Quick answer: From the South Town Pond bell, climb the stairs along the retaining wall, take the boardwalk into the lantern courtyard, and defeat the three Shadow Wardens. Then cross the bridge and walk through the red double door.
The last stretch of Town of Death in Phantom Blade Zero is short on distance and long on trouble. It is one climb, one boardwalk, a crowded courtyard brawl, and a door. Most of the cost is in that courtyard, so plan to arrive there healthy.
Where this part of Town of Death starts
At this point, your quest log for Town of Death shows the step “Find a way to the backstreet”. You pick it up at the South Town Pond bell. Look for a red-cloth cross on the stone bank of a lotus pond, next to an arched stone bridge. It sits in Pangzhen’s dye-house quarter, past the Order’s underground tavern.
Ring the bell and rest before you move on. Getting to Pangzhen in the first place is covered in the Pangzhen route. The full list of Pangzhen bells covers both this one and the one waiting at the end. Open the chest beside the bell too. It holds the following items:
- Concentrated Solvent
- Otherworldly Copper
- Camphor Timber
- Remnant Dust
South Town Pond to the lantern courtyard
Don’t waste time on the shed roofs or the narrow gaps between the sheds beside the courtyard. They are dead ends. The boardwalk is the way in.
The lantern courtyard fight
Three Shadow Wardens hold the courtyard floor. Two ranged enemies cover them from the higher path above the yard.
| Enemy | Position / weapon | Health |
|---|---|---|
| Wildfire Shadow Warden | Twin blades, charges in | About 5,700 HP |
| Shadow Warden elite | White armor | About 19,500 HP |
| Blunderbuss Shadow Warden | Hangs back | About 3,100 HP |
| Featherbow Archer | Higher path above the yard | Ranged support |
| Musketeer | Higher path above the yard | Ranged support |
The Wildfire Shadow Warden opens the fight by charging straight at you, and he hits hard. On Pathbreaker, he can strip about 950 HP from a 1,402 HP bar before the rest of the group has even closed in.
Walk in with full HP and every gourd. Put the Wildfire Shadow Warden down before anything else. On Wayfarer, chained attacks can drop him in about 85 seconds while the others are still moving in. After that, turn to the white elite and settle in, because he can soak up a whole set of gourds. On Wayfarer, a full run of healing can still leave him at about two thirds of his health. If the courtyard keeps winning, you can lower the difficulty in the settings at any time.
Once the fight is over, the mist blocking the courtyard’s far exit clears. Before you leave, check the glint beside a loaded hand cart. It is a book titled “PEOPLE OF PANGZHEN,” “UNSENT LETTER”. The letter is a rushed warning to a brother. It says a plague has hit the backstreets, people there have gone mad, the area has been sealed off, and outsiders are rumored to be cutting out people’s hearts. It begs him to keep away.
Opening the red double door to end Town of Death
A black screen appears, first displaying “TOWN OF DEATH,” and then “TOWN OF DEATH” with “END OF CHAPTER” underneath. This card confirms you have completed the quest. The Steam achievement “Into the Deadly Trap” unlocks at that point as well. Its description reads “Visit the Order’s Tavern“.
The backstreet, The Heart’s Trail and the Backstreet Archway bell
You come out at the foot of a dark stone stairway street in the backstreets, with old covered carts lined up along one side. Your quest list now shows Town of Death as completed. A new story quest takes its place: THE HEART’S TRAIL, “A lonely lamp in a silent town”. Its step reads “Visit Yu’er’s home in the backstreets of Pangzhen”. Yu’er also turns up in the Flesh Lily tale.
Wait before climbing the stairs. Close by, where the long stone stairway begins beside the covered carts, you’ll see a red-cloth cross and a hunched figure squatting beside it. Ring the bell to place “Backstreet Archway” on your Pangzhen map, adding a checkpoint at the starting point of the next quest.
