Face the Inner Self is the 130th main quest in Crimson Desert, sitting inside Chapter 9: The Sage of the Desert under the sub-chapter “Six Pensive Statues and the Evil Spirit.” This Face the Inner Self Crimson Desert walkthrough covers every chest, every puzzle mechanic, and the full Ascetic’s Rest Abyss route so you walk away with all rewards before finishing the quest.

How to Reach Jijeong Temple Pagoda in Crimson Desert

The Jijeong Temple Pagoda sits at the mountain peak in the southwest of Serpent Marsh, inside the South Demeniss region. To make the Abyss Gate appear at the summit, you need to complete the “True Strength” quest first, because that is the prerequisite that unlocks the gate. Once True Strength is done, glide from Serpent Marsh toward the mountain to the southwest and climb all the way to the top.

The quest objective triggers automatically when you arrive, so there is no risk of overshooting it. Only one entrance to the temple will be open when you get there. Interact with the Abyss Gate to step inside, and a fast travel point for Ascetic’s Rest Abyss activates immediately on entry. The good news is that you do not need to repair the Abyss to complete the Face the Inner Self quest.

Finding the Hidden Chest Before the Abyss Gate

When you first arrive at the teleportation point inside the abyss, do not rush forward. Turn around instead. From there, jump or glide across to a thick tree branch nearby and follow the route along it carefully. At the far end of the branch you will find a small cave, and inside is a chest containing a Faded Abyss Artifact and one gear stone. Most players walk straight past this without knowing it exists. Once you have collected the chest, head back to the teleportation point and run forward across the bridge.

Navigating the Flooded Cave: Face the Inner Self Crimson Desert Walkthrough Step by Step

Across the bridge you will arrive at a cave completely filled with water. Here, go left. You can swim through the water or run along the stone ledge on the side of the cave wall if you prefer to stay on dry ground. Either way, you will reach a room at the far end with another chest inside. That one holds Copper Ore and another gem for your equipment. Remember this room, because the Face the Inner Self Crimson Desert walkthrough sends you back through here a second time.

From this room, go left again. You will see a spiral staircase winding downward. Descend those stairs into the lower section of the cave. At the far end of this lower area you will find a walled-up section where the puzzle begins. If you want to understand how Force Palm works across other Crimson Desert quests before tackling this one, our guide on cleansing the corruption binding the dragon in Crimson Desert walks through the ability in a different context.

Force Palm Wall and Draining the Flooded Cave

Use Force Palm on the bricked-up wall at the far end of the lower cave. The stones break apart and fly to the sides, and sand begins pouring out of the opening in the center. That flow of sand is your confirmation that everything is working correctly, because the sand is what drains the water out of the flooded cave above. Now head back up through the spiral staircase, go through the room with the second chest you already opened, and look to your right. The passage on the right leads to where the water was pooling. It will be completely empty now, and the cave floor below will be exposed. Jump straight down.

Ascetic’s Rest Abyss Puzzle: Placing the Square Energy Element

At the bottom of the now-empty section you will find the square energy element. Use the Axiom Force ability to grab it and pull it up to the platform above. I had to adjust my position several times before I finally got the element to connect properly, so do not worry if it takes a few attempts. Once you have it on the platform, look for the square plate set into the wall of the main chamber.

Bring the element over to it, climb up to the plate, and use Force Palm to snap the element firmly into place. This kind of environmental puzzle, where you position an object precisely before triggering a mechanism, is similar in feel to the Spire puzzles we cover in our Spire of the Sun puzzle and Goyen boss guide for Crimson Desert. A large circular mechanism on the side will start to activate. Step into the center of that circle and use Force Palm one more time. A confirmation message will appear on screen telling you the task is complete.

Face the Inner Self Crimson Desert Walkthrough: Final Rewards and Dialogue

An Abyss Artifact will appear on the platform to your left. Walk over and pick it up. Its position is also a hint pointing you toward what comes next. To the left of where you collected the Abyss Artifact there is a wall, and climbing it takes you up to the second floor. I went straight up the wall. There may be a less risky way to reach the upper platform but it does not really matter how you get there. The Jijeong Temple Pagoda Spire completion is also confirmed around this point, so you knock out two objectives at once during this section.

On the platform above, you will have a brief dialogue with a child monk. His message is the heart of this enlightenment quest: keep doing what you are doing and do not overthink it. Before you close out the conversation and finish the quest entirely, look around the platform carefully. There are three Refined Palmar Pills sitting here that you can pick up for free. You can also find and study the alchemical formula for crafting Refined Palmar Pills. It is a useful consumable item worth keeping, so do not skip it.

Once you have everything, finish the dialogue to wrap up Face the Inner Self. Completing the quest permanently unlocks Ascetic’s Rest Abyss as a fast travel point, which makes this corner of South Demeniss much easier to navigate for the rest of Chapter 9.