Cyberpunk 2077 is chock-full of main quests, side jobs, gigs, and NCPD hustles. Some of them are more interesting than others, but perhaps the most curious set of quests comes from the mysterious Zen Master.
The Zen Master shows up in four side jobs located throughout Night City, and each one follows the same format. Completing these jobs won't give V a useful item or ability, and it won't change the endings, but what they do is give the player an experience unlike anything else Cyberpunk 2077 has to offer.
Imagine
The first Zen Master side job, "Imagine," can be found in Reconciliation Park, just south of Arasoka Tower. This job is available immediately after V is able to leave Winston, and all V has to do to activate it is to approach the Buddhist monk sitting on a park bench.
The Zen Master will indicate that he knows a surprising amount about what V's going through and ask them to sit down. He'll offer to help V with a mediation braindance that focuses on the Earth element, and V can accept and pay, accept but refuse to pay, or refuse entirely. So long as V views the braindance, this quest chain will continue.
Stairway to Heaven
The second side job is in Westbrook, just south of the big roundabout, and it's available as soon as "Imagine" ends. This time the Zen Master is meditating next to bonsai trees in front of a shrine. Once again, V can choose to pay or not pay, though if they pay, the amount is a little higher than last time. The only other change is that this braindance focuses on Water instead of Earth. Curiously, it's always raining when this braindance ends.
Poem of the Atoms
For the third side job, the Zen Master doesn't go far. V finds him performing Tai Chi under the statue of a phoenix in the center of a roundabout. This roundabout is just east of the larger one, still in Westbrook. Paying for the meditation costs a bit more again, but only if V chooses to pay. And, as the phoenix statue suggests, the focus this time is on Fire.
Meetings Along the Edge
The last job will take V clear across town. The Zen Master is awaiting V at an overlook in the Badlands, close to the reservoir. This time the Master is willing to answer a question, but only one of three.
- If V asks why he's helping them, the Zen Master will say he's preparing them to make the right choice.
- If V asks who he really is, he'll dodge the question.
- If V asks him about their problems, the Zen Master will once again show that he knows something without being very helpful.
The last braindance covers the element of Air. After it ends, the Zen Master will disappear from the game forever, but he leaves behind the altar he wears around his neck. Johnny Silverhand also shows up, but curiously he doesn't seem to realize V was meeting with the Zen Master. However, he'll suggest V speak to Misty about meditation, and Misty will have something new to say when V comes to visit.
Aside from that, the only thing left to do is admire the altar in V's apartment. Players don't have to set anything up: if it's in V's inventory, they'll find it hanging from a ribbon next to the bookshelf at the foot of V's bed.
Cyberpunk 2077 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.