Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty — How to Beat the First Boss, Zhang Liang

The first boss in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is quite a skill check. If you don’t know how to beat Zhang Liang, General of Man, you may never see the rest of Team Ninja’s Nioh-like action game. And since it can be an incredibly rewarding experience despite this early roadblock, it’s worth defeating Liang quickly.

The first boss in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty can be a big stumbling block for even for Souls veterans, much less new players. But with some patience and know-how, you can conquer Zhang Liang. Here’s how to do it.

How to Beat Zhang Liang, the First Boss of Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty

Screenshot by GameSkinny

Like Nioh, Wo Long is a level-based game divided into battlefields. You encounter Zhang Liang at the end of the first battlefield in Part 1.

This boss is tricky for a number of reasons, namely, because he is fast, ferocious, and nimble. His attacks require you to master parry timing early on. Oh, and he has two phases.

Understanding the Spirit Gauge

As you begin, look at Zhang Liang’s health bar, then look at the bar below that. This is the boss’ Spirit Gauge, and much like the posture bar in Sekiro, it goes back and forth, communicating the flow of power in the battle.

Many boss fights, including this first one, are all about filling the boss’ Spirit Gauge to stun them. With successful deflects and Spirit Attacks (Y / Triangle), you can make their bar shorter, stunning them faster.

Tips for Getting Past Zhang Liang Phase 1

This first boss fight is all about deflecting Zhang Liang’s critical blows (attacks that glow red). By pressing B / O button right as an enemy attacks, you’ll be able to deflect their blows.

Zhang Liang’s attacks come fast and hard, with the parry window starting slightly before when you might think. If you don’t feel like you can deflect each incoming one as you’re learning the system, press LB / L1 to block his incoming regular attacks.

The best way to avoid Zhang Liang’s attacks is to be aggressive. We recommend using a Spear or Slashing Spear-type weapon and spamming him with a standard four-hit combo (X / Square). The last hit of this combo will stagger the General of Man, allowing you to start the combo over again.

You can mostly rinse and repeat this for the whole phase; just watch out for Zhang Liang’s critical blows and attacks from above. This will help you save on health flasks. 

Tips for Getting Past The General of Man Phase 2

Screenshot by GameSkinny

The first part of The General of Man’s second phase is where the health flasks you saved by cheesing the first phase come in handy.

Zhang Liang will now hit you with longer-reaching attacks, both from his giant arms and by sending a rock spike your way. Getting close to spam him is difficult. Instead, you’ll be playing this round more defensively.

The good news is that, like in Phase 1, after you successfully parry a critical blow, Zhang Liang will stagger and give you a few seconds to hit him. Deflecting a critical blow and then following up with a regular four-attack combo remains a key part of this fight, but following up with a Spirit Attack should be enough to get Zhang Liang down in one cycle.

From here, you can take out a good chunk of his health. You shouldn’t have to do this more than twice to get him below half health in the second phase. 

Once Zhang Liang falls below a certain amount of health, the Blindfolded Boy will tell you that it’s time to unleash the power in the Jade emblem he gave you. Do so by pressing ( Y+B / Triangle + O), which triggers a cutscene that instantly wins the fight.

And that’s how to beat Zhang Liang, the first boss in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty. For more boss guides and general tips for Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, stay tuned to our guides hub for the game.

Featured image via Koei Tecmo