Well of Heaven is one of the most clearly defined “good guy” sects in Where Winds Meet. Its members play the Robin Hood role in Qinghe: they refuse to serve corrupt power, strike at the rich, and redistribute the spoils to those with nothing. Joining them is optional, but it changes how your character is framed in the world and unlocks a set of martial arts built around fast, righteous aggression.
The catch is that the recruitment chain is easy to misread, and the game quietly lets you slide into a very different sect if you pick the wrong dialogue. Here’s how Well of Heaven actually works.
Well of Heaven: what the sect is about
Well of Heaven sits in the “Heroic Righteousness” lane. Their own motto is simple: do what’s right, and put courage before money. In practice, that means:
| Aspect | What it means in play |
|---|---|
| Alignment | Vigilante justice: protect commoners, oppose abusive nobles and officials. |
| Relationship to power | Not loyal to the state or wealthy clans; loyal to their own sense of justice. |
| Theme | Rob the rich, aid the poor, ignore formal law when it blocks doing the right thing. |
| Leader | Xiao Tianyun oversees the sect’s affairs. |
| Other notable members | Shen Hanying, Dugu Yuan, Guo Xie, Ju Meng. |
Joining gives access to a small set of sect-specific martial arts and equipment, along with a reputation track and internal rules that lightly shape how you play.
How to start the Well of Heaven recruitment in Harvestfall
The entry point is almost always the same: Harvestfall Village in western Qinghe. You’re looking for gossip about a “coin rain” in the village, which locals link to a mysterious hero redistributing wealth.
| Step | Action | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Go to Harvestfall Village | Travel to Harvestfall in Qinghe. | This is where the Well of Heaven trail begins. |
| 2. Find San Qian (waiter) | Look for the tavern/canteen in the middle of the village and talk to San Qian. | He’s the “well-informed” villager who knows about the coin rain hero. |
| 3. Pay the first bribe | Give San Qian 200 Zhou Coins when he hints he wants money for information. | Unlocks the clue pointing you to the nearby recruiter. |
Two hundred Zhou is deliberately trivial at this stage; the point is to see whether you’re willing to spend money to follow a rumor about righteous heroes.
Meeting the fake elder and spotting the test
Once you’ve paid San Qian, you’re directed to an “elder” outside the village.
| Step | Action | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 4. Find the Elm Tree recruiter | Leave Harvestfall on the main road (generally south or southwest). Look for an Elm Tree by the roadside with an old man nearby. | This NPC introduces himself as a Well of Heaven elder. |
| 5. Pay his bribe as well | He demands another payment in Zhou Coin. Pay it. | The repeated bribery already clashes with Well of Heaven’s ideals; this is intentional. |
| 6. Accept the “jewellery theft” task | He orders you to steal a pile of jewellery from an “old friend” up the road. | This is the real fork in the story, not a simple fetch quest. |
The game is blunt: a supposed paragon of justice asks you to commit petty theft from a friend. That clash is the whole point. If you follow his orders to the letter, you walk away from Well of Heaven and toward a trickster sect instead.
How to branch correctly into Well of Heaven (and avoid Nine Mortal Ways)
To actually join Well of Heaven, you need to disobey the fake elder’s spirit while still playing along long enough to reveal the real master.
| Choice point | What you do | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 7. Reach the “old friend” | Follow the path up the hill to find Zhang Yihao, the man the elder wants you to rob. | He’s calm, direct, and clearly not amused by the scheme. |
| 8. Talk, don’t steal | Ignore the instruction to silently steal his jewellery. Speak to Zhang Yihao explicitly about Well of Heaven and your wish to join. | He calls out the theft order as unworthy and exposes the first elder as a fraud. |
| 9. Accept Zhang Yihao’s task | He asks you to obtain proof of your values: Adventure Slips and three pieces of Ill-gotten Wealth. | This path leads to Well of Heaven. Obeying the fake elder instead leads you toward Nine Mortal Ways. |
At this point, the structure is simple:
- Steal the jewellery and return it to the Elm Tree “elder” → you are choosing the deceptive, morally grey Nine Mortal Ways route.
- Refuse to steal, confront Zhang Yihao honestly, and take his test instead → you are on track for Well of Heaven.
Adventure Slips and Ill-gotten Wealth: what you actually need
Zhang Yihao’s version of the trial is deliberately more involved and better aligned with the sect’s values.
| Requirement | How you get it | What it represents |
|---|---|---|
| Adventure Slips | Earned through co-op activities and chivalrous content, such as group events or shared challenges. | Proof you’re active in helping others rather than selfishly grinding alone. |
| Ill-gotten Wealth ×3 | Items like stolen artwork, silver, jewellery, pottery, or wine, recovered from black markets and shady dealers. | Evidence that you can reclaim stolen goods and redirect them to better hands. |
Ill-gotten Wealth isn’t regular loot. The game tags these items and supports them with a specific tool: Wind Sense.
- Use Wind Sense by pressing the right stick (on controller). This highlights stolen goods in your surroundings.
- Look for Black Market or “shady” dealers marked on the map. Their inventory and surroundings often hide these items.
There’s also a less obvious route that some players hit: an “Honest Merchant” named Hao Jiu, found at places like Blissful Retreat, sells expensive wines. Drinking them can award chests of Black Market Goods, which in turn contain Ill-gotten Wealth. This isn’t spelled out, but it’s a fallback if stealing in the initial region feels impossible or fails repeatedly.
Finishing the initiation and joining Well of Heaven
Once you have the items Zhang Yihao wants, the last step is straightforward.
| Final step | Action | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 10. Return to Zhang Yihao | Bring the required Adventure Slips and three pieces of Ill-gotten Wealth back to him and turn them in. | You are officially inducted into Well of Heaven. |
| 11. Sect welcome | You gain access to Well of Heaven’s martial arts, internal reputation, and shop. | Your character is now branded as part of a “good” sect in the broader Jianghu. |
There is also a path where you may receive a direct invitation from Well of Heaven after progressing your story and reputation elsewhere. In that case, you still end up in front of Zhang Yihao, but with fewer hoops to jump through. The underlying sect role, rules, and rewards remain the same.
Well of Heaven martial arts and weapons
Membership opens a small arsenal built around fast blades and aggressive defense. The key names are consistent across the game’s systems.
| Martial art / weapon | Role and feel |
|---|---|
| Thundercry Blade | The flagship blade technique for Well of Heaven. It’s often treated as their “ultimate” weapon art and is granted on joining the sect’s path. |
| Predator’s Shield | Defensive-leaning option that still fits the sect’s proactive style, letting you guard while staying dangerous. |
| Galecloud Cleave | High-mobility slashing, useful for closing distance and hitting crowds while keeping flow. |
| Sunrush Gale | Speed-focused technique that reinforces the sect’s theme of decisive, overwhelming strikes. |
These tools push you toward a frontline role: you dart into danger, interrupt threats to civilians or allies, and make money more as a side effect than a primary goal.
Well of Heaven sect rules and how they limit you
Every sect in Where Winds Meet has internal rules. These are not strict, game-ending laws, but they do impose soft boundaries. Well of Heaven’s rules are very on-brand.
| Rule name | Game effect | What it really means |
|---|---|---|
| Unrestrained Spirit | The sect can deduct around 1,000 points from your internal discipline or precept value. | Acting too wildly or ignoring expectations can trigger penalties, but you’re allowed to push boundaries occasionally. |
| Generous and Righteous | If weekly earnings are too high, you lose precept value (around −100). | Hoarding wealth is frowned upon. You’re meant to help people, not min-max your bank account. |
| Brotherhood | Attacking or harming other Well of Heaven disciples is forbidden. | The sect demands solidarity; internal duels and betrayals come with reputational consequences. |
On top of those named rules, Well of Heaven also expects ongoing “Heroic Righteousness”: a steady trickle of chivalrous deeds backed up with Adventure Slips as proof. The numbers and weekly quotas can change, but the pattern is clear—do good work, avoid greed, and don’t become a problem for your own comrades.
Reputation, Commands, and the Well of Heaven shop
Joining is only the start. Well of Heaven also runs on a reputation system that unlocks more as you commit to their cause.
| System | How it works | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Commands | Special sect missions linked to Well of Heaven, often focused on helping the weak, redistributing goods, or policing corruption. | Completing Commands raises your reputation inside the sect. |
| Weekly reputation cap | You can earn up to roughly 1,200 reputation points per week. | Prevents you from maxing out the sect in a single binge; encourages long-term play. |
| Sect shop | Accessible from the Mode section of the main menu once you’re a member. | Higher reputation unlocks additional items, cosmetics, and possibly materials tied to Well of Heaven’s theme. |
How Well of Heaven compares to Nine Mortal Ways
The recruitment quest quietly doubles as a moral sorting hat. The fake elder’s route leads into Nine Mortal Ways, a sect built around deception and trickery rather than open justice.
| Feature | Well of Heaven | Nine Mortal Ways |
|---|---|---|
| Entrance behavior | Refuse to steal from innocents, confront the “target,” and collect proof of valor. | Follow the fake elder’s theft request and bring him the jewellery. |
| Moral tone | Heroic, direct, often self-sacrificing. | Playful, deceptive, morally ambiguous. |
| Reward feel | Righteous blade arts like Thundercry Blade and a reputation for justice. | Trickster-flavored tools and a reputation that leans into mischief. |
The game doesn’t lock you into a single sect forever; you can eventually explore multiple factions. But your first choice here sets the tone for how your early Jianghu story is framed, and Well of Heaven is the clearest choice if you want your martial artist to feel like a wandering hero rather than a charming grifter.
If that’s the fantasy you’re aiming for, the Harvestfall test is simple: pay small bribes to follow the rumor, refuse to rob the innocent, prove your courage with Adventure Slips, and find a better home for stolen wealth than a crooked recruiter under an Elm Tree.
