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On the Order of Bosses 6 & 7
Congratulations on making it through Lady Ethereal.
The next section of Nine Sols is the only part of the game where you truly get to make a decision about the order that you tackle things. You have 2 choices: Ji, or the Feng twins.
Personally, I’d recommend tackling Ji in the Grotto of Scriptures first. I think they’re the easier of the 2 fights. You don’t have to follow my recommendation though.
Either way, Ji will be featured here on page 7, and the Feng twins will be featured on page 8.
Preparation
Recommended Skills
- Qi Boost (x4)
- Swift Rise
- Enhanced Full Control
- Breathing Exercise
- Enhanced Talisman (x2)
- Incisive Drain
- Unbounded Drain
I feel like nothing listed here will be a surprise, doubly so if you’ve read any of the other subsections within my Nine Sols’ boss guide.
The biggest change up from the past few bosses is that you should finally have enough skill points to unlock an upgraded Qi Blast style. We’ll be making use of Full Control for fighting Ji, so I’d highly recommend picking up Enhanced Full Control. Ji is incredibly tanky, so the extra damage will be very useful.
Otherwise, here’s a breakdown of the logic behind my skill recommendations:
Qi Boost: provides you with 5 total Qi charges, and access to a highly damaging Qi Blast by way of Enhanced Full Control. You’re going to spend a lot of time parrying projectiles while fighting Ji, and there are a handful of different opportunities where you can easily unload those charges with a Qi Blast, so having 4 Qi Boost skills is essential for this fight.
Swift Rise: Allows Yi to recover faster from a knockdown by tapping the dash button, which can help to prevent situations where Yi would take damage from combo attacks. Probably the best defensive skill in the game. It’s a must have if you’re struggling with any of the bosses.
Enhanced Full Control: the upgraded version of Full Control. This simply increases the damage output on a 5-charge Qi Blast, so we get even more value out of them then we did before. Ji is super tanky, and provides several openings where the player can easily connect with a full 5-charge blast so this is a very useful skill to have going into Ji’s boss fight.
Breathing Exercise: Allows you to recover some internal damage after performing a successful perfect parry. It’s not strictly required, but it does make Ji, and the remainder of Nine Sols’ bosses, a lot less spooky by giving you an easy way to recover from internal damage without needing to use your Healing Pipe.
Enhanced Talisman: A (roughly) ~25% damage increases to Qi Blast for each skill. Very helpful as we’re now into the section of the game where bosses start to have a LOT of hit points, which you’ll notice if you’re not using these damage focused upgrades.
Incisive Drain & Unbounded Drain: both of these skills are as useful against Ji as they were against Jiequan. The former gives you 2 Qi charges whenever you counter a crimson attack with a Tai-Chi Kick, and the latter provides the same but for successful Unbounded Counters. You’ll be making healthy use of both defensive skills during phase 2, so it’s best if your reward for doing either is better.
Recommended Jades
- Quick Dose Jade
- Recovery Jade
- Revival Jade
A bit of a mix-up from my usual recommendations.
Quick Dose is still the MVP, and my goto Jade of choice. This speeds up the use of your Healing Pipe by roughly 40%, which allows you to use it more liberally throughout a fight. It’s an absolute must have Jade if you’re struggling with a boss fight.
Recovery, and Revival are my other 2 recommendations because I don’t really think many of the other Jades are actually that useful against Ji. Recovery will increase the speed that you recover from internal damage, which can be helpful while you’re learning the parry timing on all of Ji’s attacks. Revival simply gives you another shot at closing out the fight after you’ve made a fatal mistake. In both cases, these Jades give you a bit more survivability, which can be helpful since Ji’s boss fight feels a bit more like a bullet-hell than the other bosses we’ve beaten thus far.
Also, if you’re wondering why I don’t recommend Hedgehog like I do for every other boss in this guide (once it becomes available): Hedgehog doesn’t work very well against Ji. For some reason, projectile attacks don’t trigger Hedgehog even when you perform a perfect parry. Ji almost exclusively attacks with ranged projectiles, so you don’t get nearly as much value from it as you do against someone like Jiequan, Fuxi, or Eigong.
Note: I captured all of the footage for Ji within this guide using Hedgehog because I thought it would work against them the same as it did against other bosses. Upon reviewing the footage, I realized the Jade had no effect.
I know I normally use exactly the same Skills, Jades, and Equipment that I recommend in this guide, so please forgive the discrepancy for this fight.
Regardless, the recommended Jades should help to give you a leg up if you’re struggling against Ji.
Recommended Equipment
- Cloud Piercer X
- Level 7 Healing Pipe
- 6 Max Health Upgrades
- 4 Pipe Vials
- 2 Computing Unit
- 2 Azure Sand Magazines
I don’t think much of these recommendations need explaining at this point, but I will give special attention to Cloud Piercer X. I have a few tips in this guide that are reliant on the damage output of the X variant of Cloud Piercer because that’s what I was testing with. I don’t know if S does enough damage. I’m of the opinion that Cloud Piercer X is the best arrow type in Nine Sols, and we’re nearing the end of the game so this is a long overdue upgrade.
The only other thing to call attention to is that you can explore both the Grotto of Scripture, and Empyrean District before attempting this fight. I didn’t, but if you’re struggling with Ji then keep in mind that you could farm up additional upgrades before reattempting the fight.
By visiting both the Grotto of Scripture and Empyrean District, you’ll be able to secure the means to obtain a maximum level Healing Pipe (level 8), and all 8 Max Health Upgrades.
How to Fight Ji
How Divination Works
Ji is a seer, and will use their power of premonition to determine some of their attacks. This manifests by way of Ji teleporting to the centre of the screen, summoning 3 orbs around them, and choosing 1 of those 3 orbs to decide their next attack.
Several of the attacks from these orbs are among Ji’s strongest, or otherwise make it far harder to defend yourself from Ji’s other attacks. For example, one of them allows Ji to place a black hole in the middle of the boss arena, which makes parrying a little more challenging, while counterattacking is outright impossible.
However, you have some control over your destiny, and can select 1 of the 3 orbs by performing a Tai-Chi Kick upon it. This will lock-in whichever orb you’ve selected as Ji’s next attack.
I’m calling attention to this quirk of the fight because manipulating which orbs Ji actually gets to use while performing divination makes the fight substantially easier. 1 of the 3 orbs will always be an option that provides Yi with a minor heal, or an Azure Sand. This doesn’t stop Ji from using their most powerful attacks, but they’re far less likely to use them without divination.
Ergo, it’d behoove you to learn the effects of each orb, and properly select the ones that give you the best odds of beating Ji throughout the fight.
I’ve covered what each orb does in detail within both the Phase 1, and Phase 2 sections of the guide as both phases feature (mostly) unique attacks for each of the different orb types.
Phase 1
We’re back to 2 phase fights, but Ji won’t make it easy for you. They have a lot of different attacks, which all look fairly similar. Thankfully, the fight plays a bit more like a bullet-hell, so you can always use your newly acquired double jump to evade any of Ji’s projectile attacks that you’re not confident parrying.
Overview of Phase 1 Attacks
I’ve covered all of the attacks that are tied to divination orbs in the next section of this guide.
For the remainder of Ji’s attacks, this is what you’ll be dealing with:
| Attack Name | Short Description |
|---|---|
| Double Dagger Toss | From the ground, Ji throws 2 daggers directly at Yi in rapid succession. |
| Aerial Dagger Toss | From the air, Ji throws a single dagger to Yi’s current position. |
| Aerial Rebound Toss | From the air, Ji tosses 2 daggers at Yi, and uses telekinesis to boomerang the daggers back towards Yi for a second round of attacks. There is a loose homing effect on this attack. |
| Flanking Strike | From the ground, Ji uses telekinesis to attack Yi from behind with a dagger before throwing it at him for a second attack. |
| Toss & Thrust | From the ground, Ji throws a single dagger at Yi before teleporting behind him to perform a crimson thrusting attack with a spear. |
| Grounded Rebound Toss | From the ground, Ji will throw 2 daggers into the air, and use telekinesis to boomerang the daggers back towards Yi. |
And here is what all of those attacks look like, and an example of how to parry each of them:
Overview of Divination Orbs
As already discussed, Ji has the power of divination on their side, and will use it throughout the fight. Both phases feature (mostly) unique attacks for each of the orbs (identified by their unique symbols) that can be selected during this process, which I’ve highlighted below.
| Symbol (TBA) | Colour | Short Description |
|---|---|---|
| Jug | Green | Ji places a green container at Yi’s current position. The flask can be destroyed, and contains a minor heal, or an Azure Sand. |
| Shockwave | Yellow | Ji teleports away from Yi, and places a device that sends out 2 shockwaves. After ~5 seconds, the waves will return back to the device. The shockwave device can be destroyed to end the effects of the attack prematurely. You can do this by striking it several times, or by shooting it with a single Cloud Piercer X shot. |
| Black Hole | Purple | Ji summons a black hole at Yi’s current position, which will pull Yi towards it for ~8 seconds. It deals contact damage, and Ji will continue to attack you for the hole’s entire duration. |
| Three Daggers | Red | Ji will launch into a flurry of 4 consecutive projectile attacks. The fourth, and final attack is always Toss & Thrust. |
| Dagger Storm | Blue | Ji teleports above Yi, and tosses 5 daggers at him. This may appear intimidating, but it’s fairly easy to air parry. Doing so will give you the means to perform a 5-charge Qi Blast in retaliation immediately after you parry the final dagger. As such, this is a surprisingly good option to select once you’ve mastered the parry timing for it. |
And my guide wouldn’t be complete without a video, so here’s what all of those options look like in practice:
Also note, all of these attacks, sans the healing container, can be used by Ji throughout the fight even if you don’t select them from a divination orb. The chance of this happening is very low though. How low? Low enough that I only saw it happen maybe 5 times across about an hour of fighting Ji to collect (and recollect) the necessary footage for this guide.
Tips for Phase 1
I made a note of where Ji is located on the screen (either on the ground, or in the air) within all of my short descriptions for their different attacks. This is relevant as several of Ji’s attacks look very similar to one another.
As such, you’ll want to take note of which attacks start from where. I find that makes dealing with Ji a lot easier, instead of simply reacting to whatever nonsense appears on the screen.
It probably goes without saying, but you absolutely need to Tai-Chi Kick a good option whenever Ji uses divination. The (green) healing jug is the safest option as it will always be present, and has no negative downsides. Personally, I also find the (red) three daggers, and (blue) dagger storm orbs to be useful choices. Both provide you with the opportunity to store 5 Qi charges, and give you an opening to use them immediately after Ji stops attacking.
The (yellow) shockwave, and (purple) black hole are easily the worst. You can play around them, but the fight is way easier if you don’t have to.
You’re able to use a 5-charge Qi Blast after successfully parrying any of the following attacks:
- Aerial Rebound Toss
- Toss & Thrust
- Grounded Rebound Toss
- Flanking Strike
Keep in mind that these attacks are also where it is safest to heal (after the attack has concluded).
You can break the shockwave device with a single Cloud Piercer X shot. This can give you an out in the event that you accidentally trigger a (yellow) shockwave orb, or you get incredibly unlucky and Ji decides to place the device without divination.
Aerial parries work regardless of which direction you’re facing, so make liberal use of them while fighting Ji. This can help to keep your mental load free to focus on parry timing, instead of constantly having to worry about whether or not you’re facing the correct direction.
Don’t forget you have a double jump now, which you can use to avoid some of the attacks. I completely forgot about this while doing my initial round of footage gathering for the fight, so I had to recapture most of the fight (whoops). Don’t be like me – remember to use your double jump!
You can shoot Ji at any point throughout the fight with a Cloud Piercer X shot from your Azure Bow to temporarily stun them. Use this to give yourself an extra opportunity to heal, or when you need a brief breather to recentre yourself.
Phase 2
Overview of Phase 2 Attacks
This is probably the most that a boss has changed between phases 1, and 2 so far in Nine Sols. Hilariously, most of those changes relate to Ji’s orbs during divination. The actual list of changes for their standard attacks is fairly small:
| Attack Name | Short Description |
|---|---|
| Black Hole of Doom | Ji summons a large Black Hole at Yi’s position. Shortly thereafter, a shockwave will travel towards the hole, which Yi must dash through. Afterwards, about a dozen daggers will fly out of the hole, in a set pattern, and will return back to the hole 3 seconds later. The daggers always follow the same pattern. |
| Aerial Dagger Toss & Slam | From the air, Ji will throw a dagger at the player, before teleporting behind them to perform a crimson attack with a mace. If you fail to Unbounded Counter the crimson attack then a shockwave ripples outward from the impact location. Note: Ji can still just throw a singular dagger without the newly added follow-up attack just like they could in phase 1. |
And here’s what that all looks like:
Overview of Divination Orbs
Here are the list of changes to the divination orbs once you’ve reached phase 2:
| Symbol (TBA) | Colour | Short Description |
|---|---|---|
| Jug | Green | Unchanged from phase 1. Ji places a green container at Yi’s current position. The flask can be destroyed, and contains a minor heal, or an Azure Sand. |
| Shockwave | Yellow | Ji teleports above Yi, and slams into the ground. The impact causes a massive laser to completely envelop Ji. Afterwards, a single shockwave will pulse out from Ji, and a shockwave device will be left at the location where Ji slammed into the ground. As with phase 1, the shockwave will return to the device after ~5 seconds. Destroying the device will prematurely end this attack. |
| Black Hole | Purple | Option 1: Ji summons a black hole at Yi’s current position, which will pull Yi towards it for ~8 seconds. It deals contact damage, and Ji will continue to attack for the hole’s entire duration. This is identical to phase 1. |
| Option 2: Ji summons a large black hole at Yi’s current location, and performs the Black Hole of Doom attack that they use at the start of phase 2. Note: there is no way to know which of the 2 attacks you’re getting until after you see the size of the black hole. | ||
| Three Daggers | Red | Ji will launch into a flurry of 3 consecutive projectile attacks now instead of 4. The third, and final attack is always Aerial Dagger Toss & Slam. |
And here’s what all of that looks like:
Note, as with before, Ji can use all of these attacks, sans the healing one, in regular combat. Only the giant black hole attack is somewhat common as Ji will always use it at the beginning of phase 2. Otherwise, these attacks should be just as uncommon as they were in phase 1 provided you don’t select the wrong orb.
Tips for Phase 2
Don’t try to DPS race Ji in phase 2. Their health has almost doubled, so you’ll need to patiently beat them down over a very protracted fight.
You’re still able to punish all 4 of these attacks with a Qi Blast in phase 2:
- Aerial Rebound Toss
- Toss & Thrust
- Grounded Rebound Toss
- Flanking Strike
See the attack overview from phase 1 if you need a refresher on what any of these attacks look like.
In addition, you can also use a Qi Blast after successfully Unbounded Countering the second attack of Aerial Dagger Toss & Slam.
And, again, successfully defending against any of these attacks is the best time to heal. Reckless use of your Healing Pipe will get you hit, so use your heals smartly.
As already mentioned, phase 2 always starts with the Black Hole of Doom, so you’re going to get a lot of practice dealing with it.
The daggers come out in the exact same pattern every single time during the Black Hole attack. This will give you plenty of opportunity to learn to parry them both as they’re leaving the black hole, and as they’re returning to it.
You can always jump over the daggers though if you’re unsure of your ability to parry.
Personally, I think parrying is easier, but you should do whatever you’re the most comfortable doing. I’ve used either option (parrying, or simply jumping) at various points while fighting this boss to collect footage for this guide.
Don’t forget that Unbounded Counters only take about ~30 frames (half a second) to charge, so you have plenty of time to react to Ji when they attempt to use their crimson slam attack after they’ve tossed a dagger at you from the air.
Example Fight
Okay – this was probably the most complicated boss to capture footage for, and write about thus far. Unfortunately, Ji has so many different attacks (thanks to divination) that you will not see all of them in my example fight.
Regardless, I still hope this helps to give you a visual guide to the fight if you’re struggling. For what it’s worth, I’m also following the advice I’ve outlined above, so you’ll get to see that in practice. At least, you will for the attacks Ji actually uses.
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Lady Ethereal
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The Fengs
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