The two endings at a glance
Nine Sols has two endings, and both can be earned in a single save. The normal ending (Home Sweet Home) needs only one thing: defeat every Sol and take their Seals. The true ending (Shooting Star) needs that same fight plus five relationship and side-quest steps finished beforehand.
The trap is the Point of No Return: the root node in the Tianhuo Research Institute, right before Eigong’s soulscape. Once you pass it, the five steps below can no longer be completed in that run. Do them first, then walk into Eigong. After the credits you can rewind the save to that root node and replay only the final stretch for the other ending.
The five true-ending requirements
- Defeat all the Sols for their Seals. This is the same bar as the normal ending — every Solarian on the Council must fall.
- Build a deep bond with Shuanshuan. Give him the Artifacts you find and talk to him during the follow-up events that each gift triggers. Skipping the conversations leaves the relationship too shallow.
- Finish Shennong’s and the apemen’s arcs. Hand Shennong all 15 Poisons, and aid the apemen village all three times across the story.
- Open Lear’s Secret Tomb. Unlock it in the Grotto of Scriptures, take the Rhizomatic Bomb inside, and deliver the bomb to Kuafu.
- Make the apemen choice. After you escape Eigong’s soulscape and return to the pavilion, choose to prioritize saving the apemen when Kuafu asks.
In what order to do them
Because the Point of No Return sits at Eigong, treat steps 2–4 as “pre-Eigong homework”:
- Early–mid game: start feeding Shuanshuan Artifacts and talking through each follow-up the moment it appears; you will pass him many times.
- Whenever Shennong is available: turn in Poisons as you collect them and answer the village’s three aid requests as they open up.
- At the Grotto of Scriptures: do not leave without opening Lear’s Secret Tomb and grabbing the Rhizomatic Bomb for Kuafu.
- Final stretch: beat all Sols, then step into Eigong’s soulscape only after steps 2–4 are done. Beat Eigong, return to the pavilion, and pick the apemen.
Preparing for Eigong
Eigong is the final Sol and the gate to both endings. She fights in multiple phases inside her soulscape, so the run-up matters: keep your Jade loadout online (see the Jade guides below), and make sure your internal-damage recovery and sustain Jades are slotted before you cross the Point of No Return — you cannot re-equip around them afterward without rewinding.
The choice that locks the true ending comes after the fight, not during it. Win the battle, return to the pavilion, and side with the apemen.