I spent half an hour circling the Mandate Encampment hunting for the Training Grounds Key before realizing it isn’t tucked in a chest or lying on a corpse at all. The Training Grounds Key in Phantom Blade Zero is a guaranteed Story Item that drops from the Chief Disciple of the Seven-Star Formation, a two-phase boss waiting in the camp’s central dirt arena — and it opens the main gate to the Training Grounds just north of the encampment.
S-GAME launched the game worldwide on October 29, 2026 for PS5 and PC, and as of November 2026 this locked gate is still stumping first playthroughs. Below, I’ll walk you through the full route to the key, everything waiting behind the gate, and the one missable accessory you must grab before you unlock it.
| Quick Facts | Details |
|---|---|
| Item | Training Grounds Key (Story Item) |
| Item description | “A key hanging from a yellow jade ring. Opens the main gate to the Training Grounds.” |
| How to get it | Defeat the Chief Disciple of the Seven-Star Formation (two-phase boss) |
| Fight location | Open dirt arena inside the Mandate Encampment — look for the burning watchtower |
| What it opens | Main gate to the Training Grounds, north of the camp |
| Boss inside | Yubi, the No. 21 Swordfighter Puppet |
| Key rewards inside | Baishan Stormswords, Broken Vessel, Illusory Pipa Backplate |
Where to Find the Training Grounds Key in Phantom Blade Zero?
You can’t pick this key up anywhere in the world. It lands in your inventory the moment the Chief Disciple of the Seven-Star Formation dies, right after the Swordsman’s Summon Phantom Edge card pops up over the arena. The catch is that the Chief Disciple is buried deep in the encampment’s progression chain, and the camp itself is locked until you’ve pushed well into Pangzhen. Here’s the full path I took.
Prerequisites: Getting Into the Mandate Encampment
The camp’s gate first appears back in the Village of Lu, but it stays sealed until you earn the Mandate Encampment Outer Gate Key:
- Progress Pangzhen’s second chapter to the west of town and defeat the opera-singer boss Gu Wanyue, the Wailing Wraith.
- Drop down the well in her arena and climb the ladder straight ahead.
- Grab the Outer Gate Key from the corpse in the next room — it’s crawling with puppet enemies, so clear them first.
Inside the encampment, work through the Cliffside Walkway caves and grab the Mandate Valley Gate Key from the cave beside the final archers, then survive two bosses: Corpse-Eating Xue in the graveyard and Wan Jun, the Coppermaul. Wan Jun drops the Bashpole Phantom Edge — keep it equipped, because you need it to smash the wooden planks blocking the Main Encampment Gate route.
Step-by-Step: Beating the Chief Disciple of the Seven-Star Formation
- Pass through the Main Encampment Gate, talk to the dying Mandate Disciple, and climb the tower.
- Skip the optional fight against Red, the Mysterious Swordswoman. Starting it locks you out of a Memory Flower and an accessory — use the hanging chain to cross to the next platform instead.
- Smash the cracked ground with the Bashpole, drop into the tunnels, and wall-run over to the Bell: Three Towers.
- Jump down into the dirt arena below. You’ll recognize it by the burning wooden watchtower standing like a pyre and bodies scattered across the ground. Walking in triggers a cutscene with a masked troop of white-robed swordsmen, then the Chief Disciple’s health bar appears as his formation circles him.
- Survive both phases. When the first bar empties, a second one appears labeled “Chief Disciple, Sword of Despair” — reposition constantly so the Seven-Star Formation doesn’t surround you.
- Collect your rewards in order: the Swordsman’s Summon Phantom Edge, then the Training Grounds Key card, plus the Twin Fish Pendant accessory, Twin Heroes’ Memory Flower petals, and the “Sword Against the Seven-Stars” trophy. A new Tower Rear Exit bell also spawns in the arena — rest at it so you don’t have to cross the whole camp again.
How to Use the Training Grounds Key?
Teleport to the Bell: Road to the Training Grounds and head toward the grounds at the northern edge of the camp. Before you touch that main gate, do two things:
- Clear the side path first. It leads to Wu Lengshuang, the Soft Sword, who drops the Soft Snake Sword and the final Guardian Idol Fragment (Leg), completing that accessory set.
- Interact with Baishan in the center of the flowerbed to update the Tale: Secrets of the Baishan Sect — you’ll find it in our full Phantom Blade Zero quest list. This is the step most guides skip: if you unlock the Training Grounds before finishing that tale, you permanently lose the Broken Vessel accessory that drops from the boss inside. Players on the r/PhantomBladeZero subreddit are already posting about losing it this way.
Then unlock the main gate and drop into the arena. Waiting inside is Yubi, the No. 21 Swordfighter Puppet, who pressures you with wind and lightning. She leaves the Baishan Stormswords weapon behind — pair it with the right passives from our character skills guide — plus the loot table below.
Every Reward Inside the Training Grounds
| Reward | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Baishan Stormswords | Weapon | Drops from Yubi; storm-fast blade pressure |
| Broken Vessel | Accessory | Missable — finish Secrets of the Baishan Sect first |
| Illusory Pipa Backplate | Story Item | On the table upstairs; component for the optional Illusory Pipa quest, which is tied to one of the game’s endings |
| Lament Draught | Medicine | Upstairs, next to the Backplate |
| Experiment Victim’s Memory Flowers | Collectibles | Upstairs and along the arena exit path |
| Herald’s Illusion portal | Quest trigger | Downstairs; opens the second eye for The Herald’s Illusion questline |
The portal downstairs matters more than it looks: The Herald’s Illusion sends you hunting the Three-Eyed Puppet across three regions, and this door is the Mandate Encampment piece of that puzzle.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Unlocking the gate before Secrets of the Baishan Sect — that’s the Broken Vessel gone forever.
- Fighting Red on the tower — tempting, but it costs you a Memory Flower and an accessory.
- Letting Mandate Captains and Defiant Guardians turn hostile — kill them fast or their Memory Flower of Mandate Leaders petals are permanently lost.
- Ignoring the Bashpole planks — several chests and shortcuts behind the Main Encampment Gate stay hidden without it.
- Skipping the Tower Rear Exit bell — the walk back to the Training Grounds is longer than you think.
FAQs
Where is the Training Grounds Key in Phantom Blade Zero?
It drops from the Chief Disciple of the Seven-Star Formation — the two-phase boss in the Mandate Encampment’s central dirt arena with the burning watchtower. It’s a guaranteed story drop.
Can you miss the Training Grounds Key?
No. The key itself always drops from the Chief Disciple. What you can miss is the Broken Vessel accessory inside the Training Grounds if you open the gate before completing the Secrets of the Baishan Sect tale.
What does the Training Grounds Key open?
Only the main gate to the Training Grounds north of the Mandate Encampment. Inside waits the Yubi boss fight, the Baishan Stormswords weapon, and the Illusory Pipa Backplate needed for The Herald’s Illusion questline.
Why won’t the Training Grounds gate open?
You don’t have the key yet. It’s story-gated behind the Chief Disciple fight, which itself requires the Outer Gate Key from Gu Wanyue’s well in Pangzhen.
Is the Training Grounds required for 100% completion?
Yes. The Yubi fight locks the Baishan Stormswords, Broken Vessel, several Memory Flowers, and a Herald’s Illusion door behind it — all feeding collectible totals and an ending-relevant quest.
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