LuoHeng

LuoHeng is the slash ship between Dan Heng and Luocha from the Honkai: Star Rail fandom.

Windswept Wanderlust
After the Express is stopped by Kafka and sees Welt, March, and the Trailblazer disembark, Dan Heng stays behind on the Express due to his criminal status on the Luofu. However, when it becomes clear that his mortal enemy and pursuer, Blade, is present and could pose a threat to his friends, in a panic does Dan Heng leave with Himeko’s encouragement and ventures aboard.

After Dan Heng leaves, he happens upon the Cloudford and tries several times to message his friends, but to no avail. Likely because of the interference of the Stellaron, Dan Heng has no choice but to continue looking. Eventually, he’s confronted by Mara-struck Cloud Knights and runs into Sushang who joins the fray to assist. If either of them sustain damage, at some point does Luocha join them and acts as a healer to rejuvenate them both. "Dan Heng: What...? With you two risking your lives for me… Could I really… '...stay where I am?'"Following the battle, the trio expresses relief at prevailing, but when Dan Heng evasively tries to leave, Sushang stops him and informs that, as a Cloud Knight, she needs to uphold the martial law the Luofu is currently under due to the Stellaron Crisis and, as civilians, Luocha and Dan Heng need to be accompanied by her. Though reluctant, Dan Heng ultimately agrees and the three of them create a makeshift traveling party, humorously being called “silent but deadly” by Sushang despite introducing himself.

When the scene returns to them after an interlude on the other Nameless’ end, Dan Heng, Luocha, and Sushang successfully leave Staffskiff Haven and make way to the Artisanship Commission. There, they find Xueyi ambushed by three Mara-struck Soldiers and team up to take them down. As she sustained compromising damage, Xueyi urges them to take her to the Realm-Keeping Commission for repairs, but Luocha assures her that he’s capable of healing her and proceeds to do so. After, they follow in tow of Xueyi.

After returning to Dan Heng’s mission following the Trailblazer’s once again, it’s shown that the trio are engaged in conversation about the various Aeons. Sushang asks about Luocha’s coffin, dovetailing into talking about the death customs of the Xianzhou’s races, such as how Natives go to the Hall of Karma, Foxians have a Returning, and Vidyadhara are reborn in eggs. It’s then that Dan Heng finally contributes to the exchange and brings up more about the Vidyadhara and them being Long’s descendants.

Luocha pipes as well, mentioning the mysterious circumstances under which Long vanished, almost as if he’d never existed at all. Sushang prods Luocha, asking who the person in his coffin is. Luocha genially deflects and explains that it’s only a person he met once but kept a promise to.

Topclouded Towerthrust
In the final leg of their time together, the three of them arrive at the Alchemy Commission to finally depart. Sushang bids them farewell after succeeding in escorting them to safety while Luocha muses that a fortune teller divined him a fortune about not being concerned with the destination, and to instead flow with the current to reap the harvest, almost a foreshadowing of the events to come, especially for Dan Heng. Dan Heng remains silent and Sushang leaves, confused, but Luocha and Sushang linger in the Healer’s Market. Dan Heng is given the option to speak to Sushang and Luocha one last time, and the goodbye with Luocha goes as follows.


 * Luocha: You haven't been back home for a long time, have you Master Dan Heng?
 * (Lie) This isn't my home.
 * Luocha: Ah... is that so? Apologies.
 * How did you know...
 * Luocha: As home draws nearer, so our feelings grow stronger. I can see it in your eyes.
 * Luocha: Do you want to leave? Then do it now.
 * Dan Heng: ...
 * Luocha: The Cloud Knights will soon check our identities. I have somewhere else to be — I've tarried here too long.
 * Dan Heng: ...Where are you going?
 * Luocha: I'm a traveling merchant. I have one more deal to see through.

Sushang, meanwhile, says this:


 * Sushang: What's up?
 * I need to go.
 * Sushang: Go? Go where? The Luofu is under lockdown — the Cloud Knights' operation isn't over yet.
 * Sushang: Relax. When the fight is over, I'll personally escort you and Mr. Luocha home~
 * Nothing...


 * Sushang: Don't worry. Once the fight is over, I'll personally escort you and Mr. Luocha home~

Clouds Leave No Trace
Although Luocha and Dan Heng don’t personally speak to one another, Luocha makes a passing comment marveling at the deeds of the High-Cloud Quintet, mentioning Dan Feng by name among them. Another is him making a dig at Jing Yuan for exiling Dan Heng. Following the mission and his escape, Luocha sneaks aboard the Astral Express to leave a note for the Nameless, personally thanking Dan Heng for their newfound friendship. After, he cannot return to the Express as a visitor and his fate is unknown but strongly foreshadowed to possibly cross paths with Dan Heng following the shocking revelation of a far more sinister character than the person Dan Heng befriended.

Following the mission, Luocha leaves a note to the Nameless for them to find: Dear Nameless,

Having to deliver this letter instead of bidding you farewell in person on the Express leaves me with a sense of regret.

''I've heard of your noble deeds in the Xianzhou Luofu and had the pleasure of getting to know such intriguing a friend as Dan Heng. This journey through the meandering Xianzhou has allowed each of us, including those on the Astral Express, to find what we were seeking – a remarkable and fulfilling conclusion that is truly incredible. Now, I must continue on to the next station of my destiny.''

In accordance with the customs of my homeland, it is customary to leave behind some tokens at the places one visits as a way to express gratitude to those who have aided in stepping onto unfamiliar ground and to wish for smooth travels ahead.

''Thus, enclosed with this letter is a small token of appreciation. Please accept it with my sincere regards. May our paths cross once more in the future.''

Warmest Regards,

Luocha

Visitor Lines:
In Luocha’s Visitor lines, he has two instances where he mentions Dan Heng: the first is about his acquaintanceship, and the second is a mention in another dialogue tree.

''' I must thank Dan Heng... '''


 * (Approach Luocha)
 * Luocha: It truly is a stunning view...
 * (Initial interaction)
 * Luocha: I must thank Dan Heng for his invitation - this journey upon the Astral Express has been well worth my while. Interstellar warp jumps with merchants are often dull, and rarely ever feel like an actual journey.
 * Luocha: The Astral Express... The CloudstriderAkivili really was an Aeon of taste.
 * ...Who are you?
 * Luocha: Oh... Forgive me, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm an interstellar merchant - my Xianzhou registered name is "Luocha".
 * Luocha: I met an acquaintance of yours several days ago named Dan Heng. He invited me to board the Express should I have the time, and so here I am.
 * Luocha: Astounding! The retro design of this locomotive, the comfort of its cabins! If only our own spacecraft could be modified in such a way...
 * So? Modify it!
 * Luocha: Hah, now that would be something... but on a merchant ship, load, security, and sterilization take precedence over creature comforts…
 * Luocha: What I mean to say is, comfort comes second to business. We generally use the Company's mass-produced transport ships.
 * To be honest, it's not as good as you think.
 * Luocha: Really? After listening to Dan Heng, I assumed you all liked it…
 * Luocha: Such a train can be likened to a solitary candle in the darkness of night... One may peer upon such civilizations where strife, hardship, desperation, and sorrow exist seemingly in a separate plane of existence…

People on the Express are...


 * Luocha: I heard Dan Heng mention that before he boarded the Express, there was a passenger who looked remarkably like me.

Quotes
{{Quote|[...} The mesmerizing cloudhymn magic of "Imbibitor Lunae" Dan Feng [...]|Luocha, about Dan Feng}} "Seeing that you sense something is amiss, are you looking to defend me and clear my name of suspicion?"

- Luocha, making a dig to Jing Yuan about Dan Heng

Fanon
Currently, Luoheng is a rarepair with a small following. Despite it's small size, Luocha and Dan Heng are shown to have a friendly relationship in canon with them shown bonding in a Dragonboat Festival official artwork by making local fare together and during the second leg of their missions together where they engage in friendly conversation with Sushang. Their relationship was close enough that Dan Heng felt comfortable enough to invite Luocha to visit the Astral Express, as shown in his visitor lines, and in the letter Luocha send at the end of Jingliu's companion mission where Luocha expresses gratitude at being able to befriend Dan Heng. Whether Dan Heng is aware of Luocha's treachery is currently unknown, but given the fact that Luocha expresses a desire to cross paths with the Nameless again, it's strongly implied that it may occur.

Before the end of 1.4, most fanworks conveyed a friendly relationship between Luocha and Dan Heng, reflecting on their canon friendship and oftentimes including Sushang who was part of their group. After the end of 1.4 and into Jingliu's companion mission, it's revealed that Luocha is more sinister than he let on initially and is strongly implied to take after his Expys (one of which Dan Heng is said to have met or encountered), Otto Apocalypse and Void Archives, in bearing a more villainous character. Whether this is more as an anti-villain to overthrow the Abundance or something more malevolent is unclear, but where Dan Heng is concerned, it's revealed that Luocha is not only aware of Dan Feng, but that he seems to have knowledge of Dan Heng's true identity as the past High Elder given his "Added to Party" lines acknowledge the differences between Dan Heng's 4* and 5* appearances as he calls Dan Heng IL by his formal title, something not explicitly known outside of people like former HCQ members, Yanqing, Fu Xuan, and Bailu who all met Dan Heng IL during the 1.2 Trailblazer Missions. The tone in those lines in the ENG version is especially foreboding, even more so when one considers that the only characters who have two "Added to Team" voicelines for both of Dan Heng's versions are those who encountered Dan Heng in both of his forms, which makes Luocha's all the more unique.

Whether this bodes something ill later on is unknown, but given Luocha's awareness of Dan Feng's sin, it's likely later meetings could lead to confrontations.

It has less than 30 fics on Ao3 and is rivaled by Renheng and Jingheng on Dan Heng's end, and Jingluo on Luocha's.

Fandom

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Trivia

 * Thus far, Luocha and Dan Heng have been featured in the following holidays together:
 * The Dragonboat Festival
 * 100 Post-Launch Celebration artwork
 * The food that Luocha and Dan Heng prepared together is known as Zongzi, a popular dish for the Dragonboat Festival. Legend goes that when the patriotic, Kingdom of Chu poet, Qu Yuan, failed to console his king, he threw himself into a river to drown. Moved by his actions, townspeople gathered at the banks and tossed rice into the river in the hopes of distracting any ravenous fish from consuming the poet's corpse.