In the bustling metropolis of New Eridu, Proxies rely on a personal interface known as the Inter-Knot to navigate the perilous Hollows. Much like a finely calibrated detector that sensitively picks up signals from the deepest corruption, the Inter-Knot Level determines how clearly a Proxy can perceive the city’s fractured frontier. As of 2026, after multiple major updates and fresh story chapters, the pinnacle of account progression in Zenless Zone Zero remains Inter-Knot Level 60—a cap that serves both as a goal and a gateway. Every activity, from completing Commissions to unravelling Phaethon’s daily routines, pours experience into this meter, steadily illuminating more of the game’s high-stakes underworld.
HoYoverse has established distinct account-level philosophies across its titles. Genshin Impact’s Adventurer Rank caps at 60, mirroring the scale of Teyvat’s open-world exploration, while Honkai: Star Rail’s Trailblaze Level climbs to 70, reflecting the sprawling Astral Express journey. Zenless Zone Zero deliberately aligns with Genshin’s ceiling, but the pace and rhythm feel entirely its own. The 60-level structure is compact enough to keep campaigns intense, yet deep enough to gate sophisticated Agent enhancements and W-Engine refinements behind meaningful progression hurdles. The urban fantasy setting, with its layered Hollows and gang-controlled territories, gives each level-up a sense of peeling back asphalt and steel to reveal hidden arcane networks.
Gaining Inter-Knot experience is a natural byproduct of life as a Proxy. Daily errands, Hollow Zero expeditions, Shiyu Defense rounds, and story missions all contribute. Special events sprinkled throughout the year often inject bursts of bonus experience, making the climb to 60 feel less like a grind and more like an unfolding case file. The true test arrives at the milestone thresholds: Inter-Knot levels 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50. At each of these junctions, you must complete a Reputation Rank-Up mission—a rite of passage analogous to Genshin’s Ascension Quests or Star Rail’s Trial of the Equilibrium. Only after proving your prowess do the floodgates open, allowing Agents to ascend beyond their previous upgrade ceiling and W-Engines to unlock higher modification tiers.
Reaching Inter-Knot 50 is akin to converting a simple street map into a satellite hologram: previously invisible mission nodes, top-tier resource caches, and elite Hollow challenges suddenly snap into view. The Reputation Rank-Up mission itself often injects narrative tension, pitting you against evolved Ethereal threats or forcing a tactical rethink of team synergies.
Milestones deliver more than just access; they shower players with rewards that accelerate further growth. The most coveted among them is Polychrome, the premium currency that fuels the gacha system for Agents and W-Engines. Generous Polychrome drops arrive exactly at levels 3, 13, 23, 33, 43, and 53, creating a steady rhythm of pulls that keep even free-to-play Proxies equipped. Alongside Polychrome, the Inter-Knot Level cache dispenses Official Investigator Logs for Agent XP, W-Engine Power Supply items, and bundles of Dennies—the lifeblood of New Eridu’s economy. The reward screen becomes a celebratory cascade, a loot piñata that mirrors the thrill of cracking a high-security vault.
A summary of the free Polychrome milestones can be visualised cleanly:
| Inter-Knot Level | Reward Focus |
|---|---|
| 3 | First Polychrome injection |
| 13 | Polychrome + basic materials |
| 23 | Polychrome + Dennies boost |
| 33 | Polychrome + W-Engine supply |
| 43 | Polychrome + elite upgrade items |
| 53 | Polychrome + advanced logs |
While Polychrome grabs the headlines, the ultimate prize awaits at the summit. At Inter-Knot Level 60, a single Hamster Cage Pass is granted—an exceptionally rare material used to unlock the final tier of an Agent’s advanced skills. In a game where perfecting a character’s kit can mean the difference between a comfortable Shiyu clear and a frustrating restart, this pass is worth its weight in platinum.
The climb to level 60 can be likened to assembling an intricate music box: each turn of its crank (each level gained) adds a new, vital component—a gear, a spring, a melodic pin—until, at last, the fully assembled mechanism plays a perfect, uninterrupted tune. A Proxy who reaches the cap doesn’t just gain a shiny badge; they possess a fully unlocked account capable of tackling every endgame mode HoYoverse engineers. Even in 2026, with whispers of new Hollow depths and Agent factions on the horizon, the Inter-Knot Level 60 ceiling stands as a testament to a player’s dedication, and the Hamster Cage Pass remains a meticulously guarded key. The city of New Eridu rewards persistence, and those who ascend to the maximum Inter-Knot Level become its most trusted guides, forever illuminating the shadows for those who follow.