In the Abode of Life in Genshin Impact: How to Catch Up with Nastya, Find the Keys, Defeat Zhara, and Complete the Quests

“The Sanctuary of Life” is a series of side quests in Genshin Impact consisting of the quests “Sprouts in the Gardener’s Absence,” “Transplanted from Yesterday to Tomorrow,” “Along the Narrow Path,” “The Gardener Stands Still,” “The Impenetrable Gates of Sorrow,” “Rest in the Abandoned Field,” and “Chorus of Consolation.” In these quests, Travelers will meet Nastya—a girl who has nearly transformed into a wood spirit. In this guide, we’ve compiled walkthroughs and solutions for all the puzzles in all six quests.

To start the “Sprouts in the Gardener’s Absence” quest, teleport to the Archon statue west of the village of Moripesok and head even further west. On the icy clearing, talk to the werewolves, fight the Anvil, and learn about the treasure cave.

Head slightly north to the collapsed mine. Open the construction menu and dismantle the hook holding the mine car.

Once it crashes through and clears the path, you can go inside. When you see the hook, set up the hook-and-sickle cannon nearby.

A passage will open up. Check the crates, walk to the chest, turn right—you’ll see a girl named Nastya lying unconscious.

She’ll tell you about her home village, where something strange has happened. Set up another hook-and-sickle cannon to open the passage to the village.

Another quest in the chain will begin—Transplanted from Yesterday to Tomorrow.

Follow Nastya to a small station.

Nastya will tell you about her favorite game of catching pest bugs and ask for your help solving a puzzle. Here, too, you’ll need to set up a hook-and-sickle cannon and climb through the window.

Inside, let Nastya in (next to the regular chest), then go up to the second floor, climb onto the roof, and jump down to open the second grate from the outside.

Follow Nastya further. The Traveler and Paimon will run into a barrier. You can get around it by going right, toward the Hydro Slime lair.

From the slimes, head left. You’ll encounter Wood Goblins—pretty dangerous enemies if you don’t have a healer or a tank.

Keep following Nastya until you see her family and fellow villagers.

After a short cutscene, gameplay will begin as the Traveler with a firearm—this marks the start of the next quest, “The Narrow Path.”

Follow the instructions from the Eye of Gray and move forward. You can roll under the jammed doors by double-tapping the run button while running. In the room with water, destroy the crates, then set up the hook-and-scythe cannon and pull yourself to the other side.

Turn left and pick up the stock blueprint.

Read the note on the table. It explains that you need to find the blue, white, and red keys, as well as activate the mechanisms in a specific order to open the passage ahead.

Take the blue key from the red device nearby and insert it into the device on the left.

A passage will open, and you’ll need the blue key again to proceed. You can open the construction menu, place a cube under the grate, retrieve the key, and head back.

When the water level drops, retrieve the key and run quickly to the door.

Take the white key and move on. Defeat the enemies in the hallway.

You’ll see a pedestal with a red key. Take it from there.

In the next room, defeat the goblins and proceed further. Take the blue key with you.

A door to the laboratory will open. Explore the giant glass structure with a goblin inside to find the control wheel. You can shatter the glass with a shot; the goblin will wake up and attack.

After defeating it, use the control wheel for the sewer lift on the device near the exit and go up to the surface.

The next quest is “The Gardener Stands Still.” In it, Nastya will explain how she and the other village children were locked in the basement of Noseless Ove, and he won’t hand over the key to the lift under any circumstances. Fortunately, Ove has placed boxes around the house that you can use to climb onto the roof and enter his house not through the front door, but through the chimney.

Explore the highlighted areas inside the house to learn more about Ove’s story. In the small room, break the boxes blocking the entrance to the basement and go downstairs.

Kill the goblins along the way and solve puzzles using the hook-and-sickle gun.

In the children’s room, where he used to lock them away, there’s a lever on the floor next to the toy horses that opens the door to one of the basement rooms. Put it back in place and open the door to the next room.

Take the control wheel next to the treasure chest.

Place it where there is no lever yet and activate it.

Open the construction menu and place another cube so you can roll unimpeded into the next room.

Make your way back upstairs. The next quest—The Impregnable Gates of Sorrow—will begin.

Nastya will tell you about her friend Furiosa, who turns out to be the furry guardian of the bridge.

Defeat her and head toward the gates leading to the main hall.

Wait until Nastya figures out how to crawl through the hole and open a passage for you from the other side.

Find a way to raise the curtain—place a hook-and-sickle cannon to pull up the mechanism on the chandelier. Once you’ve climbed onto it like an elevator, dismantle the cannon, and the makeshift elevator will go up.

At the top, Paimon and Nastya will ask the Travelers to cross to the other side so they can activate the mechanism simultaneously. To do this, build a jumping platform and climb up.

Once at the top, attach the grappling hook to pull yourself up to the other chandelier.

Disassemble the mechanism once you’ve moved to the other chandelier, and attach the platform to the new hook-and-sickle cannon.

Climb down to the mechanism and activate it simultaneously with Paimon and Nastya.

After that, climb down. Build a hook-and-scythe cannon in the illuminated area.

Then place an ice cube to prevent the mechanism from rotating freely.

After that, dismantle the hook-and-sickle cannon and watch the cutscene showing the assembly of the giant image of Ronova. Go through the door, use the elevator, and head to the lab. You need to read the notes highlighted in yellow: two in the screenshot below (in the foreground and to the right of Nastya).

The third note is located on the upper floor. But as soon as you read it, a trap will be activated, and the wood goblins will attack Nastya. Shoot them all from behind cover.

Don’t forget that there’s also a wood spirit behind you—you need to take him out first. After a brief combat segment, Nastya will give you a key to activate the underground passage.

Go through it. The “Rest in an Abandoned Field” quest will begin.

The travelers will find themselves in a location covered in algae.

The boss arena is located here for a reason. Nastya’s old acquaintance, Zhara, will fly in to defend the settlement. Her mechanics are similar to those of the Immortal Construct boss, except that she periodically summons icy steles, which you’ll need to shatter with Pyro shots. During her cooldown, it’s best to run to the edge of the arena to avoid the boss’s attacks and not interrupt her cooldown animation.

Once you defeat Zhara, the quest will come to an end.

The next quest, “Chorus of Solace,” is also quite short. In it, Nastya will join forces with the hive mind created by Koschey—Dr. Morro—while Aksinya will arrive to prevent Zhara from being resurrected.

Collect one more fragment of the Eye of Grai. This will bring the quest chain “In the Abode of Life” to a close.