Crimson Desert Obsession and Madness: Find the One Responsible for the Rift

Stepping through the rift at the top of the Spire of the Stars drops you into the Abyss with one instruction and almost no explanation of how to follow it. The marker for Find the one responsible for the rift floats on an elevated island high above you, separated by open sky and a set of enormous stone pillars. There is a puzzle built around those pillars, but there is also a much faster way up that the game never teaches you.

Quick answer: Jump from the Abyss Nexus and chain Force Palm three times in midair to launch up to the island, then jump over the glowing platform at the top and use Force Palm while airborne.

Obsession and Madness quest details

Obsession and Madness is the 58th main quest, and it picks up straight after Spire of the Stars. Octavius has been swallowed by the rift, and the first objective, Investigate the Abyss, completes on its own the moment you walk through the gate at the top of the spire.

Detail	Value
Quest number	58th main quest
Chapter	4 – The Price of Knowledge (Forbidden Knowledge)
Starting location	Hernand region, Scholastone Institute
Requirement	Spire of the Stars completed
Reward	+8 Contribution Levels with the Hernandian faction

Activate the Abyss Nexus before you jump

Once you regain control of Kliff, walk onto the glowing floor plate directly ahead of where you arrived. That plate is the Abyss Nexus, and stepping on it registers a fast travel point inside the Sanctum of Insight. Falling off a pillar is easy here, and without the Nexus active you have to make the whole trip again from the spire.

If you do fall, open the map and press R3 to switch to the sky map, then travel back to the Nexus. The same trick works later if you want to return to the Sanctum of Insight after the quest is over.

Abyss objective tracker reading Find the one responsible for the rift above the floating stone islands — The objective marker sits on an elevated island in the Sanctum of Insight. Image: Pearl Abyss

Controls used in the Abyss

Action	Input
Force Palm	R3 (right stick click)
Recharge Spirit	Hold L3 + R3
Connect Axiom Force	Aim at the conductor slot and interact
Select a pillar	L2 / R2 (LT / RT on Xbox)
Raise the selected pillar	X (A on Xbox)
Switch to the sky map	R3 on the map screen

Force Palm drains Spirit every time you use it, so top the bar back up with L3 + R3 between attempts rather than running out halfway through a jump.

Fastest route: Triple Force Palm up to the island

The hidden mechanic behind this objective is that Force Palm can be used three times in a row while you are in the air. Nothing earlier in the game requires it, so most players never discover it. Used here, it skips the pillar puzzle entirely.

Stand at the edge of the platform holding the Abyss Nexus and face the tall pillars. Jump, then press R3 three times in quick succession to launch yourself upward.

At the peak of the climb, glide across to the nearest pillar and land on the first platform. Hold L3 + R3 to refill your Spirit before going any further.

Jump again and chain another three midair Force Palms, then glide over to the large main platform with the quest marker on it. Two sets of three is enough to cover the whole gap.

If your Stamina stat is high enough, climbing the pillar walls directly also works. The Double Jump skill from Kliff’s green skill tree adds extra height to every launch and makes the ascent more forgiving.

Alternate route: Raise the pillars with Axiom Force

The intended solution turns the pillars into a bridge. You raise each one in turn so the floating platforms drift toward it, then walk forward and repeat until you reach the far side.

Turn right from the Abyss Nexus and look for the circular conductor slot on the face of the large pillar. Connect your Axiom Force beam to it to raise the pillar.

Kliff aiming the blue Axiom Force beam at the round conductor dial on the side of an Abyss pillar — The round conductor slot on the pillar face is where the Axiom Force beam connects. Image: Pearl Abyss

The camera shifts to an overhead view with the puzzle controls listed in the bottom-right corner. Use L2 or R2 to cycle through the pillars and X to raise the one you have highlighted.

Raise the central pillar first. Lifting the pillar closest to you drags the platform you are standing on toward it, which is how you cross the gap.

Walk carefully along each raised pillar, find the next Axiom Force slot, and repeat the process until the platforms connect all the way to the far end.

At the final tower, use the carved handholds to climb to the top, then jump across to the island and follow the stairs upward. The cold in the Abyss eats into your Stamina, so this climb is the part that catches out characters with low Stamina investment.

Kliff scaling the carved handholds on the vertical pillar wall with the release prompt on screen — The final pillar is scaled using carved handholds before you jump across to the island. Image: Pearl Abyss

Activate the pressure platform to finish the objective

At the top of the stairs is a glowing circular platform with light beams falling onto it. This is where most players stall, because the platform does not respond to walking onto it or pressing the interact button.

Glowing circular pressure platform at the top of the Abyss island with a blue interaction indicator — The pressure platform at the summit, marked by a blue interaction indicator. Image: Pearl Abyss

Line up with the centre of the platform, jump so you are directly above it, and press R3 to slam down with Force Palm while airborne. The floor shatters, the Abyss is restored, and the cutscene starts.

Kliff standing at the centre of the lit circular platform moments before the Force Palm ground slam — The Force Palm slam has to land in the middle of the lit circle. Image: Pearl Abyss

A grounded Force Palm will not register. The input only counts when you are in the air over the platform.

How to confirm the quest is complete

The cutscene is the confirmation. A stranger appears, throws up a force field, and blasts Kliff out of the Abyss. You fall all the way back down to Scholastone, where a conversation with the dean closes out the mission.

The objective tracker clears and Obsession and Madness is marked complete.
You receive +8 Contribution Levels with the Hernandian faction.
The Restore the Abyss challenge for the Sanctum of Insight ticks over.
The next main quest begins automatically once the dialogue ends.

The triple Force Palm you learned here is worth keeping in your pocket. It is a general traversal tool rather than a one-off puzzle solution, and it makes cliffs, towers and fortress walls elsewhere in the world far less of a Stamina problem.