Since the launch of Where Winds Meet, our goal has been to build a truly free, open, and vibrant wuxia world for all Wanderers. From the river crossings of Qinghe to the bustling streets of Kaifeng; from the vast deserts of Hexi and the freezing peaks of Liangzhou to the sweeping grasslands of Qinchuan and the treacherous depths of the Imperial Palace. Each new journey brings a fresh take on the wuxia open-world experience.

Now, with the arrival of the "Hidden Mountain" map, Where Winds Meet officially steps into the 2.0 era. We're overhauling the game across the board: world scale, exploration, combat, storytelling, and visual fidelity, delivering an even vaster, freer, and more unpredictable world. In Hidden Mountain, traditional martial arts clash with mysterious powers and a complex clockwork civilization. Hidden among the peaks, you'll unravel a millennium-old Mohist mystery and witness the dawn of a new wuxia era.

 

Wuxia 2.0: A Massive Open-World Upgrade

We want our open world to deliver a rich, diverse wuxia experience. While every region boasts its own unique landscape and lore, Hidden Mountain pushes the boundaries even further. It features 4 main areas, 14 sub-regions, and over 10 new bosses with distinct mechanics. Dive deeper, and you'll uncover 8 Jianghu Legacies hidden among the peaks and dozens of side stories waiting to be unraveled.

 

The vertical exploration depth of Hidden Mountain exceeds 2,000 meters! From shadowed valleys to a mechanical city suspended in the clouds; from surface trails to underground caverns; from mountain ruins to sky-high clockwork towers. This multi-layered map offers a radically different exploration experience. Every climb, descent, and turn reveals a breathtaking new vista.

As we enter the 2.0 era, exploration in Where Winds Meet is getting a massive upgrade. Hidden Mountain introduces deep vertical exploration, letting you scale the skies or delve underground.

Discover hidden chambers within underwater Mohist ruins; navigate subterranean labyrinths where history meets clockwork; traverse the multi-level landscapes of Mohist City and cloudways nestled in the mountains; and marvel at the sky city built on Mohist ingenuity. Mechanisms are seamlessly blended into the environment. You'll need to observe your surroundings, deduce how the devices work, and manipulate gears to solve puzzles, unlock hidden paths, and uncover the secrets of this mechanical mountain fortress.

 

Hidden Mountain also elevates the immersion and interactivity of our open world. Water-powered washing machines pound fabric day and night; waterwheels irrigate fields while mill gears slowly grind with the current. The map features over 10,000 interactive NPCs, each with their own routines and daily lives.

Stroll through Hidden Mountain, and you might bump into Mohist disciples deep in mechanical research, or overhear local townsfolk chatting in the streets. Here, contraption and mechanism devices aren't just cold set pieces. They are woven into daily life, making this mechanical city a vibrant, historic, and living sanctuary.

Meanwhile, the main storyline continues. Following the clues left by Aunt Han, you'll embark on a journey with familiar allies into the misty Mohist domains. This place holds a millennium-old mechanical mystery left by the Mohists, along with the secrets of a reclusive sect, skyward contraptions, and tales of the past. As you explore, the truth buried here will slowly come to light.

 

Exploration 2.0: Marvelous Mechanics & Infinite Possibilities

Exploration mechanics are getting a fresh upgrade in Version 2.0. You'll unlock the new "Divinecraft" quest series, slowly learning how Mohist mechanisms operate. Master the art of observing structural designs, understanding their logic, and interacting with the land in entirely new ways.

You'll also acquire new abilities on your journey. For instance, "Celestial Seize" doesn't just let you retrieve items from afar. It empowers you to manipulate everything around you. Whether you're rearranging mechanisms, uncovering hidden paths, or solving exploration challenges, your wits are the key to success.

You'll also encounter a variety of mechanical constructs and special contraptions, including clockwork "Aircraft" and "Shuttle Train." These serve as vital transport between regions and stand as the brilliant legacy of Mohist civilization.

By interacting with these mechanisms and utilizing the terrain, you can push the boundaries of your exploration and reach previously inaccessible areas. In Hidden Mountain, we want you to feel the pulse of a working mechanical city and experience the thrill of being a part of it.

 

The brand-new sect, "Mohist Hill," is officially making its debut. But this time, the sect isn't just an interface or a fast-travel point—it truly lives within Hidden Mountain. From the workshops at the foothills to the clockwork towers deep within Mohist City, disciples are everywhere. They research, build, debate, and live in this gear-driven land.

While traditional sects focus on martial arts, Mohist Hill offers a different path: exploring the Jianghu through engineering and craftsmanship. Rooted in Mohist philosophy, they champion "Utility, Universal Love, and Non-Aggression." To them, mechanics aren't for showing off power, but for solving real problems and benefiting all equally. Your journey in Mohist Hill begins as an apprentice. Through research, mentorship, and submitting your creations, you'll rise through the ranks to become a true master artisan.

But a shadow looms over the mountain: the Qiongqi Artificers. Equally skilled in mechanisms, they walk a vastly different path, worshipping raw power. They believe that only by dominating with mechanical might can they control the land's destiny. The clash between these two factions is more than a debate over ideals. It's a battle for the very future of Hidden Mountain. And the ultimate outcome? That rests in your hands.

 

Hidden Mountain is teeming with vibrant life and wondrous constructs. On your travels, you'll encounter five distinct mechanical marvels. From the sound-tracking "Jadesong Cicada" to the water-gliding "Wicker Ray," each requires a unique method to uncover.

Thanks to our revamped ecosystem, even the wildlife has a mind of its own. Annoy the wild monkeys, and they'll hurl stones to show their displeasure (though in their downtime, they love nothing more than riding wild boars around the mountain!). And don't be fooled by the goofy-looking pelicans. They have their own quirky habits, so watch out for those massive beaks!

 

Thrilling Combat 2.0: Wuxia Meets the Mechanical Age

The 2.0 era also brings a brand-new weapon to the Jianghu: Gauntlets. Compared to traditional cold steel, Gauntlets offer a raw, hard-hitting experience. With lightning-fast combos, satisfying hit feedback, and explosive burst damage, you'll feel the impact of every punch.

Gauntlets also introduce a new Martial Art style: "Bamboocut Kite." By combining Gauntlets with a Rope Dart, you can unlock an incredibly flexible combat style, seamlessly shifting between close-quarters pressure and tactical repositioning.

 

Under the influence of mechanical arts, combat is no longer just sword-to-sword. Don't be fooled by the careless demeanor of Changeless Heart - Zhang Wanshi; his deadly puppet formations are terrifying. The mechanical Rosy-Faced Swordsworn under his command wields twin blades, turning every hanging wire into a lethal strike.

Powered by mechanisms, World Bosses like the synchronized duo Ci & Cuo, and the Ironheart Centipede with its relentless multi-leg strikes and toxic mist, await your challenge.

Brute force won't cut it against these clockwork terrors. To conquer higher difficulties, you'll need to outsmart them. Observe their structural movements, decode their mechanical logic, and target their weak points. Master this, and the mechanical power of Hidden Mountain will be yours to command.

Expect even more formidable foes in the future, including the Bell Toller and the Golden Colossus!

 

As the Jianghu expands, we're keeping a close eye on the experience of different Martial Art styles.

We are continuously tweaking combat balance and actively collecting your feedback through "Training Terrace - Preliminary" (live since July 9). Moving forward, we'll keep fine-tuning martial arts balance based on player input, ensuring every combat style shines in its own unique way.

 

Tech Upgrade 2.0: Next-Gen Lighting & Massive Optimizations

A vaster, highly vertical open world requires robust technical support. To bring the fusion of natural landscapes and clockwork civilization in Hidden Mountain to life, we've massively upgraded the game's visual fidelity and overall performance.

We've implemented a brand-new realistic lighting system, ensuring natural light and shadow transitions across different times of day and environments. In the morning, sunlight filters through the forest, casting rich, layered shadows across cliffs, trees, and buildings. As mist rolls along the peaks, the distant mechanical city flickers in and out of view. At night, the glowing lights and moving gears of Mohist City intertwine, showcasing a unique atmosphere where traditional wuxia meets classic clockwork aesthetics.

We've also completely overhauled environmental textures and details. The weathered patterns on mountain rocks, the smooth erosion caused by flowing water, the intricate structural details of the clockwork architecture, and the dynamic flora all feature highly detailed visual upgrades. From the foothills to the peaks, from natural scenery to the mechanical city, we want every corner of Hidden Mountain to feel like a real, lived-in world.

 

Beyond visual upgrades, we've enhanced the dynamic elements of the environment.

Wind is one of the most subtle yet impactful factors for immersion. We've completely revamped our wind field effects to make environmental shifts feel incredibly natural. Wind sweeping through the valleys now rustles the foliage; mist dynamically reacts to the terrain; and operating mechanisms interact seamlessly with their surroundings. These seemingly minor details come together to create a breathtakingly authentic, living world.

 

New content is great, but we're equally focused on your day-to-day quality of life (QoL). In the 2.0 era, we're streamlining progression, UI navigation, and grinding pressure so Wanderers can focus on enjoying the journey.

For gear progression, we've introduced the new "Modulating Stone." You can now salvage spare Legendary Gear to obtain these stones, giving idle resources a new purpose and making character growth much more flexible. We've also optimized the Gear Modulating system with a one-click auto-add feature and better overflow value handling to save your upgrade resources.

On the UI/UX front, we're cutting down on repetitive actions. With smart material tracking and a new gear favoriting system, managing your resources and planning your progression has never been smoother.

 

Global Wuxia 2.0: Venturing Further into the Jianghu

As the Where Winds Meet 2.0 era dawns, we can't wait to meet our Wanderers in person! This summer, we'll be attending multiple offline events to explore this new wuxia era together with our global community.

From July 23 to 27, we'll be at the 25th Comic Exhibition. Wanderers attending the event can get up close and personal with the upcoming clockwork mountain city and experience the unique charm of Mohist mechanics.

Then, from August 26 to 30, we're heading to Gamescom in Cologne, Germany! Last year, we promised to see you there again. And this year, we're making good on that promise. We'll be showcasing brand-new exploration content, boss challenges, and combat systems at our booth. Come step into the unknown and experience the expanded Jianghu of the 2.0 era firsthand!

 

To push the boundaries of authentic wuxia combat, we are thrilled to announce a collaboration with legendary martial arts choreographer Master Yuen Woo-ping!  We are working closely with him on martial arts animation and action design, exploring the ultimate fusion of traditional martial arts and modern gaming. With his profound expertise, we want our in-game combat to deliver not only stunning visual impact but also the true spirit and soul of classic wuxia culture.

The horizon is packed with even more gameplay experiences. Soon, Wanderers will be able to dive into a brand-new map mode in the Perception Forest, scavenging for desert treasures among ruins and dark alleys in a high-stakes adventure. We're also rolling out new multiplayer PVE modes to challenge even deadlier foes. And for those looking to unwind, casual minigames like Horse Racing Chess are currently in the works, adding a touch of leisure to your Jianghu life.

To thank you for your incredible support on this journey, we've prepared some special launch rewards. After the update drops, Wanderers who complete the Hidden Mountain version content will be able to claim a total of 60 free pulls (including those converted from Echo Jades) and three exquisite outfits. We hope these gifts bring you joy on your new adventure.

 

Our vision for Where Winds Meet has always been a living Jianghu, one that continuously grows and evolves. The 2.0 era marks a brand-new beginning. A vaster world, richer exploration, boundless creativity, and untold stories await you.

See you in Hidden Mountain on July 23!