Phantom Blade Zero: Backstreet Courtyard Key and Ledger Quest

The Backstreet Courtyard Key is obtained through Chen Zhu's Ledger of Atonement quest in the Mountain of Imprisonment. The route below follows the dialogue branch that leads to the Ironmask Assassin fight. The key opens a courtyard in Pangzhen's backstreets, so searching only around the locked gate will not find it.

Spoiler warning: this guide describes a side-quest outcome and its dialogue choice.

Start Ledger of Atonement

1. Travel to the Commander's Platform bell in the Mountain of Imprisonment.
2. Go uphill to the two nearby characters.
3. Speak to the woman, then to Agonized Ironmask (Chen Zhu) to begin the quest.

If you have already spoken to them, check the active quest objective before repeating the route.

Find the ledger

1. Travel to the Shrine Outer Gate bell.
2. Take the stairs down and enter the lower area.
3. Defeat Kui Yanyan if that encounter is still blocking your progress.
4. Continue along the lower path to the fork, turn left, and clear the wolves.
5. Turn right and look for the ledger on the ground.

Read the pickup and quest update to confirm that you collected the ledger requested by Chen Zhu rather than another nearby note.

Return to Chen Zhu and take the fight branch

Bring the ledger back to Chen Zhu near the Shrine Outer Gate area and complete the return dialogue. Follow any remaining handover objective until the response choices appear.

Select “This won't absolve you of your sins” to trigger the Ironmask Assassin encounter. Defeat him, then check your rewards and key inventory for the Backstreet Courtyard Key. This combat route is also described in the Mountain of Imprisonment collectible guide.

Speak to the female puppet afterward if you want to continue the related Bai Xue storyline. The key objective and the follow-up quest are separate things to check in your journal.

Use the key in Pangzhen

Return to the locked courtyard gate in Pangzhen's backstreets and check that its prompt matches this key. It is not a universal key for every barrier in the district.

If you are following other optional routes, TipsMake's Gold-Masked One and Long Pillar locations explains their separate access requirements.

If the quest does not advance

• Check that the ledger is in your inventory and that you have exhausted Chen Zhu's relevant dialogue.
• Follow the journal's current handover objective rather than assuming the first conversation finishes the quest.
• After the fight, inspect the reward list and key inventory before leaving.
• If you selected a different response, check your current quest state before changing anything; this walkthrough covers the fight branch.