Solo Leveling : 10 Shadow Technique

Dust Moth – A moth with golden-speckled wings. Spreads a fine dust that blinds enemies.

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As Finn crushed the last golem, he let out a sigh and sat on the ground, dispersing the shadow gauntlets and boots that covered his limbs. With a flick of his wrist, he recalled Max Elephant and Totality back into the shadows. Just as he began to relax, sand started seeping from the ceiling once again.

Another staircase formed, just like before. Finn groaned but stood up, making his way to the next level.

At the top, he found himself inside a grand chamber. On a golden throne sat a yellow, humanoid cat dressed in a regal pharaoh's outfit. The cat's piercing eyes locked onto him with amusement.

"You killed all my old and rusty servants," the cat mused, stretching lazily. "But let's see how you fare against me."

Finn raised an eyebrow as the sand around him shifted unnaturally. From the grains, corpses rose—animated warriors, their lifeless eyes glowing eerily as they took up rusted weapons.

Finn tilted his head and smirked. "Hey, is your name Ankha…?"

Silence.

The cat's ears twitched. "You can hear me, human? And how do you know that name?"

Finn blinked, then looked away. "If I kill you, some people will get mad… but if I don't, people will still get mad." He sighed. "Well… what if I just don't?"

Instead of engaging, Finn created a clone. The duplicate looked at Finn and scowled.

"Just use Agito," Finn instructed. "Don't make it a long fight. Try to get to the gold behind her."

The clone grabbed Finn's collar in frustration. "What do you mean, Eito? Have you forgotten what you did when you were fourteen?"

Finn's eyes widened. He looked away, guilt flashing across his face. "I'm sorry, but the grind is grind. And don't call me Eito. It's now Finn."

The clone's glare hardened. "And was that all just a lie? That dream we had?"

Before the clone could say more, Finn slapped his hands away. "I was just a stupid, hormone-filled teenager. I barely remember it."

The clone scoffed before shoving a finger toward Ankha. "Then seek justice for her."

Finn frowned. "What?"

"So many people violated her, used her. And now you have the chance to protect her."

Before Finn could answer, the clone dissipated. He turned his attention back to Ankha, who was watching him with curiosity.

"I still don't know what I'm going to do with you," Finn muttered.

Ankha's eyes gleamed. "You think you have a choice?" she purred.

The undead warriors lunged at Finn. Without hesitation, he exhaled and let venomous spikes erupt from his body. The moment the corpses touched the poisoned tips, their movements slowed, their limbs sagging as venom seeped into their rotting flesh. Finn extended his fingers, and with a simple gesture, the infected undead collapsed into heaps of sludge, fully under his control. With a flick of his wrist, they scattered like dust.

Ankha hissed, summoning a new wave of creatures—not from the sand, but from the shadows themselves. Finn narrowed his eyes as he saw rats and insects crawling toward him, their bodies twitching unnaturally under Ankha's influence.

She's hypnotizing them.

Finn's venom-coated tendrils lashed out, impaling the swarming creatures. The moment the poison seeped into their tiny bodies, they stiffened, the hypnosis breaking as their corpses littered the floor.

Ankha growled and took a step back. "Stay away, human!"

Finn kept walking forward, venomous tendrils slithering behind him like serpents. Sand swirled around Ankha as she tried to push him away with another hypnotic command, but Finn was already too close.

With a flick of his wrist, he created a Shadow Spot right beneath her throne. The darkness expanded, swallowing her feet.

"Just wait," Finn murmured, watching as the shadow consumed her form. "Maybe I'll find a use for you."

As the last of Ankha disappeared into the shadows, Finn turned away, heading back down the stairs. But halfway down, something shifted inside him. A strange connection formed, something unlike anything he had felt before.

'What in eternity…?' Finn thought.

When he reached the Shadow Garden, he saw his eight shadows standing before him, along with the chained cocoon sealing Moraga. But there was something new.

Floating in the darkness was the silhouette of a cat-like woman, her golden eyes glowing faintly.

Finn exhaled, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"…I thought it was just ten."

Finn returned to the sandy ruins, deep in thought.

'What in eternity? I always put monsters there, so why haven't they turned into one?' Finn pondered. Then it clicked.

"When I did it before, they were dead. But this time, I did it while they were alive. Well, isn't that great? The Monarchs have to kill something first and then use 'Arise,' but I just have to capture something alive, and they can basically run away," Finn muttered, burying his face in his hands.

He then summoned Ankha, forming a shadow puppet of a cat. His shikigami expanded, and out came Ankha. She looked at him with a deadpan expression, saying nothing.

"Speak," Finn commanded.

Ankha meowed.

Finn smirked. He extended his hand. "Shake."

Ankha took his hand and shook it.

"Ahh, how's your day?" Finn asked.

"Great, Master," Ankha responded flatly.

Satisfied, Finn unsummoned her and stood up, storing the valuable items into his Shadow. He exited the pyramid and was greeted by the sight of the Sand Worm's massive remains still being devoured by the now much longer Great Serpent.

"Wow, you got bigger," Finn remarked, knocking on the worm's exposed bones. He collected them into his Shadow Garden before recalling Great Serpent. Just as he was about to leave the gate, he remembered it was still on the ocean floor.

Summoning Great Serpent once again, Finn climbed onto its back as they dived back into the depths.

'Now I want to tame something like an S-Rank beast next,' Finn mused. He tapped his foot against the serpent's scales, signaling it to ascend. As they reached the surface, Finn took a deep breath, enjoying the ocean breeze.

Moments later, he sensed another gate—but this one was unstable and located underwater. "Head southeast," Finn instructed, taking another deep breath before they dove down.

As they approached, Finn realized the gate had already experienced a dungeon break, releasing marine creatures into the waters. 'Yeah, no way I'm taking a shark,' Finn thought.

Then, he spotted an octopus. 'Oh, but I'll take you…' he mused. Nearby, several jellyfish drifted in the water. 'And I'll let Serpent eat you.'

Knowing that Great Serpent was his only reliable ally underwater, Finn refrained from using his usual abilities, relying instead on weapons. With Serpent's help, he swiftly dispatched two sharks, four jellyfish, and managed to tame the octopus. 'You know what? I also need you,' he decided, capturing a crocodile into his shikigami.

He attempted to do the same with a second crocodile, but he didn't feel the connection. Furrowing his brows, Finn checked his shikigami realm and found the second crocodile lying lifeless. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"So no duplicates, huh?" he murmured.

'It seems I can only take the strong ones,' he concluded, storing one of the jellyfish since its tendrils contained venom.

With a gesture, Finn signaled Great Serpent to carry him into the dungeon.