Okay, so today I decided to tackle those pesky barriers in Genshin Impact. You know, the ones that taunt you with treasure chests and challenges locked behind them? Yeah, those. I’ve bumped into enough of them, so I figured it was time to figure out how to actually find them reliably, instead of just stumbling upon them.

My first move was, naturally, to start running around like a headless chicken. I figured more ground covered equals more chances of finding a barrier, right? Wrong. After about an hour of this, I had a sore thumb and a whole lot of nothing to show for it.
So, I took a deep breath and decided to get a little more methodical. I pulled up the interactive map. Now, I’m not usually one for using these – I like the surprise of discovery – but desperate times, desperate measures. I started looking for areas I hadn’t fully explored yet, marking them on my in-game map.
Then, I picked a region – Mondstadt, because it’s familiar and I like the scenery. I started systematically checking every nook and cranny. I used the Elemental Sight…a lot. I looked for anything that seemed…off. You know, weird rock formations, unusually placed plants, anything that seemed like it could be hiding something.
I used a Geo construct to reach high places. The number of times I’ve smacked Zhongli’s pillar down to give myself a boost… let’s just say it’s a lot.
And slowly, I did find a few. The first one I found just use the wind current. So I flew up, glided over, and bam! Barrier down. Then there are the elemental monuments, the ones you need to activate with, say, Anemo or Pyro. Those are usually pretty straightforward. Hit them with the right element, and the barrier drops.
Here’s the thing that made the biggest difference:
- Paying attention to the environment: Seriously, the game loves to hide clues in plain sight.
- Using Elemental Sight frequently: It highlights interactive objects, even if they’re hidden.
So, I still don’t have a perfect method. It’s still a bit of hit-and-miss. But by being a bit more observant, and a lot more patient, I’ve definitely gotten better at finding those barriers. It’s still a work in progress, and I’m sure I’ll refine my technique as I go.