The Cartenon Temple, also known as the Double Dungeon, was a mysterious hidden Dungeon that appeared within two separate D-Rank dungeons over the course of the story. It also served as the base of operations for Kandiaru, also known as the Architect, and was used by Ashborn to find a human who was worthy of serving him as his host and inheriting his powers as the Shadow Monarch.
Overview
Unlike most other dungeons, the temple contained no monsters, but a series of gigantic statues designed by Kandiaru. Some were armed with weapons, while others held musical instruments, and those who held weapons would kill anyone who failed to follow the temple's three commandments.
As observed by Song Chi-Yul and Sung Jinwoo, the dungeon functioned as a trial governed by a set of rules inscribed on a stone epitaph in a runic script. These rules, known as the Commandments of the Cartenon Temple, were outlined as follows:
- Thou shall worship God.
- Thou shall praise God.
- Thou shall prove thy faith.
- Those who fail to obey these commandments shall not be spared.
The first commandment can only be fulfilled if every person in the room bows down before the Statue of God. Anyone who fails to do so and stands up above a certain height is killed instantly by the statue's heat vision. Once this commandment is fulfilled, the Statue of God will smile sadistically and stand up from its throne.
The second commandment can only be fulfilled if every person in the room individually stands in front of a statue carrying an instrument, which will lead these statues to start playing music. Anyone who moves too slow to find their place will be crushed underfoot by the Statue of God and anyone who makes the mistake of standing in front of a statue armed with a weapon will be instantly killed by that specific statue. Once this commandment is fulfilled, an altar will rise up from the center of the dungeon and the dungeon doors will open when everyone gathers around the altar.
The third commandment can only be fulfilled if at least one person remains on the altar and does not give into the temptation to run out of the dungeon doors to safety. However, it should be noted that every time a person steps off the altar and leaves the dungeon, the space between the doors will slightly shrink and once there is only one person left in the dungeon, the doors will completely seal shut. The statues will advance towards the altar, moving only when not observed, and two rings of flames, one blue and one red, will appear on the altar. The first one represents a timer and will dissipate one by one with each minute that passes by. The second represents the number of people still standing on the altar and will dissipate one by one with each person that flees the dungeon. The one person who stays behind on the altar is the only one who fulfills the third commandment and successfully passes the trial.
For the one person who passes the trial, they will be offered the chance to become the Player of the System. If they accept the offer, they will survive and the doors will open again to allow them to leave. If they decline, then they will be instantly killed by the approaching statues.
History
D-Rank Dungeon Arc
In what seemed like just another ordinary D-Rank dungeon raid, Jinwoo and his raid party discovered a second hidden dungeon inside the gate and decided to explore it. Unfortunately, they realized too late that the dungeon was a trap and found themselves locked inside with no escape.
Although they eventually managed to satisfy the two commandments needed to open the doors (primarily thanks to Jinwoo), by that point, only six of the seventeen hunters who had entered were still alive, the rest having been killed by the statues inside. Realizing that one person had to stay behind to fulfill the third commandment and allow the others to escape safely, Jinwoo volunteered to be the sacrifice, having already lost his right leg.
As one of the statues skewered him with a spear and pinned him down on the altar at the dungeon's center, a strange message appeared before Jinwoo, congratulating him for passing the test and asking him if he wanted to become a Player. With no time left and unwilling to die so soon, Jinwoo accepted the offer, making him the Player of the System and allowing him to survive the Double Dungeon.
Double Dungeon Arc
When Jinwoo reached level 100, Kandiaru invited him back to the Double Dungeon so that Ashborn could take control of him as his vessel and finally descend into the human world as they had originally planned. Once Jinwoo arrived, he decided to test him by having him fight his puppets, including the Statue of God.[1] After Jinwoo defeated them all without too much difficulty, Kandiaru revealed himself to be the former's final test and assigned him an urgent quest that would automatically kill him if he didn't win within the next 10 minutes.[2] Despite being initially outmatched, Jinwoo was eventually able to gain the upper hand against Kandiaru and defeat him with 2 minutes, 11 seconds remaining on the quest's timer.[3]
Thrilled at the prospect of finally fulfilling his deal with Ashborn, Kandiaru put Jinwoo into a trance-like state and eagerly waited for the Shadow Monarch's arrival. However, while he was waiting, a group of hunters, including Woo Jinchul, Choi Jong-In, and Cha Hae-In, entered the temple in search of Jinwoo. Surprised that they were able to enter the dungeon despite not being explicitly invited, Kandiaru decided to offer them up as sacrificial offerings to Ashborn and ferociously attacked them.[4] An all-out brawl then ensued between the humans and Kandiaru's statues, and when it quickly became clear that they wouldn't be able to win on their own, both Choi and Cha attempted to snap Jinwoo out of his trance to no avail.[5]
However, just when it was looking absolutely hopeless for the humans, Jinwoo regained consciousness on his own and attacked Kandiaru, punching right through his face and smashing him down into the ground. Although initially confused as to how Jinwoo had regained control of his body and obtained Ashborn's black heart, Kandiaru eventually realized that the Shadow Monarch had reneged on their deal and left him to die. Furious but not beaten, Kandiaru ordered his statues to kill the surviving humans and attempted to manually disable the System in order to strip Jinwoo of his powers. However, when he tried to do so, he discovered that Ashborn had already locked him out of the System and that he no longer had access to its controls.
Now completely defenseless, Kandiaru could only scream at Jinwoo in rage before the latter sliced him to pieces, fatally injuring him and destroying his body. As he crumbled away, Kandiaru cursed Jinwoo with a prophecy that once the Monarchs emerged from hiding and launched their crusade against humanity, he would inevitably die at their hands. However, this failed to intimidate Jinwoo, who simply accepted the prophecy the way it was.[6]
Trivia
- As pointed out by Jinwoo, the third phase of the trial resembles a popular children's game called Statues. The movement of the statues during this part of the trial also echoes the behavior of the Weeping Angels from the Doctor Who television series.
References
- ↑ Solo Leveling Webtoon: Chapter 125
- ↑ Solo Leveling Webtoon: Chapter 126
- ↑ Solo Leveling Webtoon: Chapter 127
- ↑ Solo Leveling Webtoon: Chapter 128
- ↑ Solo Leveling Webtoon: Chapter 129
- ↑ Solo Leveling Webtoon: Chapter 130
| E-Rank | Hapjeong Subway Station | |
|---|---|---|
| C-Rank | Goblins Dungeon | Insects Dungeon | |
| A-Rank | Red Gate Incident | Hunters Guild Gate | Busan A-Rank Gate | |
| S-Rank | Cartenon Temple | Demon Castle | |