You're standing in the back of a dark, sandy cave in the Glittering Dunes. Jafar is hovering there, smug as ever, demanding you hand over the Royal Hourglass. This is it. The moment the "Your Eternal Reward" quest hits its peak in the Disney Dreamlight Valley: A Rift in Time expansion. If you're anything like me, you probably spent way too long trying to figure out if you were actually stuck or if the game was just being... well, glitchy.
It happens.
The "Your Eternal Reward" quest is essentially the gateway to the mid-game of the Eternity Isle expansion. It’s the quest that bridges the gap between just "exploring" the new biomes and actually unlocking the massive power of the Hourglass. But honestly? It’s also one of those quests where if you miss one tiny interactable object or don’t stand in the exact right spot during a scripted event, you’ll be scratching your head for twenty minutes.
Getting Into the Cave (And Why Jafar is Like That)
First off, you can't even start this properly until you've progressed through the initial "The Port of Many Worlds" and "The Flying Metal Nuisance" (the one where you finally get EVE to stop shooting lasers at you). Once you've got the Hourglass, Jafar—appearing in his holographic form at the communication stations—tells you to meet him at the cave in the Borderlands.
The Borderlands is that high-up area in the Glittering Dunes. You’ll need to spend some Mist to unlock it. Mist is basically the Dreamlight of Eternity Isle, and if you're low, just go around time-bending for five minutes; you'll get what you need.
When you get to the cave, it’s not just a walk-in-the-park situation. There’s a gate. A big, magical, annoying gate. To open it, you need to find two halves of a Sunbird disk. This is where most people get tripped up because the game doesn't exactly hold your hand. One half is buried near the entrance of the Plains, and the other is tucked away in a corner of the Wastes. Use your shovel. Look for the sparkling dig spots. If you're looking at a spot and thinking, "Is that it?" it probably is.
The Puzzle Inside the Borderlands Cave
Once you're inside, the vibe shifts. It's very Aladdin. Very "Cave of Wonders."
You’ll encounter a series of light puzzles. You’ve seen these before if you’ve played through the main story in the Dreamlight Valley, but these feel a bit more tactile. You need to rotate the mirrors to reflect the beam of light onto the door mechanisms.
Here is the trick: don't overthink it.
The light follows a linear path. If the beam isn't hitting the next mirror, click the pedestal once. If it still isn't hitting, click it again. There are three main mirrors you have to mess with. The first one is simple—just a 90-degree turn. The second one requires you to clear some copper rocks (you’ll need your upgraded pickaxe for this, which you should have by now if you followed Jafar’s earlier instructions).
Dealing with the "Scarab" Problem
At a certain point, Jafar talks about the "Jeweled Scarab." This is the key to everything in this quest. You’re going to find pieces of it scattered. Specifically, you need the two halves that fit into the pedestal right before the final chamber.
- The Blue Half: Found in the hallway behind some debris.
- The Orange Half: Tucked away near a pile of sand by the second mirror.
Once you combine them at a crafting station (yes, you have to leave or find a nearby station), you can slot it in. This triggers the final confrontation with the hologram.
The Part Everyone Gets Stuck On
Let’s talk about the "Investigate the Cave" objective. Sometimes, even after you've done everything, the quest log doesn't update. This is a known quirk. Usually, it’s because there is a small pile of gold or a specific "ancient" plate on the floor that you haven't interacted with.
Walk around the perimeter. Hug the walls.
The game wants you to "witness" Jafar’s betrayal. It’s classic Disney villain stuff. He wants the Hourglass, he wants the power, and he’s willing to trap you to get it. When the dialogue options pop up, it doesn't really matter what you say—Jafar is going to Jafar. But pay attention to the environment during this scene. The way the light hits the Hourglass is actually a hint for future time-bending mechanics.
Why This Quest Matters for Your Progression
You might think, "Okay, I finished it, now what?"
"Your Eternal Reward" is the prerequisite for unlocking the ability to upgrade your Hourglass to Level 1. Without this quest completion, you are stuck with the "Basic" version of time-bending. Upgrading is huge. It allows you to find better parts for Ancient Machines—those wonderful little gadgets that can auto-cook, auto-garden, and auto-collect for you.
Honestly, the auto-cooker alone makes this whole desert trek worth it.
If you’re finding that the quest isn't completing even after the dialogue ends, try a hard restart. This specific quest has been flagged in patch notes before for "soft-locking" if the player moves too fast during the scripted sequence where Jafar disappears. Just stay still, let him finish his monologue, and wait for the "Quest Complete" banner to flash across the screen before you teleport out.
Actionable Next Steps for Eternity Isle
To make sure you don't hit a wall after finishing Jafar's little power trip, here’s exactly what you should do:
- Farm 5,000 Mist immediately. You’ll need it to upgrade your Royal Hourglass at the Timebending Station. This is the first thing you should do after the quest closes.
- Check your Crafting Tab. Look for the "Ancient Core (Level 1)." Now that the quest is done, these have a higher drop rate when time-bending in the Glittering Dunes.
- Talk to Gaston or Rapunzel. Often, completing this quest triggers the next stage of their friendship paths, which were previously "locked by quest progress."
- Clear the Sand. Use your newly empowered Hourglass to clear the floating sands around the cave. These often contain "Ancient Plates," which you'll need for the next big story beat.
The desert is big, and Jafar is annoying, but "Your Eternal Reward" is the turning point where the expansion actually opens up. Get those mirrors aligned, grab that scarab, and don't let the hologram get in your head.
