Heart of the Banyan in Phantom Blade Zero: All 5 Trees

Heart of the Banyan is the collectible quest that turns five eerie human-faced trees into Phantom Blade Zero’s cross-region combat gauntlet. Touch a tree, survive its trial realm, beat the boss at the bottom, and walk out with a Banyan Heart — the currency gating high-tier skills like Fluid Form Level 2, Quick Remedy, and Opening Strike (PCGamer, Noobfeed). Clear all five and the quest closes. Per Exputer’s quest data, the Mystery joins your log automatically after Soul meets the Illusion of Inanis for a second time, tying it to the Illusion of Inanis storyline in Crimson Forest.

Where Is the First Banyan Tree (Crimson Forest)?

The opening tree is nearly unmissable once you know the landmark. Per PCGamer, fight through Crimson Forest until you ring the Parting Mists bell (just past Stone Fist Iron Fever), then drop from the bell platform to the lower ground and head straight to the small island ahead — Gamerant describes it as continuing south from the bell. Interact with the trunk to warp into the trial realm.

The Crimson Forest trial is also the one sources describe differently: PCGamer and Noobfeed count three successive waves with internal bell checkpoints, while Sportskeeda describes two bandit waves followed by the boss. Treat it as a multi-wave gauntlet either way — the checkpoints mean dying never restarts the run from wave one.

The final round is Jing Ye, the Outlaw — your bleed-bandit rematch from earlier in the forest, this time accompanied by two bandit adds. PCGamer’s loadout advice still holds: equip the Cavalrybane accessory for mounted damage, bring the Shieldbreaker talisman to crack his shield, and smash guard with a charged Dread Axe Phantom Edge the moment he falls off his horse. Dodge rather than block his bleed projectiles — blocking still builds bleed. The full moveset breakdown lives on our Jing Ye boss page.

Where Are the Other Four Banyan Trees?

Gamerant, TechWiser, and Sportskeeda agree on the remaining four:

Two trees carry extra gates. The Meigu Lake tree is unreachable until the Sha-Chi powered boat unlocks the water. The Mountain of Imprisonment tree sits past the Shrine Gate Key, which itself hangs behind the Illusory Pipa chain — so the final heart is naturally a late-campaign pickup.

What Do the Trials Actually Test?

Sportskeeda’s wave breakdowns show the variety. Pangzhen’s trial opens on Puppet Villagers and a Village Auntie with Child Puppets, then a second wave of Yang Puppets, a Puppet Spearman, and a Swordshield Puppet, before Master Bi Yuan descends. Later trees double up on bosses instead — Mandate Encampment pairs Stone Hand Iron Fever with Iron Fiend, and the Meigu Lake tree reruns two Elite Shadow Wardens back to back, which makes it the hardest heart to claim despite mid-tier placement on the list.

The common rules never change: parry blue flashes, Ghoststep red ones, use the wave checkpoints to spend Remnant Dust and re-buff between rounds, and treat each boss like its standalone self — our Pangzhen boss order guide covers several of these same fights in their story context. If you lose count across regions, MapGenie’s Phantom Blade Zero interactive map marks all five trees alongside the rest of the collectibles.

How Should You Spend Banyan Hearts?

Each heart unlocks one skill node in the ability tree, and the gated abilities are build-defining rather than cosmetic. PCGamer and Noobfeed both name Fluid Form Level 2 (extended dodge-cancels), Quick Remedy (faster medicine), and Opening Strike (bonus damage on encounter start). Prioritize by playstyle: aggressive Ghoststep builds want Fluid Form first, while survivalists take Quick Remedy before the late-game boss rush. Five hearts total means you cannot buy everything immediately — plan against your skill build before spending.

The trees also double as a completionist audit: because each trial boss is a rematch, a cleared tree proves you can handle that region’s peak fight. If a tree’s final wave is walled, bank it and return after the next long pillar trial — the two systems pace against each other deliberately.

FAQ

Where are the banyan trees in Phantom Blade Zero? One per region: Crimson Forest by Parting Mists, Pangzhen west of Lion Dance Hall, Mandate Encampment at Sunset Path, Meigu Lake’s Lake Banyan Dock, and the Mountain of Imprisonment’s main path.

How do you get Banyan Hearts in Phantom Blade Zero? Clear a tree’s trial realm — every wave plus the boss — and the realm pays one heart. Progress saves between waves at internal bells.

What are Banyan Hearts used for? Unlocking gated skills: Fluid Form Level 2, Quick Remedy, Opening Strike, and similar high-tier nodes.

Which bosses appear in the banyan trials? Jing Ye in Crimson Forest; Master Bi Yuan in Pangzhen; Stone Hand Iron Fever and Iron Fiend at the Encampment; Cavalrybane and Soulclaimer at Meigu Lake; Jagged Steel and Iron Butcher in the mountains.

Sources

Sources: https://gamerant.com/phantom-blade-zero-where-find-all-human-faced-banyan-trees-locations-heart-of-the-banyan (five-tree location table and boss pairings), https://www.pcgamer.com/games/action/phantom-blade-zero-banyans-heart-location (first tree route, wave structure, Jing Ye counters, gated skill names), https://techwiser.com/human-faced-banyan-trees-location-phantom-blade-zero (tree locations and boss table), https://sportskeeda.com/esports/all-banyan-tree-locations-phantom-blade-zero-heart-banyan-quest (per-tree wave compositions), https://noobfeed.com/articles/phantom-blade-zero-banyan-heart (trial checkpoint mechanics, heart unlocks), https://www.keengamer.com/articles/guides/phantom-blade-zero-complete-walkthrough-all-quests/ (campaign structure), https://phantomblade.exputer.com/characters/inanis (quest auto-unlock trigger), https://mapgenie.io/phantom-blade-zero (interactive map) — verified November 9, 2026. Wave-count discrepancy for the Crimson Forest trial (two vs. three waves) noted; both source groups agree on checkpoints and the Jing Ye finale.