from the darkness, he spawned the Monarchs, whose sole purpose was total destruction. Pretty heavy stuff!
Here’s where it gets really messed up, though: the Absolute Being didn’t actually want either side to win their devastating war! To him, this catastrophic conflict was just entertainment, a sick game for his own amusement. He refused to grant the Rulers enough power to decisively defeat the Monarchs, ensuring the bloody stalemate would continue forever.
The Rebellion Against the Cruel Creator 
Understandably, the Rulers eventually got fed up with being cosmic playthings for such an uncaring god. Seven of the eight Rulers rebelled, taking up arms against their creator and ultimately killing the Absolute Being despite opposition from the strongest Ruler, Ashborn.
The Monarchs – Destructive Forces of Darkness
As you can probably guess, the Monarchs who were born from darkness quickly found themselves locked in an endless, apocalyptic war against the Rulers. They sought to reduce all of creation to rubble in their pursuit of oblivion. The battles between the diametrically opposed races raged for eons and were utterly devastating.
With the Absolute Being finally gone, the Rulers gained an upper hand, even managing to capture the dreaded Monarch Legia alive! Amazingly, Ashborn, now reborn as the first Shadow Monarch, switched sides to help his former enemies defeat the rest of his kind.
Betrayal Amongst the Monarchs
Unfortunately, Ashborn’s allegiance wasn’t enough to end the conflict. The Monarchs Rakan and Baran betrayed him, ambushing and nearly destroying his army. Although he took down Baran, Ashborn was forced to retreat and allow the Rulers to secure total victory, driving the surviving Monarchs from the world.
The Monarchs Return and the Final War
Centuries later, the Rulers caught wind that the Monarchs were trying to rebuild their forces by harvesting humanity. This set the stage for an earth-shaking climax, as the Monarchs returned, led by the dreaded Antares, to wage their final war against humanity and the Rulers.
When the Monarchs were reborn following the Rulers using time reversal, Jinwoo (the new Shadow Monarch) took it upon himself to spend over 27 years methodically hunting them all down alone, ensuring they could never instigate their age-old conflict of destruction again. By the story’s end, he stood as the sole surviving Monarch.
The Rulers – Ancient Protectors 
The Rulers, born of light by the Absolute Being, were always destined to be the protectors of creation. They fought valiantly against the destructive Monarchs for eons in an apocalyptic war that raged endlessly.
After rebelling against their creator for perpetuating the cycle of violence, the Rulers were able to gain the upper hand against the Monarchs thanks to Ashborn’s defection. Centuries later, they prepared for the Monarchs’ inevitable return by exposing humanity to powerful mana and turning some into Hunters.
The Climactic Battle and Time Reversal
Jinwoo rose as the new Shadow Monarch and battled Monarchs until Rulers descended. The Rulers rewound time, let Jinwoo revive fallen comrades before he secured everlasting peace. He did it by eliminating the remaining Monarchs over 27 grueling years.
The Brilliant Overarching Lore
In summary, the world recognized the Rulers as ancient protectors, the Monarchs emerged as forces of destruction born from darkness, and powerful creators like the Absolute Being caught themselves up in their own ego-driven games as Gods. Their ceaseless conflict drove the entire epic saga of Solo Leveling towards its human vs. cosmic evil narrative. Pretty incredible, right? This brilliantly layered lore gives the story an undeniable depth. The Rulers, Monarchs, and Gods may have had their day, but the legend of Solo Leveling has clearly only just begun!
