The journey to the West is wrought with perils in Black Myth Wukong. Sun Wukong is looking at a world of hurt along the way, and the only thing that keeps him going is his trusty Old Gourd. This is your primary healing item from the start. Nevertheless, if you don’t upgrade it, you are stuck with a limited number of uses.
You must know of the ancient horrors that wait for the Destined One, and thus, it is incumbent upon you to ensure his survivability by investing in his Gourd and making it much more potent. Let me teach you just how to do that.
What Are Gourds and How Healing Works In Wukong?
Before we begin upgrading, you need to know that there are multiple types of Gourds in Black Myth Wukong. Gourds are basically the container that holds the Drink used to restore your HP. They only have a limited number of uses.
Not all Gourds can be upgraded. Only the Old Gourd and the Jade Lotus Gourd can be leveled up.
The Old Gourd begins with four uses and leveled up to ten uses over multiple levels. The Jade Lotus Gourd has only one level up, which increases its number of uses from six to eight, with a massive boost to its unique effect.
On the other hand, the rest of the Gourds have a locked number of uses; however, they have specific special effects. Some of these effects will synergize so well with your unlocked skills.
Additional Note: Upgrading the Gourd will not boost the amount of healing you receive from each sip. You need to either upgrade the Drink or equip a special Drink in the Gourd for enhanced healing. You will need the Awaken Wine Worm item to upgrade Drinks.
Unlock Gourd Upgrade Shop (Shen Monkey)
To upgrade the Gourds in Black Myth Wukong, you must first find an NPC, Shen Monkey. You will likely find him pretty organically as you progress through the first chapter.
In case you missed him, go to Chapter 1 – Bamboo Grove – Marsh of White Mist Keeper’s Shrine. Proceed ahead from this point to where there is an archway leading to a narrow wooden path. In the middle of the path, you’ll face a Snake Patroller enemy with a hidden voice asking for help.
Once you defeat him, a cutscene will play where Shen Monkey drops down from the tree above and welcomes you to his brewing station inside the cave right next to where you faced the enemy.
Follow him inside and interact with him to unlock his shop. This is your one-stop shop for everything related to healing in Wukong. The options include:
- Upgrade Gourds: Boost the gourds’ charges by trading Luojia Fragrant Vines; this is the special material you need to upgrade the Gourds.
- Upgrade Drinks: You can exchange Awakened Wine Worms to increase the number of slots for Soaks and the amount of healing received, along with improving their special effects.
- Brew: This lets you equip Drinks and Soaks to your Gourd.
- Store: Offers a variety of gourds, drinks, soaks, and upgrade materials, with more items unlocking as you advance through the campaign.
This cave is Shen Monkey’s primary location. You can visit here anytime to upgrade your Gourds or experiment with different combinations of Gourds, Drinks, and Soaks. He is also present in his second location, the Painted Realm or Zodiac Village, at all times once you unlock him. He is found in both spots so you can choose where to visit him.
How to Unlock Zodiac Village? (Shen Monkey’s Secondary Location)
The Painted Realm is the ideal location to continue visiting Shen Monkey since the rest of the upgrade stations, like the Blacksmith, are present here. To unlock Shen Monkey’s second location, follow these steps:
- Meet with Xu Dog in Chapter 1: Sandgate Village’s Village Entrance Keeper’s Shrine. He will ask you to bring materials.
- Defeat Lang-Li-Guhh-Baw, the boss near Xu Dog’s location.
- Return to Xu Dog to deliver the formula.
- Proceed to Chapter 3’s Bitter Lake’s North Shore of Bitter Lake Keeper’s Shrine, then face and beat Chen Loong. When defeated, he will request that you bring medicines from Xu Dog.
- Next, go back to Chapter 2’s Yellow Wind Formation’s Crouching Tiger Temple’s Cellar Keeper’s Shrine. Talk to Xu Dog here, and he will give you the pills.
- Now, return to Chen Loong’s previous location. He will be waiting in front of the hut nearby. Deliver him the pills, and he will give you the Ruyi Scroll. This will instantly teleport you to the Zodiac Village.
- You will notice Shen Monkey right beside the Village Entrance Keeper’s Shrine.
Where To Get Luojia Fragrant Vines?
Now that you have unlocked the Gourd upgrade station, it is time to get your hands on the material used to upgrade them: Luojia Fragrant Vine. This is one of the many collectibles that expands Black Myth Wukong’s playtime. These are all the vines in the game:
- Chapter 1: To the immediate left of the Marsh of White Mist shrine, you’ll find it hanging from a tree.
- Chapter 2: Just prior to reaching the Windrest Hamlet shrine.
- Chapter 2: Head down the left path from the Windseal Gate Shrine. Gore-Eye Daoist protects the Luojia Fragrant Vine.
- Chapter 3: Inside the cave near the Outside the Wheel shrine, hanging from a tree in the left corner.
- Chapter 3: Head to the North Shore of the Bitter Lake Shrine and climb the hill from the giant snake bones on the beach. Once you reach the top of the stairs, turn left into a small nook to locate the Luojia Fragrant Vine.
- Chapter 3: Head left and descend the slope after reaching the Longevity Road shrine. You’ll encounter the Luojia Fragrant Vine, safeguarded by two enemies near the end.
- Chapter 4: A vine is located in the heart of the settlement in the Middle of the Hollow, under the watchful eyes of the Scorpion Prince.
- Chapter 4: The vine will be hanging from a tree near the Mountain Trail shrine.
- Chapter 4: After reaching the Valley of Bloom shrine, turn right and defeat the Verdant Glow Spirit that guards the vine.
- Chapter 5: Head straight from the Height of Ember shrine, go past the Father of Stones chief, then take the left path down and follow the cliffside. You’ll find the Luojia Fragrant Vine at the end of the path.
- You can buy three directly from Shen Monkey. They will unlock at the start of Chapters 3,4, and 5, respectively.
How to Upgrade the Gourd?
Since we have unlocked the Shen Monkey’s shop and acquired a Luojia Fragrant Vine, the only thing left is upgrading the Gourd.
Simply visit Shen Monkey and open his shop. Select the Upgrade Gourd option, then hover over the gourd you want to upgrade. You can upgrade the gourd by holding the X button on the PlayStation controller.
The Old Gourd will transform into a different gourd with a unique name and better rarity as you upgrade. Don’t worry; it’s just a name change and nothing else. Each subsequent upgrade will add +1 uses to the gourd. The level and name of the gourd are:
| Gourd Level | Name | Luojia Fragrant Vine Quantity Needed | Uses |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Old Gourd | – | 4 |
| Level 2 | Medicine Gourd | 1x | 5 |
| Level 3 | Healing Gourd | 1x | 6 |
| Level 4 | Medicine Sage Gourd | 2x | 7 |
| Level 5 | Medicine Master Gourd | 2x | 8 |
| Level 6 | Medicine Buddha Gourd | 3x | 9 |
Furthermore, there is another upgrade level to this gourd, the Legendary Supreme Gourd. This one isn’t as straightforward as finding a material and merely upgrading.
You need to buy the Jade Lotus Gourd from Shen Monkey. It will become available in his Store after completing Chapter 2.
| Name | Luojia Fragrant Vine Quantity Needed | Uses | Special Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jade Lotus Gourd (Epic) | – | 6 | This gourd will recover a good amount of HP of your duplicates from the Pluck of Many spell. |
| Jade Guanyin Gourd | 3x | 8 | This upgrade will heal the duplicates fully upon use. |
How To Upgrade To Legendary Supreme Gourd?
Before you start the journey to acquire the Legendary Supreme Gourd, you must have upgraded the Old Gourd to the Medicine Buddha Gourd level. It is a prerequisite for the final upgrade.
We begin from Chapter 5 – Furnace Valley – Rakshasa Palace Shrine. Start moving ahead, over the wooden bridges, and past all the enemies along the way.
When you reach a fork in the road with a giant shield-wielding enemy in front, turn to the left.
As you climb the short stairs, instead of going forward, look right and run over the hardened lava. You will take minor damage while walking over it.
Go inside the room in front. An Old Man NPC will be sitting in the right corner near a bonfire in the middle of the room. If you have the fully upgraded Old Gourd, talk to the Old Man and exhaust all his dialogues, then move towards the bonfire.
There will be an “Examine” prompt over the bonfire now. Interact with it and it will trigger a short cutscene. By the end, the Medicine Buddha Gourd will transform into the Legendary Supreme Gourd. It has ten uses, which is the highest amount of charges out of all the gourds in Wukong.
With a wide selection of gourds in Black Myth Wukong, it is a difficult choice which gourd to choose. Even though many of them can’t be upgraded, their special effects make them more valuable than those that can be upgraded. The right gourd can elevate your build if you know what you are doing.