Phantom Blade Zero Tianxuan Bronze Sword Weapon Guide

TL;DR

The Tianxuan Bronze Sword is a one-handed weapon dropped by Master Bi Yuan of the Tianxuan Sect in the Village of Lu during Chapter 3.
Its core perk, Natural Order, reduces Sha-Chi consumption when blocking — but completely disables normal parrying.
It has very high damage and guard-break stats for a one-handed weapon, plus great reach.
Power Surge is Greatness Without Form — forceful greatsword strikes with mid-to-long-range knockback.
Level 15 perk (Resolute Stillness) adds medium-range projectiles to some attacks. Level 25 perk (All Things Converge) gives you a parry-like counter — making that investment almost mandatory.
Soul Tempering with Bronze Essence unlocks Effortless Action — you can keep blocking even after your guard breaks, at the cost of a small amount of HP.
This weapon rewards patient, defensive players. But it needs significant upgrade investment to truly shine.

Table of Contents

What Is the Phantom Blade Zero Tianxuan Bronze Sword?

The Tianxuan Bronze Sword is a one-handed weapon in Phantom Blade Zero that plays completely differently from every other one-hander in the game. On the surface it looks like a straightforward bronze sword — simple, elegant, reliable. But what it does to your playstyle is anything but ordinary.

Its signature mechanic, Natural Order, makes blocking much cheaper in terms of Sha-Chi. You can hold your guard for longer without draining your energy. The catch? Normal parrying is completely turned off while this perk is active. You can no longer time that perfect parry to drain enemy Sha-Chi the usual way.

That trade-off splits players right down the middle. Some love it. Some hate it. If you’re someone who instinctively parries everything, this sword will feel awkward at first. If you prefer staying behind a guard and picking your spots, it’s one of the most rewarding weapons in the game — especially once you level it up.

It’s described in-game as “a bronze sword, masterful in its simplicity, offering high Shield-Breaking power when attacking and rock-solid defense when blocking.” That description is accurate. The Tianxuan Bronze Sword is a weapon built around defense, patience, and knowing when to strike.

Tianxuan Bronze Sword

How to Get the Tianxuan Bronze Sword in Phantom Blade Zero

The Phantom Blade Zero Tianxuan Bronze Sword is dropped by Master Bi Yuan of the Tianxuan Sect, a main story boss found in the Village of Lu during Chapter 3 (Heartless Remnants). This is a mandatory fight — you’ll face it as part of the main story progression through the Village of Lu region.

To reach Master Bi Yuan, head north through the Village of Lu, past the Statue Grounds Entrance bell. The boss arena is up the stairs near that bell. Follow the main story path and you won’t miss it.

Defeating Master Bi Yuan also removes the first set of threads covering the Village of Lu well, which is part of a larger puzzle involving three separate tasks to unseal it. But that’s a bonus — the Tianxuan Bronze Sword is the main reward you’re here for.

For more on the Village of Lu and related content, check out our Village of Lu Cellar Key guide and the Secrets of the Baishan Sect guide.

How to Beat Master Bi Yuan of the Tianxuan Sect

Master Bi Yuan is a fight that rewards restraint. He punishes reckless aggression more than almost any other boss in the game. Go in expecting to be patient.

Watch for His Counter Stance

Master Bi Yuan frequently blocks incoming attacks and immediately counters. When you’re landing hits and he suddenly starts blocking, stop attacking right away. If you keep swinging, you’ll walk straight into his Black Flash counterattack — a hard-hitting response he launches when you pressure him in his guard stance.

When he holds his sword diagonally, that’s the signal. Attacking at that moment will trigger the Black Flash. Recognize the stance, hold back, and wait for a safe opening.

Key Attacks to Know

Double Slash: A quick two-hit combo. Dodge or block through both hits, then counter.
Parry Stance Counter: His most punishing move. Stop attacking when he settles into his counter stance and wait for him to finish the animation before pressing your offense.
Blue-Glint Vertical Slash: This is parryable. Time it right for a clean Sha-Chi drain.
Leaping Slash (Unblockable): He uses this to close distance from range or as a sudden counter when you’re pressuring him. It’s a red-glint attack — always dodge, never try to block it.

The general rule: parry the blue-glint attacks, dodge the red-glint unblockables, and back off every time he settles into his counter stance. Play defensive and pick clean windows to attack. The fight rewards exactly the kind of playstyle the Tianxuan Bronze Sword is built for.

For a full breakdown of boss strategies, our Gold-Masked One Boss Guide covers general boss tips that apply across the whole game.

Tianxuan Bronze Sword Stats and Base Properties

Here’s a look at the weapon’s core numbers:

Type: One-Handed
Base Damage (Level 1): 240
Base Guard Break (Level 1): 106
Attack Speed: Average
Ease of Use: Easy
Core Perk: Natural Order — blocks consume much less Sha-Chi; standard parrying is disabled
Power Surge: Greatness Without Form
Soul Temper Material: Bronze Essence

For a one-handed weapon, the damage and guard-break numbers are notably high. It punches above its weight in raw stats. The reach on its attacks is also longer than you’d expect from a sword this size, which makes it good for keeping enemies at a controlled distance.

Tianxuan Bronze Sword Moves Explained

Natural Order — The Core Mechanic

This is the defining feature of the Tianxuan Bronze Sword. Blocking with any weapon costs Sha-Chi. With Natural Order active, that cost is significantly reduced. You can sustain a guard for much longer before your meter drains, which opens up a very different style of play — one where you hold your ground, absorb pressure, and wait for the right moment.

The downside is real though. Standard parrying is completely disabled. The mechanic that lets you time a precise block to drain enemy Sha-Chi? Gone. You’re trading that active defensive tool for passive blocking efficiency. This is a big adjustment, especially early on when parrying feels instinctive.

Once you adapt, it actually works very well — particularly against bosses with fast multi-hit combos that are hard to parry consistently anyway.

Power Surge — Greatness Without Form

When your Sha-Chi meter is fully charged, you can unleash Greatness Without Form. This sends out forceful greatsword strikes with mid-to-long-range knockback. It’s great for repositioning enemies, breaking their positioning during a fight, and dealing solid burst damage from range.

The mid-to-long range aspect makes it more versatile than most Power Surges. You can trigger it without being right on top of the enemy, which matters when you’re playing a more measured, defensive style.

Light Attacks — Long Reach, Good Damage

The Tianxuan Bronze Sword’s standard attack strings are clean and have better reach than most one-handed weapons. The attacks flow smoothly and feel satisfying to land. You’re not the fastest one-hander in the game, but the range keeps you competitive even against enemies that like to move around.

Heavy Attacks — Shield-Breaking Focus

The weapon’s high Guard Break stat makes its heavy attacks excellent for cracking enemy shields. Against shielded bosses or elite enemies, pairing heavy attacks with your standard combos can quickly break their defense open for bigger follow-ups.

All Tianxuan Bronze Sword Upgrade Perks

Like every weapon in Phantom Blade Zero, the Tianxuan Bronze Sword unlocks new perks at Levels 5, 10, 15, and 25. This weapon is one where the later perks matter a lot — knowing what’s coming helps you decide how far to invest.

Level 5 — Reckless Cleave

Unlocks a charged heavy attack called Reckless Cleave. Hold the heavy attack inputs to charge it up for a bigger hit. Useful for dealing with shielded enemies and landing strong single hits on staggered targets.

Level 10 — First Passive Improvement

At Level 10 the weapon receives its first passive enhancement, improving its core mechanics further. This is the safe cutoff point to try the sword — you can reset for free up to Level 9, so upgrading to at least Level 10 lets you properly evaluate whether this weapon suits your style before committing further.

Level 15 — Resolute Stillness

This perk adds medium-range projectiles to some of the Tianxuan Bronze Sword’s attacks. All of a sudden you’re not just a blocking specialist — you’re also putting ranged pressure on enemies. This opens the weapon up significantly and makes it much more versatile in mid-range fights.

It’s a genuinely strong perk and one of the better Level 15 unlocks in the entire game. Reaching this milestone makes the Tianxuan Bronze Sword feel complete as a defensive but capable weapon.

Level 25 — All Things Converge

This is the big one. All Things Converge adds a parry-like defensive action with a strong counterattack — essentially giving you back a version of what Natural Order took away. It’s not an identical replacement for standard parrying, but it functions as a counter mechanic that rewards defensive timing.

This perk is the reason the Tianxuan Bronze Sword is considered a high-investment weapon. Without it, you’re fighting without a parry and relying entirely on your blocking efficiency. With it, your defensive toolkit is properly complete again — and the counterattack it provides is strong.

Reaching Level 25 requires late-game upgrade materials, so this is a long-term goal, not something you’ll unlock early. Plan for it. The reward is worth it.

Soul Tempering the Tianxuan Bronze Sword — Effortless Action

The Soul Tempering material for the Tianxuan Bronze Sword is Bronze Essence. You obtain it by completing a side quest called The Sword and the Way, which comes from Daoist Bi Di in Myst’s Tavern in Pangzhen. After starting the quest, investigate the forge behind the Green Serpent House to receive the Bronze Essence.

The Soul Tempering skill this unlocks is called Effortless Action:

Effortless Action: Even while your guard is broken, hold the block button to continue blocking at the cost of a small amount of HP.

This is incredibly well-suited to the Tianxuan Bronze Sword’s identity. Normally when your guard breaks, you’re completely exposed. With Effortless Action, you can spend a bit of HP to keep your guard up even through a guard break. For a weapon built around sustained blocking, this takes the defensive potential to another level entirely.

You unlock the Soul Tempering system through Myst in Pengzhen around Chapter 4. The process costs 5,000 Remnant Dust and requires the Bronze Essence. As with all Soul Tempering, this upgrade is permanent and cannot be reversed, so make sure you’re committed to this weapon before doing it.

Best Weapon Combinations With the Tianxuan Bronze Sword

In Phantom Blade Zero you carry two weapons and swap freely. The Tianxuan Bronze Sword works best in the primary slot as your core weapon, paired with something that covers its gaps — mainly the lack of healing and the slower Sha-Chi generation from a guard-heavy style.

Tianxuan Bronze Sword + Outlaw Warblade

This is a natural pairing. The Outlaw Warblade heals Soul through standard light attacks and has a Power Surge that drains enemy health with a massive invincibility window. The two weapons cover opposite weaknesses — the Bronze Sword blocks efficiently but doesn’t heal; the Warblade heals through aggression. Use the Bronze Sword to weather tough moments and drain the enemy’s Sha-Chi through blocking, then switch to the Warblade to recover HP when you need it.

Tianxuan Bronze Sword + Dual-Wield Weapons

A fast dual-wield weapon is a great secondary option. The Bronze Sword builds Sha-Chi slowly through a blocking-focused style. Swapping to a dual-wield weapon lets you rapidly fill that Sha-Chi meter through quick multi-hit attacks, then switch back to the Bronze Sword with a full meter ready for Greatness Without Form. This keeps both weapons active and productive throughout a fight.

Tianxuan Bronze Sword + Fanatic’s Broken Blade

The Fanatic’s Broken Blade has excellent long-range melee reach. Together with the mid-range projectiles that Resolute Stillness adds to the Bronze Sword at Level 15, this pairing gives you a very flexible loadout that can deal with enemies at multiple distances while maintaining strong blocking defense.

See our complete weapons list and the full Phantom Edges list for more options to pair alongside this weapon.

Is the Tianxuan Bronze Sword Worth It?

It depends on how you play. If you naturally rely on parrying as your primary defense, this weapon will fight you until Level 25. Losing the parry without yet having All Things Converge leaves a gap in your defensive toolkit that can feel genuinely frustrating, especially in tough boss fights.

If you prefer blocking and playing patiently, though — this sword is excellent even before the later perks kick in. The reduced Sha-Chi on blocking alone changes how fights feel. You stay calmer, you hold your ground more, and the long reach lets you control spacing effectively.

The honest assessment is this: it’s a B-tier weapon at base, with S-tier potential once fully invested. The Level 25 All Things Converge perk effectively restores a form of parrying. Combined with the Effortless Action Soul Tempering and Resolute Stillness at Level 15, it becomes one of the most well-rounded defensive weapons in the game — with surprising offensive reach from range.

Don’t sleep on it because the early game feels awkward without parrying. Push through to Level 15 at minimum and you’ll see why people rate this sword highly.

Upgrade Materials for the Tianxuan Bronze Sword

The Tianxuan Bronze Sword is a one-handed weapon, so it uses Forged Metals and Solvents for standard upgrades. Higher tier upgrades require Polished Forged Metal and Concentrated Solvent.

Key upgrade milestones at a glance:

Up to Level 9: Free reset — no Weapon Reforge Talisman needed. Good window to test the weapon properly.
Level 10 and above: Resetting costs a Weapon Reforge Talisman. Think carefully before pushing past this point if you’re unsure.
Level 15: Resolute Stillness unlocks. This is the recommended minimum investment for this weapon.
Level 25: All Things Converge unlocks. This requires late-game materials gated behind progression — plan for it, but don’t rush.
Level 30 (Max): Full upgrade investment. Only go here if this is your primary weapon of choice.

Upgrade your weapons at Forge, the blacksmith NPC in the Weeping Creek Valley Outpost. He’s available from early in the game and handles all standard weapon upgrades. Soul Tempering is handled separately by Myst in Pengzhen, available from Chapter 4 onward.

Tianxuan Bronze Sword Tips and Tricks

Adapt your defense early. Losing parry feels bad at first. Focus on reading enemy attacks and blocking through combos instead. The reduced Sha-Chi cost makes this more viable than it sounds.
Don’t stop at Level 10. This weapon genuinely improves with investment. Level 15 and Level 25 are the real payoff points.
Use Greatness Without Form from range. Most Power Surges want you up close. This one is effective at mid-to-long range — use that flexibility.
Pair with a healing weapon. The Bronze Sword doesn’t restore HP on its own. Running a second weapon with lifesteal, like the Outlaw Warblade, covers that gap well.
Resolute Stillness changes the game at Level 15. Once those mid-range projectiles appear on your attacks, the weapon’s offensive range improves dramatically.
Do The Sword and the Way quest early. The Bronze Essence Soul Temper material comes from a side quest. Start it when you reach Myst’s Tavern so you don’t miss it.
Soul Tempering is irreversible. Be sure the Tianxuan Bronze Sword is your long-term pick before spending that Bronze Essence.
Use the free refund window. Test the sword thoroughly up to Level 9 before deciding to push past Level 10. Reset for free if it doesn’t feel right before that point.

Other Phantom Blade Zero Guides You’ll Find Useful

If you’re deep into Phantom Blade Zero, these guides will help you get more out of your playthrough:

Pick up Phantom Blade Zero on Steam, PlayStation Store, or Epic Games Store.