Mu Xiaokui

Mu Xiaokui is the last required Phantom Blade Zero boss of the Village of Lu in Chapter 5, in the reeds past the Lakeside bell above Yuzan's arena. Dodge first, block her ranged slashes, perfect dodge her red dash and leaping thrust, and leave the spinning crimson rings. A secret third phase against Iron Fiend and Jade Dancer opens after the Young Mistress quest. She drops the Wild Oriole Sword.

Decide on the third phase before you step into the reeds: Mu Xiaokui's fight ends after two bars unless the Young Mistress quest is done, and only that secret third phase, against her guardians Iron Fiend and Jade Dancer, gives the Fiend Saws and Fist Fragment: Core. PCGamesN calls her "the first three-phase fight in the game", the Village of Lu's last required boss, fought about 55 m past the Lakeside bell at the top of the lift from Yuzan's arena. On Nov 9, 2026, 56.0% of Steam players had beaten her (the achievement Will We Meet Again?, at 9.2% on Oct 31), and 44.4% had triggered Fiend-Aura Erosion with the Fiend Saws, so if the third phase is their only source, as AllThings.how's account has it, about four in five of the players who beat her also opened it.

Between her two bars she states the stakes herself: at 2:15 of PowerPyx's Oct 29, 2026 recording Mu Xiaokui raises a gloved palm toward Soul by the lake and says, "If I win, you stay here. I'll enter Pangzhen myself!"

Quick facts

Where	The lake reeds past the Lakeside bell, Village of Lu
Chapter	5, Heartless Remnants, by Game8
Required	Yes; the third phase only after the Young Mistress quest
Health	46,890 HP, then 62,520 HP; 41,680 each for the third phase's guardians, the same on every difficulty
Phases	Young Mistress of the Order; Queen of Iron and Jade; secretly, Iron Fiend and Jade Dancer
Rewards	Wild Oriole Sword, Puppet No. 44's Eye; with the third phase, Fist Fragment: Core and the Fiend Saws
Achievement	Will We Meet Again?: 56.0% of Steam players on Nov 9, 2026

The reeds past the Lakeside bell

After Yuzan, take the lift beside her arena up to the Lakeside bell and rest. Walk about 55 m along the reeds by the lake: there is no fog gate, and stepping into the reeds starts her intro. Game8 describes the spot as an open field reached by following Heartless Remnants.

Before you go, decide on the third phase. It needs the Young Mistress quest finished, which AllThings.how says takes five ribbons; Game8's page mentions her ribbons in its introduction but ties the phase to the questline (Side Quests). Without it the fight ends after two phases, and you miss the Fiend Saws and Fist Fragment: Core.

Dodge first

Dodge first. She keeps her speed into phase 2, and AllThings.how's tips are to make distance when each chain ends and to heal only after she dodges away.
Leave at once when the crimson rings start spinning: the combo's last blow is her heaviest hit.
Perfect dodge the red-glint dash and the thrust after her high jump; Game8 calls that thrust potentially lethal.
Against her Sha-Chi draining thrusts and lunges, defend first, then counter when you see a glint.
Wayfarer lowers her damage if Pathbreaker is too hard (Difficulty Modes).

Her blades, rifts and crimson rings

Damage is AllThings.how's, on Pathbreaker and Wayfarer, for a Soul with 1,402 HP.

Leaping strike and white dash: two hits about a second apart, ~154 HP each on Pathbreaker (~108 on Wayfarer). Watch where she lands and dodge twice, pausing between. PCGamesN: when she leaps in the air, prepare for a blue attack.
Lunge: ~154 HP, about 0.8 seconds after it starts. Evade before she reaches you. Game8's lunge drains Sha-Chi and is followed by two ranged slashes: defend, then counter on the glint.
Double ranged slashes, spinning sword throws, then a blink-back projectile: block the slashes and dodge the projectile; a good dodge opens a long window.
Sha-Chi draining thrust, sword flurries and a spinning throw: dodge and hold block, then counter at the glint.
High jump, jump attack, then a thrust: perfect dodge the thrust.
Crimson slashes: one or two arcs, ~123 HP each, repeated two or three times. Evade; block or parry only up close.
Spinning crimson combo: rings first, then a final blow of 307 HP on Pathbreaker (215 on Wayfarer), about 3 seconds in. Move clear when the rings appear.
Blade chain: over 600 HP in all on Wayfarer. Evade sideways at the first flash; do not try to block the string.
Delayed heavy strike: ~246 HP on Pathbreaker, about 1.8 seconds in. Wait for the swing to descend, then move.
Red crescent and red burst: evade sideways, and keep moving.
Purple rifts: holograms step out of fractured rifts to attack. Watch the ground and dodge.

Phase 2: Queen of Iron and Jade

Emptying her first bar plays a short scene of her crouching on the boardwalk, and she returns as Mu Xiaokui, Queen of Iron and Jade, with a longer bar. Game8 says this phase adds a quick dash with a red glint that opens an uninterruptible sequence: perfect dodge it. PCGamesN: after her spiral sword attack "she'll immediately follow it up with a red attack".

Phase 3: Iron Fiend and Jade Dancer

With Young Mistress done, a violet flare summons her two guardians, each with its own bar: Jade Dancer kicks with bladed legs, Iron Fiend charges and punches. Game8 bills them as a boss of their own, and the phase can end in the Iron Jade Strike, a button-prompt scene that repeats about every 27 seconds until every prompt is cleared. Iron Fiend and Jade Dancer breaks down both guardians and every prompt of the strike.

After the fight

Mu Xiaokui survives and leaves by boat; PCGamesN notes "this isn't the last you'll see of Mu". Take the lift back down, place Puppet No. 44's Eye in the red, masked Smuggler's Tunnel entrance, and Heartless Remnants reads "Enter Pangzhen" (Pangzhen). Her Wild Oriole Sword is picked up after the fight, AllThings.how says; Weapons calls it the fastest one-handed weapon.

Frequently asked questions

How many phases does Mu Xiaokui have? Phantom Blade Zero gives her two, or three with the Young Mistress quest done: Mu Xiaokui as Young Mistress of the Order, then Queen of Iron and Jade, then her guardians Iron Fiend and Jade Dancer.

How do you unlock Mu Xiaokui's third phase? Finish the Young Mistress quest before the fight; AllThings.how says it takes five ribbons. The third phase gives Phantom Blade Zero's Fiend Saws and Fist Fragment: Core.

What does Mu Xiaokui drop? The Wild Oriole Sword and Puppet No. 44's Eye, which opens the Smuggler's Tunnel toward Pangzhen; the secret third phase adds the Fiend Saws and Fist Fragment: Core.