Let me tell you something, friend: if you’ve been running around Black Myth: Wukong with a staff that hits like a damp noodle, you’ve probably already stared at that “upgrade” button and sighed. I know I did. The culprit? A tiny, maddeningly rare blue pebble called a Yaoguai Core. It sits there in your inventory, taunting you with its glow, and the second you need one more, the game decides you’ve had enough good luck for one lifetime. I’m here to spill the tea on how I started swimming in these things—without ever spending a single point of Will—and how you can too, even in 2026 when some of the old farming loops have been patched into slightly different headaches.
The fundamental rule hasn’t changed since launch: Yaoguai Cores come from killing Yaoguai. Shocking, I know. Almost every enemy that breathes fire, slithers, or calls you “little monkey” is technically a Yaoguai, so you’d think you’d be rolling in cores. Not so fast. The drop rate is crueller than a boss’s second phase. Those shambling zombies near Yellow Wind Ridge? I once murdered 47 of them in a row without seeing a single blue shimmer. They’re just too weak. The game’s loot algorithm seems designed by a sadistic Buddha who rewards only those who pick on someone their own size—or bigger. So here’s the golden rule: elite Yaoguai are your ticket. The beefier the enemy, the higher the chance they’ll pop a core on death. I’m talking about the ones with unique names, the minibosses who take up half your screen, the jerks who one-shot you if you forgot to dodge.
But where exactly should a desperate Destined One go? My personal happy place is the Thunderclap Temple area in Chapter 3. There are a couple of patrolling Guardian statues there that hit like freight trains but have generous drop tables. After the 2025 stability patch, they no longer spam that lightning attack quite as often, so you can reliably bait their slow overhead smash, punish, and repeat. I average one core every four or five kills, which is practically a bonanza compared to mowing down lesser mobs. Another spot that survived the nerf bats is the frozen lake in New Thunderclap Temple, where two elite Macaque Chiefs have a staring contest with a cliff edge. They’re fast, sure, but with the Immobilize spell and a fully charged Thrust Stance, you can often take one out before the other finishes its snarling intro. I turned it into a twenty-minute ritual: kill both, rest at the shrine, rinse, repeat. I walked away with 12 cores and a mild existential crisis, but my weapon was suddenly melting health bars.
If you’re more of a smash-and-grab type, exploration will occasionally toss you a core from smashing pots or opening chests. I’ve found that the palace storerooms near the Court of the Yellow Wind are full of breakable vases—just don’t expect miracles. RNG can still be stingy, but it feels good to get a core at the exact moment you were about to hurl your controller across the room. And yes, you can buy Yaoguai Cores from the shrine shop for 900 Will apiece. I did that once, in a moment of weakness, and immediately regretted it. Will is way too valuable for upgrading armor and buying essentials, and 900 Will for a single core is a mug’s game when you can simply punch the right monster for ten minutes. Unless you’ve got Will coming out of your furry ears, pretend that shop option doesn’t exist.
There’s also a sneaky little mechanic that many players overlook because it’s not advertised anywhere: certain high-tier Yaoguai will drop a core guaranteed on your first kill if you defeat them without taking damage. I discovered this by accident after a flawless takedown of the Black Wind King. The combat log didn’t mention it, but a core popped along with the regular loot. Since then, I’ve managed to replicate it on a few other bosses like the Wandering Wight and the Rat Captain. It’s not something you can farm repeatedly, but if you’re already planning a no-hit boss attempt, you might as well get a bonus core for your perfectionist tendencies. This little treasure has persisted through every update, and as of 2026, I still see it triggering—though I suspect the developers might eventually remove it just to mess with us.
Now, a reality check for anyone feeling stressed about not having a million cores: you don’t need to hardcore farm at all if you’re patient. I played through my first game blind without ever grinding, and by the time I reached the final act, I had enough cores to fully upgrade two staves. The natural progression, especially if you explore every nook and cranny, will hand you a steady trickle. The only reason to farm is if you brainlessly wasted cores on a weapon you later abandoned (guilty) or if you’re trying to max out every single staff in the game like some kind of obsessive collector (also guilty). In those cases, just put on a podcast, teleport to your chosen elite-stomping grounds, and make a night of it.
One final word of advice: don’t sleep on the daily challenge mode that was added with the “Mythical Trials” free update in late 2025. Completing certain gauntlets rewards a small cache of cores, and since the challenges are actually fun, it feels less like farming and more like actually playing the game. I’ve gotten a handful this way while testing new builds, and my inner miser rejoiced.
So go forth, pick on big ugly monsters, break anything that looks breakable, and ignore the shop’s 900-Will insult. Those glowing blue cores will pile up eventually, and your staff will finally stop sounding like a wet fish slapping a rock. Good luck, Destined One—may your RNG be kinder than mine was that rainy night in the temple.
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