Quick answer: Hold your guard through Peng Meng’s strings and parry each blue-streak swing. Dodge the red-flash grab about half a second late, dodge anything unparryable, and heal only at range.
Peng Meng towers over Soul, wearing a metal-spiked crown and wielding an axe with a long haft. He links his attacks into extended combos, with every swing dealing damage separately. On Pathbreaker, one combo can take half of an 850 HP Soul’s health if you release guard after the opening strike.
Peng Meng at a glance
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Name bar | PENG MENG, THE AXEMASTER |
| Location | Weeping Creek Valley, river southwest of the Outpost |
| Health | 18,720 HP (Pathbreaker and Wayfarer) |
| Weapon | Long-handled axe, plus kicks, stomps, lunges and a grab |
| Damage per hit (Pathbreaker) | About 120-240 HP |
| Damage per hit (Wayfarer) | About 85-170 HP |
| Respawn | Outpost bell, about 140 m away |
| Reward | Dread Axe Phantom Edge, 9,000 Remnant Dust |
On Pathbreaker, four to seven strikes can drain 850 HP. Wayfarer reduces the damage he deals by around 30 percent, but his health stays the same. You may change difficulty modes whenever you want. Dying does not make the introductory cutscene play again.
Where to fight Peng Meng
From the Outpost, pass the stone stele beneath the pavilion to the southwest, then descend to the river. The full route to Peng Meng explains the journey in detail. Soul triggers Peng Meng’s introduction upon getting within about 15 m, and the battle unfolds in the shallow river beside wrecked wooden scaffolding on the bank. The nearest respawn point is the Outpost bell (see all bells), and his place among the other bosses is in the full list of bosses.
Peng Meng’s attacks
Stomping lunge with a blue streak
Peng Meng raises one leg high and lunges forward while a blue streak runs across his body. Blue is the game’s sign of an attack you can parry, so parry on the streak and keep guarding, because more swings follow.
Wide sweeps through the river
In the water, he delivers a series of broad, level axe swings at chest height. Releasing guard after the opening swing exposes you to the remaining blows, so hold guard through the whole sweep and parry each swing as it arrives.
Low diving lunge
He throws his whole body forward and low along the ground, closing a long gap in one move. Backing straight away does not work here. Dodge or sidestep as he lands.
Rising swing that kicks up dirt
The axe cuts upward from low to high, kicking up dirt and leaving a trail. He generally uses this move as part of a longer combo. Since it comes out quickly, raise your guard in advance and then parry it.
Ground slam shockwave into an overhead chop
This combo has three blows. The opening swing cannot be parried. Next he slams the ground, sending a ring-shaped shockwave out around him.
The combo ends with a huge overhead chop from an axe raised high above his head.
- Opening swing: dodge it.
- Shockwave: stay outside the ring.
- Overhead chop: parry or dodge it as it comes down.
Flaring heavy swing
Orange-red spikes of light burst from his back and shoulders, and then the axe comes through. Read the flare the same way you read the game’s red flash. Dodge out of the swing.
Red-flash grab
A red flash signals that he is about to reach for Soul. The grab connects roughly 0.6 seconds after the red flash. Getting caught triggers a lengthy grab animation and deals heavy damage; on Pathbreaker, it may kill Soul if he has already taken damage.
The grab cannot be parried. Dodge just as it comes, about half a second after the red flash, not the instant the flash appears.
Close-range roar
He rears back and lets out a short shout that hits anything near him. It cannot be parried. When you see him rear back, dodge away.
Guarding, healing and Sha-Chi against Peng Meng
His combos catch you if you let your defense down too soon, so keep the guard key held. A tap won’t maintain your guard, and tapping rapidly makes the parry window narrower. Hold the key throughout each combo, then press it again just before every swing you plan to parry.
- Heal only at range, right after a string ends. A single string can wipe out a heal.
- Keep to the unobstructed shallows. Beams from the bank’s scaffolding can obstruct the camera and conceal his wind-ups.
- When Sha-Chi is low, use 1 to change weapons and replenish it.
- Use your Phantom Edge charges freely, since Remnant Spark uses come back at bells.
During the fight the game shows the prompt “Press 1 to switch weapons and fully restore Sha-Chi!” which is the same weapon switch that refills Sha-Chi.
Peng Meng with his health nearly gone
Near the end of his health bar, Peng Meng abandons his usual combos and remains where he is, staggered and frenzied. The uneven ground often leaves him a little higher than Soul. He will stay put rather than approach, so close the distance and continue attacking instead of waiting from afar.
Peng Meng reward: Dread Axe and Remnant Dust
Defeating Peng Meng grants the Dread Axe Phantom Edge, 9,000 Remnant Dust, and the achievement “The Axe’s Grudge”. Classified as a Destructive Phantom Edge, it deals 309 Damage and 208 Guard Break, with strong shield-breaking ability. A charged cleave costs 1 Remnant Spark. With the Iron Chain Breaker perk, the axe can smash iron chains that block your path, whether equipped or not. Peng Meng is one of the Four Fierce Axes. Other boss fights are covered in the The Hunt boss fight and Jing Ye boss fight guides.
