Kui Yanyan, the Deranged is an optional boss in the Mountain of Imprisonment, in a clearing below the Shrine Outer Gate bell. She never stops swinging her mace: do not take the full spin, dodge the four-hit red combo and parry the third blue hit. She is weak to poison, ice and water (wet) and drops the Missing Lift Crank.
Boss profile
Health, Sha-Chi, recommended level and elemental weaknesses
Weaknesses
Phases: 1 (she loses control at low health) · Region: Mountain of Imprisonment
Bars relative to the boss with the most health (Mo Yuan, 186,000) and the most Sha-Chi (Huangxing, 55,860) in the game.
Where is she and how do you get there?
She is on the main path of the Mountain of Imprisonment, after Bi Feng:
- Shrine Outer Gate bellAdvance from the Commander’s Platform to this bell and rest.
- Go down the nearby stairsYou reach a clearing in the lower area.
- Kui YanyanWhen you arrive, she is fighting two masked enemies. The fight starts when you get close.
How to beat Kui Yanyan
Fextralife describes it as a simple fight with few moves, but Vandal (Spanish guide) warns that she can finish you in two or three hits. Her combos have no complex patterns: the important thing is not to stay glued to her.
Her attacks
- Slow mace swings: mace hits whose third hit is blue. Parry it.
- Mace spin: she spins three times with the mace and pushes you back. It is her main attack: do not take the full spin, get out of range as soon as it starts.
- Red combo: four hits in a row: two slams into the ground, one sideways and one overhead. Dodge it.
- Dark flash attacks: she has three. One is a leap that closes distance very quickly and breaks your guard: keep it in mind if you back off to heal.
- Projectiles: according to Vandal, if you back off she throws projectiles at you. Do not approach while she is throwing them.
- Loss of control: at low health she attacks all around her with no fixed order. Keep your distance and wait for her to leave herself open.
The key: distance and patience
- Vandal advises keeping your distance and waiting: sooner or later she comes in more aggressively and leaves you openings.
- Punish after parrying the third blue hit and after dodging the red combo.
- When she is about to fall, finish her with an execution.
Strategies to beat her
Pick the one that fits your playstyle. We only recommend gear you can have by the time you reach the Mountain of Imprisonment.
Fast weapon strategy (one-handed and dual)
Her mace swings are slow but hit very hard: fast weapons let you get in and out between attacks. The best options here are Sundering Dual Axes and Parting Hooks. Punish after the third blue hit and keep your other weapon in reserve: switching restores all your Sha-Chi.
Heavy weapon strategy (two-handed)
Trade blow for blow only when her guard is broken: Sha-Chi attacks (Triangle) drain her posture very quickly. Try Juggernaut (from Bi Feng) or Armybreaker. The Juggernaut charges with every parry, and the Outlaw Warblade restores health on hit if you struggle to survive.
Elemental strategy (exploit her weaknesses)
She is weak to poison, ice and water (wet). Equip:
- Poison: Flying Dagger (Phantom Edge Zhang gives you for the Crimson Forest relics).
- Water (Wet): You Loong’s Deluge (You Loong’s Phantom Edge in Pangzhen); Loong Trident (Phantom Edge from the frenzied You Loong, Meigu Lake).
- Ice: you will not have gear of this element yet; if you come back later, use Whiteshadow (two-handed weapon from the Blizzard Blademaster, in the Phantom Illusionist Ruins).
Recommended combo: soak her with You Loong’s Deluge or the Loong Trident; if you come back with Whiteshadow, the Wet status also increases ice damage.
Defensive strategy (parries and dodges)
Her most dangerous attack is the three-turn mace spin: learn its animation and always get out of range. Parry every blue flash to drain her Sha-Chi without spending yours, and execute as soon as she is stunned. If you are struggling, the Counterstrike Bracers accessory (first Long Pillar) rewards parries.
Phantom Edge strategy
Bring the Bashpole or the Iron Gauntlets to break her guard and, if the summon icon glows in the arena, the Puppeteer’s Bell or the Kuye Temple Prayer Beads so someone distracts her while you heal. Remember that sparks recharge when you rest at a bell: spend them freely on the boss.
If you get stuck
- Stop sticking to her: the spin and the red combo punish anyone who stays close.
- Upgrade your two main weapons before coming back (the boss is level 22) and level up your medicines with the healer at the Green Serpent House.
- Drop to Wayfarer: it does not affect any trophy and you can raise the difficulty again later.
Recommended gear
- You Loong’s Deluge or Loong Trident (water).
- Flying Dagger (poison).
- A guard-breaking Phantom Edge: Bashpole or Iron Gauntlets.
Rewards
- Missing Lift Crank: activates the cavern lift, which leads to an amber fragment and to the cages that take you to Moji’s sword.
- A Sha-Chi Amber Fragment in the clearing where you fight (listed in the Sha-Chi Amber Fragments).
The other bosses in the area are in the Mountain of Imprisonment bosses and the full region in the Mountain of Imprisonment guide. Looking for another boss? The list is in all Phantom Blade Zero bosses in order.
Frequently asked questions
Where is Kui Yanyan?
In a clearing below the Shrine Outer Gate bell, in the Mountain of Imprisonment. Go down the nearby stairs: she will be fighting two masked enemies.
Which of Kui Yanyan’s attacks is the most dangerous?
The three-turn mace spin. Do not take the full spin: get out of range as soon as it starts.
What is the Missing Lift Crank for?
It activates the cavern lift, which leads to an amber fragment and to the cages that take you to Moji’s sword.
