The Gold-Masked One inside the Long Pillar in Phantom Blade Zero is a bit of an unconventional boss fight. Each of the pillar fights in the Bloodline Awakening quest is a challenge battle against this boss which teaches you different aspects of the game's combat.

The first battle is all about parrying, hence why it gives you the tip box in the top right. This fight is tricky because of its main gimmick:

You can't damage The Gold-Masked One apart from after a parry or perfect dodge (a blue or red attack) or unless his Sha-Chi is broken.

Usually, in Phantom Blade Zero's boss fights, it pays to attack constantly, especially as regular attacks don't even cost Sha-Chi. But in this fight, your attacks won't do anything. Instead, you should:

Counter his red (perfect dodge) or blue (perfect parry) attacks and then attack after that to deplete his Sha-Chi.…