The Afterglow Pendant is the key that actually lets you fly in Qinghe in Where Winds Meet. You can unlock Meteor Flight and other Grand Lightness skills early, but without this pendant, the game still locks you out of freely using them in the region. The pendant acts like a regional flight permit: once you have it, you can spam Grand Lightness and Wallstride all over Qinghe, turning long climbs and detours into a few button presses.
The catch is that you do not get the Afterglow Pendant from a random chest. It is tied directly to your Qinghe Exploration Level and the Afterglow Jianghu Legacy quest around Moonveil Mountain. You need to push your exploration to Level 4, then claim the pendant from the region rewards. Only then does Qinghe fully unlock for Meteor Flight, Wind Rider, and other Lightness Mystic Skills.
This Where Winds Meet guide breaks down exactly what the Afterglow Pendant does, how to get it, the fastest way to reach Qinghe Exploration Level 4, and how to actually use Grand Lightness once the pendant is in your hands.
What The Afterglow Pendant Actually Does
The game treats the Afterglow Pendant as a regional permission slip for high-level movement.
According to in-game descriptions, the pendant:
- Lets you use all Grand Lightness skills freely in Qinghe
- Enables Wallstride and Lightness movement in the region (better sprinting, water running, cliff routing)
- Does not unlock flight in other areas like Kaifeng
In other words:
Your Grand Lightness skills are global, but you need the Afterglow Pendant to actually use them in Qinghe.
Other regions have their own equivalents:
- Qinghe → Afterglow Pendant
- Kaifeng → Flight Medallion / Flight Permit (same role, different name)
So the pendant does not replace Meteor Flight, Wind Rider, or Fan Glider. It simply allows you to cast those Lightness Mystic Arts in Qinghe without restrictions.
Meteor Flight demonstration.
1. How To Get The Afterglow Pendant In Where Winds Meet
There are two pieces to this:
-
Raising Qinghe Exploration to Level 4
-
Completing the “Afterglow” Jianghu Legacy/Side Quest in Moonveil Mountain, Qinghe
1.1 Reach Qinghe Exploration Level 4 (4000 Points)
Every region tracks its own exploration level. For Qinghe:
- You need 4,000 Qinghe Exploration Points to unlock the reward tier that contains the Afterglow Pendant.
-
This corresponds to roughly Exploration Level 4 for the region.
You gain Qinghe Exploration Points by:
- Completing regional quests and “blue book” exploration stories
- Unlocking Boundary Stones and Wayfarers
- Clearing Outposts and Strongholds
- Collecting Oddities and opening chests
- Doing exploration quests like the Afterglow Jianghu Legacy itself
Once you hit the 4,000 point threshold:
- Open the Map
- Switch to the Exploration tab for Qinghe
- Claim the Afterglow Pendant from the reward list
The Afterglow Pendant comes from this exploration reward tier, not from a random drop.
You get the Afterglow Pendant after reaching Qinghe Exploration Level 4.
1.2 Do “Afterglow” Jianghu Legacy Quest in Moonveil Mountain
In addition to the exploration level requirement, Qinghe has a dedicated Jianghu Legacy quest called “Afterglow.” You can find this Jianghu Legacy Quest in Moonveil Mountain with the following rewards:
- Afterglow Pendant
- Echo Jade
- Qinghe Exploration Points
- Character EXP
- Coins
- Enlightenment Points
Overall, the Afterglow Jianghu Legacy’s structure looks like this:
- You meet an old fisherman near Moonveil Mountain who claims to be a Grand Lightness master.
- He gives you a jumping trial across floating jars and a short Meteor Flight tutorial, including a scripted “crash.”
- He mentions a pendant that supposedly sits in a palace, but in reality, the actual unlock condition is your Qinghe Exploration Level.
If you do the quest early, you get Meteor Flight as a skill, but cannot use it freely in Qinghe until your exploration reaches Level 4 and you claim the pendant. If you reach Level 4 later and have the quest tracked, the reward screen lists the Afterglow Pendant along with your other exploration quest rewards.
The simple way to think about it:
- Afterglow quest = tutorial and one-time exploration quest
- Qinghe Exploration Level 4 = the real gate for the Afterglow Pendant
Complete the Afterglow Jianghu Legacy first to obtain the Afterglow Pendant.
2. Fast Ways To Reach Qinghe Exploration Level 4 in Where Winds Meet
Hitting 4,000 exploration points sounds big, but you get there surprisingly fast if you mix main content with targeted exploration.
Use these priorities to push for the Afterglow Pendant efficiently:
2.1 Unlock Wayfarers And Boundary Stones First
- Talk to the Wayfarers (flame icons) to reveal large sections of Qinghe on the map.
- Activate every Boundary Stone you walk past. Each one gives a solid chunk of exploration and becomes a fast travel point, which speeds up the rest of your sweep.
2.2 Chain Main Story With Regional Exploration Quests
- Main story quests, Jianghu Legacies, and blue exploration quests give some of the highest point payouts per objective.
- In Qinghe specifically, doing side stories like Echoes of Old Battles, Blind to the World, and Afterglow while you progress the main story feeds your exploration bar almost passively.
2.3 Clear Outposts As You Pass Them
- Outposts count as discovery and combat objectives and reward Qinghe Exploration, Medicinal Tales, materials, and currency.
- Clearing Outposts and long quests are among the best sources for exploration points.
2.4 Pick Up Oddities And Chests
- Oddities and hidden chests are “slow burn” exploration, but you will run past many of them while doing other content.
- Use Wind Sense whenever your minimap shows fairy or butterfly pings and grab nearby collectibles for small but steady exploration gains.
If you keep this up while you play, hitting Qinghe Exploration Level 4 and claiming the Afterglow Pendant will happen naturally somewhere in the early–mid game, long before the content that really expects full flight.
The Afterglow Jianghu Legacy Quest location.
3. How To Use Grand Lightness Skills After Getting The Pendant
Once the Afterglow Pendant is unlocked for Qinghe, you still need at least one Lightness Mystic Skill unlocked, such as Meteor Flight, Wind Rider, or Fan Glider.
3.1 Equip A Lightness Skill
- Open Abilities → Mystic Skills → Movement tab.
- Choose a Grand Lightness Skill like Meteor Flight or Wind Rider.
- Equip it into the appropriate slot.
You can unlock these skills from:
- The Afterglow story (Meteor Flight)
- Oddity turn-ins and exploration nodes (for Wallstride and specific Lightness skills)
- Later exploration rewards, like Wind Rider, at higher Qinghe exploration totals
3.2 Basic Lightness Controls
To use the Lightness Mystic Skills, generally, here are the things you need to do:
- Hold jump to activate your equipped Lightness Skill (the Space button on PC, X on PlayStation 5, and A on Xbox Series X|S).
- A circular or segmented HUD meter appears on screen.
- Tap jump again as the indicator reaches each circle to keep the flight going.
- You can cancel early with Mighty Drop (press the left stick) to dive straight down and land.
All Lightness skills share this basic rhythm. The difference is in the animation and minor feel, not in the input logic.
3.3 What Changes Once The Pendant Is Active
With the Afterglow Pendant:
- You can trigger Grand Lightness freely in Qinghe, instead of seeing “Restricted” warnings.
- Long cliff climbs in Moonveil Mountain and Verdant Wilds shrink to a few button presses.
- World bosses, Outposts, and shrine puzzles become much easier to route between.
Combining Lightness Mystic Skill with Wallstride/Shadowdash movement lets you chain together water running, wall running, and flight, turning Qinghe’s terrain into a playground rather than a slog.
The Afterglow Pendant allows you to use Grand Lightness Skills.
4. Region Locking: Afterglow Pendant vs Other Flight Items
The big thing players get confused about is region locking.
- The Afterglow Pendant only unlocks Grand Lightness usage in Qinghe.
- Kaifeng has its own flight item, listed as a Flight Medallion, which is unlocked at Kaifeng Exploration Level 4.
-
Later regions are expected to follow the same pattern: reach Level 4, claim the local “pendant,” then your existing Grand Lightness skills can be used there as well.
You do not need to re-unlock Meteor Flight or other Lightness skills for each region. You need the regional item that permits you to use them.
If you see the message “I have flight skills but cannot fly here,” that usually means:
- You have Meteor Flight or another Lightness Mystic Skill unlocked
- You have not yet earned that region’s pendant or medallion
Flight Medallion is for Kaifeng’s flying access.
That’s everything you need to know about the Afterglow Pendant in Where Winds Meet.
