Meridian Touch is one of the earliest and most flexible Mystic Skills in Where Winds Meet, sitting in an unusual space between combat tool and puzzle key. It costs no Vitality to cast, can be slotted as a Puzzle-type Mystic Art, and becomes a core part of how you interact with acupoints, NPC ailments, and certain world puzzles.
Meridian Touch overview
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Game | Where Winds Meet |
| Skill type | Mystic Skill (Offensive, Puzzle subtype) |
| Tags | Acupoint Strike, Qi Breaking |
| Location | Stonewash Strand, Qinghe (near Verdant Wilds starting area) |
| Vitality cost | 0 |
| Primary functions | Immobilize targets, break Vital Points, solve acupoint puzzles |
The skill is tied to Yan Qiren, a former thief who developed his own acupoint art. In-game, that backstory explains why Meridian Touch is both surgical and versatile: a single button press can lock an enemy in place, trigger a pressure point to make an NPC laugh uncontrollably, or unlock puzzle objects that only respond to this specific art.
How to unlock Meridian Touch (Yan Qiren and the “statues” at Stonewash Strand)
Meridian Touch comes from a short Jianghu Legacy side story early in Qinghe, sometimes labeled as “The Meridian Touch” or “Meridian Touch (Side Story)”. You pick it up in the Verdant Wilds region around Stonewash Strand.
| Step | What to do | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reach Verdant Wilds and Stonewash Strand. | Unlocked once free exploration in Verdant Wilds is available. |
| 2 | Fast travel to the Stonewash Strand Boundary Stone. | Speeds up repeat visits to the area. |
| 3 | Look for a cluster of human-like statues near the teleporter. | These are people who appear to be turned to stone. |
| 4 | Cross the small body of water toward the statue surrounded by carvings. | The central statue is Yan Qiren, your quest NPC. |
| 5 | Interact with Yan Qiren to begin the Meridian Touch Jianghu Legacy. | Dialogue centers on his son and the lost acupoint art. |
| 6 | Follow the on-screen prompt to use an acupoint strike on Yan Qiren. | On controller, this is shown as a specific button combo (for example, R2 + face button). |
| 7 | Select the correct ailment option: Immobilized. | You will see choices such as “Immobilized”, “Overjoyed”, and “Itchy”; pick “Immobilized”. |
| 8 | Free Yan Qiren and finish the short conversation. | The quest completes and Meridian Touch is unlocked and offered for equip. |
Clearing this sequence does not require any combat. It is positioned very close to the early game path, so it is worth detouring as soon as exploration allows. Behind Yan Qiren, there is also a chest that can grant items such as Adept Bracers, making the stop even more efficient.
Completing the Jianghu Legacy awards:
- Meridian Touch Mystic Skill (Puzzle/Offensive)
- Medicinal Tales ×1
- Zhou Coins (2,000)
- Ebon Iron Lv.1 ×1
- Decoration: Strange Statue
- Character experience (around 2,000 EXP)
After the sequence, the game prompts you to equip Meridian Touch in your Mystic Skill slots. Doing so immediately is recommended, as it becomes key to multiple early interactions.
Meridian Touch out-of-combat effects (Fleetfoot, Clarity, Unfettered Flow)
Outside combat, Meridian Touch turns into a small acupoint mini-game. You target a character or object that shows the Meridian Touch prompt, then choose a specific meridian to strike. Each option maps to a named acupoint and a distinct effect.
| Acupoint option | Point of resistance | Effect on success | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fleetfoot | Yangbai | Immobilizes the target. | Pinning NPCs in place for short tasks or training requests. |
| Clarity | Xiaohu | Causes uncontrollable laughter. | Resolving humorous side moments or specific mood-based puzzles. |
| Unfettered Flow | Quchi | Triggers intense itching. | Breaking an NPC out of a stance or distracting them for a puzzle. |
Not every NPC with a prompt will accept every outcome. The game often nudges you with context: a trainee who needs to hold a pose clearly benefits from being immobilized; a character stuck in a dour mood might require Clarity’s laughter effect.
Meridian Touch is also wired into specific world interactions:
- Martial Arts Sync events that check your knowledge of acupoints.
- Bell Chests that only open if you strike the correct point in the right order.
- Thieves and troublemakers that can be pinned with acupoints rather than chased down.
Meridian Touch in combat (Immobilize and Vital Points)
Once combat starts, Meridian Touch shifts from a playful puzzle tool to a control and burst damage enabler. Casting it selects a target’s acupoints and, on a successful hit, applies a set of effects.
| Combat effect | Description |
|---|---|
| Physical damage | Deals direct Physical damage when the acupoint strike lands. |
| Immobilize (crowd control) | Has a chance to freeze standard enemies in place for a short time, giving you a window to escape or follow up. |
| Vital Point break | Targets enemies with bound Qi bars and can break their Vital Points. |
| Qi suppression on break | Breaking a Vital Point disables Qi regeneration for that enemy and adds extra Physical and Qi damage. |
| Limitations | Immobilize does not affect “Mighty” enemies flagged as resistant to control. |
In practice, this makes Meridian Touch a strong opener or interrupt on normal foes. A successful Immobilize gives you a small but important time slice to reposition or queue a heavier Martial Arts combo. On Vital Point-bearing enemies, it doubles as a mechanic tool: the break effect both softens them and slows their resource loop.
Meridian Touch progression: ranks, tiers, and materials
Like other Mystic Skills, Meridian Touch grows through two layers of progression:
- Ranks within a Tier (from Rank 0 up to Rank 9).
- Tiers from Tier 1 through Tier 4, each adding a specific bonus effect.
Advancing ranks improves the underlying numbers, such as damage. Promoting between tiers adds new properties that change how the skill fits into your combat plans.
Rank and tier structure
| Tier | Rank range | Core idea |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Rank 0–9 | Baseline Meridian Touch with growing power but no extra tier bonus. |
| Tier 2 | Rank 0–9 | Adds bonus damage on Weak Point Break. |
| Tier 3 | Rank 0–9 | Causes the target to take extra Qi damage after a Weak Point Break. |
| Tier 4 | Rank 0–9 | Further increases bonus damage on Weak Point Break. |
Meridian Touch follows a standard Mystic Art path: you must push Tier 1 to Rank 9 before promoting to Tier 2, then repeat that cycle for each later Tier.
Tier bonuses for Meridian Touch
| Tier | Bonus effect | Impact on gameplay |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 2 | +20% bonus damage on Weak Point Break. | Rewards using Meridian Touch to finish Vital Point breaks, giving a clear bump to burst damage. |
| Tier 3 | Target takes +20% Qi damage for 10 seconds after Weak Point Break. | Turns the skill into a short-term debuff, amplifying all Qi-based follow-up attacks. |
| Tier 4 | Additional +30% bonus damage on Weak Point Break. | Pushes the break hit into high-burst territory when combined with your other attacks. |
These bonuses only trigger when you successfully break Weak Points/Vital Points using Meridian Touch. Builds that lean on Qi-centric Martial Arts gain particular value from Tier 3, where timing Meridian Touch right before or during a break amplifies an entire rotation of Qi damage.
Meridian Touch breakthrough costs and upgrade materials
Upgrading Meridian Touch uses Ebon Iron of various levels and a dedicated breakthrough material, Beauty’s Plume. Costs ramp up as you progress, so early investments are relatively cheap and later promotions demand more planning.
| Tier | Rank | Materials and level requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | 0–9 | Lv.1 Ebon Iron ×2 per rank. |
| Tier 2 | 0 (promotion) | Beauty’s Plume ×5, Lv.1 Ebon Iron ×2. |
| Tier 2 | 1–9 | Lv.2 Ebon Iron ×4 per rank. |
| Tier 3 | 0 (promotion) | Beauty’s Plume ×15, Lv.2 Ebon Iron ×4. |
| Tier 3 | 1–9 | Lv.3 Ebon Iron ×10 per rank. |
| Tier 4 | 0 (promotion) | Beauty’s Plume ×18, Lv.3 Ebon Iron ×10. |
| Tier 4 | 1–9 | Lv.4 Ebon Iron ×20 per rank. |
Two patterns stand out:
- Every rank up uses only Ebon Iron of the current tier’s level.
- Every tier promotion consumes both Ebon Iron and a larger batch of Beauty’s Plume.
Meridian Touch never becomes the flashiest Mystic Skill in Where Winds Meet, but it is quietly one of the most useful. It unlocks early, costs no Vitality, opens specific chests and mini-quests, and adds reliable crowd control and Vital Point pressure to any build. As the story pushes toward tougher foes with bound Qi bars, having Meridian Touch slotted and upgraded ensures those carefully placed acupoint strikes always feel like they matter.
