Donnie Yen’s Gold-Masked One is the Long Pillar boss you have to beat to complete the Bloodline Awakening quest in Phantom Blade Zero, and he is spread across five separate locations. Players who want to face him need to know exactly where to go, and the route to each fight is not obvious.

The Gold-Masked One is not just another name on the boss list. Yen plays the character himself, and the fight is built around that presence. The Long Pillar battles are some of the most cinematic encounters in the game, and this boss is the one that stands out most. Here is how to reach every version of him.

Five Long Pillar fights, five different routes

Each location has its own path, and skipping ahead will cost you time. Work through them in order and you will get a clear sense of how the encounters are designed.

Weeping Creek Valley: the first Long Pillar

The first Gold-Masked One fight sits in the easternmost area of Weeping Creek Valley. You cannot reach it straight away. First, defeat The Hunt boss and take his Phantom Edge.

Next, use that Phantom Edge to get the Sha-Chi Tower Base Camp gate key. With the key, enter the region behind the Sha-Chi Tower Base Camp gate and look for the first Crane Bell. Inside that bell you will find the Rusted Loong Key. Take it to the marked spot on the map, and the first Long Pillar is waiting.

Crimson Forest: grapple across the split

The second encounter is in the Crimson Forest region, where the boss is found after the Iron Fever fight. Follow the main path from that battle until you reach a split with a Memory Flower.

Go right at the split. Use the Hunter’s Chain Sickle to grapple across the gap, and the second Long Pillar is on the other side.

Meigu Lake: two encounters in one region

Meigu Lake is where things get busier. It holds two of the Gold-Masked One encounters, so it is worth planning a longer visit.

The first one is on Meigu Lake Island, on its easternmost side. You will need a boat to reach the far right edge of the region. From there, use the Hunter’s Chain Sickle to keep moving ahead until you see the third pillar.

The fourth Long Pillar is hidden inside the Phantom Illusionist Ruins. Getting in takes more work. Find all the Acolyte Masks, then interact with the mirror inside the ruins to open the way. Once you are in, you will need the Dread Axe Phantom Edge to track down the boss.

Mirage Estate: the final drop

The fifth and last location is the Mirage Estate. Enter through the Green Serpent House to reach the Covered Corridor Bell location. From there, head forward and turn right until you look down. Grapple yourself down to the boss area, and the final fight begins.

Donnie Yen does an outstanding job of roleplaying this boss, and you get to fight him in five different locations.

What to prepare before you go

Several of these fights depend on tools you pick up along the way. The Hunter’s Chain Sickle is needed for grappling at the Crimson Forest split and at Meigu Lake. The Dread Axe Phantom Edge is required for the Phantom Illusionist Ruins. The Phantom Edge from The Hunt opens the path to the first encounter. Missing any of these will stall your progress.

Gear matters too. Before you first meet the Gold-Masked One, make sure you have upgraded your weapons and collected Phantom Edges. The guide’s advice is clear on this point: arrive at the first fight prepared, not just equipped with whatever you happen to be carrying.

Why the order matters. The locations are spread across different regions, and the Gold-Masked One is not a single encounter you can stumble into. Each fight is tied to a specific key, boss, or item. Plan your route around the Phantom Edges and keys, and you will move through the five fights without backtracking.

Why it is worth the trip. The Long Pillar battles are the most intense boss fights in the game, according to the guide’s author, and this one is the favorite among them. Yen’s performance gives the character a presence that makes each encounter feel different, even when you are fighting the same boss across the map. Finishing all five means completing the Bloodline Awakening quest and seeing the full range of what the character can do.

Bottom line. If you are chasing Donnie Yen’s Gold-Masked One, start in Weeping Creek Valley, collect the Phantom Edges you need, and work through the regions in the order laid out above. The routes are specific, but once you know them, every location is reachable. Track your keys and tools, and you will reach the final fight without wasting hours on the wrong path.