Leizhenzi

Leizhenzi
Character Information
Allegiance(s):	Kunlun Ji Fa's forces
Element:	Metal
Initial Weapon:	Club
Age:	5 [FY] 6 [FY2]
Height:	91 cm (3')
Weight:	31 kg (68 lbs; in human form)
First Appearance:	Fengshen Yanyi
Voice Actor(s):	Sakura Tange [FY,drama CDs] Hiromi Konno [FY 2,MH; jp]
Mythological Information
Real name:	Léizhènzǐ
Chinese/Japanese:	雷震子
Also known as:	Thunderbolt or Thunderquaker Rai Shinshi Noe Jinja (뇌진자)
Divine name(s):	Lei Gong
Lei Gong is also the name he is known under in various Chinese myths; he is not given this name by Jiang Ziya in Fengshen Yanyi. In other tales for his Lei Zhenzi name, he was Ji Chang's 100th adopted child and was ordered to leave on King Zhou's orders.

Leizhenzi is Yun Zhongzi's disciple and a young boy who can magically transform into a larger bird-man at will. He is considered the mascot character of the Fengshen Yanyi series.

In the English adaption of Mystic Heroes he is known as Ariel and can be directed in the game's Mission Mode.

Role in Games

Soon after acquiring Wei Hu, Taigong Wang's party continue their march towards West Qi. A violent lightning storm suddenly interrupts their journey. The mystic Yun Zhongzi descends from the heavens and apologizes for causing the stir. He informs the leader of the party that he is present on Yuanshi Tianzun's behest. Offering his own student to assist the young taoist, the elder master calls Leizhenzi over. Though Taigong Wang is surprised to see a boy with wings, Nezha is unimpressed by the "brat" and tries to start a fight. In response, Leizhenzi morphs into his taller bird form to startle the mystical boy. Witnessing the boy's ability and thanking Yun Zhongzi, Taigong Wang agrees to the generous offer and accepts Lei Zhenzi as a member.

After the final battle, he returns to his master and is accompanied by Wei Hu. He also makes a small appearance at Kunlun Mountain with his master in Magical Fengshen, cheering on Sora and his friends.

Once Nezha breaks free from his pot in Fengshen Yanyi 2, Ziya and his party agree to continue looking for the other mystical comrade from Taigong Wang's previous journey before heading back to West Qi. Based on the advice of the boy's master, they head to the northern gate, Qinlong Pass.

When they arrive, no one is there so Ziya asks one of his party members to cry out to him, which mistakenly attracts monsters and Savage Beasts. Defeating a group of them with some effort, lightning suddenly strikes the ground and Leizhenzi, in his bird form, flies in the air above Ziya's group. Ziya mistakes Leizhenzi as another monster until Deng Chanyu beckons the boy to land. Transforming instantly into his human self on landing, he pouts at how Ziya couldn't recognize him but brightens at the thought of another journey with his friends. While traveling through Emperor Ling's realm, his spirit momentarily takes residence within Huang Feihu's body, but this is reverted when Ziya's party disables the transmigration. He returns home after the final battle.

In Mystic Heroes, Leizhenzi is a NPC ally who assists the player's party by flying to high places in Mission Mode. In the PlayStation 2 port of the game he receives his own playable mode in which players direct him through a ravine, dodging falling obstacles as he tries to get to the goal point at the end.

Personality

Innocent and friendly, Leizhenzi is an excitable child who simply wants to play. Gifted with the ability of flight, he loves to explore new places when he is granted the permission to leave Kunlun. He refers to himself in third-person, often as "Rai-chan" (らいちゃん). As the youngest member of the party, he fondly calls everyone his "older sister/older brother". He especially likes Nezha but the latter simply can't stand his gushing affections for too long. While he doesn't do it often, Lei Zhenzi can speak the bird language (a series of chirps and tweets) and tries to teach it to his friends for fun.

Fighting Style

Leizhenzi is the only party member who can fly over people and obstacles, beating levitating characters with the height of his flights. For his first appearance, his luck and physical attributes are among the weakest in the party. However, he is quite fast and an adept spell caster. Specializing in offensive magic, he can perform hit and run maneuvers from a long distance. He can simply fly to a high spot on the map if he has sustained too much damage, as a majority of enemies will not be able to reach him. Players who use him well can also use him to punish the hard-to-hit flying enemies in the game, since Leizhenzi will have a significantly better chance of hitting them than his walking allies. His default ability is a powerful lightning attack; it is a cheap costing attack to help him hit his enemies.

His attack and defense improve slightly in the sequel. His attacks have also have an additional wind element attached to them, making him able to target groups of foes with relative ease.

The following lists his starting weapon and magic proficiencies in Fengshen Yanyi.

Sword - n/a

Spear - n/a

Club - 2/5

Bow - 1/5

Earth - n/a

Healing - n/a

Illusion - 3/8

Chi - 2/7

Fengshen Yanyi

Born from supernatural means after a fierce lightning storm in chapter 10, the kind Ji Chang found the infant due to a foreseen prophecy and sought a caring family to adopt the child. Moments before his men could move out, the duke was personally confronted by Master of the Clouds. The superiorman had noticed the shift in the stars during the lightning storm and was more than willing to take care of the child. He named the child Leizhenzi (literally "Thunder Quake Child") to celebrate the mystical birth.

He was raised for the next seven years as Master of the Clouds's disciple. When Ji Chang was fleeing Morning Song with Huang Feihu's assistance, the duke encountered danger as he tried to force his way through the first of the five passes. Master of the Clouds noticed the strife and called for Thunderbolt immediately. He told his disciple to fetch a weapon at Tiger Cliff in order to save the boy's adopted father. The boy left and only found peaceful wildlife surrounding him at the cliff. During his search, Thunderbolt happened to spot two crimson apricots growing on a tree. Delighted to see the lovely giant fruit, he happily plucked them, thinking to save one for himself and save the other for his master. He took a bite of one of the apricots to taste it and was so delighted with the first bite that he devoured the entire bounty without even realizing it. As he ventured further for the weapon his master wanted, he ate the second apricot unconsciously. Walking further still for the weapon, he heard a sound but, at first, he thought nothing of it. However, he was surprised to hear the sound coming from him and noticed his back had suddenly sprouted two wings. The boy felt his face had changed too; it became tinged completely blue, and his nose had grown much longer to protrude two tusks. To top it off, his hair became red and he had also grown much taller.

Jin Xia, another one of Master of the Clouds' disciples and a junior compared to Thunderbolt, appeared before the startled boy to inform them that their master was calling for him. Thunderbolt was startled that Jin Xia could still even recognize him and was ashamed to face his master in his transformed state. Jin Xia responded by harshly telling the boy to see their master regardless of his feelings and Thunderbolt did so by clumsily flapping with his wings. Master of the Clouds was pleased by Thunderbolt's new form for the boy had done exactly as he wanted. He gave the lad a golden staff and taught the boy how to use it with great skill. Noticing that Thunderbolt couldn't control his wings properly, his master wrote the characters "wind" and "thunder" on his pupil's wings. The characters allowed Thunderbolt to control his new wings at will. His master told the boy to not kill a single soldier while saving his father to set an example to Master of the Clouds' other pupils. Flying with great speed to where Ji Chang was fleeing for his life, Thunderbolt deflected the Shang army that was in pursuit. Introducing himself to his father, Ji Chang then recognized him and asked the boy to spare the lives of those chasing him, respecting their call of duty to the throne -though flawed as it may be.

Thunderbolt guarded the path for Ji Chang's escape and blocked the generals in pursuit by smashing the mountain to cause a cave in for the narrow path. As the Shang army fled, the boy offered for his father to ride on his back to bypass the other gates. Regretfully leaving his beloved horse behind, Ji Chang agreed for his swift return to West Qi. After flying his father over the passes, Thunderbolt realized that he lacked the courage to continue -since he disobeyed his master's orders- and left. He promised to once again see his father when Ji Chang was named king.

He wouldn't see his father on the throne at West Qi but Thunderbolt did see his older brother, King Wu. At his master's behest, he introduced himself after a brief skirmish with Wen Zhong's army. Jiang Ziya, who knew of the strange looking man's heroics from Ji Chang's tales, happily greeted the young master into their army. Fearing criticism for the throne if he were to acknowledge the odd looking Thunderbolt as his brother, King Wu agreed to have him in his army only if were admitted in Jiang Ziya's family. Thunderbolt agreed and served the Zhou army. Armed with his twin hammers and his golden staff, Thunderbolt participated in several battles thereafter, personally causing the deaths of five Shang generals. He was among the taoists who survived to see King Zhou's fall. He chose to return to Kunlun Mountains rather than stay for a political role in the new kingdom.

Gallery

Fenshen Yanyi artwork

Fenshen Yanyi portraits

Magical Fengshen screenshot