Where to find Sand Grease Pupa locations in Genshin Impact
Not as gross as it sounds.
Sand Grease Pupa is an ascension material in Genshin Impact that you’ll need to track down if you want to power up some of your characters.
Genshin Impact 3.4 finally released unto all of us the Dendro daddy himself, Alhaitham. This stoic scholar is one of the few Dendro characters we have available, and his abilities and personality mean a lot of people are pulling for him. However, if you want to make him stronger, you’re going to need to go out bug hunting.
Thankfully, despite being an insect akin to the Scarabs that Cyno needs to ascend, Sand Grease Pupa don’t run around at all. They can be hard to find if you don’t know where to look though, so we’ve got the lowdown on where to find Sand Grease Pupa, and what you can use them for all here.
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What is Sand Grease Pupa used for in Genshin Impact?
Sand Grease Pupa are tiny baby Quicksand Eels who are just chilling out, waiting to be plucked up by any travellers that come across them. They’re exclusively found in the Desert of Hadramaveth, the area that was introduced in 3.4, and many of them are found in the tunnels underneath the wind-ravaged desert itself.
You’ll need 168 Sand Grease Pupa to fully ascend a character, and they take two days to respawn, so keep that in mind when you’re looking to farm them.
As it stands, the only character who requires these little bugs is Alhaitham, the new Dendro sword user, but we’re expecting more characters to require them in the future, potentially even as early as Genshin Impact 3.5, with Dehya being a potential candidate for these bugs.
Version 5.3 with Mavuika and Citlali is nearly here! In the mean time, during version 5.2 we have Zhongli and Neuvillette. So don't forget to redeem new codes for Primogems to help pull them, and check out our regularly updated tier list. You need luck from the Pity and 50/50 systems to Wish with Fate for characters on Banners, and you always need the right Adventure Rank for events. Elsewhere, we have tips and tricks for beginners.
Where to find Sand Grease Pupa in Genshin Impact
Finding Sand Grease Pupa can be a little tricky just due to how scattered they generally are. While you can find pockets of them above ground, near Wadi Al-Majuj and to the south and southeast of The Sands of Three Canals, the bulk of them are under the sands themselves near the new Stekh Wenut boss fight below The Sand of Al-Azif and Dunes of Steel.
Thankfully, Hoyoverse has gifted us with the ability to see an underground map now. However, this isn’t available in-game just yet, but the official interactive map does have us covered. We’ve included screenshots to show you exactly where you can find these bugs.
You’ll find entrances to the underground wherever there are Cave symbols on the map. Keep in mind that many of these entrances aren’t traditional caves, but can often just be gaping holes in the floor rather than wedged into the side of a cliff face.
As these are a Sumeru speciality item, it’s worth bringing Tighnari along with you if you have him, as his passive ability marks Sand Grease Pupa on the minimap as you’re adventuring around. Otherwise, keep an eye out for sparkles near walls as you’re going through the tunnels, as this tends to be where Sand Grease Pupa can be found.
Good luck finding Sand Grease Pupa!