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One of the major plot points in Honkai: Star Rail’s Xianzhou Luofu arc involves the Astral Express crew confronting Dan Heng’s past and asking why he was exiled from his hometown. However, most players come away from that arc not actually knowing what Dan Heng, or rather Dan Feng, as he was known back then, did to get exiled in the first place. Join us as we try to decipher and explain what he did to get banished.
About Dan Heng, Dan Feng, and Imbibitor Lunae
Dan Heng is one of the members of the Astral Express crew and one of the first characters you meet in the game. He’s a cold and serious man who joined the Astral Express to escape his past on the Luofu. On the Express, he serves as the archivist. While Dan Heng appears to be human, he is really a Vidyadhara. Vidyadhara is a long-lived species native to the Xianzhou Luofu that is descended from the deceased Aeon of Permanence.
They have draconic features, including horns, scales, and tails. Though their life spans are a few hundred years, they are effectively immortal. When they grow old, they revert into an egg, which will eventually hatch and allow them to be reincarnated. Dan Heng’s Imbibitor Lunae form is actually his and Dan Feng’s true Vidyadhara form.
Simply put, Dan Heng is the reincarnation of Dan Feng, who was his previous life. He was a very important figure in the Luofu’s society: the High Elder to the planet’s Vidyadhara and a member of the High-Cloud Quintet. However, he committed some kind of horrible sin, was imprisoned, and forced to reincarnate. Once he became Dan Heng, he was banished.
Dan Feng and the High-Cloud Quintet
The High-Cloud Quintet was a group of celebrated heroes on the Xianzhou Luofu. They have since been dissolved following a myriad of catastrophes, including what led to Dan Feng getting banished.
The High-Cloud Quintet is full of familiar faces but also some unfamiliar ones:
- Baiheng, who was at some point a Trailblazer. She is now deceased.
- Jingliu, who is now some form of Mara-Struck.
- Jing Yuan, who is now an Arbiter-General.
- Yingxing, who is now the person we know as Blade.
Blade is one of the most important pieces of the puzzle. Everything that happened between him and Dan Feng decides both of their fates.
Why Was Dan Feng Exiled in Honkai: Star Rail (His Ultimate Sin)
Dan Feng and Blade were very close, possibly the closest out of the entire Quintet. They even engaged in a cup-exchanging ceremony to symbolize the closeness of their relationship. It’s not clear why Dan Feng and Blade decided to do what they did, but it isn’t hard to imagine that one of the main reasons why they did it is because neither of them wanted to live without the other.
Blade was a short-lived species, while Dan Feng could reincarnate. Compared to Dan Feng’s life, Blade is just a speck in the winds of time. And if they care that much about each other, of course, they would want to preserve that. Dan Feng and Blade agreed on a plan to grant the latter immortality, which is one of the Luofu’s Ten Unpardonable Sins. To do so, Dan Feng stole power directly from the Abundance and used it to make Blade immortal. It worked, however, it also caused Blade to become Mara-Struck and completely fractured his mind, memories and all.
Why Blade Hunts Dan Heng
Shortly after Blade became Mara-Struck, the authorities in the Luofu threw Blade off the planet and imprisoned Dan Feng. Dan Feng was killed and reincarnated as Dan Heng. Since then, Blade has been hunting Dan Heng as revenge for turning him into what he is now.
Their blades have clashed many times over the years, to little success. All Blade wants is to die and to make Dan Heng suffer for what he turned him into. At some point, Blade joined the Stellaron Hunters, and Dan Heng joined the Astral Express, but the game of cat and mouse continued. While HoYoverse has yet to tell the full story, this is largely what we know about why Dan Feng is Exiled in Honkai: Star Rail.
Honkai: Star Rail is now available on Android, iOS, PC, and PlayStation 5.
