Zibai

Overview

Zibai is a playable character in the open-world RPG Genshin Impact, developed by MiHoYo. Known in regional mythology as the White Horse Adeptus, she is an ancient figure whose origins predate even the Archon War and the Geo Archon, Zhongli. Formerly worshipped as the God of Soil and Grain who guided the ancient civilization of Lang-Gan, her soul was fractured when she defied divine destruction to protect her people. In the game, she functions as a Geo sword wielder utilizing a unique Moon Wheel in combat.

Appearance

Zibai features long, wavy white hair tied into a high ponytail with highlighted strands. Her attire includes wide sleeves, hanging earrings, thigh-high boots, and high heels. A defining visual feature is her eye color, which shifts depending on which of her three soul fragments is active: blue for her upper soul, red for her middle soul, and yellow-gold for her lower soul.

Personality

Zibai exhibits a split personality resulting from her partitioned souls known as the Three Corpses. Her upper soul (blue eyes) is calm, highly analytical, and obsessed with mathematics and logical deduction. Her middle soul (red eyes) is hot-tempered, forceful, and impulsively obsessed with fulfilling others' desires by any means. Her lower soul (yellow eyes) is peaceful, easygoing, and fond of wandering freely. Even after her revival, these traits periodically surface depending on which aspect leads. Additionally, she shows a endearing weakness to spicy food, which easily brings her to tears.

Abilities

Zibai is a Geo sword attacker whose damage scales primarily off her Defense stat. Through a unique passive talent, she alters Hydro Crystallize reactions into specialized Moon Crystallize reactions, creating Moon Cages that unleash coordinated follow-up attacks. Her Elemental Skill converts her attacks into non-overrideable Geo damage scaled on Defense and builds a dedicated resource gauge. Spending this gauge allows her to execute the empowered strike Leaping Celestial Steed. Her Elemental Burst unleashes two waves of Geo area-of-effect damage, with the second hit dealt as Moon Crystallize damage.

Background

Originally an angel created under the cosmic plan of Phanes, Zibai served as the deity of agriculture and weaving for the ancient civilization of Lang-Gan. During the Great War of Vengeance, when the heavens decreed the destruction of Lang-Gan via a Celestial Nail, Zibai defied the mandate to guide her people to safety. As punishment for her rebellion, her divine soul broke, but Istaroth preserved her consciousness by splitting it into three entities: her upper soul trapped within the False Moon, her middle soul asleep in The Chasm, and her lower soul sealed inside a silk painting. In the Archon War, her lower soul forged a compact with Zhongli to fight by his side before retiring to Qingce. During a later Lantern Rite, through the combined efforts of the Traveler and Zhongli, all three fragments reunited, allowing her to be reborn into the world.

Relationships

Zibai shares a long-standing alliance with Zhongli (the Geo Archon), who freed her lower soul fragment during the Archon War and fought alongside her. Their connection persists into the modern day, with her inn expenses humorously billed to the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor through him. She holds a deep historical connection to Istaroth, the Shade of Time, who originally granted her the Moon Wheel and preserved her broken soul. She also forms a close bond with the Traveler, who played a key role in searching for her soul fragments and helping her adjust to contemporary Liyue.

Trivia

Her name Zibai is derived from a mythical beast described in ancient Chinese literature such as the Yi Zhou Shu, described as a white horse-like creature that preys on tigers and leopards. Her Constellation names and talent lore feature extensive references to passages from the Zhuangzi, including the famous idiom regarding a white steed passing a crevice. References to her character were teased as early as Version 1.0 in the in-game book Moonlit Bamboo Forest.